Reality Theory

Discussion in 'Archives' started by Light-Rune Maven, Mar 14, 2013.

  1. Light-Rune Maven Seer

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    So, to the few of you who knew this was coming, Here it is; Steels story. It's long and mysterious and I hope somewhat creepy. But don't be disappointed that he does not have a keyblade; that was for the purpose of the RP. I came up with this story a long time ago, but could never make the ends meet the way I wanted to. Now I have, SO WITHOUT FURTHER ADO, the prologue. Enjoy

    Prologue​
    It was a cold wet afternoon. Rain was pouring down and fog could be seen in the distance. It was the normal weather; at least it was in Hypnos Terra. There were not many people around, but there was a young girl standing all by herself. She was tall with soft, long white hair, and blue eyes. She wore a white t-shirt, blue jeans, tennis shoes, and a black duster. She was standing within a gazebo, at the edge of a park, observing a nearby performance. Masked men and women were dancing in the street; wrapped in black cloaks, they continued to dance and sing as the rain poured harder and harder. “Why do they do it?” She asked herself. “Why do they continue to perform in this pouring rain?”
    What was stranger still was that people usually came out to watch. She looked around but saw no one today. She thought about the place she was in, the town called Hypnos Terra. It was a strange name, It seemed so unrealistic. But this is where she was stuck; this was the newest place foster care had taken her. She sighed as she grabbed her backpack. At least the the fresh air had helped to clear her head. She turned to run out into the pouring rain, not caring if she got wet. She was rather surprised to crash into someone instead. Papers were scattered about the gazebo as she and a boy her age fell to the ground.

    She groaned as she rose from the ground. Right across from her, the boy sat up and rubbed his forehead. “I Apologize.” He said to her. He began to gather up the papers. He was also a tall person, taller than she was. His hair was dark blue, as were his hoodie jacket and tennis shoes. He wore blue jeans, a white t-shirt and slight scowl. His eyes also dark blue; they could be compared to a whirlpool out at sea.

    “No, it’s alright.” She said. She started to gather up papers as well. Surprisingly none of the papers had fallen outside the protection of the gazebo. There was one paper however, that had fallen uncomfortably close to the wet rain. Next to it laid an empty white envelope. It seemed to be a letter for someone. For some reason the letter seemed important, as if it was something she should see. So she stopped to read the contents of the paper she now held in her hands. She was quite surprised at what she found.


    Dear Professor
    Regarding our discussion on the research of ancient prophecies, I have found the one you had requested. It was not easy; the prophecy is very old, only one copy of the book holding it exists. I know you are a busy person, so please contact me whenever you can. The subject material is just as you described, and it will definitely take some work to estimate what the civilization was like based on the contents of this book. I have to ask though… why does this interests you all of a sudden? You don’t have to tell me, I suppose. But if you’re in some kind of trouble, you can tell me.
    Sincerely
    Clair Alice Bright


    “What the…” The girl was shocked by the contents. “Who…” But her thoughts were quickly interrupted.

    “Excuse me.” The boy Said form in front of her. The girl looked up to see that all the books and papers had been stacked neatly into two piles. “I have to deliver that letter.”

    “Oh, right, sorry.” She folded the letter, placed it in the envelope, and gave it to the boy.

    “So you’re the new student right?” He asked. His eyes had an appraising look about them, as if he were trying to determine everything about her merely by sight.

    “Umm, yes…” the girl was now unsure of the boy; the letter had thrown her off. She would never have guessed its contents. “I’m sorry I read it.” She told him.

    “Don’t be, it wasn't anything private. I was told to deliver it; I wasn't told it wasn't for prying eyes.

    “But the writer was clearly concerned about someone’s safety. She thought that someone was being blackmailed or worse.” She didn't know how to respond to the boys complete lack of concern.

    “She told me that she worries about that kind of stuff all the time, and that it was nothing to worry about.” The boy shrugged off the subject and started a new one. “So what are you doing here?” he asked.

    The girl decided to play along. “Oh, I just needed some fresh air, what about you?”

    “I enjoy watching the Masquerade’s performances.” He told her as he looked out onto the street. The Masked men and women continued all kinds of performances, as if they were at a carnival. After a brief silence, the girl spoke up.

    “Well I better go.” She watched his face for any change.

    “All right then,” He said with a perfectly straight face. “I hope you enjoy it here.”

    “Thank you.” She said. She gathered all her things, and hurried out into the pouring rain. Once she was away, she whispered to herself: “What’s going on? I didn't write that letter.” As Clair turned to look back at the boy, she could have sworn he was smiling all of a sudden.

    ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    As Clair neared the Dorm she saw a boy and a girl at the sidewalk. They seemed to be talking about something important. As she neared though the Boy; who had Red hair green eyes and wore jeans, a black t-shirt, a lab coat, and white gloves; gave the girl a smile and walked away.
    As she came closer, the girl turned to see who was approaching. She had long black hair and green eyes similar to that of the boy who just left. She wore a knee length black skirt, Black boots, and a black t-shirt. She smiled warmly as Clair approached. “Hi!” She said cheerfully. “You must be Clair Alice Bright. We have a name in common, I’m Alice Aquila.” She extended her hand.

    “It’s nice to meet you.” Clair Responded. “If you don’t mind me asking, who were you just talking to?”

    “Oh that was my brother Leonidas. Everyone calls him Leo. He just went back to the boys’ dorm.” Clair thought that explanation made sense. Of course he would come to see his sister. “Let’s go inside shall we? It’s very wet out here.” Clair realized that she hadn't even felt the rain anymore until Alice said something. It was strange, but she followed Alice inside.

    The rest of the evening was uneventful. Alice introduced her to some of the other girls, and then she finished her homework, and ate dinner. As she was getting ready for bed, her thoughts drifted back to the strange letter and the boy that had been delivering it. She decided to ask Alice about him tomorrow, seeing as how Alice had taken it upon herself to be Clair’s guide. When she turned out the lights and lay down in bed, her thoughts drifted once again; this time to a book she had found in the Public Library after leaving school. But she could not think of why her thoughts turned there. Not long after, she fell into sleep.
     
  2. Sebax Avatar by Xerona

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    Good story. The structure of how you place everything and shift the appearance of the words for
    a given circumstance is perfect; don't change this. Hypnos Terra sounds like a lively place, given
    the parade. Maybe you should a little more imagery and coloring to your words. I particularly
    like how:





    The letter Clair reads is addressed from herself. This piqued my interest the most and really made me want to keep reading. A very good hook, MYTH/Flood.


    Keep up the good work, as I expect to read more.
     
  3. mindstorm787 Gummi Ship Junkie

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    mmmmmmmm-hhhhhhmmmmmmmm..... You are gonna outdo yourself, Flood!
     
  4. Light-Rune Maven Seer

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    Thank you for your time, readers. I feel like this is rushed. I wanted to get it done before I go back to school on Monday. Spring Break will be over then and I'll have less free time. Oh well, here is chapter 1. BTW I did not know there was a member named Aura until recently. I am NOT referencing her. I've never even talked to her.


    Chapter 1​
    Safety​
    She awoke in Forest. It was in the dead of night; the moon shone high above, illuminating the trees and foliage around her. She was now wearing a white cloak, gauntlets, and metal boots over her regular clothing. She could hear what sounded like the howling of wolves, but was it? The sound drove fear straight into her soul, or did it? She was tired and confused. “Where am I?” she asked aloud. The howling grew closer, but she just stood there in the clearing; she was curious as to what exactly was making the noise. It did not sound like a wolf, not exactly; something was off. The howls grew closer and closer, but still she just stood there. She had remembered who she was by now, and she was confident that based on her mental state, this was in fact a dream.

    As she watched, several Lupine figures broke into the clearing. She was amazed at the creatures’ appearance. Despite having the basic anatomy of a wolf, there was an extremely visible difference; on their face, where their eyes should have been, was a strange emblem. It portrayed a gem being held in place by a pair of pincers. The creatures began to circle her, their growls reverberating with a low electronic hum. “What a strange dream.” She said to herself. She did nothing to try and get away; she merely stood there looking unimpressed at the creatures who she now realized were twice the size of wolves.



    In an instant one of them jumped toward her, fangs bared, going for her throat. She merely turned to look at the oncoming threat with a blank stare. At the last second, Another Lupine figure jumped from the shadows. Its path led it between her and the other wolf like creature. It scratched the creatures face with its front paw, causing the creature’s blood and saliva to flow into the air. The wolf shouted a name: “Aura!” She immediately snapped out of her trance. She observed the wolf that had just saved her life. He was even bigger than the creatures were, three times that of a normal wolf. His fur was light gray, and his front left leg was covered with what appeared to be Raven’s feathers. A chain was wrapped around his back right leg, and his eye contained an unusual lucidity.

    “I… will… protect you… Aura…” He strung the words together as if unsure how to pronounce them. His voice was like cacophony of thoughts and emotions. A sound resembling white noise, a voice that’s purpose seemed to be to calm her mind .The circling creatures continued to attack, at every turn, the large wolf would stop them. The smell of their blood now filled the area. It was an acrid smell similar to burning rubber and smoke. Aura coughed as she continued to watch the fight. The monsters continued to swarm the wolf, and he continued to fight them off. Many of them came close to her; but the wolf would always snatch them up and throw them into the others. She could see the blood around his neck, face and chest. He continued to slash his claws at their faces, and bite their necks with his large fangs, but he could not go on forever.

    Aura suddenly realized that she held a sword in her hand. It was practically transparent and without color, as though it was made of glass. It had been impossible to notice earlier when she was in her trance. Its sharp edge reflected the moonlight; brightening her surroundings and enhancing the colors of the leaves on the trees. Now that she was more awake, the fear from the monsters howls was very real. She looked at the wolf that for some unknown reason was protecting her from a seemingly endless onslaught of enemies. She decided that no one should die for her sake, not when she had just stood there and done nothing. The sword seemed to glow brighter at that thought. Aura brought the sword higher; as it came higher she grabbed it with both hands.


    She looked on at the carnage before her; and then at the sword in her hands. She felt her heart beat faster. She knew what she was about to do was suicide, but she had to do it. She charged into the howling monsters and slashed 3 through in the neck, it was then that she realized that it was not blood that came from the creatures; they were disappearing into thick red smoke. She was attacked from the left, but she intercepted the movement by slicing at the monsters head. She continued to dodge hack and slash at the monsters, and was surprised that now that she had joined the battle they were actually winning. The wolf seemed to have gotten stronger as well. Over the course of an hour, the two of them quickly defeated many of the monsters, and the steady stream monsters eventually slowed.

    Aura could not tell how much time was passing, for the long battle had further dulled her tired senses. With so few of them to fight, the battle was soon over. She finished off the last one by cutting it in half. It was a good thing, because it had taken much of her strength to fight so hard for so long. She saw the wolf approach her, bloodied and bruised, but with what seemed to be a small smile on his face. “Aura,” he said in a softly in his white noise voice. “I… would have been… fine.” Aura did not see how he would have been fine, but she was tired and did not want to argue him. She began to thank him for saving her, but then she nearly fell to the ground. The wolf quickly caught her on his side. “Rest.” He told her.




    He gently lowered her to the ground, making sure she didn't get hurt. “What about the monsters?” She asked him. “Won’t there be more soon?” The wolf shook his head. “Not, Awhile. They Failed.” She laid her head down on the ground, grateful for the chance to rest. “I go to find herbs.” He said. “Will not be long, you stay.” With that, he was off. While he was in the forest, Aura wondered where she was. Before she awoke she had been somewhere else, but where? She could not remember, no matter how hard she tried. Her thoughts turned to the wolf; what was it doing here? How did it know her name? Could she really trust it?


    Aura shook her head to herself. Of course she could trust him! He had almost died for her! She looked off in the direction he had gone. He hadn't seemed worried at all. Where had he gone? She turned her face up to the sky. Even if he wasn't trustworthy, she would have to risk it. He knew where they were and she didn't. She had no idea how long she was lying down there. It seemed like hours, but in the dead of night it was probably only a few minutes. She had about fallen asleep when she heard noises. Aura quickly turned her head toward the sound and was relieved, and somewhat nervous to see that the wolf had returned.


    He walked over to where she lay on the ground, aware that she was too weak to go anywhere. She noticed that all the blood and cuts were gone from his body. In his mouth, various leaves, berries, and twigs were arranged in a bundle. He let them down next to her head. She had no clue where he got it, but there was a small cup as well. “Crush leaves and Berries, stir with twig.” Aura sat up and did as she was told, unsure of what to do if this was some form of poison. “You’re being ridiculous!” she thought to herself. “You were the one who rushed in to save him.” But then she realized
    she had been less aware then, and therefore less likely to think.

    “Done stirring.” He said to her. She stopped the circular motion and looked up into his eyes. They were shining down at her with compassion and knowledge. His concern for her seemed to shine in them like a brilliant pool of stars. That erased any doubt she had. “Drink.” The wolf said; and she drank. The mixture tasted gummy and sweet, with a slight taste of mint. Aura instantly felt better. She became completely and fully awake, and now realized that her doubts before had merely been her desperation. She began to stand up but the large wolf quickly stopped her. “Still need rest. Herbs only help.”

    “Alright.” She said in response she lay back down and relaxed. At first she couldn't fall asleep, but she quickly grew tired. When she became cold, she quickly noticed a campfire had been set. At first she questioned it, but she shrugged off the thought. She was far too tired to think about such things. She didn't think she had been laying there that long, but it was hard to tell; she was drifting between dreams and waking. She felt as if she were once again in a trance. She sensed a figure nearby which she thought was the wolf, but she wasn't really thinking about it. After what seemed to be a few minutes, she felt someone trying to awake her. She opened her eyes to see Him standing over her.


    “Time to go.” He said to her. His voice was urgent. “More coming now.” She gave him a questioning look. She wondered where they could go to escape. What kind of places were nearby.

    “It hasn't been that long has it?” she had barley sensed the passage of time.

    The wolf shook his head, “Three Hours.” He said. “Castle.” he said as he nodded south. “Safety.” At the prospect of a nearby castle, Aura was relieved; she was not alone in this land. Aura rose to a standing position and found that she was still too tired to move very well. He quickly moved to catch her. He gestured towards his back. “Ride.” he said to her. Aura did not argue; his back could probably hold at least two people. She climbed onto his back, feeling that she should be more prepared for the journey she was about to embark on. But of course there was nothing she could do about that. “Hold on.” He said to her. She leaned forward and placed her arms around his neck and held on to his fur.



    He responded rather ambiguously to this; letting out a light grunt. He began to run in the direction of the castle. His speed matched that of a car, and he easily dodged the trees as they blocked his path. As they traveled, Aura sensed a sort of contentment from him, and upon realizing that she too was rather pleased with how things had gone thus far, began to wonder if she knew him somehow. As they rode she began to drift off, and she soon fell into sleep.
     
  5. Sebax Avatar by Xerona

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    Excellent narrative and I'm glad you included more color (Sights, Smells, Sounds, Touches) to your story! A healthy length, the story did not tarry nor did it drag on in any part of it. As always, when reading about characters that appear that were not used in the prologue (At least in an obvious way), I can't wait to see how the two components mix together.
     
  6. Light-Rune Maven Seer

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    Hello everyone; I'm having trouble writing fast during school weeks, but I guess none of us have as much time as we want, huh? So anyway, I finally finished Chapter 2; so here you go:​

    Chapter 2
    Rain​
    Clair was woken up by the trickle of light that seeped in through the window. She opened her eyes to see the surroundings of her new room in the girl’s dorm. She could hear the rain, and knew somehow it had been going since 2:00 a.m. She crawled out of bed and began to prepare herself for school. It was only five, so she didn’t have to worry about being late. As she brushed her hair, she tried to think of the dream she knew she had last night. However, every detail eluded her, other than a strange voice and the shining moon. She was troubled by this, as she felt the dream must have been important.
    She grabbed her backpack and left the room. As she walked down the hall, she could smell breakfast cooking downstairs; Eggs and bacon with French toast. But she wondered who had done the cooking. When she reached the bottom floor, she saw that it was Alice. She was just putting some eggs on a plate; noticing Clair, she smiled and said; “Oh good, you’re awake. I was just about to go get you.” She walked over to a nearby table and set down the plate. “Breakfast is ready!” She said cheerfully. Clair couldn’t help but smile. It seemed to her that Alice was the kind of person who did anything she could to support others. The two of them sat down, and began to eat.
    “So how did you sleep?” Alice asked. Clair was not sure how to answer her; she felt well rested, but also like she was forgetting something, something from her dream. It was something that continued to bother her. She decided to think about it more thoroughly before telling anyone about it.
    “Good.” Clair said aloud. She felt somewhat bad about holding back, but she couldn’t even remember the dream.
    “Since we have time, I hoped to show you around town a bit, if that’s okay.” The look on her face was hopeful, and Clair thought it would be rude not to accept.

    She took a bite out of her Bacon, enjoying the succulent flavor crunchy texture. She swallowed, and then accepted Alice’s offer with a polite; “Yes, Please.” This answer gave Alice great joy, and she excitedly rushed through her breakfast. It was not exactly as though she were had become hyperactive, but she was still joyful. Clair noticed that despite how cheerful she seemed to be, she wasn't actually overly expressive; nor did she seem in any as though she was going to have a true outburst of sudden emotion. She had a gentle air about her. She put her thoughts aside. “What’s got you so excited?” She asked Alice smiled.
    “It’s a surprise.” She said.
    ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    As Clair and Alice left the dorm, the rain seemed to soften. “He must be feeling better today…” Alice whispered to herself.
    “What?” Clair asked, confused by the statement.
    “Oh, never mind.” Alice said quickly. “Let’s go.” She bounded down the stairs, and began walking towards the center of town. Clair quickly ran to catch up, wondering who Alice had been referring to. She caught up as Alice was coming to the corner. She slowed to a walk as Alice had. Clair observed her surroundings; they weren't much different from yesterday. There was a light rain with heavy fog in the distance, thunder rumbled in the cloudy skies.

    “Does it always rain here?” Clair asked. Alice smiled.
    “Almost all the time, yes. Everyone likes the weather this way though. It’s great for various Economical reasons, and it feels nice. Clair thought about the greenhouses she had seen; they had been filled with fruits and plants that she was told grew well with large amounts of water and little to no sunlight. She thought the plants sounded like algae, but they looked beautiful; they were colorful with many different shapes and sizes. The plants looked just as versatile as what a person would see in an everyday garden.
    “We’re going to the park, first. You've been over there right? There’s something…” Alice paused, apparently trying to come up with the proper word. “Special, there.” She made a left turn and crossed the street; they were already at the park. Clair didn't remember the walk being so short; she was sure it was at least ten minutes. They hadn't even walked for five.
    As they walked toward the nearest gazebo they saw a figure standing underneath it. It was a boy around their age. He wore a red t-shirt with a blue treble clef on the front, jeans, white tennis shoes, and a white hoodie jacket with various pockets. He had large Red and White noise cancelling head phones around his neck. At first she thought it might have been the boy yesterday; but it didn't seem like clothes he would wear. As they drew closer, she saw the boy had white hair. “Tyson!” Alice exclaimed. “What are you doing out here?” She asked as she went beneath the gazebo.

    The boy, Tyson, Turned his head towards Alice. When Clair saw his eyes, she was surprised; they were blood red, and he had a light scar running vertically over from his forehead to his chin over his left eye. He gave Alice a shrug, and Clair saw that he wore black finger-less gloves. “The Rain was singing,” he said. “But now it’s stopped.” He turned his gaze back out towards the horizon. But that’s not why you’re here, right?
    Alice turned her gaze downward. “I’m showing her…” Alice seemed to pause, if only briefly, in the gentle rain. “…The statue.” She finished. Tyson smiled in response.
    “I thought you might be. You are quite interested in it after all.” The mention of a statue had peeked Clair’s curiosity, and the two of them seemed to speak of it as if it were extremely important.
    “What statue?” She asked them. They both turned her way. Tyson responded first.
    “It is the symbol of a legend that has been told in this town for many years. It is vague, and many have tried to further research its secrets; Alice seems quite hopeful about aiding such research.” Tyson shrugged. “No telling what her brother thinks though.” He raised his index finger to his forehead and began tapping. “No offense to him, but he can be… unpredictable.”
    Alice brought about no argument of any kind; she just smiled and told Clair to follow her. Needless to say, this made Clair wonder about exactly what kind of a person Leonidas was. Tyson walked alongside her, as they left the gazebo and went further in to the park. There was a small silence as they walked through the wet grass. The cool morning air around them smelled of the freshly sodden ground beneath their feet; a smell Clair thought of as refreshing.
    [PARAGRAPH]She decided to take the time of their walk to think, as the lack of conversation between her companions provided an excellent opportunity to mull over the events of the morning. She wondered about things such as what her dream had been about, who Alice had meant when she said “He must be feeling better.”, and if Leonidas was “unpredictable” or “insane”. But a new question soon entered her mind as they traversed the rainy meadow; why did Tyson seem so familiar? She noticed as they walked that something about him seemed Reminiscent of someone else, but she couldn't quite place who. Did it have something to do with her dream?

    Alice was also worthy of consideration. She seemed kind enough, but her clothing suggested she was the sort who could be dark. She also had readily appeared to guide her in her new hometown, but why? Perhaps she just wanted to make friends but Clair couldn't help but try and read farther into it. They walked for at least eight minutes in absolute silence; each analyzing the positions of each other.

    [SIZE=3]They soon passed through a small pathway lined by trees. On the other side was a small clearing which had been kept neat and clear of weeds of any kind. In the middle of the clearing, a stone base was surrounded by roses, which were clearly tended regularly to prevent over hydration. On top of the base was the statue. The mere sight of it shock Clair, bringing forth a single image into her mind. “ I've seen this before.” She thought to herself. For in front of her was a statue of a large wolf. Its front left leg was covered with feathers and wrapped around his back right leg, was a chain.[/SIZE]
    “This is Steel.” Tyson said as they approached the statue. “He is the spirit of the rain, For it is said that long ago, when the world was in absolute chaos, he rose from the waters to battle the evil; an evil whose name has been lost throughout the ages.”
    [SIZE=3]“Drama Queen.” Alice interrupted. “Sorry he’s making it sound like some kind of Medieval Legend about some god. In reality, what we know about Steel is that he was a normal being; he didn't have any special super powers and he didn't fight the evil of his own free will. Everyone was afraid of this thing, whatever it was. It happened when the evil attacked his family; the details are little sketchy, but basically Steel was sealed away into the sky while saving the world. Alice looked down at the ground. “They say that the rain is really him crying; separated from the ones he loved.”[/SIZE]
    Alice stared at the ground for a long time. Now Clair understood her phrase. Alice believed in this story; of course, Clair was starting to think that she might believe it too. Alice raised her head and spoke. “Of course most of this is just thrown together from a book that was found near town a long time ago. Very little has studied; the parts we know were written in Greek, Latin, and Japanese. We don’t know what language the rest is in. Alice’s eyes became distant. “There’s not even enough detail for a proper story.
    “Then why did they make a statue?” Clair asked. Alice shook her head.
    [SIZE=3]“They didn't. It’s been here as long as anyone can remember; when people learned what it was supposed to represent, they thought it deserved some respect.[/SIZE]
    “Of course that’s not enough to satisfy Alice.” Tyson said. “She wants to study the story and find out exactly what happened.” He smiled at Clair. “I think she can do it, but she seems to have doubts about her ability.”
    “Oh, shut up Tyson!” Alice growled at him. Clair smiled, glad that she had made new friends in so short a time. Then the letter from yesterday came back into her mind. She remembered that the letter spoke of a single book that held the tale someone had been looking to study, and the story of Steel supposedly came from a book that was one of a kind. Why had she dreamed about Steel in the first place?
    “Well anyway, I have to get back for practice.” Tyson said.
    “Oh yeah, today’s Friday.” Alice thought out loud.
    “Right, it was nice to meet you Clair.” He smiled at her as he turned to leave. Clair smiled back and waved at him as he left. She was glad that despite his rather intimidating appearance, he was quite kind. She thought she would ask Alice about his scar after he left, not wanting to be rude. Then she noticed something.
    His eyes were no longer red at all; they were the same pale blue color as hers. His scar was completely gone; he looked perfectly normal. Clair just stared as he walked away. She couldn’t understand what she just saw. He had had red eyes, hadn’t he? As she pondered the newest strange development in her life, Alice spoke up.

    “Come on, let’s go. There’s more stuff I want to show to you!” This snapped Clair out of her trance.
    “Oh… Right, let’s go.” They retraced their steps along the muddy path as Alice told her about some of the other places they were going. Right before they left the park, Clair saw the boy with blue hair standing beneath the same gazebo near the other side of the park. “Oh yeah, I’ve been meaning to ask you,” she pointed toward him when she had Alice’s attention. “Who is that boy?”
    Alice Paused when she saw who Clair was pointing at, a curious look in her eye as she turned back to Clair and asked: “Why?” Clair shrugged at the question.
    “He talked to me here yesterday before I went back to the dorm, but he didn’t tell me his name. Alice just stared at her, completely dumbfounded. This made Clair quite uncomfortable. She shifted her feet and asked: “What?” Alice’s stupefied expression didn’t change as she said:

    “That’s Sors Alexander Hope; I nor anyone else I know, has heard him speak a word in my whole life.”[/PARAGRAPH]
    [/PARAGRAPH][/PARAGRAPH][/PARAGRAPH][/PARAGRAPH][/PARAGRAPH][/PARAGRAPH][/PARAGRAPH][/PARAGRAPH][/PARAGRAPH][/PARAGRAPH]
     
    Last edited: May 7, 2014
  7. Sebax Avatar by Xerona

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    Part 1: I love Alice. So soon, and can already tell she's an apparent Sweetheart. Also, things get interesting when characters start lying to each other. I'd like to see this develop. Nice usage of Painting with the senses to tell us what the inside of their dorm was like to experience that morning. It really helps the story when it's there, even though it's barely noticeable to most eyes, still, even most eyes would notice the absence; it's one of those "slight touch" sort of things, like the special effects in movies.
    Part 2: Ah, so Tyson is the Musical fella. I think I'm gonna like him. :D Nice depiction of the weather, and thanks for placing them clearly where they were when the part skipped ahead to somewhere else by telling us exactly where they started at the change.
    Part _:
    Overall: (I'll finish when you do.)
     
  8. Light-Rune Maven Seer

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    All-righty then, I was going to postpone writing until summer break but I had a three day weekend and decided to make at least some progress. So I wrote the beginning of chapter 3. It's not much, but it's the first time I change the narrative to a different characters point of view; so I tried to give you a feel for what this character is like since, despite knowing his name, he has not yet spoken with any characters.

    So here is some of chapter 3, more later.


    Chapter 3
    The Library
    (Part 1)
    At an earlier time that morning, somewhere else in the town, in a dark room lit only by the small flames underneath the beakers of bubbling chemicals, a tall figure in a clean white lab coat stood over a medical examination table. The figure looked on at the gangly shape that lay there with various wires attached to it. “They called me Crazy,” he said. “But I’ll show them! I’ll SHOW THEM ALLLLL!!!!!!!!!! MWUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA-” The laughing stopped short as the door behind him swung open and the lights were flipped on. Leonidas turned to see Sors staring at him with a raised eyebrow. Sors didn't have to say anything; his facial expression spoke quite clearly. It said:

    “What the heck are you doing?” Leonidas didn't blame him for such a reaction. He looked around at the contents of his room: a stuffed dummy with multiple ribbons attached lying on his bed, various beakers filled to the brim with glow in the dark beads of differing colors, and a copy of a book called: “Cliché Quotes of the Mentally Unstable” lying open on his study desk. So he answered with a nervous smile:

    “Quoting mad scientists with a stuffed dummy on my bed and varying lab-themed decorations lying around my room.” For a few moments Sors said absolutely nothing. Then he shrugged with a look on his face that said “Carry on.” flipped off the lights, and quickly, but gently, closed the door.


    The maniacal laughter resumed.


    ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    After that had happened, Leonidas went about his daily routine. As usual, he was currently out in the muddy school yard, waiting for his sister in the light rain. According to Tyson, Alice had been showing Clair around town. “That’s nice.” He said to himself. “It’s good to see her finally making some actual friends.” While Alice knew almost everyone in town, few of them were actually her friends; she was usually studying or at the statue, leaving herself little time for social interactions.

    Come to think of it, why was she taking an interest all of a sudden? Alice didn't usually choose to socialize, so why would she want a best friend all of a sudden? Leonidas didn't need to observe them together to realize what his sister had wanted with Clair; the way she had been acting yesterday was enough. The question though was why. His thoughts were interrupted when he saw Alice and Clair walking into the school yard.They appeared to be deep in conversation. He waved to them as they approached and the three of them ducked inside the school and out of the pouring rain.
    “So then, you must be Clair.” He extended an open hand to her. “I’m Leonidas Aquila, Alice’s older brother as I’m sure you have heard. She took his hand and shook it in response.
    “Yes, it’s nice to meet you.” She had a look of curiosity in her eye; it was the same look everyone gave him the first time he met them. She was probably thinking about what kind of person he must be like; no doubt thanks to one of Tysons remarks. Leonidas smiled slightly at the thought of all the people who thought of him as slightly unstable, for it was a happy thought. No one was willing to test his limits as far as far as that area actually went. Therefore, he was graced with a blessed quiet whenever he wished to study.
    Of course, he might really be insane, but he had never really paid close enough attention to his own actions to know for sure. After all, that would leave him open to the power of suggestion, and that could be bad if he became anymore insane than he already supposedly was. As for his actions, those were mostly for fun, although sometimes people would stop and stare when he did something that he thought of as perfectly sane; he wasn’t exactly sure why.
    Fun as it was, he never pushed the mad scientist act too far outside of his room; he didn’t want to end up in an asylum. So instead of his clean white lab coat, he was wearing a simple white leather jacket, along with cargo pants and some tennis shoes. Turning his attention back to the matter at hand, he once again politely addressed Clair.
    “We welcome you to our school and to our town. If there is anything you need help with that is outside of Alice’s area of expertise, I will be glad to assist. He bowed his head slightly as a gesture of respect. He could see Clair smile just the tiniest bit. Alice had been correct last night; Clair was different somehow. It wasn’t something he could explain, just a feeling. All the same, most people he knew weren’t really amused by his actions. He was supposed to be the weird one. He put those thoughts aside for now.
    “Well, if you will excuse us, Alice and I have something planned for today and if we don’t hurry we may be late.” He said as he drew back his sleeve and looked at his watch.
    “Of Course, I wouldn’t want to keep you.” Clair responded. “I’ll see you later Alice.” Alice, who had been staring at the ground, suddenly seemed to realize that something was happening.
    “Oh…” She said as she looked up. “…Yeah, I’ll see you later!” She managed to spout cheerfully as Clair walked down the hall. As soon as she turned a corner Leonidas turned to Alice; He knew she had been acting funny. Her lack of proper participation had proved it.
    “What were you thinking about?” He asked her.
    “…Nothing…” She said as she looked up at him. Alice had always been like this; she never talked much in the first place, and less about what lie in her thoughts. That was why her miss sunshine act with Clair worried him.

    “That wasn’t “nothing.” He said in a slightly irritated, but kind voice. Alice looked away.
    “I’ll tell you later, alright?” She quickly walked down the hall to their destination. Leonidas merely sighed. He quickly followed her to their destination, still determined not to be late. It was then that he noticed someone else was in the hallway. He instantly recognized the boy in the blue hoodie jacket as Sors. He was looking in his locker, trying to find something undefined. As Leo passed him, Sors turned his head just enough for him to see his face. A shiver ran down Leonidas spine as the open locker door blocked Sors’ face from view. Leonidas continued down the empty hall in deathly silence. Sors had done the one thing he did as much as he talked: He had been smiling.

    ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The rest of the day was mostly uneventful. Leonidas and his sister had made it to their meeting on time, the teachers tried to tell Leonidas things he already knew like he was some three-year-old, and most everyone had gone home after school.Currently, He and Alice were at their usual after school place: the library. The town library of Hypnos Terra was in the very center of town. It was a large building with a domed top. It was also connected to two other buildings (The school and the greenhouse) via two long corridors with glass roofing. The greenhouse was at the northern most edge of town, and the school was south east of the library.
    Leonidas stood in the middle of the Non-Fiction section, sorting through some of the books that had been turned in. He was putting up a book about advanced quantum physics (Amateurs) when Alice came into the isle. The two of them volunteered here after school most of the time.It was their daily routine: after this they would go home. He needed to ask now, or he wouldn’t be able to get an answer again until this time tomorrow.
    “Alice?” He asked with his voice just above a whisper. “What happened this morning?” Alice seemed distant for a minute, and then she turned toward the shelf and placed another book on it.
    [paragraph]“He spoke to her.” She murmured.
    [paragraph]“What?” Leonidas asked. “Who spoke to who now?” Alice turned her head slowly toward Leonidas.
    [paragraph]“Sors spoke to Clair.” She said slightly louder than the last time. A shiver ran down Leonidas spine: Much like the one that had run down his spine this morning when he had seen Sors smile. It would seem as though he were acting quite unusual as of late. All the same, Leo understood where things went from here.
    [paragraph]“So that’s why you’re following her around.” He said in a scolding tone. “You know there is still no proof that it’s him you know.” He was slightly irritated at his sister’s behavior. It was just like her, and yet, he expected more.
    [paragraph]“What are you saying? It has to be him, no matter how you look at it!” This was an interesting conversation to have while whispering, but it could not be helped at the moment. “Sors obviously doesn’t talk much, and he goes around knowing more than just about everyone. Furthermore: He came to her when she first arrived. It makes sense doesn’t it?” Leo sighed.
    [paragraph]“That’s not proof. It’s merely a comparison. You’ve never even seen him read the book!” He shook his head in frustration. “Never mind, that’s not the only thing that this is about.” He looked straight into Alice’s eyes. “You can’t treat people like science experiments.” Alice seemed slightly taken aback.
    [paragraph]“But… we were getting to know each other before I even knew about that!” How the two of managed to keep their voices at a whisper was a mystery. Leonidas scowled.
    [paragraph]“Did you not say yesterday, that something was different about her?” That shut Alice up. “You can’t pretend to be best friends with people just to analyze them.” He scolded. “What happens when you’re done?” He questioned. It was apparent that Alice had not thought of this.
    [paragraph]“Well… I…”She stammered. “…Would probably stay friends with her…?”
    [paragraph]“…And how exactly would you do that if you had to keep pretending to be someone you’re not? The entire thing would be a lie!”

    (Continued in my next post.)[/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph]
     
  9. Sebax Avatar by Xerona

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    Chapter 2: I really like Tyson and the sound of this "Leonidas" character. Right now, I'm reading through "Alice in Wonderland", and my mind kept racing back to that story. Not just because of the name Alice, but how much this story makes literal sense, but just how wonderfully and artistically it doesn't at times. It doesn't seem contrived or cliched, though there's plenty of availability of that from the subject matter you wrote about; it had a very believable flow, like you could understand the characters' situations. You understand their lore and Alice's wants, and Tyson's understanding, but there's such an undertone in Clair's confusion and Tyson's visual duality.

    Chapter 3: When I started the Chapter, I was thinking, "Well, I have something to critisize about" Like the fact I found Leonidas at first so much the opposite of what I described for the Second chapter. And then... you completely turn the tables; I was legitamately deceived and this seriously impressed me. Now, Leonidas seems interesting because it looks like there's a such a humor around him that I think I may be able to relate to personally.

    Overall: I'm sorry I put this off for so long, but I'm glad I read it when I did. I feel much better after learning about something bad, and reading a good story helped ease tensions with myself.
     
  10. Light-Rune Maven Seer

    Joined:
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    Well... I finally finished chapter 3! My computer is still a pain. With the tech difficulties (of which I know the cause but do not currently have the capabilities to fix) I couldn't really type much at all, and when I could I couldn't think of much to type. I also seemed to have planned it out as a longer chapter in general... But anyway, I got access to a much faster computer and I wound up finishing in no time. YAY! However, I was so happy that I was getting so much done, I left some of my more descriptive moments out. Didn't really pay attention to how fast I was trying to take it till after I finished writing. Still don't know How it's different... I can just tell, y'know? So anyway, with that in mind CnC-ing would be greatly appreciated. I should be able to type this story at a more regular pace now. Last Note: Because I made this chapter so long, and just edited my chapter 3 post little by little over the summer, I thought I would post the rest as a "Part two" To announce the grand reopening of the story. Here we go:

    Chapter 3​
    The Library​
    (Part two)​
    “Excuse me?” A voice whispered from the end of isle. The two of them turned their heads and were quite shocked to see Clair staring at them from the other end of the isle.
    “What are you two whispering about?” She said with a look of suspicion on her face.
    “Oh, nothing…” Leonidas spat hastily. “Just about how it’s strange that scientists are focusing more on discovering elements than the practical use of them, it’s all like: “Look! We discovered a new element! That’s great! …Now let’s discover the next one.” It’s a strange way to behave…” Clair merely stared at Leonidas. He was hoping that she hadn’t heard enough of their whisperings to know it was her they had been talking about, but the look on her face said she likely heard more than he would have liked. Her facial expression changed to a smile.
    “I see.” She responded. Leonidas was relieved. Even if she had heard something, she was willing to let it go for now. “So what are the two of you here for?” She asked them.
    “Oh, we volunteer after school here most days.” Leo responded. “What about you?” He asked. “Find anything interesting?” Clair’s eyes went down to the book in her hand.
    “Well there was this…” As she brought it up into his line of vision he nearly lost his composure. He coughed once and ignored the smile in Alice’s eyes as he continues the conversation.
    “Ah, that one…” He said with a smile. “It is VERY interesting, but unfortunately that one cannot be checked out at the time: It’s still being studied you see. I believe Alice has likely told you of the statue?”
    “Yes…”
    “Well, that’s the book.”
    “I see… That’s too bad, but why is it still on the shelves if people can’t check it out?”
    “Oh, most people aren’t that interested in it, so why hide it away in some dusty room in the back?” Clair seemed to be growing increasingly curious about the situation.
    “I can’t see why people wouldn’t be interested; I wouldn’t want to put it down if I could understand more than a few paragraphs.” Alice came to the rescue.
    “Oh well, just because ignorance is bliss doesn’t mean it’s entertaining! Here, I know where to find some books that you would enjoy.” She quickly took the book from Clair, gave it to Leo, and dragged her away from the isle before she had time to argue. Leo let out the breath he was holding.
    “That was close… though it might not matter much soon…” He looked down at the book in his hands. A chill once again ran down his spine as he wondered what in the book had interested her so. It looked simple enough: A dark blue leather-bound book with no title on the cover. It was ancient after all, and therefore did not exactly seem up to date with more modern works. But it was in surprisingly good condition. No worn pages or mold anywhere on it, which was quite a surprise since it was found in a grotto.
    Leonidas opened the book and slowly flipped through the pages. Some were holding unintelligible text, some had foreign language, and others were blank. But Clair had just had it, which meant it should have still been in there somewhere… Leonidas stopped flipping as he found what he was looking for: A few lines of text in perfect English. The letters seemed to glow, though not strongly; he couldn’t tell for sure. He silently read the text to himself.

    Oh brilliant Sun, Oh shining light, do not despair in this your plight. Your wounds will heal in all do time, and those who caused them turn to grime. When we reach the castle wall I shall not let you fall. This Reality is on the brink of insanity.

    Please believe in me.

    Leonidas was somewhat taken aback; this entry was not like the others. Alice had been right: There WAS something different about her… Even “he” seemed to treat her with special respect…and he was also warning her about something. He stared off in the direction Clair and Alice had gone.

    “I suppose we’ll be getting a visitor at the castle tonight.” He muttered.

    ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    As Leonidas was nearing the boy’s dormitory, he heard a bark coming from up ahead. He looked up and smiled as a large white German Sheppard ran towards him. When it reached him it simply stopped and sat down.
    “Good boy!” Leo scratched the dog behind its ears. Sors had come after the dog, with a straight face as usual. “Why, hello there.” Sors said nothing, but he nodded his head. Leo had always known what Sors meant…Somehow… Which is what frightened him about the recent smile: not only were they unusual (No matter what mood he was in) he couldn’t figure out what it meant. “Thanks for walking him again Sors.” Sors once again said nothing, but the look on his face said “Sure, no problem. I love walking Prince!”…And yes, he accomplished this look without a smile. It was a mystery that still haunted him.

    Leonidas thought, not for the first time that, despite the lack of proof, Alice’s theory had quite a bit behind it. The way Sors acted on a daily basis had some… strange aura about it. The way he could live a perfectly normal life without ever speaking a word or showing much facial expression seemed supernatural.

    His thoughts were interrupted as the rain began to come down harder, so the three of them ran through the rain a short distance to the dormitory. By the time they got inside, they were soaked. Prince saw fit to shake the water off of his body, and the stench of wet fur proceeded to fill the air. Leonidas smiled. Prince lived at the dormitory with everyone; but the dog belonged to him and Sors. It had happened a few years ago.

    Sors had carried an injured puppy into the dormitory. Sors naturally wouldn’t tell him how he had known the puppy was outside the dorm, and it really wouldn’t have mattered if the puppy died. So Leonidas and Sors, with the help of a very worried Alice did their best to nurse it back to full health. Somehow, the board gave them permission to keep the dog at the dorm, (something about teaching responsibility) and everyone had wanted to come up with a name for it.
    Alice, having been much younger at the time, suggested the standard “Princess” nearly all girls did. One of the other boys had rudely and immaturely interjected that princess was a girly name, and a boy needed a cooler name. When Alice asked how he had known it was a boy, the students simple minded answer had been: “Because he had been outside the boy’s dorm.
    [paragraph]As flawed as that logic was, he had been right; the puppy was male. So in an attempt to make as many people happy as possible, Leonidas made his own suggestion amongst the flying insults that the others would have named him.
    [paragraph]The word Principality referred to Kingdoms and Domains ruled by princes, or angels that oversaw entire kingdoms and gave them blessings if they strove for goodness. This name could also be shortened to to its root word “Prince”, which would give him the royal position as Alice had wanted. This name made everyone happy, and it was the name the dog had kept to this day.
    [paragraph]As Leo took Prince upstairs to get him dried more thoroughly, Sors walked into the Kitchen. Leo smiled and his stomach growled in anticipation of the coming meal. Sors was an awesome cook. When he was done drying off Prince, the German Sheppard simply wandered off. Leo had no homework to do: He had finished it off at school. So he thought he would just go to his room and see the latest updates in the scientific community.
    [paragraph]So he went upstairs to his room, turned on the light, walked around the tables holding beakers full of glow-in-the-dark beads, sat down at his desk, and flipped on his computer. As the device loaded up he wondered to himself about the passage that had been in the book. “Please”? He had said Please? It was so unlike him. It wasn’t as though he was a commanding tyrant, but He wasn’t exactly the type to say “Please” either.
    [paragraph]The Honey mustard scent of Sors’ cooking pleased his nostrils as his thoughts turned to his own entry in the book.[/paragraph]
    [I][paragraph]Behold the Courageous Lion: In his wake he places knowledge of the dark Scion. Its conscious brims with mental might, no wonder shall escape thy sight. The heart shall bring a horrid trial; He shall face it with his fearsome smile.[/paragraph][/I]
    [paragraph]Leonidas wasn’t sure he understood it. He couldn’t generally be considered a lion if not for his name: “Son of the Lion”. As far as fearless went… No. It couldn’t be referring to him… but who was it talking about? His computer came on and he clicked the shortcut link on his desktop that would take him to the scientific updates page. He was met with disappointment.
    [paragraph]“Oh, look, they discovered a new element. “Whoopee” He said sarcastically with a much less than enthusiastic arm pump. He shut down his computer and read a children’s book of mathematics. (Ah, the simple days of Pre-Algebra.) Then he went downstairs to the now overpowering smell of Sors’ current dish. This time he was not disappointed as he walked into the kitchen. He saw about a dozen of the other boys surrounding Sors’ at the table. Leonidas looked to his right and saw Prince eating out of his dog bowl. Sors had cooked for him as usual. He turned his attention back to the group of students.
    [paragraph]It seemed that everyone wanted seconds. [I]“How do they eat so dang fast?” [/I]He asked himself. Of course there wasn’t enough left for everyone to have seconds. Apparently Sors hadn’t eaten yet and Leo knew he hadn’t.
    [paragraph]“He won’t come down anytime soon anyway!” A student near the back complained as Leonidas walked up behind him. “He’s too busy studying or something! Let him starve.” Leo cleared his throat.
    [paragraph]Suddenly the room was empty other than Him, Sors, Prince… and a few smoky silhouettes that quickly vanished.
    [paragraph]Leonidas observed his surroundings. “I could have sworn there were more People here.” He said to Sors. Sors nodded in an agreed confusion and the two of them sat down to their dinner. It was a long time since Sors had served this. The couscous pasta went well with the chicken and the honey mustard sauce. It was a stir-fry of sorts and it had a deliciously sweet flavor.
    [paragraph]The meal was quick, and Leonidas helped to do the dishes. The kitchen window looked out onto the street, lit only by a single street lamp. He barely twitched as the Masquerade began to dance by. He had nearly forgotten they existed. He hadn’t seen them all day. Sors noticed it too. He stopped to watch as the group was passing by; which took a few minutes. Leonidas didn’t mind: He just kept doing the dishes. Sors did this often and it was just another one of the mysterious things in this town that Leo knew not yet the logic of.
    [paragraph]This, however, was slightly different: it involved his friends’ personal emotions and interest. Therefore, it could wait. When the Masquerade had left, he two of them quickly finished the dishes. Leo knew what came next. The two of them walked into the lobby and Sors put on his coat and opened the door into the dark pouring rain.
    [paragraph]“I Suppose I can’t say anything that will convince you against the major risk of pneumonia?” Sors shrugged.
    [paragraph]“You know how I am about these walks.” He replied.
    [paragraph]“Well yeah…” Leonidas then stopped cold. Sors had just spoken. “Leonidas lost all sense of sanity for a brief moment: he nearly screamed. [I]“What twisted alien law of science had forced its way into my universe just now?” [/I]He returned to his normal stature and pointed a shaking finger at Sors. “Did you just… talk?” Sors cocked his head with a confused look and just stared at him questioningly.
    [paragraph]This was an uncomfortable moment for Leo. “I… think I’ll go to bed… I feel really tired.” Sors nodded; a slightly concerned look on his face. He turned and walked out into the pouring rain, closing the door behind him. Leo turned around and forced himself to walk to his room slowly. He went upstairs and got ready for bed in anticipation of the answers he hoped to get tonight. Prince lie down next to his bed as he himself climbed in. It was then as he was lying there that a single sentence from Clair’s Entry forced its way into his head:
    [I][paragraph]“This Reality is on the brink of Insanity.”[/paragraph][/I]
    [CENTER] [/CENTER]
    [paragraph]He fell into sleep.[/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph]
     
  11. Sebax Avatar by Xerona

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    The first part is par excellence. The cover Leonidas gives about the book is smooth, and the scene runs well into its transition to the next.

    "and it was the name the dog had kept to this day." Your story is in past tense, so using the word "This" suggests a present tense.
    "As Leo took Prince upstairs to get him dried more thoroughly, Sors walked into the Kitchen. Leo smiled and his stomach growled in anticipation of the coming meal. Sors was an awesome cook. When he was done drying off Prince, the German Sheppard simply wandered off." This part was a little jumpy. Consider changing the way you state that Sors has profound cooking skills, and it may all click into place after that. Have it blend between the point we're recognizing Sors is cooking, and Leonidas is drying Prince.

    You have a gift for prose. The ominous poems not only have immediate impact, but they are memorable; which is great considering I'm almost certain they lead to something else down the road.

    Some sentences most of the way are too short, and, while they are not fragments, this leads to a bumpy read overall. Consider the use of more commas, or semicolons, and use more conjunctions. Try to avoid using the word "So" to start off a sentence if it can be helped.

    Your sensory powers have improved by leaps and bounds. I can see, smell, and almost touch the room where Leonidas and Sors are eating, and the computer scene with Leonidas is tangible.

    "anticipation of the answers he hoped to get tonight" Same problem as with "This day"; it suggests present-tense, whereas the story takes place in a past-tense narrative.

    "Prince lie down next to his bed as he himself climbed in." The only grammatical error I could find.

    Overall: Well-scripted. We get some nice conscious time with Leo, and we get to see more of Sors that leaves a good deal to be asked by the last line.
     
  12. Light-Rune Maven Seer

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    Well okay, I'm back after two weeks of shut down internet and... I'll be honest, they were very stressful weeks. I didn't get much writing done, but I finished chapter 5, and I know I said I would finish chapter 6 first, but it has been a month and I can wait two weeks before I post chapter 5, and then hopefully finish chapter 6 with the month of time that gives me to write it. Oh and Base... do you wanna be my editor? I mean, i spent hours trying to figure out what I did wrong, and you nailed everything in like 10 seconds. I know you don't have all the free time in the world, but I could put it on like, google docs or something, and you could do it whenever you have time. I don't mind if it takes a while, I'm to the point that I am setting a month deadline for writing these chapters. Of course it's just a request, so don't feel obligated to do it. I'll update the social forum in a while so... yeah. My brother (Older) helped allot with the commedy in this chapter. Last remark: If you didn't already realize this by now, the characters are absolute Fruitcakes, with mixed nuts, and a side of bananas. Enjoy.


    Chapter 4
    Arrival
    He awoke standing amidst the confines of his lab wearing a lab-coat and white gloves over his usual ensemble. He went to work on his experiments immediately, checking on how they had progressed during his absence and recording the current states in a small notebook. When he was done with that, he rushed over to a nearby lift and pressed a small series of buttons. The lift took him up two levels to a small observatory, where the smell of something burning pervaded the air. He walked over to a beaker of liquid that was on a metal table. He looked around at the lab from his high perch as he picked up the beaker. On the lower levels were several computer devices with wires extending in multiple directions: It was a makeshift lab you see.
    The original intent was likely more of a study, but the castles master had allowed him to use the area as he saw fit… which is why it was a lab. The second level was mostly differing projects on the plant life indigenous to the area… quite a bit of research was required on these… interesting, plants. The third was where he kept most of the reference books, shelves upon shelves of them, and this fourth floor was the observatory, which he had left mostly as it was; a few telescopes, one aimed at the sky for stargazing, the others in various positions that gave him an excellent view of the surrounding land. The domed roof could be lowered, but right now it was up, with the exception of the hole that the stargazing telescope stuck out of.
    He rotated the beaker he was holding in a small circle. It began to glow an eerie green and bubble more fervently. The burning smell grew stronger and smoke spewed out the top of the beaker. He sniffed. The liquid smelled horribly bitter and sulfurous. Perfect. He sloshed the beakers contents out onto the table that had held the beaker. The drops of liquid scattered about the table formed into perfectly round and multi-colored… jaw breakers.
    He eyed the beaker in his peripheral vision, and then looked at his gloved hand. He brought the beaker over to his hand and poured a single drop onto his glove. Similarly to what happened with the table, a jaw breaker formed. He sighed in relief: It was a cherry one. He popped it into his mouth, set the beaker down on the table and went over to a nearby telescope. He opened a hatch in the side of the dome, allowing him to use it to see outside. He looked into the telescope and was surprised to see exactly what he was looking for: Steel dashing at an incredulous rate from the direction of the forest, a passenger on his back, and black shadowy wolves following close behind. The shining moon cast a strange glow on the castles Southern Field.
    He then heard the door on the lowermost level open. He knew exactly who it was. He left his position at the telescope, grabbed the tray of Jawbreakers, and took the lift down to the first floor.
    “Ah, there you are Professor.” A voice said as the lift reached the bottom. At first, he could not see the speaker, as he was staring up at the readings on the computer monitor. But he knowingly looked down to see… a cat. Not just any cat however. For one thing, it had just spoken perfect English and we all know that’s unusual. Another thing was that it was standing on its hind legs. Its fur was almost entirely White with a single black spot on its chest and black paws. To top it all off: It was wearing clothes. But only a pair of jeans tailored to his smaller size. In essence, this meant he was still in his sleep wear. Overall the cat was approximately half his height. As he walked over to a nearby computer, the scientist asked the first thing that came to his mind.
    “Exodus, why are you in your pajamas?” He turned to the computer and punched in a quick command.
    “Don’t start Griffon!” Exodus replied as a humorous gleam set in the unusually red eyes of his scarred face. “You sleep in a lab coat. Besides, I don’t have to throw on that much anyway, and I’ve been awake for a while now. It’s not like much has been happening.” Griffon nodded at Exodus’ words: The cat was usually the first to wake up. Meanwhile a mechanical arm came out of the wall and placed a microwave on a nearby counter as per Griffons instructions.
    “I understand your meaning pal but this peacefulness won’t last much longer.” Griffon said as he picked up the tray of jawbreakers, brought it over to the microwave, put it in, and punched in a short and stable time limit.
    “Professor Griffon-” Exodus stopped short as he realized what Griffon had just done. “Why did you just put Jawbreakers in the microwave?” Griffon shrugged.
    “Pressure varies directly as heat, creating a volatile object that should not be replicated at home.” He said as he put on heat resistant gloves. Exodus merely glared at him with a raised eyebrow. So he clarified. “I’m creating pressurized lava bombs. People at home should avoid doing this for risk of extreme pain, large hospital bills, and a very high chance of death.” He said as the mechanical arm moved the microwave into the wall and panels on the under the monitor moved to the side, showing a Plexiglas window that viewed a large, clean paneled room with a single table in the center.
    The microwave soon showed up on the center table, and the arm hit the start button. Exodus just shook his head with a look of horror in the Professor’s direction.
    “You’re nuts!” he practically shouted. “Anyway…” He said recovering from the shock of the fact that Prof. Griffon was turning 25 cent candies into dangerous bombs. “I came down here to tell you my efforts have paid off! I discovered a form of magic that creates a music note that explodes upon contact!” Griffon sighed. Sure HE was the crazy one. On the other side of the wall, the jawbreakers were being flash-frozen. Before long, the tray was once again in his hands. There were droplets of water all over it. He put it down to examine them.
    He stretched out a covered finger and touched the surface of a blue jawbreaker. He felt no heat. The flash-freeze seemed to have worked.
    “What does the flash-freeze do anyway?” Exodus asked.
    “It neutralizes the outer heat, making the jawbreaker more manageable. The inside still contains pressurized lava: It remains a dangerous explosive.” A sudden realization dawned upon Him. He looked down at Exodus. “So I can throw candy, and you can sing songs and play music. It’ll be like that Candy Land movie… but with explosions. The same look of revelation dawned upon Exodus’ face.
    “Yeah…” He said in a distant voice. Suddenly a vision of absolute insanity seized the two. It was a somewhat disturbing picture: Some random silhouette representing no one in particular skipped along the colorful candy road of Candy Land. With every skip, the silhouette left behind an unexplainable explosion as a choir of children sang the theme song: “Our sweet adventure begins to-day come along, come along, come along…” Somewhere along the path, Lord Licorice peered out from behind a gumdrop bush in utter confusion. The silhouette passed him by and he too exploded along with the surrounding scenery and was reduced to a puddle of black candy goo with eyeballs.
    As the vision faded the two of them were staring into the distance with smiles on their faces. They let out a dreamy sigh.
    “The stuff dreams are made of…” Griffon commented.
    “Music…” Exodus Stated.
    [paragraph]“Candy…” Griffon Continued.
    [paragraph]“Explosions…” The two sighed in Unison. As they stared contently into space, a mechanical female voice spoke via an intercom.
    [paragraph]“What the heck are you two day dreaming about?” The voice asked.
    [paragraph]“Candy Land with explosions.” Griffon replied. There was a brief silence. The voice then responded.
    [paragraph]“Well… As glorious as that sounds, we have trouble.” The professor began shoveling handfuls of jawbreakers into his pockets.
    [paragraph]“Indeed, I had just been preparing for that.”
    [paragraph]“Oh… So that’s why you said the peace might not last…” Exodus rationalized. “…Wait, why didn’t you say something sooner?”
    [paragraph]“Well I was going to, but then we thought of Candy Land with explosions.” The two gave another content sigh.
    [paragraph]“All right then, I guess I’ll go get ready.” Exodus said. “Where do we meet?” he asked.
    [paragraph]“…Out front.” Griffon replied.
    ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    [paragraph]Griffon was outside almost as soon as he grabbed his Katana…Literally. He observed the grassy fields ahead of him: In the distance he saw Steel and the girl whose name in this realm he did not yet know. They were being chased by the hundreds of shadowy wolves that he knew all too well.
    [paragraph]“Disturbed” He sneered. “Fears’ it would seem.” This was not particularly a surprise, as Fears were the most common Sect. If the disturbed had a goal: would it not be easiest to send the most common resource available?
    [paragraph]Using his left hand, he pulled his sword from the sheath that was now on the belt around his waist. It had an electric blue blade that shone unusually even amongst the pale moon. Energy seemed to jump chaotically across its smooth surface: a similarity it seemed to share with its owner.
    [paragraph]He continued to survey the situation: It would seem that the girl Steel carried had been wounded on their journey. It was a gash in her right leg that seemed the most problematic from this distance. Yet she continued to fight with unparalleled determination. She seemed to be wielding a sword made of glass; quite unusual. It was a mystery to him that he kept using the word “Unusual” to describe things, as the entire place was unusual and he should just stick using it to describe the things that were truly out of place… Like Jawbreaker Firecrackers.
    [paragraph]A note sounded and Exodus appeared next to him. He was now wearing Black boots, a red t-shirt, and a white cloak: All tailored to his size. He held a conductors’ rod in his right hand. Griffon gave the cat a minute to survey the surroundings, and then spoke.
    [paragraph]“We can’t let them get too much closer.” He said. “We need to jump in now; with the three of us, Steel, and that girl, we should be able to drive them off.” [I]…And maybe nab a new test subject… [/I]He added in his head. Exodus nodded in agreement.
    [paragraph]“Yes. By your mentioning of three, I assume your project is ready?” Griffon was now the one to nod. “Very well then, I will hold them off while you take care of that.” Griffon realized that Exodus seemed distracted all of a sudden. He couldn’t fathom why though, nor did he have time to discover, as Exodus took off. Griffon put the thought aside for now. He held his arm up and pulled back his sleeve to reveal a wristwatch communicator. Not the most original device, but effective nevertheless. He typed in a simple access code and held his mouth up to the speaker.
    [paragraph]“Castle Mainframe, activate project “Black Queen” Priority Alpha.” …Again, not exactly original terminology but universal and thus effective. He braced himself in anticipation: He had been working on this project for months, and couldn’t wait for the results of a real live combat situation. As he waited, he observed the fight a few hundred yards ahead of him: It was an interesting thing that he now had an effective moment with which to observe his allies’ capabilities.
    [paragraph]Steel was, obviously, vicious and determined as he was large and fast… combined. As he continuously swiped at the Fears with his razor sharp claws, flurries of lightning and wind buffeted his opponents. He alone was slashing through a large percentage of the opposition, though there were still thousands.
    [paragraph]His passenger wasn’t doing to bad either; especially for someone with a major injury to their leg. With every slash block and parry her sword seemed to glow with a brilliant glow. [I]“That might explain part of the entry” [/I]Griffon thought to himself. It was also apparent that she could use the light of the sword in battle, as she blasted through a line of opponents in front of her, to the shock of everyone but Steel, including the girl herself.
    [paragraph]Recovering from the shock, Exodus turned back to his opponents and, just before the undistracted beast could claw him, unleashed a magical cacophony of sound that detonated surrounding enemies. He continued to whip his conductors’ rod as if he were directing a national performance instead of standing in front of thousands of oncoming shadowy predators. It released countless musical notes with different effects. Griffon realized that the identification of the floating music notes released by Exodus were surprisingly basic: Red was fire, white was ice, yellow was lightning, and so on. Of course these were just the music notes: He also controlled various forms of energy directly. Any Fear that got to close was met by Exodus’ claws… which would slice large gashes in the faces of the pest.
    [paragraph]Overall, the three of them were doing an excellent job of holding off the massive army that lie before them, but not so good a job that they would be winning any time soon. Even when he and his latest combat acquisition joined the fray, it would be a long fight. Griffon sighed as he heard footsteps approach from behind.
    [paragraph]“The situation will take time to improve?”A familiar, female, mechanical voice asked him.
    [paragraph]“Yes, it could take more than half the night.” He responded slightly irritated that they could not solve the latest mysteries of Steel as soon as he had hoped. Yet on the other hand, it was likely that this skirmish would provide other invaluable data. He turned to look at the being behind him.
    [paragraph]It was a girl with long black hair that went down her back. She was wearing a black blazer with a white neck tie and a ruffled skirt that went down to her knees. She had rather fashionable boots that were, like the rest of her outfit, black, but also with pink lining and particularly long stockings to match. Upon her crown rested a most interesting top-hat. It had a purple ring just above the brim, with a silver skull shaped decoration on the front of it. The girl herself had an eerie pair of yellow eyes, and on the sides of her face running down from the top of her head and disappearing beneath her neck were faint lines of some sort.
    [paragraph]“Now then,” he wondered aloud. “What should I call you?” The girl cocked her head in confusion.
    [paragraph]“Should you not just call me by my current model number?” She asked innocently. Griffon gave a very unsatisfied glare.
    [paragraph]“Months of research went in before I even started on this units design. Because of that I was fortunate to only need to build one before I was satisfied with the capabilities and growth potential. Therefore: as no updates have been made, you are the first model, which is to say; 0001. If that name isn’t boring as heck then I don’t know what is.” The unit merely stared at him in the most quizzical manner possible. He didn’t even notice as he was determined to come up with something. “What about Raven?” he said tapping his foot. “It’s extremely cliché but it matches perfectly.”
    [paragraph]“… Shouldn’t there be an acrostic or something…? She was still quite perplexed by her creators’ behavior.
    [paragraph]“Ugh. Fine.” He grunted. “Let’s see… Raven… umm…” A brilliant flash of light behind Griffon drew Raven’s attention to the ever expanding chaos. As the others were fighting for their lives, Griffon stood there, pondering an acrostic. “Radical…Alice Variation... Enabling…” He suddenly found himself stuck for an N word. “Enabling…” Lightning struck next to his foot. Raven’s eyes widened but Griffon seemed to have had a revelation. “Necrosis!” He shouted with a finger pointed in the air.
    [paragraph]“What do I have to do with the death and destabilization of living cells?” She asked in curiosity.
    [paragraph]“Who cares?” He said shifting his Katana to his right hand. “It has death in it, and you’re wasting our time. Just leave it!” Amongst the countless Fears being battled, Steel paused to simply shake his head.
    [paragraph]“Long night.” He whispered. Meanwhile, Professor Griffon finally turned around and ran into the fray with a confused Raven following behind.
    -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    [paragraph]The first thing Griffon did as he rushed into the fight was slash a fear in two with but a flick of his sword. It happened to be twenty feet away, but you know.
    [paragraph]“Darn,” he whispered. “I was aiming for the one forty feet away…” He quickly turned his attention back to the ones that were actually closer to him. They snarled and snapped their teeth at him. “I see.” He stated. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a single blue candy. “Jawbreaker?” He asked. The snarling intensified, but he just stuck his katana in the ground, leaned against it, and started tossing the jawbreaker up in the air and catching it. “No sweet tooth?” This behavior officially perplexed Aura. Exodus on the other hand seemed slightly angry with him.
    [paragraph]“Griffon! Would you take fighting seriously for once in your life?” Exodus shouted as he conducted an energy barrier around him Steel, and Aura. Griffon however was undaunted and merely stood there in the exact same position… and the Fears weren’t even attacking… odd.
    [paragraph]“Exodus, we’ve been over this: I refuse to give them the respect that comes from treating Fears seriously. They are the most base, and imbecilic of Disturbed. They don’t deserve such luxuries.” He casually tossed his explosive to the nearest fear. It in turn responded by snapping at it, causing an explosion that took out at least 8 others. “See what I mean?” Exodus abandoned the conversation in favor of his own predicament.
    [paragraph]He momentarily put his conductors’ rod away in favor of his sharp claws. As the barrier surrounding them disappeared one fear came at him, he plunged his hand into its neck, causing instant evaporation. He turned around to slice the ones behind them. He got a bit more than he bargained for though: behind him was the forest from which the largest amount of enemies was flooding forth. He clawed his way through as best he could, but couldn’t avoid a few minor injuries.
    [paragraph]He still seemed distracted for reasons Griffon could not understand. In the end though, it seemed he was not so distracted that he couldn’t fight properly. He once again pulled out his conductors’ rod and swiped it in the direction of the forest. A bright, thin, thread of energy blasted from the rod, made its way through the crowd of monsters, and wrapped itself around a tree that was at least fifteen yards from his position and forty from Griffon’s.
    [paragraph]Exodus turned the opposite direction with the arm still facing the tree with which it was now bound. He leaped, and was pulled toward the tree at a mildly fast pace. As this happened he outstretched his other arm and began to rotate. His claws cut through anything that came within 3 feet of him; effectively creating a rather sharp tornado from his original position to the tree. This decimated most of the approaching enemy forces before they got too far into the field and filled the area with the putrid stench of the red smog that the Disturbed were composed of.
    [paragraph]Griffon shrugged as he was throwing candy coated lava detonators at his enemies. The cat had a rather advantageous strategy. When he reached the tree, he kicked off of the bark, did a flip, and landed in the median of the point from which sprang forth the wolves. He shouted above the noise with his rod pointing into the air.
    [paragraph]“Oh pure note, bar the path of mine enemies.” The sound of a single piano key rang out, and then a barrier of white light appeared to block exits from the forest. It went at least ten feet above even the highest trees and as most Fears tried to ram it, they would dissipate into smoke. Griffon decided it was now time to go over and discuss strategy with the creature.
    [paragraph]He sliced a Fear into wispy ribbons, and then he sliced at the ground. A small hole with shining edges appeared exactly where he had sliced. The inside was dark and misty, and emanated an eerie feeling that whoever stepped in would forfeit their lives and fall to their deaths. Perfectly unconcerned, he stepped into the hole and fell about 6 feet before coming out the other end of the portal and landing on the ground… right next to Exodus.
    [paragraph]“There are still hundreds on this side of the barrier, and you can’t keep it up forever.” He nodded at the snarling faces of the wolves still in the forest. “Once this is down, they’ll rush through like H2O through a broken dam.” The cat sighed as he held his hand and rod up to maintain the barrier.
    [paragraph]“Yeah, we need to do something before that happens.” A snarling sound above them drew their attention. Poking through the portal that Griffon had used were the heads of three fears. Griffon sighed and with a wave of his hand, instructed the portal to vanish. This caused the portal to close on the Fears, effectively cutting their heads off from the rest of their bodies: Red smoke floated down on them from above.
    [paragraph]“We could always use your portals to attack the Fears from this side of the barrier.” Exodus suggested. Griffon nodded. He held his sword in front of him and made a smooth cut. In the sky, a corresponding hole appeared to the one that was now in front of him. He reached in the pocket of his lab coat and grabbed a three or four jawbreakers. He stuck his hand into the portal and dropped them. In less than two seconds, explosive deposits of lava made themselves known on the other side of Exodus’ barrier. Next to Griffon, Exodus began to hum the Candy Land theme. The two smiled.

    [paragraph]When the smoke cleared however, the two noticed something peculiar. Sure enough the explosion had taken out plenty of Fears, but the surrounding trees were completely untouched.
    [paragraph]“Weird.” Exodus muttered. In the middle of the field behind them, Raven was now helping Aura and Steel to destroy the surrounding monsters.
    [paragraph]Raven was wielding a sword and shield. The sword had an Onyx black hilt and pommel and its blade was shining silver in the moonlight. Rightfully so, as Griffon had actually had the blade made of silver. Her shield was black with a gold lining and a white heart design in the center. As the three of them fought off countless wolves, black feathers with a whitish frost began to fall from the sky. Everyone was confused at this and cast a glance toward the sky. They were shocked at what they saw.
    [paragraph]Multiple crows circled the sky. They’re colors were like that of the feathers floating down around them, and they were at least four feet tall. Their eyes glowed white and on their chest was the same emblem of the wolves around them. The sound of their flapping wings could be heard as they descended. Exodus Gasped but Griffons eyes just widened a little. He whistled.
    [paragraph]“They’re starting to send in new toys.” Griffon stated with an impressed look on his face.
    [paragraph]“I had completely forgotten about the fact that there were more than one kind of Disturbed in a sect.” Exodus whispered. “Up till now we’ve only ever fought one kind of disturbed: These Fears that we’re fighting now… what did you call them?”
    [paragraph]“Lycans.” Griffon responded. “These birds are called Cravens.” He pondered to himself this latest development. “Let’s go join the others.” He said to Exodus. “We finish this as a team.”
    [paragraph]“Right.” Exodus shut off the barrier. Thanks to the earlier explosion, not near as many Lycans were willing to take the route. Griffon created a portal, and the two of them went through to where Steel, Aura, and Raven were. Griffon came out casting multiple Jawbreakers and Exodus flung out a few fire notes. This got rid of all but the last two immediate threats, which quickly fell to the blades of Aura and Raven.

    [paragraph]“I hope everyone is ready,” Laughed Griffon as they all turned to face the oncoming army of Fears. His feline eye glowed yellow and blue circuitry snaked across the whites of them. He smiled with suddenly very prominent fangs. “Because it seems that our new friend’s arrival is going to be a very interesting night.”[/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph]
     
    Last edited: Apr 23, 2014
  13. Light-Rune Maven Seer

    Joined:
    Jan 8, 2012
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    The Aetherial Sea
    388
    573
    Ok, so I'm sorry for double posting, but I said I would post chapter 5 today. Plus: It's been two weeks, there was plenty of time for someone to post. As with chapter 3 I can tell something is wrong with 5, but yet again I can't really point to it. It's probably the battle scene... I suppose we will all find out when Base walks in. Still not done with 6, but I know what I want done with it so it should be done by my next deadline. Now that those brief announcements are out of the way, enjoy.

    Chapter 5
    Battle Under the Moonlight
    As their enemies began their attack, Griffon was the first to act. He raised his sword to form a horizontal plane in front of him. He caressed the blue blade with his left hand. Along the path of his fingers, electricity began to crackle and spark. He slashed vertically, upward diagonally, and horizontally, creating an electrical asterisk that sped forward and zapped the fresh new batch of Lycans. He smirked as the foul odor of the Disturbed mixed with the new scent of ozone.
    As a Craven swooped down at him from above, it was suddenly battered with an unexplainable gust of wind. Griffon kept his smirk firmly glued to his face: It was good to have Steel on their side. He pulled out a blue jawbreaker. He very characteristically did the unusual: He spat on it. He then proceeded to use the edge of his lab-coat to polish it. He nodded approvingly at the shining blue orb then held it up above him.
    “Surely the Cravens want a nice SHINY Jawbreaker.” He shouted into the air. As if in offering, he threw the Candy high into the air where it was caught by a Craven that promptly exploded. He merely stared as the molten lava nearly seared his face. “My, what fools…” He whispered to himself. A few feet behind him, Exodus just shook his head.
    “I’ll never fully understand what goes on in there.” He muttered to himself. He directed his attention to the countless Cravens that were scattered through the air far beyond the reach of Griffons candy. He had to be the one to get them: Steel was preoccupied at the moment with more immediate enemies. He stretched his arms in front of his torso in unison. The thin rod in his right hand was glowing with a pale blue light. He flung his arms upward, causing a Geyser of water to erupt from underground aquifers.
    He flicked his right hand down and his left upward, causing the water to seek out the multiple targets that flew through the air. It grabbed at them as it snaked about the sky. He need not worry about any Lycans during his little performance, as he could hear the sound of Alice slicing them to ribbons behind him. He brought his arms to form an X over his chest; all the water gathered into a central orb in the night sky. He saw no reason to waste energy when the next step could be done by the resources at hand.
    “Griffon!” Exodus shouted above the vicious growling and calling of various Disturbed around them. The Professor looked in his direction with a curious glance. Exodus nodded in the direction of the water orb as he brought it down to a more manageable distance. The Professor smiled in a way that made Exodus want to crawl under a rock and hide there… forever. The demented scientist held up his palms and, with a most joyous cry, shot out a blast of lightning as if he were a sith, reveling in the torment of his victim. This thought did not make Exodus any more comfortable.
    His plan worked though: Griffon had sent an electrical charge into the water that made it about as volatile as one of the Professors jawbreakers, more so in the fact that had a much greater volume. He snapped his arms forward, sending the orb into a cluster of enemies some hundred feet away. A loud boom sounded as the water crashed upon its target. A rush of air also passed by, and Exodus momentarily struggled to remain standing.
    “Well,” He said as he brushed himself off. “If those Cravens weren’t dead after the lightning, that little scene should have definitely done it. He turned around to see Raven having trouble with few Lycans. They had surrounded her and were attacking from all directions. However, ones face met with the shield she was carrying, which she then used to push it in the general direction of another. She turned to slash a Lycans throat just before it pounced on her, and then quickly parried another blow from behind her.
    Exodus was impressed: she had generally strategic battle style for a first timer. Then again, if she was made to fight, not being strategic would be a fatal flaw in her basic programming. He quickly joined her, sending his claws into a few Lycans. The two of them conversed as they cleared away their opponents.
    “So, how do you place our odds?” Exodus asked.
    “Well…” Raven began. “If one more shows up… it might be an even match.” She said with a perfectly straight face. Exodus scoffed as he picked up a Lycan, threw it into a craven, and sent a jolt of lightning at the pair.
    “Picked up the professors’ cockiness I see. You should take this more seriously or you risk getting injured.” He scolded.
    “But I am taking this seriously.” She said. Analysis shows that, despite the fact that they are coming in full force, they’re relatively weak Fears. Furthermore, we already risk injury, as this is a large amount of enemies. I said this wasn’t an even match; I didn’t say we would come out unscathed.” When she finished, she slashed two Lycans then jumped on the back of a third to knock a Craven out of the air. As she landed, she twirled and pointed her sword downward to destroy the third Lycan.
    “Noted.” He said slightly surprised at what she had said about the Fears strength. “So it’s quantity versus quality is it?” He said with flurry of Ice crystals at the air-borne enemies.
    “Yes, that seems to be their plan of action.” Raven replied pulling her sword from the ground.
    “So how should we respond?” He asked. “We’ve got someone injured after all: She won’t be very healthy if she continues to be yanked around on the back of a giant wolf as a gash on her leg releases a large amount of blood.”
    “Correct,” Raven agreed as she sidestepped a Craven that proceeded to accidentally stab a Lycan with its sharp beak. “Our first priority should probably be to protect Steels passenger.” She said as she jabbed her sword into the open mouth of a lunging Lycan. Exodus watched it disappeared into smoke with a blank look.
    “Right then, let’s go.” The two nodded to each other before dashing into the carnage to quickly make up the distance that had formed between them and Steel. They slashed and blasted at the fears as they went, clearing a path that would quickly vanish behind them. When they did reach the Wolf and the girl, the area they had come from was no longer discernable.
    “Are you alright?” Exodus asked with sudden concern that one would not think to hear being given to a complete stranger on the battle field.
    “Me?” The girl replied in a bit of shock. “I’m fine; you aren’t worried about him?” She said nodding down at the wolf that carried her. Exodus just shrugged with a lack of interest on the subject.
    “He won’t need my worry anytime soon.” He said in a matter of fact tone. “What’s your name?” He asked as he turned to aid Raven in combating the fears.
    [paragraph]“Aura.” She replied.
    [paragraph]“Perhaps Introductions should be done later.” Griffon said as he materialized from who knows where, thinking about how quickly they had been split apart and how their team effort was going. “We’re kind of surrounded right now you see.” He said with a somewhat sarcastic note. Exodus however, seemed not to be listening.
    [paragraph]“Aura…” He whispered. “I… feel like I know that name…” His eyes widened. “I do!” He shouted. “I do know that name! You’re-” His sentence was cut off as a craven dived for Aura. Griffon quickly sliced it in two, interrupting its dive seconds from Aura’s face.
    [paragraph]“I mean it this time.” He said darkly. “Fight now, Intros later.”
    [paragraph]“R-right.” Exodus answered with a surprised look on his face. Griffon wondered once again what was wrong with cat. He was acting unusual. He then realized that it likely had to do with his recent realization and just decided to drop it.
    [paragraph]“Help Raven.” Steel said turning to face the oncoming hoard.[/paragraph]
    [paragraph]It began to rain.
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    [paragraph]It was quite a bit shorter than Griffon had expected.[/paragraph]
    [paragraph]Steel started off with a thunderous howl that split his allies’ ears and sent a torrent of water upon the nearest Cravens. The rain had begun to come down harder... in that general area. Wind began to batter the Birds, preventing stable flight, and greatly reducing the capabilities of ground foes as well.
    [paragraph]“Mental note,” Griffon whispered to himself. “Test destructive capabilities of Steel were he to howl into a microphone.” The pouring rain was accompanied by a cacophony of thunder and a barrage of lightning. “…And tell him to stop stealing my fun.” He whispered with a disappointed look on his face.
    [paragraph]Raven took the opportunity to take out as many Lycans as she could. Exodus quickly followed her example and Griffon began to shoot down Cravens with his electric sword (it had better range than the jawbreakers). Steel started to fight physically again, and it was once again hard not to appreciate how vicious he was in combat. He destroyed many Lycans with quick, precise blows to their heads and necks. His claws and teeth would tear them open, and he would add rough blows with the gusts of wind, bolts of lightning, and clouds of rain to his attacks. He showed no mercy, and his brutality might have even slightly disturbed Aura.
    [paragraph]She did her best to ignore this however, and continued to fight the enemies surrounding the party. Very little were getting through the defenses formed by Raven, Exodus, and Griffon, but that didn’t mean she could relax her guard: Especially since her guardian would recklessly lunge through other three to tear fears to shreds. It was during these lunges that she was able to do the most damage; slashing her glass-like sword through the shadowy mass that rushed toward her.
    As the five of them warred with the crawling mass of foes, they seemed to not even be making a dent; as was to be expected after Griffon’s earlier comments. However, Griffon had failed to acknowledge the meaning of the fact that Aura was injured: they couldn’t afford to draw out too long of a battle. As Steel once again lunged into the black frenzy, Aura lost her grip.
    [paragraph]She hit the ground disoriented. As cliché as it sounded, everything around her seemed to be in slow motion. As she lay there in the dirt, foes seemed to come in from all sides. Griffon, Raven, and Exodus had noticed her fall and were rushing to save her; Steel seemed to have vanished. Blood continued to flow from the large gash in her right leg. Aura had felt increasingly weak for quite a while; now she felt flat out exhausted. A Lycan rushed toward her, its fangs bared, and its intent clearly to kill. Aura raised her sword in a weak attempt to block. Raven reached Aura and lunged her sword towards the Lycan. In that moment, Raven’s blade crossed with Aura’s upraised one.
    [paragraph]The glowing blade began to shine brighter, and the great light pushed back the Fears. The one that had attacked Aura cried out in shock as it was obliterated into thick red smoke. Before anyone had time to react Griffon, who was still in motion from previously planned actions, Stabbed his katana in the spot where the Lycan’s head had just been, sending out a burst of electricity as he did so. This added a third sword to the cross, sending a blinding light out upon the entire field.
    [paragraph]The three of them closed their eyes but stood frozen in place; they dare not move a muscle. Exodus covered his own eyes, for he had this luxury of defense from the impossibly bright light. After a few moments, Aura felt slight sting on her leg and slowly opened her eyes to find that the light had faded. She looked toward her leg to see that Steel had reappeared quite suddenly, and was cleaning her wound. He paused for a moment to speak.
    [paragraph]“Told you I wouldn’t let you fall.” He had whispered, but had been just loud enough for Griffon to hear. He too opened his eyes and was shocked by what he saw. Exodus and Raven soon followed. Other than their current position, which had in the confusion become right next to the castle wall, the field was completely empty. The only exception was the faint traces of thick red smoke. The air smelled horrible, but the rain began to come harder, as if the sky thought its tears could wash away the scent of death.[/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph][/paragraph]
     
  14. Light-Rune Maven Seer

    Joined:
    Jan 8, 2012
    Gender:
    Male
    Location:
    The Aetherial Sea
    388
    573
    Oh thank goodness. Schools out, I can finally move on with this thing... So I still have to fix the above post and uh...I think I had something I wanted to say, but... yeah, so just... here's the next chapter. Please enjoy.

    Chapter 6

    What’s in a Name?

    “Interesting.” Griffon Stated. He pulled a thick handheld notepad out of his lab coat, flipped it open, and scrawled a few notes upon a blank sheet. When he was done, he held his pen ready. “That was quite a blast miss Aura; I don’t suppose you know how you did it?” Aura shook her head. Griffon apparently saw fit to write this down as well. “Do you have any prior memories of before you woke up in this land?” Exodus interrupted the conversation before Aura could respond.

    “We can deal with this later!” He scolded. “She’s injured.” Griffon seemed to barely notice Exodus argument.

    “Steel is tending her wounds.” He said without ever removing his gaze from her; still expecting an answer. Steel growled.

    “Not enough.” The lupine figure barked. Griffon seemed slightly taken aback. He quickly recovered.

    “You and Exodus seem to hold a unique interest for her.” He observed. Steel merely shrugged and resumed licking Aura’s wounds. Exodus shook his head.

    "We'll discuss this later." He said. "Right now, we need to get her inside." Griffon hesitated slightly, but he nodded his head in agreement. As the group headed inside, Griffon and Raven hung back behind the rest of the group. They walked in silence; Griffons face downcast and Raven slightly concerned beside him.

    "Is everything all right?" She asked him silently.

    "Of course." He said absentmindedly. This only gave Raven more concern.

    "Are you sure?" Griffon realized she was concerned for him and looked up at her.

    "Yes. I'm fine." He smiled gently. "I was just thinking." He paused. "I was being a bit of a jerk." He let that thought hang in the air for a moment before he resumed speaking. "I was a bit too concerned with what her coming would entail, rather than her safety. I was too distracted by my search for answers that I had no immediate need of; especially not compared to her need of medical help." He shook his head and sighed.

    "The wound could get infected; she could have ended up dying from it if I had succeeded in keeping her too long." Raven didn't really know what to say about this. Griffon saw her discomfort. "Well then, I suppose that's enough exploration of my faults." he said with a small laugh. "We got plenty of other data, and crisis has been averted." He ignored the order in which those two things came out.

    Raven smiled at him; it was hard not to be encouraged by him sometimes. At this point, the others had gone on ahead of them.

    "Alright, let's go see if our new friend is okay. Then we can analyze the data." She stated.

    -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Aura sat silently in what appeared to be a medical bay as Exodus bandaged her wounded leg; with instruction from Steel. The room had a clean smell she couldn't quite place, and there were various tools related to wound treatment organized in cabinets and on shelves. There was minor furniture lying about, one such object being the low table she and her companions were gathered at. She could no longer see the strange duo from earlier that had been following them, and had thought they had just left their comrades to do as they pleased when they walked through the door quite suddenly. Their moods, she noticed, were much brighter than earlier.

    "Doing all right?" The Black haired girl asked. Aura nodded hesitantly. She was somewhat unsure of these strange beings. Clearly there was Steel; the giant, seemingly mutant wolf, who was also apparently a rain spirit. Then there were these newer creatures; A strangely colored bipedal cat with a large scar and creepy red eyes, and two seemingly human entities with very noticeable differentiating characteristics. One had fangs, the other had strange grooves in her skin, and they both had glowing eyes. The black haired girl smiled at Clair, her strange appearance causing the innocent gesture to seem menacing and eerie.

    "That's good to hear Aura." Raven replied cheerfully. She then realized that Aura didn't know any of them yet, and decided to continue the introductions that had been touched upon during the battle. "I'm Raven. It's a pleasure to meet you!" As she spoke however, her gaze wandered to Griffon, who had already sunken into the recesses of his mind to analyze who knows what.

    Raven shot him a death glare and cleared her throat rather loudly. Griffon looked up to see said death glare, and was suddenly quite eager to introduce himself.

    "P-Professor Griffon." He quickly made a polite bow. "A pleasure to make your acquaintance." Tyson quietly chuckled to himself, and Aura was surprised at how quickly the red head scientist had changed his tune.

    "Weren't you angry?" She asked. "Something about data?" She added. Griffon gave a small sad smile.

    "My apologies for that." He stated rather simply. "Sometimes I get a bit too caught up in my work." Aura seemed to decide that she shouldn't question it too much. However, there was something about the young man's apologetic smile that seemed almost... familiar. She shrugged the feeling off and continued to asses the situation.

    "So, what took you so long?"

    Griffon gave her a questioning look.

    "What do you mean? Raven and I couldn't have been behind you for more than two minutes." Aura was confused. Her leg wound had already been cleaned out and bandaged. Considering how deep a gash it was and that Tyson had relied on Steel's instruction for lack of experience, she believed it had taken at least fifteen minutes. Griffon seemed to notice the condition of her leg and gave an understanding nod. "it seems Steel accelerated time for you a bit. He is a relatively patient creature, but he still tends to do that from time to time."

    "Accelerated time?" Aura asked somewhat incredulously; though she wasn't exactly sure why, as plenty of weird things had happened already.

    "Yes. Accelerated time." He replied blankly. "We're still not entirely sure about all of his capabilities; The book has been extremely vague thus far."

    "The book?" Aura whispered in question. She lowered her head in thought. The spoken phrase seemed to awaken a memory deep within her subconscious. Without realizing what she was doing, she closed her eyes and concentrated. She mentally grasped at the identification that had thus far eluded her. She remembered... red eyes... red hair. Her head snapped up in realization.


    "Leonidas!" She shouted rather suddenly. Griffon, Raven, and Tyson all jumped back startled, but Steel merely nodded his head in acknowledgement of what had just transpired.

    "Correct." Griffon managed to say as he recovered. "Mostly at least, or perhaps entirely; we're not yet sure how different we are from are counterparts in Hypnos Terra. After all, there is surely a reason our existences warrant different names." He rationalized.

    Aura had heard him, but was not entirely focused on what he had said when she realized who the other two must be.

    "Alice." The black haired girl smiled again and nodded. It had been pretty easy to figure out who was, as she looked very similar and was seemed to have the same basic personality. The third person however was much more difficult to decipher. She had only met him once, and she might not know at all if not for his bizarre appearance throughout most of that meeting. She stared lightly into the unnatural deep red eyes. "Tyson." She acknowledged. He smiled faintly.

    "Good to see you again." He said politely. The cat bowed slightly, and Aura couldn't help but wonder why he was so different from the rest of them; In contrast to their humanoid figures was that of this strangely colored feline about half their height.

    "But of course, here we are known as Griffon, Raven, and Exodus." The professor stated. This brought the issue of names back to Aura's attention.

    "So you don't know why we're all identified differently?" She asked.

    "Not a clue." He stated matter of factually.

    "I've attempted to research any possible connections between here and Hypnos Terra, and seems as though it's impossible to get there from here. In fact, Aperture and I can't reach any well known locations in our world at all; our other lives are completely inaccessible from here."

    Aura gave a questioning look. She understood that she should be focusing on the subject matter, but she couldn't help but be curious at the concept of another person being here.

    "Aperture?" She asked.

    Griffon smiled mischievously.

    "That's what he named his sword..." Exodus groaned.

    "Not sure why he acts like it's sentient..."

    Griffon gasped loudly with an incredulous look upon his face. He whipped out his katana and started slowly stroking the blade.

    "Don't listen to him my precious." The mad doctor whispered to the electric blue sword. "He is just jealous of you." Exodus rolled his eyes. Raven smiled.

    "It's actually a common tradition to name weapons." She stated. "I don't know how it started exactly, but it's likely a result of being taught to treat a weapon as an extension of oneself." She pulled out her silver blade and gazed at it silently for a moment.

    The spark of an idea flashed in her eyes.

    "I'll call it Necrosis."

    Griffon looked at her oddly.

    "What does that have to do with anything?" he asked.

    The room was filled with a brief silence.

    After that, everyone promptly displayed their annoyance towards the good doctor.

    Raven simply gave a "not-amused" glare.

    Steel growled deeply.

    Exodus found the nearest wall, and started banging his head against it with great force.

    Aura, however, being new and all, had no idea what was going on and had nothing but a look of complete and utter confusion upon her face.

    Griffon's face mirrored this look. If he had any idea of what was going on, he didn't show it.

    After giving his head a quick shake, Exodus glanced at his own weapon- the conductors' rod- with a thoughtful expression. It was simple in appearance; extremely thin, a light wooden brown, and it didn't have much in terms of design. But at the base, it was just thick enough to display the outline of a small emblem at the bottom.

    "A name, huh?" This caught the others' attention. He gazed upon the small image ingrained into the wood, just barely big enough to be seen. It seemed to be nothing more than an ovular shape, coming to a small point at the top. But Exodus could tell by the highlight marking what it was; and something inside of him could feel what it represented. He closed his eyes and held the object over his heart.

    "Exile...." The feline whispered silently. Everyone remained silent for a moment. Aura wondered to herself why Exodus would name his rod that. Then it dawned on her that they might suddenly want her to name her weapon too, seeing as they all had. She bit her lip; she had never thought of herself as very creative. If they asked her to name her sword, what would she choose?

    She was spared the need when her canine companion gently nudged her, breaking her out of her thoughts. She looked over at him with a questioning look.

    "Hmm?"

    With a deadpan glance, Steel leaned down and touched his nose to the sword Aura still held in her hands.

    "Looking Glass." he murmured.

    "Good name for it." Griffon noted.

    "Oh! We should probably get a scabbard for it." Raven interjected.

    "Yes, I suppose I should throw something together." Griffon continued.

    Aura was a bit exasperated at how fast her allies got off topic.

    "Um, can we go back to discussing what's going on?" She asked as politely as possible.

    "Oh... Yes of course. Sorry." Griffon looked somewhat embarrassed as he apologized to Aura. He pulled back his sleeve and glanced at his watch.

    "We've got about an hour." He stated before glancing back at Aura.

    "So, names and the whole shebang, huh?"

    Aura chuckled slightly.

    "Yes, Please."

    Griffon proceeded to sit down in a nearby chair.

    "Well, you see..."
     
  15. Sebax Avatar by Xerona

    Joined:
    Mar 4, 2013
    Location:
    Wonderful World of Disney
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    Chapter 4:

    "It was a make shift lab you see." Try to stay to one tense, even though this line does add a nice little compliment of color to your writing. Second person is EXTREMELY difficult to write in, so I suggest trying to avoid it in this particular story since the rest of the story is in past.

    "but the castles master", edit. Make it "castle's".

    I liked the use of the word "pervaded". Sometimes overused, but I feel it works here where the instant is pretty much tangible. The story itself permeates.

    "interesting, plants". "interesting plants"; unless someone's addressing the plants directly. >>

    Try this:

    "...a cat; but not just any cat however."

    I like Exodus. Is Professor Griffon
    Eddy
    all grown up after losing
    Ed and Edd
    though? The
    jawbreaker
    bit made me burst out laughing when first revealed.

    I'm afraid I'm quite drowsy at the present hour. I will post this for now and continue on from where I left off.