Fala finally finished looking at my memories and regained focus of the world around her.
"Oh Faalan. I can't believe went and did all that just for me. I'm touched. If Tahi wasn't my boyfriend..." She trailed off and I resisted the urge to scream in frustration and anger. That stupid Tahi. He came out of my memories a moment after Fala. Which was odd because he started looking first. Ah well.
"You forced yourself on her!" he accused. It took me by surprise. Not Fala though.
"He did not!" Fala retorted, eyes flashing.
"You saw it, she responded to what I did. If she had wanted to, she could have pushed me away or slapped me." I tried to reason with him. Half-heartedly.
"You are stronger. You forced yourself." He refused to stop his accusations.
"Tahi. You say that one more time and I will break up with you again. He did not force himself on me. I love him as I love you." I was glowing with the last part of her last sentence, but not the first part of that sentence. I half purred and half growled at her words.
"He FORCED himself on you!" he screeched. He hadn't had time for her words to sink in.
"And now I cannot love you." Fala whispered sadly, giving Tahi a final kiss on the cheek. I gave a smug grin to no one in particular.
"I'm sorry Tahi, but I guess the better man won." I said, half sarcastically. He gave a howl of fury and thorned plants began to rise from the ground. Crap.
I surrounded myself with a force field as Tahi surrounded me with dangerous plants, attempting to strangle me and kill me, looking ready to explode the whole time. Fala stood on the side in horror, staring at the massive plants.
I'll be fine, Fala. Let me take care of myself.
But Faalan! When he's angry... I worry for you. Her face disappeared from my vision as the plants completely surrounded my protective bubble.
Fala, has he done something to you? 'When he's angry'? That doesn't sound good.
Faalan, not now. Please. I'll tell you later.
Why didn't I see it?
Because I hid it from you.
What? You can do that?
There's someone else I know who can read minds. I've learned to shield my memories from that person. And it seems to work for you as well.
I gave a mental sigh and then concentrated on maintaining my force field. I was already rather tired from my travels and all I really wanted was to sleep. I wasn't sure if I could defend myself, actually. But I didn't want Fala to help me. I wanted to do this on my own.
I shot an illusion of myself to Tahi and had it avoid his vines and attacks on the illusion. Fala didn't see it and only saw Tahi trying to hit something that did not exist. After a while, the plants around my force field were released and I carefully slipped behind a large boulder nearby. Fala saw, but didn't say a word.
Tahi tired after an hour or so, and collapsed from over use of his power. Fala got some healers to take him to his house and then she came back to me.
"Faalan. Why have you done all this for me?"
"Because I love you. Didn't I already say before? Or at least show you?"
"Yes, bu-" I cut her off by kissing her. Her small warm body against mine made my heart and soul soar with giddiness. I missed her so much. And I loved her with all my heart. I don't think I will ever love anyone that much again.
"Mmhm... Faalan... You have to stop..." Fala moaned as I kissed her neck.
"Fala, why?" I whispered, kissing down her collarbone.
"Not here... Please..." I sighed, and then stopped.
"Fine..." I murmured, dropping my arms from her.
"And Faalan?" I looked up into her lovely brown eyes.
"Yes?"
"I do believe you have something for me." She grinned mischievously. I smiled.
"Yes, I do have something for you. But you have to come and get it." She gave a cute pout before wrapping her arms around me and digging through my cape. It took her a while, but she found it eventually.
"Why, it's gorgeous! Better than it looked like in your memories!" she gasped, turning it over and over in her hand.
"Let me help you put it on." I said, beaming. I must have looked like a giddy idiot. Not that I cared at the time.
I gently took the piece of jewelry and fumbled with the clasp until I got it on.
"You like it?" I asked gently, when I had gotten the necklace on. I got no reply.
"Fala?" I poked my head around her and...her eyes were glowing gold. As well as the necklace. It took me of guard, and I gaped for a couple moments.
Her eyes slowly closed and I could see the light pouring from under her eyelids. What was going on?
I'll admit, I whimpered a little when I saw her like she was. It was as if she was sleeping while standing but...her expression...was more than a sleeping expression. Almost...an expression of enlightenment. It scared me a bit. Suddenly, the light faded, and she crumpled into my arms. All I could do was hold her in my arms and wait for her to wake up.
AN: This is the end!!! The end I tell you! Ha! Ha. Ha ha. Ha. I'm okay. Sorry, I'm just happy that I've finally finished this. I'm going to start developing book three soon.
Thing is, the idea of just one book, just Melody Maker, really appeals to me. Or maybe I will make it into three books in one. Sort of like having the books as chapters and the chapters as sections. What do you think?
Friday, August 15, 2008
Monday, July 21, 2008
Memory Lane (Chapter 21)
The first thing I saw was Fala standing in front of a woman's bed. Or rather, a younger Fala. She looked around 6 or younger. The woman looked a bit like Fala, and I thought she might be her mother.
"Mommy?" The younger Fala confirmed my guess.
"Yes honey?" Her mother looked very weak. With pale skin and thin frame, she looked as if she wouldn't live much longer. I wondered what this woman could have.
"Are you gonna be okay, mommy?" Fala's wide, frightened eyes looked down at her mother.
"Sweetheart, mommy is very sick." The woman raised a shaky hand to caress her daughter's face.
"Does that mean you'll have to be in this hospital forever?" The young girl sat down on the thin cot, the sheets wrinkling around her body.
"I won't be here forever. Forever is a long time, dear."
"So you can leave soon and come and live with daddy and me again?"
"Maybe. We'll have to see what the doctors say." Fala leaned down and hugged her mother tightly.
The scene blurred and then I was in front of a coffin. I saw the younger Fala again. She looked the same age as before, but she was dressed in black. Her eyes were red and had dark circles underneath. She looked as if she'd been crying for a long time without rest.
There were people around her and a tall man with light brown hair in black put his hand on Fala's shoulder.
"Fala?"
"Yes daddy?" Her young voice was shaky but she did not cry.
"Mommy told me to tell you not to cry when she was gone. She said she wanted you to be happy and that she was in heaven now. She'll be watching you from above."
"Mommy said that?"
"Yes she did." At this, Fala burst into tears, clinging onto her father, her small body wracked with sobs.
There was a series of scenes of her father, becoming more thin and sickly until I saw yet another coffin. This time, Fala was a little older, a little taller, and a little sadder. Her eyes were filled with the grief of one who has seen the deaths of beloved ones. Those sad eyes shot pain into my heart. To know that she had suffered that much at such a young age hurt me. I wanted to protect her always.
And then I saw her being hugged by a woman who looked like Tahi, which I took to be his mother. I watched her grow up, the grief fading from her eyes over time. She became close to Tahi, and stuck by his side. I was filled with jealousy, but I watched on.
Now she looked around 17, and it was most likely true, for there were other people her age throwing fireballs and trying to fly. She alone sat on the side, an area of empty space around her. Not a single soul came to talk to her. Then it hit me: this was when she didn't know her power.
I watched her go through the halls of some building, treated as if she had some deformity. I saw her wrapped in Tahi's arms and sobbing. I wished that I had been there. I would have stood by her side and comforted her.
Finally, I saw her get sucked into the blue portal that Khanna had created. I saw myself and my sister once more.
I stopped and then jumped past the time I had been with her. She dropped into her own world, at the time that she had left it. No one noticed her as she got up and went to some lady in a room. They talked about some prophecy and her getting her gift.
Then she left for a house. The door opened, and there was Tahi, tangled up with his supposedly half-sister on the ground, laughing and giggling. Fala flew into a rage, screaming into Tahi's face, with him frantically trying to explain. She ignored him and stormed out of the house. I felt proud of what she had done, but hated Tahi even more for his relationship with her.
Scenes of her taking things out of his house with him still trying to explain passed. Then I saw her walking down a road, muttering something about saying goodbye to Tahi once and for all, when I saw myself crash into her.
I pulled myself out of her mind and waited for Tahi and Fala to recover from their trip through my memories.
She clearly still considered Tahi her boyfriend even though he had "cheated" on her. And she had been about to dump him once and for all when he had to come up with his great explaination! I gave a growl of frustration.
All I could do now was wait for her to come out from my memories and hope that she would choose me.
Suddenly, I remembered that I wanted to give her something. Except I couldn't remember exactly what it was... Then it came to me.
The necklace that I had bought when I had first started my way to find her was still tucked into my cloak. It only took me a second to find it in the various pockets of my cloak. I didn't take it out though. I would give it to her later.
AN: I think I'll drag out this conflict to book three. ^_^ Then again, I might not. I'll have to think about it.
"Mommy?" The younger Fala confirmed my guess.
"Yes honey?" Her mother looked very weak. With pale skin and thin frame, she looked as if she wouldn't live much longer. I wondered what this woman could have.
"Are you gonna be okay, mommy?" Fala's wide, frightened eyes looked down at her mother.
"Sweetheart, mommy is very sick." The woman raised a shaky hand to caress her daughter's face.
"Does that mean you'll have to be in this hospital forever?" The young girl sat down on the thin cot, the sheets wrinkling around her body.
"I won't be here forever. Forever is a long time, dear."
"So you can leave soon and come and live with daddy and me again?"
"Maybe. We'll have to see what the doctors say." Fala leaned down and hugged her mother tightly.
The scene blurred and then I was in front of a coffin. I saw the younger Fala again. She looked the same age as before, but she was dressed in black. Her eyes were red and had dark circles underneath. She looked as if she'd been crying for a long time without rest.
There were people around her and a tall man with light brown hair in black put his hand on Fala's shoulder.
"Fala?"
"Yes daddy?" Her young voice was shaky but she did not cry.
"Mommy told me to tell you not to cry when she was gone. She said she wanted you to be happy and that she was in heaven now. She'll be watching you from above."
"Mommy said that?"
"Yes she did." At this, Fala burst into tears, clinging onto her father, her small body wracked with sobs.
There was a series of scenes of her father, becoming more thin and sickly until I saw yet another coffin. This time, Fala was a little older, a little taller, and a little sadder. Her eyes were filled with the grief of one who has seen the deaths of beloved ones. Those sad eyes shot pain into my heart. To know that she had suffered that much at such a young age hurt me. I wanted to protect her always.
And then I saw her being hugged by a woman who looked like Tahi, which I took to be his mother. I watched her grow up, the grief fading from her eyes over time. She became close to Tahi, and stuck by his side. I was filled with jealousy, but I watched on.
Now she looked around 17, and it was most likely true, for there were other people her age throwing fireballs and trying to fly. She alone sat on the side, an area of empty space around her. Not a single soul came to talk to her. Then it hit me: this was when she didn't know her power.
I watched her go through the halls of some building, treated as if she had some deformity. I saw her wrapped in Tahi's arms and sobbing. I wished that I had been there. I would have stood by her side and comforted her.
Finally, I saw her get sucked into the blue portal that Khanna had created. I saw myself and my sister once more.
I stopped and then jumped past the time I had been with her. She dropped into her own world, at the time that she had left it. No one noticed her as she got up and went to some lady in a room. They talked about some prophecy and her getting her gift.
Then she left for a house. The door opened, and there was Tahi, tangled up with his supposedly half-sister on the ground, laughing and giggling. Fala flew into a rage, screaming into Tahi's face, with him frantically trying to explain. She ignored him and stormed out of the house. I felt proud of what she had done, but hated Tahi even more for his relationship with her.
Scenes of her taking things out of his house with him still trying to explain passed. Then I saw her walking down a road, muttering something about saying goodbye to Tahi once and for all, when I saw myself crash into her.
I pulled myself out of her mind and waited for Tahi and Fala to recover from their trip through my memories.
She clearly still considered Tahi her boyfriend even though he had "cheated" on her. And she had been about to dump him once and for all when he had to come up with his great explaination! I gave a growl of frustration.
All I could do now was wait for her to come out from my memories and hope that she would choose me.
Suddenly, I remembered that I wanted to give her something. Except I couldn't remember exactly what it was... Then it came to me.
The necklace that I had bought when I had first started my way to find her was still tucked into my cloak. It only took me a second to find it in the various pockets of my cloak. I didn't take it out though. I would give it to her later.
AN: I think I'll drag out this conflict to book three. ^_^ Then again, I might not. I'll have to think about it.
Monday, July 14, 2008
Memory Sharing (Chapter 20)
Honestly, I really was quite confused as to what had happened. All I really knew was that Fala had seen Tahi and his half-sister together. (What had they been doing anyways?!) The other thing that I knew for certain was that I was going to make Fala only mine. Tahi needed to get his hands off of her. (I was about ready to run a stone through his heart now.)
I concentrated for a brief moment for teleportation. And then I stood in front of Tahi and Fala.
"Shit, he found us!"
"Whoa, watch your language!" I retorted. I mean, I did swear on occasion, but...
"Faalan. Meet Tahi. Tahi. Meet Faalan. Now, I would like for the two of you to get along." We both turned to look at Fala. Then we both gritted out teeth.
"Faalan." Tahi stuck out a hand, jaw set and eyes hard.
"Tahi. I took the hand and shook it, resisting the urge to crush his hand. We let go of each others' hands ASAP.
"Good. I'm glad that's settled now." Fala beamed, and I half melted to see her smiling face. But I didn't let that deter me from my original goal.
"Tahi, I'd like you to see what Fala and I have been through." I smiled slightly.
"Wh-" I didn't give him a chance to reply before I sent all of our travels through his head, making sure he would see our kisses.
"What did you do to him?!" I turned to Fala, who was staring at Tahi. He was very still now, eyes wide open as my memories rushed through his mind.
"I merely am letting him experience what we went through." She sighed and shook her head disapprovingly. I felt my heart sink a little, but I got over that quickly.
"Fala. I missed you so much." And it was true. I forgot about her sometimes when I had been searching for the Pranji flower and desperately trying to save Yosa and Noiyra, but she had always been in the back of my mind. I loved her so much. My heart ached at the though of her possible rejection.
"I missed you too Faalan, but Tahi is my boyfriend." She let the words sink in for a moment. I clenched my hands into fists for a moment then took a deep breath to calm myself.
"You don't know what I've been through to get here." I let myself flip through my mental folders where I had the memories of my travels to get to this point in time.
"It couldn't possibly be as bad as what I've had to go through." Her eyes were filled with pain, but I couldn't stop the words that came out of my mouth.
"Really? You sure about that?" It was, in a way, cruel that I had said that. I couldn't know what she had gone through until I saw for myself. So I let my words take effect for a moment before I let her experience my memories. Then I plunged into hers.
AN: What shall we find out about Tahi and Fala's past? Only time will tell...
Stay tuned for the next chapter! ^_^
I concentrated for a brief moment for teleportation. And then I stood in front of Tahi and Fala.
"Shit, he found us!"
"Whoa, watch your language!" I retorted. I mean, I did swear on occasion, but...
"Faalan. Meet Tahi. Tahi. Meet Faalan. Now, I would like for the two of you to get along." We both turned to look at Fala. Then we both gritted out teeth.
"Faalan." Tahi stuck out a hand, jaw set and eyes hard.
"Tahi. I took the hand and shook it, resisting the urge to crush his hand. We let go of each others' hands ASAP.
"Good. I'm glad that's settled now." Fala beamed, and I half melted to see her smiling face. But I didn't let that deter me from my original goal.
"Tahi, I'd like you to see what Fala and I have been through." I smiled slightly.
"Wh-" I didn't give him a chance to reply before I sent all of our travels through his head, making sure he would see our kisses.
"What did you do to him?!" I turned to Fala, who was staring at Tahi. He was very still now, eyes wide open as my memories rushed through his mind.
"I merely am letting him experience what we went through." She sighed and shook her head disapprovingly. I felt my heart sink a little, but I got over that quickly.
"Fala. I missed you so much." And it was true. I forgot about her sometimes when I had been searching for the Pranji flower and desperately trying to save Yosa and Noiyra, but she had always been in the back of my mind. I loved her so much. My heart ached at the though of her possible rejection.
"I missed you too Faalan, but Tahi is my boyfriend." She let the words sink in for a moment. I clenched my hands into fists for a moment then took a deep breath to calm myself.
"You don't know what I've been through to get here." I let myself flip through my mental folders where I had the memories of my travels to get to this point in time.
"It couldn't possibly be as bad as what I've had to go through." Her eyes were filled with pain, but I couldn't stop the words that came out of my mouth.
"Really? You sure about that?" It was, in a way, cruel that I had said that. I couldn't know what she had gone through until I saw for myself. So I let my words take effect for a moment before I let her experience my memories. Then I plunged into hers.
AN: What shall we find out about Tahi and Fala's past? Only time will tell...
Stay tuned for the next chapter! ^_^
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Complications (Chapter 19)
"I'll tell you what's wrong; he cheated on me!" That took me by surprise. I knew that Tahi was Fala's boyfriend (a pang of jealous hit) but this was new.
"I told you, I didn't cheat on you! I was with my sister!"
"And your sister has blond hair and blue eye and looks nothing like you?! Fat chance!"
"She is my sister! My half sister, but we're still related!"
"And I couldn't possibly be helping him to cheat on you because I'm lesbian." We all stopped talking at that. I turned around to see a beautiful woman who was in fact blonde and blue eyed.
"That...simplifies things I suppose." I managed to say.
"So then you're really telling the truth, Tahi?"
"Of course I am, Fala. Didn't I say I wasn't lying?"
"Yes...and no. Depends on what you mean by that because he didn't say those exact words-"
"Faalan, shut up." I closed my mouth. I couldn't help it. I just got like that sometimes.
"I'm sorry I thought that you were cheating on me, Tahi."
"It's okay, Fala. Just know that I love you."
"Okay, hold on a second!" I was seething with jealousy and anger now.
"Why?"
"Did Fala even tell you about me?" She paled and I wished I had shut my mouth.
"What happened between you and Fala?"
"I love her, that's what!" I snapped and immediately felt guilty, for she paled even more. Tahi narrowed his eyes.
"She's mine. I have first claim."
"So? I love her more!"
"Yeah right! I've known her longer and lived with her for several years now!" Whoa. Wait, he lived with her?!
"I killed a man with her!" Oops. That came out wrong.
"You what?!" Tahi looked absolutely furious.
"Tahi, it's not like you think it-" Fala began to say.
"You forced her into it didn't you!" He pointed an accusing finger at me as he pulled Fala to his chest. I resisted the urge to rip his arm off and take Fala from him.
"I didn't! I-"
"See! You're hesitating! You did force her into it! You bastard!" A swirl of plants shot up from his feet and then surrounded them. When the plants disappeared, they were gone as well.
"Good luck buddy." I felt a hand on my shoulder and turned to see Tahi's half-sister.
"Err... Thanks." She disappeared in a flash of light. I sighed. They both had a thing for exits with a flare.
And then all the anger rushed back into me. Growling, I opened my mind and searched for their minds. I found Fala's first and his nearby.
Fala was my girl, not his. I didn't care if he'd known her longer. He couldn't possibly know how much I loved her. And I was going to go there and show him what we'd done together and what I'd done to get here.
AN: Um... This chapter complicates things a bit doesn't it? ^_^
"I told you, I didn't cheat on you! I was with my sister!"
"And your sister has blond hair and blue eye and looks nothing like you?! Fat chance!"
"She is my sister! My half sister, but we're still related!"
"And I couldn't possibly be helping him to cheat on you because I'm lesbian." We all stopped talking at that. I turned around to see a beautiful woman who was in fact blonde and blue eyed.
"That...simplifies things I suppose." I managed to say.
"So then you're really telling the truth, Tahi?"
"Of course I am, Fala. Didn't I say I wasn't lying?"
"Yes...and no. Depends on what you mean by that because he didn't say those exact words-"
"Faalan, shut up." I closed my mouth. I couldn't help it. I just got like that sometimes.
"I'm sorry I thought that you were cheating on me, Tahi."
"It's okay, Fala. Just know that I love you."
"Okay, hold on a second!" I was seething with jealousy and anger now.
"Why?"
"Did Fala even tell you about me?" She paled and I wished I had shut my mouth.
"What happened between you and Fala?"
"I love her, that's what!" I snapped and immediately felt guilty, for she paled even more. Tahi narrowed his eyes.
"She's mine. I have first claim."
"So? I love her more!"
"Yeah right! I've known her longer and lived with her for several years now!" Whoa. Wait, he lived with her?!
"I killed a man with her!" Oops. That came out wrong.
"You what?!" Tahi looked absolutely furious.
"Tahi, it's not like you think it-" Fala began to say.
"You forced her into it didn't you!" He pointed an accusing finger at me as he pulled Fala to his chest. I resisted the urge to rip his arm off and take Fala from him.
"I didn't! I-"
"See! You're hesitating! You did force her into it! You bastard!" A swirl of plants shot up from his feet and then surrounded them. When the plants disappeared, they were gone as well.
"Good luck buddy." I felt a hand on my shoulder and turned to see Tahi's half-sister.
"Err... Thanks." She disappeared in a flash of light. I sighed. They both had a thing for exits with a flare.
And then all the anger rushed back into me. Growling, I opened my mind and searched for their minds. I found Fala's first and his nearby.
Fala was my girl, not his. I didn't care if he'd known her longer. He couldn't possibly know how much I loved her. And I was going to go there and show him what we'd done together and what I'd done to get here.
AN: Um... This chapter complicates things a bit doesn't it? ^_^
Finally (Chapter 18)
Dyari turned to me.
"Are you ready to go to Fala?" I smiled.
"Yes. I'm ready."
"I guess this is goodbye then."
"Yeah. I won't forget you for what you've done for me."
"Aww, don't go all soppy on me now."
"Fine, be like that!" We laughed and he pulled me into a bear hug, pounding me on the back.
"Alright, let's go then!" He smiled at me, though there was a slight tinge of sadness etched into his eyes. Taking out his dagger, he made a quick swipe into the air and through the hole in the air, I could see a large building with students milling around the front.
"Goodbye, Dyari."
"Oh don't say goodbye! I'll be seeing you later!" I stared at him a moment before I realized what he meant.
"Cool, see ya later!" I looked around at the city of Maunti one last time and stepped through the rift. The last thing I saw of my time was Dyari's face through the hole. Then, I took a good look at my surroundings.
This time was...strange. What had happened to all the plant life? Why were there so many buildings? And-
"Oof! Watch where you're go-" The voice stopped short as I turned around.
"Faalan?" Large golden eyes and a bewildered brunette looked at me.
"Fala!" My heart sang with joy when I saw her beautiful face for the first time in ages.
"What are you doing here? I came here so that I wouldn't mess up time!"
"I came to see you." She blushed slightly, but kept her face hard.
"You have to go back. We'll mess up everything if you come here. I mean, you probably were destined to do something in the past and now you aren't there. You have to fix that!"
"No. I worked for around a year just to get here. You can't send me back now!" I was hurt. I had hoped that she still loved me, but now I wasn't so sure.
"Oh Faalan..." She sighed.
"I needed to be with you. I can't live without you by my side." Her ears turned red along with the rest of her face.
"It's not as simple as you think."
"Tahi."
"What?!"
"I said Tahi."
"Wait, you know about him?!"
"I only-"
"You went into my mind?!" She sounded really really annoyed and I winced at her harsh words.
"It was when I established a connection with you right before we went for Kaija. It was an accident, I swear!" Her face relaxed a little, though she twitched a bit at the memory of Kaija.
"How long do you think I've been here now?" I paused, taken aback by the sudden question.
"What?"
"Seriously, just answer the question."
"Um... A couple of days?"
"I've been here a year. Things are more complicated than just Tahi."
"Oh."
"Yeah."
"Care to fill me in?"
"Not in-" She stopped abruptly and she looked at me. Or...not.
I turned to see someone who was around my height with black hair and brown eyes.
"What do you want, Tahi?" she snapped.
"I'm trying to explain to you that I did nothing wrong!" Tahi looked genuinely upset about something.
"Don't mess with me, Tahi." And she looked genuinely pissed off.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, what's going on here?" I was confused.
AN: Soooooo sorry it took so long to get this chapter up!!! I finally found a way to end TTT so I'm really really pleased with myself. ^_^
"Are you ready to go to Fala?" I smiled.
"Yes. I'm ready."
"I guess this is goodbye then."
"Yeah. I won't forget you for what you've done for me."
"Aww, don't go all soppy on me now."
"Fine, be like that!" We laughed and he pulled me into a bear hug, pounding me on the back.
"Alright, let's go then!" He smiled at me, though there was a slight tinge of sadness etched into his eyes. Taking out his dagger, he made a quick swipe into the air and through the hole in the air, I could see a large building with students milling around the front.
"Goodbye, Dyari."
"Oh don't say goodbye! I'll be seeing you later!" I stared at him a moment before I realized what he meant.
"Cool, see ya later!" I looked around at the city of Maunti one last time and stepped through the rift. The last thing I saw of my time was Dyari's face through the hole. Then, I took a good look at my surroundings.
This time was...strange. What had happened to all the plant life? Why were there so many buildings? And-
"Oof! Watch where you're go-" The voice stopped short as I turned around.
"Faalan?" Large golden eyes and a bewildered brunette looked at me.
"Fala!" My heart sang with joy when I saw her beautiful face for the first time in ages.
"What are you doing here? I came here so that I wouldn't mess up time!"
"I came to see you." She blushed slightly, but kept her face hard.
"You have to go back. We'll mess up everything if you come here. I mean, you probably were destined to do something in the past and now you aren't there. You have to fix that!"
"No. I worked for around a year just to get here. You can't send me back now!" I was hurt. I had hoped that she still loved me, but now I wasn't so sure.
"Oh Faalan..." She sighed.
"I needed to be with you. I can't live without you by my side." Her ears turned red along with the rest of her face.
"It's not as simple as you think."
"Tahi."
"What?!"
"I said Tahi."
"Wait, you know about him?!"
"I only-"
"You went into my mind?!" She sounded really really annoyed and I winced at her harsh words.
"It was when I established a connection with you right before we went for Kaija. It was an accident, I swear!" Her face relaxed a little, though she twitched a bit at the memory of Kaija.
"How long do you think I've been here now?" I paused, taken aback by the sudden question.
"What?"
"Seriously, just answer the question."
"Um... A couple of days?"
"I've been here a year. Things are more complicated than just Tahi."
"Oh."
"Yeah."
"Care to fill me in?"
"Not in-" She stopped abruptly and she looked at me. Or...not.
I turned to see someone who was around my height with black hair and brown eyes.
"What do you want, Tahi?" she snapped.
"I'm trying to explain to you that I did nothing wrong!" Tahi looked genuinely upset about something.
"Don't mess with me, Tahi." And she looked genuinely pissed off.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, what's going on here?" I was confused.
AN: Soooooo sorry it took so long to get this chapter up!!! I finally found a way to end TTT so I'm really really pleased with myself. ^_^
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Duh... (Chapter 17)
The next couple of weeks ended up being pretty much the same. I would search for a long time, sometimes encountering the strange mind that could create such a strong metal wall. Usually it was near the end of the day, but sometimes I would sense it near the beginning. The problem was, whatever it was, it moved extremely fast. I never got a chance to chase it down and find out what it was.
One day, after another exhausting search, Yosa sat beside me, staring into the fire, while Noiyra and Dyari played mancala with holes in the ground and stone. The two had become an inseparable pair. I never figured out how that worked out, seeing as I was away for almost the whole day.
"Faalan?" I groggily sat up from my sleeping position and looked at the girl.
"Yes, Yosa?"
"You do realize that I can transform into more than one state of water, right?"
"What about it?"
"Well, I've been thinking, and I've actually wondered about this for a while... You realize that it would be easier to just let me come with you, allow me to combine with the ocean, and then find the stupid city?"
"Um... Gee, I never thought of that." I felt extremely stupid. How could I have not thought about that?! All this time, I was thinking about how to protect the girls from Zyri and getting to Fala and I'd missed the very obvious! The answer had been sitting in front of my nose, figuratively and physically!
"Then take me with you tomorrow."
"Alright, I will." I lay back down and closed my eyes, allowing my thoughts to wander.
We'd already run from Zyri a couple of times, this was the 4th island that we'd settled on. I knew I'd only be a little longer before he found us again. And Fala... I missed her so much. I wanted to be with her. Even though I probably hadn't seen her for at least a half a year, my heart, soul, and body ached to be with her. Every inch of me longed to be touching her soft, warm skin.
It seemed almost yesterday that she had gone back to her time. I wondered how she was doing now. Had she learned more about her gift? And- had she gone back to Tahi?
Oh yes, I knew about him. I don't think she ever mentioned him, but I picked up on this through her thoughts. He was her boyfriend, that much I knew, but now that she knew me...what did she do? A feeling of dread clenched my stomach.
She went back because she felt that she didn't belong in this time and now...if she really wanted to let go of this time so much, then she probably was with Tahi. I gritted my teeth. Now I really wanted to pound whoever that Tahi person was. Fala was my girl, my beautiful love, and nothing could stop me from being with her. I would only accept that she was with him if she rejected me completely.
As if someone was squeezing my heart, my chest hurt with the pain of despair, and I knew it would kill me if she were to reject me. There would be no point in my existance without her. I'd already lost Khanna and Kaija, and I couldn't stand loosing any more people. I would probably kill myself if she did that. Of course, it wouldn't matter to her. She would be with him and...
My thought process broke off as hot angry tears made their way down my face. I turned away from my companions, hiding my saddness as I cried.
~*~
"So....are we going now, Faalan?" I'd slept a really bad night and I couldn't think straight. I couldn't even see who was talking to me properly. (I did know that it was Yosa from her voice though.) It was like my whole vision had been shrouded with fog.
"Uhn?"
"You know, to go find that city in the ocean?"
"Yeah, I'm gettin' up" I mumbled, rubbing my eyes and standing up. My legs complained as I walked around to get the sleepy-ness out of my system.
"Are we going yet?!" She sounded annoyed.
"Okay, okay, I'm ready! Jeez..." I held out my hand and she took it. Then we were off.
I gave her a moment as she stared at the giant ocean. Was she surprised at the size or-
"The water here is a different color." I resisted the urge to smack my forehead. She took a good half minute to look at the coean and all she could say was the water was a different color?!
"I'll see you later!" She didn't give me a chance to reply before she jumped into the water and become one with the crashing waves. I sighed and connected my mind to hers.
Seriously, I think my heart stopped for a beat when we were connected properly. She was...everywhere yet only in one place. Her mind was just one, but yet she was the crashing waves against the rock and the deep dark water where dangerous creatures lurked all at once. She was the gentle currents that circled the reefs and the strong treaturous waters that shook ships. It was all so complex and indescribable. I was truly honored to have been able to experience that. It was absolutely amazing sharing her thoughts.
I found it. Her voice rang loud and clear in my mind.
Show me. And then, I could see it. It was beautiful. It was a giant city made of coral with a giant air bubble around it. There were people with gills that left the air bubble and swam with the graceful dolphins.
I'm going to go to Noiyra and Dyari and bring them to where the city is.
Okay.
As quickly as I could, I got myself to the two. I didn't bother explaining before I put a hand on their shoulders and teleported them under the water. (I put an air bubble around us, don't worry.)
They stared, wide-eyed, at Maunti. It wasn't floating in the air, but it sure was floating in the water.
I slowly moved us towards the air bubble that surrounded the city and then when the air bubbles met, they merged. It was only due to quick thinking that I was able to catch us in our fall to the base of the city. A trickle of water leaked into the bubble and then turned into Yosa.
"Wow... It's so pretty..." I looked at Noiyra and smiled. The young girl's eyes were large and curious as she studied the city a little closer.
"Will you two be alright now?" This question of mine was addressed to the two girls.
"I think we'll find our way around. Thanks for everything."
"You're welcome." I smiled at them.
Noiyra hugged both Dyari and me while Yosa watched her younger sister carefully. Then, hand in hand, the sisters walked towards the heart of the city.
AN: This turned out a lot longer than I intended, but I guess that's a good thing. Yes, the moment you've all been waiting for is coming soon. Faalan will be meeting Fala.
One day, after another exhausting search, Yosa sat beside me, staring into the fire, while Noiyra and Dyari played mancala with holes in the ground and stone. The two had become an inseparable pair. I never figured out how that worked out, seeing as I was away for almost the whole day.
"Faalan?" I groggily sat up from my sleeping position and looked at the girl.
"Yes, Yosa?"
"You do realize that I can transform into more than one state of water, right?"
"What about it?"
"Well, I've been thinking, and I've actually wondered about this for a while... You realize that it would be easier to just let me come with you, allow me to combine with the ocean, and then find the stupid city?"
"Um... Gee, I never thought of that." I felt extremely stupid. How could I have not thought about that?! All this time, I was thinking about how to protect the girls from Zyri and getting to Fala and I'd missed the very obvious! The answer had been sitting in front of my nose, figuratively and physically!
"Then take me with you tomorrow."
"Alright, I will." I lay back down and closed my eyes, allowing my thoughts to wander.
We'd already run from Zyri a couple of times, this was the 4th island that we'd settled on. I knew I'd only be a little longer before he found us again. And Fala... I missed her so much. I wanted to be with her. Even though I probably hadn't seen her for at least a half a year, my heart, soul, and body ached to be with her. Every inch of me longed to be touching her soft, warm skin.
It seemed almost yesterday that she had gone back to her time. I wondered how she was doing now. Had she learned more about her gift? And- had she gone back to Tahi?
Oh yes, I knew about him. I don't think she ever mentioned him, but I picked up on this through her thoughts. He was her boyfriend, that much I knew, but now that she knew me...what did she do? A feeling of dread clenched my stomach.
She went back because she felt that she didn't belong in this time and now...if she really wanted to let go of this time so much, then she probably was with Tahi. I gritted my teeth. Now I really wanted to pound whoever that Tahi person was. Fala was my girl, my beautiful love, and nothing could stop me from being with her. I would only accept that she was with him if she rejected me completely.
As if someone was squeezing my heart, my chest hurt with the pain of despair, and I knew it would kill me if she were to reject me. There would be no point in my existance without her. I'd already lost Khanna and Kaija, and I couldn't stand loosing any more people. I would probably kill myself if she did that. Of course, it wouldn't matter to her. She would be with him and...
My thought process broke off as hot angry tears made their way down my face. I turned away from my companions, hiding my saddness as I cried.
~*~
"So....are we going now, Faalan?" I'd slept a really bad night and I couldn't think straight. I couldn't even see who was talking to me properly. (I did know that it was Yosa from her voice though.) It was like my whole vision had been shrouded with fog.
"Uhn?"
"You know, to go find that city in the ocean?"
"Yeah, I'm gettin' up" I mumbled, rubbing my eyes and standing up. My legs complained as I walked around to get the sleepy-ness out of my system.
"Are we going yet?!" She sounded annoyed.
"Okay, okay, I'm ready! Jeez..." I held out my hand and she took it. Then we were off.
I gave her a moment as she stared at the giant ocean. Was she surprised at the size or-
"The water here is a different color." I resisted the urge to smack my forehead. She took a good half minute to look at the coean and all she could say was the water was a different color?!
"I'll see you later!" She didn't give me a chance to reply before she jumped into the water and become one with the crashing waves. I sighed and connected my mind to hers.
Seriously, I think my heart stopped for a beat when we were connected properly. She was...everywhere yet only in one place. Her mind was just one, but yet she was the crashing waves against the rock and the deep dark water where dangerous creatures lurked all at once. She was the gentle currents that circled the reefs and the strong treaturous waters that shook ships. It was all so complex and indescribable. I was truly honored to have been able to experience that. It was absolutely amazing sharing her thoughts.
I found it. Her voice rang loud and clear in my mind.
Show me. And then, I could see it. It was beautiful. It was a giant city made of coral with a giant air bubble around it. There were people with gills that left the air bubble and swam with the graceful dolphins.
I'm going to go to Noiyra and Dyari and bring them to where the city is.
Okay.
As quickly as I could, I got myself to the two. I didn't bother explaining before I put a hand on their shoulders and teleported them under the water. (I put an air bubble around us, don't worry.)
They stared, wide-eyed, at Maunti. It wasn't floating in the air, but it sure was floating in the water.
I slowly moved us towards the air bubble that surrounded the city and then when the air bubbles met, they merged. It was only due to quick thinking that I was able to catch us in our fall to the base of the city. A trickle of water leaked into the bubble and then turned into Yosa.
"Wow... It's so pretty..." I looked at Noiyra and smiled. The young girl's eyes were large and curious as she studied the city a little closer.
"Will you two be alright now?" This question of mine was addressed to the two girls.
"I think we'll find our way around. Thanks for everything."
"You're welcome." I smiled at them.
Noiyra hugged both Dyari and me while Yosa watched her younger sister carefully. Then, hand in hand, the sisters walked towards the heart of the city.
AN: This turned out a lot longer than I intended, but I guess that's a good thing. Yes, the moment you've all been waiting for is coming soon. Faalan will be meeting Fala.
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Tried and Almost Succeeded, but Failed (Chapter 16)
I stared at the enormous ocean from the coast. I really wasn't sure how exactly I was going to find Maunti. My best bet was to extend my mind and search for a thinking being so that I could locate the place. But the ocean was extremely large and I could only extend my mind so far. If I tried to go past my limits, I would most likely blackout, and blacking out here...was probably not the best idea. The tide would probably come in if I blacked out and take me to sea. And then I would drown. Not pleasant, but it was true that something along those lines could happen.
Sighing, I levitated myself out to sea and began searching for human intelligence. After an hour, the closest I had gotten was dolphin and whale minds, but what thoughts I could decipher didn't help me to find Maunti.
Animal minds were simple, but sometimes hard to understand, since they were often bits and pieces of places. Some didn't remember much at all, and others only really thought of food, shelter, and running away from predators.
The sun was beginning to set and I still hadn't found anything on Maunti. But then, there was a flicker of intelligent "movement" just outside my mind web. (This mind web was pretty much how far my mind extended) I quickly shifted my position and dived into the mind. Or rather, tried to dive into the mind.
I gasped as I "crashed" into a thick mind shield. I'd never encountered the problem and was stunned for a couple seconds. This gave the intelligent life form time to escape and I lost it.
There were humans who would hold up resistance, but I had always been able to get through to their minds. But this...this was different. I couldn't get in at all; the whole mind was protected by "armor". There was no way to get through from what little I had tried. I didn't think I would be able to penetrate the shield.
Already tired from searching for hours, I desperately tried to find the intelligent life form. I continued until I had just enough energy to get back to Dyari and the girls. I collapsed on the sand, my legs no longer able to support me.
"Faalan! Are you alright?" I wearily attempted to look at the person talking to me, but I didn't have enough energy to even lift my head. I knew it was Dyari though.
"I'm just really tired..." I mumbled, still trying to pick myself up from the ground.
"Faalan!" It was Yosa and Noiyra, though Noiyra had been the one to call my name. The younger girl knelt down to look into my face.
"Faalan?" She looked concerned as she examined my face.
"Yes Noiyra?" I answered.
"You okay?" Her eyes were wide and innocent.
"I'll be okay, I just need some rest." I felt Dyari supporting my shoulders, with Yosa getting my legs and Noiyra in the middle. I was too tired to complain that I didn't want to be picked up by them. Somewhere along the way as they carried me, I fell into a deep sleep.
AN: Gods, I am so bad at this... TTT isn't working out quite as well as MM...
Sighing, I levitated myself out to sea and began searching for human intelligence. After an hour, the closest I had gotten was dolphin and whale minds, but what thoughts I could decipher didn't help me to find Maunti.
Animal minds were simple, but sometimes hard to understand, since they were often bits and pieces of places. Some didn't remember much at all, and others only really thought of food, shelter, and running away from predators.
The sun was beginning to set and I still hadn't found anything on Maunti. But then, there was a flicker of intelligent "movement" just outside my mind web. (This mind web was pretty much how far my mind extended) I quickly shifted my position and dived into the mind. Or rather, tried to dive into the mind.
I gasped as I "crashed" into a thick mind shield. I'd never encountered the problem and was stunned for a couple seconds. This gave the intelligent life form time to escape and I lost it.
There were humans who would hold up resistance, but I had always been able to get through to their minds. But this...this was different. I couldn't get in at all; the whole mind was protected by "armor". There was no way to get through from what little I had tried. I didn't think I would be able to penetrate the shield.
Already tired from searching for hours, I desperately tried to find the intelligent life form. I continued until I had just enough energy to get back to Dyari and the girls. I collapsed on the sand, my legs no longer able to support me.
"Faalan! Are you alright?" I wearily attempted to look at the person talking to me, but I didn't have enough energy to even lift my head. I knew it was Dyari though.
"I'm just really tired..." I mumbled, still trying to pick myself up from the ground.
"Faalan!" It was Yosa and Noiyra, though Noiyra had been the one to call my name. The younger girl knelt down to look into my face.
"Faalan?" She looked concerned as she examined my face.
"Yes Noiyra?" I answered.
"You okay?" Her eyes were wide and innocent.
"I'll be okay, I just need some rest." I felt Dyari supporting my shoulders, with Yosa getting my legs and Noiyra in the middle. I was too tired to complain that I didn't want to be picked up by them. Somewhere along the way as they carried me, I fell into a deep sleep.
AN: Gods, I am so bad at this... TTT isn't working out quite as well as MM...
Monday, June 16, 2008
Can You do Something for Me? (Chapter 15)
I suppose I should explain what exactly the Floating City of Maunti is. It is a legendary city that reveals itself only to a few chosen people. It floats on top of the ocean for a small period of time before sinking again until it decides to show itself. Not much is known really, for those who have gone to find it never have returned, but there have been many legends and "sightings," all of which happened in the far west. No one really knows if it's real, but if there was anywhere where Zyri wouldn't find Yosa and Noirya, it was there. The question was how to get there. But first off, I had to get to them.
"Dyari?"
"What is it, Faalan?"
"I need you to help me protect Yosa and Noiyra while I look for the Floating City of Maunti."
"You just finished finding the Pranji flower and now you're off on another impossible quest?!"
"Yes. I don't want the girls to die in the future. I have to get them somewhere where they were truly be safe."
"So how do you want me to protect the two?"
"When I get us to the island, I want you to stay there and if Zyri shows up, do a little time jumping so that you aren't hurt by him."
"Couldn't I just fight him?"
"If you can fight against earth attacks, then by all means. If not, I suggest you get out of there as fast as possible."
"Alright. But you owe me one." I put my hand on his shoulder and in moments, we were on the island. I scanned the dot of land for Yosa and Noiyras' presences and quickly located them.
Yosa.
Don't tell me; Faalan again?
Yes, I'm sorry.
So what's it this time?
You're not safe here; my friend went into the future for me to check if you guys were still here ten years from now and the island was basically completely destroyed. He didn't know what exactly happened, but it didn't look good. I want to get you and your sister onto the City of Maunti.
You mean the legendary island that-
Yes, all that stuff. It's the only place that doesn't touch the ground and in that way, Zyri won't be able to find you two.
That makes sense, but how are you going to find the place?
That's a good question that I have no answer for right now. My friend Dyari will protect you and Noiyra, but he needs to find you two first. Could you send some sort of a signal? A moment later, there was a flare of fire in the air.
Good enough for you?
Yes, thank you. Dyari headed off in that direction as I teleported to the western most shore of the continent.
"Dyari?"
"What is it, Faalan?"
"I need you to help me protect Yosa and Noiyra while I look for the Floating City of Maunti."
"You just finished finding the Pranji flower and now you're off on another impossible quest?!"
"Yes. I don't want the girls to die in the future. I have to get them somewhere where they were truly be safe."
"So how do you want me to protect the two?"
"When I get us to the island, I want you to stay there and if Zyri shows up, do a little time jumping so that you aren't hurt by him."
"Couldn't I just fight him?"
"If you can fight against earth attacks, then by all means. If not, I suggest you get out of there as fast as possible."
"Alright. But you owe me one." I put my hand on his shoulder and in moments, we were on the island. I scanned the dot of land for Yosa and Noiyras' presences and quickly located them.
Yosa.
Don't tell me; Faalan again?
Yes, I'm sorry.
So what's it this time?
You're not safe here; my friend went into the future for me to check if you guys were still here ten years from now and the island was basically completely destroyed. He didn't know what exactly happened, but it didn't look good. I want to get you and your sister onto the City of Maunti.
You mean the legendary island that-
Yes, all that stuff. It's the only place that doesn't touch the ground and in that way, Zyri won't be able to find you two.
That makes sense, but how are you going to find the place?
That's a good question that I have no answer for right now. My friend Dyari will protect you and Noiyra, but he needs to find you two first. Could you send some sort of a signal? A moment later, there was a flare of fire in the air.
Good enough for you?
Yes, thank you. Dyari headed off in that direction as I teleported to the western most shore of the continent.
Friday, June 13, 2008
Tag! Zyri's it! (Chapter 14)
"Where's the girl?" growled Zyri.
"What girl?" I said, trying to look as innocent as possible. My plan was to try and maintain innocence until it was clear that I knew who he was talking about. Of course, my plans usually didn't work so I was a little nervous.
"You know what girl I'm talking about. You helped her escape. And now you must pay for it!" I gave a sigh. As usual, what I wanted to work didn't work.
"And how am I supposed to pay for it?" I said wearily.
"With your life!" A giant earth wall came at me and I dodged out of the way. Not having much energy left, I was tired but still had enough energy to move. If I were to try to use my powers, I would black out as soon as I used them. I avoided hunks of earth and walls of terra and everything else he sent flying at me. But I was tiring and I couldn't go on for much longer. Finally, he captured me. From my feet to mid torso, I was held in earth. I knew I didn't have much choice now. I could teleport Zyri to somewher else and black out while still stuck in earth or I could teleport to Dyari and give Zyri a chance to capture the girls. I sighed and did what was best in the situation; I teleported to Dyari, sending one last desperate message to Yosa and Noiyra, saying that I couldn't hold him off any longer and that they were on their own now. The last thing I saw was Dyari's concerned face as my eyes closed.
~*~
When I woke, Dyari held out a bowl of soup in front of my nose. I accepted it gratefully and drank it quickly, scalding my tongue and my throat. But it was food and it provided energy.
"Are you alright, Falaan?"
"Yes, but I have to help the girls." I tried to get onto my feet but they couldn't support me and I sat back down with a thump on the boulder bed.
"You're too weak right now to do anything."
"No, not quite. I can help them through their minds. I have enough energy for that."
"I'm worried for you, Faalan."
"Thank you for your concern, but I have to help them."
"Fine. I'll respect your decision. Is there anything I can do to help now?"
"Yes. Do you have any more of that soup?"
~*~
I drank up the last of the soup that he had made and lay back down again, ready to help the two girls.
"Good luck, Faalan." I smiled to Dyari gratefully, knowing I'd need all the luck I could get.
Concentrating, I connected to Yosa's mind, for she would understand better.
Yosa, are you two alright?
Faalan?
Yes, it's me. I couldn't hold of Zyri any more and blacked out. Has he found you two yet?
No, no yet, but we can see him in the distance.
I will try to help you as best as I can from here. I'm too weak right now to even stand up.
Thank you for everything Faalan.
It's my pleasure. But I need you to open your mind more so I can see through your eyes and direct you. Can you do that?
How do I open my mind more?
Relax. You will feel my presence in your mind and it will feel like someone is intruding, but you must not ignore it and you have to embrace it. In that way, I will be able to connect. It won't be so bad after I'm in though, so no worries.
Alright. I'm ready.
Good.
I connected directly to her mind and she let me in, though her mind, in a way, flinched as I entered. Now I could see through her eyes, and indeed, Zyri was there, moving quickly. I told Yosa to try and hide from Zyri for as long as possible and that I would teleport them to somewhere safe if things got dangerous. She complied.
It was starting to become interesting now because what I thought, she would know immediately and vice versa. When she made an action, I felt as if I was doing it too, though my physical body was probably barely moving.
Zyri eventually spotted them and they fled towards the ocean as he shot hunks of earth into the sky. I winced to think of where those hunks could be falling. When they reached the ocean, he continue to fire at them until they were out of range. I know Yosa was tired, and Noiyra probably was too. Yosa couldn't keep her steam form for much longer and Noiyra was starting to look more human than pheonix. Drawing up what little energy I had, I teleported them to an island, where they collapsed, turning back in their human forms. I too was tired and removed myself from Yosa's mind.
Will you two be alright here by yourselves? I asked Yosa.
Yes, we will be. I know how to take care of myself and Noiyra. I promise.
You sure?
Yes. I'm sure.
Good luck then, and goodbye.
Goodbye Faalan.
I opened my eyes, back at the mountain with Dyari.
"Can you do me a favor?"
"What is it?" He looked at me warily.
"Don't worry, it's not going to kill you."
"O-kay..." Still that uncertain tone in his voice.
"Can you go to the future to this island in the east and see how Yosa and Noiyra are doing"
"How far into the future? And where is this island?"
"Around 10 years is good." I sent him an image of the island that the girls were staying on.
"Alright, give me a sec. I'll be right back." He jumped through a hole in the air, and seconds later, he was back.
"Are they alright?"
"I have bad news."
"What is it?"
"The island is pretty much completely destroyed. There's only a single tree and a small patch of land left of the original."
"Oh gods, Zyri must have found them at some point."
"I don't know who Zyri is, but if he can destroy islands, then I say it probably is him."
"Where will they be safe from his wrath?" I was no longer talking to Dyari at this point. Pacing around, I tried to think of a place where they could be safe from harm. Zyri could sense vibrations in the ground, and that allowed him to find people he wanted to find. It was like playing a game of tag where the person who was it knew where everyone was.
The safest place they could be would be a place where they didn't touch the ground. There was no place like that except...the floating city of Maunti in the far west.
AN: I think this is one of my longest chapters in TTT so far...
"What girl?" I said, trying to look as innocent as possible. My plan was to try and maintain innocence until it was clear that I knew who he was talking about. Of course, my plans usually didn't work so I was a little nervous.
"You know what girl I'm talking about. You helped her escape. And now you must pay for it!" I gave a sigh. As usual, what I wanted to work didn't work.
"And how am I supposed to pay for it?" I said wearily.
"With your life!" A giant earth wall came at me and I dodged out of the way. Not having much energy left, I was tired but still had enough energy to move. If I were to try to use my powers, I would black out as soon as I used them. I avoided hunks of earth and walls of terra and everything else he sent flying at me. But I was tiring and I couldn't go on for much longer. Finally, he captured me. From my feet to mid torso, I was held in earth. I knew I didn't have much choice now. I could teleport Zyri to somewher else and black out while still stuck in earth or I could teleport to Dyari and give Zyri a chance to capture the girls. I sighed and did what was best in the situation; I teleported to Dyari, sending one last desperate message to Yosa and Noiyra, saying that I couldn't hold him off any longer and that they were on their own now. The last thing I saw was Dyari's concerned face as my eyes closed.
~*~
When I woke, Dyari held out a bowl of soup in front of my nose. I accepted it gratefully and drank it quickly, scalding my tongue and my throat. But it was food and it provided energy.
"Are you alright, Falaan?"
"Yes, but I have to help the girls." I tried to get onto my feet but they couldn't support me and I sat back down with a thump on the boulder bed.
"You're too weak right now to do anything."
"No, not quite. I can help them through their minds. I have enough energy for that."
"I'm worried for you, Faalan."
"Thank you for your concern, but I have to help them."
"Fine. I'll respect your decision. Is there anything I can do to help now?"
"Yes. Do you have any more of that soup?"
~*~
I drank up the last of the soup that he had made and lay back down again, ready to help the two girls.
"Good luck, Faalan." I smiled to Dyari gratefully, knowing I'd need all the luck I could get.
Concentrating, I connected to Yosa's mind, for she would understand better.
Yosa, are you two alright?
Faalan?
Yes, it's me. I couldn't hold of Zyri any more and blacked out. Has he found you two yet?
No, no yet, but we can see him in the distance.
I will try to help you as best as I can from here. I'm too weak right now to even stand up.
Thank you for everything Faalan.
It's my pleasure. But I need you to open your mind more so I can see through your eyes and direct you. Can you do that?
How do I open my mind more?
Relax. You will feel my presence in your mind and it will feel like someone is intruding, but you must not ignore it and you have to embrace it. In that way, I will be able to connect. It won't be so bad after I'm in though, so no worries.
Alright. I'm ready.
Good.
I connected directly to her mind and she let me in, though her mind, in a way, flinched as I entered. Now I could see through her eyes, and indeed, Zyri was there, moving quickly. I told Yosa to try and hide from Zyri for as long as possible and that I would teleport them to somewhere safe if things got dangerous. She complied.
It was starting to become interesting now because what I thought, she would know immediately and vice versa. When she made an action, I felt as if I was doing it too, though my physical body was probably barely moving.
Zyri eventually spotted them and they fled towards the ocean as he shot hunks of earth into the sky. I winced to think of where those hunks could be falling. When they reached the ocean, he continue to fire at them until they were out of range. I know Yosa was tired, and Noiyra probably was too. Yosa couldn't keep her steam form for much longer and Noiyra was starting to look more human than pheonix. Drawing up what little energy I had, I teleported them to an island, where they collapsed, turning back in their human forms. I too was tired and removed myself from Yosa's mind.
Will you two be alright here by yourselves? I asked Yosa.
Yes, we will be. I know how to take care of myself and Noiyra. I promise.
You sure?
Yes. I'm sure.
Good luck then, and goodbye.
Goodbye Faalan.
I opened my eyes, back at the mountain with Dyari.
"Can you do me a favor?"
"What is it?" He looked at me warily.
"Don't worry, it's not going to kill you."
"O-kay..." Still that uncertain tone in his voice.
"Can you go to the future to this island in the east and see how Yosa and Noiyra are doing"
"How far into the future? And where is this island?"
"Around 10 years is good." I sent him an image of the island that the girls were staying on.
"Alright, give me a sec. I'll be right back." He jumped through a hole in the air, and seconds later, he was back.
"Are they alright?"
"I have bad news."
"What is it?"
"The island is pretty much completely destroyed. There's only a single tree and a small patch of land left of the original."
"Oh gods, Zyri must have found them at some point."
"I don't know who Zyri is, but if he can destroy islands, then I say it probably is him."
"Where will they be safe from his wrath?" I was no longer talking to Dyari at this point. Pacing around, I tried to think of a place where they could be safe from harm. Zyri could sense vibrations in the ground, and that allowed him to find people he wanted to find. It was like playing a game of tag where the person who was it knew where everyone was.
The safest place they could be would be a place where they didn't touch the ground. There was no place like that except...the floating city of Maunti in the far west.
AN: I think this is one of my longest chapters in TTT so far...
Thursday, June 12, 2008
A Necessary Escape after Escaping (Chapter 13)
All this teleporting was starting to get me really tired. Not only had I done a lot of teleporting, I had kept up a complicated illusion for more than a minute. I was exhausted. My whole body was sore even though I hadn't actually done any real exercise. I could never figure out why, but teleporting was hard on the whole body in general.
Now I saw a rapidly moving figure that was coming towards the mountain. I wondered how something could move so fast and then after a moment more of observation, I scanned the mind of the thing going so fast. It was a man who could move earth to his will and... He had several memories of his face and I couldn't figure out why his face seemed so familiar. It took a couple moments for me to realize that this was the man who had taken Noiyra from Yosa.
"Aw dammit." Dyari chose this time to come back. He was all smiles.
"You ready to go?" he chirped.
"I have...things to do before going unfortunately. Noiyra and Yosa, the two girls that you saw earlier, they were found by the person that they were escaping from. He's on his way and I have to get back to them. Can you give me some time?"
"Absolutely! My mother was estatic about the flower."
"I'm glad she liked it. I'll see you later." Summoning up the last of my energy, I teleported to Noiyra and Yosa.
"Faalan?" Yosa looked confused, while Noiyra just looked happy.
"You have to protect yourselves. Quick, tell me what Noiyra can do."
"Noiyra can turn into a pheonix."
"Good. I think the man who captured Noiyra has found you two. Because he can mold earth, I'm guessing he used the earth to tell where you two were. You have to escape to somewhere else and you can't touch the ground for long or else he may be able to find you."
"Oh no, not Zyri! Where could we go?!"
"Unfortunately, the only place I can think of is the desert. The shifting sands will confuse him."
"That's not a problem. We lived in the desert for two years once. I know how to take care of myself."
"Do you have the supplies that are needed for the desert?"
"What I have can support us and we can always barter with the nomads."
"Then you two go! I don't have enough energy to teleport you, and I'm sorry. The best I can do is distract this man while you two fly off."
"Thank you once again, Faalan." Yosa turned into a poof of steam and shortly after, Noiyra seemed to burst into flames and shot into the air. The flames shifted to form a giant bird with a long trailing tail.
"Go! And try not to be seen!" I couldn't see Yosa anymore, but I could see Noiyra, and I hoped that they would be safe. They soon disappeared from my vision and then the man named Zyri came.
AN: Wahaha! More action! ^_^
Now I saw a rapidly moving figure that was coming towards the mountain. I wondered how something could move so fast and then after a moment more of observation, I scanned the mind of the thing going so fast. It was a man who could move earth to his will and... He had several memories of his face and I couldn't figure out why his face seemed so familiar. It took a couple moments for me to realize that this was the man who had taken Noiyra from Yosa.
"Aw dammit." Dyari chose this time to come back. He was all smiles.
"You ready to go?" he chirped.
"I have...things to do before going unfortunately. Noiyra and Yosa, the two girls that you saw earlier, they were found by the person that they were escaping from. He's on his way and I have to get back to them. Can you give me some time?"
"Absolutely! My mother was estatic about the flower."
"I'm glad she liked it. I'll see you later." Summoning up the last of my energy, I teleported to Noiyra and Yosa.
"Faalan?" Yosa looked confused, while Noiyra just looked happy.
"You have to protect yourselves. Quick, tell me what Noiyra can do."
"Noiyra can turn into a pheonix."
"Good. I think the man who captured Noiyra has found you two. Because he can mold earth, I'm guessing he used the earth to tell where you two were. You have to escape to somewhere else and you can't touch the ground for long or else he may be able to find you."
"Oh no, not Zyri! Where could we go?!"
"Unfortunately, the only place I can think of is the desert. The shifting sands will confuse him."
"That's not a problem. We lived in the desert for two years once. I know how to take care of myself."
"Do you have the supplies that are needed for the desert?"
"What I have can support us and we can always barter with the nomads."
"Then you two go! I don't have enough energy to teleport you, and I'm sorry. The best I can do is distract this man while you two fly off."
"Thank you once again, Faalan." Yosa turned into a poof of steam and shortly after, Noiyra seemed to burst into flames and shot into the air. The flames shifted to form a giant bird with a long trailing tail.
"Go! And try not to be seen!" I couldn't see Yosa anymore, but I could see Noiyra, and I hoped that they would be safe. They soon disappeared from my vision and then the man named Zyri came.
AN: Wahaha! More action! ^_^
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Rescuing (Chapter 12)
"Faalan?" I woke up to see choppy black hair and blue eyes.
"Yes, Yosa?'
"It's time to go."
"Right..." Shaking my head, I shook away the tiredness and the leaves in my hair. Then, using my mind, I checked to see if Dyari was there. I could feel his presence in the mountains.
Dyari?
Faalan?
Yes, it’s me.
Where are you?
I’m with Yosa, she stole the flower, but with good intentions.
What?
Never mind the details. Point is, I’m going to help her and then come back with the flower.
How many days should it take?
At the most, I think 3 days. At the least, 1.
That’s not really helpful.
I know, and I’m sorry I can’t help you more. Just give me a couple of days.
Fine. I’m leaving now.
Talk to you in a couple of days then.
Bye.
"Are you ready to go?" The young girl looked up at me, for I was a good foot or two taller than her.
"Yes, I'm ready. Take me hand."
"Okay."
"I have to go into your mind so I can find the location of the place."
"But I told you where it is."
"But I don't know what it looks like. Don't worry, I won't look at anything else."
"Promise?"
"Promise." I had a shift through a couple of stray thoughts before I found the place. Then I concentrated and the next thing I knew, we were in the place of her memories.
"Is this the right place?" I asked her, wanting to make sure.
"Yes, it is. Now we have to go in."
"Wait, I have to make an illusion of the flower first." She took out the real one and placed it in my hands. In the place of the real one, and illusion flower appeared in her hands and it was an exact copy of the real one. The colors even changed at the same time, for I was looking at the real one as I was making the illusion.
"I'll stay outside and maintain the illusion. You go inside. I'll make sure you'll be safe."
"See you then." Then the girl was gone.
The illusion was a lot harder than I had expected it to be and it was sapping at my energy reserves.
Yosa?
Is that you, Faalan?
Yes. Good thing you were smart enough to think what you wanted to say. Some people just talk aloud when they hear me.
What is it?
I need you to hurry up. I can't maintain this illusion for too long without draining too much of my energy. If I drain too much, I won't be able to get us off here by teleportation. I can't talk anymore. Good luck.
I didn't give her a chance to reply before I cut off the connections. That little amount bit of talk had chipped away at the energy I had and now I had to focus on the illusion. A half a minute later, Yosa rushed out with her sister, who looked around 6 years old.
"Hello." Yosa's sister said shyly.
"Hello. Both of you, please take my hand. Quickly." I said, feeling my energy draining from me. I got us out of there and to the middle of the mountain range and then released the illusion. I was sure that we were far enough not to be found by the man.
Dyari was there waiting for me.
"Here's your flower." I said, handing over the real thing to Dyari.
"Sweetness!" he said. I merely rolled my eyes.
"Let me give to to my mother and I'll be back to take you to Fala. I promise."
"Alright. I trust you. Anyways, I have to help these two."
"See ya later!" The air ripped open underneath the dagger and Dyari was gone.
"Yosa, do you know how to hunt and take care of yourself in the wild?" I asked.
"I have for the last 3 years."
"Why?"
"Our parents died then and we were left to fend on our own. The only thing we got was the small hut."
"If I show you two a cave near here, will you be able to take care of yourselves? It'll be near the bottom of the mountain so it shouldn't be too cold."
"We'll manage."
"Good." They automatically took my hands and I got them to the cave.
"Thank you for everything, Faalan." Yosa mumbled.
"Thanks, Faalan!" the younger girl said excitedly.
"It was my pleasure." Scooping up the young girl in my arms, I put her on my shoulder and looked up at her.
"What's your name, little one?"
"My name's Noiyra, and I'm not little!" I chuckled as she pouted and crossed her arms.
"Well, Noiyra, I want you to be good to your older sister and take care of her when she needs help. Is that alright?"
"Yes!" Noiyra smiled proudly at the mention of taking care of her sister.
"Good girl." I lifted her up and put her back down on the ground. Then, I stepped backwards and prepared myself to leave.
"Faalan?" Noiyra looked at me with a slightly sad expression in her face.
"Yes, Noiyra?" She ran forward towards me.
"Can you lean forward so that we're face to face?" I didn't know what she wanted to do, but I complied. I was surprised when she kissed me gently on my cheek.
"Goodbye Faalan." Yosa whispered softly, her words almost lost in the breeze.
"Bye Faalan!" Noiyra waved as she ran back to her sister.
"Goodbye!" I called to them just before I teleported to the mountain to find Dyari again.
"Yes, Yosa?'
"It's time to go."
"Right..." Shaking my head, I shook away the tiredness and the leaves in my hair. Then, using my mind, I checked to see if Dyari was there. I could feel his presence in the mountains.
Dyari?
Faalan?
Yes, it’s me.
Where are you?
I’m with Yosa, she stole the flower, but with good intentions.
What?
Never mind the details. Point is, I’m going to help her and then come back with the flower.
How many days should it take?
At the most, I think 3 days. At the least, 1.
That’s not really helpful.
I know, and I’m sorry I can’t help you more. Just give me a couple of days.
Fine. I’m leaving now.
Talk to you in a couple of days then.
Bye.
"Are you ready to go?" The young girl looked up at me, for I was a good foot or two taller than her.
"Yes, I'm ready. Take me hand."
"Okay."
"I have to go into your mind so I can find the location of the place."
"But I told you where it is."
"But I don't know what it looks like. Don't worry, I won't look at anything else."
"Promise?"
"Promise." I had a shift through a couple of stray thoughts before I found the place. Then I concentrated and the next thing I knew, we were in the place of her memories.
"Is this the right place?" I asked her, wanting to make sure.
"Yes, it is. Now we have to go in."
"Wait, I have to make an illusion of the flower first." She took out the real one and placed it in my hands. In the place of the real one, and illusion flower appeared in her hands and it was an exact copy of the real one. The colors even changed at the same time, for I was looking at the real one as I was making the illusion.
"I'll stay outside and maintain the illusion. You go inside. I'll make sure you'll be safe."
"See you then." Then the girl was gone.
The illusion was a lot harder than I had expected it to be and it was sapping at my energy reserves.
Yosa?
Is that you, Faalan?
Yes. Good thing you were smart enough to think what you wanted to say. Some people just talk aloud when they hear me.
What is it?
I need you to hurry up. I can't maintain this illusion for too long without draining too much of my energy. If I drain too much, I won't be able to get us off here by teleportation. I can't talk anymore. Good luck.
I didn't give her a chance to reply before I cut off the connections. That little amount bit of talk had chipped away at the energy I had and now I had to focus on the illusion. A half a minute later, Yosa rushed out with her sister, who looked around 6 years old.
"Hello." Yosa's sister said shyly.
"Hello. Both of you, please take my hand. Quickly." I said, feeling my energy draining from me. I got us out of there and to the middle of the mountain range and then released the illusion. I was sure that we were far enough not to be found by the man.
Dyari was there waiting for me.
"Here's your flower." I said, handing over the real thing to Dyari.
"Sweetness!" he said. I merely rolled my eyes.
"Let me give to to my mother and I'll be back to take you to Fala. I promise."
"Alright. I trust you. Anyways, I have to help these two."
"See ya later!" The air ripped open underneath the dagger and Dyari was gone.
"Yosa, do you know how to hunt and take care of yourself in the wild?" I asked.
"I have for the last 3 years."
"Why?"
"Our parents died then and we were left to fend on our own. The only thing we got was the small hut."
"If I show you two a cave near here, will you be able to take care of yourselves? It'll be near the bottom of the mountain so it shouldn't be too cold."
"We'll manage."
"Good." They automatically took my hands and I got them to the cave.
"Thank you for everything, Faalan." Yosa mumbled.
"Thanks, Faalan!" the younger girl said excitedly.
"It was my pleasure." Scooping up the young girl in my arms, I put her on my shoulder and looked up at her.
"What's your name, little one?"
"My name's Noiyra, and I'm not little!" I chuckled as she pouted and crossed her arms.
"Well, Noiyra, I want you to be good to your older sister and take care of her when she needs help. Is that alright?"
"Yes!" Noiyra smiled proudly at the mention of taking care of her sister.
"Good girl." I lifted her up and put her back down on the ground. Then, I stepped backwards and prepared myself to leave.
"Faalan?" Noiyra looked at me with a slightly sad expression in her face.
"Yes, Noiyra?" She ran forward towards me.
"Can you lean forward so that we're face to face?" I didn't know what she wanted to do, but I complied. I was surprised when she kissed me gently on my cheek.
"Goodbye Faalan." Yosa whispered softly, her words almost lost in the breeze.
"Bye Faalan!" Noiyra waved as she ran back to her sister.
"Goodbye!" I called to them just before I teleported to the mountain to find Dyari again.
A New Companion and a New Quest (Chapter 11)
The next thing I remember after blacking out was waking up with the side of my face pressed to the ground in the cave. Lovely thought, no? Scanning through the files in my head, I looked at all the events before my unconciousness. Some form of smoke or mist had taken the flower out of the cave. It was alive or something was controlling it. I didn't want to think it, but the only person I could think of with the power to control clouds was Xion.
Giving a sigh, I teleported to Xion's village with some difficulty, for I still didn't have much energy. I walked around a bit and then asked someone where he lived. They directed me to a modest looking building and I quickly knocked on the door.
"Who's there?" came a gentle female voice from behind the door.
"A friend of Xion's." I replied.
"Xion!" called the voice from inside, the person clearly looking for that boy.
"Yes, honey?"
"A friend of your's is here!" The door swung open to reveal Xion.
"Hey, old buddy, old pal!" he cried out and nearly broke my back in a bear hug.
"Not...so...hard..." I gasped out both in pain and in breathlessness.
"Oh, sorry!" He let go of me and gave a sheepish grin.
"I trust the lovely lady is your wife?" I asked, seeing a pretty girl hiding partially behind the door.
"Yes, that's the love of my life." he said dreamily. The girl flushed a little before disappearing into the house.
"So what brings you here?" Xion inquired.
"Someone stole the flower from me. A little wisp of smoke or mist took it." It took him a moment to figure out what flower I was talking about.
"And you came to me because I can control clouds?"
"Yes, but I also wanted to know if you knew anyone else who had similar capabilities."
"Well, it wasn't me, because I was here in the village, but I know this girl who can turn herself into fog and mist."
"Can you direct me to her?"
"Sure!" He began to walk through the village, weaving in and out of people and houses. I followed behind, hoping that I wouldn't get lost because Xion was moving very fast.
"Here's her house. I better get back to the house. See you around?"
"Yeah, see you around. And thanks."
"No problem." Xion was gone in a flash on his little cloud. I knocked on the door. The door swung open and then I saw a young girl, maybe early teens, with a full backpack on her back.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to steal it from you!" she cried out, tears filling her eyes.
"You didn't steal it technically because I hadn't touched it yet." I said, trying to comfort the poor girl.
"I-I n-need-ded it to re-rescue my s-sist-ster." she sobbed.
"What happened to your sister?"
"She was c-captured by th-this man who wants to ma-make her work as a slave for him."
"That's illegal!"
"He wan-wanted the flower or else I c-could never have her b-back."
"Let me come with you. I need to flower as well, but I can use it after you get your sister back."
"How are you going to get the flower from him?" She had calmed down and had stopped shaking so much.
"I'm going to create an illusion of one and you give him the illusion flower while I keep the illusion flower. When we teleport out, for I can do that, I will release the illusion. But you and your sister need to go somewhere and hide from him, alright?" She nodded.
"I have enough supplies in here to last us both, I think."
"I'll trust you."
"Oh, I'm sorry, I haven't introduced myself. My name is Yosa."
"Pleased to meet you. My name is Faalan."
"His headquarters is at the top of that mountain." She pointed at the tallest mountain in sight.
"That's a tall mountain...." I murmured.
"Yes, it is. I can take myself up there relatively quickly by turning to mist, but I can't carry you. I could just barely carry the flower."
"If you give me some time to rest, I can teleport us both up part of the mountain because I know a cave relatively near the top. I never knew there was a building up at the top though."
"How much time?" She was clearly impatient, for she began to shuffle her feet around.
"I don't know...maybe a day or so?" Yosa gave a little whimper but nodded.
"I'll meet you at the edge of the village at that tree tomorrow then." she said, pointing to a large tree.
"See you tomorrow then." I made my way to the tree and sat down in the shade. Then I closed my eyes and let myself fall asleep.
AN: I've gotten several people telling me (well, actually, 1) that Traveling Through Time isn't as good as Melody Maker and is just several scenes stuck together. Does anyone else think this?
Giving a sigh, I teleported to Xion's village with some difficulty, for I still didn't have much energy. I walked around a bit and then asked someone where he lived. They directed me to a modest looking building and I quickly knocked on the door.
"Who's there?" came a gentle female voice from behind the door.
"A friend of Xion's." I replied.
"Xion!" called the voice from inside, the person clearly looking for that boy.
"Yes, honey?"
"A friend of your's is here!" The door swung open to reveal Xion.
"Hey, old buddy, old pal!" he cried out and nearly broke my back in a bear hug.
"Not...so...hard..." I gasped out both in pain and in breathlessness.
"Oh, sorry!" He let go of me and gave a sheepish grin.
"I trust the lovely lady is your wife?" I asked, seeing a pretty girl hiding partially behind the door.
"Yes, that's the love of my life." he said dreamily. The girl flushed a little before disappearing into the house.
"So what brings you here?" Xion inquired.
"Someone stole the flower from me. A little wisp of smoke or mist took it." It took him a moment to figure out what flower I was talking about.
"And you came to me because I can control clouds?"
"Yes, but I also wanted to know if you knew anyone else who had similar capabilities."
"Well, it wasn't me, because I was here in the village, but I know this girl who can turn herself into fog and mist."
"Can you direct me to her?"
"Sure!" He began to walk through the village, weaving in and out of people and houses. I followed behind, hoping that I wouldn't get lost because Xion was moving very fast.
"Here's her house. I better get back to the house. See you around?"
"Yeah, see you around. And thanks."
"No problem." Xion was gone in a flash on his little cloud. I knocked on the door. The door swung open and then I saw a young girl, maybe early teens, with a full backpack on her back.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to steal it from you!" she cried out, tears filling her eyes.
"You didn't steal it technically because I hadn't touched it yet." I said, trying to comfort the poor girl.
"I-I n-need-ded it to re-rescue my s-sist-ster." she sobbed.
"What happened to your sister?"
"She was c-captured by th-this man who wants to ma-make her work as a slave for him."
"That's illegal!"
"He wan-wanted the flower or else I c-could never have her b-back."
"Let me come with you. I need to flower as well, but I can use it after you get your sister back."
"How are you going to get the flower from him?" She had calmed down and had stopped shaking so much.
"I'm going to create an illusion of one and you give him the illusion flower while I keep the illusion flower. When we teleport out, for I can do that, I will release the illusion. But you and your sister need to go somewhere and hide from him, alright?" She nodded.
"I have enough supplies in here to last us both, I think."
"I'll trust you."
"Oh, I'm sorry, I haven't introduced myself. My name is Yosa."
"Pleased to meet you. My name is Faalan."
"His headquarters is at the top of that mountain." She pointed at the tallest mountain in sight.
"That's a tall mountain...." I murmured.
"Yes, it is. I can take myself up there relatively quickly by turning to mist, but I can't carry you. I could just barely carry the flower."
"If you give me some time to rest, I can teleport us both up part of the mountain because I know a cave relatively near the top. I never knew there was a building up at the top though."
"How much time?" She was clearly impatient, for she began to shuffle her feet around.
"I don't know...maybe a day or so?" Yosa gave a little whimper but nodded.
"I'll meet you at the edge of the village at that tree tomorrow then." she said, pointing to a large tree.
"See you tomorrow then." I made my way to the tree and sat down in the shade. Then I closed my eyes and let myself fall asleep.
AN: I've gotten several people telling me (well, actually, 1) that Traveling Through Time isn't as good as Melody Maker and is just several scenes stuck together. Does anyone else think this?
Monday, June 9, 2008
Stolen (Chapter 10)
Bright and early, when the sun had just begun to reach over the mountain tops, I bolted out of my boulder bed and quickly woke myself up properly. When I was awake enough to function properly, I pulled out the folder of the caves and began to go to each one. Around 100 caves, I was still buzzing with excitement. By 200, I was still determined and eager. 300 caves, I was neutral on the whole thing. 400, I was starting to get a little annoyed that I still hadn't found it. At 500, the fact that I hadn't found the flower was starting to really bother me. 600, I was about ready to smash a couple of cave walls. 700, I was even about ready to rip the flower into shreds if I saw it. I don't know how many more hundreds there were, but with each passing hundred, I grew more frustrated and angry. By the time I reached the last cave, I was seething.
But the flower was there and it was unlike anything I had ever seen before. It was one color but it was an infinite amount of colors. It was glowing, but it was dull enough not to blind. Constantly changing, the petals and shape of the whole flower kept transforming into a more beautiful flower than the one before. I forgot to breathe for a while and when I took a large breath of air in, I got all light-headed.
When I recovered from my lack of oxygen/overload of oxygen all at once, I walked towards the flower. Not only did it look fantastic, the scent was intoxicating. It was like perfume but not sickly sweet. Yet, it wasn't perfume exactly. It was...indescribable. Just a completely amazing smell.
I was about it grab it when suddenly, a clump of smoke encircled the flower and whisked it towards the entrance. Quickly, I tossed up shields, but I was already weak and the shields went up too slowly. I let go of the shields I had put of as soon as I could, but they had already sapped away at my energy too much. My vision began to go dark, and I struggled against it as much as I could, but I could not retain consciousness.
AN: So...short... But it's important at the same time that you read this anyways.
But the flower was there and it was unlike anything I had ever seen before. It was one color but it was an infinite amount of colors. It was glowing, but it was dull enough not to blind. Constantly changing, the petals and shape of the whole flower kept transforming into a more beautiful flower than the one before. I forgot to breathe for a while and when I took a large breath of air in, I got all light-headed.
When I recovered from my lack of oxygen/overload of oxygen all at once, I walked towards the flower. Not only did it look fantastic, the scent was intoxicating. It was like perfume but not sickly sweet. Yet, it wasn't perfume exactly. It was...indescribable. Just a completely amazing smell.
I was about it grab it when suddenly, a clump of smoke encircled the flower and whisked it towards the entrance. Quickly, I tossed up shields, but I was already weak and the shields went up too slowly. I let go of the shields I had put of as soon as I could, but they had already sapped away at my energy too much. My vision began to go dark, and I struggled against it as much as I could, but I could not retain consciousness.
AN: So...short... But it's important at the same time that you read this anyways.
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Trying to Distract Myself (Chapter 9)
When the sun rose, I rose from my boulder bed and went back to the folder I had created the other day. I looked through it and wondered if I had enough energy to go to all of these yet. There were a lot of caves and though it didn't take too much energy, it was still energy, and all those caves would chip away at the energy I had stored. Maybe...maybe I should go to some now and go to some-no, it wouldn't be the best idea. I wanted to, but I didn't at the same time. To go to all of them at once would require another couple of days of energy storing, but to go to some and then the rest later would take even longer. But it would make me feel better to go to some and then to some later. I wasn't quite sure what to do so I paced around for a while, considering on what to do. It was starting to really bother me.
I ground my teeth and tried to distract myself by counting the grains of sand on the ground. It did work for some time, though not for long, for when I counted, my mind would wander off from the task yet still be counting, and then my thoughts would turn back to the problem I was trying to avoid. So then I tried to count birds flying past me overhead. Once again, same problem. No matter what I did to distract myself, my mind somehow always managed to turn itself back to the cave issue.
Knowing that it was better to wait and do it all at once, I desperately tried to make myself wait. I wanted to go see some caves now but knew it was better to be patient. Of course, my heart was yearning for Fala and wanted to get the cave searching over with, but my mind told me to do otherwise.
Once again, I set myself to not think about the caves and Fala, so I tried to count seconds. One...two...three... Somewhere around 200 I began to count caves, and it was around 400 that I really realized I was counting them. Giving a scream of frustration, I kicked a nearby boulder, sending a stream of pain from my toes to my teeth. It was dumb to try and vent by hurting myself, but the pain did distract me from the caves. I wanted to keep hurting myself to distract me, but I knew for one, that would be bad for me and two, my mind would go back to the original problem anyways.
There really wasn't any way to avoid the subject. Even so, I kept trying. I counted different kinds of objects, I tried to meditate. I even tried knocking myself out, I was that desperate. All I ended up with was a nasty bruise on my head. It was really very stupid.
Then I went hunting, and that got my mind off of the caves until I was eating and spacing out. And then it was back in my head again.
At some point, Dyari came back and we talked about just the randomest things for a while. It helped keep my mind distracted, but it didn't work for long. He left to go back to his time and then I was left by myself to try to sleep. And naturally, I began to think of whether I should go look at some of the caves now or wait it out.
This was how the next couple of days passed as well. I amassed an amazing collection of bruises of all colors and there were probably rings under my eyes. Dyari did help, though not for long. Finally, the day came that I had enough energy to go to all the caves at once.
AN: Okay, yeah, that was stupid, but I felt that doing that. So too bad.
I ground my teeth and tried to distract myself by counting the grains of sand on the ground. It did work for some time, though not for long, for when I counted, my mind would wander off from the task yet still be counting, and then my thoughts would turn back to the problem I was trying to avoid. So then I tried to count birds flying past me overhead. Once again, same problem. No matter what I did to distract myself, my mind somehow always managed to turn itself back to the cave issue.
Knowing that it was better to wait and do it all at once, I desperately tried to make myself wait. I wanted to go see some caves now but knew it was better to be patient. Of course, my heart was yearning for Fala and wanted to get the cave searching over with, but my mind told me to do otherwise.
Once again, I set myself to not think about the caves and Fala, so I tried to count seconds. One...two...three... Somewhere around 200 I began to count caves, and it was around 400 that I really realized I was counting them. Giving a scream of frustration, I kicked a nearby boulder, sending a stream of pain from my toes to my teeth. It was dumb to try and vent by hurting myself, but the pain did distract me from the caves. I wanted to keep hurting myself to distract me, but I knew for one, that would be bad for me and two, my mind would go back to the original problem anyways.
There really wasn't any way to avoid the subject. Even so, I kept trying. I counted different kinds of objects, I tried to meditate. I even tried knocking myself out, I was that desperate. All I ended up with was a nasty bruise on my head. It was really very stupid.
Then I went hunting, and that got my mind off of the caves until I was eating and spacing out. And then it was back in my head again.
At some point, Dyari came back and we talked about just the randomest things for a while. It helped keep my mind distracted, but it didn't work for long. He left to go back to his time and then I was left by myself to try to sleep. And naturally, I began to think of whether I should go look at some of the caves now or wait it out.
This was how the next couple of days passed as well. I amassed an amazing collection of bruises of all colors and there were probably rings under my eyes. Dyari did help, though not for long. Finally, the day came that I had enough energy to go to all the caves at once.
AN: Okay, yeah, that was stupid, but I felt that doing that. So too bad.
Saturday, June 7, 2008
This is the Year (Chapter 8)
"No luck again?" Dyari was there, waiting for me with a pot full of soup.
"What do you think?!" I snapped at him, collapsing on the boulder I now used as a bed.
"Uh... No luck?"
"Exactly." He handed me a bowl of soup and I carefully slurped the piping hot liquid. As annoying as he was, sometime ago he had picked up the knowledge of cooking. I was grateful for what little he knew how to cook, for by the time I had finished searching, I was usually too tired to make anything to eat.
"And what are you going to do about it?"
"How am I supposed to know? I've searched all the snow capped mountains PLUS all the ones that aren't already and I still haven't found anything."
"Ouch..."
"No, really?" I rolled my eyes and finished off the soup. It was slightly bland but it was food all the same. I chucked the bowl at him and lay down on the boulder.
I wondered how Dyari had stayed looking like the same 18 year old boy he was when we first met, but it only was logical that he jumped through time so that it would still be almost his mother's birthday in his time and he would still look his time's age. It was a confusing concept that made sense sometimes and sometimes didn't. The whole time travel thing confused me.
"You know, if you don't find it soon, I'm going to start looking too old for my time."
"I'm aware of that." I muttered, closing my eyes. I really didn't want to talk tonight. We usually talked until I fell asleep, but today I was more tired than usual and was extremely frustrated.
"And just because you think I'm good for nothing doesn't mean I can't help."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Well, I finally figured out that the flower is to bloom this year. I messed up the time, and I'm sorry to have made you search for almost 2 years now. My calculations were off! At first I thought it was two years ago that it was supposed to bloom and then I thought it was supposed to be last year, but it's this year!"
"You have GOT to be kidding me!" I screeched, sitting up and glaring at him.
"Sorry! Sorrysorrysorrysorrysorry!" he apologized hastily. I growled and then lay back down to sleep. At least it would be easier this year since I could just teleport to each cave instead of manually searching. I would have to store up energy for a couple days though.
"I forgive you, but now you have to let me sleep. I'm going to be here for a couple of days so I can collect enough energy to search through all the caves at once." He immediately shut his mouth and presently, there was the sound of ripping air. I knew that he was going to his time, and he probably wouldn't be back for a couple of days as I waited for my energy to recover.
I tossed and turned as I tried to let myself fall asleep.
It sounds strange, but it didn't hurt to toss and turn on a boulder. What did hurt was my head and eyes, for my head hurt from concentrating so much and my eyes hurt from peering in the dark. I tried to stay still, but no matter which way I turned, it was uncomfortable. This was unusual. Normally, I would fall asleep instantaneously. But today, even though I was exhausted, my body wouldn't let me fall asleep.
Giving an exasperated sigh, I opened my eyes to see the sun peaking over the tips of the mountains. I groaned and then sat up. I couldn't sleep when it was light. So, I sat on the boulder and tried to meditate. Which didn't help because my back became sore after a couple of hours. It was impossible to meditate when I had a back shooting spasms of pain. I stood up and stretched at that point, my back bones cracking. I wined at the sound, but it felt better afterwards.
The sun was steadily climbing up the sky as I lay down on the boulder again and closed my eyes. I knew I wouldn't fall asleep, but it was a comfortable position for staying still.
As I lay there, I shuffled through my memories and brought forward all the different caves I had been to.
On that subject, it's hard to explain what exactly I was doing. it was sort of like my memory was a giant room full of filing cabinets that was organized chronologically. These chronological cabinets had files and files of things that had happened. If someone were to ask me about something that had happened, I could search through these "files" and find the information that was needed. Sometimes it took me a while because I did have to remember around when the event took place, but it was always there. One could say that I have photographic memory, but it's not the same thing. It was more than photographic memory.
Anyways, I pulled out all the caves I had gone to and put them aside in a special...folder I guess you could call it, so I could find them quickly. It was a bit like a person grabbing some papers, stuffing them in a folder, and putting them on an empty desk to find later.
By the time I opened my eyes again, the sun was beginning to set. It was amazing how much time past when I was going through my memory files. I gave a yawn and then that night, I was able to fall asleep almost immediately.
"What do you think?!" I snapped at him, collapsing on the boulder I now used as a bed.
"Uh... No luck?"
"Exactly." He handed me a bowl of soup and I carefully slurped the piping hot liquid. As annoying as he was, sometime ago he had picked up the knowledge of cooking. I was grateful for what little he knew how to cook, for by the time I had finished searching, I was usually too tired to make anything to eat.
"And what are you going to do about it?"
"How am I supposed to know? I've searched all the snow capped mountains PLUS all the ones that aren't already and I still haven't found anything."
"Ouch..."
"No, really?" I rolled my eyes and finished off the soup. It was slightly bland but it was food all the same. I chucked the bowl at him and lay down on the boulder.
I wondered how Dyari had stayed looking like the same 18 year old boy he was when we first met, but it only was logical that he jumped through time so that it would still be almost his mother's birthday in his time and he would still look his time's age. It was a confusing concept that made sense sometimes and sometimes didn't. The whole time travel thing confused me.
"You know, if you don't find it soon, I'm going to start looking too old for my time."
"I'm aware of that." I muttered, closing my eyes. I really didn't want to talk tonight. We usually talked until I fell asleep, but today I was more tired than usual and was extremely frustrated.
"And just because you think I'm good for nothing doesn't mean I can't help."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Well, I finally figured out that the flower is to bloom this year. I messed up the time, and I'm sorry to have made you search for almost 2 years now. My calculations were off! At first I thought it was two years ago that it was supposed to bloom and then I thought it was supposed to be last year, but it's this year!"
"You have GOT to be kidding me!" I screeched, sitting up and glaring at him.
"Sorry! Sorrysorrysorrysorrysorry!" he apologized hastily. I growled and then lay back down to sleep. At least it would be easier this year since I could just teleport to each cave instead of manually searching. I would have to store up energy for a couple days though.
"I forgive you, but now you have to let me sleep. I'm going to be here for a couple of days so I can collect enough energy to search through all the caves at once." He immediately shut his mouth and presently, there was the sound of ripping air. I knew that he was going to his time, and he probably wouldn't be back for a couple of days as I waited for my energy to recover.
I tossed and turned as I tried to let myself fall asleep.
It sounds strange, but it didn't hurt to toss and turn on a boulder. What did hurt was my head and eyes, for my head hurt from concentrating so much and my eyes hurt from peering in the dark. I tried to stay still, but no matter which way I turned, it was uncomfortable. This was unusual. Normally, I would fall asleep instantaneously. But today, even though I was exhausted, my body wouldn't let me fall asleep.
Giving an exasperated sigh, I opened my eyes to see the sun peaking over the tips of the mountains. I groaned and then sat up. I couldn't sleep when it was light. So, I sat on the boulder and tried to meditate. Which didn't help because my back became sore after a couple of hours. It was impossible to meditate when I had a back shooting spasms of pain. I stood up and stretched at that point, my back bones cracking. I wined at the sound, but it felt better afterwards.
The sun was steadily climbing up the sky as I lay down on the boulder again and closed my eyes. I knew I wouldn't fall asleep, but it was a comfortable position for staying still.
As I lay there, I shuffled through my memories and brought forward all the different caves I had been to.
On that subject, it's hard to explain what exactly I was doing. it was sort of like my memory was a giant room full of filing cabinets that was organized chronologically. These chronological cabinets had files and files of things that had happened. If someone were to ask me about something that had happened, I could search through these "files" and find the information that was needed. Sometimes it took me a while because I did have to remember around when the event took place, but it was always there. One could say that I have photographic memory, but it's not the same thing. It was more than photographic memory.
Anyways, I pulled out all the caves I had gone to and put them aside in a special...folder I guess you could call it, so I could find them quickly. It was a bit like a person grabbing some papers, stuffing them in a folder, and putting them on an empty desk to find later.
By the time I opened my eyes again, the sun was beginning to set. It was amazing how much time past when I was going through my memory files. I gave a yawn and then that night, I was able to fall asleep almost immediately.
Just Fantastic (Chapter 7)
Now I had to go and find this annoying only-bloom-once-every-hundred-years flower. Why me?! Why this flower?!
I vaguely remembered a picture of the Pranji flower from a book of legends from when I was younger. It was a delicate flower that supposedly shimmered and changed colors. You would think that such a flower would be easy to find, but no. Just because it shimmered didn't mean that it was easy to find. If memory served, the flower grew in an isolated cave at the top of a snowy mountain. And of course that information really helped because there were only, oh, around 500 stupid snow capped mountains. And these mountains were dangerous, of course because no mountain is complete without giant predatory birds and avalanches and the whole shabang.
Well, I guess I had to start somewhere, so I began with the mountain range I was in already. There were a lot of mountains and they were a lot more dangerous than I thought they would be. After nearly getting killed by an avalanche and almost dying from lack of oxygen, I finally resorted to searching for the cave by going through different animals' minds. That, naturally, did not work and I had to go back to levitating to the tops of mountains and searching the numerous caves.
The pain-in-the-arse-to-find flower was no where to be found. It was starting to get dark and so I teleported to the place we had found Dyari. He was already there.
"Any luck?"
"What do you think?" I growled, sending evil looks at him.
"Well, I dunno. You could have hidden it for all I know. Or you could have placed it somewhere safe or-"
"Would it be too much to ask you to shut the hell up?!" I normally didn't swear, but it was too much right now. I was seriously annoyed at the flower, annoyed at Dyari, and annoyed at the world in general.
"Fine, fine, fine. It's not my fault you're such a sourpuss." he muttered before walking over to a chair-like boulder and flopping down onto it.
During my search for the Pranji flower, I had used up more energy than I had in one day while traveling in the forest. And there wasn't to be a rest day either, for the next day, I repeated the same process, going farther and farther every day. And if that wasn't enough, I had to teleport back to Dyari, who would ask me if I had found it yet. The whole search was starting to drive me crazy.
I don't even know how long to took the search the whole mountain range here. All I remember is that it took a very frustratingly long amount of time. Dyari still hadn't gone back to his time, and he continued to bother me daily about how I hadn't found it yet and that it was taking forever.
One day, it was too much for me.
"If you really want the fucking flower, go find it for yourself!" I screamed into his face when he asked me if I had found it yet.
"Ooo... Tsk tsk, bad use of language."
"I don't fucking care, go find it yourself!"
"Then I take it you don't want to get to Fala?" I drooped slightly, for I knew he had won. I still longed to see Fala. This search was killing me; literally. I hadn't eaten properly in weeks and my hair had grown past my shoulders.
The following day, I began to search again. Thinking of Fala helped put some more spirit into my searching, but it was starting to become very tedious and boring. Every single day, I would wake up, teleport to the last mountain I was at, and levitate around, searching the caves. The teleporting took more energy now because I had finished the mountain range where Dyari and I stayed at now. I really wondered what Dyari did while I was gone, because after he found his current time's self and helped Xion get married, I didn't look through his mind anymore. Then again, I really didn't have any energy to spare to check anyways.
I believe it to be a year or two afterwards that I looked into all the caves of the snow covered mountains. And by then, I still hadn't found the flower. I had changed considerably. With no time to cut my hair, it was now almost to my waist and had to be tied up to be kept out of the way. I was leaner and was more adept at using my gift than I ever had been before.
AN: I don't know why I put swears in there, Faalan usually doesn't say such things, but... I felt the need to since he really was very frustrated.
I just realized that the chapters in Traveling Through Time are considerably shorter than the ones in Melody Maker. It makes me feel bad...
I vaguely remembered a picture of the Pranji flower from a book of legends from when I was younger. It was a delicate flower that supposedly shimmered and changed colors. You would think that such a flower would be easy to find, but no. Just because it shimmered didn't mean that it was easy to find. If memory served, the flower grew in an isolated cave at the top of a snowy mountain. And of course that information really helped because there were only, oh, around 500 stupid snow capped mountains. And these mountains were dangerous, of course because no mountain is complete without giant predatory birds and avalanches and the whole shabang.
Well, I guess I had to start somewhere, so I began with the mountain range I was in already. There were a lot of mountains and they were a lot more dangerous than I thought they would be. After nearly getting killed by an avalanche and almost dying from lack of oxygen, I finally resorted to searching for the cave by going through different animals' minds. That, naturally, did not work and I had to go back to levitating to the tops of mountains and searching the numerous caves.
The pain-in-the-arse-to-find flower was no where to be found. It was starting to get dark and so I teleported to the place we had found Dyari. He was already there.
"Any luck?"
"What do you think?" I growled, sending evil looks at him.
"Well, I dunno. You could have hidden it for all I know. Or you could have placed it somewhere safe or-"
"Would it be too much to ask you to shut the hell up?!" I normally didn't swear, but it was too much right now. I was seriously annoyed at the flower, annoyed at Dyari, and annoyed at the world in general.
"Fine, fine, fine. It's not my fault you're such a sourpuss." he muttered before walking over to a chair-like boulder and flopping down onto it.
During my search for the Pranji flower, I had used up more energy than I had in one day while traveling in the forest. And there wasn't to be a rest day either, for the next day, I repeated the same process, going farther and farther every day. And if that wasn't enough, I had to teleport back to Dyari, who would ask me if I had found it yet. The whole search was starting to drive me crazy.
I don't even know how long to took the search the whole mountain range here. All I remember is that it took a very frustratingly long amount of time. Dyari still hadn't gone back to his time, and he continued to bother me daily about how I hadn't found it yet and that it was taking forever.
One day, it was too much for me.
"If you really want the fucking flower, go find it for yourself!" I screamed into his face when he asked me if I had found it yet.
"Ooo... Tsk tsk, bad use of language."
"I don't fucking care, go find it yourself!"
"Then I take it you don't want to get to Fala?" I drooped slightly, for I knew he had won. I still longed to see Fala. This search was killing me; literally. I hadn't eaten properly in weeks and my hair had grown past my shoulders.
The following day, I began to search again. Thinking of Fala helped put some more spirit into my searching, but it was starting to become very tedious and boring. Every single day, I would wake up, teleport to the last mountain I was at, and levitate around, searching the caves. The teleporting took more energy now because I had finished the mountain range where Dyari and I stayed at now. I really wondered what Dyari did while I was gone, because after he found his current time's self and helped Xion get married, I didn't look through his mind anymore. Then again, I really didn't have any energy to spare to check anyways.
I believe it to be a year or two afterwards that I looked into all the caves of the snow covered mountains. And by then, I still hadn't found the flower. I had changed considerably. With no time to cut my hair, it was now almost to my waist and had to be tied up to be kept out of the way. I was leaner and was more adept at using my gift than I ever had been before.
AN: I don't know why I put swears in there, Faalan usually doesn't say such things, but... I felt the need to since he really was very frustrated.
I just realized that the chapters in Traveling Through Time are considerably shorter than the ones in Melody Maker. It makes me feel bad...
Friday, June 6, 2008
Are you Going to Help Us or Not? (Chapter 6)
“See, that is a hole in the air. And that hole leads to another time. Same place, different time. Now, what can I do for you?” Xion and I turned to see...Xion?
“Wow... It’s like looking in a mirror!” Xion exclaimed, looking at the other Xion.
“Huh... No kidding...” the other Xion murmured.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa! Hold on just a second!” I cried, shaking my head.
“What?” the two Xions both said at the same time.
“So...” I turned to the other Xion. “What’s your name?”
“My name is Dyari.” said the boy, apparently named Dyari.
“Dyari... That name sounds familiar... You wouldn’t happen to have known someone named Milai would you?” Dyari paled considerably.
“Don’t tell me. You’re my son aren’t you?” Dyari looked like he was going to faint.
“I’m guessing that’s the truth.” Xion looked almost as pale as his father was.
“Dyari, how old are you?” I asked quietly.
“I’m 18.”
“Xion, how old are you?” I questioned the other.
“I’m 18.”
“Did you travel into the future from your time, Dyari?”
“Yes...”
“Fantastic. Well, Dyari, meet your son. Xion, meet your father.”
“Xion, what are you dong here?” Dyari looked slightly panicked.
“I need to get my father’s consent to my marriage.”
“You’re telling me that I have to try and convince your father-in-law-to-be that I’m your father and that it’s okay for you to get married?”
“Uh... Maybe?”
“You know, you could go and try to find the current time’s Dyari.” I cut in.
“That’s right...” Dyari agreed, nodding.
“So... Where is this future version of you?” Xion inquired.
“I dunno. I have no clue where my future self would have gone.” Dyari yawned and sat down on a nearby boulder. I took his lead and sat down on one myself. Xion followed shortly after.
“Aren’t you going to help me find...you?” Xion pleaded Dyari after seeing that his father had no interest in helping.
“It’s not my problem is it?” Dyari retorted, glaring at Xion, who glared back.
“Um... I actually have to ask you a favor as well.” I looked at Dyari nervously.
“What’s your problem?” Dyari huffed, turning from Xion to glare at me.
“I have to get to the time of Fala.”
“Who is this Fala person?” Dyari looked confused for a moment, losing the glare. But it came back afterwards.
“The love of his life!” Xion answered. Dyari smirked that same smirk as Xion’s and then was thoughtful for a moment.
“And why should I help you?”
“Because I have no other way of getting to her unless you can direct me to someone else who can travel through time." I was about ready to beg now. I had to see Fala again.
“Your request is a lot harder than you think it is. Even if I wanted to take you to her time, I would have to know into what time to take you. And then I also have to consider the location of where I drop you.”
“Well, if I send you an image of what the portal that took her looked like, can you tell what time and place it is?”
“Perhaps. But what do you mean by send?”
“A mental image.” I closed my eyes and connected his mind to mines. Then I showed him what I had seen.
“Hm... Uh huh... Yes... Okay... I can tell what time and place, but you still haven’t given me a reason for helping you.” Dyari turned to Xion. “That goes for you too.”
“But, but, but!” stuttered Xion.
“No buts! You have to give me a reason.” Dyari declared.
“Well... Um... How about... If you don’t help us...” I paused for a moment to grab the dagger hanging from Dyari’s belt. “...then you don’t get this back.”
“Hey! Give that back!” The irate boy tried to grab the weapon from me but being the taller one, I lifted the dagger above my head as he jumped up and down to reach it. I muffled my laughter and put on a serious face.
“I won’t give it back until you help us.”
“But I need that! It’s what I use to travel through time!” So the dagger was important after all.
“Well then I guess you’ll have to help Xion first before you help me.” Dyari gave an angry huff. Xion smiled at me, eyes full of gratitude. He hadn’t actually talked in a while, which surprised me, because when he wasn’t running or sleeping, he was usually blabbing his head off.
“I’ll help him if you give it back, but I won’t help you unless you do something for me.” Dyari finally said.
“Fair enough. Promise you won’t travel through time before you help Xion?”
“I swear on my honor as a time traveler.” I gave the dagger back to him and then he quickly sheathed it.
“Now what do you want me to do for you?”
"Well, in my time, it's almost my mother's birthday. So... I want you to get the Pranji flower."
"The flower that only blooms every hundred years?!" This flower was almost legend! Very few had found it and the few that did never revealed the location. There was only one every century and was near impossible to find.
"Yes, that flower. You asked me what I wanted you to do for me and that is it. Now you go and find it while I help Xion find the current me."
"I'll be keeping my mind in you." I warned, glaring at Dyari. "Make sure he helps you, okay?" Xion nodded to signify that he knew and the two were off on a cloud that Xion conjured up.
AN: Off onto another quest! ^_^
“Wow... It’s like looking in a mirror!” Xion exclaimed, looking at the other Xion.
“Huh... No kidding...” the other Xion murmured.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa! Hold on just a second!” I cried, shaking my head.
“What?” the two Xions both said at the same time.
“So...” I turned to the other Xion. “What’s your name?”
“My name is Dyari.” said the boy, apparently named Dyari.
“Dyari... That name sounds familiar... You wouldn’t happen to have known someone named Milai would you?” Dyari paled considerably.
“Don’t tell me. You’re my son aren’t you?” Dyari looked like he was going to faint.
“I’m guessing that’s the truth.” Xion looked almost as pale as his father was.
“Dyari, how old are you?” I asked quietly.
“I’m 18.”
“Xion, how old are you?” I questioned the other.
“I’m 18.”
“Did you travel into the future from your time, Dyari?”
“Yes...”
“Fantastic. Well, Dyari, meet your son. Xion, meet your father.”
“Xion, what are you dong here?” Dyari looked slightly panicked.
“I need to get my father’s consent to my marriage.”
“You’re telling me that I have to try and convince your father-in-law-to-be that I’m your father and that it’s okay for you to get married?”
“Uh... Maybe?”
“You know, you could go and try to find the current time’s Dyari.” I cut in.
“That’s right...” Dyari agreed, nodding.
“So... Where is this future version of you?” Xion inquired.
“I dunno. I have no clue where my future self would have gone.” Dyari yawned and sat down on a nearby boulder. I took his lead and sat down on one myself. Xion followed shortly after.
“Aren’t you going to help me find...you?” Xion pleaded Dyari after seeing that his father had no interest in helping.
“It’s not my problem is it?” Dyari retorted, glaring at Xion, who glared back.
“Um... I actually have to ask you a favor as well.” I looked at Dyari nervously.
“What’s your problem?” Dyari huffed, turning from Xion to glare at me.
“I have to get to the time of Fala.”
“Who is this Fala person?” Dyari looked confused for a moment, losing the glare. But it came back afterwards.
“The love of his life!” Xion answered. Dyari smirked that same smirk as Xion’s and then was thoughtful for a moment.
“And why should I help you?”
“Because I have no other way of getting to her unless you can direct me to someone else who can travel through time." I was about ready to beg now. I had to see Fala again.
“Your request is a lot harder than you think it is. Even if I wanted to take you to her time, I would have to know into what time to take you. And then I also have to consider the location of where I drop you.”
“Well, if I send you an image of what the portal that took her looked like, can you tell what time and place it is?”
“Perhaps. But what do you mean by send?”
“A mental image.” I closed my eyes and connected his mind to mines. Then I showed him what I had seen.
“Hm... Uh huh... Yes... Okay... I can tell what time and place, but you still haven’t given me a reason for helping you.” Dyari turned to Xion. “That goes for you too.”
“But, but, but!” stuttered Xion.
“No buts! You have to give me a reason.” Dyari declared.
“Well... Um... How about... If you don’t help us...” I paused for a moment to grab the dagger hanging from Dyari’s belt. “...then you don’t get this back.”
“Hey! Give that back!” The irate boy tried to grab the weapon from me but being the taller one, I lifted the dagger above my head as he jumped up and down to reach it. I muffled my laughter and put on a serious face.
“I won’t give it back until you help us.”
“But I need that! It’s what I use to travel through time!” So the dagger was important after all.
“Well then I guess you’ll have to help Xion first before you help me.” Dyari gave an angry huff. Xion smiled at me, eyes full of gratitude. He hadn’t actually talked in a while, which surprised me, because when he wasn’t running or sleeping, he was usually blabbing his head off.
“I’ll help him if you give it back, but I won’t help you unless you do something for me.” Dyari finally said.
“Fair enough. Promise you won’t travel through time before you help Xion?”
“I swear on my honor as a time traveler.” I gave the dagger back to him and then he quickly sheathed it.
“Now what do you want me to do for you?”
"Well, in my time, it's almost my mother's birthday. So... I want you to get the Pranji flower."
"The flower that only blooms every hundred years?!" This flower was almost legend! Very few had found it and the few that did never revealed the location. There was only one every century and was near impossible to find.
"Yes, that flower. You asked me what I wanted you to do for me and that is it. Now you go and find it while I help Xion find the current me."
"I'll be keeping my mind in you." I warned, glaring at Dyari. "Make sure he helps you, okay?" Xion nodded to signify that he knew and the two were off on a cloud that Xion conjured up.
AN: Off onto another quest! ^_^
Seemingly Impossible Climb (Chapter 5)
“Whoa... Totally awesome mountains!” Xion tilted his head back and stared wide-eyed at the enormous mountain range.
“They may be ‘totally awesome’ but they won’t be when we climb them.” I rolled my eyes. I wondered what kind of girl would love such an annoying boy like him.
“Let’s climb them!” he cried, jumping up.
“Wa-” I started to say, when he continued to go up instead of falling back to the ground. Forming under his feet were white fluffy clouds. He sat down and with little flicks of his fingers, he began to continue moving upwards.
Quickly, I levatated myself upwards until we were both moving at the same speed and at the same place. I sat down beside him on what seemed to be just air. Of course to me, it seemed as if there was a floor underneath me, despite the fact that there really wasn’t anything but my gift supporting me.
“You seem suprised.” Xion looked at me, a smirk forming on his face.
“Yes, I’m surprised. Not only that, I’m annoyed!” I replied, trying to remain calm.
“Why would you be annoyed?” His face melted into an innocent expression.
“Because I practically carried you the whole way through the forest!” I growled, clenching my teeth together.
“You did? Really? I never noticed...” I resisted the urge to push him off of his cloud. I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and calmed myself. When I opened my eyes, I began to question him.
“So you’re a cloud shaper?”
“Yes. It’s not very useful on dry days.”
“What can you do with shaping clouds?”
“Um... Well, I know I can carry things with them and I can surround people with them. I can’t really use storm clouds quite yet, but I can use mist, fog, and other kinds of clouds.”
“Anything else?”
“Not really. What about your gift?”
“I use my mind to control things. I can levatate things and I can create illusions. But I can also read minds and talk to others with my mind. And finally, I can teleport if I've seen the place before.”
“Look!” I looked down. My head spun for a few moments as my brain slowly registered how high I was.
“Look at what?” I asked, squinting and peering downwards.
“Did you see it?” And then I saw it. There was a flash of light, almost as if someone had a mirror and was using it to reflect the sunlight.
“Yeah, I saw that!”
“Let’s go down!” I followed Xion as we slowly decended towards the source of the light. We arrived to see what seemed to be a hole in the air just starting to close.
“What’s that?!” Xion cried out in surprise.
“I’m guessing it’s a portal?” I said, unsure of what exactly it was myself.
“How about you two stop guessing and I explain it?” came a voice from behind us.
“They may be ‘totally awesome’ but they won’t be when we climb them.” I rolled my eyes. I wondered what kind of girl would love such an annoying boy like him.
“Let’s climb them!” he cried, jumping up.
“Wa-” I started to say, when he continued to go up instead of falling back to the ground. Forming under his feet were white fluffy clouds. He sat down and with little flicks of his fingers, he began to continue moving upwards.
Quickly, I levatated myself upwards until we were both moving at the same speed and at the same place. I sat down beside him on what seemed to be just air. Of course to me, it seemed as if there was a floor underneath me, despite the fact that there really wasn’t anything but my gift supporting me.
“You seem suprised.” Xion looked at me, a smirk forming on his face.
“Yes, I’m surprised. Not only that, I’m annoyed!” I replied, trying to remain calm.
“Why would you be annoyed?” His face melted into an innocent expression.
“Because I practically carried you the whole way through the forest!” I growled, clenching my teeth together.
“You did? Really? I never noticed...” I resisted the urge to push him off of his cloud. I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and calmed myself. When I opened my eyes, I began to question him.
“So you’re a cloud shaper?”
“Yes. It’s not very useful on dry days.”
“What can you do with shaping clouds?”
“Um... Well, I know I can carry things with them and I can surround people with them. I can’t really use storm clouds quite yet, but I can use mist, fog, and other kinds of clouds.”
“Anything else?”
“Not really. What about your gift?”
“I use my mind to control things. I can levatate things and I can create illusions. But I can also read minds and talk to others with my mind. And finally, I can teleport if I've seen the place before.”
“Look!” I looked down. My head spun for a few moments as my brain slowly registered how high I was.
“Look at what?” I asked, squinting and peering downwards.
“Did you see it?” And then I saw it. There was a flash of light, almost as if someone had a mirror and was using it to reflect the sunlight.
“Yeah, I saw that!”
“Let’s go down!” I followed Xion as we slowly decended towards the source of the light. We arrived to see what seemed to be a hole in the air just starting to close.
“What’s that?!” Xion cried out in surprise.
“I’m guessing it’s a portal?” I said, unsure of what exactly it was myself.
“How about you two stop guessing and I explain it?” came a voice from behind us.
Can't be Too Careful (Chapter 4)
I looked forward. I looked up. I looked forward again. This forest...was a lot bigger than I had thought it would be. The trees towered high above me; at least 9 times as tall as me, if not 10. And I was pretty tall.
Xion seemed oblivious as he practically skipped into the trees.
“Xion, wait!” I shouted, quickly lifting him up.
“What is it now?!” he grumbled, wiggling in the air.
“First off, stop moving, it’s hard for me to hold you up in the first place.”
“Fine. Now explain why you are holding me up here!” I began to walk towards him.
“This forest is dangerous, in case you didn’t hear me the first time. There are poisonous lizards who will kill you if you step on them.”
“Then...why not just kill them when you step on them?”
“Because the others will be alerted and all swarm to kill you.”
“Oh.”
“And by the way, you nearly stepped on one there.” I turned him so that he could see the miniscule lizard that was partially hidden by a leaf. Then, I gently put him down where there wasn’t a lizard.
“Well, let’s get going then!” My hand went to my forehead. He obviously hadn’t heard a word I said. Either that, or whatever I said just went through one ear and out the other. I sighed and put a shield around him so that if he did step on a lizard, he would be protected to an extent. For myself, I levitated just above the ground. High enough so that I wouldn’t distrub any hiding lizards, but low enough so that it didn’t cost me too much energy.
Xion ran through the trees as I glided beside him. He was pretty oblivious in my opinion. But then again, he could have a gift that could protect him. Or he could just be completely in love. I knew some people got into this in-their-own-little-world symptom when they were in love. He might have been one.
We made pretty good progress on the first day. I don’t really know exactly how much we travelled, all I know is that it was a pretty good amount. The second day, however, was a different story.
When I awoke, I stretched and sat up from the tree limb I was on. I didn’t trust the ground for sleeping on. For all I know, I could toss and turn in my sleep. Risking my health in my sleep didn’t seem favorable to me. I would rather be uncomfortable than be poisoned any night. I looked across to the other tree, the one that Xion had slept on. He was still sleeping.
I floated over and sat on the branch beside his sleeping form. Then I nudged him gently, trying to wake him up.
“Hey. It’s time to wake up.” I said.
“I’m tired. Go away.”
“It’s morning and we need to travel when there’s at least a little bit of light.” I looked up and scowled at the tiny beams of sunlight that had just barely managed to make it through all the branches and leaves.
“I ran all day yesterday. I’m sore and tired. Leave me alone. We can travel again tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow?!” I nearly screamed. Now I was really regretting on deciding to travel with him. I knew it was a bad choice, I knew it. I really wanted to ditch the kid right around now. But I knew I’d feel guilty about it later, and I didn’t feel he would be safe if I left him. From what I’d seen, he would probably die within a couple hours. I really didn’t know what else to do, so I went back to the tree I had been sleeping on and stared at the sleeping boy for a while.
I was annoyed that he was acting in this manner, but I guessed that in the future, the pattern of the days would be the same. And it was. We would travel quickly one day and then rest for a whole day. I suppose that was good for me because by the end of a traveling day, I was exhausted from keeping up a force field and levatating myself.
In Xion’s haste to enter the forest, I hadn’t had time to get any supplies, so now I depended completely on hunting for the animals in the forest. Our diet was very bland, because I didn’t trust many plants and animals to be edible. I was glad that there were occasional zinka trees, the smooth, orange-skinned fruit. Other than that, there wasn’t any plant that I trusted. There was the common green snake (I didn’t know what it was called, all I knew was that it was edible) and there were a few speicies of owls. That was all that we ate for weeks on end.
I had hoped that he would be grateful for what little food we did have but no. Ungrateful little bugger he was, he constantly complained that he was getting tired of what food I managed to get. No matter what I did, he wouldn’t stop complaining. There wasn’t enough food, there wasn’t enough variety, the water was too low, it was too hot, it was too humid, it was too dark. Finally, I just gave up on trying to stop his complaining and ignored his complaints.
After a month or so, I was able to travel without becoming tired by the end of the day. When I found myself relaxing while travelling and not having to work hard for it, I added more to my list of things to do. I began to also levatate Xion forward while he ran so as to make us move faster. We covered more ground that month.
By around the end of the third month, I guessed we were around two-thirds of the way through the forest. It only took another two weeks before we were out of the forest and facing the giant mountains.
AN: This part raced by kinda fast, and I'm sorry, but I get bored writing about traveling through places for too long. I had the same problem in Melody Maker too...
Xion seemed oblivious as he practically skipped into the trees.
“Xion, wait!” I shouted, quickly lifting him up.
“What is it now?!” he grumbled, wiggling in the air.
“First off, stop moving, it’s hard for me to hold you up in the first place.”
“Fine. Now explain why you are holding me up here!” I began to walk towards him.
“This forest is dangerous, in case you didn’t hear me the first time. There are poisonous lizards who will kill you if you step on them.”
“Then...why not just kill them when you step on them?”
“Because the others will be alerted and all swarm to kill you.”
“Oh.”
“And by the way, you nearly stepped on one there.” I turned him so that he could see the miniscule lizard that was partially hidden by a leaf. Then, I gently put him down where there wasn’t a lizard.
“Well, let’s get going then!” My hand went to my forehead. He obviously hadn’t heard a word I said. Either that, or whatever I said just went through one ear and out the other. I sighed and put a shield around him so that if he did step on a lizard, he would be protected to an extent. For myself, I levitated just above the ground. High enough so that I wouldn’t distrub any hiding lizards, but low enough so that it didn’t cost me too much energy.
Xion ran through the trees as I glided beside him. He was pretty oblivious in my opinion. But then again, he could have a gift that could protect him. Or he could just be completely in love. I knew some people got into this in-their-own-little-world symptom when they were in love. He might have been one.
We made pretty good progress on the first day. I don’t really know exactly how much we travelled, all I know is that it was a pretty good amount. The second day, however, was a different story.
When I awoke, I stretched and sat up from the tree limb I was on. I didn’t trust the ground for sleeping on. For all I know, I could toss and turn in my sleep. Risking my health in my sleep didn’t seem favorable to me. I would rather be uncomfortable than be poisoned any night. I looked across to the other tree, the one that Xion had slept on. He was still sleeping.
I floated over and sat on the branch beside his sleeping form. Then I nudged him gently, trying to wake him up.
“Hey. It’s time to wake up.” I said.
“I’m tired. Go away.”
“It’s morning and we need to travel when there’s at least a little bit of light.” I looked up and scowled at the tiny beams of sunlight that had just barely managed to make it through all the branches and leaves.
“I ran all day yesterday. I’m sore and tired. Leave me alone. We can travel again tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow?!” I nearly screamed. Now I was really regretting on deciding to travel with him. I knew it was a bad choice, I knew it. I really wanted to ditch the kid right around now. But I knew I’d feel guilty about it later, and I didn’t feel he would be safe if I left him. From what I’d seen, he would probably die within a couple hours. I really didn’t know what else to do, so I went back to the tree I had been sleeping on and stared at the sleeping boy for a while.
I was annoyed that he was acting in this manner, but I guessed that in the future, the pattern of the days would be the same. And it was. We would travel quickly one day and then rest for a whole day. I suppose that was good for me because by the end of a traveling day, I was exhausted from keeping up a force field and levatating myself.
In Xion’s haste to enter the forest, I hadn’t had time to get any supplies, so now I depended completely on hunting for the animals in the forest. Our diet was very bland, because I didn’t trust many plants and animals to be edible. I was glad that there were occasional zinka trees, the smooth, orange-skinned fruit. Other than that, there wasn’t any plant that I trusted. There was the common green snake (I didn’t know what it was called, all I knew was that it was edible) and there were a few speicies of owls. That was all that we ate for weeks on end.
I had hoped that he would be grateful for what little food we did have but no. Ungrateful little bugger he was, he constantly complained that he was getting tired of what food I managed to get. No matter what I did, he wouldn’t stop complaining. There wasn’t enough food, there wasn’t enough variety, the water was too low, it was too hot, it was too humid, it was too dark. Finally, I just gave up on trying to stop his complaining and ignored his complaints.
After a month or so, I was able to travel without becoming tired by the end of the day. When I found myself relaxing while travelling and not having to work hard for it, I added more to my list of things to do. I began to also levatate Xion forward while he ran so as to make us move faster. We covered more ground that month.
By around the end of the third month, I guessed we were around two-thirds of the way through the forest. It only took another two weeks before we were out of the forest and facing the giant mountains.
AN: This part raced by kinda fast, and I'm sorry, but I get bored writing about traveling through places for too long. I had the same problem in Melody Maker too...
Who's This? (Chapter 3)
I was awakened by a loud cry for help. Bleary-eyed, I looked around until I found the source of the noise. A boy, probably around 18, had somehow gotten himself stuck upside down in a tree. He was hanging by the bottom of his pants, which had hooked onto the tree somehow. I seriously wondered how his pants hadn’t fallen off yet.
I rubbed my eyes and tried to clear them as I walked to the tree, looking up at the boy.
“Please! Help me!” he cried. I stared for a while and then began to speak.
“Can you reach up and grab the branch that your pants are hooked on?”
“I already tried that, but when I do that, my pants rip a little more at where it’s hooked.” I gave a sigh. I really didn’t want to waste any more energy than necessary for I knew I would need it later. But I couldn’t think of any other way to help the boy, so I raised my arms and slowly used them to help guide the lifting process.
He slowly floated into the air and as I moved him down to the ground, I turned his body so that he would land feet first and not head first, for I had landed head first once and believe me, that was not fun. His legs were a little unsteady, but once he had gotten his bearings, he smiled and walked over to where I was.
“Thanks for helping me. My name’s Xion. It’s nice to meet you.”
“You’re welcome. It’s nice to meet you too. Call me Faalan.”
We shook hands as I inspected Xion. He was shorter than me (a lot of people were since I was pretty tall), well built, with high cheek bones and fair skin that made him look slightly elven. His vibrant red hair was tied into a pony-tail at his neck and shaggy bangs nearly covered his mischevious emerald eyes.
“So, Faalan? What brings you here?” Xion asked curiously.
“I should be asking you the same.” I replied, smiling a bit.
“Well, if you answer, I’ll answer.”
“You answer first.”
“No, you.”
“You.”
“Fine.” He pouted and then grinned before he answered.
“According to my mother, my father is the time traveler who lives in the mountains. I wouldn’t normally care about such details, but I want to marry this girl and...” At this point, his eyes had gotten dreamy, probably thinking about his love. I resisted the urge to glare at him as I was harshly reminded of Fala.
“...her father wants my father’s consent to the marriage before he will give his own consent.” Xion finished.
“I guess it’s my turn to explain why I’m here.” I quickly skimmed through my memories before picking out a couple of details that wouldn’t give too much away.
“My sister used her gift to bring this girl from the future into our time. My sister died, and shortly after, I fell in love with the girl, but she had to return to her time. I wanted to follow her to her time but my sister came to send only Fala back. She wouldn’t let me go to her time. So now I’m trying to find a way to get there.”
“So Fala’s the name?” Xion inquired, a twinkle in his eyes. I hadn’t meant to say her name, but I guess it slipped.
“Yes.” I said finally, after trying to decide whether or not to deny it.
“So we’re both trying to find the time traveler in the mountains there, right?” I nodded, and he continued.
“Why don’t we travel together? That way we can watch each others’ backs. Besides, it’s a long, lonely journey.”
“Sure, I could always use a travelling companion.” I didn’t really want to travel with Xion, since I didn’t exactly trust him at the moment, but it was a bit safer. So I hoped anyways.
What I mostly worried about was if he found out that I had been involved with the whole di Zuce incident. People were still twitchy about the event and news spread like wildfire. If he found out, he might choose to kill me. Even though I wasn’t the di Zuce, I had been his friend for a long time.
Xion began to walk off towards the mountains, and grabbed his shoulder before he got too far.
“What?” he asked, sounding confused.
“Are we going through the forest or around?”
“Uh... Through? Duh?”
“It’s more dangerous that way.”
“But it’s shorter. C’mon. Don’t be chicken.” He began to walk off again towards the menacing-looking forest.
“Fine, but it’s your funeral.” I sighed, shaking my head, following him towards the forest.
AN: I'm kinda hating the fact that I created Xion, but I needed comic relief! Gaaaaaahhhhh...
I rubbed my eyes and tried to clear them as I walked to the tree, looking up at the boy.
“Please! Help me!” he cried. I stared for a while and then began to speak.
“Can you reach up and grab the branch that your pants are hooked on?”
“I already tried that, but when I do that, my pants rip a little more at where it’s hooked.” I gave a sigh. I really didn’t want to waste any more energy than necessary for I knew I would need it later. But I couldn’t think of any other way to help the boy, so I raised my arms and slowly used them to help guide the lifting process.
He slowly floated into the air and as I moved him down to the ground, I turned his body so that he would land feet first and not head first, for I had landed head first once and believe me, that was not fun. His legs were a little unsteady, but once he had gotten his bearings, he smiled and walked over to where I was.
“Thanks for helping me. My name’s Xion. It’s nice to meet you.”
“You’re welcome. It’s nice to meet you too. Call me Faalan.”
We shook hands as I inspected Xion. He was shorter than me (a lot of people were since I was pretty tall), well built, with high cheek bones and fair skin that made him look slightly elven. His vibrant red hair was tied into a pony-tail at his neck and shaggy bangs nearly covered his mischevious emerald eyes.
“So, Faalan? What brings you here?” Xion asked curiously.
“I should be asking you the same.” I replied, smiling a bit.
“Well, if you answer, I’ll answer.”
“You answer first.”
“No, you.”
“You.”
“Fine.” He pouted and then grinned before he answered.
“According to my mother, my father is the time traveler who lives in the mountains. I wouldn’t normally care about such details, but I want to marry this girl and...” At this point, his eyes had gotten dreamy, probably thinking about his love. I resisted the urge to glare at him as I was harshly reminded of Fala.
“...her father wants my father’s consent to the marriage before he will give his own consent.” Xion finished.
“I guess it’s my turn to explain why I’m here.” I quickly skimmed through my memories before picking out a couple of details that wouldn’t give too much away.
“My sister used her gift to bring this girl from the future into our time. My sister died, and shortly after, I fell in love with the girl, but she had to return to her time. I wanted to follow her to her time but my sister came to send only Fala back. She wouldn’t let me go to her time. So now I’m trying to find a way to get there.”
“So Fala’s the name?” Xion inquired, a twinkle in his eyes. I hadn’t meant to say her name, but I guess it slipped.
“Yes.” I said finally, after trying to decide whether or not to deny it.
“So we’re both trying to find the time traveler in the mountains there, right?” I nodded, and he continued.
“Why don’t we travel together? That way we can watch each others’ backs. Besides, it’s a long, lonely journey.”
“Sure, I could always use a travelling companion.” I didn’t really want to travel with Xion, since I didn’t exactly trust him at the moment, but it was a bit safer. So I hoped anyways.
What I mostly worried about was if he found out that I had been involved with the whole di Zuce incident. People were still twitchy about the event and news spread like wildfire. If he found out, he might choose to kill me. Even though I wasn’t the di Zuce, I had been his friend for a long time.
Xion began to walk off towards the mountains, and grabbed his shoulder before he got too far.
“What?” he asked, sounding confused.
“Are we going through the forest or around?”
“Uh... Through? Duh?”
“It’s more dangerous that way.”
“But it’s shorter. C’mon. Don’t be chicken.” He began to walk off again towards the menacing-looking forest.
“Fine, but it’s your funeral.” I sighed, shaking my head, following him towards the forest.
AN: I'm kinda hating the fact that I created Xion, but I needed comic relief! Gaaaaaahhhhh...
Purchase and Information Gathering (Chapter 2)
The next morning, I began to head towards the nearest village, which I guessed was the one to the east of the pond. If I remembered my geography right, the village should be right....there.
The small village bustled with people and vendors. There was happiness in the air and everyone smiled. Welcomes rang around me as I walked into the main road. It seemed that the description of me had not reached so far north, for no one cried out in surprise or anger.
“Why’s everyone so happy?” I asked a vendor as I looked at some of the hand-made jewelry at his stall.
“You haven’t heard?” His voice was filled with great shock.
“No...” I said, feeling slightly embarassed.
“I suppose that’s what happens when you travel in the great woods for too long. The di Zuce is dead!”
“Oh. Well, that’s great!” I forced a happy smile on my face as I watched the man do a happy dance behind his stall. I lowered my head to look at his merchandice again, when a small necklace caught my eye.
“How much is this?” I asked quietly, picking up the simple piece of jewelry.
“That? Oh, that’s three chais.”
“What? Why is it so cheap?” Most necklaces, even the cheap ones, usually cost around 8 chais.
“No one wants it. You’re the first.” I stared at the necklace. Sure, it was only a simple lyre pendant on a leather string, but the carving of the lyre was intricate and well made.
“I’ll take it.” I fished around in my cape before I found the small pouch that held my coins. The man’s eyes seemed to nearly pop out of his head when I told him that. I wonder what was so special about that necklace anyways...
Whatever the case, I bought it and stuck it in one of the numerous pockets in my cape. If I ever saw Fala again-no, when I saw Fala again- I would give her the necklace as a gift.
I wandered around the village for a while, trying to let the contagious happiness of the people infect me, but...I just couldn’t be happy. I’d never felt this way about a person until now. All I could think of was Fala with her silky brown hair and her golden eyes.
Shaking my head, I pushed the memories of Fala to one side of my head and began questioning the villagers if they knew someone who could transport people through time. The only pieces of information were rumors and legends of people who had already died a long time ago. I guessed that gifts similar to Khanna's rarely showed up in the human population. It made sense though, because if many people had this gift, the whole past, present, and future would be completely messed up.
Finally, I managed to learn of a person who lived in the mountains only a couple hours from here. No one really knew much about this person, but it was said that he could move through time. They said that he had been born many years ago, but still looked as young as he had when he was 30. Some claimed that he had horns growing out of his head, and some said that he had spines coming out of his back. Whatever the case, this was the only relatively solid information I had, compared to the other bits of information I had gotten.
Gratefully, I thanked all the people who had tried to give me information and left the noisy village for the silent woods. When I reached the closest tree, I sat down underneath its shade and thought about what to do.
The mountain range loomed in the distance in the direction I was facing. If I were to travel there, I would have to make it past the fast flowing river and the thick forest behind it. That particular forest was more dangerous than most, for it was completely dark, even in the brightest of days. Because of that, there was little plant life and only a few edible species of animal. There were also several species of small poisonous lizards that would attack if you stepped on them. There were only a few of them, but they moved quickly and if they just happened run under your foot as you were putting it down, they would either be killed or become very angry. If they were killed, the nearby lizards of the same species would attack because you would be considered a threat. If they became angry, then they would attack you by themselves. Either way, you would be attacked.
The forest was my main concern, because most people who went in never came out again. The few that did come out were usually poisoned and died within a couple days. Also, I could levitate myself over the river, but the forest was too vast for me to levitate the whole way. If I were to try and make it the whole way there levitating, I would most likely tire myself out after the first couple of hours and not be able to really move for a day. The only compromise was to levitate for a short while, rest, and then levitate some more. It was painstaking but if I wanted to ensure my safety, this was the best way. Coming out of there alive was a top priority.
I had another option as well. I could go around the forest instead and to the other side of the mountain. It would be easier going around but would take more time. I could only carry a limited amount of supplies with me so I had to plan this carefully. If I was to go through the forest, I would have to levitate almost the whole way except for short breaks. If I was to go around the forest, I would have to carry a large amount of supplies, which would further slow me down.
I thought about it for a long time, until I realized that the sky had become dark already. I decided that I would sleep on it and then choose in the morning.
The small village bustled with people and vendors. There was happiness in the air and everyone smiled. Welcomes rang around me as I walked into the main road. It seemed that the description of me had not reached so far north, for no one cried out in surprise or anger.
“Why’s everyone so happy?” I asked a vendor as I looked at some of the hand-made jewelry at his stall.
“You haven’t heard?” His voice was filled with great shock.
“No...” I said, feeling slightly embarassed.
“I suppose that’s what happens when you travel in the great woods for too long. The di Zuce is dead!”
“Oh. Well, that’s great!” I forced a happy smile on my face as I watched the man do a happy dance behind his stall. I lowered my head to look at his merchandice again, when a small necklace caught my eye.
“How much is this?” I asked quietly, picking up the simple piece of jewelry.
“That? Oh, that’s three chais.”
“What? Why is it so cheap?” Most necklaces, even the cheap ones, usually cost around 8 chais.
“No one wants it. You’re the first.” I stared at the necklace. Sure, it was only a simple lyre pendant on a leather string, but the carving of the lyre was intricate and well made.
“I’ll take it.” I fished around in my cape before I found the small pouch that held my coins. The man’s eyes seemed to nearly pop out of his head when I told him that. I wonder what was so special about that necklace anyways...
Whatever the case, I bought it and stuck it in one of the numerous pockets in my cape. If I ever saw Fala again-no, when I saw Fala again- I would give her the necklace as a gift.
I wandered around the village for a while, trying to let the contagious happiness of the people infect me, but...I just couldn’t be happy. I’d never felt this way about a person until now. All I could think of was Fala with her silky brown hair and her golden eyes.
Shaking my head, I pushed the memories of Fala to one side of my head and began questioning the villagers if they knew someone who could transport people through time. The only pieces of information were rumors and legends of people who had already died a long time ago. I guessed that gifts similar to Khanna's rarely showed up in the human population. It made sense though, because if many people had this gift, the whole past, present, and future would be completely messed up.
Finally, I managed to learn of a person who lived in the mountains only a couple hours from here. No one really knew much about this person, but it was said that he could move through time. They said that he had been born many years ago, but still looked as young as he had when he was 30. Some claimed that he had horns growing out of his head, and some said that he had spines coming out of his back. Whatever the case, this was the only relatively solid information I had, compared to the other bits of information I had gotten.
Gratefully, I thanked all the people who had tried to give me information and left the noisy village for the silent woods. When I reached the closest tree, I sat down underneath its shade and thought about what to do.
The mountain range loomed in the distance in the direction I was facing. If I were to travel there, I would have to make it past the fast flowing river and the thick forest behind it. That particular forest was more dangerous than most, for it was completely dark, even in the brightest of days. Because of that, there was little plant life and only a few edible species of animal. There were also several species of small poisonous lizards that would attack if you stepped on them. There were only a few of them, but they moved quickly and if they just happened run under your foot as you were putting it down, they would either be killed or become very angry. If they were killed, the nearby lizards of the same species would attack because you would be considered a threat. If they became angry, then they would attack you by themselves. Either way, you would be attacked.
The forest was my main concern, because most people who went in never came out again. The few that did come out were usually poisoned and died within a couple days. Also, I could levitate myself over the river, but the forest was too vast for me to levitate the whole way. If I were to try and make it the whole way there levitating, I would most likely tire myself out after the first couple of hours and not be able to really move for a day. The only compromise was to levitate for a short while, rest, and then levitate some more. It was painstaking but if I wanted to ensure my safety, this was the best way. Coming out of there alive was a top priority.
I had another option as well. I could go around the forest instead and to the other side of the mountain. It would be easier going around but would take more time. I could only carry a limited amount of supplies with me so I had to plan this carefully. If I was to go through the forest, I would have to levitate almost the whole way except for short breaks. If I was to go around the forest, I would have to carry a large amount of supplies, which would further slow me down.
I thought about it for a long time, until I realized that the sky had become dark already. I decided that I would sleep on it and then choose in the morning.
Silent Vow (Chapter 1)
When I regained conciousness, it was dark. Or maybe not. As I stood up, I realized that it only seemed dark because my cape had fallen on top my head earlier. Rolling my shoulders and rubbing my nose (for I had fallen face first apparently), I tried to remember which direction Fala could have taken. There was suddenly a flash of blue tinged light up ahead. The first thing that came to mind was Khanna, for her portals often created a bright light. But why was it blue? All her other portals were green exc- how could I be so stupid?! It was blue when Fala came to this time, so logically, Khanna must have gone back to this time...for what?
I ran towards the source of the light, using my gift to propell me forward at speeds I couldn’t normally achieve. I arrived at a small pond just in time to see Fala disappear into a portal. And standing in front of the portal was my dear sister Khanna. I wasn’t sure whether or not to trust my eyes, but I knew no one else who could make portals.
Her head turned, and then her eyes met mines.
“Hello, Faalan.” she said quietly, her voice tainted with sadness.
“Khanna.” I whispered, walking forward until I was face to face with her.
“How are you?” she asked, embracing me gently. I couldn’t believe that she was actually there. She had died, but yet here she was. It didn’t make sense, but at the same time, it did.
“I’m...”
“...not as good as you could be.” finished Khanna, already knowing what I would say. She released me from her embrace and then smiled lightly, looking up at me.
“Yes.” I agreed reluctantly.
“Would you care to explain?”
“Well.... You died, Fala’s gone, Kaija turned bad and I had to kill him, I’m probably still hunted... Other than that, things are fantastic!” I replied sarcastically, tears welling in my eyes.
“I’m so sorry.” she murmured before gently wiping away the stray droplets of salt water that had fallen from my eyes.
“It was destiny for that to happen, wasn’t it? You would know better than all the rest of us.”
“Unfortunately, it was. I know it’s hard to face, but you have to deal with it.”
“How can I? I can’t let Fala go.”
“You have to realize that you two live in different times. I know it’s harsh, but you two can’t be together. If you try to meet her, it will only mak it harder for her. Let her go so she can be happy in her own place.”
“But-”
“No buts. I have to go now. Goodbye brother.” A portal appeared behind her and she stepped back into it. The blue engulfed her and then she was gone.
With her gone, I couldn’t think of any way to get to Fala. I gritted my teeth and slammed my fist into the nearest tree. I continued to ram the tree until I couldn’t lift my arms anymore. Why did life have to be so hard sometimes?
I tasted salt, and realized after a while that it came from the tears that had flowed from my eyes while I was trying to destroy the tree. I slumped down against the tree and stared at the canopy of leaves as I felt my arms throb with pain.
Closing my eyes, I silently vowed that I would find a way to see Fala again, even if she didn’t want me anymore. All I wanted was to see her again.
AN: Shortness.... I wish it was longer, but I really like it the way it is at the same time.
I ran towards the source of the light, using my gift to propell me forward at speeds I couldn’t normally achieve. I arrived at a small pond just in time to see Fala disappear into a portal. And standing in front of the portal was my dear sister Khanna. I wasn’t sure whether or not to trust my eyes, but I knew no one else who could make portals.
Her head turned, and then her eyes met mines.
“Hello, Faalan.” she said quietly, her voice tainted with sadness.
“Khanna.” I whispered, walking forward until I was face to face with her.
“How are you?” she asked, embracing me gently. I couldn’t believe that she was actually there. She had died, but yet here she was. It didn’t make sense, but at the same time, it did.
“I’m...”
“...not as good as you could be.” finished Khanna, already knowing what I would say. She released me from her embrace and then smiled lightly, looking up at me.
“Yes.” I agreed reluctantly.
“Would you care to explain?”
“Well.... You died, Fala’s gone, Kaija turned bad and I had to kill him, I’m probably still hunted... Other than that, things are fantastic!” I replied sarcastically, tears welling in my eyes.
“I’m so sorry.” she murmured before gently wiping away the stray droplets of salt water that had fallen from my eyes.
“It was destiny for that to happen, wasn’t it? You would know better than all the rest of us.”
“Unfortunately, it was. I know it’s hard to face, but you have to deal with it.”
“How can I? I can’t let Fala go.”
“You have to realize that you two live in different times. I know it’s harsh, but you two can’t be together. If you try to meet her, it will only mak it harder for her. Let her go so she can be happy in her own place.”
“But-”
“No buts. I have to go now. Goodbye brother.” A portal appeared behind her and she stepped back into it. The blue engulfed her and then she was gone.
With her gone, I couldn’t think of any way to get to Fala. I gritted my teeth and slammed my fist into the nearest tree. I continued to ram the tree until I couldn’t lift my arms anymore. Why did life have to be so hard sometimes?
I tasted salt, and realized after a while that it came from the tears that had flowed from my eyes while I was trying to destroy the tree. I slumped down against the tree and stared at the canopy of leaves as I felt my arms throb with pain.
Closing my eyes, I silently vowed that I would find a way to see Fala again, even if she didn’t want me anymore. All I wanted was to see her again.
AN: Shortness.... I wish it was longer, but I really like it the way it is at the same time.
Introduction
It took a moment to realize what had just happened. As I stared at Fala’s fleeing form, I was first in shock. That was before it came to me that she was trying to break away from me, so that she wouldn’t hurt me. I could see it in her eyes. Couldn’t she tell that I wanted to be with her forever? Couldn’t she see that even though we were separated through time, I would find a way to be with her? Couldn’t she?
I don’t think she did. I vaguely heard a voice crying out in surprise at the scene behind me as I chased after her, running as fast as I could. But I was tired already, and I knew that she was the faster of us. Even so, I tried with all my heart and soul. I wanted to catch up to her and take her in my arms, sheilding her from the world around us.
My breath came short as hours past. There was nothing I could do as my legs crumpled beneath me and the darkness took me in.
AN: It wasn't meant to be an introduction but that's what happened. And so Traveling Through Time starts.
I don’t think she did. I vaguely heard a voice crying out in surprise at the scene behind me as I chased after her, running as fast as I could. But I was tired already, and I knew that she was the faster of us. Even so, I tried with all my heart and soul. I wanted to catch up to her and take her in my arms, sheilding her from the world around us.
My breath came short as hours past. There was nothing I could do as my legs crumpled beneath me and the darkness took me in.
AN: It wasn't meant to be an introduction but that's what happened. And so Traveling Through Time starts.
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