Post by acclue lockheart on Feb 29, 2008 23:53:18 GMT -5
Chapter V: A New Journey
"It wasn't a dream!" I repeated each time that the others came to inspect my cry. "It was real! I felt it!"
"Acclue! Calm down!" Hoshi grabbed my shirt and shook me.
"No! He's going to kill me!" I screamed back. The irony that I was so ready to let myself die only a half hour ago escaped me when I felt what it would be like.
Ami stepped up and smacked me hard across the face. I breathed in deeply a few times and relaxed my arms "Thanks." I felt Hoshi's hands lifting off of me and I sat up with my hands against the ground behind me.
"<Okay, now just what is going on?>" Ayaka asked.
"I'm going to die!" I put one of my hands back on my chest, frantically feeling around for a hole. I hadn't realized that I wasn't speaking Mantle to her and Hoshi had to translate.
"Acclue, calm down." Hoshi You're not going to die, now tell us what's going on."
"Someone's gonna shoot me!" I was starting to bleed where I clenched my chest, the claws ripping slowly through my skin.
"Stop that!" Hoshi pulled my hand away and Ami, having grown impatient, punched me in the face this time.
I really calmed down this time, breathing in deeply. "Okay... Okay, I'm fine now..." I breathed out. I'm not sure if I was ever so scared as when I interpreted that dream.
"Okay, now tell us, what happened to you?" Hoshi sat down next to me and looked straight at me.
"Okay. I did... something the shadow didn't want me to do last night. I saw myself being... shot... And I felt it, I was dying! It felt like I was really dying!"
"Don't panic." Hoshi put her hand on my head "You're awake now, it was just a nightmare."
"No! I saw it again and felt it! It's a vision!"
"Okay, now you are crazy." Ami said "You're suddenly psychic?"
"No, shadows are, we share a mind and I saw my death!" I slammed my fist against the ground and felt a hole collapse around it "Huh?"
"<What is going on?>" Ayaka broke into the conversation
Hoshi turned to answer "<Acclue thinks that he had a vision of his own death.>"
"<Well that is... a bit odd...>"
"I'm going to die!" I yelled again, ifting my hand from the hole and cursing the weak ground in my mind "I gotta hide! This isn't a joke!"
"Acclue!" Ami shouted in my ear at the top of her lungs. My concentration, or lack thereof, was shattered and I waited quietly for her to continue. "Does it hurt now?!"
I shook my head slowly "No..."
"Then calm the fuck down so we can figure this out!"
She was very convincing for the state I was in. I just nodded and waited for someone else to speak.
"Okay, now tell us exactly what happened." Hoshi said "<And try it in Mantle for the humans.>"
I turned to Ami "Is it alright if I talk to them?"
"Yeah, go ahead. I've heard the story."
I took a few minutes explaining the dream, expecting to feel another pang of that deathly feeling, but only getting an empathic sting as I awaited it. I was far too scared to go into much detail, but I didn't remember a lot of the finer aspects anyway. I did see it in a dream after all.
“<That is a strange dream.>” Clad said “<I have heard that they can tell the future.>”
“<They cannot.>” I shook my head “<You need to be born a psychic to be one. Shadow Demons all have some insight to the future, and this one showed me my death!>”
“<I do not think that it would work like that.>” Ayaka said.
“<I know what I felt. This was real.>” I looked around to everyone. They seemed more than a little doubtful “<Please... I am really scared. I need you to believe me on this.>”
They stood their ground on the issue, and I felt I wasn't going to get any support. Then Ayaka let out a sigh and knelt down to me. “<Acclue. I know of a seer. He lives on top of the mountains to the North. Maybe I should go to see him about this.>”
“<Really?!>” I jumped up and hugged her “<Thank you Ayaka!>”
“Now hold on, what's going on now!?” Ami cried out.
“We're going to the mountains Ami! A seer's gonna help me!”
“<Whoa, what now?>” Hoshi drew back “<Now what do you mean 'we'?! The mountains are no place for kids!>”
“We've been to the mountains before, right Ami?” I turned to her and she nodded.
“Yeah, with our father. The Ferals don't attack unless you're alone. They don't like big fights.” she grinned and added “Acclue knows that all too well.”
“Sh-shut up!” I shouted, doubling back into Mantle “<My point is, Ayaka can't go alone, or she will be killed!>”
“<Of course I cannot go alone, but I did not think you would be so ready to travel into danger with such a premonition in mind.>”
I hesitated. She had a point. But I retaliated “<I die by arrow, and Ferals never use weapons. It may well be the safest place for me right now.>”
“<He is convinced.>” Hoshi sighed “<I guess we are going on another trip.>”
“So can I assume you guys are leaving for the mountains?” Ami cut in “I want to come.”
“Of course.” I nodded to her “I wouldn't think of leaving you after all I went through to get back here.”
Ami stepped back “If you try to hug me again, I'll beat you.”
I grinned “Yeah, sure.”
The vision faded freely in and out of my mind, parts slipping in and out throughout that night. I knew of the danger involved in going to the mountains, yet I was drawn to it. As I left alongside my companions the next morning, two thoughts came to mind.
'Was I making a big mistake' seemed the most obvious. But somewhere in the back of my mind, a more important question burned. It seemed trivial because this was the land where everything I knew died, but...
Would I ever get to see this place again?
"It wasn't a dream!" I repeated each time that the others came to inspect my cry. "It was real! I felt it!"
"Acclue! Calm down!" Hoshi grabbed my shirt and shook me.
"No! He's going to kill me!" I screamed back. The irony that I was so ready to let myself die only a half hour ago escaped me when I felt what it would be like.
Ami stepped up and smacked me hard across the face. I breathed in deeply a few times and relaxed my arms "Thanks." I felt Hoshi's hands lifting off of me and I sat up with my hands against the ground behind me.
"<Okay, now just what is going on?>" Ayaka asked.
"I'm going to die!" I put one of my hands back on my chest, frantically feeling around for a hole. I hadn't realized that I wasn't speaking Mantle to her and Hoshi had to translate.
"Acclue, calm down." Hoshi You're not going to die, now tell us what's going on."
"Someone's gonna shoot me!" I was starting to bleed where I clenched my chest, the claws ripping slowly through my skin.
"Stop that!" Hoshi pulled my hand away and Ami, having grown impatient, punched me in the face this time.
I really calmed down this time, breathing in deeply. "Okay... Okay, I'm fine now..." I breathed out. I'm not sure if I was ever so scared as when I interpreted that dream.
"Okay, now tell us, what happened to you?" Hoshi sat down next to me and looked straight at me.
"Okay. I did... something the shadow didn't want me to do last night. I saw myself being... shot... And I felt it, I was dying! It felt like I was really dying!"
"Don't panic." Hoshi put her hand on my head "You're awake now, it was just a nightmare."
"No! I saw it again and felt it! It's a vision!"
"Okay, now you are crazy." Ami said "You're suddenly psychic?"
"No, shadows are, we share a mind and I saw my death!" I slammed my fist against the ground and felt a hole collapse around it "Huh?"
"<What is going on?>" Ayaka broke into the conversation
Hoshi turned to answer "<Acclue thinks that he had a vision of his own death.>"
"<Well that is... a bit odd...>"
"I'm going to die!" I yelled again, ifting my hand from the hole and cursing the weak ground in my mind "I gotta hide! This isn't a joke!"
"Acclue!" Ami shouted in my ear at the top of her lungs. My concentration, or lack thereof, was shattered and I waited quietly for her to continue. "Does it hurt now?!"
I shook my head slowly "No..."
"Then calm the fuck down so we can figure this out!"
She was very convincing for the state I was in. I just nodded and waited for someone else to speak.
"Okay, now tell us exactly what happened." Hoshi said "<And try it in Mantle for the humans.>"
I turned to Ami "Is it alright if I talk to them?"
"Yeah, go ahead. I've heard the story."
I took a few minutes explaining the dream, expecting to feel another pang of that deathly feeling, but only getting an empathic sting as I awaited it. I was far too scared to go into much detail, but I didn't remember a lot of the finer aspects anyway. I did see it in a dream after all.
“<That is a strange dream.>” Clad said “<I have heard that they can tell the future.>”
“<They cannot.>” I shook my head “<You need to be born a psychic to be one. Shadow Demons all have some insight to the future, and this one showed me my death!>”
“<I do not think that it would work like that.>” Ayaka said.
“<I know what I felt. This was real.>” I looked around to everyone. They seemed more than a little doubtful “<Please... I am really scared. I need you to believe me on this.>”
They stood their ground on the issue, and I felt I wasn't going to get any support. Then Ayaka let out a sigh and knelt down to me. “<Acclue. I know of a seer. He lives on top of the mountains to the North. Maybe I should go to see him about this.>”
“<Really?!>” I jumped up and hugged her “<Thank you Ayaka!>”
“Now hold on, what's going on now!?” Ami cried out.
“We're going to the mountains Ami! A seer's gonna help me!”
“<Whoa, what now?>” Hoshi drew back “<Now what do you mean 'we'?! The mountains are no place for kids!>”
“We've been to the mountains before, right Ami?” I turned to her and she nodded.
“Yeah, with our father. The Ferals don't attack unless you're alone. They don't like big fights.” she grinned and added “Acclue knows that all too well.”
“Sh-shut up!” I shouted, doubling back into Mantle “<My point is, Ayaka can't go alone, or she will be killed!>”
“<Of course I cannot go alone, but I did not think you would be so ready to travel into danger with such a premonition in mind.>”
I hesitated. She had a point. But I retaliated “<I die by arrow, and Ferals never use weapons. It may well be the safest place for me right now.>”
“<He is convinced.>” Hoshi sighed “<I guess we are going on another trip.>”
“So can I assume you guys are leaving for the mountains?” Ami cut in “I want to come.”
“Of course.” I nodded to her “I wouldn't think of leaving you after all I went through to get back here.”
Ami stepped back “If you try to hug me again, I'll beat you.”
I grinned “Yeah, sure.”
The vision faded freely in and out of my mind, parts slipping in and out throughout that night. I knew of the danger involved in going to the mountains, yet I was drawn to it. As I left alongside my companions the next morning, two thoughts came to mind.
'Was I making a big mistake' seemed the most obvious. But somewhere in the back of my mind, a more important question burned. It seemed trivial because this was the land where everything I knew died, but...
Would I ever get to see this place again?
