[[Okay, so I'm giving Saol Brea another try, since it died last time I
attempted. To be honest, I hate that old version of it. My writing has
improved quite a bit along with my knowledge about literary technique.
So, I'm changing some names, plot details, and a few other things.
Enjoy.
Comments are appreciated and welcome. Just be a bit specific. I'm also looking for an editor, so if you're interested in that, please do let me know in game.
Characters:
Lios - Ruairi
Caii - Ruairi
Thank you!]]
Prolouge:
Once around the circle, dance,
Twice around The bend.
Thrice tap your foot to the wall,
And four times with your hand.
Question not what you don't know
And you'll be able to stay.
But if you let your nose get in the way,
And watch your friends betray.
Five times shall you clap your hands
Six times you shall call.
Seven shall you turn around,
Eighth time, nothing at all.
Once there was a lady-friend,
Pretty as can be.
She tried to make it out alive,
But she wound like me.
Nine times and it's getting fast,
Ten, you start to leave.
Eleven And you Scream real loud,
Twelve, you've been bereaved.
Now you may not care for my petty tale,
And you may not believe me.
But Remember it, or face your death,
'cause "It's only just a dream"
Thirteen is the final number,
A Lovely one, in fact.
It's a number of fate, decision, destiny,
And you can't deny that.
Thirteen's where it all began,
Where it first was tended.
How it got the name it did,
and where it will have Ended.
So once it's met, there's no time to run,
You're just as good as finished.
The Fun has only just begun,
And it surly won't diminish.
[[That may not have made sense to you at all, but it's important.]]
Chapter I
The hand slowly made its way toward the slate. Covered in dust, the
dense stone of the precious object was surprisingly weak. The hand
took it delicately and made its way toward the next object on the
table. A single knife sat next to the slate, it too having collected
years worth of dirt. The hand carefully grabbed the knife by the hilt
and made its way toward the final object on the table.
The children's book, The Stargazer, is
not all that uncommon. It could be found at any bookstore for the price
of a child's allowance. However, this copy was the greatest treasure
that rested on the wooden table. The cover had a beaten sense to it, as
if it had been stepped on a few times. A small corner had been chewed
on by an animal of some sort long ago, and the pages appeared to be
blank after the ink had eroded away. The hand's owner sat the
treasures in a bag and muttered a few syllables. Instantly, he was
gone, leaving no trace of him being there other than the objects having
been removed.
Once out of the house, the hand's owner, cloaked in a dark robe,
had quietly begun to make his way to the ocean's shore. A light breeze
lifted a bit of the sand from its resting spot into the air. The
cloaked man took no notice to this and began to think quietly.
The man stood there, unmoving as if he was petrified, for thirty minutes.
"It's good to see you, Agorai," said the man. He turned around and
faced his colleage, who had arrived two seconds after the main had
greeted him.
"As good as it is to see you, after all these
years," replied Agorai. "So Tell me, have you made any progress on
your... goal?"
"If you think I hadn't, you'd be a fool," snapped
the stranger back at him. "I have recently found Five of the Covetted
Enigma, and I am closer than ever to finding The Girl."
"Be careful what you try. If it doesn't go your way, you will not be the only one who pays for it."
"I realize this, Agorai, but if one choses to think of what will happen
if things go smoothly, the risk is something I am willing to take."
"I suppose it would be your decision..." Agorai walked toward the shore
and picked up a single sea shell. "But if things do not, in fact, go
according to plan. I will personally be delighted to be the one who
kills you and the girl to stop it all."
"Of course. Welcome back, Agorai."
"Good to be back, Caidora."
Author's Insight.
It is common knowledge that water is wet and turtles will probably
never rule the world. However, it is not common knowledge that the
number three occurs within the first million digits of pi 100230 times,
or that penguins are plotting to take over the world with your premium
grown coffee, but you wouldn't know about that. Knowledge is something
that can be both helpful and detrimental. This is often shown when one
knows they should do something, but doesn't know how to accomplish it.
Just like James Principe.
James, my friend, was a curious character. His story is one that has not yet been known, but soon will be.
Chapter II
Cold. Pain. Wet. Dark.
Comfort. Hope. Light.
Death.
James was alone. At least, that's what he had thought. There was
neither a beginning nor an end to feeling. He couldn't move, breath, or
even feel. It was like he was falling eternally while paralyzed.
Nothing made sense to him, though it really didn't need to. He was
dying, after all. Death is simple. There's no trick to it. It happens
all the time.
James opened his eyes. Or were they already open? He didn't know. He heard crying and sirens and a loud blur all around him.
"James. James! Don't go. Please! I'm sorry!" he heard his sister cry.
"Honey,
there's nothing we can do. He'll be better off if he goes." he heard
his mother comfort, though she was more hysterical than his sister.
"I'm going to pronounce it." he heard a stranger say. "Time of death... 11:02."
"Rest." he heard his mother say.
Everything went silent.
James was unsure how long time passed. He wasn't sure if anything was supposed to happen. Just darkness.
"Wake." He heard someone whisper.
Suddenly, he felt a warming sensation around him. Finally feeling was
there. The warmth continued to fill him as he saw a light approaching.
"Stand."
James found himself standing on a platform with strange markings around
it. Owls flew overhead and there was a bar somewhere above him.
Suddenly, a girl in a black dress with white hair appeared before him.
An aura of friendliness around her. He got up and slowly walked toward
her.
"Hello, James" She said. "I'm guessing you're a bit disoriented, huh?
Allow me to introduce myself. I am Nao. It is my job to guide the souls
like yours into the world of Erinn."
James was in shock. He had no idea what was happening or how this girl
in front of him --Nao-- even knew his name. He finally gathered himself
and asked "What's Erinn?"
"Erinn, my friend, is a world not unlike yours. Except, there is no
death. There is less pain, and there is more prosperity. No longer does
one have to feel the burdens of life. Don't get me wrong, there is
still work and hardships, but far more rewards. You'll see that soon
enough. If you have any questions, I can answer them"
James paused. He had a lot to think about, his mother, sister, his
friends. Even his dog, Spencer. It all happened so fast, he didn't even
know how he had died...
Then, it came back to him.
Chapter III.
"Come on, James! We're going to be late."
James sighed and picked up the pace.
"I don't see why we have to go meet this woman," he said to his sister. "Why are we even meeting her?"
"Because Jamesssss," his sister said. "She said that she knew something
that was important. And stop calling her "this woman" she's my friend,
and she isn't that old.
"Oh, I'm sorry, when did 93 become 'Not that Old'?"
"Just don't complain. You promised me that you'd come if I did your math homework, so stop whining."
James sighed. He did promise her.
"Sara, can't we do this some other time?"
"Oh hush, we're already here. See?"
Sara gestured toward a large, run down home. The grass grew in patches,
though what little grass there was had been as tall as the fence
surrounding it. They walked through the gate up to an old, wooden
porch where an elderly woman was sitting.
The woman smiled as she saw Sara. "Sara, I'm so glad you came to visit
today!" The woman looked toward James and her smile disappeared. She
simply gazed at him as if in a trance. James felt a bit uncomfortable
at this, but Sara stepped in.
"This is my brother, James." she said. "You had wanted to see him?"
The old woman sighed and looked away, shifting her gaze toward the cat
that had been sitting on her lap. "I know very well who this young man
is. James Principe. 17 Years old. Plays soccer with his friends in his
spare time over at the park down by the river. He also has a love for
bowling and an irrational fear of thunderstorms."
James was shocked and had absolutely no idea how she had known that. "What, are you stalking me!?" he yelled.
"James, no she is not stalking you!" Said Sara. "James, this woman,
Janice, is a clairvoyant. She can see things in other places and times."
"Oh, I'm so glad that I have a clairvoyant watching me all the time.
Can we go now? Tim and Candice are going to meet us at the river and
then we're going to have scary movie night."
All the while, Janice had remained silent. Unaware of the arguing, she had instead focused her attention elsewhere.
"Tonight," She had said, surprising James and Sara. "Beware that of
which you do not know. Instinct is enemy and thought is friend. Let
anger nor hatred hinder you and beware the eleventh hour."
Janice had then passed out. "Hello? Janice...? James, is she okay?" said Sara.
Janice slowly woke up. "Ahh, well, I must have dozed off. You two can
run along now. I was just going to say that james looks a little thin
and should eat a bit more. Now if you excuse me, I'm going to go take a
nap." Janice got up and walked inside, leaving two very surprised
siblings.
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The two finally had gone to their movie night and watch two very lame,
very funny films. They were walking home when Sara said "I wonder what
Janice meant by that."
James rolled his eyes. "She's just an old, old old, very old and senile
woman. She was probably having some sort of vietnam flashback or
something."
"No, James, I don't think that was it," said Sara. "I've talked to her
a lot, she predicted everything. Like that time Tony had broken his
arm, or when Chantel had gotten food poisoning from that chinese
restraunt she went to. I don't think she was making it up. James, just
please, listen to her?"
James turned around and looked at his sister. She had a serious look on
her face and he about lost it. "Sara, I don't get why you're so
worried! I'm here, I'm fine, you can't expect some old woman's
predictions to come true all the time. For all you know she was sleep
talking! You're always so serious, Sara, just lighten up. Now let's
go. I have a game tomorrow morning."
James turned around and began walking. Sara was looking down.
"She..." she began.
"What. She What?" James said.
"She predicted... when..."
"Well? What, Sara. Out with it."
"When dad died..."
James felt nothing but anger at this point. "Sara, don't even joke
about that. You were five when he died you didn't even know her. I was
only seven too, I can barely remember it! Now if you're going to make
up stories to make me listen to you then you can walk home by yourself.
Goodbye."
James began to run home, leaving Sara behind. Sara was crying to
herself at this point. "I wasn't making it up," she said softly and
began to run after James. "Wait, Wait James, I'm sorry!"
James ignored his sister's cries and ran faster. "'Instinct is enemy
and thought is friend.'" he said to himself, mockingly. Suddenly, he
felt a pain and the wind was knocked out of him.
"No!" he heard his sister cry.
Directly in front of their house, James had been hit by a drunk driver.
The driver had passed out and the headlights only illuminated the
puddle of blood that was growing around James.
"Mom! Mom! Come outside, Mom!" Sara shouted.
"What is it? What's-NO!" their mother shouted.
"Call 9-1-1. HURRY!" Sara ran inside and dialed for the paramedics.
"Honey, honey, please, answer me"
"It hurts!" James coughed as he closed his eyes.
"Oh my god. James. James darling." His mother whispered. She began to
cry. She was about to lose one of the few things she had left in her
life. First her husband and now her only son. And on the same day, she
was about to lose both. She snapped into reality and began to sob even
harder but began to sing an old lulaby that was James' favorite, though
she wasn't even sure he could hear him.
"Sleep my son,
Warm in bed.
Close your eyes
And rest your head.
Soon will come
another day.
And with it is
time to play.
So now you should
Go to sleep.
And maybe then-"
She began to weep uncontrollably. Soon the paramedics were there and were attending to James.
"I don't think he's going to make it!" shouted one.
"Don't think, just help!" said another.
However, their attempts were futile and soon it showed.
"James. James! Don't go. Please! I'm sorry!" Sara cried.
"Honey,
there's nothing we can do. He'll be better off if he goes." Their mother sobbed.
"I'm going to pronounce it." said one of the doctors. "Time of death... 11:02."
"Rest." their mother whispered to him through tears. "Rest."
[[Please do let me know what you think. I'm tired of writing at the moment so I'll write on it more tomorrow xD Sorry about the depressingness o.o]]
