Chapter 2: 1 : Unknown World | part 1

As the crust of the night came over a sleeping town, a melodious brass bell was rung with a strength that was able to raise those still in deep slumber. It heralded the beginning of a new day. This wasn’t a new day created by the begrudging movement of a clock, but from a change that could ruin many lives. It instilled a panic which formed into a volley of sounds as many alarms were used to pull everyone into action.

The favorite slaves of this town ruler, a cruel and powerful sorceress, had escaped. The town would be painted with the citizen’s blood if they weren’t found. Everyone and everything were used to simply finding two young girls so that they could hopefully see the morning sun with a head still attached to their bodies.

 

❀

 

The two girls had managed to escape into a forest to use the trees as cover. They could at times see bizarre creatures flying in the starlit sky who used blinding light to spot any movement on the forest floor. Thankfully for them, the vegetation was thick, and a few clouds darkened the areas not under the monsters’ lights, which allowed them to stay undetected. Tsuki, a girl with short hair and emerald eyes, had prepared bait in the opposite direction that they fled from. At one point, the girls were hiding under a dead tree, and they could see in the sky the strange monsters leaving where the bait was, which meant they could now run freely for some time.

They were forced to run barefoot and with minimal clothing since most of the clothes they owned in captivity were enchanted with some sort of detection spell. Tsuki had once made a friend who was able to provide them with string and silk which wasn’t tainted with any spell. It took them time, but they were able to create their clothing for this escape. They weren’t able to make good footwear with only silk, but they did their best with what they had. Sadly, the things they made were a detriment to them since they degraded too quickly and caused Alice, the other girl who had long black hair and azure eyes, to fall and injure her knees.

And so, they ran barefoot in this great forest with roots, twigs, and rock that pierced their soles, leaving patches of red blood on the wet dirt. Alice was injured from her fall and moving was difficult since the ground was slippery. They relied on one another and moved hand in hand; no matter how dark the night may be, a warm sun is next to come...lest they succumb to a nightmare, then the sunrise will be naught but a dream.

The darkness of the night was manifold as the moonlight used the dark green leaves and branches of the forest to refract thousands of scary apparitions all around the girls. And the wind came, dancing in the trees, giving those shadowy monsters a life of their own, voicing their wails as a whispered wish to snuff all life, making mere shadow more real than a nighttime story...

Hand in hand there was only forward they could go. They ran with all their might to forget the nightmares and to reach the sweet dreams they so desperately wanted. But dreams and nightmares aren’t the present. And currently, in front of the two girls was a large chasm that split the ground as far as they could see. There was the sound of barking dogs that were coming closer; hounds trained to follow their trails. A dead tree struck by lightning which was barely still standing straight was close to the chasm and could be used like a bridge. They needed to hurry as the hounds were getting closer.

 

✿

 

In a lone garden with flowers of many colors and beauty was a dainty white table and chairs set on the side of a healthy tree with transparent blue leaves. Sitting on one of the chairs was a young girl with long black hair and opposite her was the princess of the country she lived in. They talked and joked around for some time while drinking some tea and relaxing under the warm sun. It was until the princess looked into the distance, thinking of how to say something. “There’s something I have to ask you, Alice...There’s a lot more that I would like to say but for now, it would only be something short...”

“Do ask Hana, I don’t have much to do anyway,” Alice answered her friend, and looking at her, understood it was something she might not fully understand right now. Her friend had her eyes closed as if she was thinking about how to say something that troubled her...Until she took a long breath and said the following:

“Darkness is eternal when you live with closed eyes, but be blinded by dreams or ambitions, and you’ll never move past your chamber door. Thus, do not pity those with ashen eyes because they cannot see the morning sun, since after all, they could very well perceive more than what you ever could.

And when you wish to follow the fairy tales of the olden days, forget not those heroes are made to give shines of hope in hardship. Yet, what is then a hero if you only know darkness. It is naught but you but made better. A shine put upon the past to get the future you have once dreamed of. How can this title of hero ever protect the present? Little Aria seems to want to understand what a hero without the title is.

But what about you Alice? One day, I will be gone, and you will need to find your path...It doesn’t need to be anything big. No matter what you want to do, I’ll support you. This, I promise you. Do you have any idea of what you want to do?”

“I do. When I grow up, I want to be like you. I wish to be able to help you achieve your dream!” Alice responded with confidence as if her mind had been made long ago but she felt unsure of it when she looked at her friend. She often used magic to change her eyes to hide her blindness like how colored contact can be used. But even though this, Alice could still see the pity and the sadness in her friend’s eyes. They bore their usual melancholia which often made the girl look lonely.

“May your wish be blessed like the star high above who flies whimsically into the darkness eternal of the night. So that you may cast another wish into a lake of desire and retain as many dreams of an approaching present as there are dancing stars at the times of twilight’s sorrow. But if this wish may ever encroach on your eternal self like how some cattle are marked with red iron, then be like the fiery star that is long gone to paint many skies in the galaxy. Ardent and powerful, never dissipate, and don’t let anything keep you for too long. Be like the sun that can never be forgotten when people think of the peaceful sky.

No matter the tempest or the drought; no matter the wishful days or the ivory statues of old; no matter the blood dandelion seeding or the drinking of nightshade wine; no matter the saddest cry’s origin or the way it was snuff; no matter the empty cradle or the empty pantry; no matter the red of a writer hands or the quality of his quill; no matter the sour bread hardness or the bow you may recourse to using; no matter the never coming morning or the pathless moonlight walk; no matter the eyes unseeing...or the loss of those you bear memories of love...No matter...No matter anything...It matters not what may come your way. You only need to never forget this one thing if you ever wish true on this one dream of mine:

Never look upon the future with the hope of a coming dream as the future is naught but hope with unruly wings. Never dawdle too long on the past with sadness in your eyes as the past is naught but a long-gone melody and you must focus on the music that is presently played to hear when a shift is coming. Never look only at the colors of a painting for it will lack any meaning. Something may be coated black just how greed can be viewed but do understand that someone is greedy for the betterment of others is simply called charity. Just as how someone slothful needs to be diligent to live worry-free. And how someone who is prideful also needs to be humble to improve his skill and stay proud of them. Thus, the day might come when you must hurt someone you love for the love of them. Past or future; light or dark; only act in the present to preserve the things you love...No matter if it makes you a monster...”

 

֍

 

The small flying monsters with powerful light were accumulated above the twitching body of a man who was surrounded by about 50 persons in a circle. They were armed with the strongest magical weapons available and kept a safe distance. Entering the circle was a tall woman with an azure dress that barely hid her dark skin all the while having excess cloth that dragged behind without being ruined by the forest floor. She walked elegantly toward the twitching man and placed the sharp heel of one of her velvet pink high heels on his neck. She tried to push, and albeit it pierced part of his flesh, it was stopped by something that was crawling under the man's skin.

He convulsed in pain as the wound made by the woman seemed to expand. When the woman was about to move back, it was the moment that a dark centipede dug out of the man's neck to climb the woman's leg. It then tried to dig inside her flesh, but it was turned to ash the instant it pierced her flesh as an insidious power was released with her blood being drawn.

The woman simply moved back by a step, the wound already healed, and simply looked with a look of utter boredom at the still convulsing body. “Okumadeka, didn’t I feed you enough? You don’t need to play stupid games with me if you’re hungry. Tell me what you did with my toys, and I won’t have to burn more of your poor little babies.”

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She was mocking whatever was behind the man’s twitching. She always had an air of superiority to her, and she often oppressed those that dared stand in her path. News of two of her slaves who had escaped came as a shock that they even managed to do so, but in the deepest part of her heart, she was somewhat relieved that they did and was now simply worried for their safety...If only she could express her true desire...

The body started to twitch even more and for a moment there was a plea for help in his voice and his eyes, alas they were all gone with one last spasm that left his body frozen in pain and anguish. All the taunt muscles were released slowly as he was laying dead with his last memories of pain and being surrounded by what used to be his comrade. And then...his body began to move. It started with his left shoulder being dislocated by something that was moving under his skin. It turned around in his arm until it reached the elbow; its many legs could be seen pushing the skin as if it was simply a blanket and it pierced the skin at times as if it was someone walking on rotten wood. It then moved between the forearm’s bones, and it pulled so harshly that the elbow was disconnected from its socket.

As if it was simply the start, a multitude of movements came from within his bowel and spread throughout the body. The right arm was stretched like a piece of cloth, with flesh dangling left and right; some centipedes were keeping the arm attached. The spine was broken, and the neck was bloated, of which the bugs used to create a high-pitched voice. “What do you mean mistress? I have simply allowed my kids to go on a walk. Yet you come sto – “Stop this nonsense bug. Where are the girls!” – p...Very well my ‘mistress’, they will be gone from your grasp. They are going back home...” The bug-infested body started to cackle maniacally to the woman as it got up on its feet.

“It can’t be. I burned Tsuki’s pasture to the ground and Alice’s mansion was fully destroyed. They have no home to go back to!” She hissed back to the monster as she manifested a dark lance above her head, ready to be launched at any time.

“The gales call back its petals to serve the princess. No matter the time. No matter the place. No m...” It went on and on, spouting nonsense as dark veins made of ink slowly formed on the ‘man’s’ body. But the monster was silenced when the dark lance destroyed its head. It wasn’t a fountain of blood that came out of the body, but many dark centipedes of different sizes. They were all set ablaze with the simple snap of the woman's fingers.

A low rumble made the surrounding trees shake as a wave of small centipedes came out of the tree's bark and closed in on the soldiers. Those soldiers used their weapons which acted like some kind of flamethrower that disintegrated things without using heat. They managed to block the wave, but some bugs had dug underground and reached for the soldiers’ ankles, digging in their flesh, and contorting their bodies in many wrong ways.

A pulse of raging violet lightning came out from the woman which simply destroyed everything around her, friend and foes alike. She was furious and extremely worried about everything that was going on. The woman created an extremely powerful pulse that didn’t destroy anything but spread extremely far intending to detect where the two girls were. It managed to find them, but they were far as they had gone in the opposite direction of the bait. She didn’t have much power left as her detection spell was costly, but she had enough to create raven wings and took to the sky toward the girls. As she flew, she saw an enormous centipede that was many hundred meters in length. Its head was infested with dark spider lilies and amid those flowers was a white-haired girl with horns made of flowery twigs and a sort of tails made of white lightning. This strange girl simply gave a bone-chilling smile to the woman as she flew past her.

“Okumadeka?” The strange girl, named Hana, whimsically asked the giant bug to inquire about its name, but it didn’t respond. “What a cute name! Hey hey. Do you want to see a cool place? Lots and lots of funny things will happen. I also know the perfect place where you can live!” She was almost talking to it like a baby, trying to coax it to do something. In this case, it was to make it enter a twisting portal made of broken glass.

“I-do. I-will-go-to-the-place-you-want-me-to-go-to...” The bug responded in a broken voice, void of any will. It looked not to the portal but in the direction the sorceress left.

“Wait! You’re already broken?” She almost shouted from the shock, as she realized the spell she had used to play with the giant centipede's mind was a bit too strong for it. “Shame...You looked nice and all...Sorry, if there’s still a you inside of you...I...Sorry...Just go inside and if you can, break free from my dumb control. I’ll see if I can help later...I just need to get a few more people and I’ll come...” She looked strangely annoyed by what had just happened and even looked sad as if she despised what she was doing. After the giant bug went into the portal, she closed it and gazed at the night sky with her blind eyes. She looked exhausted and there was even a hint of fear passing in her visage, but no matter what happened, she needed to do a lot more things. So, she forced a smile just like she had always done and moved to get the next things ready... “I’m sorry old friend for what I must do...When it’s all over...I-I’ll...Please, have a happy life...”

 

❀

 

The two girls had finally managed to push the old tree over the chasm, which they used as a bridge. Its bark was wet and slippery from the rain; causing Alice to almost fall to her death but was caught by Tsuki just in time. They realized how lucky they were to not be alone, but this small thought came to be a curse as shouting and projectiles came at them from the darkness of the forest. Tsuki got in the way of the projectiles to protect Alice and was hit by a few arrows, her back was pierced, and fresh blood dripped down to the ground. They manage to hide behind a large boulder to take cover from the rain of death but by hiding and not moving, their pursuers were bound to catch them.

Be it by a twisted roll of the dice, a massive hound managed to break free from its leash and dashed toward the girl. When it tried to use the improvised bridge made by the girls, the power in the beast's muscles was enough to break the tree as it jumped to the other side of the ravine. The bridge was no more, but now the girl had to deal with a large dog trained to kill. And the beast instinct was fully used as it leaped to the weakest and most hurt of the girls.

The beast maw dug inside Tsuki's shoulder as it used its weight to push the girl to the ground and when she was pinned down and couldn’t move, it shook her around like a broken doll to reaffirm its grip on the girl. Tsuki felt as if her shoulder was about to be ripped apart, which was close to the truth as her clavicle was broken and drowned her in pain. Before part of her body could be ripped apart by the beast, she managed to slightly push it to her right by poking into its eyes with all of her meager strength. The animal was completely mentally broken by its trainers and didn’t care about self-preservation, but its iron grip didn’t last much longer as its head was pulverized by a large rock that Alice had just smashed into its brain. Its head was now just a broken mess with shards of bone mixed with red meat. But here was exactly an issue since Tsuki’s hand and shoulder followed suit in the mess with varying degrees of damage. Her right hand was split open from the middle finger base to the wrist with the hand barely even attached to the wrist. Her shoulder was luckier since the stone was aimed toward the best brain and not its maw, as such, most of the damage came from the animal teeth which racked her flesh as the beast's mouth was pushed forward from the impact.

If nothing was done, Tsuki would die from blood loss. The pursuers didn’t care if any of the girls died, since magic existed and there were a few people who could revive the dead. It was just a big annoyance when someone’s brain was damaged as more work needed to be done to not leave them with permanent defects. Unless, of course, it was the goal...So, even with all of her wounds, she still needed to run. No matter the reason, she could only go forward.

This time, it was Alice who took the lead by taking Tsuki’s intact left hand and running from where they were. Just before they left, an old man tore a long scroll, and from then, a red ball of fire began to manifest which was then thrown towards the boulder the two girls used as cover. It exploded on contact and a rain of shrapnel was flung all over the place. Albeit some hit the girls, the cloud of dust that came from the explosion helped them run to safety from most projectiles. All felt like a blur to the girls, where their perception of the world almost melted with the only thing in their minds being to run. The ringing from the explosion, the projectiles whistling by the girls, the trees and the ground being assaulted by said projectiles, the shouting getting more distant, and the howling wind shaking the trees’ leaves, all those sounds became nothing more than a haze for the girls who could only hear the sounds of their wishful hearts and their pressing breaths. They ran and ran all they could over the wet dirt, over the sharp stones, and the dead branches, until all they could hear was the calming sound of dancing waves.

How oppressive can the crowns of great trees be to vagabonds lost in its entrails... Low are the branches as they dance just above the head and taunt that they are the only one which can view the eyes of the sky. And it was in such a miserable forest that the girls had just escaped. The last of the dark tree was passed by the escapees and their vision was met with a starry night sky. The full moon hung over a small hill which broke off into a precipice leading to the raging waves of the sea.

Their mind was hazy, and they barely had enough strength left, which meant that in this exhausted state, the hill, as they looked at it, was like a pathway leading to a celestial domain on the moon. Under their tears and tired minds, the moonlight was twisted into glittering stairways, showing the way forward to a protective abode. To dance freely in starlight drapes while surrounded by jovial and warm fairies. To be far from the cruel world they wasted their life in. To be at peace in the warm glow of the moon. They wanted to reach the moon like some princess in a fairytale.

Story from the past and dream for the future. They may be gilded and revered, but they tell no tale of the present. There were no stairways to the moon, no protective abode, no starlight drapes, and no jovial and warm fairies...They reached the top of the hill and all there was, was the cold and distant moon and a precipice leading to sharp rocks drowned in raging waves. Both girls view the moon with respect since their life was only painful when the sun was up, but calm when the night showed up. Yet in the end, the moon was simply a mirror for the sun’s cruelty.

Voices came from the forest, which meant that it was the end of their escapade. They couldn’t run anymore. Tsuki had lost too much blood and Alice used to be bedridden from a sickness that caused her body to be weak. There was no more strength left in the two girls’ bodies, but it didn’t make them sad or anything. They were looking into one another's eyes, those eyes which always looked for the other, and they smiled like the warmest sun. The freedom they tasted during this night was filled with hope...They would never go back to the darkness they used to live in.

No matter the cost, no matter the mean, and no matter the repercussions, they wanted to be eternally together and far from this cursed place. They wanted their dreams of a happy life to come true...

A large number of people equipped with various weapons came out of the forest, blocking any path the girls could take. From the sky came a woman with misty raven wings and she landed between the soldiers and the girls. Her wings had dissolved from her lack of magical strength, but they allowed a run-off toward the girls, but when her hand reached them, it in truth only reached emptiness as the girls had jumped to their death.

They felt hand in hand and talked about how they were happy to be together, about their dream, about how much they wanted to swim in an ocean of stars...They talked, and they talked until they could no longer talk...

The woman left on the hill laid on the ground with her eyes filled with tears and her body drenched in sweat. Too tired to even move, she looked in shock at where the girls had been while cursing how she could have saved them if she was stronger or faster. She even thought that she might have also jumped, if only she wasn’t as scared of death as she was...

When the morning came, the sun rising on a new day, none could find the bodies of the two girls who had escaped: washed away by the wave and forgotten by the world...

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