Wings: Storm's Prologue, "Vision"
Dec. 5th, 2007 01:04 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
chaoscheebsYeah, just finished. Y'all know by now I don't wait before postin' these things by now, right?
*
“Boy,” a weathered old albatross told her large, awkward-looking grandson, “This old woman has something important to ask of you.”
The teenager seated on the floor fiddled with the tassles on the rug and stuttered, “Grandmother?” He didn’t like the way she sounded. Her voice was stern as always, but he picked up a trace of worry, which in turn made him worry too. “What is it…?”
The old bird closed her eyes. He was always a sensitive boy… she thought. “… I had a vision in my dreams last night,” she said. “Dark forces from above descended upon us, and a man with the power of the Guardians flew in and dispelled the darkness with his light and the light of Filgaia itself.”
The teenager’s eyes widened. “You d-don’t expect me to save the world, do you?!” he exclaimed.
The old woman scoffed. “Don’t be stupid, boy! The man in my vision was smaller, and had a blue gem hanging around his neck that shone like the sun!” She shook her head. “No, boy, I want you to find him and aid him in his quest.”
The teenager cocked his head to one side. “But how will I find him? Did your vision say where he is too?”
She heaved a sigh. “I’m afraid it didn’t, Storm. But!” She raised a hand and pointed her finger upwards. “I know who you could ask.”
“Who, grandmother?”
The old bird smiled. “Why, the Guardians themselves, boy! Now, listen closely…”
*
Five years later…
A large gray albatross stood before the dilapidated Guardian shrine, looking at an article in the Milama Times. The tagline read, “ARC SCEPTER TO BE RETURNED TO MILAMA GUARDIAN TEMPLE”. He lowered the paper enough to compare the picture in the paper to the crumbling shrine before him. Sure enough, those were the same eroded statues and same fallen pillar as in the picture. “It’s here,” he murmured, crumpling the paper with a leather-gloved hand.
*
The interior of the temple left something to be desired, but was in far better condition than the exterior. The floors were clean, rubble had been cleared away, and the statues even showed signs of being polished recently. It didn’t take a genius to see someone had been taking care of the place, the bird reckoned. Maybe I can reason with the caretaker… he thought.
The shrine was thankfully fairly small, so it didn’t take very long for him to wander into the lone occupied room. A red mammal of some sort in Baskarian dress sat cross-legged on the floor, his back to a strange mirror. At first Storm thought the mammal was sleeping, since his eyes were closed and he wasn’t moving. That theory was dashed as violet eyes opened and peered up at the albatross. “Are you a pilgrim?” the shrine guardian asked.
Storm shook his head. “Not exactly…”
The guardian lowered his head again and closed his eyes. “Then get out. This is a holy place.”
“But—“ the bird began.
“Out!” the mammal repeated sharply.
Storm clenched his fists. “But I need the Arc Scepter! Grandmother Cirria said—“
The mammal got to his feet with remarkable speed and scowled at him. “I don’t care what your grandmother said! The Arc Scepter belongs here! It holds a great power you wouldn’t understand!”
“I kn-know what it does!” the albatross shouted back. “It lets you talk to the Guardians! There’s something I g-gotta ask them! It’s important!” he said with a wide sweep of his hand.
The mammal crossed his arms, still standing firm. “And just what the hell is so important that you have to ask the Guardians themselves about it?!”
“Gr-Grandmother Cirria had a vision!” Storm explained, “I have to find the man with the power of the Guardians! He’s the one who’s supposed to save us from dark forces and she thinks the Guardians know who he is!”
The mammal opened his mouth to say something, but for some reason closed it again and remained silent for several moments. “… the emerald told me of dark times ahead,” he finally said.
Emerald? Storm thought. He looked around the room, but found nothing remotely resembling an emerald. What emerald?
The guardian ignored him and reached up to touch the polished stone hanging by a leather string around his neck. “You may have the Ark Scepter under one condition.”
The bird’s earlier anger dissipated. “Anything! What’s the condition?” he asked brightly.
The mammal punched his fists together and grinned. “Show me your power and prove that you’re worthy.”
Storm couldn’t believe his ears. “Fight you?” he said, chuckling a little. “But you’re tiny! I’d crush you!”
“Oh yeah?! FLAME!” the smaller man roared. With a glare that could melt steel and a sharp wave of his hand, the bird’s poncho was set alight with bright red flames.
It took the albatross took a split second to register what had happened before he yanked off the flaming garment and tossed it to the floor. He held his hands out in front of him and with a cry of, “Water!” swirling streams of water rose out from under the poncho and extinguished the flames. “D-damn it! That was m-my favorite poncho!” he managed to say before something with the force of a runaway train hit him in the face and sent him to the floor.
The mammal looked down at the bird and cracked his knuckles. “What were you saying about crushing me?”
Storm stared at the surprisingly strong guardian for a moment, then slowly rose to his feet. “I ain’t done yet!”
The guardian grinned menacingly. “Then show me what you’ve got!”
*
What sounded like an explosion could be heard for some distance outside of the shrine, sending frightened birds flying away as fast as their little wings could carry them. A larger, humanoid bird clutching a strange box wearily looked in the direction of the temple, shrugged and continued on. “Glad I ain’t over there,” she mumbled as she trudged towards Milama.
*
Inside, the albatross and the guardian were at a standstill, the bird holding the mammal’s fists in his hands and trying to push the smaller man away. Luckily for Storm, the guardian briefly lost his footing on the wet floor and the bird finally succeeded in pushing him back a few steps. Before the guardian could steady himself again, he met face to face with the large bird’s fist, sending him back into the strange mirror and then to the ground. The guardian wiped blood from his split lip and bitterly smiled. “You’re pretty strong,” he said.
Breathing heavily, the bird nodded and said, “You too.”
“Too bad strength isn’t enough to beat me!” the guardian said. Repeating the gesture from before, he exclaimed, “FLAME!”
Ready for the spell this time, Storm countered it with one of his own. The fire met the swirling water he summoned with a loud hiss. The guardian took advantage of the steam that now impaired the bird’s vision and lunged through the vapor to land a solid punch to his opponent’s stomach, then followed up with an uppercut.
Storm hit the ground, wheezing and reeling. The guardian made a dissatisfied noise and turned his head away. “Not even a challenge,” the mammal said.
Gasping and dizzy, the albatross still started to get up. “Not done… need Ark Scepter…”
The guardian looked at him and blinked several times to make sure he was seeing what he thought he was seeing. “You’re able to stand? But… No one gets back up after I hit them!” he said in disbelief.
“S’important… gotta talk to ‘em… grandmother said…” the bird said, looking about ready to topple at any moment.
“All right,” the guardian said.
“I gotta…” Storm blinked. “All right?”
The guardian turned away and waved a hand. “You got up. I’m impressed.” Amazingly, he reached into the miraculously unbroken mirror and pulled out a strange twisty rod. He held it out to the bird and said, “This is the Arc Scepter. Be careful with it. You break it, I break you, understand?”
Storm nodded and took it. “I finally got it…” he mumbled before falling back to the floor.
“I TOLD YOU TO BE CARE—“ the guardian began. “Oh, never mind,” he finished huffily. He couldn’t be too mad at him, the little voice of reason in the back of his mind reminded, since he was kind of the reason the bird couldn’t stand up. He put a hand over his eyes and said, “You know what? You stay there. I’m going to get a mop.”
“’kay…” the bird said, weakly waving at the exiting guardian. He looked at the scepter and smiled. I can finally go home again… Grandmother’s gotta know how to use this thing, right…?
*
“Boy,” a weathered old albatross told her large, awkward-looking grandson, “This old woman has something important to ask of you.”
The teenager seated on the floor fiddled with the tassles on the rug and stuttered, “Grandmother?” He didn’t like the way she sounded. Her voice was stern as always, but he picked up a trace of worry, which in turn made him worry too. “What is it…?”
The old bird closed her eyes. He was always a sensitive boy… she thought. “… I had a vision in my dreams last night,” she said. “Dark forces from above descended upon us, and a man with the power of the Guardians flew in and dispelled the darkness with his light and the light of Filgaia itself.”
The teenager’s eyes widened. “You d-don’t expect me to save the world, do you?!” he exclaimed.
The old woman scoffed. “Don’t be stupid, boy! The man in my vision was smaller, and had a blue gem hanging around his neck that shone like the sun!” She shook her head. “No, boy, I want you to find him and aid him in his quest.”
The teenager cocked his head to one side. “But how will I find him? Did your vision say where he is too?”
She heaved a sigh. “I’m afraid it didn’t, Storm. But!” She raised a hand and pointed her finger upwards. “I know who you could ask.”
“Who, grandmother?”
The old bird smiled. “Why, the Guardians themselves, boy! Now, listen closely…”
*
Five years later…
A large gray albatross stood before the dilapidated Guardian shrine, looking at an article in the Milama Times. The tagline read, “ARC SCEPTER TO BE RETURNED TO MILAMA GUARDIAN TEMPLE”. He lowered the paper enough to compare the picture in the paper to the crumbling shrine before him. Sure enough, those were the same eroded statues and same fallen pillar as in the picture. “It’s here,” he murmured, crumpling the paper with a leather-gloved hand.
*
The interior of the temple left something to be desired, but was in far better condition than the exterior. The floors were clean, rubble had been cleared away, and the statues even showed signs of being polished recently. It didn’t take a genius to see someone had been taking care of the place, the bird reckoned. Maybe I can reason with the caretaker… he thought.
The shrine was thankfully fairly small, so it didn’t take very long for him to wander into the lone occupied room. A red mammal of some sort in Baskarian dress sat cross-legged on the floor, his back to a strange mirror. At first Storm thought the mammal was sleeping, since his eyes were closed and he wasn’t moving. That theory was dashed as violet eyes opened and peered up at the albatross. “Are you a pilgrim?” the shrine guardian asked.
Storm shook his head. “Not exactly…”
The guardian lowered his head again and closed his eyes. “Then get out. This is a holy place.”
“But—“ the bird began.
“Out!” the mammal repeated sharply.
Storm clenched his fists. “But I need the Arc Scepter! Grandmother Cirria said—“
The mammal got to his feet with remarkable speed and scowled at him. “I don’t care what your grandmother said! The Arc Scepter belongs here! It holds a great power you wouldn’t understand!”
“I kn-know what it does!” the albatross shouted back. “It lets you talk to the Guardians! There’s something I g-gotta ask them! It’s important!” he said with a wide sweep of his hand.
The mammal crossed his arms, still standing firm. “And just what the hell is so important that you have to ask the Guardians themselves about it?!”
“Gr-Grandmother Cirria had a vision!” Storm explained, “I have to find the man with the power of the Guardians! He’s the one who’s supposed to save us from dark forces and she thinks the Guardians know who he is!”
The mammal opened his mouth to say something, but for some reason closed it again and remained silent for several moments. “… the emerald told me of dark times ahead,” he finally said.
Emerald? Storm thought. He looked around the room, but found nothing remotely resembling an emerald. What emerald?
The guardian ignored him and reached up to touch the polished stone hanging by a leather string around his neck. “You may have the Ark Scepter under one condition.”
The bird’s earlier anger dissipated. “Anything! What’s the condition?” he asked brightly.
The mammal punched his fists together and grinned. “Show me your power and prove that you’re worthy.”
Storm couldn’t believe his ears. “Fight you?” he said, chuckling a little. “But you’re tiny! I’d crush you!”
“Oh yeah?! FLAME!” the smaller man roared. With a glare that could melt steel and a sharp wave of his hand, the bird’s poncho was set alight with bright red flames.
It took the albatross took a split second to register what had happened before he yanked off the flaming garment and tossed it to the floor. He held his hands out in front of him and with a cry of, “Water!” swirling streams of water rose out from under the poncho and extinguished the flames. “D-damn it! That was m-my favorite poncho!” he managed to say before something with the force of a runaway train hit him in the face and sent him to the floor.
The mammal looked down at the bird and cracked his knuckles. “What were you saying about crushing me?”
Storm stared at the surprisingly strong guardian for a moment, then slowly rose to his feet. “I ain’t done yet!”
The guardian grinned menacingly. “Then show me what you’ve got!”
*
What sounded like an explosion could be heard for some distance outside of the shrine, sending frightened birds flying away as fast as their little wings could carry them. A larger, humanoid bird clutching a strange box wearily looked in the direction of the temple, shrugged and continued on. “Glad I ain’t over there,” she mumbled as she trudged towards Milama.
*
Inside, the albatross and the guardian were at a standstill, the bird holding the mammal’s fists in his hands and trying to push the smaller man away. Luckily for Storm, the guardian briefly lost his footing on the wet floor and the bird finally succeeded in pushing him back a few steps. Before the guardian could steady himself again, he met face to face with the large bird’s fist, sending him back into the strange mirror and then to the ground. The guardian wiped blood from his split lip and bitterly smiled. “You’re pretty strong,” he said.
Breathing heavily, the bird nodded and said, “You too.”
“Too bad strength isn’t enough to beat me!” the guardian said. Repeating the gesture from before, he exclaimed, “FLAME!”
Ready for the spell this time, Storm countered it with one of his own. The fire met the swirling water he summoned with a loud hiss. The guardian took advantage of the steam that now impaired the bird’s vision and lunged through the vapor to land a solid punch to his opponent’s stomach, then followed up with an uppercut.
Storm hit the ground, wheezing and reeling. The guardian made a dissatisfied noise and turned his head away. “Not even a challenge,” the mammal said.
Gasping and dizzy, the albatross still started to get up. “Not done… need Ark Scepter…”
The guardian looked at him and blinked several times to make sure he was seeing what he thought he was seeing. “You’re able to stand? But… No one gets back up after I hit them!” he said in disbelief.
“S’important… gotta talk to ‘em… grandmother said…” the bird said, looking about ready to topple at any moment.
“All right,” the guardian said.
“I gotta…” Storm blinked. “All right?”
The guardian turned away and waved a hand. “You got up. I’m impressed.” Amazingly, he reached into the miraculously unbroken mirror and pulled out a strange twisty rod. He held it out to the bird and said, “This is the Arc Scepter. Be careful with it. You break it, I break you, understand?”
Storm nodded and took it. “I finally got it…” he mumbled before falling back to the floor.
“I TOLD YOU TO BE CARE—“ the guardian began. “Oh, never mind,” he finished huffily. He couldn’t be too mad at him, the little voice of reason in the back of his mind reminded, since he was kind of the reason the bird couldn’t stand up. He put a hand over his eyes and said, “You know what? You stay there. I’m going to get a mop.”
“’kay…” the bird said, weakly waving at the exiting guardian. He looked at the scepter and smiled. I can finally go home again… Grandmother’s gotta know how to use this thing, right…?
