Chapter Two: Sunrise of Blood

Chapter Two :3 read it to find out more

Chapter 2: Sunrise of Blood

My eyes flew open, my body once again covered in sweat, my breathing labored and arm stiff from hours being stuck in the same position. It was again night, another day wasted on sleep. I hoisted myself up using my good arm, pain begininning to resurface in my bad. I turned my head and saw that Cystantum wasn’t on his mat, his tall oak staff gone as well. He must have gone to get more herbs, I thought as I began to crawl out the hut.

The rod was already in my pocket so I had nothing else to bring. Once outside I took in the fresh air and stealthly made my way to the outskirts of the village. This time instead of going into the forest, the place Crystanstum would most likely be, I turned and went down to the beach. That was the good thing about where we lived, it was very hard to get to, so we hardly had any outsiders. We had the ocean to cover us to the south, dangerous forests to the west, mountains to the north, and  a nearly impassable canyon to the east. All and all perfect seclusion.

I reached the beach and sat down on the sandy shore. The waves lapped up against it sending shells closer and closer to me. After a minute I stood and picked one up, turning it in my hand, feeling its edges, worn away by time into an almost smooth piece of the earth. I shivered and looked up at the moon. Judging by how high it was, it was past midnight. I walked forward until I felt the waves on my feet, sending at first a sharp awakening feeling, then, one I got used to it, a simple massage, slowly lulling me 

deeper into a trance like state.

I don’t know how long I stood like that, maybe five minutes, maybe five hours, it was hard to tell but I suddenly noticed two figures in the distance walking quickly in my direction. I was instantly on guard, my hand in my pocket wrapped around the rod, ready to…what? I still didn’t know what the rod was used for all I knew was that it helped me stay calm in this time of worry.

The two figures were now close enough for me to see that they were female. One appeared to be in a fluid white dress with a black bracelet on her right wrist. The other, shorter than the first, wore a fluid black dress with a white bracelet on her left wrist.

Their lips seemed to be moving in a monotonous fashion, in unison saying the same thing, then they vanished. I stood their dumbstruck, I had dealt with some pretty strange things in my life…most of which caused by myself, but I had never seen people just vanish. It was impossible. The uncontrollable force of nature exploding out of your pores? Yes, that was possible that’s what I had done to release the rod, but vanishing no.

I turned and ran back to the village, hoping to find that Crystantum had returned to the hut, but no such luck it was still empty. I stepped back out and came face to face with the one person who I truly despised, Ignatus. He stood with a wicked grin on his face, arms crossed biceps bulging. His black hair was cut short, his brown eyes looking like he had something awful planned for me.

“Let’s take a walk why don’t we?” He said.

I looked up at the sky, the sun was just beginning to peak over the horizon. I had to find Crystantum about what I had seen as soon as possible.

“I think I’ll pass, I have more important things to deal with then you.”

“ Oh come on it’ll just be a moment, then you can get back to whatever it is you find more important then me.”

I sighed, better to get this over with now then drag it on longer, “Where to?”

“Atta boy, follow me.”

He turned and we began to weave our way to the center of the village. Finally we stopped in a clearing that served as town square.

“So I hear you’ve finally become Crystantum’s apprentice eh?” Ignatus said when we arrived.

“Yeah, what of it?”

“Oh nothing, just surprised he’d care about a freak like you.”

He eyed me waiting to see if I’d take the bait, which I didn’t. He looked disappointed, but only for a moment, then tried again.

“I mean all you’ve ever done was cause trouble for the village, the one human on the planet who can use magic, and he makes it seem more like a curse than a blessing. I feel sorry for your mom, having to worry about whether or not you blew up something today or not.”

He paused again, but I remained silent, trying to control my rising anger. That was the one thing about Ignatus, he knew just what to say to piss you off. His face contorted into an ugly grimace as he tried a third time.

“Of course then there’s your airhead sister. She’s so blind, not seeing you for the nusaince you are, so I figure, why not show her?”

He snapped his fingers and two of his lackies came out of the shadows, my sister struggling in their arms.

“Naomi!” I yelled, then to Ignatus, “Let her go.”

“Oh sure, sure right after this.” 

He raised a fist and thrust it down on my stomach, knocking my breath out of me.

“Ivan!” Naomi yelled.

I fell to my knees clutching my stomach gasping for air. My sister began to struggle more violently against her captors grasp, trying to break free, wanting to be by my side. Finally she bit one of them, after exhausting her other options, blood spilling out of the puncture holes. He yelped and let her go in alarm. Naomi, then with her free hand punched the other in his nose, causing it to bleed profusely. Then she ran towards me.

Ignatus looked about ready, to bust a vein he was so angry.

“You little…”

He then reached into his pocket and took out a small knife. I gasped, he wasn’t really about to stab her was he? Fear gripped my heart and time seemed to slow down. I reached out a hand as if in slow motion, power rushing to my fingertips, then flying out smacking Ignatus in the chest and launching him across the square. He lay there his knife now out of his hand.

Naomi stopped in her tracks, trying to figure out what happened. That was the weird thing about magic, when it was just raw energy people who couldn’t control magic, couldn’t see it. Even I only saw a strange silhouette like a mirage, totally see-through, barely their.

She looked at me, realization dawning on her face.

“You didn’t, did you?”

 

I looked at her helplessly, shakily getting to my feet.

“He was going to kill you.”

“With that play thing? Please, he’d be on the ground before he knew what hit him.”

“So you expect me to just let him come at-”

I stopped mid-sentence, Ignatus and gotten back up and had retrieved his knife.

“What’s wrong Ivan?”

“Naomi…ru-”

But it was too late, he stabbed her in the back. She yelped, and fell to the ground totally unconscious, a pool of blood beginning to surround her body. 

“What was that about you getting me on the ground before I knew what happened?”

My numb shock turned to a blinding rage. 

“Ignatus,” I growled, my teeth clamped close together, “What have you done to my sister!”

I charged at him my fist raised. He just smiled, I was just a scrawny kid with no muscle, if I wasn’t going to use magic what did he have to worry about? A lot as it turned out. My fist connected with his rib cage, with the force of  a small boulder, breaking virtually every bone in his chest into multiple pieces. He slid back about a foot, screaming in agony, before falling to the floor, unconscious from the pain.

I just stood their stunned, unsure of what just happened. How in the world had I been able to do that? As far as I knew magic couldn’t add to one’s physical attributes so…what happened.

People began to groggily get out of their huts from the sound of this commotion. My mother was the first one to scream.

“NAOMI!” She yelled and darted towards her bleeding child, “Ivan, what happened?”

I couldn’t talk. I was still too stunned to. By this time, Ignatus’s parents had arrived on the scene.

“It’s obvious isn’t it?” Ignatus’s mother said to mine, “This freak went berserk and assaulted his own sister and my son.”

“No,” I whispered quietly, “ Your son attacked my sister and I and I defended us.”

“What?! No! He wouldn’t do that type of thing…even if it was to someone like you.”

People in the crowd murmured in agreement, Ignatus was a town favorite. It seemed like people where ready to believe his mother’s story. I hung my head dejectedly, now I’d probably lose a limb, get kicked out of the village, or worse killed. Just at that moment Crystantum returned. I had never been so happy to see the healer in my life. Our village didn’t have any official leader but if their was one it would be him. 

“What’s going on here?” He asked rushing towards us and beginning to asses the wounds of the injured.

My mother quickly filled him in.

“I see..” Crystantum stared at me with great scrutiny as he was deciding what to do next.

“ Crystantum…I didn’t do this…well not most of it.”

“Take them to my hut.” He ordered without answering me.

Ignatus’s father and another man from the crowd rushed forward to obey.

“At the moment neither of them seem to be in immediate life threatening danger, Naomi had lost a bit of blood but the stab missed all of the vital organs.” He announced to them all, “Now I know you expect something to be done to Ivan but I believe he speaks the truth and did nothing but defend himself.”

I sighed in relief, and it felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders. 

“However, I also know that you all expect him to be punished in some way so I sentence him to see too the recovery of Ignatus. Once that is over, we will decide a suitable punishment for Ignatus…any objections?”

He looked around the crowd with his steely gaze that said Disagree and watch yourself be in their places. No one objected.

“Very well then it’s decided, Ivan come with me.” 

The crowd broke up and Cryastantum began to lead us back to his hut.

“Thank you,” I said to him on our way across.

“ I did nothing but what was right.”

“But you expect me to heal the person who tried to kill my sister and possibly me?”

“Yes and I expect his recovery to be perfect.”

A pause.

“Crystantum…I saw two girls at the beach this morning. They wore oppisite color dresses, black and white with bracelets that where opposite their dresses.”

He stopped for a moment and then continued on as if nothing  had been said.

“Hmm, so what news do they bring this time? Is it a story for disaster”, or one of great peace.”

I looked at him quizzically before asking, “Who? Who are they?”

He stopped to open the hut’s flap for me before he answered, “The Sisters of the Dimensions.”

“The Sisters of the Dimensions?” I echoed wonder in my voice. 

The sun had finally come over the horizon and the sunrise was as red as the blood that was now on the floor of our square. Indeed, it was a fitting sunrise. I took one last look before turning away and walking inside the hut.

Reviews

[ShadowFaux]

Still an interesting story but the cliches are driving me nuts, last chapter it was a dream to open the story, eyes flying open, not original in the least and makes it hard to take the work seriously. Coin your own phrase, and have you ever woken up after being nearly drowned? Not to mention the burn, if it were me I would have crusty eyes from crying in my sleep that open slowly and painfully. What is the driving force behind your character, anyway?

He wakes up from a traumatic experience and then takes a stroll to the beach and enter a trance? Why? No fear of the healer? No worries? Would he really go to Crys-whatever his name was when something weird happen after explaining how he despises the healer so much?

Where the heck did ignitus come from and stabbing his sister? the character interactions are not believable to me and I just couldn't read the whole thing, as well as the timing of your descriptions. There is a lot of potential in this story, i think, but you should try looking at writing workshops online.

[Tsukin Archangel]

oooo~ ouch lol well i havent really written anything in this one in ages its pretty ancient and i'm probably never going to finish it, maybe i should remove it...~ oh and yes i have actually not in a "i'm drowning in water" but i have woken up not breathing and having the same feeling...its not fun~ Dare's less cliche I think at least mayb that would suit you're tastes more

[Mr.Allegory]

This chapter was better than the first. I enjoyed it~ The ending has nice imagery despite the blood and such~ Very nice. I also like The Sisters of the Dimensions~ Lovely Job~


- Ego