Chapter 2

Josh is confused with what's reality and fiction, as strange hallucinations take over. Meanwhile, a flashback to Shadow capturing Glacird.

Chapter 2

 

Destiny...

 

Eight humans from another world... Mortalitas...  Otellus... Down to you to save it... enter your mind... allow it to become reality...  Awaken...

 

Awaken...

 

Awaken.

 

Josh’s eyes snapped open briefly, and he was suddenly aware of the blistering cold surroundings.  The sky was white, the wind whipped across his hair.  His eyes swivelled to the right, where a large, swirling... thing filled the air.  But the wind and cold didn’t come from it, for it soon became clear that he was lying in thick snow.  The tornado of purple soon vanished, and he faded out of consciousness once more.  He re-opened his eyes, and he could make out his own bedroom wall.  He felt like he was spinning. 

 

Stay focussed... Succumb to your imagination, for it is more real than you believe... You mustn’t fight what you see... it is real to you... and to others...

 

He heard muffled voices around him, ones he did not recognise.  Blue eyes opened again, and an elderly face was staring down at him in concern.  It flashed away, and there was that purple twister again, where the strange voice in his mind seemed to be originating from.

 

You made this world... Your mind, it is your creation... Along with those closest to your mind, you can save it... You can stop it from consuming you...

 

A strange, electronic sound filled his ears, and as Josh again regained consciousness, he registered the catchy tune as his ringtone.  His arm flailed slightly, reaching out for his phone on the desk beside his bed.  He struggled to resist the sleep that called, the voice probing his mind, the purple, the snow... the dreams.  He struggled to make out the words that had appeared on his phone screen.  ‘Help.’ He just managed to make out the word ‘Lolly’ above it before the text began to change.  ‘Awaken...’ The phone disappeared from view, and there was that old man again, and something was lifting the boy up.

 

Forgive me for putting you through this process... the changing of worlds can lead to confusion... We have worked on the portal for years... and it can lead anyone to insanity, even the strongest of minds... but you will be fine...

 

“Take... ... ... lab ... ... Nelphen ...” The words seemed disjointed, but the name at the end... it rang so many bells in Josh’s mind.  His head lolled to the side, and he could make out the purple spiked hair of his own character... the young man turned his deep eyes to Josh’s, and that single stare stuck in the writer’s mind as he again fell out of consciousness.

 

The process will be finished in a few days time... you may experience strange symptoms over the next few days... hallucinations, nausea, déjà vu... but for now... Awaken.

 

*             *             *

 

“Argh!” Josh snapped awake, sitting up immediately, before feeling dizzy.  He put a hand to his throbbing head, letting out another groan of pain.  As he pulled the hand away, he frowned, his vision was all funny.  “What...” He scrambled for his phone, accidentally knocking the device of the desk, causing it to hit the ground with a thump.  “Damn it... what is wrong with me?” Josh sighed, before climbing from his bed to reclaim it.  There was a flash of purple, and he lost his balance, and the next thing he knew he was literally face-planting into his wall.  “Fu... holy Christ!” He shouted, slumping into his desk chair.  He shook his head violently, which surprisingly made things a bit clearer.  There was a knock on the wall, which was probably his half-asleep brother signalling for him to shut up.

 

“Yeah, yeah...” He murmured, grabbing his iPhone from the floor and pressing the home button.  Ten in the morning, not too bad.  There was also a text there.  His heart seemed to turn to ice for a moment, when he saw the text was from Lolly.  ‘Help...’  He quickly went to his inbox to read the rest of the message, before signing in relief.  ‘Help... Can’t sleep OTL x3  Sorry if I woke you~ Actually I’m not, share my suffering. xD’  Josh shook his head, before quickly typing a brief apology and sending it back.  The familiar ‘whoosh’ noise sounded as he collapsed back on his bed, covering his face with his hands.

 

Knock, knock.

 

“...You serious?” Josh muttered, and the knock at the door was followed by another tapping on his wall, “Yeah, I’ve got it!” Another tap, as if to say ‘good’.  He quickly got up, throwing a shirt and jeans on, before hurrying downstairs to open the door.  Not to much surprise, Lolly stood at the door.  To more surprise, she was joined by a group of four people.  Laura and Ryan were there, along with a short brunette and a scarily tall long-haired guy with glasses.  “...Er... Morning?”

 

“Erm... Josh?” Lolly was the first to speak, before gesturing to her friend’s shirt, “In a rush? Your shirt’s kinda inside out.”  Josh rolled his eyes, looking down.  “Anyway, go sort yourself out.  We’re going out.”

 

“Really? I was gonna write today.” Josh protested, before making eye contact with Laura, who was now glaring, “...But that can wait for tomorrow?  Erm... Hello Tom, and... Er...” It took a while for the short girl’s name to enter his mind, and he hurriedly added, “Molly... right, Molly. Hi.”  He stepped back into his house, before saying, “I’d invite you in, but my brother’s still asleep... sort of.  So... Just wait outside.” With that, he shut the door on his friends and made his way back upstairs, half tempted to just go back to sleep if that wouldn’t result in Lolly finding a way to literally break the door down.

 

At the top of the steps, he wavered, that bright flash of purple invading his vision again.  He almost cried out in surprise when he saw a purple-haired man standing in front of him.  His feet were barely an inch away from sending him falling down the stairs, but the figure disappeared as soon as he’d appeared.  He remained still for a moment longer, breathing heavy as a bead of sweat trickled down his face.  There was a loud ringing in his ears as he shakily moved forward into the bathroom, the door shutting behind him.  He grabbed hold of the sink, trying to reclaim control over his breathing.  He looked up into the mirror, and there was the purple swirling.  Far more vividly this time, it consumed the entire mirror, yet he could still see his reflection.

 

He extended his trembling arm to touch it, and the spirals vanished, leaving what would be quite an amusing facial expression to anyone else.  He was there, alone, and he became aware of his friends chatting a floor below outside the half open window.  He turned on the cold tap, placing his hands underneath it and splashing his face.  This was strange, and he really didn’t feel well at all.

 

Otellus... Mortalitas...

 

It was almost as if someone was controlling him when he stumbled out the bathroom and back into his room, quickly switching his computer on.  The monitor appeared purple briefly, this time in the shape of a pair of eyes.  But again, he blinked and they were gone.  He quickly got properly dressed as he waited for the machine to boot up, and ensuring he’d made no stupid mistakes this time, he pulled open his curtains and allowed the bright sunlight to fill his room.  He glanced down, watching as he saw Tom and Molly walking away together. They were both probably just going on ahead while the two Laura’s by the door continued to wait.

 

He sat down at his computer as it finished booting, and opened Microsoft Word.  File, open, ‘Otellus’.  And there it was...  He scrolled down to the bottom, when his phone ringtone suddenly went off again.  Tap, tap, tap.  There was his brother complaining again, so he quickly fumbled for his phone and answered it, without even seeing the caller.  “H-Hello?”

 

“Are you coming or not?!” It was Laura, and she sounded as impatient as always.  “My god, we’ve been waiting ten minutes!  What were you doing?!”  The words barely sunk in when Josh read the latest section of his story.  He hadn’t written this... there it was, in full detail... his dreams, his hallucinations...  The purple tornado, the snow, the old man... Nelphen, those eyes.  Waking up, falling into the wall, answering the door... And there... the very last line... ‘“Are you coming or not?!” It was Laura, and she sounded as impatient as always.’ 

 

He sat in stunned silence, staring at the words, complete disbelief etched over his features.

 

*             *             *

 

“Come to me...” The voice whispered, staring at the beautiful osprey flying around one of the several peaks of the Aralache Mountains.  It was but a speck in the distance from Shadow’s hiding spot, but the trail of ice and snow left in the bird’s wake was enough proof that this was the one and only Glacird of Otellus.  Instead of his usual black attire, Shadow’s cloak was now white, now blending in with the snowy surroundings.  His hand gripped the pendant around his neck tightly, anxiety filling him.  He had succeeded in capturing the other two birds without much trouble... and already, the effects were becoming apparent.  Illnesses were sky-high, the large vulture Infird, no longer there to clear the air of harmful bacteria.  The plant-life all over Otellus were dying, or the opposite... growing out of control.  For Silvird, a large parrot Praestia, had been captured. 

 

And here was the last prize, before Shadow himself ruled the rarest of creatures possible...  Supposedly for Mortalitas, Shadow was but a mercenary.  Mortalitas shared his goals, for now... so he was theirs for the time being, until they failed or got too power-hungry.  The cloaked boy had always had a gift with Praestia, which was his talent.  His own powers were weak, sure, he could conjure up a bit of fire... but his real talent was in capturing and befriending the brilliant, magical creatures of the wild.  And that was a far greater power than fancy flames, lightning and rocks.  The thing about the three birds... is that not many people know just how important they are.  They’re not the only Praestia that are one of a kind... but they were ancient, and powerful.

 

Though small compared to the large beasts of the land, their powers outshone them all.  They are difficult to hit, and once hit, difficult to wound.  They have total control over their elements, and as Shadow himself had proven, their power was beneficial in keeping Otellus healthy.  Without them, the snow-caps would melt and flood the land... disease would strike and perhaps cause an epidemic, or the beneficial plant-life would die, and there would be no food.  The power Shadow now held... was nothing compared to the honour of bonding with such beautiful creatures.  Seemed such a cheesy thing to say.

 

But the difficult part... was getting close enough to attempt a bonding.  There was always still the chance that Glacird would reject him, and that could be deadly.  His grip tightened further on the pendant, and he closed his eyes. A moment later, there was the sound of flapping wings, and both Silvird and Infird appeared at his side.  Their power seemed to grab Glacird’s attention, for it immediately veered off course and in Shadow’s direction.  “Silvird, Infird, release your power!  Defend, do not attack.” The vulture and parrot shrieked, before both launching into the air towards the incoming osprey. The opponent gave her own shriek, before slashing her wings through the air, sending two strong beams of ice towards Silvird and Infird.

 

The two birds nimbly dodged, swooping to the side, allowing the attack to strike the ground a dozen feet ahead of Shadow, who gave no reaction.  “Draw her in!” Shadow commanded, and the two birds began circling Glacird, guiding her towards Shadow, who held his pendant ready.  Glacird flapped her wings once more, and then opened her mouth.  A deadly sharp icicle formed, before releasing speedily in the direction of Infird.  The disease bird shrieked, barely failing to avoid the attack.  The icicle sliced open the tip of his wing, causing the bird to cry out in pain.  Glacird took the opportunity to fly high up in the air, swiftly pursued by Silvird.  Being so far away from her element, the forest bird was next to useless in such an environment.

 

Glacird noticed this, and no longer bothered flying so far away, sending the occasional blast of ice or snow to keep Silvird at bay.  Shadow gritted his teeth in anxiety; this was already more challenging than the other two had been.  By now, Infird was back into action... he was more useful.  He opened his large beak, sending a blast of horrid looking air in his foe’s direction.  He’d summoned all the bad air nearby, and was now hoping to poison Glacird with it.  She was uncertain what to make of this attack, and thus was caught in the smog.  She twitched, clearly in pain, and darted beneath the cloud... closer to Shadow.  Infird and Silvird immediately began chasing her towards the boy, who pulled the pendant free of his neck.

 

“Closer...” Shadow whispered, the ruby pendant beginning to shine as he extended his mind towards the Praestia ahead of him.  Glacird’s silver eyes focussed on the half-hidden human ahead of her, and she prepared to attack.  Shadow had to be quick now, and he closed his eyes in concentration.  The bird wavered... the attack faded... before starting again.  A beam of ice narrowly missed Shadow, and this time, the boy flinched, concentration breaking.  The bird renewed her attack in full force, the bonding broken.  Silvird dove into her side, sending her next attack far into the distance.  Glacird shrieked, ignoring Shadow, and returning to attack the vulture and falcon.  The battle wasn’t going well... Glacird was in her home, with unlimited resource for her power.  Silvird had nothing but physical attacks, and Infird was hardly a super-damaging Praestia. 

 

And then... “Glacird!” The loud shout left Shadow’s mouth before he could think, but it grabbed all three birds’ attention.  He stepped forward, staying still, as if inviting an attack.  The bird shrieked, diving down towards him, the other two hot on her tail.  Silvird grabbed hold of Glacird’s tail, pulling a single feather free before falling behind.  Caused Glacird to slow down, but was otherwise ineffective.  The ruby in Shadow’s clenched hands grew brighter, and ignoring the exploding snow around him, he kept his thoughts firmly on Glacird.   He entered her mind... the feeling was immense.  Praestia’s minds were so complex, far more than a human’s.  The power inside, the emotions, the thoughts... they were all foreign, and to attempt working them out would be useless. He could feel the anger of her home being invaded... the hurt, the fear... the desire to defend Otellus...  Guilt ripped through Shadow at the thought of taking her away, but orders were orders.

 

The ice bird was getting closer, Shadow could tell without opening his eyes.  “I won’t hurt you... I am a friend... come closer... closer...” And she was getting closer, the beam of ice inside her beak growing larger... deadlier.  “Trust me... trust me...” And suddenly, all resistance fell, and the complex mind of Glacird suddenly felt a lot friendlier.  He opened his eyes in surprise, watching as the bird mere feet ahead of him began to glow.  He could almost see the link between his pendant and his new Praestia.  He lifted a hand, stroking the osprey on her head.  She closed her eyes, before hopping onto the boy’s shoulder.  Shadow smiled, looking to Infird and Silvird as they landed.  All three birds... the most powerful Praestia in Otellus... They were his.

 

*             *             *

 

“Are you alright? You’ve not been yourself all day.” Josh broke out of his trance, looking to Laura, who was sat beside him on a bench at the nearby field.  The others had gone quite some time ago, leaving the two alone.  The sun was already setting, and Josh couldn’t even remember the last time he’d said something.  These hallucinations had been happening all day...  his story, the part he hadn’t written.  How did it get there?  Was he imagining it?  The flashes of purple, the images of Nelphen and Ethaniel... It was weird.  “Okay, look... this is just stupid.  You’ve completely distanced yourself from me over the last few days, ever since you started that stupid book.  Do you not like me anymore or something?  Do I annoy you?”

Josh frowned, looking to her, seeming confused.  “Wha...?  No... No, it’s nothing like that.  I just... haven’t slept well lately.  And I’ve not really written any of my... ‘stupid’ book, for a couple of days now.  I’m just... not feeling well.  I’m sorry.”

 

“Yeah, that’s just the first excuse you thought of.” Laura snapped, getting to her feet, “That’s why you don’t bother replying to my texts, and act like it’s a chore to leave your damn computer and spend time with me.  But sure, Lolly goes and visits you, and you don’t have a problem with it.”

 

Josh raised his eyebrows, “Are you implying something there?  It’s... nothing like tha-“

 

“Oh, just stop.” She seemed genuinely upset here, which confused Josh, “It’s not as if we’ve ever been a proper ‘couple’, anyhow.  Sure, we hang out a lot... but there’s nothing there, is there?”  Josh climbed to his own feet, looking to the girl in front of him.  She took a step back, looking to him uncertainly.  “I’m sorry if I was being demanding or controlling.  I probably just get on your nerves... and your book’s not stupid, I... understand you feeling it’s more important than me.”

 

Josh shook his head in annoyance, “No... it’s seriously not.  I genuinely didn’t see your texts, I’ve been stupidly distracted... and I don’t understand where you’re getting this from... I don’t even know how to reply to any of this without sounding stupidly cheesy, but... Of course my book’s not more important than you.” She smiled slightly, and Josh frowned, “Oh god, this sounds completely like some soap opera, doesn’t it?  But... yeah... If I ever drift off again or act like an idiot, just hit me or something.” This was quickly followed by a rather painful slap to his arm.  “...Ow.”

 

“You told me to.” Laura shrugged, before leaning forward and hugging him.  Their relationship had never really been the typical ‘romantic’, more just spending time together.  Josh pulled back from the hug, and gave her a quick kiss on the lips.  Laura smiled, blushing slightly like she always does, “...Well, I forgive you, I guess.  But you owe me many hours of Kingdom Hearts for it.  I have to get home now anyway, some stupid family dinner or something.  Text me later?”

 

Josh smiled back faintly, giving a nod, “Yeah... sure.  I’m sorry.”

 

“It’s okay.” Laura took a step back, getting ready to leave, “Sorry for rambling, and stuff.  I’ll see you later.”  She gave a quick wave, before turning and heading across the field in the opposite direction.  Josh watched her leave, before turning around himself.

 

“You’re here.” Josh almost fell over backwards in surprise, eyes widening as he looked at the elderly man ahead of him.  He’d seen him before... in his mind.  His dreams.  His hallucinations.  There stood Ethaniel, Praedux master of Pacaris.  Exactly as Josh pictured him... exactly as he was meant to look like.  The boy remained speechless, mouth opening and closing a few times.  This wasn’t like before... before, the visions faded after a second.  But there he was, stood there.  He looked over his shoulder, and gasped.  There it was... the purple spiralling...  The trees began vanishing, the grass ripped out of the ground.  And... Laura.  She stood still, staring at the tornado... and through the slight transparency of it, at Josh.  The portal began moving towards her.

 

“L...Laura!” Josh shouted, and took a step forward, only for his foot to sink into... nothing.   Laura vanished, the field vanished.  He gave a terrified glance over his shoulder, and Ethaniel still stood there with a stony expression.

 

And he spoke again, “You made this world... Your mind, it is your creation... Along with those closest to your mind, you can save it... You can stop it from consuming you...”  Josh looked back to Laura, watching as the tornado consumed her.  Her screams filled his mind.  “Stay focussed... Succumb to your imagination, for it is more real than you believe... You mustn’t fight what you see... it is real to you... and to others...” All this seemed so familiar... Josh felt himself falling; the world around him became less real.  It was becoming less real... ripped to pieces by the purple tornado of ‘doom’. 

 

“Succumb to your imagination...”

 

Awaken.

 

*             *             *