Blar (Gotta love that word)
Well I've just spent the entire day moping around and being emo. I actually had food because my mother went and got some sub sandwiches this afternoon, and I just had Ramen noodles, so my stomach, and consequently myself, feels content.
Tiffany called a few hours ago. Said she wanted to take me and her friend Megan to go get pizza. I didn't answer the phone, don't ask why. I heard a car stop in front of the house, but it went away after a minute. Probably because I didn't have any lights on, didn't feel worthy of it.
Something weird happened though. I woke up around 1:30, and felt sad, but otherwise fine. I got up and went to the bathroom around 2, and then got my holy water bottle and paced around the house for awhile. I didn't know why, but I was struggling to remember something, like a dream. Then, while I was sitting in this very chair, a vision started to piece itself together.
It started with me falling asleep last night after my emotional episode. I felt like I was falling, and next thing I knew someone was shaking me and asking if I was okay. Opening my eyes I saw a guy about 18, with red hair in a kind of longish buzz cut. He said, (in a very pleasant voice, by the way)," You just fell out of the sky; I can't believe you're alive!" I groaned and sat up to see that I was in a bedroom. Simple furnishings, the soft bed I was in, and a wooden dresser and desk with a small lamp on each. That was it except for the chair the mystery man was in, which had appeared to have been pulled from the desk. I looked down at myself, and I was still in my pajamas. (A long white shirt with red flannel-ish pants).
The guy said to take it easy, and I lay back down, but managed to gasp," Where am I?"
He just kind of looked at me and spoke softly," Here. My name's Ray, who are you, and, if I may ask, how the hell did you fall out of the sky?"
I told him the last thing I could remember was falling asleep in my own bed at home, and that my name was Adrian. He thought to himself a moment, and then told me to wait here while he got some help.
Now the details get a bit sketchy. The next thing I recall clearly is the next morning when Ray had loaned me some of his clothes, and I accompanied him in his daily life. He, along with the rest of his village, were basically servants to another kind of race. They had to build something, a weapon of some kind, I think. When I asked him who they were, and why they had to serve them, everyone around us stopped and stared at me. Ray pulled me aside and told me that they had been born into servitude to the beings, which he only referred to as,'Them'.
I helped him with his task for the day, transporting metal machine parts from one area to another, and then we went back to his house when dusk started to set in.
That's when the magic started to happen. No, literally. Usually in my dreams, I'm an energy mage of some kind, and this one, (assuming it was indeed a dream), was no exception. I showed him the things I could do with my powers, and he was mystified, saying that folklore said that his people used to have similar abilities. That is, until 'They' arrived. This other race took over their world, abolished their magic, and forced Ray's people to do their bidding.
We then went about cooking dinner, some kind of chicken, and Ray had to keep jumping in so I wouldn't screw up the food. Eventually we got it done and ate it at the small kitchen table. He asked me what life in my home world was like. I told him that we didn't have to serve anyone, but my world had much more overall problems than his did. Like drugs, war, etc.
When I mentioned one of my favorite things to do was listen to music, he jumped a few inches off his chair. I looked at him questioningly, and he said that music was strictly forbidden by 'Them'. Anyone caught singing or dancing was immediately executed. Even humming was punished by death.
He said," Don't even think about doing it even here, they have ways of telling when we're doing something they don't like. Besides, it's nice having someone around again."
I smiled back at him, and said it was awesome having him for company too. Then we cleaned up the dishes, and I changed back into the pajamas I had arrived in. Of course, when I walked into the bedroom, I couldn't believe I hadn't thought about this. There was only one bed. He looked at me sheepishly," Well, I don't mind sharing if you don't."
I couldn't help but blush a little myself, but said I didn't mind sharing either. We both got under the covers, and he switched off the bedside lamp.
No, nothing happened. All I remember about that part is that I slept comfortably, with a feeling of security I have never felt before. Of course, we woke up with our arms wrapped around each other, so that might have accounted for something.
After we got dressed, (separately), I told him I wanted to find out the truth behind the other race. He was dumbfounded, and asked why. I said heroically," Because I'm the only one who can do something about it."
We were standing close then. He was taller than me, but somehow met my eyes evenly. He said that their headquarters was to the north of the village, and that it was heavily guarded.
He hugged me then, and when we let go, I felt 'the sparks' fly between us. He must have, too. For he hurriedly wished me good luck and departed.
I began my pilgrimage to the north. It didn't take long to get there. There was a tall skyscraper standing in the middle of a clearing in the forest. Obviously that was the headquarters, but I saw no signs of guards or other kinds of security.
There was only one entrance that I could see. A revolving glass door like any you'd see in New York. I was left with no choice but to blatantly walk over and use it. The interior of the building, however, was nothing like the outside, which was clearly a facade to disguise the true immensity of the place.
The entrance hall was made entirely of stone. Two lines of pillars on each side supported the cathedral-like roof. Still I was met with no resistance. Though the silence itself frightened me in its own way. I couldn't even hear my own footsteps as I crossed to the center of the hall, where I could see four doors.
One was the revolving glass I had entered through, looking very odd now that it was surrounded by medieval architecture. The other three were made of heavy wood about nine feet high. Being my systematic self, I took the one on the east side of the hall, (Assuming the entrance door was south.)
On the other side I was faced with a most eerie, and yet familiar sight. It was another room about the same size as the first, but with piles of CD’s, stereos, and musical instruments everywhere. Apparently this was were the other race had confiscated everything that could be used to make music.
As I walked over towards one of the heaps, a roar sounded from my left. It had like ferocity of a lion, but sounded like some kind of bird. I turned and beheld the biggest spider I have ever seen. It’s hide scraped the ceiling, and regarded me evilly with those ever-watchful clusters of eyes.
Immediately I fired a lightning blast of energy at it, which knocked it back several feet, but did no visible damage.
I could’ve sworn I saw a glint of satisfaction in it’s eyes before the spider did something I never expected. It stretched and bulged as it’s body began to change shape before my disbelieving eyes. The hide softened into skin, and the eight legs joined into four.
Suddenly I was now faced with a giant lion. I knew that regular bolts would not harm the thing, so I gathered my strength, and spheres of life force began to flow out of my hands. They swirled around in a whirlpool of power, and I forced them to join together and assume a shape. It was an angel, with white feathery wings and holding a golden staff in it’s hands. I nodded at him, and he flew towards the lion.
I now knew that this creature was one of ‘Them’. They had no shape of their own, so they assumed ones that they believe are the most deadly, or frightening. I ran away from the battle, ignoring the fear-inducing roars of the lion, and the flashes of light my angel created as it bombarded the thing with spells. I sprinted towards the far wall, where there was a giant stereo system against it, the likes of which are rarely seen on Earth. Each of the pair of speakers were over twenty feet tall and about ten wide. I put my hands against them in turn, and absorbed their layout so I could recreate them later.
I had an idea about these creature's weakness. If it was true, I could exploit it and free the village from these horrid excuses for intelligent life. But first I needed to test it. I forced myself to turn and run back towards the battle. My angel had done significant damage to the lion impostor, for purple ooze was dripping from it's wounds. However, I felt that no matter how valiantly my angel fought, this thing could not be killed by combat alone.
Feeling ridiculous, I conjured up a microphone out of thin air, and formed a link between it and the giant speakers I had absorbed. My angel knew what I was going to do, so he backed off to guard me in case the creature decided to lunge. I opened my mouth, and my quavering voice came blasting from the speakers," Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday Abomination, Happy Birthday to you!"
The moment the sound of my voice hit the air, the lion-creature roared in terrible pain. It's eyes turned red and started to ooze it's purple blood. I was encouraged by this, and after two more refrains of 'Happy Birthday', it gave one final hideously pitiful sound, and slumped to the floor with a reverberating crash.
So my theory was correct, for whatever reason, any kind of melody or rhythm was deadly to these things, and obviously they could not allow their servants to be making anything of the sort.
Suddenly I heard answering roars from the entrance hall, like something out of a nightmare. I knew the way out of the building was blocked, so my only other option were the windows I had seen on the exterior of the building. The only problem was, they didn't appear to exist on this side! So my angel and I fired systematic blasts of spells against the wall that should lead to the outside, but to no avail. Evidently the windows I had seen were only an illusion.
Heavy footsteps were getting so close the entire room was shaking. I had to come up with something quickly. My angel was still relentlessly striking the same spot on the wall with magical force, and cracks were starting to appear in the whatever-it-was-made-of.
As quick as lightning, I blasted the electric power at the same spot. It came down to the wire, I can tell you. Just as we opened a hole big enough to squeeze through, the door burst open so violently I heard it crash against the wall, freed of it's hinges.
I didn't look back to see what demon-shape They had assumed this time, I just crammed my body through that hole and was out of there like a Nascar driver. My angel, his task finished, dissolved back into pure force, and flowed gently within me as I ran through the now-dark woods.
Finally I reached Ray's house, where I found him pacing like a madman in the front room. I had barely closed the door before he grabbed me by the shoulders," What took you so long?! I was so worried that....." He trailed off, and, looking out the window again, I saw what he meant.
Although it had only been an hour after dawn when I had entered the stronghold, now it was well after dark, but I couldn't have spent more than twenty minutes within. I supposed They lived in a completely different time dimension, or something like that.
After I had coaxed Ray down, assuring him I was fine, I explained to him everything I had seen within the alien building.
He, as I had figured, was amazed that these creatures could be killed. “And by music, of all things!”, he exclaimed,” I just wish there was some way we could use that to our advantage.”
I couldn’t help but grin,” Your wish is my command.” I swirled my hands,(purely for show), and a clear, but somehow substantial bubble appeared around us, encompassing the entire front room. “Now, sing.”
I created another microphone, this one only for practice, and handed it to him. He was stunned,” But, Adrian, they’ll…..”
I sighed, ”Ray, do you think that bubble is just for show? I assure you, no sound can get out of this thing, but we’ll still be able to hear things from outside. Okay? Do you know Happy Birthday?”
Of course he didn’t. I should’ve expected that, any melody being strictly forbidden in this sad world. I taught it to him, sang it first, and eventually he was convinced what I was saying was true. So he started to sing.
Now I cannot impress upon you the sheer beauty of his voice. As we moved on to more complicated songs, his voice would’ve made the Sirens turn green with envy. Even Happy Birthday sounded like a holy hymn sung by a choir of angels. The mood, temperament, and meaning of each song he somehow conveyed clearly through the lyrics, much better than the original artist ever could have. Indeed, it was a true crime to keep a voice like his imprisoned by the banning of music. But, as we progressed, yet another reason for it presented itself.
As Ray began to lose himself in the songs, I started to feel cold. I could see our breath as Ray sung ‘Bring Me to Life’ with all his heart. Frost began to appear on the walls of the house, and I began to shiver. I had an idea.
I had to stop him,” Ray! No, that was excellent, but did you notice what’s happening?”
He blinked, looked around, and before he could ask, I told him,” That’s you, you’re doing this. You said your people used to have magic? You still do, and I guess music really brings it out. You, apparently have control over the element of ice. Try and freeze that glass of water there.”
He looked at it doubtfully, but raised his hand to it as he had seen me do. Nothing happened. “Think about how it felt while you were singing, the feeling of the music flowing through you,” I advised.
A smile graced his handsome face, and slowly, the water in the glass hardened into it’s solid counterpart.
This was wonderful information I now possessed. If music had the same effect on all the villagers as it did on Ray, their powers combined would surely be enough to defeat those creatures easily. A daring plan began to form in my mind. I guess he recognized the look on my face,” What do you have in mind?,” he asked, with a devilishly cute grin.
By the time we retired to bed, our battle strategy was formed. On three sides, the village was surrounded by dense forest. On the southern side, oddly, there was about a mile of open space, then a cliff, which designated a sheer drop to the ocean a hundred feet below. That would be the perfect place for a little concert. I would set up the giant speakers I had acquired, and blast them as loud as they could go. Ray and I would, throwing away all pretense, sing as best we could. The villagers would definitely be attracted to us, and hopefully they would get their magics back as Ray did. The only problem I could see was that They would try to stop us. I could not predict how or what form they might use, so there was not much that could be done about it. Though I was surprised how quickly Ray had come onboard with this idea. It was as if he had this idea all along, and I was the final catalyst needed to set it in motion.
I think Ray had some similar thoughts, for when he switched off the lights, he snuggled up against me like it was the most natural thing in the world. I of course, could not resist such an offer, so when he put his hands around me as usual, I took them and clasped them in my own. I think it was a mark of our bond that we both slept quite peacefully that night, cuddled together against oblivion.
The next morning came rather quicker than I would’ve liked. I woke up before Ray did, and for awhile I didn’t move, just laid there and listened to him breathe gently. I felt warmth emanate from every inch of his body, and, though I loved the feeling, some part of me felt horrible, like I was unworthy of this much affection from another person.
So I stirred, breaking our hands, and he groaned,” Morning. How are you feeling?”
I turned so I was facing him,” Nervous. You?”
He tried vainly to seem nonchalant,” Well, I’m good considering I’ve never been this scared in my entire life.”
I giggled, and got up out of the warm comfort of the bed. “ Don’t worry, this’ll work, I know it.”
He came up behind me as I gathered my performing clothes, and embraced me once more,” I know. The Fates wouldn’t let me lose you.”
At this I froze, my mind cloven in two. The good part, the one that accepted what I was and benefited from it, wanted desperately to return the feelings that Ray was extending me, to accept the hand of love, and live life to the fullest. But the other half, the one that hated what I had become and feared what would happen if I accepted it, wanted just as desperately to refuse Ray, and run as far from this place as possible.
For a moment that seemed like forever, these two halves fighting a war over my fate, I was silent. Then, forcing myself to at least do something, turned and embraced Ray as passionately as he was me, and then said,” Come on, we’ve got a big day.”
We got dressed in some clothes that I had conjured in style of Earth, Ray in rapper-style swishy pants and T-shirt under a white jacket, and I in tight jeans and a black shirt under a matching leather jacket. We ate what breakfast we could, then stepped outside into the waiting sunshine.
Today was the villager’s day off, like the Sunday Sabbath on Earth. They eyed us as we walked calmly through the market, and down past the last houses, to the field of dirt, where we stopped.
We turned, facing the small crowd of villagers that had followed us. Ray looked at me and smiled. I nodded, and turned away again and walked towards the cliff a bit more.
I heard him start to say something to them, presumably to prepare them for what was coming, but I lost attention as I re-created the colossal speakers from thin air.
The villagers gasped in unison, they knew what we were going to do. I walked back to Ray, and handed him a microphone, making another for myself. Then he started to speak into it as he gave them a sort of rallying speech, calling to memory all the injustices that had been done upon them through the years, and that today was the day it would finally change.
However, I was not listening as I had just seen some black shapes emerge from the distant, but menacing skyscraper. Holding the microphone in my left hand, I plunged my right into my own chest, causing thousands of diamond-like sparkles to fall from my exposed body. As I withdrew the hand, I was holding a hilt, and as I removed it all the way, a sword was revealed. The hilt was pure gold, but the blade was something else entirely. It wasn’t even solid, exactly. Pure white life force gleamed in the shape of a curved, serpentine blade. From the hilt it was about five feet long, culminating in a deadly tip that could pierce the core of the universe itself.
This was my guardian blade, Aridia, which I only unsheathed in dire need. I came back to reality to find everyone, even Ray mesmerized by me. I smiled to myself, I had neglected to mention this particular detail. I spoke into the microphone,” Well, we need some defense. Now come on, let’s rock!”
With that I initiated “Bring Me to Life” by Evanesence to come from the speakers, but instead of her, Ray sang the words I had so carefully taught him the night before. I was sure the sound was echoing at least all the way to the skyscraper, and the villagers were all gathering in front of us, enchanted by the sound.
Immediately I could see the effect that this was having. Though everything was in color, a vibrance, a depth, seemed to pulsate from everything around us, living or not. Then, suddenly, a ghastly scream pierced the music, challenging us. Two things descended upon our stage from the air, black dragons breathing white-hot fire.
I cannot describe the chaos that ensued. Keep in mind that Ray and I were singing whilst defending ourselves as best we could. I was never in the same place for more than a second, slashing Aridia against our attackers, its power distorting reality itself as the dragons roared in pain. Ray, too was using his newfound powers with surprising diligence, freezing the dragon’s fire and destroying it.
All that happened in less than two minutes, They could not stand the combined force of the music and our magic, and before the song ended, they fell, defeated.
There was about thirty seconds to go, and I saw I sight that petrified me. Swarms of black dots, like locusts over ancient Egypt, were coming for us from the skyscraper. There was no way we could take on that many ourselves.
Ray finished the song with a final,”Bring me to Liiiiiiffffeee!” The music trailed for a few more seconds, then ceased. Ray and I looked at each other, the villagers hadn’t moved since we began the song, and there were no signs that anything had changed. The swarm was very close now, you could hear the mad buzzing of the creature’s imposter wings, and still the villagers did nothing.
I turned to Ray, the innocent bystander who had so graciously taken me, an undeserving stranger into his home, and so lovingly into his affections, and opened my mouth to say, ”I’m sorry.”
Before the sound had even reached my vocal cords, something happened. A little girl no more than six years old walked up to us. “Sing,” she urged, ”just a little more.”
Instantly, before I had even processed the thought, music again erupted from the speakers. This time it was ‘Haunted’, a song I had thought appropriate for a liberation day. Suddenly, as Ray sung the first, wailing sentence, a pair of (I could not believe it) golden pistols appeared in the girl’s hands, and immediately turned and shot machine-gun-like fireballs at the swarm.
I was encouraged by this, and fired my own life force through Aridia, and Ray balls of freezing hail from the sky. Then the crowd pulsated as their individual powers all burst forth from them at the same moment. I saw spells so many they were too numerous to name. There was fire, water, blood, angels, demons, it was amazing that the overload of magic didn’t tear the universe apart at it’s seams.
The swarm didn’t even get within fifty feet of us, the endless barrage of supernatural force, with the combined music was too much for them, and their pitiful wails didn’t even reach our ears as their bodies disintegrated into nothingness. The villagers even joined in with us at the last few lines. With a last cry of,” I won’t let you pull me down!,” the last of them vanished, like a horrible dream that had never been.
Ray stepped over and looked at me triumphantly. In one glance at his face I knew that he and the rest of the villagers would retrieve all their relics from the skyscraper, before obliterating it. And, I thought as our arms encoiled our bodies once again, maybe I could stay, for a little while at least.
But my newfound epiphany was interrupted by an enormous shaft of light coming down from the sky, opening a deep hole that separated us from the rest of the villagers. Looking down, both far away and right before us, could be seen my own body, lying in my waterbed on Earth, safe from harm. I looked down, I was back in my pajamas.
Ray got it before I had to say it, ”Please, don’t go! I..I need you!” Our faces were about an inch apart, moving ever closer, and I thought, that maybe he was right, maybe I needed him too……
BANG!! I was thrown backwards, away from Ray’s grasp. I fell, and the last thing I remember is Ray, crouching at the edge of the pit, screaming for me, weeping openly.
I’ll never forget the look on his face.
That’s all of it. I don’t know what exactly what threw me back. Two possibilities have occurred to me since.
1. It was some kind of last remnant of the alien race, desperate for revenge against me, the catalyst.
2. The more likely option, it was my own mind that threw me away. The part of me that doesn’t want to accept what I am, and hates me for becoming it.
When I think about that, my own mind denying me happiness, I know that’s exactly what’s going to happen in real life. Then again, who’s to say it wasn’t real? If it was all a dream or vision, then how come I remember it so clearly? I have no particular talent for that sort of thing. But, if it was real, that means I have already met the love of my life, and lost him.
~Adrian
Tiffany called a few hours ago. Said she wanted to take me and her friend Megan to go get pizza. I didn't answer the phone, don't ask why. I heard a car stop in front of the house, but it went away after a minute. Probably because I didn't have any lights on, didn't feel worthy of it.
Something weird happened though. I woke up around 1:30, and felt sad, but otherwise fine. I got up and went to the bathroom around 2, and then got my holy water bottle and paced around the house for awhile. I didn't know why, but I was struggling to remember something, like a dream. Then, while I was sitting in this very chair, a vision started to piece itself together.
It started with me falling asleep last night after my emotional episode. I felt like I was falling, and next thing I knew someone was shaking me and asking if I was okay. Opening my eyes I saw a guy about 18, with red hair in a kind of longish buzz cut. He said, (in a very pleasant voice, by the way)," You just fell out of the sky; I can't believe you're alive!" I groaned and sat up to see that I was in a bedroom. Simple furnishings, the soft bed I was in, and a wooden dresser and desk with a small lamp on each. That was it except for the chair the mystery man was in, which had appeared to have been pulled from the desk. I looked down at myself, and I was still in my pajamas. (A long white shirt with red flannel-ish pants).
The guy said to take it easy, and I lay back down, but managed to gasp," Where am I?"
He just kind of looked at me and spoke softly," Here. My name's Ray, who are you, and, if I may ask, how the hell did you fall out of the sky?"
I told him the last thing I could remember was falling asleep in my own bed at home, and that my name was Adrian. He thought to himself a moment, and then told me to wait here while he got some help.
Now the details get a bit sketchy. The next thing I recall clearly is the next morning when Ray had loaned me some of his clothes, and I accompanied him in his daily life. He, along with the rest of his village, were basically servants to another kind of race. They had to build something, a weapon of some kind, I think. When I asked him who they were, and why they had to serve them, everyone around us stopped and stared at me. Ray pulled me aside and told me that they had been born into servitude to the beings, which he only referred to as,'Them'.
I helped him with his task for the day, transporting metal machine parts from one area to another, and then we went back to his house when dusk started to set in.
That's when the magic started to happen. No, literally. Usually in my dreams, I'm an energy mage of some kind, and this one, (assuming it was indeed a dream), was no exception. I showed him the things I could do with my powers, and he was mystified, saying that folklore said that his people used to have similar abilities. That is, until 'They' arrived. This other race took over their world, abolished their magic, and forced Ray's people to do their bidding.
We then went about cooking dinner, some kind of chicken, and Ray had to keep jumping in so I wouldn't screw up the food. Eventually we got it done and ate it at the small kitchen table. He asked me what life in my home world was like. I told him that we didn't have to serve anyone, but my world had much more overall problems than his did. Like drugs, war, etc.
When I mentioned one of my favorite things to do was listen to music, he jumped a few inches off his chair. I looked at him questioningly, and he said that music was strictly forbidden by 'Them'. Anyone caught singing or dancing was immediately executed. Even humming was punished by death.
He said," Don't even think about doing it even here, they have ways of telling when we're doing something they don't like. Besides, it's nice having someone around again."
I smiled back at him, and said it was awesome having him for company too. Then we cleaned up the dishes, and I changed back into the pajamas I had arrived in. Of course, when I walked into the bedroom, I couldn't believe I hadn't thought about this. There was only one bed. He looked at me sheepishly," Well, I don't mind sharing if you don't."
I couldn't help but blush a little myself, but said I didn't mind sharing either. We both got under the covers, and he switched off the bedside lamp.
No, nothing happened. All I remember about that part is that I slept comfortably, with a feeling of security I have never felt before. Of course, we woke up with our arms wrapped around each other, so that might have accounted for something.
After we got dressed, (separately), I told him I wanted to find out the truth behind the other race. He was dumbfounded, and asked why. I said heroically," Because I'm the only one who can do something about it."
We were standing close then. He was taller than me, but somehow met my eyes evenly. He said that their headquarters was to the north of the village, and that it was heavily guarded.
He hugged me then, and when we let go, I felt 'the sparks' fly between us. He must have, too. For he hurriedly wished me good luck and departed.
I began my pilgrimage to the north. It didn't take long to get there. There was a tall skyscraper standing in the middle of a clearing in the forest. Obviously that was the headquarters, but I saw no signs of guards or other kinds of security.
There was only one entrance that I could see. A revolving glass door like any you'd see in New York. I was left with no choice but to blatantly walk over and use it. The interior of the building, however, was nothing like the outside, which was clearly a facade to disguise the true immensity of the place.
The entrance hall was made entirely of stone. Two lines of pillars on each side supported the cathedral-like roof. Still I was met with no resistance. Though the silence itself frightened me in its own way. I couldn't even hear my own footsteps as I crossed to the center of the hall, where I could see four doors.
One was the revolving glass I had entered through, looking very odd now that it was surrounded by medieval architecture. The other three were made of heavy wood about nine feet high. Being my systematic self, I took the one on the east side of the hall, (Assuming the entrance door was south.)
On the other side I was faced with a most eerie, and yet familiar sight. It was another room about the same size as the first, but with piles of CD’s, stereos, and musical instruments everywhere. Apparently this was were the other race had confiscated everything that could be used to make music.
As I walked over towards one of the heaps, a roar sounded from my left. It had like ferocity of a lion, but sounded like some kind of bird. I turned and beheld the biggest spider I have ever seen. It’s hide scraped the ceiling, and regarded me evilly with those ever-watchful clusters of eyes.
Immediately I fired a lightning blast of energy at it, which knocked it back several feet, but did no visible damage.
I could’ve sworn I saw a glint of satisfaction in it’s eyes before the spider did something I never expected. It stretched and bulged as it’s body began to change shape before my disbelieving eyes. The hide softened into skin, and the eight legs joined into four.
Suddenly I was now faced with a giant lion. I knew that regular bolts would not harm the thing, so I gathered my strength, and spheres of life force began to flow out of my hands. They swirled around in a whirlpool of power, and I forced them to join together and assume a shape. It was an angel, with white feathery wings and holding a golden staff in it’s hands. I nodded at him, and he flew towards the lion.
I now knew that this creature was one of ‘Them’. They had no shape of their own, so they assumed ones that they believe are the most deadly, or frightening. I ran away from the battle, ignoring the fear-inducing roars of the lion, and the flashes of light my angel created as it bombarded the thing with spells. I sprinted towards the far wall, where there was a giant stereo system against it, the likes of which are rarely seen on Earth. Each of the pair of speakers were over twenty feet tall and about ten wide. I put my hands against them in turn, and absorbed their layout so I could recreate them later.
I had an idea about these creature's weakness. If it was true, I could exploit it and free the village from these horrid excuses for intelligent life. But first I needed to test it. I forced myself to turn and run back towards the battle. My angel had done significant damage to the lion impostor, for purple ooze was dripping from it's wounds. However, I felt that no matter how valiantly my angel fought, this thing could not be killed by combat alone.
Feeling ridiculous, I conjured up a microphone out of thin air, and formed a link between it and the giant speakers I had absorbed. My angel knew what I was going to do, so he backed off to guard me in case the creature decided to lunge. I opened my mouth, and my quavering voice came blasting from the speakers," Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday Abomination, Happy Birthday to you!"
The moment the sound of my voice hit the air, the lion-creature roared in terrible pain. It's eyes turned red and started to ooze it's purple blood. I was encouraged by this, and after two more refrains of 'Happy Birthday', it gave one final hideously pitiful sound, and slumped to the floor with a reverberating crash.
So my theory was correct, for whatever reason, any kind of melody or rhythm was deadly to these things, and obviously they could not allow their servants to be making anything of the sort.
Suddenly I heard answering roars from the entrance hall, like something out of a nightmare. I knew the way out of the building was blocked, so my only other option were the windows I had seen on the exterior of the building. The only problem was, they didn't appear to exist on this side! So my angel and I fired systematic blasts of spells against the wall that should lead to the outside, but to no avail. Evidently the windows I had seen were only an illusion.
Heavy footsteps were getting so close the entire room was shaking. I had to come up with something quickly. My angel was still relentlessly striking the same spot on the wall with magical force, and cracks were starting to appear in the whatever-it-was-made-of.
As quick as lightning, I blasted the electric power at the same spot. It came down to the wire, I can tell you. Just as we opened a hole big enough to squeeze through, the door burst open so violently I heard it crash against the wall, freed of it's hinges.
I didn't look back to see what demon-shape They had assumed this time, I just crammed my body through that hole and was out of there like a Nascar driver. My angel, his task finished, dissolved back into pure force, and flowed gently within me as I ran through the now-dark woods.
Finally I reached Ray's house, where I found him pacing like a madman in the front room. I had barely closed the door before he grabbed me by the shoulders," What took you so long?! I was so worried that....." He trailed off, and, looking out the window again, I saw what he meant.
Although it had only been an hour after dawn when I had entered the stronghold, now it was well after dark, but I couldn't have spent more than twenty minutes within. I supposed They lived in a completely different time dimension, or something like that.
After I had coaxed Ray down, assuring him I was fine, I explained to him everything I had seen within the alien building.
He, as I had figured, was amazed that these creatures could be killed. “And by music, of all things!”, he exclaimed,” I just wish there was some way we could use that to our advantage.”
I couldn’t help but grin,” Your wish is my command.” I swirled my hands,(purely for show), and a clear, but somehow substantial bubble appeared around us, encompassing the entire front room. “Now, sing.”
I created another microphone, this one only for practice, and handed it to him. He was stunned,” But, Adrian, they’ll…..”
I sighed, ”Ray, do you think that bubble is just for show? I assure you, no sound can get out of this thing, but we’ll still be able to hear things from outside. Okay? Do you know Happy Birthday?”
Of course he didn’t. I should’ve expected that, any melody being strictly forbidden in this sad world. I taught it to him, sang it first, and eventually he was convinced what I was saying was true. So he started to sing.
Now I cannot impress upon you the sheer beauty of his voice. As we moved on to more complicated songs, his voice would’ve made the Sirens turn green with envy. Even Happy Birthday sounded like a holy hymn sung by a choir of angels. The mood, temperament, and meaning of each song he somehow conveyed clearly through the lyrics, much better than the original artist ever could have. Indeed, it was a true crime to keep a voice like his imprisoned by the banning of music. But, as we progressed, yet another reason for it presented itself.
As Ray began to lose himself in the songs, I started to feel cold. I could see our breath as Ray sung ‘Bring Me to Life’ with all his heart. Frost began to appear on the walls of the house, and I began to shiver. I had an idea.
I had to stop him,” Ray! No, that was excellent, but did you notice what’s happening?”
He blinked, looked around, and before he could ask, I told him,” That’s you, you’re doing this. You said your people used to have magic? You still do, and I guess music really brings it out. You, apparently have control over the element of ice. Try and freeze that glass of water there.”
He looked at it doubtfully, but raised his hand to it as he had seen me do. Nothing happened. “Think about how it felt while you were singing, the feeling of the music flowing through you,” I advised.
A smile graced his handsome face, and slowly, the water in the glass hardened into it’s solid counterpart.
This was wonderful information I now possessed. If music had the same effect on all the villagers as it did on Ray, their powers combined would surely be enough to defeat those creatures easily. A daring plan began to form in my mind. I guess he recognized the look on my face,” What do you have in mind?,” he asked, with a devilishly cute grin.
By the time we retired to bed, our battle strategy was formed. On three sides, the village was surrounded by dense forest. On the southern side, oddly, there was about a mile of open space, then a cliff, which designated a sheer drop to the ocean a hundred feet below. That would be the perfect place for a little concert. I would set up the giant speakers I had acquired, and blast them as loud as they could go. Ray and I would, throwing away all pretense, sing as best we could. The villagers would definitely be attracted to us, and hopefully they would get their magics back as Ray did. The only problem I could see was that They would try to stop us. I could not predict how or what form they might use, so there was not much that could be done about it. Though I was surprised how quickly Ray had come onboard with this idea. It was as if he had this idea all along, and I was the final catalyst needed to set it in motion.
I think Ray had some similar thoughts, for when he switched off the lights, he snuggled up against me like it was the most natural thing in the world. I of course, could not resist such an offer, so when he put his hands around me as usual, I took them and clasped them in my own. I think it was a mark of our bond that we both slept quite peacefully that night, cuddled together against oblivion.
The next morning came rather quicker than I would’ve liked. I woke up before Ray did, and for awhile I didn’t move, just laid there and listened to him breathe gently. I felt warmth emanate from every inch of his body, and, though I loved the feeling, some part of me felt horrible, like I was unworthy of this much affection from another person.
So I stirred, breaking our hands, and he groaned,” Morning. How are you feeling?”
I turned so I was facing him,” Nervous. You?”
He tried vainly to seem nonchalant,” Well, I’m good considering I’ve never been this scared in my entire life.”
I giggled, and got up out of the warm comfort of the bed. “ Don’t worry, this’ll work, I know it.”
He came up behind me as I gathered my performing clothes, and embraced me once more,” I know. The Fates wouldn’t let me lose you.”
At this I froze, my mind cloven in two. The good part, the one that accepted what I was and benefited from it, wanted desperately to return the feelings that Ray was extending me, to accept the hand of love, and live life to the fullest. But the other half, the one that hated what I had become and feared what would happen if I accepted it, wanted just as desperately to refuse Ray, and run as far from this place as possible.
For a moment that seemed like forever, these two halves fighting a war over my fate, I was silent. Then, forcing myself to at least do something, turned and embraced Ray as passionately as he was me, and then said,” Come on, we’ve got a big day.”
We got dressed in some clothes that I had conjured in style of Earth, Ray in rapper-style swishy pants and T-shirt under a white jacket, and I in tight jeans and a black shirt under a matching leather jacket. We ate what breakfast we could, then stepped outside into the waiting sunshine.
Today was the villager’s day off, like the Sunday Sabbath on Earth. They eyed us as we walked calmly through the market, and down past the last houses, to the field of dirt, where we stopped.
We turned, facing the small crowd of villagers that had followed us. Ray looked at me and smiled. I nodded, and turned away again and walked towards the cliff a bit more.
I heard him start to say something to them, presumably to prepare them for what was coming, but I lost attention as I re-created the colossal speakers from thin air.
The villagers gasped in unison, they knew what we were going to do. I walked back to Ray, and handed him a microphone, making another for myself. Then he started to speak into it as he gave them a sort of rallying speech, calling to memory all the injustices that had been done upon them through the years, and that today was the day it would finally change.
However, I was not listening as I had just seen some black shapes emerge from the distant, but menacing skyscraper. Holding the microphone in my left hand, I plunged my right into my own chest, causing thousands of diamond-like sparkles to fall from my exposed body. As I withdrew the hand, I was holding a hilt, and as I removed it all the way, a sword was revealed. The hilt was pure gold, but the blade was something else entirely. It wasn’t even solid, exactly. Pure white life force gleamed in the shape of a curved, serpentine blade. From the hilt it was about five feet long, culminating in a deadly tip that could pierce the core of the universe itself.
This was my guardian blade, Aridia, which I only unsheathed in dire need. I came back to reality to find everyone, even Ray mesmerized by me. I smiled to myself, I had neglected to mention this particular detail. I spoke into the microphone,” Well, we need some defense. Now come on, let’s rock!”
With that I initiated “Bring Me to Life” by Evanesence to come from the speakers, but instead of her, Ray sang the words I had so carefully taught him the night before. I was sure the sound was echoing at least all the way to the skyscraper, and the villagers were all gathering in front of us, enchanted by the sound.
Immediately I could see the effect that this was having. Though everything was in color, a vibrance, a depth, seemed to pulsate from everything around us, living or not. Then, suddenly, a ghastly scream pierced the music, challenging us. Two things descended upon our stage from the air, black dragons breathing white-hot fire.
I cannot describe the chaos that ensued. Keep in mind that Ray and I were singing whilst defending ourselves as best we could. I was never in the same place for more than a second, slashing Aridia against our attackers, its power distorting reality itself as the dragons roared in pain. Ray, too was using his newfound powers with surprising diligence, freezing the dragon’s fire and destroying it.
All that happened in less than two minutes, They could not stand the combined force of the music and our magic, and before the song ended, they fell, defeated.
There was about thirty seconds to go, and I saw I sight that petrified me. Swarms of black dots, like locusts over ancient Egypt, were coming for us from the skyscraper. There was no way we could take on that many ourselves.
Ray finished the song with a final,”Bring me to Liiiiiiffffeee!” The music trailed for a few more seconds, then ceased. Ray and I looked at each other, the villagers hadn’t moved since we began the song, and there were no signs that anything had changed. The swarm was very close now, you could hear the mad buzzing of the creature’s imposter wings, and still the villagers did nothing.
I turned to Ray, the innocent bystander who had so graciously taken me, an undeserving stranger into his home, and so lovingly into his affections, and opened my mouth to say, ”I’m sorry.”
Before the sound had even reached my vocal cords, something happened. A little girl no more than six years old walked up to us. “Sing,” she urged, ”just a little more.”
Instantly, before I had even processed the thought, music again erupted from the speakers. This time it was ‘Haunted’, a song I had thought appropriate for a liberation day. Suddenly, as Ray sung the first, wailing sentence, a pair of (I could not believe it) golden pistols appeared in the girl’s hands, and immediately turned and shot machine-gun-like fireballs at the swarm.
I was encouraged by this, and fired my own life force through Aridia, and Ray balls of freezing hail from the sky. Then the crowd pulsated as their individual powers all burst forth from them at the same moment. I saw spells so many they were too numerous to name. There was fire, water, blood, angels, demons, it was amazing that the overload of magic didn’t tear the universe apart at it’s seams.
The swarm didn’t even get within fifty feet of us, the endless barrage of supernatural force, with the combined music was too much for them, and their pitiful wails didn’t even reach our ears as their bodies disintegrated into nothingness. The villagers even joined in with us at the last few lines. With a last cry of,” I won’t let you pull me down!,” the last of them vanished, like a horrible dream that had never been.
Ray stepped over and looked at me triumphantly. In one glance at his face I knew that he and the rest of the villagers would retrieve all their relics from the skyscraper, before obliterating it. And, I thought as our arms encoiled our bodies once again, maybe I could stay, for a little while at least.
But my newfound epiphany was interrupted by an enormous shaft of light coming down from the sky, opening a deep hole that separated us from the rest of the villagers. Looking down, both far away and right before us, could be seen my own body, lying in my waterbed on Earth, safe from harm. I looked down, I was back in my pajamas.
Ray got it before I had to say it, ”Please, don’t go! I..I need you!” Our faces were about an inch apart, moving ever closer, and I thought, that maybe he was right, maybe I needed him too……
BANG!! I was thrown backwards, away from Ray’s grasp. I fell, and the last thing I remember is Ray, crouching at the edge of the pit, screaming for me, weeping openly.
I’ll never forget the look on his face.
That’s all of it. I don’t know what exactly what threw me back. Two possibilities have occurred to me since.
1. It was some kind of last remnant of the alien race, desperate for revenge against me, the catalyst.
2. The more likely option, it was my own mind that threw me away. The part of me that doesn’t want to accept what I am, and hates me for becoming it.
When I think about that, my own mind denying me happiness, I know that’s exactly what’s going to happen in real life. Then again, who’s to say it wasn’t real? If it was all a dream or vision, then how come I remember it so clearly? I have no particular talent for that sort of thing. But, if it was real, that means I have already met the love of my life, and lost him.
~Adrian