bd34d
New Member
Ywan!
Posts: 1
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Post by bd34d on Aug 13, 2009 6:43:53 GMT
I did a little search, and didn't find any similar thread, so I'm creating one ^^
If you have a fan story of GKC to tell or want or read one, post here, as long as the Forum Rules are respected.
Mine isn't directed to GKC, but I think it kinda follows how the story flows (description, ambient, mood, etc) if you place the characters and places in it.
Heavy rain falls on the already damp forest illuminated by the twilight of the dusk, as the sunlight passes through the tops the trees with contorted branches and thick leaves. The embracing dark woods closed in secretion, the unnaturally bright sunset with a invading light, the still piercing cold rain once touched by the soothing foliage crown, all those strange yet beautiful elements created a color spectrum ever seen to eyes of a mere human inside that closed space, Although that image was worth hours of delight, the young girl didn't stopped before that miracle granted by an hidden nature, nor reduced her pace to to behold that heavenly vision on her way. She stepped into the night, into the forest, into the rain, into someplace between reality and fantasy, between the very thin line that splits the consciousness from the unconsciousness. Her bare footsteps threaded the way through the wet ground, stomping as hard and fast as she could. Splinters from the trees would penetrate her soft skin every time she pushed a tree away with her hands as she stumbled on them, like a fugitive staggering through a crowd on his way to freedom. Her long red hair gently wailed with on that fast paced scape from the nothing, because of the water impregnated in-between. Her drenched clothes also stood heavily on her, making wet sounds along with every movement of her body, and every once, a branch would tear a piece of them leaving a light scratch on the body beneath, as if the forest was telling her to stop with an incredible might. But she didn't stop; she couldn't. An unknown reason, a fear within her own existence, was screaming in her head: “RUN!”. A single and yet powerful word that stroked fright in her beating heart. This feeling governed her mind with iron fist and will, not letting her think about the reason. Was it a stalker form the shadows or a famine childe of the nature, no one could wonder.
The moon that was once lightly visible in the rainy skies was now full with the falling sun and the stopping rain, showing how immutable are the cogs of time and fate in their precise work. The moonshine trespassed the topping foliage as the rain once did, becoming the new low-light in her path. A moon-silvered fog also stood her way, reducing the already low visibility of the path. Those new companions, strengthened by her fatigue, forced down her pace to the point that in a few steps she was walking, stepping blindly in the puddles formed by the rain, as she drew heavy breaths out of her weariness. With her mind at ease, she tries in vain to figure out where she is, only perceiving a blur on her memories before that place. Without second thought, a large glade within the woods shows up before her, as she stood up at the entrance. A gentle swirl in the center of that place unites the fog, as water does on a drain. Soon, the swirl takes off the ground, as if it was growing slightly into a small mount, turning thereafter into a perfect sphere embraced by the moonlight floating above the ground. The mist is now cleared form that area, displaying a lake just beneath the globe with a thin solid walkway from the margin to the center where the fog united. Her own legs starting walking slowly in direction of the spherical mist form, against her will and fear, stopping midway form there. Suddenly, in a quick and fluidic movement, the fog globe swallows the girl, revolving around her, striking fear in the bottom of her heart.
The wet and cold sensation wakes she form her omen, as she jumps form her bed. Here face sweats non stopping, as the rain did to her in that surreal nightmare. She stand up before the mirror, checking her clothes and skin for the marks that once were real. After realizing the reality, she turn her back to mirror, returning to the bed, without seeing her reflect turning back into the same as inside the dream.
Fell free to comment and post your own ^^
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Post by bluemotion on Aug 14, 2009 5:10:09 GMT
Interesting descriptions! Here's a story concerning the photographs we see in this page: www.gunnerkrigg.com/archive_page.php?comicID=23_______________________________________________ As the sun set over the many rooftops of the school and its scattered inhabitants made their way to their beds, a lone figure set out across the empty vastness of the complex. It walked quickly, with a furtive step, a lonely shadow in the gathering dark. Carefully, the shadowed figure climbed an outer staircase of a tall, windowless building, pausing at the top and looking about to get its bearings. Away in every direction the Court stretched, the thousands of structures simple blocks of darkness in the growing gloom. The low-sitting sun spread long shadows on the cement ground, making the buildings seem to loom, tall and imposing, or bend subtly toward one another, as if to speak in conspiring whispers. High above the rooftops, a single bird soared, and a faint tic-toc reached the watcher far below. The figure shuddered, and quickly set off again. The dark was building faster now, and the figure strode onward with growing purpose, winding through the alleyways and man-made canyons to a wide, low building squatting like a sleeping giant amidst the featureless stone monoliths all about. As the figure drew within sight, it seemed to sigh, as if in relief; then with renewed haste it strode toward the building. Over the great wooden door was spelled "LIBRARY" in bold letters. With one great push, the doors flew open, setting a swarm of pigeons flapping into the night at the noise. It was a moonless night now, but the shadowed figure stepped into the inky darkness of the library with confidence. It almost seemed to run across the expansive lobby, and jogged through the newer rooms full of shiny textbooks and childrens' magazines. Finally, the shape stopped before a small oak double door. A shield hung above it, and the cold iron handles were distinctly uninviting. Nonetheless quivering with relief, the figure opened the doors, letting in a rush of warmer air and a rich plume of dust. The room beyond seemed, in the darkness, to be endless. Rows of great columns were just visible in the black, as were bookshelves; hundreds of bookshelves, lining every wall. The shadowy shape set off into the Old Library with an uncontained eagerness, casting its gaze about as if searching for something, its soft footsteps raising puffs of dust from the ancient floor. At last, its eyes found their quarry; four small, bright rectangles glowing colorfully in the dark. It seemed to sprint to them, and raised one rectangle eagerly to its face. It was a picture frame, glowing brightly, illuminating the face of the one who held it. It depicted a vast expanse of desert, with a tower just visible in the distance, a trail of footsteps marching up to the front of the picture, as if someone had been walking towards its painter. The man - for man it was - nodded, a wide smile on his face. He placed the frame on the ground, tapped twice on the glowing image and muttered, barely audible in the absolute silence, "Take me home." The surface of the picture rippled, as if liquid. The wooden framing instantly crumbled to dust and the glowing square fell to the ground and oozed out, forming a broad, bright puddle on the ground. Suddenly, the sound of wind and the smell of fresh, hot desert air filled the immense colonnade. Heaving a happy sigh, the man stepped onto the glowing patch of floor and was in the desert. Slowly, he walked off towards the distant tower, leaving Gunnerkrigg Court behind him forever. __________________________________________ Hope you liked it! |
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ding
Full Member
Posts: 129
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Post by ding on Aug 14, 2009 5:42:21 GMT
The Fox and the Crow
in Gillitie Wood Once upon a time, deep in Gillitie Wood, there was a crow, who's name was Crow, since he was an archetype for all crows who followed him. And he was lucky crow, too, for he had clamped in his graphite-black beak a wondrous Cookie. As you can see by my odd capitalization, this cookie was archetypal as well - a Cookie among cookies, if you will, a great disk of sweet biscuit ensconced with large chunks of fudge. But it was not so lucky, for Crow had designs to devour it. Not many other designs you can have on a cookie, really. Those designs were interrupted, however, by a lurking visitor, Wolf, who, despite his (archetypally) mean and crass nature, was fond of cookies, and could tell right away Crow had something he wanted dearly, and immediately, in his nasty, old tummy. Damn, that was a complex sentence. But grammatically correct, I think you will find. Unfortunately for Wolf, Crow was perched out of reach on a great Pine, the archetypal pine of course, so the morsel could not be snatched away by mere force. Acquiring it would take more artful persuasion. But Wolf is just not an artful guy. “Crow!” shouted Wolf, saliva dripping down his greasy, gnarly chops. “Give me that cookie!” Crow cocked his head. He could not respond as he normally would, with a rapid slew of salty insults, for if he opened his beak, the cookie would fall from it. But even his little bird brain understood he had the high ground and Wolf was too low to reach him. So he gripped his branch tightly with his small, black talons and gave Wolf a defiant glare with his obsidian eye. But Wolf was not out of options. For he commanded the very trees, even archetypal ones, in Gillitie Wood. “Fine,” grimaced Ysengrimus, an evil grin touching each of his tattered, pointy ears, “then I'll just take it from you!” And with that, Wolf bent the Pine's will so it bent itself to the ground. But Crow simply flew to a Red Maple and glared even more menacingly at Wolf. If looks could kill! But they can't! “Damn it, bird!” Whined Wolf, “Stop flying!” Unfortunately for him, birds typically prefer flying to any other mode of transportation, and Crow was a super-typical bird. So Wolf bent the Red Maple to the ground. Did I mention it was an archetypal red maple? Of course it was, fables are just loaded with them. But it doesn't matter this time because Crow just flew to a high branch on a great, dead oak. The oak obviously wasn't an archetype, because it was dead, and we still have oaks to this day. This DOES matter because Wolf could only command living trees, and this oak was as rotten and hollow as Wolf's own stinky innards. Man, that dude should see a doctor, right? He's a freaking train wreck! “RAAAAGH! Keep it! It's probably full of carbs, anyway!” lamented Wolf, suddenly health conscious. Good for him. With that, he stormed off into the woods. Or rather: through them. He pretty much just tore a path through the forest, hacking and slashing with his great claws. “FINALLY,” thought Crow to Cookie. “TIME TO EAT U” “Oh dear,” thought the Cookie. But just as Crow was about to execute his fairly conventional designs on Cookie, Renard the Fox emerged from the brush. I guess Gunnerkrigg had half-day or something. Now Fox was not particularly fond of cookies. He didn't dislike them, he just thought maybe they're a little overdone. I mean, how many cookies can you have before they start to get boring, right? Probably fewer than are in existence at a given time. However, Fox had witnessed Wolf's epic hissy-fit and decided that Fox would succeed where Wolf had failed. Unlike Wolf, Fox WAS an artful guy, and tended to use artful persuasion (the best kind). The two kind of have a history, it's not very complex, but beyond the scope of this fable. In a nutshell: Fox is clever and manipulative, Wolf is stupid and violent. Both are greedy, and they don't get along. Crow saw Fox approach, and attempted to bore a hole through him with his eye. Didn't work, as usual. He tried harder. Guess they don't get along, either. “Hey, there, buddy,” crooned Fox. You'd have to be there, he's a pretty charismatic fellow. But today he was being unusually unctuous. “What you have there?” It was obvious what Crow have there, a large cookie impacted with pecans and fudge chunks. Woah, pecans too? Those weren't there before! Crow sharpened his glare to a fine point aimed between Fox's eyes. “That is a real impressive cookie you have there,” beamed Fox. And he was being honest this time, for as he spoke, chunks of white chocolate emerged on it's crumbly surface. Clearly it was attempting to escape Crow by seducing Fox, as only a cookie can. Not a great plan, but the Cookie was desperate, and like I said, Fox wasn't so keen on cookies in the first place. Crow was glaring really, really hard with his jet black, bulbous eye. So hard Fox swore he felt a beam of hot light grazing his forehead. “I better close this deal with pea-brain,” thought Fox. “After all, this thing is almost two pages, now.” “You must be a really important bird to receive a cookie like that,” Fox chirped suavely. Well Crow was having none of this. Having lost cheese, meat, and other foodstuffs to Reynard in the past, he was privy to the fox's cunning ways, and wasn't about to be charmed into dropping the cookie. Further more, he couldn't help but think that Fox was coming on to him, and Crow don't swing that way. “I HAVE MY EYE ON U” cawed Crow threateningly, immediately realizing his mistake: too late! The Archetypal Cookie fell into Fox's gaping maw. “Sweet, sweet release,” thought the Cookie as it crunched and gulped it's way into Fox's fuzzy, white belly. Crow was adamant, of course. He had been tricked yet again by the Fox. He jumped up and down on his branch, making an irritating whine, his charcoal tongue waving angrily. “Listen, Crow,” munched Fox, crumbs falling among fallen autumn leaves. “Since I stole your lunch again, I'll give you a pointer, as usual.” “If you find something good, don't wait around for someone more clever to take it from you.” But I think the real moral is “Trust Wolves to be hungry, but don't trust the Foxes.” |
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Post by bluemotion on Aug 14, 2009 5:50:05 GMT
*applause*
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Post by chiparoo on Aug 14, 2009 11:30:49 GMT
Gunnerkrigg Court: loved enough for Fan Fiction.
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Post by Mylian on Aug 14, 2009 23:26:06 GMT
What, you mean from the beginning?
Well, the first thing I remember at all, were the hands. Vast and gentle, but not really hands, more like the idea of hands. Enfolding me and guiding me across the subtle barrier between Is and Is Not.
Next came the voice. How can I describe to you in a way you can possibly understand? The voice spoke words that were rainbows. It was the colors I understood more than the words, I didn't even know then what words were. But they spoke of welcome, and joy, and freedom. I don't remember any in particular now as words except the last two. "Go Play."
Then the presence was gone and I was alone for a time. An instant or an eternity or both, and irrelevant either way. The one who found me was Muut. More words, this time without colors, I couldn't understand them. He brought what I was before the rest of them, there was what I understood as an argument among them. And then they surrounded me.
I will always have the utmost respect for books, because I know what it feels like to be casually opened and read. They did it to me. And I know I watched and lived as they read. And died. I know I experienced it all over again as they watched. But I can't remember it. And I think I'm glad of that.
I can't remember anything clearly between that and when I awoke. In Foley House. There I learned many important things. The first was Words, and I soon understood that those around me were there because they had new bodies, as I did. I was then able to learn other things with them. Like Clothes and Manners. The ones who slept apart, the Girls, had less trouble with understanding Clothes than I and the group I was with. They seemed to have had much more practice. I had more difficulty with some things than any of the ones learning with me, as they all seemed to have been preparing for this for a while. But I understood the Manners better than any of them. They all resisted the ideas, but to me it just seemed common sense.
But they all knew that I was different from them. The ones who slept apart simply ignored me, as they are always easily distracted by each other anyway. But the ones with me grew more and more openly hostile as time went on.
That's why I did it, though I still don't know what I did. One came at me, full of harm. I knew I'd be injured. And then I reacted. My arm did what it did at at first. It grew large, and lithe. Ended in two claws, sheathed in skin. If I knew how to make it happen again I'd show you. But these two claws caught him by the neck and pushed it to the ground. Then I started thinking again. I knew if I let him up, one of us would end up harmed, probably him. I didn't want that. But I could feel in his neck the pulses of nerves and vessels. I knew exactly where they were, between these claws. It was very simple to apply pressure to one cluster of nerves to induce unconsciousness.
You probably know from your papers there what happened after that. The ones who came pulled me away, put me alone. Afterward, someone told me there'd been a mistake and my House was changed to Chester. I like the ones there better. They're each their own person. I'm learning more from them than from the others.
I think I'll like it here now.
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Post by Mylian on Aug 18, 2009 2:52:55 GMT
Hello again, doctor.
I'm glad we'll be meeting regularly. Trying to answer your questions is fun.
I've been learning all kinds of things this week. The most important? The name that goes with the voice and the hands. It's Eris. I found it in a book.
Oh yes, I've been learning in classes too. Sometimes the teachers say important things. Sometimes they say unimportant things. They seem to get frustrated when I don't listen to the unimportant things, so why do they say them if they're not having fun doing it?
This place is very big. I like to pick a direction and see new things. Oh? Yes, I stay away from the bridge, they told me that already.
I saw the angry boy again. He was following me around, only now without his friends. One day he came at me to hurt me again, and since they didn't like it when i caught him last time, this time I jumped away from him to the roof. My leg grew big this time, along with my arm, and it was easy. Later, he wanted just to talk to me. He was a wolf, you see, and when I stopped him from hurting me he lost status with his friends. I'm sorry about that, it looks like I really did hurt him even though I was trying not to.
I don't know how I did it this time, either. I just wanted to get away, and I did. There's something left this time though. See my fingers? The last joint on the four fingers is gone, and there's a claw underneath from the tip to the next knuckle, and if I flex like this I can make the skin slide back from the claw. Isn't that clever? There's a claw in the tip of that thumb too, but it's stubby and the skin doesn't pull back very far.
You want me to see a "specialist" too. To help me with the changing? I would like to learn more about it, it's a fun game.
Okay then, until next week.
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Post by pepoluan on Aug 19, 2009 18:15:59 GMT
I'm breathless reading the stories here. All so good, all so different, yet all so... intertwined.
I give you all... my standing ovation.
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Post by Mylian on Aug 20, 2009 2:28:15 GMT
Sorry I'm late! Had a difficulty or two. I-
It's me, we have an appointment, remember? I just had a bit of a side-effect practicing the specialist's advice just now. I do look a little different, but I didn't think it made me unrecognizable.
I think I like my hair better this way anyway. I- wait, did you say Girl? Like the ones that sleep apart? But the only thing that really changed... That's ridiculous! Are you honestly telling me that we're separated into social castes by absolutely nothing more than our biological polarity? It's funny, but I guess... a lot of things suddenly make sense now.
All I was doing was trying the focus exercises he taught me. I'd been practicing all week, and then just before I came here today I managed to get both of my legs to change at once, on purpose. But when I changed back, there were a few minor changes. I still have the funny fingers on that one hand, though. And a tail that won't go away, that happened a few days ago.
Here, see? I measured it, it's a meter and a half and the two tips at the end are really good at picking things up. A little more practice and I could probably write with it as well as with my hand. It's hard to notice, but this eye here changed too. When I look at some things they have a funny glow. Most people seem to. And lots of food. Soup really does. Ice cream doesn't. Maybe the glow is heat?
I saw the boy again a few days ago, he takes walks now that his friends have turned on him, but they can't have been very good friends, can they? He says if I'd been a wolf too, or even just from the forest, I would have simply taken his rank, but because I was a complete outsider the others just turned him out. So many silly rules people have, I don't understand it.
I suppose you're right. I don't understand them because I have no frame of reference. They each have a culture that they've had years to adapt to, but I just sort of arrived in the middle of it all.
I had a dream last night. There was a tree. A gigantic tree, filled with machines, and... buildings? And people. I didn't see any of them, I just sort of understood that they were there. But the whole thing was a unit. The tree, and the machines, and the people. They all fit together and helped each other.
I don't think I'll see the specialist again. What he has to teach isn't what I need to learn. But I think I'll ask the ones around me in Chester to help me with culture. Many of them... some of them are friendly enough.
You want me to have a physical examination? I don't feel sick, but if you think it best, I will. Goodbye for today, then.
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Post by bluemotion on Aug 20, 2009 8:53:54 GMT
Just wrote this, hope you like it. I'll do more on it sometime.
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I wait. In the dim light, I do not move. It has been one day since I have moved. Not long enough for me to hunger, but long enough for the motion to have faded from my limbs and for my body to grow locked and still.
Although the room is dark, I can still see much. It is a "classroom", as I have heard it said. Daily, many beings fill the room about me, huge and lumbering. Many of them are human, but some are not. It is these that intrigue me, I think. Perhaps that is the reason I stay here, when it was so much better elsewhere.
I remember the time before I came to this place. It was very different, so much that I feel that to return would be strange, as coming here felt strange at first. In my old home-nest, there was no human-built cave blocking the light of the sun, and food was abundant and easy to catch. I moved often, then. Moved, and ate. I cared for little but the sun and light and the comfort that comes with a full belly.
But one day, my home was destroyed. That was the day I first saw humankind. I heard them crashing through the leaves and growth of the forest and my first sight of them filled me with fear. Here was a beast so huge it could kill me with a mere thought, a single movement of a powerful limb. I did not move, staying as still as the wind permitted.
But luck was not with me that day, for although the humans did not see me, they blundered past the spot where my home was hidden, tearing it to pieces without noticing. I was pulled along and entrapped in a fold of the human's hide. I would have escaped then, had the human not brushed onto a tree, the impact stunning me for a great while. By the time I returned to my senses, I was in this human-place already.
And so, I came here, seeking a place with many dark corners where the humans would not tread. For the first time, I wove my home on stone, and for many days after, I hungered. A single wing-dweller was as a feast to me, and I grew weak and sick. My home-nest fell into disrepair, for I had not the strength to maintain it. Many times I found myself slipping from the dirty strands, and I feared greatly for my life.
Delirium overtook me. I remember little from this time save slipping in and out of consciousness, and the vividness of my dreams. I dreamt of vibrant colors coming from a forest far, far away. I dreamt of a monstrous king of spiders, and a human girl with hair of flame. I dreamt of conflict, a battle of a god and a great, black haired human. I dreamt until I thought my mind would snap.
When I awoke, my hunger, it was great. But it was less, somehow. A dweller-of-air had stuck in my traps while I slept, and I ate it with ravenous gusto. Although it was but one, it was the grandest meal I have ever eaten.
And so now, I wait. I watch these humans as they come and go in their caves. I think. I observe. Did I do this in the forest? I have forgotten much, and remember things that were not mine to know.
My body has changed. It has become hard and lean and chitinous. My colors, which were once soft browns, have darkened, become harsher. I eat seldom, but do not hunger. Yet it is still my body. It retains the shape, but not the form. What have I become?
I have learned the humans' sounds, and have gleaned what they mean. They speak of "science" and "biology". Is this what separates humankind from the creatures of the woodland of my past? This questioning of the world around them...could it be so simple? Where, then, shall I stand, I who have begun to question, but am so far from humanity?
Sometimes, an awareness comes to me. It is as if the edges of my vision begin to shrink, as if something huge lurks on the outer edges of my perception. I try to see it, but there is nothing but the room. I conclude, then, that it cannot be seen. I listen with my greatest intenstity, straining to hear the slightest sound. Nothing can be heard. None of my senses know this thing. What, then, is it? I fear that to find out, I shall have to leave my sanctuary of this seldom-used classroom.
I fear, in fact, many things. I fear what I have become. I fear the place I stay and the things that walk its floors. I fear the darkness when the lamps are turned off and the heatless light when they are on. I fear the humans and their strange ways. I fear my unnamed feelings, and the strange visions that haunt me still.
I shall need to overcome my fear, if I am to discover the source of it.
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Post by bluemotion on Aug 23, 2009 7:14:41 GMT
I have come to learn, in these last few weeks, more of the place which has become my home. It is no mere dwelling, as I had first assumed. Many humans do live within these caves, yes, but that is not their purpose. They call it a school; a place of learning. It is a place where young humans may come to learn to be older humans. In truth, I found it an oddity, at first. I had woven my first home with no instruction, eaten my first wing-dweller without need of a guiding hand.
It soon came to me however, that the smallest of these humans knew more of the world than I, a full adult, had ever dreamed. As the days turned to weeks, I, too, learned much. I began to develop, oddly, a strange familiarity with the humans. This one with the long, shining hair; she was a fast learner, faster than I to pick up the details of what was said. That short boy with the dark eyes, he had a quick wit and often made the other students laugh. Few noticed me, high in the corner as I was, and that suited me. I had no desire to be killed out of hand, and no way to communicate with these creatures.
Of the non-humans, I thought little, though it seemed the humans made much of them, treating them as their own. I wondered, then, if they could even tell the difference, for their appearance was much the same as their human companions. I could tell, with a surety I could not explain. They simply felt different, in a manner that resonated deep in my core. Perhaps it was simple kinship; as I hovered at the edges of this human machine, snatching what I could, so did they.
All this, however, became simple routine to me, and was of little consequence. It is not, I believe, the normalities of life that define us and our memories, but the upheavals, the great events. If the first such upheaval in my life was coming to this human school, my second was leaving it; or leaving, at least, that classroom. I had thought, hanging in my corner, that that single room was the entirety of the place. I had a vague idea that the humans must dwell nearby, to come here regularly, but I had never given much thought to it, choosing to focus on the children's -- on my -- lessons.
But eventually, I wearied of the classroom and its stale darkness. I had by then explored every nook and cranny of it when classes were not in session, discovering many odd devices and queer objects. Having seen it all, however, I decided it was time to explore. And thus I left the safety of the room.
The door was shut, and firmly locked. No obstacle to me, of course; I simply crawled under it. A tight fit it was, the top of one black leg scraping the bottom of the door above me. I had grown larger it seemed, which was slightly surprising. But not nearly as startling as what awaited me outside.
The moon was high in the sky. I remember being uplifted at the sight of it. I had missed the clear nights while confined to my room. It was cold, too, which was odd at the time. The room had been quite warm.
If I had expected forest outside of the door, I had been sorely mistaken. I walked on smooth stone, the kind the walls of the room had been build with. All about me was stone, of various shades of gray and purple. I realized suddenly that I was still under a roof, a kind of overhang supported by pillars. Beyond the pillars lay more buildings, like the one at my back. I could see little, without a proper vantage point. So I climbed a pillar, with a swiftness I would not have expected from my food-deprived body. I felt strong. Stronger than I ever had before, and stronger than I had any right to feel. I made the roof of the building with ease and looked out from its edge.
And I saw nothing but stone. Human buildings stretched out beyond sight, illuminated by the half-moon overhead. In every direction they were endless, an unbroken sea of them, all of different height and size and structure, but all telling me the same thing; "You are lost. You will never leave this place."
What I thought at the time, I cannot recall. I remember simply staring, in shock at the vast expanse before me. I had heard a story, once, from a wing-dweller, of a place called a city. He described it as the largest human home-nest in the world. As trees gathered in the forest, so the humans gathered there, thousands of them, numbers beyond comprehension. I had not believed the wind darter then, but now, I know the truth of it; he had understated its size, make no mistake.
The feeling came over me then, the sense I have described. A feeling almost of dread filled me, and it felt as though a massive beast lurked just outside my vision, ever-present and unseeable. It broke my stupor, and I leapt off the roof, trailing a line behind, catching myself and lowering to the ground. I rushed back under the door, found the darkest corner I could and stayed there, shaking in fear and incomprehension.
I am still there. I am still shaking slightly, though the shock has faded. Where am I to go? How shall I return to the forest? With every passing day, I miss the trees more and more. I know, however, that I must learn more of this place. Learn the size of it, and the purpose, and maybe, an escape will become possible. Odd, that doing something so simple --stepping out the door -- could change my situation so drastically. I wonder how long I have been here.
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Post by silentspark0113 on Aug 24, 2009 6:02:58 GMT
Hello hello! This is something I came up with when I created my little fan character. I might write more, so that's good. Anyway, here it is.
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The Karataev boy was always shy. Not that anyone could blame him of course, after the tragedy that had occurred. Still, even after such a traumatic incident, he should have begun to socialize. Seven years had passed and it was almost like he had just arrived the previous day. The orphanage had tried their best to help the boy, but it seemed like a lost cause. He would simply sit in the corner for the whole day, fidgeting and trembling, looking as though something was about to jump out at him. None of the other kids tried to include him in their games and the only thing he would ever toy with was a small guitar. He would strum small haunting melody's that some on the smaller children blamed for their nightmares. A small and lonely boy with a sad life.
One day, two men in suits arrived at the orphanage. They wouldn't say where they were from or even explain their business. They simply asked to see the Karataev boy. The orphanage workers pointed towards the boy in the corner, his head cocked slightly to the right and his eyes wide. The men walked towards the boy, who seemed confused and frightened. But not by the men.
“Dimetri Karataev?” the taller of the men asked. The boys eyes flicked upwards, as if he had just realized they were there.
“You have been accepted to Gunnerkrigg Court, a prestigious school of science. We have been sent here to inform you and give you this,” the shorter one said, holding up an envelope. Dimetri shuddered slightly at the name of the school, but otherwise didn't respond. The tall man shot a quick glance to the smaller one before continuing.
“We must know whether or not you are interested in attending the Court before we leave. What is your answer?” The boy's eyes opened even wider and he turned his head downwards. A quiet, angry voice came from him.
“Get away from me,” he said, twitching furiously. The men gave each other disapproving glances.
“The Court is unlike the schools you have attended. There you will have a place to live, and the freedom to do as you will,” the short man said, going over the speech taught to them if they ever came across an unwilling child.
Dimetri glared at the men. He then sat up straight and cracked his neck. The men were slightly unsettled but had seen worse. The boy then slowly raised his arms up, pointing towards both men. Once his arms were sticking straight out, he froze. A silence fell over the room, as the men watched this odd boy and hoped he would change his mind quickly so they could leave. A minute passed with no sound. The men began to feel irritated.
Suddenly, Dimetri shot his hands out and quickly poked the two men. The effect this had on them was astounding. The tall man jumped back and tripped over a nearby chair. The short man fell to his knees while the color drained from his face. He stared at the child for a moment before staggering to his feet, grabbing his companion and hurrying out the door. The letter the short man was carrying now lay on the floor, discarded in the chaos.
A silence filled the room again. After a few moments, Dimetri lowered his arms again. When he finally relaxed, his hand came across a small toy train next to his chair. He picked it up and looked at it, eying it's every detail. When he was done, he stared at his shadow, which seemed to flicker slightly. The boy cracked his neck again and threw the train at the shadow. The train shattered when it hit the wall.
Dimetri's eye twitched.
The letter was gone.
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Post by bluemotion on Aug 24, 2009 7:54:29 GMT
Hello Sparky, and welcome to the forums! We'd love to hear more about you in the intro thread!  Good story, keep it coming! |
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Post by Mylian on Aug 31, 2009 20:04:43 GMT
There's so much that happened this week! I had the grandest time with the physicians. They kept asking me to come back, and they seemed to be having a lot of fun studying me, every time they found something new they'd be so happy.
I saw them three times over the week, the first time there was only one, but by the third visit there were five of them all wanting to see me. Physicians seem to have the oddest customs though. I can understand the removal of clothes, as they can't examine me properly otherwise, but the garment they offer in return provides neither coverage or warmth. I wore it out of politeness. First I was examined from head to toe, and all points in between. Some of it was not fun, especially the blood sample, but mostly it was entertaining. Then I was asked to change as completely as I possibly could, and I changed my arms and legs all at once. He seemed to like that, and that's when the other physicians started arriving. They did another full examination, took photographs, x-rays, blood and stuff, and then had me change back for more x-rays and photos.
The second visit was interesting when they showed me the x-rays. I liked seeing the differences in the bones when I'd changed, from five fingers and toes to two great digits on each limb. Another physician arrived then and had me change and started feeling all my muscles. I showed her how my claw sleeves work and she kept writing and drawing her sketches and notes the whole time. Then the third visit was a bit of a fiasco. They had me change and put me through the MRI machine to see my insides, but it tickled so unbearably in the magnetic field that I almost couldn't stay still like they asked me. And then it started to get uncomfortable. I didn't like it. There was something bad about it. I hurt the machine a lot with my claws trying to get out. And when I got out I was very different. My regular-sized arms were back, but on top of my leg-sized ones. My head had changed and my tail was thicker and much longer.
See, here's the photo of me and the doctors all posed together at the end of that visit. They really didn't want me to feel bad about hurting their machine, and we'd gotten to be friends. There's my bigger arms, and the regular ones directly on the shoulders of those. And my tail is magnificent, it must be three meters there. And my ears there are just flat fan things, and you can see one of my secondary eyelids half-closed from the flash, and my nose went away, and see my teeth? The front four on top grew together but the bottom four grew into two side by side. And I could wiggle them, it was funny. But after that they said they'd done all the tests they could think of but I should come visit again if anything changes. It probably will.
But the examination visits weren't the only things I did. After we met last week, I decided to talk to some of the other Chesters and they were happy to tell me about their lives. Since then a few of us have made a regular habit of it. There are so many different cultures in this world, it's hard to understand them all. And one girl, Victoria, has even met Eris! Viccie is a daughter of Nike, and she says the Olympians tend not to like Eris for some political reason, and when I said how beautiful Eris was she just shrugged and said Eris always is, to her favorites. And then a few days later the girls took me aside and we watched movies and stayed up late, and they played with my hair. They said it should be longer, and I tried, but I couldn't make it longer. I could make it shorter, and go away, but I couldn't make it longer than it started out as.
It's funny, the girls seem to have a separate culture that's universal, but somehow independent of their own home culture. Very curious. And Viccie gave me a gift, see! It's a pen with a spinning weight in the end and it wiggles the pen so it makes tiny swirls as you write, and she said I'd have a lot of fun with it and I have, it's fun to write with tiny swirls- Are you okay doctor? You're turning a bit red. Well, if you say so.
There's two girls in Chester we don't see much of, they avoid it when the rest of us get together. One of those girls has dark eyes and she's always very angry and she glows almost like hot soup. I wonder, is she hot because she's angry or is she angry because she's hot? But it doesn't feel in her brain like other people's feel when they get angry. I think she's also sad about it.
No, inside her brain. Where the sparks are, you can't feel them? When people think, there are sparks in their brains. when people move, there are sparks in their nerves and muscles. There are threads of sparks in the walls, too, and inside machines. The MRI machine was full of sparks, that's why it tickled so much. I don't know why it was bad though. I think I started to remember something I very much so didn't want to remember. Oh, no, I can't understand people's exact thoughts, but from the patterns the sparks make I can tell what kinds of things they are thinking or feeling about, and when they are going to talk or move.
I saw the wolf boy this morning. I think he'd been avoiding me all week, and then I spoke to him today and he recognized me and then he went a little red and hot and looked nervous and went away quickly. I don't know why- Well of course he likes me, doctor. We became friends earlier, remember?
Oh, you're right, we have been talking too long today. I'd better go now, I don't want to make your next appointment late. I'll see you next week.
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Post by judgedeadd on Sept 11, 2009 21:38:58 GMT
Due to my love of both Gunnerkrigg Court AND The SCP Foundation, I've decided to write up this small piece. Enjoy??
Item #: SCP-2146 Object Class: Euclid Special Containment Procedures: All samples of SCP-2146 are to be kept within a hermetically sealed room, separated by an airlock and monitored by cameras at all times. When transported, SCP-2146 must be sealed within a hermetic container. SCP-2146 is typically in a state known as "activity level 0"; in this state, it presents no danger. However, all staff present within the containment area of SCP-2146 must wear full haz-mat containment suits, in case SCP-2146 reaches activity level 1 during testing. In case SCP-2146 reaches "activity level 1", all staff present in the containment area must leave immediately and the containment area must be sealed. Thereafter, the containment area will remain sealed until video feed will confirm that SCP-2146 returned to activity level 0. In case SCP-2146 reaches "activity level 2", all staff present in the containment area must leave immediately and the containment area must be sealed. The haz-mat suits are then to be immediately incinerated, while the staff will be put into a 24-hour long quarantine and observed for typical symptoms of SCP-2146 infection. Any members of staff who display these symptoms are to be immediately terminated and their bodies incinerated. Meanwhile, the containment area will remain sealed; once video feed confirms that SCP-2146 returned to activity level 0, the containment area may be re-opened after a 36 hour period. In case SCP-2146 reaches "activity level 3", seal all entrances to the containment area and the airlock immediately. All critical staff, resources and objects kept on-site must be evacuated within 15 minutes. After 20 minutes have passed, detonate the on-site nuclear warhead to contain the inevitable spread of SCP-2146, the destruction of the site and all non-critical personnel notwithstanding. Description: Each instance of SCP-2146 is a microscopic sample, seemingly consisting of [DATA EXPUNGED] apparently only partially biological; observations suggest [DATA EXPUNGED] or perhaps a primitive hive mind. Item is highly infectious when in activity level 1 or higher, and most unprotected physical contact at that time results in [DATA EXPUNGED]. The original sample of SCP-2146 has been recovered from Anomalous Activity Area-G on ██/██/████. It has been entered into a science fair by SCP-3589-1 and SCP-3589-2, and later taken away by SCP staff disguised as Area-G personnel. How SCP-3589-1 managed to procure, or perhaps create, SCP-2146 is currently under investigation. It is thought that the presence of SCP-3589-2 somehow managed to dampen the destructive properties of SCP-2146. While it was transported to a containment facility, SCP-2146 entered activity level 1 for the first time, resulting in 2 infections. They have not been noticed initially, and only after, during a lunch break, both infected personnel have [DATA EXPUNGED] the true extent of danger inherent in SCP-2146 has been realized. SCP-2146 has grown over time; as its instability seems to rise dangerously with mass, it has been divided into several samples, which are now kept separately within several distant containment facilities. SCP-2146 is responsible for a number of incidents, most notably the events of ██/██/████, when - due to carelessness of researching staff - SCP-2146 entered activity level 3, resulting in loss of all contact with the containment facility, eventual destruction thereof, and later spread of the infection to civilian terrain outside the facility. The outbreak has been contained by Mobile Task Force Phi-3 (see document SCP-2146-Q for a detailed report). |
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ecomono
Junior Member
like tuning in a radio
Posts: 83
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Post by ecomono on Sept 12, 2009 13:19:34 GMT
I'd peg that as more of a Keter-class, at least from context clues.
Also, I hold you solely responsible for my wasting 3-4 hours on that website.
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Post by Mylian on Oct 2, 2009 3:56:36 GMT
(This one seemed to be a bit hard to get started, I wonder why?
Funny thing, I noticed the fan art thread gets all kinds of responses, way more than this one does. Writers like feedback too!)
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This was a very confusing week.
Oh, yes, I've changed back again. Back to normal? I don't like that phrase. I wasn't abnormal, I was just me. That's not one of the confusing things though.
The first confusing thing began the night after our last meeting. The other Chester students started showing me movies and music to help me understand culture, and I began to notice a repeated trend. The movies, and the music, very often was about people hurting each other. People hurting each other because of hate, because of love, or for no reason at all. I just can't understand it at all, but the confusing part is that when I asked the others about it, they couldn't seem to understand it either. I'm not sure how well I'll be able to understand this world if the people in it can't even explain it.
Then, early in the week the wolf boy started hanging out--did I say that right?--hanging out with Viccie and me. He introduced himself to her and she was surprised that I didn't know his name after all I told her about him. You're surprised too? You don't have to know someone's name to know who they are.
His name is Upuaut. He says it's a popular wolf name. Then Vic called him Scout, and so we started using that because it was easier. We all explored together for a few days, and it was fun, but it turned confusing in the end too. We were walking along a corridor that had great big doors, some with little windows, and through the windows we could see open spaces each with a tree or odd plant. Scout had been quiet for a while, and then he just kissed me out of nowhere, and then said 'You're not going to stay this way are you...', and when I shook my head he ran off. We haven't seen him the rest of this week, I hope he's okay. What did I think about the kiss? I don't know, that was one of the confusing things.
Another confusing thing happened two days ago, when I laid an egg. Yes, an egg. Anything in it, you mean growing in it? Of course not, you can't do that alone, can you? Anyway, I wouldn't have minded but it took me out of physics class, which I really enjoy. It's so much easier to understand particles than people. I went straight to the infirmary and the usual doctors arrived shortly to study this new development. It was a bit uncomfortable, until I changed, and then I was fine. How big? Oh about seven centimeters wide and twenty long. And then they did all the usual examinations, but I fell asleep at some point and then I woke up to Vic pushing her way in and insisting on seeing me to make sure I was okay. She was a bit surprised because I hadn't shown her an all-over change before, but she said she thought I looked nice anyway, which I hadn't thought about before.
But the most confusing thing of all this week were the dreams. I would be in the MRI machine again, but then it would turn into a cubic room of stone, with chains holding me to the walls. Chains everywhere. And as the room filled with the glow, and the sparks, I would become aware that the room was part of a machine that could still the world. Make it cold and dark, a dead place. And the central component of the whole thing was me. And as the light rises, I wake up. But the confusing part of the dream is the feeling I have that, if I put my mind to it, I could figure out exactly how that machine was built. I would never make it, what possible reason could there be to make a thing like that? But if I just turned and looked a little, I could know how to do it.
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Post by Casey on Oct 2, 2009 4:24:12 GMT
Funny thing, I noticed the fan art thread gets all kinds of responses, way more than this one does. Writers like feedback too!) A picture may be worth a thousand words, but a picture only takes an instant to absorb. I used to do a fair amount of writing myself... communal stories on RP forums for a developing MMO... but I came to find that no one really read them except the people that were involved in them. It's sad. But I feel your pain. ...either that or they were so wowed by the writing that they were all rendered speechless. |
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Post by Mylian on Oct 2, 2009 4:47:44 GMT
What'd really be funny is if it came full circle and somehow resulted in fanart of the fanfics. Or would that be way too meta? XD
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Post by judgedeadd on Oct 2, 2009 4:55:42 GMT
Really, what can be said? Mylian's fics are great to read, and I cannot really think of any criticism at this point.
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Post by sue911 on Oct 2, 2009 7:44:46 GMT
Wow,all the stories in this thread are really engaging.Gunnerkrigg court breeds and attracts talent.
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Post by Count Casimir on Oct 2, 2009 9:25:25 GMT
All of the writing you guys have done is awesome. You've done amazing jobs of putting out feelers to explore the GC world.
Not as good as the stuff prior, and somewhat short, but here's my attempt:
I stood and waited, as I have always done. My master was angry. This did not upset me, though, for he was always angry. Rarely came the day when my lord's rage was unleashed upon me and my fellows, and though his fury seemed near the limits of his patience, I knew that we would remain safe. Perhaps several of the tiny flat men would be caused grief, but my only concern was to provide them a covering against illumination.
I pondered for a few short hours, and finally settled upon the likely cause of the master's tantrum. The alien being that had entered the forest was of a variety I had seldom encountered, though it evoked an air of familiarity. My memory was long, though, and thus included great gaps—whatever the being reminded me of had not been significant enough for me to think on it further. Instead, I wondered at Master's dislike of the creature.
Was it jealousy? The being had not been uninvited; it had come at the behest of my master's master, in fact. Though I did not pretend to know its motives, the favor of that being meant a great deal to my lord. Perhaps concern for the safety of me and my kin? My master was nearly kin himself, though he had not been born so.
Unable to reach a satisfactory conclusion, I discarded the mental puzzle. It was unlikely that I'd ever be called upon to provide an opinion, and in any case, the sun was rising. My uppermost leaves fluttered, brimming with anticipation as the first golden rays roiled across them. I readied myself as I did every morning. If all was well, I would not be called on today; but it was my task to do as my master ordered, and it was his task to do as his master ordered. I stood and waited, as I have always done.
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Post by silentspark0113 on Oct 29, 2009 3:02:58 GMT
Hello again. Wrote another part of Dimetri's story. Not as good as the first, but decent.
“Hello there. Does a boy named Dimetri Karataev live here?” said a man. He was tall, well built, and fairly handsome by most standards. He had a slight smirk and straight black hair. In front of him was a worried looking nun with a ruler in one hand and a book in the other. The nun sighed slightly.
“I assume you're here for the same reason those other men were?” she asked him.
“Yes,” he said simply. The nun shrugged slightly and stepped aside from the door. The man entered the small room. He nearly banged his head on the ceiling when he tried to straighten up. The room was quiet, all the children seemed to be in their rooms. The nuns were picking up the things scattered around the room. The only thing that seemed to be untouhed was the bookshelf. The nun behind him closed the door and started off down a hallway.
“Come on, he's down here,” she said, gesturing for him to follow. They headed off down the hall, around a corner and down another hall. The house seemed to be almost falling apart, like it was under as much stress as the nuns. The wallpaper was starting to peel and the floor creaked. At the end of the hall, though, the house seemed refreshed. The floor stopped squeaking, the wallpaper seemed renewed, yet everything seemed darker. A heaviness hung over this part of the home. It was obvious not many people wandered down there.
“Here is his room,” she said. The man glanced at her.
“He get's his own room?” he said. The nun sighed.
“None of the othe children will share a room with him.” Before he could ask why, the nun opened the door. It was a small bare room, with only a stool, a bed, and a small table. On the stool sat a boy. He seemed small, hunched over. His straight brown hair was pointed downwards, his eyes staring at his hands. He seemed small. “Dimetri? There's someone here to see you.”
The man walked in and closed the door. Dimetri didn't look up.
“Hello. My name is Mr. Eglamore. I'm here to invite you to Gunnerkrigg Court again.” Dimetri's hand twitched slightly. Eglamore frowned before continuing. “You gave the other men who came here quite a scare. What happened?” Eglamore walked closer to Dimetri and shrunk down to his level. Dimetri'e face was unusually pale and his eyes seemed as wide as dinner plates. Eglamore frowned. “You know, I'm not usually sent out to find people. The court is especially interested in you.” Dimetri turned his head to glare at Eglamore.
“I am not an object,” he growled before returning to his hands. Eglamore was taken aback. He didn't even realize how that might have sounded.
“I didn't mean it like that. I meant that we think you are a very special person and that we would like to help you.” Dimetri looked up again, but there was a different look in his eyes.
“H... help m-me?” he stammered. Eglamore nodded.
“If you come to the Court, you will learn, have fun, and even make new friends.” Dimetri looked away again. Eglamore thought he might've said something wrong again.
“Who would want to be friends with me?” he said. A tear slid down his face and fell to the floor. The light shifted and a shadow appeared behind him. Eglamore tried to put his hand on the boys shoulder, but he jerked away before they could touch.
“Dimetri.” Dimetri looked up again to see the warmest face anyone had shown him. “There are friends for you at Gunnerkrigg Court.” The light must have shifted again because his shadow grew large momentarily before subsiding. Dimetri began to twitch heavily. He turned from Eglamore, who's warm face turned concerned. He turned towards his shadow and stared at it. The shadow seemed to twitch.
“He-help...” Dimetri muttered, and the shadow vanished. Eglamore watched the boy, who stopped twitching and just seemed to be staring at the wall. He seemed taller and somewhat stronger. Finally, after a few minutes, he turned back to Eglamore with a slight smile.
“When do I start?”
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Post by spritznar on Nov 1, 2009 5:43:15 GMT
He introduced himself to her and she was surprised that I didn't know his name after all I told her about him. You're surprised too? You don't have to know someone's name to know who they are. i love that line cause it's so true. i have a terrible time remembering peoples names, partially because i usually interact with people one on one so there's no confusion over who you're talking to and you don't have to address them as anything. but i always feel bad when other people know my name but i don't know theirs (which is especially irksome at work where i'm wearing a name tag and they're not). and you probably didn't care about my thoughts on the matter but i liked that line because of the insight it gives into social interactions. that's pretty much my favorite thing about your whole series, the insight it gives on society from an outsiders view. also, on the lack of comments on writing; for me usually by the time i get to the end of something all i can think of to comment is "wow, that was awesome" which makes a nice ego boost, but isn't particularly useful or insightful otherwise. *shrug* i generally figure if i don't have something slightly intelligent to add i should just keep quiet. (this said at the end of a ramble - bet some of you wish i would have just kept my mouth shut this time too) |
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Post by Mylian on Nov 1, 2009 17:19:04 GMT
Heck no, I dig the feedback. I'm glad to know what I'm going for is successful. It's easy to find a story of culture shock when someone of one culture is introduced to another, but I wanted to take it to another level and have a character with no enculturation at all, not even ferally developed but completely raw and new while still being rational, and introduce that character to the polycultural dynamic of globally mixed societies.
On another note, silentspark's work is interesting. On the one hand, I know it probably shouldn't be said on this board but the setting inevitably recalls parallels to similar scenes in The-Books-That-Must-Not-Be-Named, but the clear differences in Dimetri's attitude and actions show that the character is not derivative of the other in any way.
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Post by silentspark0113 on Nov 2, 2009 5:26:53 GMT
Hey, thanks! Looking back, I suppose it does have a Book-That-Can't-Be-Named feel, but I can assure you it wasn't intentional. I'm also not going to stick along that path. Anyhow, thanks for the feedback!
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Post by Mylian on Nov 11, 2009 3:31:36 GMT
I had great fun this week, and I think I feel a bit better about this place. The things people sometimes do can be confusing and distressing, but it can't be all bad if they still know how to play games.
First, in conversation the subject of a game called hide-and-seek came up, and everyone seemed to be very concerned that I didn't know what it was. So we all went out and they taught me how to play it. While we were playing I learned a trick. See, I'll put my hand on the desk here, and then I'll make my skin look just like the wood. Or I can make it look like the metal of the doorknob there, or the concrete of the wall in the corridor. I can make any part of my skin look like anything I've seen, but it's a bit easier if I can feel the texture too. In fact, I haven't even bothered trying to get it to be human skin again, I just make it look that way. My fingernails are mimicked too, it's just skin. And I have to remember to keep my ears wrinkled now or they go flat.
After that, another subject came up in conversation, though I'd read of swimming I decided to ask Vic about it because I found the concept very interesting. So the Chesters who played hide-and-seek with us before decided to go on another excursion to help teach me swimming. I couldn't hide my tail in the swim trunks, But none of the other Chesters seemed to be very surprised by it. One or two even let their own interesting features show; one girl seemed to have her hair in many braids, but they're actually snakes. And a boy took off his shirt that was hiding a large eye in the middle of his chest, and a mouth in his belly. Then I got in the water, and learning swimming turned out to be quite unnecessary because I found I could do it very well already. The first time I went under the water, Vic seemed to be scared for me when I came back up. She thought I was under for a very long time but it seemed quick to me. Everyone else could only stay under for a moment, and they had to scoop with their limbs to move around. I tried to teach them how to push with the whole body, but it seems to be very difficult without the skin I have. The physician who examined it called it "subcutaneous voluntary/prehensile layer". I studied the words, they mean that I can move my skin by choice, and grasp objects with it. The physicians liked that trick when we found it out together.
A few days later we played a new game with Doctor Disaster. I wasn't sure at first that it was a game, but when we were fitted for suits and they were activated I saw the illusion show right away. Most of the others saw the illusions as solid things, and Doctor Disaster had to take the few of us who did see them as shadows aside to "calibrate his simulator" for us, as he put it. He said Chester House always has a few that need to be adjusted for. Then we joined the others in the game, who were loading into small spacecraft, and we all launched to escort a freighter carrying a delegation of alien ambassadors from Europa to Ganymede. There was an attack, and laser beams were firing everywhere and we were all swooping around and having a lot of fun. Viccie's fighter got blown up and I swung around to retrieve her escape bubble, and then we made a mad run on the last few attackers and my craft was hit too, and we spent a few minutes laughing in zero-gravity in the plastic bubble before someone else hooked our bubble and dragged us to the freighter. Then the freighter entered Ganymede's orbit, all of us in the game were lined up and given medals, and then we got on a rocket that took us out of the simulation.
But through this whole week, we saw nothing of our wolf friend. Viccie says not to worry about him, but he seemed very upset when he ran off before.
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Post by judgedeadd on Nov 12, 2009 16:57:42 GMT
Great, great, keep 'em coming!
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Post by bluemotion on Dec 23, 2009 3:05:42 GMT
Finally got around to writing more, woohoo! Hope you guys have enjoyed my stuff, and sorry this one is kinda long!
___________________________________________
It is called Gunnerkrigg Court, this human city. This, and many other things, I have learned these past weeks. I know not what the word means. I assume it to be simply a title as these humans call themselves by. But these trifles are of little importance when compared to the grand discoveries I have made.
After leaving the classroom that first time, I resolved to go about my exploration in a more organized fashion. After some thought, I decided I would need to contrive a way to ride upon one of the humans, in order to speed my movement. From there, I would simply follow this human on its daily routine. Perhaps, I thought, this would yield some new knowledge of the place in which I was trapped.
I chose for my unwitting vehicle a thing named "Brinnie". It was not human, but intrigued me; I had overheard from their conversation that it was the daughter of something they called "The Old Man". I had no idea what this could mean, but thought perhaps if I attached myself to it, I might learn. And learning was, of course, what I had set out to do.
And so, with some trepidation and no small amount of fear, I climbed its chair leg during class and settled myself between the pleats of its skirt. I made sure I was reasonably well hidden, as I had no desire to be mashed flat by one of the human's mighty hands, mistaken for a common pest.
When it rose from its seat at the end of class, I was nearly overcome by nerves. I truly had no idea where I would end up, or whether I would see this little classroom that had become my home again. But there was no turning back at that point.
Brinnie walked swiftly through the long hallways and covered courtyards of the school. I was impressed by how fast these humans moved. It seemed I had chosen a fine way to travel. Soon, Brinnie came to another classroom door, which it hurried through, taking a seat next to an odd looking boy with blond hair. They began to chat amiably, waiting for class to begin, and I unfolded myself from its skirt and climbed up a wall to observe the class properly.
As the class started, something caught my attention immediately. I recognized the students! Two of them, at least. When I was laid low by sickness, I had dreamt of a fire-headed girl and a great, black-haired human--and here they were, in front of me! The shock was such that I nearly dropped from my perch on the wall.
"Why?" my mind screamed. Why had my fevered subconscious, in the midst of meaningless dreams, delivered these two faces to me? Had all the visions in my delirium been prophetic? It was impossible! Yet there was no doubt! Their faces perfectly mirrored my visions!
Reeling with shock, I tried to focus on the class as it started. It was a simple science class, mostly things I knew or had puzzled out by myself. I instead focused on these faces from my dreams. The fire-headed girl, who seemed to be named "Surma", had an odd feeling about her. I seemed to be attracted to her, with an inexplicable resonance similar to what I felt from the non-human students. Her companion, named "Anny", was also remarkable. Like Surma, she did not feel altogether normal, but her resonance was distinctly different from Surma's; opposite, even. Yet the pair seemed to be close friends.
Suddenly, I realized the class was ending. Desperately, I launched myself from the wall and scrambled as quickly as possible toward Surma. I would find out more about the meanings of my dreams, I resolved.
However, in my haste, I neglected caution. Moving across the bare floor, I was soon noticed by one of the girls of the class. Upon seeing me, she for some reason gave a terrified shriek. I stopped dead, turning toward her. More students started to notice my presence, and more girls let out cries of alarm. Realizing my foolishness, I turned to run toward the door, but before I had made more than three steps, a boy in front of me slammed down a book, crushing me beneath.
The impact was tremendous. It flattened me against the ground, my legs spreading out. I was nearly deafened by the sound of it. The pressure was surely deadly-- yet somehow, my body held.
My skeleton did not crack. My legs did not snap.The pain was nearly unbearable, of course, yet incredibly, I survived.
The book lifted. I immediately scrambled to my feet and ran my fastest toward the door. A gasp of surprise went up from the gathered students. Dodging around their legs, I scraped beneath the door, climbing quickly up the wall outside.
Keeping my wits about me through the pain was difficult, but I managed. As Surma exited the classroom, I lowered myself from the roof above and grabbed ahold of her bag as she passed. She did not notice me, being far too busy describing to Anny the incredible spider she had seen in the classroom. With a start, I realized she meant me!
"It had t'be two inches wide!" she was saying, "And it looked like it was made of metal! and when Jimmy hit it with the book, it just got up and headed for th' door like nothin' 'ad 'appened! It must have been mechanical, or somethin'."
That did not sound at all like me! I was nowhere near that large! And metal? How changed was my body?
"I never heard of robot spider before," Anny said, sounding dubious. She spoke with a strong accent. "Maybe Jimmy just not hit it hard enough?"
"I dunno. I'd like t'see it again though. It looked interestin', whatever it was," Surma said, somewhat enthusiastically. I was somewhat flattered, despite myself. That seemed to close the subject.
As I rode, the feeling I have described hit me hard, more intense than I have ever felt. It was as if suddenly the walls closed in on me, or as if something monstrous swarmed just out of sight. My overwhelming instinct was to run, to hide, to dance about frantically, looking in all directions--yet I did not. I held firm. I must keep my courage, if I am to discover the source of my fear.
And so, I am riding toward on unknown destination, at the whim of a girl I have seen in a vision, in the midst of a place I had never dreamed existed until a few months ago. I know not where these giants' steps will take me, but I feel as ready as I will ever be.
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