"WOD" - Chapter One
Chapter One
Eventide. A utopian kingdom forever enchanted by endless
twilight.
The cityscape was a consolidation of medieval and
contemporary architecture, with condominiums structured along one side of the
kingdom and tall, majestic castles along the borders. Automobiles and
horsedrawn carriages brought denizens to and from their destinations. Lanterns
strung between buildings and electric-powered streetlights illuminated the
boulevards and alleys.
In one such alley, a white orb-shaped vessel materialized
to the chorus of wheezes that would’ve been audible in quieter sceneries;
however, with the busy Eventide ambiance, no one heard the sounds or even
noticed the orb’s ethereal arrival.
From it emerged a little African-American boy who was ten
years of age. Hanging over his shoulder was a teal frame purse, and in one hand
was a wooden staff with a blue, diamond-shaped crystal. To his friends back in
his home dimension, he was known as ‘Craig of the Creek’; but to his family and
everyone else, he was simply Craig Williams.
For some time now, Craig had been a traveler of the
multiverse, thanks to an alien machine called a ‘TARDIS,’ owned and designed by
Aznavorian the Tinkerer – a Time Lord from the planet of Gallifrey and one of
Craig’s best friends. He had been to so many worlds in so many universes that
he completely lost count of just how many he had been to. Eventide could very
well have been the hundredth one – a centennial occasion!
Just to be certain, he asked Aznavorian, “Hey, is this
the hundredth world we’ve been to?”
“Say again?” An angelic voice echoed from inside the orb
that was Aznavorian’s TARDIS, a Type-X model. The voice itself belonged to
Aznavorian’s current sixth incarnation – a beautiful twentysomething brunette
who gave herself the name of ‘Rania’.
Craig spoke louder for his friend. “I said, is this the
hundredth world we’ve been to?”
“Oh, you know I’ve lost count, hon,” Rania told
him. Craig heard a few clangs reverberate from inside the ship before Rania
added, “I’ll be out in a sec. Hang tight.”
“O.K.,” Craig acknowledged.
He waited patiently outside, until he noticed a little
blond girl staring at him from the end of the alley. She looked very pretty,
possibly the same age as him, holding a large sunflower that hid one side of
her face; in fact, she was standing near a whole street vendor that sold them.
Craig wasn’t sure if the girl’s parents owned the vendor or if it was just one
from where she plucked a sunflower all for herself.
She gestured for Craig to come to her, and he did, after
some hesitation.
The sunflower girl surprised him with a quick kiss on the
cheek before handing the sunflower over to him and happily hopping away.
Craig was taken aback by the suddenness, which left him
with a huge smile.
Wow! The people sure are friendly here!
He held the sunflower up to his nose and took a whiff of
its fresh, delightful scent. But, suddenly, a more charming scent overwhelmed
his senses; this one he recognized, and it registered whenever Rania was
nearby. “O.K., I’m ready for some explorin’!” Craig heard her say behind him,
right before she complimented the sunflower he held, “Ooh! That’s beautiful!
Where’d ya get it?”
“This pretty girl gave it to me, right after she—”
Craig turned to face Rania and the sunflower nearly
dropped from his grip as he noticed a significant change in his friend’s
appearance.
Rania saw the surprise in his demeanor and grew
concerned. “You okay, babe?”
“Y-Yeah,” Craig stammered, struggling to collect himself.
“It’s just…you look like a princess from one of Jessica’s movies!”
“Aww!” Rania gushed. “That is a good thing, I
hope?”
“It’s a great thing,” Craig clarified. “As a
matter of fact, everybody here – even that sunflower girl – looks like a
fairy tale character!”
“The spatial quality in worlds like Eventide is strong,”
Rania told him. “I believe there’s magic in the nuage energy.”
Her explanation became drowned out by music that Craig
heard but couldn’t see where it was coming from. “Do you hear music?” he asked
Rania. “I don’t see a band or anything playing it.”
“That’s the magic,” Rania winked before she
suddenly began to sing:
She steps into the night
Stars are shining bright
A path of glowing light
Leading to a sight
Mountains touching skies
Dreams in her eyes
Wings made to fly
No more goodbyes
In this world of magic
Anything can be
Every dream’s elastic
From a tiny seed
Waterfalls that sing
Fairy tales bring
Echoes of the king
Freedom in the spring
Creatures big and small
Answering her call
Through the castle hall
Heart begins to fall
In this world of magic
Anything can be
Every dream’s elastic
From a tiny seed
Craig had never seen or heard Rania sing before. She
danced jubilantly through the streets of Eventide, and the townsfolk responded
in kind, abandoning their mundane tasks to dance and sing along to her
whimsical tune. It was like something straight out of a fairy tale
cartoon, and Craig loved every second of it.
Creatures big and small
Answering her call
Through the castle hall
Heart begins to fall
In this world of magic
Anything can be
Every dream’s elastic
From a tiny seed
From a tiny seed!
From a seed
And, just like that, once the song ended, so did the
music. Everyone returned to their activities, and Rania stood with a vibrant
smile that grew from the applause of Craig. “Thank you, thank you,” she took a
bow.
“That was awesome!” Craig exclaimed. “That happens
all the time in worlds like this one?!”
“Yep, occasionally,” Rania confirmed. “I brought Kristin
to another once. She was embarrassed at first that she suddenly busted out into
song, but she grew to love it after she heard me sing.”
“I wanna try!” Craig cheered.
Rania held up her hands in protest. “Craig, honey, wait.
It’s actually not that…”
Unfortunately, Craig proceeded on, hopping around the
street corner and loudly singing off-key: “The creek is everywhere! The
creek is everywhere! The creek is everywhere!” However, none of the
Eventide residents joined in; there wasn’t any music either. All he managed to
do was garner a few awkward gazes, much to his confusion. “I don’t get it. What
am I doing wrong?”
Rania squatted down to place a supportive hand on his
shoulder. “Nothing, sweetheart. It only happens at random…sometimes when your
heart’s in the right place.”
Craig crossed his arms in a huff. “It must be easy when
ya got two hearts.”
Rania snickered. “Eh, it took a while for me, too,” she confessed.
“Maybe you just need a little rest.” On this suggestion, she spotted a quaint little
inn around the nearest corner. “Let’s rest up there for the night.”
“Why not inside the TARDIS?” Craig inquired.
“Because the inns in Eventide are super cozy,”
Rania said. “It’s like staying at a Disney Parks resort!”
Craig frowned. “A what resort?!”
“I really need to take you there sometime,” Rania
smirked.
She and Craig made their way towards the inn, where an
elderly couple stood out near the front entrance and were engaged in something
of a squabble. “You need to rest, Belinda,” the husband told his wife,
with notable concern in his gruff, old voice. “You’re ill, just like Edgards
was last week and Mason the week before him!”
“Only I decide when to rest, Seamus!” Belinda
retorted. “No illness is going to keep me away from my duties to this inn!” She
then noticed Rania and Craig heading their way, seizing the opportunity in
changing the subject. “Speaking of which, here come a couple of youngin’s in
need of a place to sleep right now.”
“Good evening,” Rania greeted them. “Any vacancy in this beautiful
inn?”
“Yes,” Belinda verified.
“No!” Seamus contested aggressively.
“Seamus! What do you think you’re doing?!” Belinda
scolded.
“Belinda, look at them,” Seamus gestured to Rania and
Craig. “Have you seen them around town before? They could be outsiders that
brought it with them!”
Craig raised a curious eyebrow. “Brought what with us?”
“The plague, son!” Seamus thundered. “The one that’s
befallen Eventide in the last month! People who’ve been affected by it have
been disappearing from the city! And now my wife has it! See?” He took one of Belinda’s
arms, which did have visible discoloration that went across her bosom, and held
it up for Rania and Craig to see.
“That’s enough, Seamus!” Belinda tore herself away from
his grip. “You’re scaring these poor children!”
“Well, they should be scared!” Seamus snapped
before stepping inside the inn.
Belinda sighed, shaking her head. “That man…his heart’s
in the right place, but his head’s completely up his own…” She
restrained herself upon seeing the 10-year-old Craig. “Anyway, there’s no need
to fuss about it. Let’s get you two a room, shall we?”
Rania and Craig were settled into one on the sixth
topmost floor of the inn.
It had a magnificent view of the castles on the outskirts
of Eventide. Seeing them there, Rania ruminated aloud, “It’s probably the royal
blood in me, but I’m anxious to see the inside of those castles – maybe even
meet the kings and queens of Eventide! Rumor has it that there are five
royal families here. Maybe we can visit all of them in the morning…or what
constitutes as a morning in Eventide. Would you like that, Craig?”
Craig didn’t respond, which prompted Rania to turn and
see him standing uneasily in the middle of their room; he was practically
shaking.
“Sweetheart, are you alright?” She asked him.
“No,” Craig bluntly professed, visibly afraid. “Didn’t
you hear what that man said? There’s a plague here – and it’s making people
disappear!”
Rania rested her hands on his quivering shoulders. “I
promise you, there’s absolutely nothing to be scared of, Craig. Yes,
Miss Belinda’s sick, but Mister Seamus could easily be overexaggerating about
the disappearances. We’ll look into it, once we’ve got a good long rest.” She
guided him over to their only bed, which she was willing to allow him to sleep
on while she sat at the chair by the window.
“What if we catch it?” Craig asked.
“We won’t. Our prolonged exposure to the nuage energy in
the Infinite DC keeps us immune to any diseases in the worlds we visit.”
“You’re just saying that to get me to sleep, aren’t you?”
“Is it working?”
“NO! IT’S NOT!”
The frustrated Craig curled himself into a fetal position
on the bed; his eyes were shut tight, yet he was too frightened to lull himself
to sleep. It was then that he heard music again – this time, it was gentle,
almost like a lullaby.
He heard Rania singing again, her voice more angelic than
it had ever been…
Close your eyes, little one
Dreams will start come along
Moonlight whispers soft and bright
Wishing stars in the night
Quiet now, morning’s near
Hold your teddy, feel no fear
Silver lights will guide your way
‘Till the rise of a brand-new day
Sleep sweetly, sleep tight
Embrace the magic of the night
Stardust falls a fairy’s flight
Dreams come true in soft moonlight
Whisper winds in the trees
Tell of dreams and peaceful seas
Floating on a cloud so high
Kiss the moon, say goodbye
Lay your head, rest and be
Safe in slumber peacefully
Wonder waits in the morn
With the breaking of the dawn
Sleep sweetly, sleep tight
Embrace the magic of the night
Stardust falls a fairy’s flight
Dreams come true in soft moonlight
The soothing serenade did just the trick. Craig was out
like a light by its close.
With her little companion fast asleep, Rania helped him
get more comfortable by removing his shoes and placing the bed covers over him.
“Good night, sweetie,” she whispered to him, following with a kiss on the side
of his head. Craig reflectively smiled from the warm gesture.
Rania was ready to relax herself, settling into that
chair by the window and taking in the majestic city view.
But just as she was about to…
You can’t protect him forever…
She sharply turned once she heard the dark, hollowed
voice that sounded as if it came directly from within the room.
Other than the sleeping Craig, no one was there.
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