Stathis woke Arran every few hours and spent the time between sitting in the hall outside her room, continuing to look through Neifion’s notes on the spring. He had seen enough references now to have a few ideas about the water. In addition to having whatever divinatory function Arran had stumbled across, it also seemed to have some form of regenerative properties, explaining why the wound on her forehead had seemed to be shrinking. It was healing far quicker than it would have naturally.
Around the middle of the night, he put down the notes and slipped quickly through the tower and to the roof to retrieve the crystals from the spires
Arran woke when Merfyn began burrowing under the blankets. Laughing, she hugged him. “Is it time to get up, then?” He leapt off the bed and she began getting ready for the day, pulling her clothes off the rack near the fireplace where she had left them to dry after washing them the night before. Merfyn went around the room lighting the various magical lights and opening the door once she was dressed. She ran her fingers through her hair and braided it quickly, not wanting to keep him waiting. Pausing, she stared at the door. A wooden plaque with a smooth finish hung from the exterior of the door, “Arran’s Room” p
After a stressful day and happily snuggled with the cat, Arran expected to fall asleep quickly. Instead, she found herself completely awake and pensive. She had only been in this tower for a day and it had somehow managed to be incredibly difficult as well as fascinating and baffling. Her memories plagued her, but her experiences here were enough to keep her mind free of them.
She found a thought to explain it: she was having fun. Her experience in this tower was closer to enjoyable than any she had had since her family’s farm fell to the undead. Even after that stint trapped in the hall and all of this uncertainty, she felt invigorate
After supper Arran talked Stathis into leaving her in the greenhouse with her stack of books and a pot of tea. He told her that they would talk about other possible destinations tomorrow and to say his name if she wanted to leave the greenhouse before he returned. She sat on the walkway through the greenhouse, looking around at the plants as she ordered the books and teapot to her liking.
All of the uncertainty was starting to damage her already frayed nerves. She did not know where she was going, she did not know how much longer she would be in this tower, she had no idea what Stathis’ motivations were, she couldn’t get away fro
Left alone in the library, Arran let out her breath in a rush. She regretted asking a question that he wasn’t willing to answer, but there was no way she could have known previous to asking. She put the harebell on the low table and settled herself between the rugs, a few maps in her hands. She hoped to line out the best route away from the tower and towards Angost. Stathis had pulled out maps of the area when she asked, and said that he would tell her more about Angost after he had seen to a few things around the tower.
Angost itself was not on the map, but Stathis had shown her where it would be if the map were large enough to contai
Several hours later, Stathis’ eyes opened. He felt immensely better and he rose slowly, making a note not to go so long without meditation again as he put the crystal back on his belt. Bracing himself, he stepped into the hall and winced as the normal sounds of the tower and the outside bombarded his senses. The peace of the anechoic chamber left him almost instantaneously, tension and confusion returning in a rush. He worked at keeping his breathing even and regular, rolling and unrolling his fingers into his palms again and again until he no longer felt quite so much like he was drowning.
After several moments, he was able to sort th
Stumbling into the clearing, Arran picked herself up and rushed toward the light that always seemed just beyond her reach. The sounds of the undead behind her gave new strength to her legs and she sprinted for a while, dodging around bushes and trees. They were so close, she didn’t dare stop long enough to use her bow to try and slow them and she wasn’t confident enough of her knife work to let them get that close. A part of her was sure she’d die tonight, the rest of her held on to the hope that the green light above the trees was leading her to some measure of safety.
It was only by chance that she noticed the rock face i
Arran woke when Merfyn began burrowing under the blankets. Laughing, she hugged him. “Is it time to get up, then?” He leapt off the bed and she began getting ready for the day, pulling her clothes off the rack near the fireplace where she’d left them to dry after she’d washed them the night before. Merfyn went around the room lighting the various magical lights and opening the door once she was dressed. She ran her fingers through her hair and braided it quickly, not wanting to keep the cat waiting. Pausing, she stared at the door. A wooden plaque with a smooth finish hung from the exterior of the door, “Arran
After a stressful day and happily snuggled with the cat, Arran expected to fall asleep quickly. Instead, she found herself completely awake and pensive. She’d spent a day in this tower and it had somehow managed to be as hard or harder than the days immediately after escaping the panic room. Yet she was having fun; she was closer to enjoying herself than she had been since before she fell in with Reko’s little group, even after that stint trapped in the hallway and all the uncertainty. It wasn’t wrong to enjoy a little safety from the undead, was it? Perhaps she was uncertain because she liked it here and didn’t want t
After supper Arran talked Stathis into leaving her in the greenhouse with her stack of books and a pot of tea. He told her that they’d talk about other possible destinations tomorrow and to say his name if she wanted to leave the greenhouse before he returned. She sat on the walkway through the greenhouse, looking around at the plants as she ordered the books and teapot to her liking.
All of the uncertainty was starting to damage her already frayed nerves. She didn’t know where she was going, she didn’t know how much longer she’d be in this tower, she had no idea what Stathis’ motivations were, and she wasn̵
Stathis woke Arran every few hours and spent the time between sitting in the hall outside her room, continuing to look through Neifion’s notes on the spring. He had seen enough references now to have a few ideas about the water. In addition to having whatever divinatory function Arran had stumbled across, it also seemed to have some form of regenerative properties, explaining why the wound on her forehead had seemed to be shrinking. It was healing far quicker than it would have naturally.
Around the middle of the night, he put down the notes and slipped quickly through the tower and to the roof to retrieve the crystals from the spires
Arran woke when Merfyn began burrowing under the blankets. Laughing, she hugged him. “Is it time to get up, then?” He leapt off the bed and she began getting ready for the day, pulling her clothes off the rack near the fireplace where she had left them to dry after washing them the night before. Merfyn went around the room lighting the various magical lights and opening the door once she was dressed. She ran her fingers through her hair and braided it quickly, not wanting to keep him waiting. Pausing, she stared at the door. A wooden plaque with a smooth finish hung from the exterior of the door, “Arran’s Room” p
After a stressful day and happily snuggled with the cat, Arran expected to fall asleep quickly. Instead, she found herself completely awake and pensive. She had only been in this tower for a day and it had somehow managed to be incredibly difficult as well as fascinating and baffling. Her memories plagued her, but her experiences here were enough to keep her mind free of them.
She found a thought to explain it: she was having fun. Her experience in this tower was closer to enjoyable than any she had had since her family’s farm fell to the undead. Even after that stint trapped in the hall and all of this uncertainty, she felt invigorate
After supper Arran talked Stathis into leaving her in the greenhouse with her stack of books and a pot of tea. He told her that they would talk about other possible destinations tomorrow and to say his name if she wanted to leave the greenhouse before he returned. She sat on the walkway through the greenhouse, looking around at the plants as she ordered the books and teapot to her liking.
All of the uncertainty was starting to damage her already frayed nerves. She did not know where she was going, she did not know how much longer she would be in this tower, she had no idea what Stathis’ motivations were, she couldn’t get away fro
Left alone in the library, Arran let out her breath in a rush. She regretted asking a question that he wasn’t willing to answer, but there was no way she could have known previous to asking. She put the harebell on the low table and settled herself between the rugs, a few maps in her hands. She hoped to line out the best route away from the tower and towards Angost. Stathis had pulled out maps of the area when she asked, and said that he would tell her more about Angost after he had seen to a few things around the tower.
Angost itself was not on the map, but Stathis had shown her where it would be if the map were large enough to contai
Several hours later, Stathis’ eyes opened. He felt immensely better and he rose slowly, making a note not to go so long without meditation again as he put the crystal back on his belt. Bracing himself, he stepped into the hall and winced as the normal sounds of the tower and the outside bombarded his senses. The peace of the anechoic chamber left him almost instantaneously, tension and confusion returning in a rush. He worked at keeping his breathing even and regular, rolling and unrolling his fingers into his palms again and again until he no longer felt quite so much like he was drowning.
After several moments, he was able to sort th
Stumbling into the clearing, Arran picked herself up and rushed toward the light that always seemed just beyond her reach. The sounds of the undead behind her gave new strength to her legs and she sprinted for a while, dodging around bushes and trees. They were so close, she didn’t dare stop long enough to use her bow to try and slow them and she wasn’t confident enough of her knife work to let them get that close. A part of her was sure she’d die tonight, the rest of her held on to the hope that the green light above the trees was leading her to some measure of safety.
It was only by chance that she noticed the rock face i
Will you make it past the fall
Through iron-bar fences, thorn-bush paths?
Will you hear the cloud-borne call?
The klaxon, tocsin,
The fresh wet breath,
The truth-fed flavor,
The touch of chilling winds, and
The image of changing time.
Do you see the five-point leaves upon the blue-bark tree?
The wind calls to you -
Time is drifting on, shifting
on,
While you find yourself lost in the
Twisting
of that moment,
roiling
Will you make it past the fall
Through iron-bar fences, thorn-bush paths?
Will you hear the cloud-borne call?
Do you feel the turn, the shift -
Do you see the five-point leaves upon the blue-bark tree?
Will you cling
In a word life is never simple
In a phrase life is only pain
In a sentence there is only death in this world
In a song... what can I say?
In a word I am simply foolish
In a phrase I'm a crazy freak
In a sentence I am all but dead to this world
In a song... there's not much to say.
There's a word I cannot remember
There's a phrase that means the world to me
There's a sentence that means little to the world
There's a song... but what does it say?
I'm a fool to forget so much beauty
I'm a fool to forget what it means
I'm a fool who's got nothing to offer
Here's my song... good luck finding meaning.
In a word I'm surrounded by peo
What is the worth of a name?
Is it in the symbols that designate the sound,
Or is it simply the fact that these
Arbitrary modulations of sound waves
Are the only way we know to indicate that guy in the corner
Who has no other singular trait about him?
Or is it all we have left of the person we loved
And lost -
But never knew well enough to call them by?
Stumbling into the clearing, Arran picked herself up and rushed toward the light that always seemed just beyond her reach. The sounds of the undead behind her gave new strength to her legs and she sprinted for a while, dodging around bushes and trees. They were so close, she didn’t dare stop long enough to use her bow to try and slow them and she wasn’t confident enough of her knife work to let them get that close. A part of her was sure she’d die tonight, the rest of her held on to the hope that the green light above the trees was leading her to some measure of safety.
It was only by chance that she noticed the rock face i