Mzor203
April 17th, 2008, 12:37 AM
So yeah, I had this in my diary, and then I had my episode where I stupidly asked for my diary to be deleted, so yeah, here it is again.
Chapter 1
The day on which it all began seemed to be a perfectly normal one. It was a Sunday, one last day of freedom before school began again, and I was spending it downtown. What allowance I had had when I started out was now completely gone, and in its place I now had quite a bit of tasty food items I had bought from our local farmer's market. This was how it went just about every Sunday, but soon this routine was going to be interrupted by some strange happenings.
Before I go on, I am going to give you a little information on one of the key elements of the story: me. My name is Jack, a nice unexciting, boring name. I am a normal, average kid, thirteen years old with brown hair, blue eyes, and a rather slight build. My personality now and then are two quite different ones, so I needn't bother about what my hobbies happened to be, what my favorite movie was, and so on.
To get back to the story, the first weird thing that happened occurred as I was making my way back home. I was on the outskirts of the downtown area, not far enough away so that it was nice and quiet, but not close enough so that the view was dominated by tall buildings. It was getting dark, and my going was slow, as I was ladened down by a bunch of bags full of stuff. I was puffing and panting, trying to keep a brisk pace, for my mom fretted a lot if I stayed out too long after dark.
My course was interrupted as I walked by one of those dark alleys where you might encounter a lot of dark, creepy things. As it happened, a hand shot out of the alley and grabbed a handful of my shirt. I yelled as I was pulled forcibly in, until I found myself face to face with a creepy, black cloaked man.
“W-w-what do you want,” I asked, terrified.
“There is no reason to fear me,” the cloaked man said. “I only wish to help you.”
At that moment, I could think of about a hundred reasons to be scared of him, and be scared is what I did. Though I was scared quite thoroughly, I decided sarcasm was the best thing to employ in this situation, so I said:
“Ah, I see, so that is the reason you grabbed me and pulled me into a dark alley, spilling all my food on the ground and scaring me out of my wits.” I gave a loud and emphasized sigh. “I suppose you will wish to have some payment for your services.”
The man glared at me and said, “This is more important than a few groceries. I really wasn't expecting that you'd willingly take a second to speak to me, which is why I used this particular method.”
“Well, I must admit, you are rather ugly.”
“Look,” my captor said, quite angrily, “This could very easily be a matter of life or death for you.”
“Really?” I said. “I get a choice?”
This last statement on my part obliged the cloaked man to give me a good smartening up, the details of which I shall not relay to you. After that, I was ready to listen to everything this strange man had to say, even if it meant sitting there obediently for hours on end, diligently taking notes while he rambled on. It turned out that the only thing he had to say was: “Take this. Take it and study it thoroughly. You may soon be glad you did.” And so saying, he thrust a small book into my hands, and then was very suddenly gone.
After gathering my food , I made my way out of the alley and into the dim light of the rapidly setting sun. I looked down at the book in my hands. It was quite small, no larger than a notebook, its leather bindings torn and scratched by time's hand. Gold lettering in a fancy script printed across the front cover read: 'The Scientific Journal of Cytorus R.'
“What an odd name,” I muttered to myself. I didn't have much time to think about it though, for I had to get back home soon, or else I'd be in trouble.
***
It was quite some time until I finally had a chance to get a better look that had been bestowed upon me in such an odd manner. There was the small scolding I received from being out too long,then dinner, and after that, chores. By the time I finally had some free time, I had forgot all about the little book. I chose to spend my time watching TV and playing video games. Only when my mom told me to get some that I came into my room and saw the book lying on my bed where I had haphazardously thrown it when I had come home.
My curiosity is an insatiable one, and so of course this couldn't wait until the morning. I grabbed a flashlight, flung the covers over myself, and finally cracked open the mysterious book.
I was confused at first. Though science usually is pretty complex, there were a lot of words in here that I am pretty sure have never existed in the English language. The whole Introduction seemed to make no sense. It was only when I was viewing the contents of 'Section 1, A Field Guide to the Creatures of the World', and saw the word 'Dragon', that it hit me. The only scientific value this journal had was in a purely fantasy world. Nonetheless, I found it quite interesting, and didn't put it down for a long time thereafter.
Whomever had written this book had thought up quite a few semi-plausible explanations for all sorts of things you would find in a fantasy world. The book explained everything from how dragons breathe fire to how ghosts come to be. It covered every aspect that would be found in such a world, all about mythical creatures, plants that had different extra-ordinary features, and about how magic operated. There was also quite a bit about things that were not of fantastical origin, but are rather ordinary things, such as wild boars, sharks, venus fly traps, and the migratory behavior of birds. These things seemed to me a little out of place in such a book, but I could not see an explanation.
An example of one of the more mythical topics is an entry on the basics of how magic functions:
Spellcasting
The art of spellcasting is one that very few can master, but in the right hands it can be used either as a very powerful weapon or for the benefit of others. Either way, it can be a dangerous pursuit. Though magic has been attempted succesfully by many through the years, it can be harmful to oneself and to others if it is not cultivated properly by a qualified trainer when signs of magic are first shown.
Magic is linked directly to the human brain, so in order to fully understand magic, you must also understand the brain's inner workings. The brain has two parts to it: the cerebrum and the much smaller cerebellum. The cerebrum is the top part of the brain and is responsible for the voluntary actions of the body, as well as for analyzing input from your five senses. The cerebellum rests on the bottom side of the cerebrum, and is responsible for all those actions which are involuntary, such as the beating of your heart, and the cycle of your respiration. The cerebellum is also the source from which magic is called.
Magic is a type of energy, and all humans, whether able to facilitate this energy, have it. This energy is known as cranial energy , and is stored in the cerebellum. Surrounding it is a layer of protective material which keeps the cranial energy in, and in most cases, keeps people from accessing it. The people who are able to use magic often have weaker protection around the energy, making it easier to access and use. With lots of practice, it is still possible for some, even those with the thickest of protective layers, to be able to make it through to the cranial energy. Others will never be capable of producing magic.
Once the cranial energy is in the control of its owner, it can be directed throughout the body, and the out of the body through any point. Many like to release it through their hands or fingertips, as this gives a more accurate line of fire. However, it can be released almost anywhere on the body.
Cranial energy maintains a link to the brain no matter where it is, so once it is out of the body, it can be directed by its owner to do whatever tasks he or she sees fit. Cranial energy is intensely powerful, and the particles making it up are quite small. With practice, it can be made to do things such as create fire, or modify the mass of objects. It can do this because it works on the particular level, and so can directly change the composition of an object, make the particles in the air do things that aren't normal, or even change themselves into other forms of mass, though this takes a lot of practice. All the ways in which cranial energy works, and how the most common forms of magic are used, are explained in the next chapters.
~~~~~
I found this entry strange for a couple of reasons. The book was obviously quite old, but if that was the case, then how did the author, Cytorus R., no so much about the inner workings of the human brain? Not the magical stuff, I figured that was obviously made up, but about how the brain functions. Sure, way back then people may have known what the brain looked like, but I didn't think they knew that the cerebrum controlled voluntary actions, and the cerebellum controlled the involuntary actions. I doubted they even had names for the two back then. The other confusing part was the thing about the 'particular level.' I took it to mean, 'at the atomic level,' but why didn't he just say so?
Nonetheless, it was quite a while until I finally put the book down that night. There were entries on magic, dragons, vampires, werewolves, and things I had never heard of, nor could have ever imagined. My mind would've exploded trying to write a book like that.
As I tried to fall to sleep, I began to wonder why that strange man had stopped me for the sole purpose of giving me the book. He had said something about it being a matter of life and death, but that was a little far-fetched. He had also said he wanted to help me, though why, when I didn't even know him, was beyond me.
The other thing I wondered about, without ever coming to a conclusion, was the book's purpose. The binding of the book was not the kind of one you'd see on a published item, and though the text was done by a printing press or some such, the illustrations and diagrams were obviously hand drawn. This led me to the conclusion that the book was not a published one, unless this was the original copy, which I doubted, since it would have been much cheaper to give me a less valuable copy. Either way, the book puzzled me, and no matter how hard I thought, I couldn't imagine the most obscure reason for the strange man's actions.
***
The next morning, when I started getting ready for school, I threw 'The Scientific Journal of Cytorus R.' into my backpack, in case there was a time when I might get to read it later. I almost always had time in school where I was sitting there doing nothing, having completed my homework.
As I walked out the door, I had a strange feeling. I felt a presence of some sort, but I wasn't sure what it was. I looked around, but I didn't see anything unusual or out of place. I dismissed the feeling, or tried to, as it stayed in the back of my mind, nagging me. People say always trust your instincts, and my instincts were trying to tell me something.
I kept walking, and nothing happened. I got chased by a dog, stopped to pet a cat that was sunbathing contentedly on the sidewalk, and paused to have a small chat with an elderly woman who lives on our street. The feeling slowly began to ease, and I had forgot all about by the time I was nearing the school. That was, until something jumped out of an alleyway I was passing and grabbed me. I seemed to be having a lot of trouble with alleyways that week.
I was yanked forcibly into the dark space between two old, brick buildings, and then shoved against the wall. That knocked the breath out of me, and I couldn't do anything as my attacker pulled out something that I couldn't make out through the stars that were having a party on my retinas. He growled (or gurgled or grunted or something, I couldn't really tell), and then gave me a good bash on the melon with his free hand. With the other hand, the one holding whatever it was, he grabbed hold of one of my arms and tied some sort of device around my wrist.
I was going quickly towards unconsciousness, but I could make out a couple more figures coming towards me. They were growling and grunting as the first one had, seeming to converse in some way. That was all I saw before a wave of blackness overtook me.
Chapter 1
The day on which it all began seemed to be a perfectly normal one. It was a Sunday, one last day of freedom before school began again, and I was spending it downtown. What allowance I had had when I started out was now completely gone, and in its place I now had quite a bit of tasty food items I had bought from our local farmer's market. This was how it went just about every Sunday, but soon this routine was going to be interrupted by some strange happenings.
Before I go on, I am going to give you a little information on one of the key elements of the story: me. My name is Jack, a nice unexciting, boring name. I am a normal, average kid, thirteen years old with brown hair, blue eyes, and a rather slight build. My personality now and then are two quite different ones, so I needn't bother about what my hobbies happened to be, what my favorite movie was, and so on.
To get back to the story, the first weird thing that happened occurred as I was making my way back home. I was on the outskirts of the downtown area, not far enough away so that it was nice and quiet, but not close enough so that the view was dominated by tall buildings. It was getting dark, and my going was slow, as I was ladened down by a bunch of bags full of stuff. I was puffing and panting, trying to keep a brisk pace, for my mom fretted a lot if I stayed out too long after dark.
My course was interrupted as I walked by one of those dark alleys where you might encounter a lot of dark, creepy things. As it happened, a hand shot out of the alley and grabbed a handful of my shirt. I yelled as I was pulled forcibly in, until I found myself face to face with a creepy, black cloaked man.
“W-w-what do you want,” I asked, terrified.
“There is no reason to fear me,” the cloaked man said. “I only wish to help you.”
At that moment, I could think of about a hundred reasons to be scared of him, and be scared is what I did. Though I was scared quite thoroughly, I decided sarcasm was the best thing to employ in this situation, so I said:
“Ah, I see, so that is the reason you grabbed me and pulled me into a dark alley, spilling all my food on the ground and scaring me out of my wits.” I gave a loud and emphasized sigh. “I suppose you will wish to have some payment for your services.”
The man glared at me and said, “This is more important than a few groceries. I really wasn't expecting that you'd willingly take a second to speak to me, which is why I used this particular method.”
“Well, I must admit, you are rather ugly.”
“Look,” my captor said, quite angrily, “This could very easily be a matter of life or death for you.”
“Really?” I said. “I get a choice?”
This last statement on my part obliged the cloaked man to give me a good smartening up, the details of which I shall not relay to you. After that, I was ready to listen to everything this strange man had to say, even if it meant sitting there obediently for hours on end, diligently taking notes while he rambled on. It turned out that the only thing he had to say was: “Take this. Take it and study it thoroughly. You may soon be glad you did.” And so saying, he thrust a small book into my hands, and then was very suddenly gone.
After gathering my food , I made my way out of the alley and into the dim light of the rapidly setting sun. I looked down at the book in my hands. It was quite small, no larger than a notebook, its leather bindings torn and scratched by time's hand. Gold lettering in a fancy script printed across the front cover read: 'The Scientific Journal of Cytorus R.'
“What an odd name,” I muttered to myself. I didn't have much time to think about it though, for I had to get back home soon, or else I'd be in trouble.
***
It was quite some time until I finally had a chance to get a better look that had been bestowed upon me in such an odd manner. There was the small scolding I received from being out too long,then dinner, and after that, chores. By the time I finally had some free time, I had forgot all about the little book. I chose to spend my time watching TV and playing video games. Only when my mom told me to get some that I came into my room and saw the book lying on my bed where I had haphazardously thrown it when I had come home.
My curiosity is an insatiable one, and so of course this couldn't wait until the morning. I grabbed a flashlight, flung the covers over myself, and finally cracked open the mysterious book.
I was confused at first. Though science usually is pretty complex, there were a lot of words in here that I am pretty sure have never existed in the English language. The whole Introduction seemed to make no sense. It was only when I was viewing the contents of 'Section 1, A Field Guide to the Creatures of the World', and saw the word 'Dragon', that it hit me. The only scientific value this journal had was in a purely fantasy world. Nonetheless, I found it quite interesting, and didn't put it down for a long time thereafter.
Whomever had written this book had thought up quite a few semi-plausible explanations for all sorts of things you would find in a fantasy world. The book explained everything from how dragons breathe fire to how ghosts come to be. It covered every aspect that would be found in such a world, all about mythical creatures, plants that had different extra-ordinary features, and about how magic operated. There was also quite a bit about things that were not of fantastical origin, but are rather ordinary things, such as wild boars, sharks, venus fly traps, and the migratory behavior of birds. These things seemed to me a little out of place in such a book, but I could not see an explanation.
An example of one of the more mythical topics is an entry on the basics of how magic functions:
Spellcasting
The art of spellcasting is one that very few can master, but in the right hands it can be used either as a very powerful weapon or for the benefit of others. Either way, it can be a dangerous pursuit. Though magic has been attempted succesfully by many through the years, it can be harmful to oneself and to others if it is not cultivated properly by a qualified trainer when signs of magic are first shown.
Magic is linked directly to the human brain, so in order to fully understand magic, you must also understand the brain's inner workings. The brain has two parts to it: the cerebrum and the much smaller cerebellum. The cerebrum is the top part of the brain and is responsible for the voluntary actions of the body, as well as for analyzing input from your five senses. The cerebellum rests on the bottom side of the cerebrum, and is responsible for all those actions which are involuntary, such as the beating of your heart, and the cycle of your respiration. The cerebellum is also the source from which magic is called.
Magic is a type of energy, and all humans, whether able to facilitate this energy, have it. This energy is known as cranial energy , and is stored in the cerebellum. Surrounding it is a layer of protective material which keeps the cranial energy in, and in most cases, keeps people from accessing it. The people who are able to use magic often have weaker protection around the energy, making it easier to access and use. With lots of practice, it is still possible for some, even those with the thickest of protective layers, to be able to make it through to the cranial energy. Others will never be capable of producing magic.
Once the cranial energy is in the control of its owner, it can be directed throughout the body, and the out of the body through any point. Many like to release it through their hands or fingertips, as this gives a more accurate line of fire. However, it can be released almost anywhere on the body.
Cranial energy maintains a link to the brain no matter where it is, so once it is out of the body, it can be directed by its owner to do whatever tasks he or she sees fit. Cranial energy is intensely powerful, and the particles making it up are quite small. With practice, it can be made to do things such as create fire, or modify the mass of objects. It can do this because it works on the particular level, and so can directly change the composition of an object, make the particles in the air do things that aren't normal, or even change themselves into other forms of mass, though this takes a lot of practice. All the ways in which cranial energy works, and how the most common forms of magic are used, are explained in the next chapters.
~~~~~
I found this entry strange for a couple of reasons. The book was obviously quite old, but if that was the case, then how did the author, Cytorus R., no so much about the inner workings of the human brain? Not the magical stuff, I figured that was obviously made up, but about how the brain functions. Sure, way back then people may have known what the brain looked like, but I didn't think they knew that the cerebrum controlled voluntary actions, and the cerebellum controlled the involuntary actions. I doubted they even had names for the two back then. The other confusing part was the thing about the 'particular level.' I took it to mean, 'at the atomic level,' but why didn't he just say so?
Nonetheless, it was quite a while until I finally put the book down that night. There were entries on magic, dragons, vampires, werewolves, and things I had never heard of, nor could have ever imagined. My mind would've exploded trying to write a book like that.
As I tried to fall to sleep, I began to wonder why that strange man had stopped me for the sole purpose of giving me the book. He had said something about it being a matter of life and death, but that was a little far-fetched. He had also said he wanted to help me, though why, when I didn't even know him, was beyond me.
The other thing I wondered about, without ever coming to a conclusion, was the book's purpose. The binding of the book was not the kind of one you'd see on a published item, and though the text was done by a printing press or some such, the illustrations and diagrams were obviously hand drawn. This led me to the conclusion that the book was not a published one, unless this was the original copy, which I doubted, since it would have been much cheaper to give me a less valuable copy. Either way, the book puzzled me, and no matter how hard I thought, I couldn't imagine the most obscure reason for the strange man's actions.
***
The next morning, when I started getting ready for school, I threw 'The Scientific Journal of Cytorus R.' into my backpack, in case there was a time when I might get to read it later. I almost always had time in school where I was sitting there doing nothing, having completed my homework.
As I walked out the door, I had a strange feeling. I felt a presence of some sort, but I wasn't sure what it was. I looked around, but I didn't see anything unusual or out of place. I dismissed the feeling, or tried to, as it stayed in the back of my mind, nagging me. People say always trust your instincts, and my instincts were trying to tell me something.
I kept walking, and nothing happened. I got chased by a dog, stopped to pet a cat that was sunbathing contentedly on the sidewalk, and paused to have a small chat with an elderly woman who lives on our street. The feeling slowly began to ease, and I had forgot all about by the time I was nearing the school. That was, until something jumped out of an alleyway I was passing and grabbed me. I seemed to be having a lot of trouble with alleyways that week.
I was yanked forcibly into the dark space between two old, brick buildings, and then shoved against the wall. That knocked the breath out of me, and I couldn't do anything as my attacker pulled out something that I couldn't make out through the stars that were having a party on my retinas. He growled (or gurgled or grunted or something, I couldn't really tell), and then gave me a good bash on the melon with his free hand. With the other hand, the one holding whatever it was, he grabbed hold of one of my arms and tied some sort of device around my wrist.
I was going quickly towards unconsciousness, but I could make out a couple more figures coming towards me. They were growling and grunting as the first one had, seeming to converse in some way. That was all I saw before a wave of blackness overtook me.