Book from the Black Quill - "Fragments of the Lost Soul"

[Always_a_hero]

//The following post(s) will be part of a whole book, which will be finished/published depending on the writer's life/death's choices. If a part is published, it'll be written at the start of the specific section. Some characters in the story may be based on characters which the writer actually met IC-ly, but under a different names. If ever included on the server, it would probably be a book with a link to this forum topic due to the length. Constructive comments are gladly accepted in PM about the format and writing style... and cheers are also nice. I hope you'll enjoy this first try at something new.//

[As you turn the cover, one would read in common on the first page:

Fragments of the Lost Soul

as well as the author's name at the bottom.]

Jacob Dumérite
Jaie Bleu of Plaine du Moulin
772 BC

[From there goes the following...]

Cold were the rocks which my hand had touched, my arms lifting my own shell up the freezing mount. I looked at the sky and winces, not only for its bright whiteness, but also for the pain coming from my bleeding side on which my other hand pressed. Panting, I kept on going, the falling snow bringing silence to my mind, forgetting the thing which injured me in the first place... until I reached the top. From then, it wasn't blood who wanted to leave, but air itself from my mouth, as if the world which I gave my blood to decided to not give me back anything. With a grunt I fell forward near the mountain's edge, biting the snow and trying to gain back my sense, before looking over... but what I saw wasn't the stone which my name was written on. Only a tick fog surrounding the peak, hiding the truth of my fall... and giving me Hope.

[Always_a_hero]

Chapter 1

Darkness. Silence. Those are what brings peace to mind...
"Le...o...ar..."
[long sigh] Nothing better than laying back on a comfy spot, closing our eyes and...
"Leo... ard~..."
If only I could stay like this forever...
"Leonard!"

"Uh?!" suddenly said the man, gripping the hilt which was laying under his palm, standing quickly before opening his eyes, his sword pointing towards the direction of a sound. He blinked, his eyes getting used to the night in the tree's shades, only to see a light reflection of the moon light in...in... "Oh, a wolf..." Leonard thought, as his gaze followed the way pointed by his shortsword towards two tinny eyes a few meters away. The beast, knowing that it had been spotted, stepped back slowly into a bush, showing off his teeth. "Was he... smiling at me?" the man frowned, sheathing the blade in the scabbard to his side. He then looked with the dim light passing through the branches the bed in which he slept, nothing more than dead leaves and dirt to cover himself.

"Hm. Looks like the sun is about to rise... Never too early to start walking." And with that, he picked up his leather bag and began walking, without hesitation, on a path which appeared clearly to him between the wrinkly roots. It had been a few days sine he had met another person on the road. "I guess it's not surprising. Not many people has a keen eye like mine to find secret roads in the forest..." After a couple of hours frolicking, Leonard eventually met a road of rather moldy stones. He leaned closer, smelled the moist before passing his hand on the stones and lick his fingers afterwards. Not really knowing what to make of those information, he stayed in the same position for minutes, which became to him like hours of boring contemplation...

"[long sigh]...Uh?" He heard the sound of a coming carriage. It eventually stopped by Leonard, the driver looking at him while scratching his own head. "Yer alright kid?" the man with the grey mustache asked. "Could you take me to the next village?" the young, dirty traveler respond, ignoring the question. Visibly annoyed, the driver pointed with his thumb the back of the carriage, covered with a bunch of straws. They then followed the road, reaching the town of Mistgates. Once at the entrance, the guards inspected both men, remembering the grey mustache of the old, but not Leonard's dirty everything and let the carriage enter without him.
"But sir, I've always wanted to visit your village...!" helplessly complained the woods' walker.
...
"Mh?" another man looked at the agitation while his bags were searched through, then grinned. "Hey, it's you again!" the stranger said cheerfully, walking towards Leonard in a friendly manner.
"Uh?" the young traveler blinked at him, even more surprised than the guard. "Yes, you...! You looked in one of those shapes. What happened to you?" The stranger approached  in a caring way. He was a bit smaller than Leonard in size, wearing a dark attire under a gray cloak. "Don't worry guardsmen, he's with me." The few guards looked at each others, each with a confused frown, but as the line got longer at the entrance they shrugged and let the two go.
"Why, thank you kind sir!" exclaimed Leonard after a few steps into the town. "Sshh... Try to be less noisy." said the stranger with a way more reserved tone.
"My name's Leonard. What's yours?"
"... Call me Morowayn." the shady man answered as the two entered a dark alley.

[Always_a_hero]

Chapitre I

Forward...
A world devoid of colors...
A blanked bathed in ink on a moonless night.
Soft to touch, as a warm breeze on a naked body.
I looked up and something hanged over me-
Red... like steel licked by the tongues of a blazing fire.
Getting bigger, and bigger... Until I opened my eyes.

A handsome tanned man covered his azure eyes from the sun, taking in a deep breath before stretching his arms upward. He blinked a few times at the clear light of the flying sea, under which a couple of clouds drifted in the horizon. "Hm... True freedom..." And with this thought a voice could be heard in the distance, familiar to the man's ears: "Ja...Ja-ack...! Jack!" Jack rolled his eyes and looked down to this new disturbance, a teenager boy with curly brown hair and freckles. "Jack! What 're you doing up there? Daddy's gonna be mad if you don't get down of tha' tree!" So did the dashing beauty without much effort, his hair neatly tied back in a ponytail. "I don't see why my uncle would risk to face the might of my inner adventurer, Dave." Jack said, looking directly in his cousin's eyes, a grin on his lips.

They together ran back across the field, arriving in the comfort of the Latourier's house before sunset. Latourier's farm was one of the vastest in Archdark, a land which had been discovered across the Gliding Plank's Shore. Some of the farmers found the entrance of tombs after digging in their own backyards, filled with coins of unknown motives, which had turned out to have an outstanding value. Dave and Jack were welcomed by what seemed as the reflection of a hundred candles on the walls of white marble. A red carpet on the floor led to fine timber stairs, which they followed after leaving their boots near the door. They then walked through a hallway, painting visible no matter which way you looked, all of portraits unrelated to the owners of the echoic residence, and finally took another staircase to end up in the kitchen.

"Ah! Here are my boys." exclaimed a female voice as the two entered the room. "Just in time for supper." Jack looked at the enormous table with as many chairs needed for the reception of the royal banquet. To one of its end was already sitting a bald man with a stern expression, removing fine glasses before taking his first sip of red wine. "Thank you, aunt Clara." Jack bowed his head respectfully to the lady with a round belly, followed by Dave which was mimicking his beloved cousin's manners, before taking a seat near the one already taken. Clara brought two filled plated, smiling cheerfully, yet still looking tired. "Enjoy~." "You shouldn't do so much work, dear aunt. This second child already takes a lot of effort." Jack answered. "Don't worry too much. You know how your aunt can deal with anything if she's willing enough." Everyone chuckled at the thought, even the bald man for a brief instant.

It's then that Jack sniffed a couple of times, a frown forming on his graceful face. "Are you alright?" asked Clara, suddenly worried.
"What is that smell...?"

[Always_a_hero]

Chapter 2

In the hope of forging our own mind, we must first find the fire over which the soul will heat.
If too hot, the soul melt. If too cold, one's mind stays the same.
Those are both ends of a man's passion
As the flame dance over their melting minds.

          Leonard and Morowayn walked through the narrow and lively streets, the latter glancing about furtively while the other followed, captivated by the merchants' voices. So many things for sell... So many things to say... So little use for what is said and sold, compared to the usefulness of stick in the woods. They arrived and entered an inn with a sign nailed against the wall near the entrance: "The Four-Legged Stool". The stools there were indeed four-legged, leaving Leonard frowning he sat down at one of the tables closest to the bar. "I guess the place got the name for a reason..." he commented to no one but himself. "The inn got it after a brawl, when most chair had no back left: leaving stools with four legs. Get it?" Wayn explained with a flat tone, as if he had the sentence too many times before.

          But as he said that, the voices around them grew quieter and a distinctive figure could be seen, walking towards the two men's table. Like a feline approaching its prey: a woman with hair black as raven's feathers, wearing a red dress from his shoulder the half of her thighs and shiny amber eyes. She walked with assurance, yet slowly, making sure that most patrons had the time to settle their attention on her until she stopped beside Wayn, leaning her gracious hand on his shoulder. "I thought you'd came sooner, dear." she says to the cloaked man's ear, sending a curious glance toward Leonard, who's cheeks became slightly pink. "Met this fellow at the gates... He's new to town." Wayn would answer, kissing the cheek of the mysterious lady. "I'll be waiting at our usual spot... Upstairs." she replied with a grin, walking back the way she first came from, leaving the sight.

          Leonard frowned again, not because if what he had seen, but because his mind went blank for a reason that was unknown to him. Wayn looked back at him with a raised brow and said: "So, what are you here for again?" After a couple of blinks, the man who slept on a pile of leaves the day prior remember was he was looking for and answered: "I'm looking for a certain gem... which is part of a bigger one." Having said that a bit too loud, a couple of other patron turned back to look at Leonard's naive expression, all gaining a bit of interest in this outlander.

As she was passing by the bar, a drunk man with a grey beard stopped the lady with a red dress, the smell of booze coming with his every words: "Hey there pretty. *hick!* What'd be yar pretty name...?" The seductress rolled her eyes, annoyed, yet still grinned. "Ashlynn, sir... And you'd be wise to go back to your bench before you end up in dust."