Chapter 1 -Part 1-
Darkness loomed over a green, flourishing, and vast expanse of land, residing to the North of a planet known as Xzadia. The harsh cold nipping and the wind blowing
in a gentle breeze through trees, towering over a hooded figure who roamed at night. Holding the cloak close to her body, she focused her gaze on the path ahead of
her, her white breath misting into her view every few seconds. Gliding through the night, her steps were quick yet nimble as her black cloak billowed behind her.
In the distance she could hear voices. Albeit not being able to understand what they were saying, she immediately recognized who they belonged to and her pace quickened
as she kept her guard up, keeping a constant vigilance. In a hurry, her destination came into view on the horizon as she carefully shifted through the barricade of trees.
Moments passed and she could hear the voices in a distant pursuit behind her, but she had a feeling that they knew she was there. Quickly she approached a large, round object
that was used for interstellar flight and travel, a space pod. Punching in numbers on the key pad, the door slid open and she stepped inside, sealing the door behind her and
continuing on to the cockpit where she buckled herself in and set her destination. The ships engine ignited with a loud whirring sound as it started to shake and rumble.
In a quick blaze the ship took of, leaving a light cloud of dust behind as it shot off into the darkness of space.
Staring at the ships computers, she realized her destination was approximated to be over a three years journey so she came to the decision of putting herself into one of the
seven stasis pods on the ship. In doing so, she closed her eyes as the sound of the machine at work, putting her to sleep for a temporary time of three years. The last thing she
remembered was thinking back to the events that had taken place before her departure, her deceased husband, and her lost son.
Obnoxious beeping, the sound of steam hissing, and the lack of oxygen forced the woman's eyes to snap open. Her chest moved rapidly in attempt to catch her breath, only to have thick, black smoke fill her lungs. She coughed violently, her eyes burning and watering from the fumes gathering in her space pod. Dizzy, she made her way to the controls, resetting her destination to the nearest planet. she had to make an emergency landing. Fires licked her ash-covered skin, causing it to turn a deep shade of red. Only wincing, the woman tried to ignore it, grabbing an emergency oxygen mask before strapping herself into the pilots chair in the cockpit. She put the mask on and worked the controls the best they would let her, trying to ensure a safe landing, which she knew was doomed to fail. She was going to make a crash landing and it was going to hurt.
As the planet approached, she braced herself for impact, which soon came. The pod rattled and shook violently before coming to an abrupt stop. This caused the already delirious woman's head to jerk forward, putting strain on her neck before it bounced backwards, slamming against the hard seat, rendering her unconscious. The heated flames flared up even more as gas leaked out of the fuel tanks causing more smoke to strangle the lungs of the sleeping woman.
A loud creaking and a crashing noise brought her out of her involuntary slumber. Her vision was heavily blurred and she couldn't move her body, let alone move her head. The last thing she remembered was seeing a bright light and a dark silhouette. Her head fell back into it's resting position as she slipped away once more.
A strange sensation overcame the woman's body. Her mind was blank and all she saw was a pitch back darkness surrounding her. Her deep blue eyes darted around, trying to make out some sort of shape, but nothing came into view, just dark. Where was she, she wondered. Why was it so dark? Her thoughts were disrupted by a man's voice. It was deep yet smooth and humbling.
"Welcome home." The manner in which the voice spoke was soft, trusting and inviting. It sounded familiar but couldn't place who it belonged to and she couldnt find who was speaking. She turned round to look behind her but there was only darkness, as before.
"Astaghaill. I am here." Upon hearing her name, the woman swiftly turned around again, immediately recognizing the figure that was now standing in front of her. He was tall, very tall. His skin was a dark gray-ish blue tone and his hair was black, long, and silky. An unusual shape fitted his shoulders. Wings? Yes, black, feathered wings which were so large they dragged on the ground behind him. A warm feeling rushed over her body as tears of happiness swelled up in her eyes.
"Bristan..." Her voice broke. Tears flowed freely from her eyes as she quickly pressed her body to his, embracing him in a squeezed her eyes shut, burying her face into his chest.
"I thought I lost you." Her voice was slightly muffled due to his thick layers of clothing that draped over his shoulders.
A low, soft chuckle erupted from his throat, causing his chest to rumble. His arms wrapped around Astaghaill and he held her tightly, kissing the top of her head, taking in the scent of lavender that emanated from her hair. Smiling he replied to her,
"You know I would never leave you, my heart." His arms loosened as he rose his hand to rest on her cheek. His snowy white eyes glowed, as they did, as he looked into her blue ones. Gently, his thumb caressed the soft skin of her cheek as he smiled at her, his eyes softening. Slowly his eyes closed and he moved his face closer to hers, his dark blue lips almost grazing her rosy pink ones. The moment was disrupted by a child's voice.
"Mommy! Daddy!" Astaghaill looked to her right, a small child with short white hair running up to the duo, also noticing the change of scenery. They were now in a small house, it seemed, with white walls and wooden floors. This didn't phase Astaghaill, in fact she ignored it and focused her attention on the boy. He was certainty young but old enough to have started his training for the Northern army. Astaghaill instantly recognize this boy to be her son, Cypress. She smiled at him as he came running up to them, showing them his homework from school. He had gotten a perfect score, as usual, but was just as proud as ever to show his parents.
"Look mom! I got one hundred percent on my written test! This means I get to start my training next year!" Excitement radiated from the boy and Astaghaill couldn't help but smile even bigger.
"That's great news. One day you'll be as big and strong as your father." Her smile remained as she rested her hand on Cypress' shoulder. Silence befell the home which caught the woman's attention. She opened her eyes to reveal Cypress standing there, staring at her, not moving. She turned her head and peered over to her husband, to reveal he wasn't moving either, but instead staring at her. Blinking hard, her eyebrows furrowed as she backed away from the two, not understanding what was going on. Within an instant their bodies started to melt before her, turning into a black goo along with the house before everything turned into a black hollowness once again. Her stomach dropped as she realized that that wasn't real, but why did it seem like it? She felt everything she would have normally, she felt their touch, she felt their warmth but now it's gone. Blinking away stray tears, Astaghaill heaved a sigh and turn her body to face the other way, only seeing darkness as before. She needed to wake up. She closed her eyes and sat down, concentrating, forcing herself to awaken.
Astaghaill slowly became conscious. Hearing voices, she put her guard up and kept her eyes closed, keeping still, listening.
"How long has she been out?" A small voice asked. It was definitely male but it sounded like it belonged to a young boy. A second voice spoke in response, this one deeper and gruff.
"Three days now."
The reply was short but it answered the boys question nonetheless.
"Oh! I forgot to show you. I aced my test scores Mr. Piccolo. I got one hundred percent. Top score in the academy. This means I'm eligible for more advanced classes!"
"That's great kid, You're mom should be proud." The man sounded glad that the kid won't be getting yelled at by his mother for getting under what he got.
'Wait... This is familiar.' Astaghaill thought, then she remembered, this is what happened in her dream. She cracked her eye open slightly to observe them further and instantly felt relieved that they weren't staring at her or melting into a black goo.
That relief quickly passed when the older man spoke.
"It looks like she's awake. Gohan, go and inform the others."
The boy nodded, knowing not to disobey the green man, and left the room in a hurry, closing the door behind him.
Astaghaill wasn't sure what to do so she sat up and slung her legs over the edge of the bed. She looked at the man, knowing he wanted to ask her questions so she spoke ahead of him.
"Before you ask questions, please know that I am of no threat to you or this planet." The mans face didn't lighten, instead he frowned deeper and sent her an even harsher glare, crossing his arms as well. She continued speaking, careful of her words.
"I... left my planet. My ship malfunctioned and so I was forced to make an emergency landing on the closest habitable planet, which happened to be here." Astaghaill looked out the window at the glowing sunshine and the blue ocean. "Uhm... Where is here, exactly? If I may ask."
The green man snorted his reply, still not trusting the mysterious woman.
"This is a planet called Earth. Why did you leave yours?" He wanted to know as much about this woman as he possibly could.
Astaghaill smiled at him and let out a very faint giggle, attempting to show she was friendly.
"Should I meet those 'others' you spoke of earlier? I mean no harm and t'would be best to explain my intentions to everyone at once." She looked at him for a few seconds, hopeful that she wouldn't have to explain herself multiple times. Her large, blue eyes stared at his beady, black ones as he glared at her, not saying a word. Was he thinking about it? Did he trust her enough to let her near his friends? The man heaved a sigh and uncrossed his arms, causing the white haired woman to smile once again. This time she stood from the bed, eager o meet new people. Even though she din't have a dress on, she curtsied.
"My name is Astaghaill. It is very pleasing to make your acquaintance, and I would like to offer you my sincerest form of gratitude." She straightened out to see the man staring her down. To her, he looked severely weirded out... or mad? Her smile dropped from her face slowly.
"Now tell me your name." She crossed her arms. She felt only slightly offended at his lack of response. "You think someone would have the decency to tell you their name, at least."
The man grunted, he could already tell this woman was going to get on his nerves, but he offered his name.
"Piccolo."
"Like the instrument?" Astaghaill asked him, slightly amused but intrigued as well. She decided against pestering him when he resorted to silence and turned his back to her. She was slightly confused at this so she stood in her spot, not moving, looking at the back of Piccolo's head waiting for him to say something.. She didn't want to make him more angry than he already seemed.