Vile Slander's Foreword:
For anyone expressing concern over the fate of "Splitting Horizons," rest easy. I hit a wall in the story. It is not the first wall that I've hit writing "Splitting Horizons." I have a means of dealing with walls that doesn't involve me staring at a computer screen for hours, grudgingly wishing that I could write something. This is my means. I write. Something else. I have started dozens of stories while mounting previous walls, but this is the first fan fic, so I thought, "What the heck? I'll give the shiftless bums on FanFiction something to read while I climb this wall."
So here you are, I present to you the first few rungs of my shiny new ladder.
-P.S. I lied. Splitting Horizons is dead. Good riddance.
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V
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-A-
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Chapter I: Waking Anew
Hands. Hundreds of hands. Thousands. Stretching, reaching, grasping. Reaching. Reaching for me. White. Gold. Red. Red eyes. Looking at me. Four white legs. A golden cage. Red eyes in a storm of white hands. All focused on me.
He speaks without words, in thousands of tongues, speaking. Speaking to me. He tells me to not be frightened, but I am. I'm terrified. Terrified of him. The hands run across my brow, soothing and gentle, but I curl into a ball and weep. He wants something. He wants something from me.
He tells me that I have been chosen. He says that he needs my help. He tells me that he has a mission. A mission. A mission for me. I don't want his mission. I don't know who he is. I don't know what he wants. I deny him. I beg for my freedom.
He tells me again that he has chosen me, and when I ask to be released, he silences me. I have been chosen. But not by my consent. He wants a willing servant. And if I will not obey him, he will make me obey.
The hands change. They stop trying to calm me. They now grasp and pinch, a finger and thumb for every joint. My hands are drowned in their invasive advance, and my arms and legs are hidden beneath the swarm. They tear my clothes and cast them aside. Fingers trace across my bare flesh. Fingers learn the contours of my bones. Fingers run across my chest, seeking. Seeking my heart. Finding my breast, they measure the beating of my heart.
He speaks again, and warns me. One last chance. Serve by choice. Or serve by force. But I am weeping. Broken. Lost. His words mean nothing to me. He will take what he wants in violation of my will. I am helpless. I'm just a man. Just a feeble man, in the arms of a God who frightens me. He knows my answer. He knows that I will not serve. Feeble though I am, I do not obey a God.
Red. Red eyes. They fall with sorrow. He tells me that he doesn't want to hurt me, and I laugh. I don't believe in his benevolence. A benevolent God does not subjugate free will. He looks at me with pity. He tells me that there will be pain. Much pain.
The fingers tighten, twist, and pull. He's tearing me apart while I scream in agony. Stripped of my skin, he peels away my flesh, before separating my bones, piece by piece, joint from joint. It hurts. It hurts so much. But I will not die.
My organs are lifted from the ruin, intact and still pulsing with life. My life. He draws it from my beating heart. He's taking something. He's taking something from me. Something that I never really thought about. Something that I always took for granted. He's taking me.
I'm drawn like a spark from the defiled remains of my body, leaving the weak flesh to perish. The hands begin to reshape me. They mold me into something new. Shape me into- What am I now?
He's crying. He tells me that he doesn't want to do this. But he must. I've left him no choice. The hands change. They grow pale, transparent, ethereal. They reach into the new me, and begin to strip me of who I am. Like my body, he can reshape my mind.
Memories begin to disappear. Faces, voices, laughter, tears. A sunset seen from a bridge flashes before my eyes, before it curls away and withers. A woman laughing, holding me close against her naked form; calling me her lover comes next, and she too is taken from me. A man screaming. A boy crying. A shame and a fear. All stolen. All mine. All lost.
He reaches now for a shard. A shard that tells me who I am. I beg him. I plead. I need that shard. I need it to be me. He ceases his raping purge, and looks to me through his own tears of shame and guilt. Please. Please don't take that. I need that. I need my name.
The hands withdraw. He has left me with nothing. A body not of my own. No memories of who I am. All the feelings of a blank slate. He has taken everything. Everything, but a name.
He tells me of my mission. He says that it is necessary. He says that it will be dangerous. He assures me that I will have aid. He calls me his chosen, and says that he has faith in me. But I don't understand. Who is he? Who am I? What is this mission? Why am I chosen? Why must I do this? He smiles sadly at me. And he speaks a name. My name.
Solomon…
...
"Hey." A voice shook the creature from its sleep. Gaping and flailing, the creature woke with a scream. The waker with a voice fell back.
"Are you okay?" She asked, concerned for this stranger. Gasping with frightened breath, the stranger found his own voice.
"Where am I? Who are you?" The stranger froze upon viewing the owner of the other voice. Black claws. White fur. Four legs. Black face and horns.
"What are you?" He asked in terror. She looks nervous. Clearly startled. Though worried. worried about him.
"I'm an Absol. You're in my bedding." She speaks slowly to the frightened creature.
"An Absol?" He asked, confusion plain in his expression.
"Yeah… an Absol." The Absol said hesitantly. The creature gaped on the ground, air rasping over its drying gills. It seemed disorientated.
"Listen… You don't look so good. Maybe I should get you back into the water. Like, soon?" The Absol suggested. The creature looked up at her, bewildered.
"The water?" He asked, obviously lost. A sense of urgency made the Absol's voice shake.
"Yeah. The water. Like now." The Absol said as she bit on to his dorsal fin, and lifted him from the grass.
The Absol charged through the brush, fighting back her own bewilderment. The Magikarp in her mouth was struggling to stay calm. What was a Magikarp doing this far inland? The ocean was hundreds of miles south, and the nearest river was a day's stride away. How had an oceanic Magikarp ended up in her bedding, far from any source of water?
"Where are you taking me?" The Magikarp asked, the fear very present in his voice.
"Ta da 'ah-tur." She replied, her speech impaired by the fin in her mouth.
"Why the water?" The Magikarp gasped. The Absol snorted in surprise.
"Sa ya dunt die." She tried to sound humorous, but an edge of concern crept into her voice. The Magikarp was silent. She was coming upon it now. The old Trough. Last season's watering hole.
"There." The Absol said as she spat him into the stagnant water. Reflex bade the Magikarp to gulp large quantities of water, passing the stale fluid over his gills.
"Ahhhh…" The Magikarp sighed in sublime bliss. The Absol couldn't help but giggle.
"Feeling better?" She asked.
"Much." The Magikarp answered. The Magikarp fanned his pectoral fins, pushing a swell of water into his mouth. The Absol couldn't stop giggling.
"You're looking better." She smiled. The Magikarp's eyes grew distant as a fresh infusion of oxygen fed his brain.
"Where am I?" He asked, looking up at the Absol. She tilted her head, curious as to his uncertainty.
"I was about to ask what you were doing here. The ocean's a long ways away for a Magikarp." The Absol stated. The Magikarp looked up at her, even more confused.
"Magikarp?" He asked, his voice growing as distant as his gaze.
"Yeah… You. A Magikarp." The Absol said nervously.
"I'm a- a Magikarp?" He asked in an awkward tone.
"What did you think you were? A Diglett?" The Absol laughed.
"What's a Diglett? What's a Magikarp?" The Magikarp asked, worried. The Absol stopped laughing abruptly.
"You're a Magikarp. A Diglett is a furry pest. Technically… They're both food…" The Absol stated in a hesitant manner.
"I'm food?" The Magikarp asked, suddenly wary. The Absol laughed again.
"Don't worry. I already ate. Anyways, I don't really want to eat you. You're too bony and your scales are as hard as rocks." She said reassuringly. The Magikarp relaxed slightly, though his face fell.
"Who am I?"
The Absol stopped smiling. There was something wrong about this Magikarp. Something very wrong.
"Are you feeling okay?" The Absol asked. The Magikarp stopped moving.
"I'm- I'm-"
Not a Magikarp?
"Solomon?" He asked. The Absol quirked her head.
"A Solomon? You look like a Magikarp to me." The Absol said uncertainly.
"I mean, I've only seen a Magikarp once before, but…" The Absol trailed off, noticing the painful expression on the Magikarp's face.
"Solomon. My name is Solomon." He said with the closest thing he had displayed to asseveration yet.
"A name?" It was the Absol's turn to be confused.
"Yeah. My name. Solomon." Solomon replied.
"How did you get a name?" The Absol asked, bewildered.
"It was given to me." Solomon answered. The Absol inclined her head.
"Who gave you a name?" The Absol asked.
My parents?
"I- I…" Solomon staggered. The Absol watched him struggle, an unconscious fear plagued her.
"I don't remember…" Solomon answered in a frightened voice. The Absol swallowed.
"Amnesia?" The Absol asked.
No.
"Maybe?" Solomon answered. The Absol chuckled.
"Well, who knows how long you were out of the water. You might have suffered brain damage." The Absol suggested.
My head is fine!
"Brain damage?" Solomon asked, worried.
"Yeah. You know. From asphyxiation?" The Absol elaborated.
I don't have amnesia! Why can't I remember?
"I- I don't know." Solomon answered. The Absol tilted her head, curious.
"I can remember- but then- It just-" Solomon sounded agitated.
"Hey. Just relax. I'm sure that it will all come back to you soon." The Absol tried to sound reassuring.
No. No it won't. He took it from me! All of it!
"I hope so…" Solomon murmured.
What's wrong with me? Why can't I say what I want to say?!
"Cheer up. At least you still remember your... name." The Absol started on a cheery note, but she tapered down into an awkward silence.
"What's wrong?" Solomon asked quietly, fearing he had said something unusual.
"You… really have a name?" The Absol asked faintly.
"Of course I have a name! Don't you?" Solomon seemed distressed. The Absol looked at him oddly.
"I'm Absol. Or the Alpha's daughter. I don't have a name." She answered in an edgy tone, implying that Solomon was the peculiar one for having a name.
"You don't have a name?" Solomon asked, shocked. The Absol shook her head.
"No. I never really thought anything of it. Do all Magikarps have names?"
I'M NOT A MAGIKARP!
"I don't- Maybe?" Solomon was feeling incredibly awkward. The Absol began to laugh again.
"Maybe? You really like that word, don't you?"
FUCK YOU! FUCK YOU, YOU STUPID- THING! IT'S ALL GONE! I'M ALL GONE! I- I'm-
"Maybe?" Solomon answered feebly. The Absol lowered herself down onto her side as she laughed.
"I'm sorry… It's just that… I don't mean to be rude when I say this, but- You're kind of funny." The Absol smiled at Solomon.
Funny. Yeah. Ha Ha. I'm totally not crying inside right now…
"Am I funny? I don't mean to be." The poor fish actually sounded apologetic, earning another round of laughter from the Absol.
"You're actually kind of sweet." She giggled. The Magikarp tensed up.
"Whoa! I didn't mean your flavor! I meant that you're cute… in a sad way…" The Absol said, feeling a bit bashful.
Just eat me. Please...
"I'm sorry." Solomon sank into the water. The Absol looked at him with an ounce of pity, even if she couldn't repress the giggles.
"Stop being so cute. It's obnoxious." The Absol teased.
"And don't apologize. I'm the one being rude." The Absol added, just in time to interrupt the apology Solomon was preparing.
"No. You're helping me. You're not being rude." Solomon said softly. The Absol smiled warmly at him.
Yeah, help me. Please kill me.
"And?" The Absol asked teasingly.
"And-?" Solomon asked, worried. The Absol rolled on to her back, and looked at the Magikarp upside down.
"You're welcome." She grinned.
...Fuck you…
"Oh, yeah. Thanks. I mean, thank you. I mean- Sorry." Solomon hastily expressed his gratitude, and even more quickly added an apology. The Absol couldn't stop laughing at him.
...This is fucking pathetic…
"I don't want to hear any more sorrys. They make me feel guilty." The Absol giggled. Solomon tightened up a bit. The Absol swallowed.
"Listen… I have to get going. My pack is going to be expecting me. I'd like to get you into a bigger watering hole, but for now… I'd feel better if you'd stay here. Not many predators like drinking from this cesspool, and you'd make for an easy meal. Will you be okay here?" The Absol said hesitantly.
...Oh sure… If I'm lucky, this filth will poison me…
"It's not so bad. There's lots of tasty algae here. It's actually kind of cozy." Solomon said, settling into the slime.
I eat algae? Oh, fuck me…
"Now I never want to eat you. Nasty." The Absol made a face. Solomon grew a shade lighter with embarrassment.
"Anyways, Solomon… Goodbye." The Absol began to walk away.
WAIT!
"Wait!" Solomon cried out. The Absol halted, and turned around.
Did I really just say "wait?"
"Will I get to see you again?" Solomon asked. The Absol smiled.
"Definitely. Sometime tomorrow. After a hunt." The Absol seemed flattered that he wanted to see her again.
"Okay… See you tomorrow… Absol." Solomon sank back into deeper water.
"See you, Solomon." The Absol said fondly, as she turned about and dashed gracefully off into the night.
Solomon disappeared into the depths. This pool wasn't very deep, or very big. A mat of nasty coated the surface, and a swarm of miniscule blue Poliwags fled this giant newcomer as he plunged into the weeds. The water below was cooler, and didn't taste as foul, but a carpet of slime and silt greeted Solomon as he descended.
Oh this is nice. Real homely…
The foreign fish settled near the roots of the weeds, and rested in the goo.
Listen me, when I talk, you talk. What I say, you say-
"Oh! Hello!" Solomon jetted out of his cover when he spied a trio of Barboaches in the silt.
-Goddamnit…
"I'm Solomon. Is this your pool?" Solomon asked guilelessly. The Barboaches ignored him.
Will I ever be able to control what I say?
"Am I disturbing you guys?" Solomon asked. The Barboaches remained silent.
"Oh. You must be sleeping. Do all fish sleep in the dirt?" Solomon asked. The Barboaches didn't answer.
I hate me.
"Well um… I'm little new at this, so…" Solomon flailed against an unoccupied stretch of soil, and kicked a cloud of silt up into the water. Slithering into the trench that he had made, Solomon attempted to bury himself.
"This is... interesting…" Solomon murmured, feeling rather uncomfortable.
"Um… Guys? Is it normal for your gills to start… burning?" Solomon asked nervously. The Barboaches began to chuckle.
"Yeah, this… doesn't feel good. Ow. Ow. Ow-OwOWOWOW-OW!" The burning sensation escalated past the point of excruciating. Solomon burst from the silt, and swam in desperate circles. Rushing as much water through his mouth as possible, Solomon tried to rid himself of the stinging silt in his gills. The trio of Barbroaches were roaring with laughter.
Fuck you guys!
"Fuck you guys…" Solomon muttered, returning to his place amongst the roots.
Did I just do it again?
…
Red. Red eyes. They look at me, and I see myself in the reflection. Red scales. Yellow barbels. White fins. Me. What has he done to me?
He tells me that this who I am. Not who I will become. In time, I will embrace this, and my role in his plans.
I'm crying again, the first tears of these new eyes. I don't remember who I was, but I know that it wasn't this.
White. White hands. Reaching, slowly, gently. Gently holding me. He tells me that this is the first trial. A trial he knows that I can overcome. I ignore his words. I need to know. Why? Why me?
The hands wipe away my tears, and softly caress my new body. He tells me that he chose me. Many have my qualities, the qualities that he desires; but of them all, he chose me. I tell him that I never wanted to be chosen. I tell him that I never wanted this to happen. He holds me close against him, his hands smothering me in his embrace. He is weeping, just as I am. He tells me that he is sorry. He tells me that he had to make a choice. A wretched choice. He chose me. He chose me to be the sacrifice.
I scream, the fear and dread fill me. A sacrifice? I'm a sacrifice? For what? For him? He silences me, and speaks softly. He tells me that my sacrifice is not for him. It is for a world. A world that is dying. A world he trusts me to save. I cannot speak, even though he has released my voice. I'm overcome.
He tells me that I was chosen, because in time, I will understand. And when I do, I will not regret my sacrifice…
…
Solomon woke. A sound had shaken him, a noise reverberating the water. A noise… A name?
"So-Lo-M-o-N?!" Solomon looked up in alarm. Absol's face had appeared beneath the surface of the water, and she was screaming his name beneath it, her voice distorted by the water.
"I'm here!" Solomon swam from weeds and up before her face. Absol smiled when she saw him, and her head withdrew back into the air, rippling the surface and turning her diffracted form into a wavering mirage.
My God, that's creepy…
Solomon broke the surface, and beheld a giggling Absol on the banks.
"You sleep in late." She laughed.
"Morning Absol!" Solomon said as he gulped in a mouthful of slime, and pressed the water out of his mouth with his tongue. Swallowing the soggy mound of algae that had been squashed against the roof of his mouth, Solomon let loose a content sigh.
Did I really just eat that? Okay! Gag reflex! Gag reflex?! Puke it out, dammit!
"Mmmmh…" Solomon moaned in bliss. Absol made a face, but she was still giggling all the same.
"I don't think that I like watching you eat. It's cute, but… disgusting." Absol said.
That. Was not… Cute…
"Sorry!" Solomon sank deeper under the surface, ashamed. Absol snorted.
"If you're hungry, come here. I brought you something to eat." Absol rolled something blue across the bank and into the water.
"You didn't have to do that…" Solomon sounded touched as he swam closer to Absol, preparing to engulf the blue orb.
Please be poisonous, please be poisonous, please be poisonous…
"It's a berry. I thought it might help you recover." Absol said. No sooner had Solomon crushed the fruit in his mouth than a rich, citrusy, and nutty flavor exploded across his taste buds.
Oh wow…
"Oh wow!" Solomon cried out as he swallowed the berry.
There! I did it! I did it again!
"That was unbelievably good… Oh…" Solomon swam in lazy circles on his side in purile ecstasy. Absol was giggling again.
"I thought that you would like that." Absol chortled.
"Thank you. Thank you so much!" Solomon gave Absol his most sincere gratitude. Absol couldn't stop laughing at the goofy expression on Solomon's face.
"Thank you, Solomon. I haven't laughed like this for… ever…" Absol's happy voice trailed off. She began to withdraw.
Oh God. She has baggage.
"Are you okay, Absol?" Solomon swam closer to the distraught creature. She looked up at him in surprise, but the look quickly disappeared behind a smile. A fake smile.
"I'm fine, Solomon. Thanks for asking…"
Yeah, you're not fooling anybody.
"Are you sure? You still seem a little sad." Solomon bumped his meaty snout against one of Absol's clawed toes.
"I'm fine. Really." Absol may have spoken the words, but even the pretentious smile had disappeared. Solomon was quite, observing Absol with concern. The silence stretched on into an uncomfortable wait.
"So-" Absol started hoarsely, then cleared her throat.
"Sorry. So um… Did you remember anything?" Absol said in a voice sounding more or less casual.
No.
"No." Solomon said, sinking into his own depression. Absol tilted her head.
"I'm sorry." Absol said softly.
For what?
"For what?" Solomon asked glumly.
"I just… I just feel bad for you. It must be scary. And frustrating." Absol answered quietly.
You have no idea…
"You have no idea…" Solomon said in a whisper.
"But-" Solomon perked up alarmingly sudden. Absol looked at him in surprise.
Just when I thought that I was in control of my mouth-
"I feel better when you're around. It's nice to have somebody to talk to." Solomon announced cheerfully.
I'm not that big of a sap! Why would I say that?!
Absol's startled expression softened into a coy smile.
"Aww… You're so sweet, Solomon." Absol cooed.
If I had hands, I'd be facepalming right now! This is so cliched!
"Actually, it's really nice to have someone to talk to. Someone who's not judging me…" Absol murmured.
Did you just see that mountain of baggage appear at her feet? Did you?
"Who would judge you, Absol? You're so nice. How could anyone judge someone who's as nice as you?" Solomon asked, concern rife in his intonation. Absol stiffened, but then she started to giggle again.
I AM NOT THIS SAPPY!
"It's because I'm wildly ugly!" Absol made a goofy face as she spoke in a dramatic voice.
Fishing for compliments. Click. No self esteem.
"Are you? I couldn't tell. Is there anything I can do to help?" Solomon asked, completely oblivious to the sarcasm.
NO! DO NOT DO THIS TO ME!
Absol burst out with a high pitched cackle, every breath drawn was punctuated by a snort.
Oh my God. She even has an annoying laugh. Kill me now.
"I can't believe you, Solomon… You make me laugh so hard…" Absol gasped when she finally drew enough breath to speak.
"So long as you're happy, I'm happy." Solomon spread his pectoral fins apart in a joyous display. Absol fell to the ground with another fit of giggles.
I hate me…
"Oh, Solomon. You're so sweet."
I hate you too.
"You're pretty sweet too, Absol. It… makes it easier… to..." Solomon sank into the water, once more growing depressed.
Just let me die…
"Hey, Solomon?" Absol asked, her voice hesitant.
"Hmm?" Solomon looked back up at her.
"Could I… Could I come back tomorrow? The pack needs me to lead a raid tonight, so I don't have much more time today… But I'd really like to see you again…" Absol asked shyly.
...Sigh…
"Of course. Please do. I… want to see you soon again, too." Solomon answered in a sincere tone. Absol looked at him, her sad eyes now accompanied by a sad smile.
And in a pathetic way… I actually meant that…
"Thank you, Solomon. I'll see you tomorrow." Absol murmured warmly as she walked off into the woods. Solomon watched her leave, before swimming over to imbibe more slime.
Maybe she's not all bad…