The Sacred Altean - Coran Week 2016 Day 1: Baby/Young Coran
"I'm gonna find you all!"
Young Coran giggled playfully as he started to hop down the outdoor steps leading up to the mighty Castle of Lions. The exterior had been completed just days prior, and interior construction had already begun.
Coran and some other Altean children had been instructed to go play outside and just within the front entrance hall to minimize the risk of an accident. It was then that one of them suggested playing hide-and-seek, causing the rest of the group to smile excitedly.
Seeing as how his grandfather was the one building the castle, the other children elected Coran to search for them during the first round.
So far, he wasn't having any luck finding anybody outside, until one of the huge potted plants lining the main walkway seemed to wiggle and he found Prince Alfor hiding inside it.
"Got ya, Alfor!" Coran laughed, peeking his head in the shrubbery. His friend was crouched on the dirt, covering his head as if it would help.
Alfor tilted his head up and groaned at Coran's cheeky grin. "Oh, come on! I thought a long time about this spot."
"Yeah, well, not long enough. Here." Coran held his hand out to help him up and out of the bush. They stumbled forward on the pavement as the prince jumped down from the plant. "Alright. I'm going to go find the rest now. Come help me?"
Alfor nodded and the two boys started to run around the walkway in search of the rest of their friends, laughing the whole way.
Hilo was the only other one hiding outside. He'd shifted himself into a bright pink color so he could lie down and blend in with the blossoming juniberries surrounding the castle. But after doing a double-take, Coran could easily see his body popping out from the landscape.
Koa and his cousin, Makulu were inside the entrance hall, both hiding underneath the grand staircase in a small alcove. They tried to keep quiet, but by doing so they only made themselves giggle even more. Alfor heard them first, nudging Coran and Hilo in the sides to direct their attention. They snuck up on the cousins and, on Coran's mark, jumped out in front of them. Koa screamed, while Makulu jumped out of fright and banged her head against the wall of the alcove.
"Quiznak!" Makulu yelped, rubbing her scalp. She glared up at the trio, who gasped at her choice of words.
"Makulu, hush!" Koa directed, trying to calm his heart rate. "You'll get in trouble again if someone catches you saying that!"
His cousin just rolled her eyes as the others helped them to stand up. After they brushed off their uniforms, Koa asked, "So who'd you find first, Coran?"
"Alfor," he answered, jerking his thumb to his left and turning towards his best friend. "Which means it's your turn to count!"
Alfor groaned up into the air, "Fiiiiine!" He made his way outside to lean up against the wall of the castle and shield his eyes while he counted in Altean.
The rest of the group immediately began to scramble. Coran laughed as Koa and Hilo made a mad dash outside past Alfor, but didn't quite catch where Makulu disappeared off to. Instead, he focused on finding his own hiding spot.
Surprisingly, there weren't actually too many spots in the hall besides the staircase, but that would be obvious. Coran looked around frantically, feeling rushed as he heard Alfor counting away the seventeen ticks.
It was too late to run outside. Coran twisted his head around, spinning until he saw his saving grace - the pod hangar! Its door just off to the side of the entrance hall was wide open, beckoning him. Technically, it didn't count as part of the hall, but then again, no one had explicitly said it was off-limits.
Coran chuckled at his newfound loophole and ran through the open door. The hangar was empty of people, thankfully, since it had been constructed and completed before the exterior of the castle had even been started.
That said, since there were no construction materials lying around, he would have to hide behind a pod. Or in one.
Coran grinned as his eyes settled on a pod who's hatch had been left opened. He rarely got to go in a pod, much less actually explore their controls and inner workings, so this could be his big chance to do so.
Oh so carefully, he climbed up on the wing and into the pod, slumping into the co-pilot's seat. He stared up immediately at the dashboard, enthralled with its craftsmanship and all the buttons and screens, but took care to not actually press any. He knew one day he would get his chance, but until then he wanted to learn as much as he could.
Several rounds of ticks passed as he studied the dashboard carefully, until he heard a distant bang and footsteps begin to approach the pod. Coran quickly ducked behind his seat, crawling into the backseat area of the pod and hiding behind a storage trunk. He covered his head with his arms, hoping his glowing markings on them wouldn't give him away, and waited, listening.
It wouldn't take Alfor long to realize that Coran was in the pod. The rest of the hangar was easy to scan and this was the only open one.
What Coran failed to realize until it was too late was that it was not Alfor coming in to check the pod for him. He should've heard it sooner. Only one Altean walked with that kind of manic purpose in their footsteps, and even so Coran should've known something was up when the pod roared to life and hovered into the air.
Seren, Coran's grandfather, was flying the pod.
Coran felt his heart rate go up. He'd flown with his grandfather before, but it was always with other people and usually just a casual flight. Alone, his flights were usually missions for project materials, and were notoriously known for their more rushed, wild piloting. He'd always wanted to join him on one of these missions. He just didn't want to be behind a storage trunk for it.
Even though it would give his hiding spot away, Coran unwrapped his arms and scrambled up to grab onto the back of the seat in front of him. Sure enough, there was his grandfather in the pilot's seat at the front, his hair sticking out at the sides. The pod was already flying up through the Altea atmosphere. He needed to strap himself in as soon as possible.
Unfortunately, that meant having to reveal himself as a stowaway.
Coran steadied himself as he made his way up to the cockpit, drawing in a breath before he announced himself as calmly as he could. "Pops?"
Seren yelped and nearly jumped straight through the hatch door when Coran spoke. His hands knocked the controls to the side, causing the pod to veer to the left before he grabbed them and straightened out his flight with expertise. Coran stumbled during this, but managed to keep one hand gripped on the back of the passenger seat.
"Coran! What the quiznak are you doing, my boy?!" Seren's eyes were shielded by his goggles, but Coran knew there was a wild and crazy look flaring through them right now.
"I-I was just hiding in here because my friends and I were playing. I didn't know you were going to use the pod," he answered, his cheeks blushing in embarrassment.
Seren eyed him carefully, then shook his head. "I'm taking you back to the castle."
"No!" Coran immediately cried out, reaching halfway towards the controllers before pulling his hand back. He took a moment to gather his thoughts in his head. "I mean…I'd like to go with you, Pops, if that's okay."
"I can't. Your mother will never let me hear the end of it if something happens to you."
Coran looked down at his feet, then back up at his grandfather. "But…I want to learn about whatever you're doing. And flying!" he began, his voice sounding braver the more he spoke. "You always get to go on amazing adventures and explore places! I want to do that, too."
After a long silent round of deliberation, Seren sighed in resignation. Coran was a determined boy, that was certain, but he figured it would be nice to have his grandson along for an otherwise humdrum trip.
"Alright, you can come," Seren said, smiling slightly when Coran let out a small, 'Yes!' "Just sit down and strap yourself in, okay?"
Coran did as he was told, sitting in the right backseat and reaching for the straps before Seren cut him off.
"What are you doing?" his grandfather asked, looking away from the dashboard. Coran just gave him a confused blank stare, prompting him to continue with, "Get up here and sit in the co-pilot's seat. I'm going to start teaching you how to fly, my boy."
The smile on Coran's face could have powered a dozen castles. He abandoned the backseat and climbed into the co-pilot's seat, feeling a surge of pride as he settled in and secured the strap around his waist. He looked up at his grandfather, who was beaming at him.
"Right then, my co-captain!" Seren declared, leaning forward to point at the dashboard. "You see these numbers on the screen here? They tell you your altitude, speed, and fuel supply, for starters…"
Seren spent the next several minutes guiding Coran through the basics of how the pod worked while also steering it towards his destination. He even let Coran take control of the pod for a brief few seconds, being surprisingly impressed with the boy's coordination.
Inevitably, Coran eventually asked, "Pops, where are we actually going?"
"Oh! The answer's even better than flying! We're going to a Balmera!" the older Altean said, returning his right hand to the controls.
Coran secretly doubted that anything could be better than flying, but he still continued with his curious questions. "What's a Balmera?"
Seren brought a picture up on the pod's central screen. "You see this crystal? It's going to power the Castle of Lions when it's completed. I have to go get it though at a Balmera, which grows them."
Coran looked out to his right just in time to see a huge looming celestial object veer into view. "Whoa…is that planet it?"
"Yes, but not quite," Seren explained, chuckling. "It's a gigantic living creature that's been petrified. It produces the crystals for anyone to use, but in return those that take them need to give energy back to it."
"And how do they do that?"
"I'll show you when we get there. Look out your window again for now though," he said, sticking his arm out to point past Coran's nose.
Coran turned his head and his jaw dropped. They had entered the Balmeran atmosphere, and from here he could see the sparkling surface of the creature. Crystals jutted out from every which way, making it sparkle a mesmerizing silvery-blue color that shone brilliantly from every direction like ice. He pressed his face up against the window, completely enthralled.
"Incredible…" he whispered, taken by the sheer beauty of it all.
Seren smiled over at him as he maneuvered the pod down onto the surface, landing just next to a couple of towering pillars that seemed to overlook everything.
By the time the pod's systems had cooled down and Seren had gathered what he needed to from the backseat, night was beginning to fall on the Balmera. In turn, the crystals began to glow, lighting everything up across the surface.
Coran jumped out of the pod and landed on the ground with a light thud, brushing nonexistent dust off his thighs. When he looked back up, his jaw dropped. The sight was even more spectacular up close.
"Off we go, Coran, my boy!" Seren shouted, trying to keep things moving. If there was one thing that could be said about him, it was that he was always in motion. Even now, he was already a good distance away from the pod, a determined aura about him.
As he shook off his daze and caught up with his grandfather, Coran noticed that his every step seemed to make the ground glow even brighter. It boggled his mind that such a unique thing as a Balmera existed.
The duo eventually reached their ultimate destination after hiking through several areas of crystals both big and small, some larger than their pod.
Seren had a particular image in mind for the crystal he had come for. It needed to be rather symmetrical in its curves and be about the diameter of the ship's control podium - the definition of a standard battleship-class crystal.
He stood proudly in front of the one he'd found nestled against another pillar. It was just a smidge taller than he'd prefer, but otherwise, it was perfect. He grinned and gestured for Coran to come closer. The boy did so, walking to within a few footsteps of their prize so that he was standing next to his grandfather.
"Alright, my boy," Seren said, raising his goggles onto his head while sizing up the crystal with his eyes. "We need to excavate this crystal, but first we need to give the Balmera back its energy like I told you about earlier with a rejuvenation ceremony. I've told you about quintessence, right?"
Coran looked down at the ground beneath his boots and nodded. He knew very well what quintessence was - Seren had told him about it when Coran's father had died in a flight accident a while back. He'd explained that the quintessence of his body had become one with Altea again, and would give the planet new life. Since then, Seren had taken quickly to being a father figure for his grandson.
"Good. Because that's what we're going to re-infuse the Balmera with, provided you have the…special touch," Seren explained, a playful glint streaking through his eyes in the dark as he watched Coran look up curiously at him.
"Special touch?"
Seren took a step forward towards the crystal and knelt down on one knee, ushering Coran to come closer still. He placed his right hand on his shoulder, the other against the crystal. The smooth surface pulsed brightly under his glove.
He nodded towards his hand. "You see, because I have the special touch, I can give the Balmera quintessence for its sacrifice, and take the crystal."
Coran looked from Seren's face to the crystal and back again, eyes filled with worry. "But what if you don't have the special touch?"
Seren closed his eyes and sighed, shaking his head ever so slightly before saying, "Then you must never - EVER - take a crystal. It'd be a terribly selfish thing if someone did that. Those types of people must be stopped at all costs." He caught sight of the panic growing on Coran's face at this news. "But don't worry, my boy! I have the special touch, your father had it, and I'm sure you will, too. Want to see if you do?"
After a moment of hesitation, Coran nodded then asked, "What do I do?"
Seren readjusted his balance on his knee and straightened his back, nudging his grandson right up against the crystal. "Place both of your hands against the crystal like mine, just so." Coran did as he was told, and Seren continued to instruct, "Now think. Think about life, and how quintessence exists within us all. How it connects us together in the universe as one."
Coran shut his eyes tightly and thought hard about what he said. With his father's memory still fresh in his mind, the process came all too easily, and he felt a surge of familiar energy course through his body and into his hands. He dared to take a peek, before popping his eyes open all the way and gasping out loud.
The crystal pulsed loudly under his skin, glowing brighter by the tick. He felt like it was answering his gesture, like the whole Balmera was communicating with him through it. The steady thrum of energy in his hands left him wide-eyed in amazement. It was such a rush of the senses, but he found himself quickly adapting.
Seren's heart, meanwhile, was swelling over seeing his grandson possessing the same ability he did, and that so many generations of Alteans had before, including his own son. If only he could see this moment now…
Seren turned to Coran and smiled proudly. With a hushed excitement, he told him, "Coran, you did it! You have the special touch! My boy, you are a sacred Altean!"
Yahoo! Finally getting going on Coran Week! I'm gonna do it! Heads-up: check out the tags on the Tumblr version of this fic for a bunch of notes and headcanons, and also Coran's friends names are Hawaiian words. Hilo means "new moon" (like the phase), Makulu means "Saturn," and Koa means "brave, bold, fearless." They sound Altean and are so cool. :)
A super thank-you goes out to notllorstel on Tumblr, who's own Day 1 Coran Week entry partly inspired this fic! And of course thank you for letting me use Seren for Coran's grandfather! He's super fun to write!