Well, after appraising my current situation, I can say with some authority
that I DON'T own Squaresoft. I do, however, own Old Navy Inc., just in
case you were wondering.
Seeing Beyond, Chap. 7
I am Blank.
It had started out just like any other day.
Up at six o' clock, yawn, brush teeth, shuffle off to get breakfast, check in with Baku to see if there were any new items on the agenda, then the lazy walk around Lindblum, checking in with "suppliers," making "requests," granting "favors," and generally just doing a hell of a lot in quotation marks. Then, if there was a jaunt that day, the easy stroll down to the airship docks, where he hopped aboard, made sure things were in order, and took off. Guns to Burmecia, dirty magazines to Alexandria, even dirtier magazines to Treno, and the dirtiest magazines of all went to Dali. Apparently those village folks didn't have a lot of entertainment, but anyhoo.
Today was semi-special, his cargo was a load of jewels destined straight for Alexandria Castle. Blank had never been able to figure out the appeal in jewelry, you bought it and watched it sparkle...? And you paid thousands of gil for this? A jewel couldn't feed a dying man, couldn't sing a lullaby to a crying child, and sure as hell couldn't provide any form of sexual relief. Except...no, Blank chose not to think about that.
But he was taking the damn things to Alexandria. Cinna had told him, under the table, that Baku'd be furious if he screwed this one up, 'cause someone VERY high up in the Alexandrian hierarchy had ordered 'em. Blank had promised not to crash into any mountains or commit hari-kari on the way, and Cinna had laughed and told him to watch out for little green men.
Cinna was weird.
But, true to form, Blank had awoken as the correct time, went through his routine, and checked in with The Boss. After a few reminders to be careful, a few stern remonstrances regarding his previous behavior, and a few slaps on the back, Blank exited the Tantalus HQ and began the long, but enjoyable, walk to the docks. He bantered with the ticket agent at the station, bantered some more with the dockmaster, and was finally airborne, shooting out of one of the castle's many airship niches. He quickly achieved cruising altitude, laid in his course, and sat back to watch the view that pleased him most – the blue sky above, the white clouds below. Blank always felt he'd entered a new world when he broke the cloud level, a world free from sin, a world free from anger, a world-...what the hell was THAT?!
Whatever the hell THAT was, it was coming straight at him, a black blob against a white backdrop, trailing blue fire in its wake. At first Blank thought it was some sort of missile, and panicked, and then when he realized it was actually alive, he continued to panic. The...thing executed a flawless turn and flip, dropped from about a hundred yards above the airship, and landed squarely on the deck. Blank looked at it, and felt his jaw leaden, and his soul plummet.
The thing was a cloak, a hat, and a pair of red eyes. Everything else was Shadow. Even so, Blank could feel the thing's essence...and it reverberated strangely with his own. He felt the mute call of the shadow, beckoning to him, and he was fain to answer.
"My.....brother.....," the thing began, gutturally. "I have.....been searching for you.....for a long, long time." The thing was horrific to hear. It sounded like the devil with laryngitis. Blank was almost too frightened to respond, but respond he did.....?
I'm not your brother.
"I am glad.....you have found me...brother. Too long as this.....pathetic HUMAN ensnared me within his.....pitiful mind."
Blank railed, screamed, cursed, swore. The control he'd maintained lo these many months had disintegrated in a flash, and once again Blank felt himself reduced to observer status.
I'm not your brother! He screamed it, silently.
The thing stretched out its shadow-hands. "The master has.....great plans for you, my brother. From you...he hopes to learn. Many.....many things." The demon languished over the words, obviously enjoying the affect it was having on his invisible prey.
Blank heard himself speaking. "I will do.....all that the master commands.....brother. I am...at his disposal." No, I'm NOT! Blank would've wept, had he been able.
The demon smiled. It wasn't a visible thing, it had no mouth to smile with. But Blank felt that smile, felt it swimming down through what remained of his soul. He'd been found, only to be lost again.....and this time, it seemed as if he'd be lost for good. Blank lacked the strength to resist, not again, not this time. Not with the other one so near. Not with evil permeating the air, the way it did.
The demon smiled. Blank died a little bit more. "Come.....with me," it said. "We must...return to our master." It winged into flight, not looking back – so assured was it of its control.
And with good reason, too. Without a second's hesitation, Blank felt himself lifting into the air, carried on the soul of a devil, once again returning to the man who was his nightmare. Down.....down.....down.....he glimpsed the sky, one last time, before he was once again plunged into eternal Night.
(Lookit that, two chapters in less than a week. If you think I deserve something, I'd love some oatmeal cookies. Yeah! Go ahead! Review it! I dare ya! Or, you know what? Don't! Haha! Just pick one and go with it, man! Just be cool!)
(This whole world is copyrighted to me, circa 2002. All rights reserved.)
Seeing Beyond, Chap. 7
I am Blank.
It had started out just like any other day.
Up at six o' clock, yawn, brush teeth, shuffle off to get breakfast, check in with Baku to see if there were any new items on the agenda, then the lazy walk around Lindblum, checking in with "suppliers," making "requests," granting "favors," and generally just doing a hell of a lot in quotation marks. Then, if there was a jaunt that day, the easy stroll down to the airship docks, where he hopped aboard, made sure things were in order, and took off. Guns to Burmecia, dirty magazines to Alexandria, even dirtier magazines to Treno, and the dirtiest magazines of all went to Dali. Apparently those village folks didn't have a lot of entertainment, but anyhoo.
Today was semi-special, his cargo was a load of jewels destined straight for Alexandria Castle. Blank had never been able to figure out the appeal in jewelry, you bought it and watched it sparkle...? And you paid thousands of gil for this? A jewel couldn't feed a dying man, couldn't sing a lullaby to a crying child, and sure as hell couldn't provide any form of sexual relief. Except...no, Blank chose not to think about that.
But he was taking the damn things to Alexandria. Cinna had told him, under the table, that Baku'd be furious if he screwed this one up, 'cause someone VERY high up in the Alexandrian hierarchy had ordered 'em. Blank had promised not to crash into any mountains or commit hari-kari on the way, and Cinna had laughed and told him to watch out for little green men.
Cinna was weird.
But, true to form, Blank had awoken as the correct time, went through his routine, and checked in with The Boss. After a few reminders to be careful, a few stern remonstrances regarding his previous behavior, and a few slaps on the back, Blank exited the Tantalus HQ and began the long, but enjoyable, walk to the docks. He bantered with the ticket agent at the station, bantered some more with the dockmaster, and was finally airborne, shooting out of one of the castle's many airship niches. He quickly achieved cruising altitude, laid in his course, and sat back to watch the view that pleased him most – the blue sky above, the white clouds below. Blank always felt he'd entered a new world when he broke the cloud level, a world free from sin, a world free from anger, a world-...what the hell was THAT?!
Whatever the hell THAT was, it was coming straight at him, a black blob against a white backdrop, trailing blue fire in its wake. At first Blank thought it was some sort of missile, and panicked, and then when he realized it was actually alive, he continued to panic. The...thing executed a flawless turn and flip, dropped from about a hundred yards above the airship, and landed squarely on the deck. Blank looked at it, and felt his jaw leaden, and his soul plummet.
The thing was a cloak, a hat, and a pair of red eyes. Everything else was Shadow. Even so, Blank could feel the thing's essence...and it reverberated strangely with his own. He felt the mute call of the shadow, beckoning to him, and he was fain to answer.
"My.....brother.....," the thing began, gutturally. "I have.....been searching for you.....for a long, long time." The thing was horrific to hear. It sounded like the devil with laryngitis. Blank was almost too frightened to respond, but respond he did.....?
I'm not your brother.
"I am glad.....you have found me...brother. Too long as this.....pathetic HUMAN ensnared me within his.....pitiful mind."
Blank railed, screamed, cursed, swore. The control he'd maintained lo these many months had disintegrated in a flash, and once again Blank felt himself reduced to observer status.
I'm not your brother! He screamed it, silently.
The thing stretched out its shadow-hands. "The master has.....great plans for you, my brother. From you...he hopes to learn. Many.....many things." The demon languished over the words, obviously enjoying the affect it was having on his invisible prey.
Blank heard himself speaking. "I will do.....all that the master commands.....brother. I am...at his disposal." No, I'm NOT! Blank would've wept, had he been able.
The demon smiled. It wasn't a visible thing, it had no mouth to smile with. But Blank felt that smile, felt it swimming down through what remained of his soul. He'd been found, only to be lost again.....and this time, it seemed as if he'd be lost for good. Blank lacked the strength to resist, not again, not this time. Not with the other one so near. Not with evil permeating the air, the way it did.
The demon smiled. Blank died a little bit more. "Come.....with me," it said. "We must...return to our master." It winged into flight, not looking back – so assured was it of its control.
And with good reason, too. Without a second's hesitation, Blank felt himself lifting into the air, carried on the soul of a devil, once again returning to the man who was his nightmare. Down.....down.....down.....he glimpsed the sky, one last time, before he was once again plunged into eternal Night.
(Lookit that, two chapters in less than a week. If you think I deserve something, I'd love some oatmeal cookies. Yeah! Go ahead! Review it! I dare ya! Or, you know what? Don't! Haha! Just pick one and go with it, man! Just be cool!)
(This whole world is copyrighted to me, circa 2002. All rights reserved.)