Of the gladdest moments in human life, methinks, is the departure upon a distant journey into unknown lands.
-Sir Richard Burton
The five explorers traversed deeper into the jungle, chopping through the flora while the fauna sang to them. They had been going at it for days now, eager to find what they were looking for and go home. Jungle exploring was dangerous enough, but there was something about this part of the jungle that was especially unwelcoming. The jungle screamed at them in warning, like they were nearing something they should just leave be.
"Keep your wits about you, men." the leader of the group said. "This jungle will kill you in a moment's notice."
"Most logical thing you said for the past week and a half." said Liam. The Irish marksman had been recruited into the team for his survivalist skills and his reputation of never missing a shot, in case they ran into anything hostile. His trusty rifle was slung over his shoulder and a pair of pistols hung on his belt. "I'm fine with being paid to search for fairytales, so long as the money's good. But, what you're looking for? I'd sooner believe Atlantis exists."
The leader pulled out a canteen of water and took a swig. Buddy Buddwick was a tall, handsome Brit with a fine head of brown hair and a well kept mustache. His muscular arms flexed under his safari outfit. Buddy was a skilled and famed explorer. The Queen's first pick to explore the unexplored and find the unfound. But it wasn't the Queen that had sent him to this place. This was Buddy's personal project. Something he had been researching since he had first begun his career.
"Finding things that others say are not real is what I do for a living, my friend." Buddy said as they ventured through the jungle. "And besides, if my theory is correct, then we're getting close. Right, Dr. Brunner?"
The portly German geologist pulled out a map. "Yes, I believe so. Vhen the continents vere one, it vas called Pangaea. Und if your theory is correct, Buddwick, then the settlement of the Pangaeans, as you call them, vould have ended up somewhere in this vicinity after the continent split into seven."
"Pangaeans." Wo Lanc said in disgust. The group's native guide spat into the dirt. His dark skinned body was chiseled like a marble statue. Unlike the others, he didn't wear any gear. He just wore an open, animal skin tunic and alligator skin tassets that showed off his ripped body. Wooden sandals protected his feet. In his hand, he hefted a mighty stone-tipped spear.
"Wo Lanc know of the ones you speak of." he continued in his deep baritone. "Many years ago they worshiped demons made of starlight, who came down from above to drain the life from Mother Earth."
"Last I checked, demons came from below." Liam remarked.
"You fool Christians have it backwards." said Wo Lanc. "The demons come from above."
"They weren't demons." Buddy argued as he led the group. "My research suggests they were a race of godlike beings, who the Pangaeans both feared and worshiped. The mythical beings educated the first of mankind. Taught them to build, to harvest, even speak. One transcript describes a beautiful goddess of nature who could heal the sick and wounded with her very tears. Although, the description gets a little funny. Some of the writing describes the goddess as a protector. Other times, she's described as the destroyer of the world."
Wo Lanc nodded. "She-demons."
"Bah." replied Buddy. "I promise you we won't encounter any alleged 'She-demons'. With a little bit of luck, we may find a temple dedicated to these 'Starlight Beings', as they are referred to in my texts. And if we do happen to spot any demons, we'll just have our master photographer snap a picture of her. Right, Johnny?"
The American photographer nodded his head. He was a young looking fellow, clean shaven and short. A large camera hung on his neck. "You betcha, Bud!" he said cheerfully.
"Just like an American." Liam said. "Enough vigor to overdose on."
"Maybe he can share. You seem a little low, Liam." Buddy suggested. This earned a laugh from Johnny and Dr. Brunner.
"Are we getting close yet?" Liam asked impatiently. "The trees are starting to wall us in as if this were Alcatraz."
"Patience, Liam old boy, patience." said Buddy. "We should be getting close though, I agree with you on that." Buddy halted the group and looked around. "...Say, Dr. Brunner. Would you kindly hand me that map?"
Dr. Brunner walked up to Buddy and handed him the map. Buddwick studied the map thoughtfully as he walked ahead, the ground crunching under his feet. The jungle seemed to get louder, as if Buddy was nearing something dangerous and it was trying to warn him.
Then the entire jungle suddenly went dead silent when Buddy stopped walking. He didn't appear to notice, but his four companions looked around nervously. Especially Wo Lanc.
"The jungle speaks!" Wo Lanc declared. "We should not be here!"
"Uh, Mr. Buddwick?" Johnny spoke up. "I'm with the native on this one. Something ain't right here."
"Oh, you Yanks are always so paranoid." Buddy said as he studied the map.
Liam slung his rifle off his back. "The Yank and the native are right, Buddwick. We need to get out of here."
"Oh, don't go yellow on me." Buddy replied. He concentrated harder on his map. "Now if I'm correct, then the Pangaean settlement should be…" Buddy blinked in confusion. "Right here, I guess."
The ground beneath Buddy's feet gave way and he fell down screaming.
The four explorers hurried over to the hole Buddy had fallen through.
"Ah, Christ. There goes my payment." Liam grumbled.
"Mr. Buddwick!" Dr. Brunner called down the hole. "Are you okay?"
Down below, Buddy picked himself up off the ground and dusted himself off. "Gotta watch that first step." he muttered. Buddy then looked around. He managed to see something strange in front of him in the dark. Curious, he brought out his lighter and lit it up. The small flame allowed him to see a strange metal cauldron up ahead, it was too dark to see much of anything else. He walked up to it, it was filled with what smelled like oil.
Even more curious than before, Buddy pulled out a wick out of his pocket and lit it on fire before dropping it into the cauldron. Turns out, the cauldron was connected to an entire lighting system. The fire traveled around like a train, illuminating all there was to see. And what Buddy saw, nearly made his heart stop.
"Sir?! Mr. Buddwick?!" Johnny called down from above. "Are you okay?!"
Buddy licked his dry licks. "I'm fine, lads! I found something!"
"Guter Gott!" Buddy heard Dr. Brunner shout. "Are you sure?!"
Buddy looked at the large, underground temple before him. The aflame oil guttered around the chamber. It looked like some kind of art display, with several large, stone monoliths neatly spread about and murals painted on the ceiling and walls.
"Yes, I do believe I found something!" Buddy called. "I'm going to have a look around!"
Buddy walked into the chamber and looked around, as he said he would. Each mural seemed to tell a different story. One wall mural depicted a tribe of people worshiping a giantess with pink hair. The painter gave the giantess a warm and kind face, but a blue, yellow, and white light in the background gave the mural an ominous feel.
Another mural depicted a group of warriors rallying behind another pink giantess in a white dress. The giantess had her sword raised towards a symbol familiar to Buddy. A diamond made of four adjoining diamonds; one white, one yellow, one blue, and one pink. The ancient texts normally used either one or all four of the diamonds to symbolize the Starlight Beings.
The one on the ceiling was the most ominous. It was of another giantess, seemingly bigger than either of the two pink ones. This giantess was as white was moonlight, her all-seeing eyes gazed over the world as oceans were swallowed up and the lands withered to barren wastelands. The mural was as impressive as it was scary.
Buddy gulped. He walked over to the closest monolith. At first glance, the glyphs carved into the stone were indecipherable. But Buddy had studied the Starlight Language long enough to be able to read it, but not easily.
Buddy narrowed his eyes in concentration as he began to read the glyphs. "...We… failed… to… kill… it…" He read aloud.
Buddy blinked. He walked over to another monolith and read it as well. "...The… goddess… and… her… followers… lied… to… us…"
Buddy coughed into his fist. "Getting a tad grim for my taste." The explorer walked over and read another one. "...We… only… weakened… it… the… goddess… promised… life… after… her… birth… but… we… were… only… given… death."
Buddy gulped. "Good material for a horror picture right here." he muttered. He walked over to another monolith. "...Forgive… us… for… our… failure… we… doomed… the… world."
"Okay, that's enough of that." Buddy said as he stepped away from the monolith. "Gonna need to get Johnny down here to snap some pictures. But, while I'm down here, I'll see if there's anything else to find."
Buddy looked around and saw a large door at the back of the chamber.
"Alright, there is quite obviously something through that door. I suppose I'll have myself a look." Buddy walked towards the door. "I really need to stop talking to myself. It's bleeding spooky."
He reached the door and gave it a push. When it wouldn't budge, he put his whole body weight on the door and pushed with all of his might. The door moaned in protest, but Buddy managed to open it up, revealing another dark room. Buddy brought his lighter back out and flicked on a flame. It didn't reveal much, so Buddy took cautious steps forward. Step by step, he moved further into the pitch-black room.
Until one step lit up the floor beneath his foot.
Buddy jumped back in fear as the odd stone floor began to illuminate. The blue glow spread from where he had stepped through the floor and the walls like blood veins through a body, lighting up the room so Buddy could see.
Although, Buddy wished the light would go back off when he saw what he saw.
There were skeletons everywhere in the massive room. Hundreds of them. Ancients bones within suits of rusted armor or just withered away clothes. It looked like they all had gone down fighting, weapon in hand.
Buddy took a step forward and something crunched under his foot. He thought it was bones, but when Buddy looked down, he saw that he had stepped on some broken stones of various colors, like someone had taken a hammer and went nuts on a bunch of pretty rocks. Buddy was relieved it wasn't more bones, but for some reason, he still got the impression he was standing on the dead.
"They're just rocks, old boy." Buddy said to himself. "They're just lifeless rocks."
Buddy then looked over and gasped. He wasn't sure how he missed it. Probably because of the squadron of dead skeletons. A giant hole about the size of an elephant was dug into the back of the room in the dirt wall. Actually, by the look of it, something might've burst out of the earth. The hole was oddly smooth and vaguely humanoid in shape, like an exotic work of art. The hole in the wall had the impression of a shrine of sorts.
Buddy had seen this before. In the African desert, there was a large trench with walls covered with these kinds of holes. And in the states, there was a far more enormous trench riddled with holes. No life thrived in either area, not because of something in the soil, but lack thereof. Buddy had named those places the Big and Little Swiss Trench in his notes, because of all of their holes. The Natives of both lands had far less humorous references for the Swiss Trenches. Although, it was difficult to decide whether they called the Trenches places of birth or places of death. The translations always got a little tangled on that.
The thing about this hole, was that Buddy had never seen one so big, not in either of the Swiss Trenches. There was one hole in the Little Swiss Trench that was a good eight feet, but that dwarfed in comparison to this one.
Buddy walked up to the big hole in the wall. He looked down at the bottom of the hole. On the floor at the base of the hole, written in what Buddy guessed was old dried blood, were more glyphs. "...Birth… of… the… devil… who… pretended… to… be… our… savior." Buddy gulped. "For the love of God, what is this damnable place?"
Buddy turned around to leave, but froze when he saw something shine over by the wall. The blue glow of the floor and walls made it hard to spot it, but clutched in the hand of a dead warrior's skeleton, leaning back against the wall, was a handheld mirror.
"Oh, God help me. I know I should just leave, but damn my curiosity." Buddy walked over to the dead man with the mirror. On the wall next to the skeleton, more glyphs were written in old, dry blood.
It was harder to read, like it was written in a frantic hurry. "...Do… not… free… water… witch… world… will… drown… if… free." Buddy was able to read.
Buddwick looked down at the mirror in the skeleton's hand. "Water witch?" He knelt down and pulled the mirror out of the skeleton's surprisingly tight grip. It was an elegantly crafted mirror, made of a blueish-silver material. The glass still shined, even after lord knew how many years down in this temple.
Buddwick turned the mirror around. On the back of the mirror, there was a tear-shaped stone with a lovely, dark blue color. Buddy thought the stone looked pretty. And it almost looked like the stone could be popped out of its place, so he attempted to remove the stone from the mirror, ignoring the hairs standing up on the back of his neck. It proved to be a tough fight, the rock was really in there. Sweat poured from Buddy's brow. He didn't notice, though, how his sweat moved up instead of down.
With a loud 'peenk' sound, the stone came free. Buddy held the blue stone up triumphantly. "Heh, heh. The Queen will love this little beauty."
Said 'little beauty' began to glow brightly.
Buddy yelped and tossed the stone away with a quick flick of his wrist. He backed away in fear as the stone rose into the air, it's glow intensifying. His fear increased as the form of a girl emerged from the stone like a glowing, inflating balloon. The girl floating in the air looked human, except for her blue skin and darker blue hair. She wore some kind of bathing suit with a black and blue ribbon-back top that showed her blue midsection and a blue skirt that hung below her knees which both matched her hair in hue. The rock Buddy pulled out of the mirror was lodged in the square of her back.
The girl floated to the ground with her eyes closed, as if asleep. She was pretty, even with her unnatural coloration, like a college girl out on the beach. Once her bare feet touched the ground, her eyes shot open. Something was wrong, however. The girl began to panic. She looked around the chamber in terror as if she could see the ghosts coming for her through the walls. She looked angry, scared, in pain, and confused all at once. Her look leaned on angry when she noticed Buddy in the chamber.
With incredible speed, she lunged at Buddy and shoved him back against the wall, knocking the breath out his lungs. The girl grabbed Buddy by the throat and held him against the wall, keeping his lungs from refilling. For a small girl, she was frighteningly strong.
"You." She hissed. "You animals are the cause of all of this! I lost everything because of your kind! I lost her!"
Buddy was unable to respond. He tried to pry the girl's steel grip off of his throat as his face turned blue, beginning to match the girl's face.
The girl looked ready to snap Buddy's neck. But instead, she released him and he fell to the floor, gasping for breath. The girl dashed to the center of the chamber room and brought her hands down below her waist. She closed her eyes in concentration as she slowly brought her hands up. It looked like she was lifting an invisible, heavy weight.
The chamber began to shake. Buddy watched as large cracks formed on the ground and water rose from the cracks, collecting above the girl's head. When she had enough, the water floating above the girl's head morphed in the shape of a car-sized drill. With a loud, angry cry, the girl threw her hands up and the water-drill shot up and drilled upwards at an incomprehensible spread. The whole earth shook until sunlight shone down on the girl. Not wasting a single second, the girl sprouted a pair of wings made of water out of her back and shot up through the hole she made like a pistol round.
Buddy sat on the floor in a state of shock. His breathing was rapid and his eyes were wide with alarm. He sat there for several minutes before he began to reacquire his bearings. He then noticed an old, rolled up parchment in the withered pocket of a skeleton Buddy was sitting by. With shaky hands, he reached over and pulled the roll of parchment out of the dead man's pocket. It was a miracle the paper stayed intact as Buddy unrolled it, and even more of a miracle that he could read what was left of the glyphs in his freaked out condition.
"...They… will… return… and… the… world… will… die."
(Several decades later)
"And this, class, is the Mirror of the Water Witch." the museum educator, a young, smartly dressed lady, said to the second grade class. "Named by famed explorer Bubby Buddwick, who found the mirror in a lost temple deep in the uncharted areas of the Amazon Jungle in his search for settlements made by the Pangaeans, who worshiped a group of deities Buddwick referred to as Starlight Beings, back when the seven continents were one continent called Pangaea.
The class stared curiously at the mirror. It stood upright in it's stand amidst several photos. One photo showed a group of stone monoliths in a temple chamber, another photo showed a mural of a pink giant, another one showed a strange, huge hole in the wall, and another showed a blurred image of what looked like a big, blue eagle flying straight up into the sky.
"Buddy Buddwick and his team found the temple underground, which had miraculously survived the continental drift." the educator continued. "The Mirror was the only artifact found in the temple, other than the monoliths and the murals, as well as a group of deceased Pangaean warriors. In his report, Buddwick claimed to have seen, and I quote him directly, 'Proof that for over a thousand years, we have been wrong.'"
"And I did."
Everyone turned to see an old, balding mustached man with thick-frame glasses and a porkpie hat on his bald head dressed in a black suit hobble toward them with his cane.
"Oh! What a pleasant surprise!" The educator remarked. "Class, this is Buddy Buddwick himself, all the way from Great Britain. He is the man who found the temple and was kind enough to donate the Mirror to this museum."
"I didn't want that cursed thing in my country. So I figured you Yanks would like it." said Buddwick.
One of the smarter looking girls in the group of second grader's raised her hand. "What did you mean when you said 'you did'?"
"I meant I found that." Buddy pointed to the picture of the blue eagle thing. "Johnny was the best photographer of his generation. He was lucky to get this good of a shot of the thing."
"What is that 'thing'?" the school counselor leading the group of students asked. The thin man adjusted his glasses. "It looks like a bird."
"A She-demon." Buddy replied gravely. "At least, that's what Wo Lanc called it. It burst out of the ground and flew up into the sky. Liam tried to take a shot at it, and Johnny managed to snap this picture of her."
"Her? So it was a person?" the counselor asked.
Buddy shook his head. "That thing wasn't a person. Whatever it was… it wasn't human."
The seriousness of his tone seemed to scare the children, but the counselor just chuckled. "The very idea. Don't worry, children, there's no such thing as flying she-demons."
"So you don't believe me." Buddy said. "That's fine. No one did."
"I believe you!"
One of the students pushed his way to the front of the group. He had black, messy hair and he wore a pair of overalls over a blue shirt. His backpack had a bunch of flying saucers and green alien heads on it.
"She flew up into the sky?!" the boy asked excitedly. "I bet she was a space alien!"
A lot of the kids rolled their eyes at the boy, but Buddy nodded his head. "That has been one of my theories, but no amount of even theoretical science could support what that thing could do."
"Don't listen to him, Mr. Buddwick." one of the kids said. "He'll believe anything."
"Whoever said that, shut it." Buddwick said. He turned his attention back to the boy. "What's your name, son?"
"Greg. Greg DeMayo." the boy answered.
"I take it you find outer space to be quite fascinating, yes?"
Greg nodded. "Uh-huh! I'm gonna be an astronaut some day!"
"No you're not!" the same kid from before said.
"He might be." Buddy said. "You never know what the future may hold."
"Or a rockstar, if the astronaut thing doesn't work." Greg added. "Maybe I'll be both."
Buddy chuckled. "Best of luck with that, chap. But if you decide to become an astronaut, a quick word of warning." Buddy turned to the display case that held the mirror, his face becoming fearful at the sight of the relic. "The unknown… can be bloody terrifying."
Greg looked at the display case. His eyes settled on the photo of the pink giantess mural. Greg thought she looked pretty.
"On that happy note, it's lunch time, children." the counselor announced. "Head to the food court, I'll be with you in a moment. Shelby is the class leader until then!"
The children headed off to the food court. The counselor walked up to Buddwick, who was still staring at the mirror.
"Was giving the children a good scare really necessary?" he asked the old man.
"Fear is a good thing to learn." Buddy replied. "It keeps us from doing things we would later regret."
The counselor shook his head. "Well, at least Greg got a kick out of your tale. Thank you for that, by the way. I think he really needed that." the counselor's face became solemn. "Things aren't great at home for him right now."
Buddy met the counselor's gaze and hummed thoughtfully. "Well… I hope for the best for that boy. Wherever he may find himself in life."
(Fourteen years later)
It was getting late. The sun was setting down below the ocean. Greg packed the last of the equipment into the van. He closed the back doors and sighed. "Well… another failed concert." Greg ran a hand through his massive hair. He hadn't cut it in years, so it hung down to his ankles. He wore a black shirt with ripped off sleeves that sported a yellow star on the chest and a pair of blue jeans. His sandals dug into the sandy ground.
Greg's manager walked around from the front of the van, counting a wad of cash. Marty looked like a genuine weasel. Tall and lanky, with a narrow face and a head of pale hair. He wore a black jacket and pants with a blue shirt underneath. A unibrow hung over his greedy eyes.
"That's for sure. This is pathetic!" Marty pocketed the cash. "You'd think these saltwater saps would appreciate a concert in their dump of a town, even if it's your mediocre music."
Greg ignored the insult, he had gotten used to it by now. "It's a small, sleepy town, Marty. I don't think the people here care all that much for an out of town musician."
"If you can even call it a town." Marty muttered. "Beach City. More like Beach Village."
"I like this place." Greg said.
"I'm sure you do." Marty replied. "Vidalia! Where are you?!"
"I'm right here."
Vidalia was leaning against a nearby palm tree smoking a cigarette. Marty's girlfriend had long sand-blonde hair that went down to her ankles. She wore a turquoise shirt under a leather jacket with spiked shoulders. Her turquoise shirt was tucked into a long pair of ripped jeans, which were stuffed into a pair of white boots. She wore eyeliner and mascara on her pale skin. She was attractive, but looked like the kind of girl who would ride her Harley into your kitchen and steal the beer out of your fridge.
Vidalia finished her cigarette and flicked the butt into the sand. "I didn't think I was that hard to miss."
"You're invisible when I want you to be." said Marty. "But right not, go back to the motel room and help this idiot pack up all our stuff." Marty walked over to the van's passenger side and opened the door. He pulled out a briefcase. "I got some things to take care of in the meantime. We leave tomorrow morning for Empire City." Marty grinned. "That's gonna be our big score! I made some calls to some producers and they actually liked Greg's music!"
Marty walked up and patted Greg on the shoulder. "Don't worry, kid. Stick with me, and before you know it, everyone will know the name Greg Universe."
"I still don't believe that's your real name." said Vidalia.
"Who asked you?" Marty asked sharply. "Besides, a stage name like Mr. Universe has pizzazz." Marty walked off with his briefcase. "I'll meet you guys back at the motel later."
Greg's eyes shined with hope and excitement. "Empire City." he said dreamily. "This is it! I'm finally gonna get into the big leagues!"
"Hopes and dreams are like bubbles, spaceman." Vidalia said as she walked to the van's passenger side. "They eventually burst." Vidalia hopped into the van and shut the door. "Let's go!"
During the drive to the motel, Greg and Vidalia didn't speak a word to each other. They hardly ever did. Greg had known Vidalia for about as long as he'd known Marty. They were a trio on the road, but the two of them didn't talk much. Greg supposed it was because they never really had common ground to bond over. Still though, he couldn't help but feel bad for Vidalia the way Marty treated her.
Greg just concentrated on his driving. Greg had owned the old van since he was sixteen. He had given it a paint job when he took off on his one-man band career with Marty. On either side of the van, 'Mr. Universe' had been painted with planets in outer space in the background. It was no million dollar bus, but Greg loved the van all the same.
When they finally arrived at the Hammerhead Motel, Greg parked the van and he and Vidalia went to their motel room. Well, Marty and Vidalia slept in the motel room, Greg always slept in the van. Marty offered to find Greg some 'company' for his nights in the van, but Greg said no every time the topic came up. Even though the room was on the second floor, it only took the two of them about twenty minutes to pack everything up. What was left in the room would be quickly packed up in the morning when they left for Empire City.
Greg shut the back door of the van. "Mission complete!"
"Whoppee." Vidalia leaned back against the van with her foot propped up and lit another cigarette. "Maybe Marty will give you a sticker for doing such a good job."
"Sarcastic much?" Greg asked.
"I was being serious. At least you'd get the sticker. I wouldn't get jack, as usual."
Greg wasn't really insulted by Vidalia. That was normally Marty's field. So just for the hell of it, he decided to try to connect with his manager's girlfriend. "Can I ask you something?" Greg asked.
"I would really prefer it if you didn't."
"Why do you put up with Marty? He's awful to you."
Vidalia laughed without humor. "Same reason you do, I guess. What other choice do we have other than put up with his bullshit? He's the manager and we're the ones who didn't finish college. You write and sing the songs, I sleep with him, and he makes sure we get money."
"Huh… Yeah, I guess you're right." Greg said gloomily. "But still, and I know you don't care what I have to say, but for what it's worth, I don't think you deserve to deal with him."
Vidalia's expression softened ever so slightly.
Greg opened the van and reached in to grab some bathroom supplies. "I'll take a quick shower and brush my teeth in the room, then I'll be out of your hair." Greg turned around and walked towards the room.
Vidalia watched Greg walk away for a little bit, then rolled her eyes. "Hey."
Greg stopped and looked back at Vidalia.
"...You wanna grab a drink?"
"Yeah. I'll take a Rum and Coke." Greg told to the bartender.
"Didn't know you were a priest." Vidalia teased. "Give me a Sex on the Beach."
"Is that an actual drink?" Greg asked.
"Oh, yeah. Every oceanside bar has them." said Vidalia.
Vidalia had taken Greg to the town bar. A place called The Siren's Lair, called so because of the yacht rock that always played on the speakers during business hours. It was a nice sailor-themed place, with a pool table and a dartboard. Greg had thrown on a brown aviator jacket over his black shirt and replaced his sandals with socks and shoes. He and Vidalia got their drinks and clinked them together in cheers.
Greg took a sip of his cocktail. "I've never been much of a drinker." he admitted.
Vidalia took a big gulp of her drink. "That's pretty obvious. Were you the goody two-shoe kid back in high school?"
Greg rubbed the back of his neck. "Nah, I was the weird guy who always went out with one of the weirder girls. But I could play guitar, so that helped with popularity. How about you?"
Vidalia chuckled and swirled her drink. "I was the girl who saw the principal more often than anyone else. I was one of the hottest girls in school, so I let it go to my head. 'Till one day, I just got on my bike and rode out of town. Never came back after that. I miss it like crazy, though."
Greg nodded. "Yeah, I hear ya. I miss my hometown. I like it here in Beach City, though. Quiet seaside town filled with good people."
"Enjoy it while it lasts. Empire City is gonna be hectic." Vidalia said.
Greg's eyes sparkled. "Yeah. Empire City. That'll do it. That'll get my name out there."
"How long have you wanted to be a famous rockstar?" Vidalia asked.
"Well, when I was little, I wanted to be either an astronaut or a rockstar." said Greg. "I eventually settled on a space themed rockstar, since being an astronaut required a lot of good grades which I didn't have."
Vidalia laughed. "That's awesome. I love that."
"I just hope my music is good enough for the producers over in Empire City." Greg said. "I heard those guys are cutthroat."
"I think you're music is plenty good." Vidalia replied. "Especially your sad stuff. That shit is heartbreaking."
"Yeah, well." Greg's eyes glanced off to the side. "I… used to watch a lot of romantic comedies. It was a big thing with the girls in my school."
"Aw, that had to suck." Vidalia remarked. "I always had guys take me to go see horror movies."
Greg finished his Rum and Coke and ordered another one. "This is nice. I'm glad we're finally hanging out."
Vidalia finished off her cocktail. "Yeah. You're actually pretty cool." She looked at the clock hanging on the wall. "Damn, it's getting late. Think we should head back?"
"Marty will probably call one of us if he wants us back at the motel." Greg said.
"Oh, don't worry about that. He'll be out cold on the bed until sunrise, believe me." Vidalia assured him. "So with that said." Vidalia slapped the bar counter. "Another one, barkeep!"
"Sandalwood… smells nice."
"It sure does, Vidalia. It sure does." Greg said. He had Vidalia's arm draped over him to support the wasted girl. She had a goofy smile on her face as Greg walked Vidalia back to the motel.
"Peop-people give Nickelback music a lot of crap, but I-hic-I love Nickelback music."
"Me too, Vidalia. Praise Chad Kroeger."
Greg and Vidalia arrived at the Hammerhead Motel. Instead of bringing her up to the room, Greg decided to bring Vidalia to the van so she could sleep in the passenger seat. He opened the door to help her in. "Alright, in you g-"
Vidalia suddenly grabbed Greg by the shoulders and threw him against the side of the van, she then pinned him against the van and began making out with him. Greg's eyes went wide with shock as Vidalia pressed herself against his body and tried to eat his tongue. Although his light buzz and human urges were telling him to go for it, Greg pushed Vidalia off of him and held her away at arm's length.
"Let's… Let's just get you in the van." said Greg.
"Fine. Have it-hic-your way." Vidalia said as she let Greg guide her into the passenger seat. "You taste like-hic-like Rum and Coke." was the last thing she said before passing out.
Greg lowered the back of the seat for Vidalia before gently closing the door. He then ran his hand through his hair before walking to the back of the van. Careful not to wake Vidalia, he opened the back and pulled out his acoustic guitar. He put the strap over his neck and closed the doors.
"I think I'm gonna go to the beach."
Greg immediately fell in love with the midnight ocean scene. The smell of the sea, the sound of the waves, and the feel of the ocean air knocked the worry and anxiety out of Greg like a magic bullet. He took a deep breath and let it out in satisfaction.
"Holy crap, this is nice. Unless it's Florida, everyone who doesn't live by the ocean is a sucker." Greg found a good rock to sit on and repositioned the guitar on his back to his front. The mood of his surroundings gave him an idea of what to play, although he was a little apprehensive to play it.
Greg sighed. "Alright, here it goes. Wish I had an audience, at least."
He did, though. Hidden in the bushes, a pair of eyes watched Greg intently.
Greg strummed a melancholy tune on his guitar. A sad smile formed on his face. The song he sang was gentle and serene.
Don't be frightened, when the night replaces the day.
Don't be scared, when darkness covers the world.
Because the moon does glow in a beautiful way.
And the song of the night can be heard.
It might be scary to venture into the dark.
But your bright light will show you your path.
By yourself, you must embark.
But you will never be alone, I promise you that.
For I, will always be, by your side.
Remember me well, and that shall be true.
Be strong of heart, and of mind.
And know, that I will always love you.
So tell me now, are you still, afraid of the night?
Do you still, find it grim, and stark?
You are brightest, of all of the lights.
But to see it, you must venture into the dark.
I believe in what you can achieve.
I believe in what you can do.
I believe in the person you will choose to be.
I believe in all that is you.
I believe in the love in your heart.
I believe in the goodness of your soul.
I believe you'll make your mark.
I believe in your tale to be told.
Don't be frightened, when the night replaces the day.
Don't be scared, when darkness covers the world.
Because the moon does glow in a beautiful way.
And the song of the night can be heard.
It might be scary to venture into the dark.
But your bright light, will show you your path.
By yourself, you must embark.
But you will never be alone, I promise you that.
For it's a path to a life, of joy and of love.
You'll be happy, with your family.
And as you sing to them, when the stars shine up above.
That will bring joy to me.
A tear ran down Greg's cheek as he ended the song. He looked up into the starry night sky. It was beautiful. No one really did that anymore. No one just looked up into the sky to get that sense of wonder and awe. No one looked up and wondered what else was out there in the great, big world. For Greg, it was a feeling of pure ecstasy. He could sit there for hours staring up into the sky, getting high off wonderment. Ever since he was little, Greg had wanted to see what else was out there in the great unknown. Whatever was out there, it must be extraordinary.
A rustle in the bushes brought Greg out of his reverie.
"Hey. Someone there?" Greg asked.
The bushes rustled again, but there was no response.
Greg stood up off his rock. He took the strap off his neck and propped his guitar up against the rock before going over to check out the rustling. He moved slowly towards the bushes, fearful of what might be hiding in there.
"Probably just a stray dog." Greg said to himself.
Greg knelt down and parted the bushes, but nothing was there.
"Huh." Greg released the bushes and stood back up. "I was kinda hoping it would be a dog. It'd be like an Old Yeller story, hopefully without the rabies and the need to be put down." Greg turned back around. "Man, that was a really sad end-What the hell?"
A little girl had Greg's guitar held up above her head.
Greg was pretty sure it was a little girl, at least. It was kinda hard to tell. For starters, she was purple, like some jerk had painted the poor, toddler-sized kid's skin. She had an innocent, goofy look on her face that screamed 'troublemaker', except her look was slightly feral, like she would dig through your garbage just to eat the leftovers you threw out. Her short hair was like a grape-flavored snow cone that had been skimped on the syrup. Really pale, but tinted purple. She wore a dark purple blouse with black shoulder covers and a pair of black pants. A pair of white shoes covered her feet. Her oddest feature was the perfectly round, purple, shining stone in her chest. Greg guessed it was some weird piercing. Kids like to get them in weird places.
The girl was admiring the prize she had held above her head. When she saw that Greg had spotted her, she met his gaze and froze, like a caught child debating on her next move.
"Hey! Put my guitar down!" Greg demanded. "And maybe go take a bath in some paint thinner!"
The kid looked up at the guitar in her hands, then looked back at Greg. "But… I want it."
"I don't care, it's mine!" Greg said. "I bought it at a yard sale along with a really nice coffee table that I lost two weeks later. Now give it back!"
"Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm… Nah." the girl dashed off like the roadrunner down the beach.
"Hey! Get back here, you!" Greg took off after the girl.
The girl laughed as Greg chased her down the coastline. She seemed to be having fun with Greg. She was really fast on her feet, and made sure to keep Greg at a safe distance as she was being chased. Greg wondered how a little short-legged kid ran so fast. They hadn't been running for very long, and Greg was already beginning to feel tired. Running through the sand was hard enough, but chasing an energetic, thieving miscreant child through was just draining. Greg was feeling confident in catching her as they neared a small cape of land that extended from the forested area.
"Give me back my guitar, you overgrown grape!" Greg shouted. "I can't afford to buy another acoustic! That's how badly I'm doing right now!"
"Catch me if you can, music man!"
To Greg's utter shock, the girl jumped in the air and began to glow. Her body quickly morphed into the body of a large, purple owl, with the guitar in her talons. The only thing that was the same about her was the stone in her chest.
"Holy crap! Did I cross the border over to Narnia?!"
"Nope. Later, tater!" The girl-now-bird laughed wickedly as she flew right over the cape.
Even though he just had his mind blown, Greg was undeterred. As fast as his legs could carry him, he rounded the cape, which fortunately had a sandy beach border. Greg panted in exhaustion as he ran. 'Man, I should really work out more.'
When he got to the other side of the cape, there was no sign of the strange purple… thing. Greg continued to run until he reached a wide open beach. He finally gave himself a break and stopped running. Greg brought his hands to his knees and panted fiercely.
"All right… she wins… I'll just… beg Marty… to buy me… another one." he said between breaths. Greg looked up from his panting session. That's when he noticed something strange further down the beach. Still tired, Greg did a light jog to the weird thing on the beach.
It was as big as his van, but it was as black as charcoal and egg-shaped, as if Godzilla had laid an egg on the beach. Greg reached up and placed a hand on the egg. It felt like the stuff people used to make magnets. Strong, but cold to the touch. And yet, Greg could feel the thing react to the electric current in his body.
Greg walked around the thing and saw that on the other side, a man-sized hole was cut into the egg. The inside of the structure was hollow, and filled with all kinds of stuff. There was a bicycle, a portable radio like the one you'd take to the beach, a couple tapes and DVD's, some books, a case of beer, some articles of clothing, and a whole lot more junk.
"She's collecting." Greg realized. He looked around the beach. He couldn't see the girl anywhere. Greg looked back inside the egg and gasped in joy when saw his guitar in the back of the egg. "Aha! There you are!"
Greg stepped inside the egg and crawled through the hoard of goods. He reached for his guitar and grabbed ahold of its neck. "Bingo! Now to take this case of beer and drink away the memory of this ever happening. It's… kinda freaky… Ooo, look, a Pink Floyd record."
The hole in the wall was suddenly closed off by the appearance of a green, translucent plate of glass-like material. Cutting off the only way out of the egg.
The sudden appearance of the glass made a weird, vacuum sound. When Greg heard it, he turned around and saw that his exit had been closed.
"What the-" Greg stumbled through the hoard and pressed his hand on the weird, green glass. It rippled like water, yet it felt stronger than any bulletproof glass. Greg pounded his fist on the glass. "Hey! Let me out! HEY!"
Greg felt the egg begin to vibrate. In a panic, he dropped his guitar and began pounding fists against the glass. "Letmeout! Letmeout! Letmeout! Letmeout!"
The vibration only increased more, and more, and more, and more, and more, and more, and more, until finally…
"Oh, shit."
With a sonic boom, the egg shot up into the sky. There was no increase in velocity, it was just straight up at the speed of sound. Inside the egg, Greg screamed as the sudden inertia threw him down into the pile of random stuff. He screamed again in pain when the barb of a large treble hook pierced through his arm, soaking his aviator jacket in his own blood.
Greg propped himself on one arm and looked through the glass. He was momentarily lost on the overwhelming beauty of space. Greg could see the planet Earth with its moon companion, surrounded by an entourage of stars. The sun shining bright in the background.
As he watched the Earth grow smaller and smaller, Greg slipped into unconsciousness.
An Odyssey to Remember
Written by Bazinga007