Here we are, at the beginning of a new story : Exile. This is my second fav game in the Myst series. I love the villain, the music, the Ages, the storyline that just pulls you in. I actually cried during this game. I'll let you know where.
Once again, I do not own Myst or the characters or the Ages.
Three Years later...
The young woman reached for her journal. She had gotten into the habit of keeping a journal from Catherine and Atrus. It felt good to write things out and even better to look back on what she had written in the past.
Sometimes it was hard to believe that it had been over three years since she had journeyed to Myst, met Atrus and (through a series of adventures) had rescued his wife Catherine. The two of them had become such an important part of her life it seemed as if she had always known them. She definitely couldn't imagine her life without them.
Melody opened her journal and flipped back to the beginning:
Atrus gave me my very own journal. I told him it was highly unlikely that I would remember to write in it regularly, but he was very insistent that I try. He claims there is something therapeutic about keeping a journal. He must be right. The man keeps so many different journals and notebooks it's a wonder he can keep track of them all.
I suppose I should start with what happened right before Atrus gave me this journal. After a month of work we finally managed to break through the collapsed walls of the castle and into the rest of D'ni. Massive ruins mark the sight of a once amazing city. I couldn't imagine what Atrus must have thought.
Atrus believes that there are more D'ni survivors out there in Ages that we haven't journeyed to yet. Catherine is supportive of Atrus wanting to track them down, but also made the point that we would need a place to live in the meantime. Atrus acknowledged her wishes and promised he would work on a solution.
Already I'm forgetting to write in this thing!
I was going to write dates to all my entries, but time passes differently here than in my old world. Atrus tried to explain it to me, but all he succeeded in doing was giving me a headache. The only person who will ever read this is me and I know when and where everything happened, so why bother with silly things like dates and times?
I went back to the Rebel Age for a visit with Catherine while Atrus wrote more linking books. I got to see Neera. She is even more adorable than I remembered. The moment she saw me, she smiled brightly and ran to me. I thought I was going to cry. Then she said my name and began to hum the song I sang to her that day. Then I really did start to cry.
I sat with her for quite a while. Catherine translated so I was able to actually have a conversation with Neera and her mother Sasha. I learned that Neera's father was sacrificed by Gehn, fed to his monstrous pets. I cannot help but be relieved that such an evil man is trapped forever.
I admit that I was nervous about seeing Trace again. We didn't exactly part on good terms in Riven. When I spoke to him (he was just as gorgeous and grumpy as ever) he only said that he was glad I wasn't dead and moved along. If he wasn't so gorgeous his indifference wouldn't bother me so much...
Oh and I ran into Pony-tail, whose real name is Kale. He acted embarrassed to see me again. But he didn't try to take me to his chamber this time. I tried not to giggle at his awkwardness, but it was difficult.
Everyone seems to be adjusting very well in the Rebel Age, which Trace has named Tay. I am hoping to visit again soon.
Success! Atrus has discovered D'ni survivors in an Age called Toledar. They have been surviving in that desert-type Age. It didn't take much convincing to get them to return to D'ni. Our group of three has grown into fifteen. We have already started the rebuilding of D'ni. The work is long and hard, with only about ten workers among us as the others are either too old or too young. But I don't mind. It gives me something to fill my days and I feel good helping restore a lost civilization. I'm just happy to be a help to Atrus and Catherine, who have been so kind to me. I'm truly happy for the first time since Great-uncle Stanley died. It feels so right here, like I'm where I belong. These people, the D'ni, who have been through so much turmoil and heartache, have become my people now. I am no longer alone.
Maybe that is the true meaning of happiness: Knowing where you belong with people that you love.
The work is going so well that Atrus was able to take some time to sketch plans for a home for him, Catherine and myself in an Age called Tomahna. I have linked to the site. It is a box canyon with a narrow opening. A river flows in the bottom of the canyon and out of the entrance in a gorgeous waterfall. The rugged beauty of the red cliffs is breathtaking. I can't wait to see how Atrus plans to construct a home there. Anything that Atrus designs is always as interesting as it is functional.
I'm not sure how much time has passed since my last entry but it was enough for Atrus to discover more survivors, this time in an icy Age called Jelis. Sadly the climate there is not made for survival. We were only able to find about seven people and several were old and nearly dead. Despite our best efforts two of them have died and a third is not suspected to last the night.
And if that weren't enough there was collapse in the northeast tunnel today. No one was killed but Pence and Colin were injured. No one wants to venture into the tunnels now, as they are still unstable.
Restoring an ancient underground city without proper equipment is not what I would call a healthy career choice.
Poor Atrus. He is so discouraged these days. Catherine has convinced him to work on the house in Tomahna for a few days. Maybe a break from D'ni is just what he needs to restore his confidence.
Good news. Not only did the work in Tomahna do the trick but Trace appeared out of nowhere today and offered to help finish the building there, enabling Atrus to devote his full attention to D'ni. Since the collapse Atrus has not allowed Catherine and I into the restoration sight so we have come to Tomahna to help Trace. Which means I will be working rather closely with him for the next few months.
Wonderful...
Catherine surprised me with some new clothing today. With all the work I've been doing I have lost some weight, so much that my clothes were bagging on me. I don't know how she knew my sizes, but everything fits perfectly.
The material is a beautiful blue shimmering fabric with gold thread woven into it. It's a beautiful dress that laces up my back with long sleeves that are slightly puffy at the elbows. The flaring skirt is a bit on the short side so I will have to be careful about bending over. Boots that lace up to my knees complete the very medieval-looking outfit.
Then Atrus surprised me also with a choker. The glowing stone in it looks like jade. It is encased in a protective covering. Atrus called it a fire marble and said the covering was to keep my skin from being burned. We use fire marbles to give our living areas warmth and light. I didn't know fire marbles could be this small and in so many different colors. I just assumed all fire marbles were red because all fire I've ever seen is red.
I'm learning so much. Atrus and Catherine laugh at my expressions of wonder and delight at every new thing I see, every new Age we journey to. Atrus says he hopes I will never lose my eagerness to learn and explore. Catherine says my appreciation for life, even the smallest things, is one of the things she loves most about me. They seem very concerned that I understand how much I mean to them. I suppose their sons are never very far from their thoughts. Maybe they are afraid that I will change and become like Sirrus and Achenar.
I often wonder what became of them. Were they killed when Atrus burned the two prison books? Or are they still alive, trapped forever within the empty nothingness between the link?
Catherine has taken my Rivenese clothes and says she will adjust them for me. Maybe I can talk her into teaching me how to sew.
I know I normally don't update this soon, but something so wonderful has happened I had to write it down.
Catherine is pregnant!
She told Atrus and me an hour ago. I've never seen Atrus speechless before. I wish I could have had a camera to capture the moment forever. Once it sunk in, he began to grin from ear to ear and got such a love-y dove-y look on his face that I cleared out fast.
A new baby. It's so exciting. I wonder if it will be a boy or a girl. Catherine and I are going to talk baby names tomorrow. Whatever it turns out to be, no ordinary name will do. Not for a child this special.
I wonder what Sirrus and Achenar would think if they knew that they were going to be big brothers.
A monumental decision was made today.
Catherine and I were just finishing cleaning up after dinner when Atrus said he needed to talk to us. He had been doing a lot of thinking. Ever since the collapse in the tunnels the work in D'ni has slowed quite a bit. With that and the brief history of the D'ni that we have been able to piece together from remnants we have found, Atrus is no longer convinced that restoring D'ni is the right thing to do. So much suffering happened there in its final years. Too many people had fallen prey to its hatred and greed. Evidently the ancient D'ni were not as kind as Atrus and the other survivors we have found. They were very arrogant and cruel, mistreating the Ages nearly as badly as Sirrus and Achenar had.
Atrus thinks it is best to put all of that bad history behind them and start fresh, with the ruins of D'ni to serve as a reminder of their past mistakes.
In line with this decision, he has decided to write a new home for the D'ni. An Age he is going to call Releeshan. Catherine is supportive as she always is and I do what I can to help.
We need a safe place for Atrus to write. We will focus all of our attention on completing Tomahna. Trace has promised he will stay as long as we need him. This makes me very happy.
It has happened. At nearly dawn this morning we welcomed Atrus and Catherine's daughter Yeesha into the world. She is such a tiny thing, but already cute as a button. Atrus was overcome with emotion.
After making sure mother and child were resting comfortably, Trace and I moved out onto the observation deck that Atrus built between the two conservatories. I expected things to be awkward between us, but they weren't. Trace and I talked for hours, long after the sun rose. Tomahna is nearly finished. I am dreading the moment when Trace will return to Tay.
Something strange is going on. The door to Atrus' study was left open last night. Atrus swears he didn't do it and Catherine hasn't been in there since before Yeesha was born. The scary thing is that this is the second time this has happened in four days. When Catherine claimed some of the plants in her conservatory had been moved I thought she might have been mistaken. Now I'm not so sure.
How could an intruder be doing this? How did he find this place? How could he get in and out without us seeing him?
Atrus is getting more and more paranoid. Not only could this stranger threaten Catherine and the baby, but also Releeshan which Atrus has been working on tirelessly and has nearly finished. It is so important that he complete it that he has created some kind of security system for his office. He tried to explain to Catherine and I how it works but we have just decided not to go in his office when he is not there, which isn't often anyway. The next time Trace comes, I'll mention this to him and see what he thinks.
Melody reread that last entry with a frown. Closing her journal, she left her room and walked along the walkway to a platform. Pulling a handle there, a stairway that led down to the kitchen rotated and lifted to connect to the main walkway above. Melody made her way through Catherine's conservatory and into Atrus' study.
She smiled. He was there, his head bent over his desk, his brow furrowed in concentration. Tamon, a guild-master of the D'ni had asked his opinion on what parts of D'ni to salvage to use to construct their new homes in Releeshan. The Age had been completed a few days before and everyone had been successfully moved there. Now came the long process of settling and building. Atrus had become a sort of unofficial leader of the D'ni survivors. They wanted his input into every decision and valued his opinion highly.
Atrus looked up quickly when he finally noticed that he wasn't alone.
Melody held up her hands in surrender. "It's only me."
"Is something wrong?" he asked worriedly.
"No," she assured him. "Atrus, calm down. Everything is fine."
He relaxed and sighed. "Do you also think I'm being paranoid?"
"Maybe, a little," Melody said with a smile. "At the same time, it is very worrying that someone could be sneaking around in here without us knowing."
"My journals were out of place today," her friend told her. "The thought of an unknown person coming here, reading my journals and having access to the Ages disturbs me greatly."
"They haven't done any damage so far," she said encouragingly. "Maybe we can take that as a sign that they mean no harm."
"Perhaps. But I shall not have any peace of mind until I know who they are and what they want," he said, looking over the letter he was writing. "Perhaps I should postpone my trip with Trace to Releeshan."
"No Atrus," Melody said gently, shaking her head. "You need this trip now more than ever. It will be fun. And fun is something you have been lacking this past year."
"I feel uneasy leaving you, Catherine and Yeesha here by yourselves."
Melody leaned against his desk. "Well that's what that is all about right?" she asked, gesturing to the letter. "You're writing Toman to ask him for some Nera padlocks. Nera is supposed to be harder than diamond right? We'll be fine."
Atrus sighed and gazed at the massive book behind glass across the room. "There is Releeshan as well. If anything were to happen to it, the lives of so many would be lost. People who are relying on me for protection."
Melody placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "You're doing fine Atrus. Really, no one could have accomplished what you have these past few years. You once told me when I doubted myself that you had complete confidence in me. Well, now I'm saying the same thing to you. Catherine and I are here for you, and we both have faith in you. And now you have Yeesha too. I'm sure she will believe in you once she's old enough to understand the concept."
Atrus' face clouded. "Yeesha... I sometimes worry about how she will grow up, worry that I will make the same mistakes with her that I did with my sons. I still don't know what I did wrong in raising them."
"You did nothing wrong Atrus," Melody said firmly. "It wasn't your fault. They choose to destroy those Ages. They choose to betray you and Catherine. You will be a wonderful father to Yeesha," she gestured to Releeshan. "You wrote Releeshan as a second chance. Look at Yeesha as your second chance. Leave the past behind and start over."
Atrus looked up at her and smiled. "You are a treasure Melody. I am thankful every day that you came into our lives. I don't know where we'd be without you."
"The feeling is mutual," Melody said with a yawn. "I don't know how you manage to pull a late night and be up at dawn the next morning, but I don't think I'll ever be able to do it. Goodnight Atrus."
"Goodnight Melody. I hope your sleep is conducive to fine..."
"Atrus?" Melody said, laughter in her eyes. "'Sweet dreams' works just as well."
He chuckled. "Very well then. Sweet dreams."
Melody winked. "Don't stay up too late."
Back in her room, Melody shook her head. Atrus and his big vocabulary. If he ever uttered a slang word she was going to make that day a new D'ni holiday.
As she lay in bed gazing at the stars outside her window she tried to pretend that the excitement she felt was that Releeshan was complete and everyone was settled, but the truth of the matter was that she couldn't wait to see Trace again. They had gotten closer over the course of building the house in Tomahna. When he had left to return to Tay she'd been sad to see him go. When Atrus had announced that he was taking Trace on a tour of Releeshan, Melody had grinned so brightly that Catherine had laughed at her. Atrus, of course, had been oblivious to the reason behind the laughter. Melody had been itching to go with them, but had agreed to stay behind and look after Catherine and Yeesha. Atrus was especially adamant that they not be left alone after the recent trouble about the intruder.
Melody frowned thoughtfully. What was this intruder's agenda? If he was going to steal anything he would have done it by now. If he was just curious, why didn't he show himself? Was he afraid of Atrus? Or did he just not like people in general? What if it wasn't a person, but an animal moving things around? No, an animal wouldn't have put things back. How was the intruder coming and going without anyone seeing him?
Atrus had promised that he and Trace would only be gone a few days. Melody shut her eyes and drifted off to sleep.
It was likely the last she was going to get until they came back.
Melody sat on the balcony, enjoying the sunlight, the wind through the vines that wound around the pillars and the smell of the pretty yellow flowers that grew on the vines. Catherine was brilliant when it came to plants of any kind. Melody didn't doubt that the woman could get flowers to grow out of bricks.
She felt a sudden rush of wind and looked over at the linking spot. She smiled a greeting to the man that stood there.
"Trace," she said warmly, getting up from her seat. "I'm so glad to see you."
He was as handsome as ever, his dark hair slightly longer than the last time she had seen him. But his slate colored eyes were the same, except they warmed when they caught sight of her.
"It's been a long time," he said. "I should come to visit more often," he looked out over the view of the orange-yellow canyons that stood out in stark relief against the turquoise blue sky. "This balcony is new. It was a very good addition."
Melody nodded. "Isn't it breathtaking? This has easily become my favorite spot in Tomahna," she turned back to him. "Atrus is coming, he's just grabbing some things for your trip to Releeshan," she paused for a moment. "Unless he decides to check the whole house again, then he could be hours resetting all of his locks."
Trace looked surprised. "Locks? I don't remember putting in locks."
Her smile faded slightly. "No. They are new too. Come on. I'll show you to the study."
They made small talk as they waited for Atrus.
"How is everyone in Tay?" Melody asked.
"Well," Trace answered, glancing at Atrus' desk with interest.
"Has Kale found a wife yet?"
He smiled. "No. Perhaps he is waiting for you."
Melody laughed. "He's never going to live that down is he?"
"Not likely," Trace answered, but he sounded distracted. Melody realized he was looking at the Riven book that Atrus kept on a stand beside his desk.
"He keeps it there as a reminder of his past mistakes," Melody told him after a moment of silence. "He swears he will never let another people suffer as the Riven villagers have."
Trace opened the book and stared at the static-y page linking panel inside. "He never re-wrote it."
Melody shook her head. "I don't think he can. He tried to re-write the Ages that his sons destroyed, but was unsuccessful. It causes him much grief to know those worlds are lost forever."
Trace turned and looked at the twin picture frame on Atrus' desk. Portraits of two men were inside. "This is them? Sirrus and Achenar?"
Melody nodded. "I imagine he keeps their pictures for the same reason he keeps the Riven book. Catherine linked to Myst a few weeks ago. I tried to talk her out of it. When she came back, I could tell it had been very hard on her, seeing everything that had happened there and remembering what her sons did."
Trace straightened. "The past cannot be changed. It is best to forget and move on."
"It's not as easy as it sounds," she insisted. "The past can be very unforgiving. The more you want to forget, the more you remember. At least now they have Yeesha. I think having her is just what they need to heal the pain in their hearts over their sons."
Trace didn't respond. He looked over Atrus' experiments and sketches for improvements for different inventions of his. When he spotted the book behind glass, he went toward it. "Releeshan?" he read the cover and glanced back at Melody. "Behind glass?"
Melody looked toward the door of the study. "Atrus doesn't usually keep people waiting this long."
"Melody," Trace said firmly. "What is going on here? What has happened in my absence?"
She sighed. "There's been some trouble," she admitted. "Atrus swears his journals are being moved around, like someone is reading them and not putting them back in their proper places. Then his study door was left open and Catherine says that some of her plants have been moved."
"An intruder," Trace said thoughtfully. "Has he caused any damage?"
Melody shook her head. "Not yet. I think that's what worries Atrus the most. We have no idea who this person is or what they want. No matter how hard we search, we can never catch a glimpse of him. Now that the D'ni have been relocated to Releeshan, Atrus is worried that what happened to his library on Myst will happen here."
"Whoever it is, he must have linking books at his disposal," Trace pointed out. "How else could he come and go so neatly without you seeing him?"
"But then how are we not finding the books he leaves behind?" she asked. "And where is he linking out to? Atrus has all of the linking books here. Even the linking book to Myst is here."
"It could be linking books from the past that Atrus thought were lost. And who's to say that he is hiding the linking book away from here in a place not easily seen, a place where you might not think to look for it?"
Melody thought about it. "That's true. I never thought about it before. While you and Atrus are in Releeshan, I'll do a thorough search of the house and see what I can find."
Trace shook his head. "You're coming with us."
"I can't," she protested. "I have to look after Catherine and Yeesha."
"They will come along as well," Trace said. "I don't like the idea of leaving any of you here alone."
"Yeesha is still too young. And I don't think Catherine is up for a trip that will last several days. She's been ill. I'm sure we'll be fine. It's always about a week between incidents. Atrus found his study door left open last night. It will be a while before our intruder comes again."
Trace was frowning and looked ready to argue. The door of the study opened and cut him off. Atrus strolled inside carrying a shoulder bag.
He smiled at Trace in welcome. "I'm sorry to have kept you waiting my friend. I was securing a few of my things. Let me get my keys for Releeshan and we'll..."
A sudden rush of wind startled them all. Turning, they saw a man had appeared in the room. He had long hair and was wearing clothing that looked like it had been pieced together from various animal hides. He eyed them all with animosity.
Before any of them could react, he snatched a fire marble from its holder on the wall and threw it. It hit the wall near them, causing the heavy drapes to burst into flames. As they threw up their hands to protect themselves, the sound of breaking glass made them look up. The man had broken the glass protecting Releeshan and was reaching for it.
"No!" Atrus cried. "Releeshan!"
Tucking the book under his arm, the man pulled out a linking book from the folds of his robe.
Melody raced forward and tried to wrench Releeshan from his grasp. The man shoved her away and linked out.
Without a second thought, Melody followed him. She heard Atrus and Trace call to her as everything went black.
This is longer then other chapters I know, but I wanted to get Melody to Jnanin right away. What do you think? Remember people : just because you reviewed once doesn't mean you can't do it again.
... Please...?