A Legend Chapter Five
Suggested Theme:
Main Theme- Blue Lips by Regina Spektor
Frozen Fire, the ocean of flames that chills as it burns. Kit can recall the card description easily as he navigates through the Location. He hasn't been here since he took scans of this place for the card game on Earth. It's also been awhile since Codemaster Crellan was in his Kit form; the last time was when Tom "rescued" him. That was about two years ago. Almost too long since he was human. But at least he isn't like Codemaster Hotekk who hasn't truly ever left his Codemaster form to be human. They were all human, but being Codemasters seem to make them forget. Especially Codemaster Hotekk.
The snowy gales whip through the frozen flames, almost "fanning" the chill throughout the Location. The flames cannot burn him, but they could still cause him pain. Especially in this form. Kit weaves through like a pebble in a rip current. He can feel the flames almost lick him like they became unfrozen for a nanosecond but are then suspended again. Ah, he misses the feeling of potential death and going through the flames almost gives him that feeling again.
"He stumbled into faith and thought,
'God, this is all there is…'
The pictures in his mind arose
And began….to breathe."
And he also misses being caught off-guard. He did not check the Location for any other players because he sort wanted to interact with someone again. Although, he probably wouldn't be as generous as he was with Tom. After all, Tom is one of those few, chosen players.
"And all the gods and all the worlds
Began colliding on a backdrop of blue.
Blue lips,
Blue veins…."
The singing voice is being carried through the gale like the cutting snow. He cannot discern who the player is by his voice. But then again, not many players sing or can even sing. He really needs to speak to the other Codemasters about starting some musical contest if only to promote the card game. Or at least give some young players a chance to shine.
"He took a step but then felt tired.
He said, 'I'll rest a little while.'
But when he tried to walk again,
He wasn't…..a child.
And all the people hurried fast,
Real fast
And no one ever smile."
The singing reminds him of a young acolyte feasting upon forbidden knowledge and espousing what he knew to an unforgiving crowd. The player sings with tension but slows at points if only to be merciful to himself.
"Blue lips,
Blue veins,
Blue, the color of our planet
From far, far away.
Blue lips,
Blue veins,
Blue, the color of our planet
From far, far away."
Kit smirks at how appropriate the lyrics are for this Location. Blue is everywhere, and most likely the player's lips are blue from the cold. He keeps trudging through the frozen flames to find the singing player.
"He stumbled into faith and thought,
'God, this is all there is?'
The pictures in his mind arose
And began….to breathe."
He has heard about the singing player. He has actually been to the Locations that player inscribed his songs and names. The Locations didn't change, but acquired more proof to someone else's existence. It wasn't hard to deduce that the player wanted to be remembered forever. Kit understands that sentiment quite well; he needs to validate his own humanity after years of being Codemaster Crellan.
"And no one saw
And no one heard.
They just followed the lead.
The pictures in his mind awoke
And began to breed…."
He reaches the player but refuses to enter the player's space or make his presence known. From behind, he can only see the heavy, green coat that the player is wearing with his fur-lined hood over his head. He can see a flurry of mitted hands writing words across a frozen flame. He can also see a stylus that Ulmar created that allows him to inscribe his mark and name on his inventions. Even if those inventions were made of solid stone. Good to know that the stylus can also work on frozen flames.
"They started off
Beneath an olive tree
And they chopped it down
To make white picket fences
And marching along the railroad tracks.
They smiled real wide for the camera lenses.
They made it passed the enemy lines
Just to become enslaved in the assembly lines."
Kit empathetically winces for the singing player. He has never heard words fly so fast without pause. Technically, Codemaster Hotekk did that, but he was mostly cursing. He was pretty certain that was when Tom cleverly outmaneuvered Codemaster Hotekk. That was a fun match to watch, but the aftermath was less than fantastic.
"Blue lips,
Blue veins,
Blue, the color of our planet
From far, far away.
Blue lips,
Blue veins,
Blue, the color of our planet
From far, far away."
The song is becoming softer now, almost to the point of nothingness. However, Kit can also blame the crackling howls of the gales of an oncoming storm. The player has always ported out when his song has ended, or at least that is what all the unsubstantiated claims indicate. Now, he gets to see if the rumors are true.
"Blue…..
The most human color.
Blue…
The most human color.
Blue…
The most human color.
Blue lips,
Blue veins,
Blue, the color of our planet
From far, far away."
The player scribbles his last line and pulls out his red Scanner. Kit knows that red is typically the color of UnderWorld players, or players who have recently gotten their Scanners and cannot afford to change the color quite yet. This couldn't be a new player because new players just can't navigate their way through treacherous Locations such as Frozen Fire in Glacier Plains. Also, new players wouldn't know how to rob Ulmar without getting caught. The player ports out in a whirl of code as the gale lets out another blistering howl. He goes up to the flame and reads the message in thick letters:
Night Five- Vicious Pegasus
There is no player with that name, even as a codename. This name is most likely a pseudonym for an existing player. A bit melodramatic for his tastes, but at least the player chose something fairly original. Kit takes another scan of the Location and then takes a picture of the frozen flame etched with Vicious Pegasus's existence. He'll show the player's existence to the other Codemasters. Perhaps, it would inspire them to give their other forms a chance to exist again. To be human again.
Author's Comments- Wow, Kit or Codemaster Crellan was really refreshing to write. It's fun to write characters being metaphysical. I have no idea if the Codemasters are humans or lose their humanity when they become Codemasters. Maybe the Cothica created Chaotic and chose some people to run the place like an alien abduction. I don't know. There's very little on the Codemasters, so I picked the one who had the most information and a real name. Or at least a human form with a name.
Ironically, blue is the most noticeable color on Codemaster Crellan. I chose this song because I wanted something…really somber yet thrilling. The lyrics also happened to match up with Codemaster Crellan in this story. No, seriously re-read the lyrics. It would seem like the song could be a potential origin story for Codemaster Crellan.