Episode 2 "Centopias Hope"
Adjusting to a school was never easy.
And Volleyball was not my type of game.
SMACK
It took me many moments on the ground to process, that yes indeed that child had utmost definitely aimed at me and hit my head. I wasn't that distracted by a certain dilemma that much was I?
But wait.. who's laughing?
What did she say? Only the ringing of the bell really snapped me out of it.
Uff that headache was going to stay.
A hand reached down, and I took it before even realizing who that was.
"Are you okay, you look a bit dazed?", standing up I came face to face with… Vincent.
I shook my head "Ah yeah thanks."
"Good… don't worry about them… Being bad at sports is genetic, you know? At least that is what I tell myself when I trip over my own feet."
"Do you fall that often?"
"Every day!", he happily chimed, and I couldn't help but snort at his response.
He seemed pleased and chuckled along.
"Look Nerd and Nerdier", the girls laughed from across the court.
"Don't pay attention to them", I waved my hand dismissively. "Nerd is quite the compliment, not that she knows that."
That got a chuckle out of him.
"Vincent", he said, standing up just a tiny bit more.
"Ra- right?", I stumbled on my words for a second, but he didn't seem to mind.
"My name. Vincent. Vicent is my name. I thought I should tell you that."
"I- thank you, Vincent. My name is Mia. It's nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you too. Wanna hang out sometime? Like Nerds do? Talking about nerd things?"
I couldn't help but be amused by his antics, this is certainly what I remembered him being like from the show-
Ah uneasiness crept up my chest.
A character from a show just in front of me. That-
"It is okay if you don't want to I mean-"
"Oh no, no, no. We can hang out, but I uh think I'll rest for today, I think the ball hit my head a bit to hard, until the next time okay?", he mumbled something in turn something like hope you feel better, but I paid no mind as my arm with the bracelet started to prickle. It was yet to start glowing though.
Grabbing my bag, I left the courtyard straight back to the dorm rooms, knowing that it was the safest option to pick.
- :O
It escaped me through my headache and my issue since I left centopia, as I stared at the pink page.
But I remembered, it was inverted.
Now if my head wasn't killing me, maybe Violetta hit me harder than I thought, despite her puny arms. It certainly still had been throbbing since I got it.
But more importantly was the pain stemming from the back.
This new issue being… the back and neck and kind of where the wings had been, had been hurting the entire time, despite there not even being any wings. It was like phantom pain, as if the wings were there and unfortunately still hurting. It certainly was one way to convince me that the trip to Centopia was real.
I could only hope it would fade with the next trip… or maybe I was really just imagining this… no ouch. No, no imagining it.
"This… is different from what I know from the show… Is it because I didn't meet Yuko and Mo?", I wondered in the tight closet.
I took a deep breath once I was sure I memorized the oracle… which was way too long in my opinion… and tapped my insistently nagging bracelet.
"Hello Mia, what is your password?"
Taking another breath I answered. "The traveling stranger from afar, is neither friend nor foe, but leads you to means to an end, to bring Centopias new hope."
And the prickling numbness returned as the gold light turned me into nothing to whisk me away.
I was met with the gold void once more, changing only to feel the sharp pain erupting from my wings materializing.
Not a one-off thing… got it. Permanent… not good.
And before I could waste another thought I was flung out at high speeds once more.
- :O
Wake up.
My head was killing me… but what came into my blurry vision was white with a handful of pink. Slowly turning to sit up I looked around, but everything was blurry. "Mhm where are my glasses?", I mumbled, shaking my head.
Another nicker asked me if I'm alright and if I'm looking for this.
Taking what she is referring to, from the ground she vaguely pointed to, it was indeed my set of glasses-
"Oh, hey Lyria", I blinked, I never needed glasses, why did I have them in centopia?
A worried neigh escaped the unicorn asking if I'm alright.
"I-", hesitantly I stood up, only for my head to protest, dizzy as can be.
"No… my head hurts too much", I clutched my head… I had to hit it during my crash here… I did not remember what happened after the void flung me…
Suddenly the pain subsided as something small tapped my head and my head felt clear and stopped to hurt.
She neighed again. Better? She seemed to ask, and I nodded perplexed.
"How'd you do that?"
And she begun to explain. A unicorn tear can heal injuries and sickness.
Fascinating. But… didn't I already know that? Yet it still felt like the information was new.
No… I definitely saw unicorn tears in the show being used several times.
"Thank you Lyria! I feel much better… Ah, do you think you could do it one more time for my wings?"
She nodded, and in the corner of my eye I could see her will a tear down to my wings…
Relieve washed over me, but it was short lived as the pain had only subsided for a few mere seconds.
"Ah that didn't work, but thank you anyway… at least it is hurting a bit less", which I'd say was more indicating that my wings were seriously messed up if a unicorn tear wasn't enough.
It was more like that the tear numbed the area… like a painkiller.
I was certainly gonna make use of that.
If I could find enough tears.
But Lyria seemed a little shocked by it not healing, reiterating she has not seen anything that unicorn tears haven't been able to heal.
"Is that true? I mean too bad or near fatal injuries could be uncurable by just a tear?", I tried to argue, but she disagreed, even near deaths have been prevented by tears before. It may not restore a lost limb, however.
I nodded, unsure what to think. Onchao needed his horn to revive Ono, a tear wasn't enough… but Lyria was likely speaking only from experience.
A loud very familiar noise tore me out of my thoughts. And the subsequent cursing if you can call it that.
"Phuddle", I murmured with utmost affection. I loved this pan as silly as he can be. He was one of my favorites right next to Polytheus and Gargona- wait.
But-
Shaking these… thoughts… I approached.
"I give up! This is a waste of time."
"Hey Phuddle!", I greeted the pan with a wave.
"Oh hey- I got it", he turned and twisted again with the Trumptus before giving it another try, luckily I covered my ears in time.
Angrily he stomped his hoove again, throwing it to the ground.
"What a piece of junk!", he kicked it, but stopped himself when I picked it up instead.
"This is Centopias hope", he blinked at me as did Lyria in disbelief.
"It may not be what you hoped it to be, but it became something much greater, that Trumptus of yours", and I meant what I said. I knew the importance of the Trumptus.
"It is just a piece of junk. How can it be the hope of Centopia?"
I processed this for a moment- how could I explain?
"The… oracle, yes the oracle told me!"
"The what?"
"The oracle! Whenever I go to Centopia I get an Oracle, that is to help Centopia… I think. It's like a prophecy but also a riddle that needs solving."
"Ohh I get it… So, what's the oracle?"
"The traveling stranger from afar, is neither friend nor foe, but leads you to means to an end, to bring Centopias new hope", I reiterated the godawful long oracle.
"Huh? And what does that mean?"
"Ah well I am getting there… I'm probably the traveling stranger, the means to an end is your Trumptus as well as the Centopias new hope part. The leading could be for the elves I think?"
"And how is my Trumptus going to be any of that?"
"I'm blessed by the oracle with the knowledge… that the Trumptus should work against the dark elves."
"My Trumptus can do that? Woah… Wait, you aren't just trying to cheer me up right?"
"I'm an honest fella, I mean what I say", as emphasis I put my hand on my chest.
"Woah my Trumptus is Centopias new hope?", he seemed to be in his own world, dancing like a pan would, spinning in a circle happy that his instrument is not junk after all, while than snatching it back from my hands.
"Oh, wait I never caught your name!", he suddenly seemed to remember.
"Ah, I guess I never said. I'm… Mia", something else I couldn't fathom lingered on my tongue instead of Mia… but I had that feeling for quite a while…
"We should bring your Trumptus to the elves. They'll be the ones who can actually make use of it. But-", there was a glaring issue.
I never met the elves like I was supposed to.
And I bet Mo or Yuko whoever tossed me off Lyria last time, wasn't going to react kindly to me.
I really messed things up.
"But?", he pried looking up at me. His gaze lingered on me uncomfortably.
"I… don't think the elves like me very much, I'm just a stranger", I mumbled just to get a little head butt from Lyria to my shoulder.
"I get it", the pan waved his hooved hand.
"You… do?"
"The pans don't like me very much either… they don't trust after what happened with…", he mumbled the last part, so I did not catch what he said.
"Since the Trumptus likely works to what I think it does, why don't we do a field test? We find a Munculus or two and just poof them with the Trumptus, if it doesn't work the way I think it will, I think it will at least distract them long enough to escape."
Lyria shook her head disapprovingly, and even Phuddle seemed unsure.
"Are you crazy?"
I sighed.
"I can do it by myself if you lend it to me, if that's alright", I stretched out my hand gesturing towards him.
"I… Okay! Let's do it, if this is Centopias new hope, we can do it… but what if it is just junk? Ohh that would be-"
"Hey, hey, at least give it a try okay? Lyria, we'll be going then, okay?"
She nodded but her gaze remained disapproving, as I turned to leave.
"You coming, Phuddle?"
"Ah yes- yes of course", with Trumptus in hand he followed along.
- :O
"Do you hear that?", the goat man clanged onto my leg. Quickly I looked around. "Let's hide and then check" he freed himself from my leg and dove with me behind the trees, though there weren't a lot of trees here.
The noise he had heard came closer.
It was the fluttering of wings, but it wasn't heavy, so it wasn't dragons.
It was-
Elves, flying past them, so quickly we duck to avoid being spotted.
What irony was it for the main character™ to be hiding away? But the two elves disappeared as quickly as they came- but as we turned to get away from our hiding spot, Phuddle shrieked loudly.
"What's wrong- Oh. I forgot about that", dragons approached with Gargona specifically.
"I've never seen you around before, pesky little elf, now where are your friends?", but it didn't stop her from firing a snake at me, but a little movement to the side dodged it just fine.
"Phuddle if they come close, use the Trumptus."
"Got it!", he grabbed the Trumptus tightly, waiting.
Gargona yelled for the others, and as one dragon drew close Phuddle blew into the Trumptus as his life did in fact depend on it.
The Munculus exploded.
"Oh that is brutal. And that is allowed in a kids show?"
With a thud I heard Phuddle fall to the ground, winded from his attack. Quickly grabbing the Trumptus, I blasted it instead, the moment another dragon drew too close.
It exploded and the dragon just left. The sight made my stomach churn uncomfortably.
Phew I could understand why Phuddle would be so winded
But as I turned, Gargona had already left.
"Phuddle, are you okay?"
"Yeah… just need… to catch my breath", but he made no effort to get up.
I took a breath. I remembered this from the show.
"I'm… taking the Trumptus and I'll help those elves! Follow after me once you caught your breath", I started to run, only to fall to my knees, thanks to the stupid crippling pain in my wings.
Though the tear had subdued the pain, it certainly wasn't going to fix this issue.
But a loud neigh caught my attention, holding right beside me.
"Lyria? Can you give me a lift? The Trumptus works and we need to help those elves!"
She nodded and bowed down. Quickly I got up. Would I ever get used to a horse back? Probably not.
Riding towards the direction of the dragons, I readied up my breath to keep ringing it as I saw the dragons from afar circling around colorful spots.
Which I couldn't see clearly.
The loudness didn't escape me from the Trumptus, but my breath sure did.
As we approached another Munculus just exploded under the tone of the Trumptus.
And quickly the rest fled.
The unicorns stood together, now visibly more relaxed at the sight of Lyria.
The male elf freed Yuko and they both stood up defensively.
"Who are you and what is your business around here?", the prince demanded to know, both having their water glares ready.
"Uh… one moment", I caught my breath just a little bit. Who had the lung capacity for this?
But something else seemed to have caught the elves' attention relaxing their posture, though what made them relaxed I could not tell.
Lyria leaned down to help me down, which helped, I gave her a quick nod.
"Hi, I'm Mia. I'm uh traveling. I've seen you fly this way and the dragons follow you… So I'd thought I'd help with this...", I held up the Trumptus with a bright smile.
"What is that?" "Did you see how that Munculus exploded, this could be exactly what we need to turn the tide around", Yuko made a loop in the air.
"You are right!", they looked at each other, before gave an unintentional cough.
"How about we talk more over there? The inventor of this, the Trumptus is resting further uphill", I pointed upwards.
"I'm Yuko! And that is Mo, he may not look like much (hey!), but he is an actual prince!", I nodded, but only turned. Seeing that Lyria parted with the other unicorns to join me and walked towards where we left Phuddle.
"A prince?", I repeated, I knew this information already, "of whom?"
"The elves of course! My father is the king, and my mother is the queen."
I hummed in response. This wasn't news to me.
"Say, you aren't from around here, where are you from?"
I shrieked and jumped as she just appeared next to me. Not without consequence I winced at my wings movements.
"Oh sorry I didn't mean to scare you", she flew back to Mo behind as.
"Yeah… um it is all good. I'm just traveling. Centopia is very pretty. Lyria has kindly shown me around a bit and Phuddle yeah."
"How do you know her name", I paused… and then awkwardly chuckled "Lucky guess?"
I could only hear a grumble, but from a far I could see Phuddle waving at us. I waved back.
"Is that the inventor of the Trumptos?"
"Trumptus! And yes. Phuddle made this."
"A pan?"
I hummed as a yes. Was that so hard to believe?
- :O
We arrived and Phuddle excitedly greeted us.
"You are back! Did my Trumptus help?" he held his hands together looking at me with wide expectant eyes.
I nodded and handed it back to him. "Yeah, like I said it would." I stood there proudly. As my arm begins to buzz.
"Looks like it is time for me to go. But first things first, Phuddle, will you lend the elves the Trumptus?" I gestured to the two elves.
"Yes of course! They can use Centopias new hope just like your oracle said!"
"Oracle?" The two voiced in a sync manner.
"Phuddle can explain, and btw. Yuko, Mo, Phuddle, Lyria, see you next time bey-", as I gestured I began to glow in golden, just enough time to wish Lyria goodbye.
Back in the closet…
Mhm why did that feel like significant irony?
Anyway, Finally, I met Yuko and Mo… on good terms too!
My head also didn't hurt! But my back sure did… or rather where my wings were supposed to be.
"Looks like that is a permanent issue translating to the real world… wait why?"
Why would it return with me to the real world? I was human here?
I breathed in. At least it was a normalish adventure… and apparently back on track with the story I knew, now with the Trumptus in the elf's possession.
- :O
"Hey, I didn't want it to seem like I was ditching you, I feel better after a bit of rest… DO you still want to hang out?"
"Do fruits grow on trees?"
"I- yes?"
"Then yes. Glad to hear you are feeling better."
Authors Note:
In which I swear I forgot in later chapters thanks to obsessive pansy writing that I actually made Yuko and Mo nice here lol.
So, yep. Ha having to re-read this only makes me cringe haha, you can tell what parts I just didn't want to elaborate on, to just rush on with the story. This will happen a lot more, as this story is one I've actually done any plotting for except for some core ideas.
It's wacky that is for sure. You'll see, chapter 9 I've written has so far been my favorite, but still a long way ahead haha.
Ah and Mia thanks to OC-insert is indeed in the closet, I have yet to decide to what extent.