Empires SMP: Creation stories (Season 1)

Chapter 10: The Lost Empire

The room was dark, lit by a single torch. Inscriptions cover the temple walls from floor to ceiling. Slowly, the symbols began to glow, making the torchlight shimmer and fade.

'Welcome, traveler.'

'Where are you from?'

'Would you like a story?'

'Here is mine.'

----

Joey's POV

Four years ago....

Joey glanced down from the tree, watching as his brother, Tigger, scampered around below the tree, seeking a place to hide before their mom, Gilda, came to find them.

"Ready or not, here I come!" Gilda called. She flapped her red wings. "Where are my little boys?" She hovered around. Joey giggled, flicking his furry ears. "Was that.... A little laugh?" Gilda asked, grabbing her son and swinging him around.

Six-year-old Joey laughed again, hugging his mother. "I wove you, mama." He said, his voice high-pitched and squealy.

That was four years ago. Joey was six then. He was ten now, as was his twin brother, Tigger.

Gilda was now gone.

But two years prior, he got his molt.

Joey lay in the side of the bed, feeling his fur pricking up. "MOM!" He yelled. "I feel weird!"

Immediately his mother Gilda, father Demeris, and twin brother Tigger ran into the room. "Joey, what's wrong?" Gilda asked, crouching by her feverish son.

Demeris, however, was smiling. "Gilda, honey, Joey's fine. He's molting. It means that he's the crown prince and he'll be loosing his fur to become a human. He could have wings, too! I had my molt too, when I was his age."

Tigger glared at his dad. "Does that mean I won't be the king?!"

"No, it just means that Joey will be the king and you'll be his advisor. That means that you'll give him advise and be his best friend." Tigger smiled at that.

Joey rolled over, whimpering in pain as feathers pushed from his shoulders.

After a few moments, his family left the room.

----

An hour later, Joey snapped awake with a shriek. His fur was mostly gone except for the longer strands, his hair. He thrashed around, and after a moment, he paused, the pain ebbing away. He stepped carefully on the floor. He looked around and saw his reflection.

His jaw dropped.

He had dirty golden-blonde hair that had a single, small braid that was at the front of his head. He also had red-to-blue wings that mingled into purple at the middle. He stepped forward carefully, curious and cautious. As he neared the mirror, he spotted something behind his legs, half-hidden beneath his skirt-tail.

Feathers. Long, long feathers that matched his wings. He felt so embarrassed, burying his face in his hands. "MOOOM!" He called.

Gilda peered into the room. "JOEY!" She cried. "You look so handsome, baby." She hugged him from behind.

"Mofphm." Joey said, his voice muffled by his hands and his mom's arms around his chest. "Mom, I hafh tail feaverphs."

"What was that?" Gilda asked, letting him go.

"Mom, I have tail feathers." He said, his voice shaking with horror.

"Oh Joey...." Gilda murmured. "Joey, it happens. Sometimes, Heliotropites are born with tail feathers. It's normal."

"Okay." Joey whispered.

Gilda left Joey to contemplate his next move.

----

Two years later....

Joey stood at the front of the room, clad in black. He felt his eyes burn in grief. As he stood there, watching his father argue with the king of Heliotrope, who was his mother's first husband. They were shouting about who would give the speech on Gilda.

"I'm her last lover!" Yelled Demeris. "I should give a speech! I knew Gilda until the end."

"But we knew each other longer!" Screamed Dyonis. "We had two children and were married for ten years!"

"We had two children and were married for nine and a half." Demeris said evenly, his arms crossed and voice raised.

"Dad! Will you stop fighting with my stepdad? Please?" Said a boy with red wings, dirty-blonde hair and a black suit. He had been crying and his arm was linked with a brown-haired boy's, who had his damaged brown wings around him. "Mom's dead. I want to mourn her without fighting dads!"

Tigger tugged on Demeris' arm. "Listen to half-brother Green."

"Grian." The boy said, his voice chocked. "Come here." Tigger hugged him and all three boys began to cry.

Joey wiped his eyes and ran away, into the forest. As he slowed, he began to heard sobbing sounds. He peered around the trees and saw something beautiful.

A lake that stretched as far as he could see. It was surrounded by trees, blooming in the dark times. He looked around. A girl with long, dusty-blonde hair and gold wings similar to Dyonis' was sitting on a small dock that overlooked the lake. She was crying, her tears falling into the lake.

"H-hello?" Joey called, nervously.

She spun around, her hair flying around her head. "Who's there?"

"I'm Joey." Joey introduced, walking over. The boards of the dock were creaking underfoot, the wind rusting his feathers. "I'm one of Gilda's children."

"Gilda." The girl turned back to the water. "Gilda."

Joey sat next to her. "Did you know her?"

She nodded. "Yes, I knew her. She was my mom." She wiped her eyes. "Mom left after I was born."

"What's your name?" Joey asked, wrapping his wing around her.

"Pearl." She said.

"Pearl, we should go back. I think that mom would want us to mourn her." He stood up, offering his hand to her.

Pearl smiled through the tears. "You're a good brother, Joey."

Joey smiled. "I'm just doing what mom would have wanted."

"What our mom would have wanted."

----

The inscriptions glowed like fire.

'I loved Pearl with all my heart. She was my 'Irish twin*'.'

'I took a few years to recover from mom's death. But Pearl, Grian and Tigger are here.'

'And now Xornoth is too.'

'Don't lose faith in who you love. They're there.'

'Just be patient.'

----

Sorry this chapter is kind of short! I got writer's block halfway through and had to finish because I was running out of ideas for it. Because of this, chapters may be a bit slow as I'm running out of pre-made chapters.

*An Irish Twin is when two children are born within twelve months of each other.