The trio walked down the main street, they came across an art piece at the center of the city. It's basically two statues: one is made of white colored glass sculpted into a woman wearing a dress, the other is made of some red colored metal alloy sculpted into a man wearing nothing but a leaf covering his private area. Both statues have their hands together, and they're smiling, as if they were about to dance any time. According to the plaque on the pedestal, they are called "the dancing couple of Gledo". This made Lisa curious, for she hasn't seen an art piece like that.
"I wonder what they represent?" She asked.
Then a man, dressed as a French artist, came across the trio. He has black hair, a mustache, and fair skin. Although, there are few grey streaks in his hair, thus indicating that he is in his 50s.
"Bonjour, masseurs and mademoiselle! I am Pierre, the one who made zis exquisite art piece!" He introduced himself in a French accent.
"You made that in the center of the center?" Questioned Yukio.
"Oui, Oui! These two statues represent ze alchemical concept of ze white queen and red king, ze red king represents masculinity and sulfur while ze white queen represents femininity and mercury. It is one of my greatest works, no?" Pierre explained.
"I suppose, making an artwork based on alchemical concepts is no easy feat. I had to admit, it is a wonderful masterpiece" said Lisa.
"You shall come to my art studio, in which it used to be ze meeting place of ze council of sages" said Pierre.
"Council of sages?" Asked Frederick.
"Oui. Ze council of sages were a group of five sages who defended ze entire land of ze starry night from peril, about twenty five years ago they blessed ze boy as ze hero who would stop ze king from committing terrible acts. Unfortunately, ze boy proved to be no match against ze king and he was put into coma following his defeat. Ze main mystery is: ze council of sages went missing following ze boys defeat" Pierre explained.
Frederick felt a weird feeling, as though he had remembered something.
The artist guided the trio down to the northern district where most of the buildings looked like it's from the renaissance, and it was an interesting sight. When they reached to the edge of the city, they arrived at an old looking building that is well kept over the years. It looked like an old small castle, complete with a metal gate and stone walls. Besides that, there's nothing of interest other than it served as a headquarters of the council of sages. Then they pass through the gate and entered the building, and inside, it looked rather fancy with old fashioned paintings and fancy furniture. To Lisa, it looked too tacky and gaudy.
"Weclone to ze art studio! It is where me and other artists work on our art masterpieces, in which it is where we display our greatest work in ze art gallery at the right hall" said Pierre.
Across the main lobby is what seems to be an entrance to a room, but it was sealed in brick. Frederick walked towards it and placed his hand on the brick, as if whatever is passed the bricks was calling him. While Yukio was talking to Pierre, Lisa noticed that Frederick is gone.
"Do you have a clue on where Frederick is?" She asked.
"No? Did he run off somewhere?" Questioned Yukio.
"Ah, zis art studio is easy to get lost in. I suppose your friend wandered off looking at ze paintings, or ze sculptures" said Pierre.
Lisa walked down to the sealed up entrance, but Frederick was nowhere to be seen. She felt a curious presence behind the bricks, as if he is inside some room.
"Pierre, where does this entrance lead to?" She asked.
"It is not known why it was sealed in brick, for it was before we artists purchased zis place as ze art studio" answered Pierre, feeling awkward.
"I get the feeling the answer is behind the bricked up entrance" she said.
"Ah, if you want. Allow me to blast the bricks away, and it will show us where our friend has gone to" said Yukio with enthusiasm.
"Non! You'll cause property damage here, all of ze artworks would've break and crumble!" Yelled Pierre.
"Stand back!" Warned Yukio.
He pointed his finger at the sealed entrance, and an orb of energy began forming from his finger tips. Once it has built up power, he shoot the orb of energy at the sealed entrance, blasting the bricks away. It reveals a large hidden room, with some windows to provide light. He, Lisa, and Pierre were shocked at seeing the hidden room.
They entered the room and they found shelves with books, rack with staffs leaning on it, a large crystal ball, and other things. They stood in awe, until Lisa and Yukio saw Frederick standing at the center of the room.
"Incroyable! Zis is where ze council of sages meet at!" Remarked Pierre.
"Frederick!" Lisa called as she walked towards him.
When she got closer, she stopped as she noticed a group of five people laying on the floor. They were wearing different colored robes and animal themed masks that covers their eyes and noses, and they were laying on the floor in a circular formation. Then she saw Frederick standing next to a boy that looked identicle to him, except their clothes were different. The boy laying on the ground wore an off white pants with the bottoms of the pant legs tattered, he doesn't wear a shirt nor footwear. He has the same yellow hair (if a bit messy), and fair skin just like Frederick.
"Frederick? Just who is that boy?" She asked.
"This boy... none other than the real me" he replied.
"Wh-what!?" She exclaimed.
"Yes, he is the real me who is in a coma. You see, the me who accompanied you all this time is actually a manifestation of my subconscious mind. I had to project my mind as an attempt to keep myself awake, but I haven't expected that doing so will deprived my body of the five senses. I wasn't expecting to find my body here along with the sages who had chosen me, so I figured they brought my body here as an attempt to hide from the king's forces. They too, put themselves into an enchanted slumber that deprived them of their senses in order to keep the king from finding them. As long as they are asleep, none of the circle of ten would find me" he explained.
Lisa felt sorry for him, along with the sages. Despite the revelation, she is determined to wake one of the sages.
"What if I were to wake one of the sages up?" She asked.
"I knew you were going to say that, so I am willing to re enter my body to fight the king again!" He said.
Yukio came to Lisa and Frederick with book in hand, to show them what he had found.
"Excuse me, but I found this old book that contains records of the sages. It shows the names, the aliases, and the powers they wield. Having a sage as a companion would be much more helpful, given the fact they had protected this land for a long time" said Yukio as he handed the book to Lisa.
Lisa opened the book, and Yukio wasn't kidding, it contains the names and other stuff about the sages. One of the notable sages is Myra the cunning fox, her power is illusions. The leader of the sages is Ixion the stoic horse, his power is lightning.
"So, Ixion was the one who founded this council in order to protect the lands. I wonder what will happen if I were to wake him up" she said.
"I get the feeling that once you wake him up, he would have trouble keeping his mind together. After all, it has been twenty years after my defeat, and the sages placed themselves in an enchanted slumber that deprived them of their senses. They would be driven to madness after spending two decades not being able to see, smell, hear, nor touch." Explained Frederick.
"Sheesh, sounds like a fate worse than death!" She remarked.
"Believe me, they subjected themselves in order to keep me safe while I subjected myself as I project my mind" he said.
Authors note: what will one of the sages react if Lisa were to wake one of them up?
YOU ARE READING
Trapped in the film
FantasyLisa, aged eighteen, has found a box at the back of the closet. When she opens it, it contains an old VHS tape of an old animated film from the 60s called "The Land of the starry night". According to the tape, it was made by a company whose name was...
