The Monarch Effect

Chapter 8: A New Morning

Hey there, it's been a while.

I sincerely apologize for not posting for so long. I thought I could balance school, work, and writing, but that seems like it is clear that I won't be able to post to my original schedule. To make chapters as long and quality as they are, I need to spend ALOT of time thinking, outlining, writing, and revising. Thus I will post 1 chapter per week.

As for why I have been gone for so long, as an apology, I have been writing a backlog of long chapters to make up for the lost time.

Again, I apologize, and I would like you to know that I have NOT given up on this story. I have been working on it nonstop since the beginning of this summer.

On to the story!

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Chapter 8

... I can't move. My body betrays me as I command myself to move any limb. All I can do is loosely float as I gaze at the line of earths peacefully spinning in front of me.

...Are those even earths? Well, the one in front of me definitely is, but the others lined up on both sides of it...

I don't recognize those continents at all. Not one of them looks like anything on earth. They don't look like Pangaea, either. I might not be the best student, but I paid attention in geography class.

The deafening silence around me is only broken by the sound of my breath. However, my eyes go wide as I just begin to process something...

How am I breathing in space?

I look down at my body for answers. It's... just me. No space suit, no Varialax, just me. I'm no astrophysicist, but shouldn't I be dying a horrible death right about now?

As I question my existence, my eyes are drawn toward a crimson star sparkling above me. But then, it suddenly starts accelerating toward me. As the star closes in, it begins to dim. My eyes adjust to the new lighting as I start to make out something...

...Or rather, someone?

A shape begins to appear in the light. A woman with wings descends upon me before slowly hovering in front of me. An angel? I try to look up, but my head can't move either, only my eyes.

No. Something much more than that. This woman has silver and black futuristic, sleek armor with pulsing scarlet lights that outline her body. Parts of the armor point off her body, giving it a very spikey yet aerodynamic look.

The wings she has are detached from her body and are primarily mechanical, but they emit a blood-red plasma. And to top it all off, she is wearing a black aerodynamic mask with a bright, single red light in the middle staring into my soul.

I can only stare at her as paralysis continues to override my commands.

A soft whining comes from her wings as she lifts her hand toward my face. My breathing becomes shaky as her small yet sharp hand reaches my cheek.

She slowly caresses me right before speaking. "Your name..." She says in a soft but robotic. A voice that sounds so familiar...

"How fitting." She continues before leaning in toward me with her mask. "I can't wait."

...

I stare in silence at the peach colored ceiling as I lay on a hard bed. The only noise in this room is the buzzing coming from the fluorescent lights. I break into a cold sweat as I recall the dream I just had.

I.... NEVER dream. Or at least I never remember them. Are all dreams as vivid and strange as that one?

...I have heard that dreams are highly inspired by what we experience. And the things that happened to me recently... Fantasy creatures... And Varialax...