The Waking

Chapter IX

Chapter IX

     I stepped out of the small white building into paradise. I looked over my shoulder to the small green bed that I had risen from. I turned back around, and walked towards a lush green meadow. A glinting silver fountain gushed sparkling blue water and let loose a slight, soothing white noise. The cream colored cobblestone path spread a few dozen yards ahead of me. Dozens of other domed huts dotted the landscape, and at the end of the path, a tall building shaped like the Greek Parthenon stood alone, gleaming gold in the bright sunlight.

     Clouds of different colors drifted along in the wind, some bright red, others a deep green. They seemed to crackle with energy, letting off small sparks of vivid colors.

     I stumbled forward, suddenly incapable of controlling my movement. I floated forward, much like I had when I saw my mother's death. I clenched my jaw. It suddenly dawned on me that I was stuck in a dream.

     I floated forward again, zooming past the small white buildings, and dashed toward the golden palace. My ghostly body hurtled toward the entrance to the palace at a breakneck pace, and stopped suddenly in front of a tall man with stubble covering his face, who appeared to be in his mid-thirties. The dark-haired man held an infant boy in his arms, who was fast asleep. The man leaned against a pillar, as if waiting for someone inside.

     Suddenly, a young man wearing a long purple robe burst out the doors of the palace. He dashed to the man's side, and examined the sleeping baby. A woman dressed in the same purple garb exited the palace, and approached the man and child with admiration and pride in her eyes. I heard the hushed tones of the two men speaking, and was surprised when the woman spoke.

     "Primulus!" she called to the young man, who whirled around to face her. "This is my son."

     The young man, Primulus, turned back to the baby, and placed his hands on the child's forehead. He smiled.

     "Zacharias. His name will be Zacharias." Primulus stated. "And he will be more powerful than any of us ever could have imagined."

     The man holding baby Zacharias furrowed his eyebrows. His blue eyes glimmered with tears. He swallowed hard.

     "Violet?" he said to the woman, "Can we leave?"

     The woman nodded, and the pair took off the same way that I had come. Primulus turned and stared straight at me.

     "Quinctus!" he bellowed.

¤¤¤¤¤¤¤

     I woke with a start in my sleeping bag. I sat up slowly, careful not to wake Brianna, who was cuddled up next to me. I slowly unzipped my bag, and slipped out of it. I pulled on a fresh set of clothes, and snuck out of the tent.

     I found Quinn bent over the front of his truck, with the hood open. His arms were plunged into the guts of the engine, with spots of grease on his shirt and face. I walked to his side, and he acknowledged me with a slight nod. I shifted my gaze to the engine he was working on, and was blown away by the complexity of the thing. A bright green circuit board covered most of the top of the futuristic machine, and orange pipes carried steaming liquid throughout the alien device. This thing definitely wasn't from Earth. Quinn stood up, wiped his hands, and admired his handiwork with a smug smile. He looked at me.

     "Morning sunshine." he smiled. "Sleep well?"

     I shrugged.

     "Okay I guess." I pointed at the engine. "What's that?"

     He grinned.

     "It's my prototype. Using Dart technology mixed with Earth fuel. I only need to fill it up once every few weeks."