A World To Discover

Chapter 3.

Night had befallen me as I stood in front of a building whose exterior was embellished with moss and age. Its windows were blocked with wooden planks that emitted an orange light which came from inside between the gaps. It was all so noisy. It was the one building that was populated in this street where not a single soul entered; The dark side of the town, as one would call it. My boss claimed this place as his own seeing that it's conveniently isolated from the town.

I let my hand reach for the door, but stopped midway. Something was gnawing on the back of my head, as if it was telling me not to enter. It had left me standing there for the past hour, hesitant.

Finally, I gave up. I walked away from the building and the cold street as I head for the one place I always go to; the 40 feet high barriers that surrounded the town.

I looked over the landscape again, standing on top of the walls that had stood for as long as I can remember. The skies shining from above, filled with stars with not a single thin line of cloud in sight. Below, the mountains soared high up, surrounded by a shroud of green that looked like shrubs from afar.

In this distance, it all seems so peaceful, but look closely and the monsters become noticeable. The ground showed signs of burrowed earth from below as the trail of dirt rose up; A little far off from this you could see a faint shadow that crawled on all fours lurking near the riverbank.

These beasts were just an afterthought, my mind drifting off to contemplate what had just happened. "Ira..." I had muttered under my breath, the picture I saw in the book flashing in my head. That... will happen to me someday, and Chelsea. Who is she? Why is she so nice to me? why would she cry for the sake of someone she barely knows? What does she want?

I recalled what happened after we left the library. Two persons had approached us, one man and one woman. They were exhausted, relieved the moment they saw Chelsea. I, in turn, had fled from the scene the moment I saw them, leaving her alone without a second's notice.

She promised me she'd help me with this curse... but does she even know how?

I turned my body around, now facing the lantern lit town; combining both tall looming shadows with orange and yellow lights that sometimes flickered on and off. I sat down, my feet hanging from the edge of the chiseled stone bricks.

It was breezy up here, so cold that I had to wrap my arms around my body. The only thing that had covered my body was the thin layer of white cloth, which was the T-shirt that I wore, and the black pants that had covered my lower body down to my ankles. My shoes were placed right beside me, a faded brown coloring the upper portion while the rubber soles were tainted with black dirt. I lost my cloak.

I started drifting off elsewhere again. Will I ever get out of this town, or would I die before I even have the chance to? When will 'that' happen to me? Is there something that triggers the curse 'Ira'? I stared off into space for over an hour, questioning myself over and over again. Will I be safe?

I stared up to the sky, the moon shining as brilliantly as ever. It had fought against the dark cape the sky had worn, every so often you could see a faint light falling and vanishing. I gathered my wits as I stood again, turning around to face the edge of the walls with the outside world just within my reach. With a deep breath, - preparing myself from a stinging pain - I jumped.

The wind rushed against my body as I fell, my clothes were aggressively fluttering everywhere. The ground was quickly getting closer and closer, waiting for my feet to land that would send a quick shock from my legs up to my body. I felt relieved as it happened - a fall that would kill just about anyone, for some reason, had not much effect on me.

I landed on the grassy dirt which rustled as it came in contact with my bare feet. My body crouched with the fall which made my back bend forward, my right hand imprinting itself into the soft dirt to make sure I don't stumble.

I waited there for a minute, staying still as I prepared myself for the stinging pain that normally came every time I left the borders - There was nothing, no smoke, no burns, no black marks... nothing. I pulled my body up, dusting off the dirt from my hand with claps while I scouted the area. I couldn't see much compared to when I was above; a bunch of outlines that looked like trees were gathered at the horizon, a sea of stars and darkness drowning it from above.

Is this real? I hesitantly took a step forward, trying to see if that stinging pain would come back and burn me if I tried stepping further. Miraculously, there was none. I'm free. I took another step forward, and another, and another, my steps getting faster than before each time and---

"Come on, faster!" There was a shout. My feet suddenly stopped in place as my head turned towards the source. Two silhouettes ran towards the gate, one of them had a huge lump behind it while the other carried a protruding object that rasped against the ground dirt.

I slowly walked to cover the distance while making sure that I would be unnoticeable. Upon closer inspection, the object that stuck out was in fact a steel blade with red liquid dripping from the tip. The two silhouette were two persons, and the lump was another. From this distance, I could barely see anything other than the blur of colors that were faded with darkness.

I moved closer to get a clearer vision, trying to see if I could make up a face for either one of them. There, I saw a familiar shade of scarlet that had made me speak without even noticing it; the person being carried had red locks of hair that swayed with the wind, the color reminding me of her. "Chelsea?" My mouth had moved by itself without me noticing it, a picture appearing at the back of my head had erased the image of the man consumed by the dark matter. The picture of her eyes, her soul, and her lips smiling at me - a smile that was genuinely sweet continuously glowing with her innocence.

I stood right in front of the only house across the streets with its lights turned on. For some reason, I followed them without thinking, standing at the top of the steps and right in front of the door designed with intricate golden lines. My hand hesitantly reaching out for the door as I tried to knock, but before I could, it opened by itself. On the other side, a man stood with his head turned to look behind him. "I'll go buy something to eat."

As he waved, his eyes met mine as he immediately showed disdain. "You are?" His deep voice that lacked any consideration was pointed towards me, his silvery eyes glaring.

"Is Chelsea here?"

"Look at the time kiddo." He scowled at me, stepping forward to close the door right behind him. "Go back to your little cave and hit the sack."

"I need to see her." My voice was starting to crack.

"At this time? Come back in the morning." He said without changing his tone. He started his foot forward which made me move to the side. "Actually, make it never."

"You can't stop me." I tried to shrug it off, my arm reaching for the door knob as I thought that I never heard the door lock itself, but before I could touch it, I felt a strong tug right behind me and the second I knew, I was lying down on the ground.

"Look here. I don't know what's your business with her, but there is no way I'm gonna let some stranger meet her." He stared down at me, "and if you don't give up, I'm gonna have to teach you a lesson."