Iscladon Breaking (Book One in the Cerios Chronicles)

Chapter 1-Targets

Chapter 1

Targets

Across seas of time and space, a single man wanders alone among thousands. Every person here has lost themselves in this place, except for him; he pushes through the air, not walking and not flying, but almost swimming through the thickness of the atmosphere. The man was tall and lanky, and he moved with grace, his skin was wind-burned from years of sailing across vast oceans. His blond hair was shoulder length and unkempt and on occasion a flash of gold could be seen through his hair.

He paused, judging the movements of the mist for a moment, then, seeing some sign only visible to him, he pulled out a sword. The sword gave a light ring, like a bell muffled by cloth, and flashed its many colors. The man stared at his sword for a time, lost in memories, then abruptly slashed downward through apparent thin air. The sword left a glittering trail in the thick air, which wavered for a moment, like a candle flame, before splitting down its' length.

The portal, for it was indeed a portal, showed a vibrant land, a land of many creatures, with mountains and seas and deserts. The man carefully stored his sword in its sheath, and then began moving towards the portal. The air seemed to gather around him, trying to halt his progress, but he would not be deterred.

He paused, seemingly to gather himself, but then straightened up and laughed aloud.

There was a shock running through the air, as sound was a rare occurrence here, and it woke many things that prefer not to be awoken.

But, heedless of the feeling of danger and malevolence, he continued laughing, "So," he bellowed into space, "you really think you could stop me, or that I wouldn't recognize you."

There was another voice, suddenly, coming from the portal, spluttering with rage, "You know full well I have more power than you," the voice growled darkly. "You never could defeat me."

The man shrugged, "Perhaps, but I wasn't going to try."

The voice snarled viciously, "So you're going to send a child after me, rather than face me yourself?"

The man simply chuckled at the anger, "Imagine your embarrassment when he beats you."

"Enough of your games," the voice said, "You will have little enough time to work when you reach him."

The man stopped chuckling, "You're bluffing," he said, his eyes widening in disbelief, revealing the many colors, similar to his sword, that swirl within, "you wouldn't dare."

The dark voice laughed, "We shall see; hurry boy, your student needs protecting if you want the chance to teach him."

With a cry of rage, the man tore through the remaining distance and stumbled out into a new world.

The man was disoriented as he breathed deep the sweet mountain air. He waited impatiently for the moment when he could again move, but first he needed to wait through a day and a night, from sunrise, when he arrived, to sunrise.

He watched, perfectly relaxed after his spurt of anger, as the suns of this world moved across the sky. He had to admit awe at the sight of the three suns, one red, one a deep blue, and one yellow. His wonder only increased at the onset of night, one of the brightest nights this world had ever seen. The stars were the same as ever, but their version of the moon, a bright waterfall of millions of stars, was truly a sight. It began somewhere towards the top, right above his head. He knew that, over the next two weeks, the waterfall would move lower and lower each night, until it disappeared completely over the horizon.

At sunrise, the suns all came up at the same moment, as they all set at the same moment, with a bright patchwork of colors.

He broke free of his invisible bonds, stretching his neck and grinning wider than he had for some time.