Shards: Intro- Part 1 (old)

Chapter One: Disembark

Feigmonton, Alyria, Central Atlantis

Gemini
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"Gem, how long has it been since you've been to the Fairgrounds?"

I winced and gave Father an awkward smile.
"I've actually.......never really been to this part of town. I don't really do well with crowds," said my shaky voice. Father looked forward again and shook his head slightly.
"Huh, might as well adjust to the heat. The masses are going to be much worse than this for the next 3 months. Even considering a couple occasions where I nearly got trampled, they were the least of my worries during my Endeavor," Father replied with a foreboding tone.

I was walking with Mum and Father through Addison Boulevard; the spine of the city. By that, I mean the busiest stretch of land in the whole town. Everyone was going to The Fairgrounds.

If Addison Boulevard was the spine, then the Fairgrounds was the brain. The Fairgrounds is a justification for our status as a major Atlantic City. It has 2 square miles of natural land, the largest mall in the Atlantic Empire, human food concession stands, the best museums in Atlantis, and of course, the Harper's Fair. Accounting for a whole fifth of the urban land area of Feigmonton; my home town that I've never left my entire life.

And I've never been to it once in my entire life.

Well, not in my living memory. When I was a toddler, I think I would come here all the time with both my parents. When I was left with Mum, she never had a taste for anything to do here except running errands at the mall. I never had a taste for anything to do here period. Being home-schooled by Mum took any interest out of doing anything social.

After my talk with Mum, Father made three other visits before this one, and I didn't miss one of them. In fact, I never had those ridiculous mood swings since that time. At the same time, I stopped having the dreams I believed caused them. Why they did stop, I didn't know. But why ask questions about a non-existential problem?

I moved on, Mum moved on, Father moved on. It was as if nothing happened. All that mattered was catching up now. I felt obligated to make up for lost time by taking him to all my favorite spots outside the city. Consisting of thinly crowded mountain trails, undiscovered caverns, and my personal favorite; the precipice overlooking Feigmonton.

The view was unbelievable there, especially at night. You could see the entire heart of the empire. Everything I could see and hear from my loft window I could see and hear from up here, in addition to Feigmonton, the hilltops behind the city, and more. There, Father would discuss things like his career with me. I actually found it very interesting despite my recent distaste for the topic. Father actually worked not on crop fields, but at strip mines now. He told me that they were digging for minerals exclusive to Atlantic soil; something even he wasn't supposed to know about. He also talked about possible promotions that would enable him to visit more often, or perhaps; move back home by the time my expedition returns.

All that aside, we actually acted like a family again. My father arrived for this visit four nights ago, and it was for a very special occasion. Today was my Excursion Day.

We walked through the large mahogany gates that provided the entrance into the Fairgrounds, where hundreds of thousands of locals would gather to hear a lecture from a select graduate; handpicked by Triton himself to explain what will happen to future students like me over the course of the next three months. Mum led us to the central mound of the grounds. There were so many people in my way, I couldn't tell you any details about the stroll there. A few Magus Morphers were playing around in their creature-forms. I saw a few Fairies, Perytons, Passive Werewolves (the moon was only nearly full), and a few other common species. Mum and Father instructed me to follow other people my age up the side of the mound, and to sit anywhere I wanted. Apparently, only students are supposed to sit on the mound. The rest of the family, or friends (if any) were supposed to stand off to the side.