Aglarthalion
08-27-2003, 12:42 PM
This is a short story I have written recently for me Advanced English studies class for school; in fact I will be submitting it tomorrow. :) I've posted it in two parts because it is over the maximum length for a single post (10 000 characters, and the story is closer to 11 000).
~~~
: : ESPRIT DU LIBRE : :
: : LA VÉRITÉ VOUS PLACERA LIBRE : :
I slid into a doorway and waited, perfectly still. The floor was made of smooth stone, yet not so that I was unable to control my momentum as I slowed down. After letting my eyes adjust to the low light, the first thing I saw was that the spear gun which had been laying against the desk before was now gone.
It had only been an hour since I had last spoken with Fantôme, and although he had seemed friendly enough, I could tell that something was wrong. Looking around the laboratory, seeing again the fireplace and the tables arranged along the walls, all manner of random items adorning their surfaces; books, writing equipment, bottles of strange luminescent liquids, glass cylinders containing dusty material, and other bizarre devices, the purposes of which I did not know.
Picking up the extinguished pipe which Fantôme had been smoking earlier, I noticed that the ashes, the smoke of which he had earlier been consuming, were still smouldering in the base of the well of the pipe. Although Fantôme seemed to thrive on the stuff, I had never liked the smell of it. But I had learned to live with it when I came to see him, as I knew that to mention such a trivial matter would be foolish of me.
As I began walking around the dull granite pillar which was in the centre of the room, Fantôme, who had been looking out of a window near the fireplace, turned to face me, a look of gloom look etched on his hardened face. His steel eyes, while looking at me, seemed to be preoccupied with a heavy weight, as if there were some greater purpose demanding his attention. Holding his spear gun pointed towards the floor, he began to speak in a steady tone.
“Rivin”, he said, “I understand that your coming here was with the best of intentions, but I’m afraid this situation has often required of me a more primitive code of conduct than I might otherwise have chosen. Please forgive me being armed, but it is necessary for what may lie ahead. That said, I am glad you have decided to return. Your assistance will make the task much easier for both of us.”
Fantôme had always been a master of the monologue. But we both knew that it wasn’t time for discussion. I had met with Fantôme in order to recover the lost Puissance Crystal from nearby, but it was said to be well guarded for forces not of this world. Yet the prize was beyond any value, as it could enable it’s user to fly over short distances. It was for this reason that Fantôme wanted to obtain the artefact, so that his name would be remembered in history. All of his life, he had studied the Puissance Crystal, wanting to embrace it’s power. His lifelong patience and ambition had led him to the peak of Abyss Mountain, a mere thousand yards from the crystal’s final resting place on Libre Plateau. At times he’d been perhaps overzealous in his search, but now, when it was within his reach, he had used his time to calculate the risks. He had built his laboratory on a plateau opposite Libre Plateau, and had lived there for a year, preparing for what he had spent his life waiting for.
Finally, before making the final step, Fantôme had come to me, I knowing that I was one of the few people Fantôme had respect and trust for, so that I would help Fantôme obtain the crystal. Together, said Fantôme, we could wield the crystal’s tremendous power, and be remembered in time. “For to be forgotten was worse than death”, Fantôme had said when he had first approached me, “And in remembrance comes immortality. You must free your mind, because the truth will set you free.”
From the desk, I took the gloves and goggles which Fantôme had provided for me for the mission.
“Well, it is now time”, I said. Looking at Fantôme, I could see he agreed, as his facial muscles flexed slightly in agreement.
“Yes. Let us go, and not falter in our step”, Fantôme responded, a grave determination setting into his demeanour as he stepped towards the doorway. Not the one which I had come through, which led to a path back down the mountain, but one on the opposite side of the lab, which lead to a small landing platform.
Following Fantôme through the doorway, I left the building. Looking out across the mercilessly high cliff face, I saw through the mist the harrowing darkness of Libre Plateau. I also saw on the edge of the plateau the platform where lay the end of the stone path which we were to follow from the plateau on which the lab was situated. Standing on the landing platform, Fantôme signalled me to follow, as he began to walk along the stone path which crossed around the edge of the abyss leading to Libre Plateau. At most our destination would have been a hundred yards away, but the nature of our location in the mountains meant that the path wound it’s way along a thousand yards of steep cliff face rock before we could reach the plateau.
~~~
: : ESPRIT DU LIBRE : :
: : LA VÉRITÉ VOUS PLACERA LIBRE : :
I slid into a doorway and waited, perfectly still. The floor was made of smooth stone, yet not so that I was unable to control my momentum as I slowed down. After letting my eyes adjust to the low light, the first thing I saw was that the spear gun which had been laying against the desk before was now gone.
It had only been an hour since I had last spoken with Fantôme, and although he had seemed friendly enough, I could tell that something was wrong. Looking around the laboratory, seeing again the fireplace and the tables arranged along the walls, all manner of random items adorning their surfaces; books, writing equipment, bottles of strange luminescent liquids, glass cylinders containing dusty material, and other bizarre devices, the purposes of which I did not know.
Picking up the extinguished pipe which Fantôme had been smoking earlier, I noticed that the ashes, the smoke of which he had earlier been consuming, were still smouldering in the base of the well of the pipe. Although Fantôme seemed to thrive on the stuff, I had never liked the smell of it. But I had learned to live with it when I came to see him, as I knew that to mention such a trivial matter would be foolish of me.
As I began walking around the dull granite pillar which was in the centre of the room, Fantôme, who had been looking out of a window near the fireplace, turned to face me, a look of gloom look etched on his hardened face. His steel eyes, while looking at me, seemed to be preoccupied with a heavy weight, as if there were some greater purpose demanding his attention. Holding his spear gun pointed towards the floor, he began to speak in a steady tone.
“Rivin”, he said, “I understand that your coming here was with the best of intentions, but I’m afraid this situation has often required of me a more primitive code of conduct than I might otherwise have chosen. Please forgive me being armed, but it is necessary for what may lie ahead. That said, I am glad you have decided to return. Your assistance will make the task much easier for both of us.”
Fantôme had always been a master of the monologue. But we both knew that it wasn’t time for discussion. I had met with Fantôme in order to recover the lost Puissance Crystal from nearby, but it was said to be well guarded for forces not of this world. Yet the prize was beyond any value, as it could enable it’s user to fly over short distances. It was for this reason that Fantôme wanted to obtain the artefact, so that his name would be remembered in history. All of his life, he had studied the Puissance Crystal, wanting to embrace it’s power. His lifelong patience and ambition had led him to the peak of Abyss Mountain, a mere thousand yards from the crystal’s final resting place on Libre Plateau. At times he’d been perhaps overzealous in his search, but now, when it was within his reach, he had used his time to calculate the risks. He had built his laboratory on a plateau opposite Libre Plateau, and had lived there for a year, preparing for what he had spent his life waiting for.
Finally, before making the final step, Fantôme had come to me, I knowing that I was one of the few people Fantôme had respect and trust for, so that I would help Fantôme obtain the crystal. Together, said Fantôme, we could wield the crystal’s tremendous power, and be remembered in time. “For to be forgotten was worse than death”, Fantôme had said when he had first approached me, “And in remembrance comes immortality. You must free your mind, because the truth will set you free.”
From the desk, I took the gloves and goggles which Fantôme had provided for me for the mission.
“Well, it is now time”, I said. Looking at Fantôme, I could see he agreed, as his facial muscles flexed slightly in agreement.
“Yes. Let us go, and not falter in our step”, Fantôme responded, a grave determination setting into his demeanour as he stepped towards the doorway. Not the one which I had come through, which led to a path back down the mountain, but one on the opposite side of the lab, which lead to a small landing platform.
Following Fantôme through the doorway, I left the building. Looking out across the mercilessly high cliff face, I saw through the mist the harrowing darkness of Libre Plateau. I also saw on the edge of the plateau the platform where lay the end of the stone path which we were to follow from the plateau on which the lab was situated. Standing on the landing platform, Fantôme signalled me to follow, as he began to walk along the stone path which crossed around the edge of the abyss leading to Libre Plateau. At most our destination would have been a hundred yards away, but the nature of our location in the mountains meant that the path wound it’s way along a thousand yards of steep cliff face rock before we could reach the plateau.