~Perla’s Journal Entry: Prima, Winderly 25, 3rd AC 2579~
Today it seems I lost all sense of time, it must be the magical beauty of Virginia Falls which has bewitched my senses. Here, seating on the edge of the bark, listening to the noise of the waterfall a homin can find peace. I've been told wedding ceremonies are held here and I can see why. Though it wasn't a wedding that brought me here but the tale of Tyneetryk, the former leader of Phaedrea’s Tears.
It was here at Virginia Falls a ceremony was held in honor of her life on Atys. I never met the woman but I wish I had. Mac’Od Bittty calls her Child of the Wind, he said Tyneetryk will always be in the winds of Atys, he even wrote a song dedicated to her of the same title - Child of the Wind. They tell me she inspired the Tryker in everyone to come out, that she was a cheerful homin who valued freedom, equality, and sharing, a renown treker and crafter as well. Listening to the way my guilders talk about her makes me nostalgic about my own family. Because I can see how much she impacted their lives, how much they love and miss her.
So I sit here in the designated place link to my new family reflectively, giving thanks for what I’ve gained and remembering what I've lost:
~Perla’s Exodus 2562 (Part 1)~
When the kitins invaded the cities for the second time in homin history I was seven years old. Seventeen-years later I still have nightmares about it…
I am running in the dream, always running, across the desert that served as training grounds for the Fyros. I do not see myself as any older than seven years old. Seven going on eighteen was what my mother often said. I was not entirely sure what she meant by that, but over time I've realized she did so with a smile on her face that it’s clearly not intended to be insulting.
In the dream I am running alongside other members of the Rangers of Atys. They are not children such as I but instead all tall and powerful and confident in their abilities - they are all adults. And they are all wearing ranger uniforms and carrying formidable weapons that each of them depends on to do the job that they have long been trained to perform.
I am bypassing every single one of them - my speed is quite simply unparalleled. I am moving so quickly, so fluidly, that it is impossible for any of them to keep up with me. “RUN, PERLA, RUN!” Shouts my mother. And I make it a point to heed to my mother’s command.
Somewhere in the distance I hear roars. It takes me a few moments to realize what the roar is: a Kitin raid. Hominity’s greatest enemy, the Kitins, have attacked, they attacked the city without warning. I no longer hear my mother and the realization paralyzed me. It makes me nervous. I sense immediate danger. And then I wake up!
So vivid are the dreams that I wake up shaken and saddened. I know that my mind is starting to remember the events of those years. All I know for sure is that the Rangers were there.
I had another dream…
My bed is nothing more than a hammock suspended across the room, which is filled with clothes and toys. As I attempt to get out, my foot snags on the ropes. Instead of clambering out of the bed, I fall forward and land hard on the floor, twisting the hammock around on myself.
“Oh, for Jena’s sake,” mutters my father as he starts to move toward me so that he can disengage me.
That is when a loud , terrifying screech cuts through the air. I freeze. The shriek is a menacing noise that thoroughly immobilized me.
Papa’s head snaps in the direction of the screeching.
“Is that…?” I managed to say in a strangled whisper.
He nods. Something has changed in the way he looks, in the way he holds himself. He’s all business, 100 percent ready to take on what was coming.
“They surprised us,” he tells me. “They keep invading the city at random times…” Quickly he swings a dagger right across me and severs the bindings instantly. I start pulling the remains of myself. As I do so he asked me briskly, “Are you hurt?”
“No,” I said. Then there is another high-pitched howl of animal fury, and I jump to my feet scared.
At that moment my mother materializes in the elevator. Papa whirls and looks behind him, and I cannot see the expression on his face. For a moment they just stared at one another, just stared. I can tell they were relieved to see each other. But the urgency of the unfolding event left little time for romanticism.
Papa pulls me up and carries me to my mother, as her arms wrapped around me, he leans in and kisses her first, then kisses me on the forehead. I realized he was wearing heavy armor. He fastened the helmet over his head and grabs the shiny axe left against the wall by the elevator. He takes one last look back before stepping inside the rainbow and disappearing - that was the last time I saw my father...
I hear running feet and I hear voices directing people to a survival shelter. But I’m no longer in my family’s apartment, I am standing by the Kami altar in Pyr. Rangers are running through the streets, making sure that everyone is heading down to the Oasis - the Kami Oasis - the only place in the New Lands where Kitins can’t go without dying.
Today it seems I lost all sense of time, it must be the magical beauty of Virginia Falls which has bewitched my senses. Here, seating on the edge of the bark, listening to the noise of the waterfall a homin can find peace. I've been told wedding ceremonies are held here and I can see why. Though it wasn't a wedding that brought me here but the tale of Tyneetryk, the former leader of Phaedrea’s Tears.
It was here at Virginia Falls a ceremony was held in honor of her life on Atys. I never met the woman but I wish I had. Mac’Od Bittty calls her Child of the Wind, he said Tyneetryk will always be in the winds of Atys, he even wrote a song dedicated to her of the same title - Child of the Wind. They tell me she inspired the Tryker in everyone to come out, that she was a cheerful homin who valued freedom, equality, and sharing, a renown treker and crafter as well. Listening to the way my guilders talk about her makes me nostalgic about my own family. Because I can see how much she impacted their lives, how much they love and miss her.
So I sit here in the designated place link to my new family reflectively, giving thanks for what I’ve gained and remembering what I've lost:
~Perla’s Exodus 2562 (Part 1)~
When the kitins invaded the cities for the second time in homin history I was seven years old. Seventeen-years later I still have nightmares about it…
I am running in the dream, always running, across the desert that served as training grounds for the Fyros. I do not see myself as any older than seven years old. Seven going on eighteen was what my mother often said. I was not entirely sure what she meant by that, but over time I've realized she did so with a smile on her face that it’s clearly not intended to be insulting.
In the dream I am running alongside other members of the Rangers of Atys. They are not children such as I but instead all tall and powerful and confident in their abilities - they are all adults. And they are all wearing ranger uniforms and carrying formidable weapons that each of them depends on to do the job that they have long been trained to perform.
I am bypassing every single one of them - my speed is quite simply unparalleled. I am moving so quickly, so fluidly, that it is impossible for any of them to keep up with me. “RUN, PERLA, RUN!” Shouts my mother. And I make it a point to heed to my mother’s command.
Somewhere in the distance I hear roars. It takes me a few moments to realize what the roar is: a Kitin raid. Hominity’s greatest enemy, the Kitins, have attacked, they attacked the city without warning. I no longer hear my mother and the realization paralyzed me. It makes me nervous. I sense immediate danger. And then I wake up!
So vivid are the dreams that I wake up shaken and saddened. I know that my mind is starting to remember the events of those years. All I know for sure is that the Rangers were there.
I had another dream…
My bed is nothing more than a hammock suspended across the room, which is filled with clothes and toys. As I attempt to get out, my foot snags on the ropes. Instead of clambering out of the bed, I fall forward and land hard on the floor, twisting the hammock around on myself.
“Oh, for Jena’s sake,” mutters my father as he starts to move toward me so that he can disengage me.
That is when a loud , terrifying screech cuts through the air. I freeze. The shriek is a menacing noise that thoroughly immobilized me.
Papa’s head snaps in the direction of the screeching.
“Is that…?” I managed to say in a strangled whisper.
He nods. Something has changed in the way he looks, in the way he holds himself. He’s all business, 100 percent ready to take on what was coming.
“They surprised us,” he tells me. “They keep invading the city at random times…” Quickly he swings a dagger right across me and severs the bindings instantly. I start pulling the remains of myself. As I do so he asked me briskly, “Are you hurt?”
“No,” I said. Then there is another high-pitched howl of animal fury, and I jump to my feet scared.
At that moment my mother materializes in the elevator. Papa whirls and looks behind him, and I cannot see the expression on his face. For a moment they just stared at one another, just stared. I can tell they were relieved to see each other. But the urgency of the unfolding event left little time for romanticism.
Papa pulls me up and carries me to my mother, as her arms wrapped around me, he leans in and kisses her first, then kisses me on the forehead. I realized he was wearing heavy armor. He fastened the helmet over his head and grabs the shiny axe left against the wall by the elevator. He takes one last look back before stepping inside the rainbow and disappearing - that was the last time I saw my father...
I hear running feet and I hear voices directing people to a survival shelter. But I’m no longer in my family’s apartment, I am standing by the Kami altar in Pyr. Rangers are running through the streets, making sure that everyone is heading down to the Oasis - the Kami Oasis - the only place in the New Lands where Kitins can’t go without dying.