Original Adrift

[Sytec]

[FONT=&quot]Adrift[/FONT]​

[FONT=&quot]Prologue: [FONT=&quot]Perfect World

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A story of a young boy with a gift, lost in a dark crazed world. Traveling across a new land, he discovers many friends and learns something that would change his life forever. Ultimately he is given a mission, a mission that regards the fate of good people that inhabit the land. On his journey he will encounter many trials of strength and many hard choices that he must face alone. With the aid of his compadres, and the hope of the people, he becomes more powerful. They have longed for a hero, a brave knight, to purge and cleanse the evil that plagues this troubled world.

The land is named Arina, split into four continents that are seperated by viscous seas. For years dark creatures have inhabited each of them, and the people have been forced to train soldiers to defend their humanity. The sun shines brightly across the world, and beautiful blues skies lay all over. Arina is a known by it's people as the 'Dream World', many unexplainable events have occured over the years. Citizens would just wake up, and suddenly be in a new world with very little memory of the previous one. Some say one day a knight will appear and release them from this world, sending them back.

Far across the land wars are waging. Peace between the human race arose as they joined as one to fight back. City upon city would vanish into the mist and survivors would run and find the nearest place to hold refuge, to which they were welcomed with open arms. Some of the human race succumbed to the dark side, gaining enormous power and aiding the creatures as they caused death and destruction. It is unknown as to why the creatures insist to attack and no-one knows how it all began.

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Many great battles have occured, many lives have been lost. The world is losing hope, only this boy can save them. This is his adventure, his destiny.

[FONT=&quot]Chapter One: [FONT=&quot]Dreams

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"Life holds many questions, many without answers and many that make little sense. In my life I searched for these answers. I've adventured far across this world, finding only series of dissapointments only to be broken by dark spells of depression. I never found the answer I was looking for, although I did find something that changed my life forever. Something that is irreplaceable; something so extroadinary, if I didn't have it, I wouldn't be here. I've dreamt fantasies of an idealistic world, an irresistable world, a world that I would like to be a part of. I've experienced what the real world is like, I've seen what it can become, it is nothing like my dreams..."

"Wake up!!" a girl screamed as she ran into the bedroom. "Ryan, wake up!". The boys eyes opened, he sat up as the silk sheet slid down his body. The boy is light skinned and his hair held a dark brown color; both sides of his hair were cut short and the top of his hair was cut neatly to blend in. He had a very cute face; no scars and he looked pure. As he jumped out of bed and his eyes began to open wider, the rest of his appearance became clear. His large puppy dog eyes held a distingt hazel glow and his nose was small and delicate. He placed his hand on the left side of his face and he sat leaning on it with his elbow on his thys. It was clear he was tired.

"Hey," he mumbled struggling to keep his eyes open, "What's up?". He watched as the girl ran over to the window and opened the curtains, then ran back and stood infront of him with a huge smirk on her face. She ranged in about five foot nine and has straight blonde hair that falls neatly onto her shoulders. She has a thin figure; however, looks very healthy. Her eyes sparkled blue and her skin shined golden. Her nose is feminine and petite. As she smiled you could see that her teeth were well kept. She wore a white frilly t-shirt and a short black skirt. On her feet, white plimsol trainers and short white socks.

"It's ya' big day!" she exclaimed as she jumped up and down in excitement, "Hurry up and get dressed we're goin' grandmas!". She ran out of the room, then ran back and popped her head around the door, "I forgot to ask, were you dreaming again?" she seemed curious and interested, "Oh! Never mind, I know you wouldn't tell me anyway," she moaned before leaving.

Ryan got to his feet and stood infront of the mirror in his white boxer shorts. He rubbed his eyes and picked up a pair of blue loose fit jeans from the massive selection laid across the bedroom floor. He struggled to do up the belt that was attached to them. After thirty seconds of tussling, he done up the belt. He looked into the mirror once again. He was very skinny, yet toned; one would say he had a high metabolism. He took a quick glance around the room as he stretched and yawned. The room was that of a typical teenagers, messy. Tucked into the corner of the room was his bed and above it some shelves with a bunch of CDs stacked in a scruffy manner. To the right of the bed was a coffee table with an alarm clock placed on top, next to that was the mirror he was staring into. The walls were painted white and the light from the window bounced off them. He proceeded to leave the room.

Walking down the hall he opened a door that lead to a bathroom, to which he entered.

Meanwhile, his mother and sister were sat around a dining table downstairs. His sister seemed extatic about the coming trip to their grandmothers. "I can't wait! I wanna' go now!" she expressed as she tapped her hands on the table.

"I noticed, you've been like this for days!" revealed her mother, "I've packed lunch into your bags along with some spare clothes if you decide to stay the night," she carried on. She stood up from the table and grabbed two bags from the shelves and handed one to her daughter, "Here ya' go," she said.

"Thanks mom! I love you sooo much!" she expressed as she put the bag over her shoulders.

"I love you too Tanya," her mother replied in a meaningful tone. From upstairs you could her a door open, "Here comes your brother now," she claimed. They both looked towards the steps as he walked down. As he got to the bottom he looked at them with wide eyes. Wearing a white polo shirt, the jeans he picked up earlier and some white trainers.

"Hey," he said smiling.

"Happy birthday!" shouted his mother and Tanya in sync.

"Don't sweat it, just give me the presents!" replied Ryan cheekily. He ran over and hugged his mother quickly. She laughed and kissed him on the cheek.

"You are a funny one Ryan," she chuckled, "You two should start walking now before it gets late". She handed him the other bag, walked over to the front door and opened it.

"Let's go sis'," said Ryan as he walked over and stood by his mom. His sister quickly followed and they both gave their mom a hug and a kiss before leaving. "Seeya!" they both shouted.

Outside the skies were blue and the sun was blaizing. The trip to their grandmothers house would usually take around one hour, it ranged two miles in total and the roads were mostly up hill. Ryan knew of a shortcut through a nearby forest, so instead they began walking to it. He ran up to the forest entrance and looked up and around curiously. "You ready?" he asked Tanya. She didn't seem as up for it as Ryan was, being a girl she took on traits that most young girls do, "It might look scary but It's not trust me," he tried to confort her.

"I'm not scared..." she revealed, "I just hate insects!". She ran off ahead to proove a point.

"Huh? Wait!" he cried as he ran after her. A few seconds later he caught up and the two began to walk at a steady pace. They walked for a good fifteen minutes before reaching the half way point of their journey. Looking around the forest was beautiful. The trees held green leaves, and wild flowers lay all around. The sound of insects gave the forest a natural aura and beams of light ripped through the tree tops, blessing the ground around them and creating a sepia like tone.

"It's actually quite beautiful," admitted Tanya and she looked around in amazement.

"I told ya' it wasn't bad," Ryan added. The two kept walking, each picking up weird looking leaves and rocks to remember the journey from. "Do you think grandma got me somethin'?" he asked.

"I guess so, she always does," she replied.

Ryan smiled and said, "I love you sis'!". He hugged her and span around lifting her off the ground.

[FONT=&quot]"Stop, haha, please!" she screamed. He put her down. They carried on walking.

The house was in sight. Ryan opened the gate and proceeded to walk up the stoned paved path, "Come on!" he shouted. His sister quickly followed. Ryan picked up a red flower from a patch on the ground, "I do this every time," he laughed. They both arrived at the entrance. Ryan took a deep breath, and then knocked on the door.

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[Sytec]

Chapter Two: Change

Ryan was surprised that his grandma hadn’t answered yet. He continued to knock, “Hello? Grandma?!” he shouted hoping to hear a reply, “I don’t think she’s aw-,” he turned around to see Tanya was gone. He looked in every direction but couldn’t see any trace of her.

Suddenly the door to the house slammed open. “Grandma!?” he shouted as he turned around. No one was to be seen. He peered through the open door, the house was empty. Ryan stepped in and looked around. Huge cobwebs lay in every corner. As he stepped on the floorboards they creaked and the sound echoed throughout the house, “Grandma..?” he whispered worryingly. In the middle of the room was a table, on it lay mouldy food that seemed to have been there for months, untouched. He could see the kitchen was linked to the room he was in with no wall to separate and an entrance to a closet close to where he was standing.

[Where are they?]. Suddenly the door shut behind him. He panicked and tried to open it, but it was shut stiff. He ran over to a closed window above a sink in the kitchen, it wouldn’t budge. Ryan was terrified as he heard loud scratching and hissing noises coming from outside the house and they seemed to be getting closer.

All of a sudden large banging sounds arose, as if someone or something was hitting the door. The house began to shake. Plates and cups fell out of the cupboards smashing on the dusty floorboards. “Help!” he cried in desperation as he ran to the centre of the room. Using his initiative he opened the closet and hid inside. He closed his eyes and prayed it would stop, constantly saying to himself, “Please be a dream.”

Slowly, out of nowhere, silence fell. The only sounds were the heavy breathing, fast heartbeat and sweat dropping on the floor. The forest sounds began to regenerate; the insects cricketing sound comforted Ryan. All was not over as he heard the door pry open and multiple footsteps as if people were entering the house.

A conversation began to erupt, “Where could he have gone?” an elderly women asked.

“I don’t know!” a girl said in tears, “He was with me but when I turned around he had gone!” she explained. Ryan recognised the girl’s voice, it was Tanya. He burst out of the closet and rolled out into the room, followed by brooms and buckets that scattered on the floor.

“Ryan!!!” they both shouted. The whole house had changed. He looked around a noticed there were no more cobwebs, the floorboards looked brand new and the house was fully furnished. He got to his feet.

“How’d you get in there?” Tanya sobbed as she wiped the tears from her eyes.

“I... I don’t know” he stuttered.

All three sat down around the table and Ryan explained what happened. Tanya wasn’t having any of it, “Ryan...”she said in an annoyed tone, “That’s impossible, you must have climbed through the window or something.” Ryan looked at her in disgust.

“I’m not lying! I’m telling you the truth!” he yelled as he slammed his hands on the table.

“Now now, don’t argue I’m sure there’s a reason to this,” their grandma said wisely, “I’m going to cook lunch and you two should forget this ever happened.” She stood up and walked over to the kitchen. Ryan and Tanya looked away from each other and remained silent.

Hours passed with nothing but the sound of boiling vegetables and sizzling meat. Their grandma began serving up food on plates that Ryan was sure to of seen smash earlier, “You probably won’t believe me but I seen them smash earlier,” he mentioned, “I’m not lying either.”

“Shut up Ryan, yes you are! You just tried freaking us out,” moaned Tanya. Ryan didn’t reply he just sat with his hands covering his face. Their grandma seemed to of re-acted; she was smiling and lost in thought.

“Could he be...?” his grandma whispered.

“Huh?” questioned Ryan as he withdrew his hands from his face.

“Oh! Nothing, I was just thinking aloud,” she replied.

“Lunch is ready!” asserted their grandma. Marline was her name; she is almost seventy years old but looks much younger. Wrinkles have taken place on her face and body that show as signs of age. Her eyes are glazed over with a white coating that has drained the glow from her pretty blue eyes. Her hair is long and grey; however she keeps it tied up. For an elderly women she sure knows how to cook, often coming over to her daughters houses to cook dinner for the household. On top of this, she is the only person Ryan has ever talked to in detail about his dreams and she is the only one who understood his plight.

She placed a plate of food on the table in front of each of them, and then sat down foodless. She opened her mouth and said, “Enjoy.”

After scoffing down their food and paying gratitude to their grandma’s efforts, both Tanya and Ryan decided it was too late to walk home and that they would stay the night. “I’m tired, I’m gonna’ go to sleep,” said Tanya adding a large yawn. She walked over to the couch and lay down.

A few minutes past and Ryan and Marline were sat around the table having a conversation while Tanya snored away. “So how have the dreams been lately?” Marline asked him.

“They’ve got worse,” he answered, “Each time someone else’s perspective and each time I wake up before they die.” He turned his head down, “There’s nothing I can do... I’m not in control,” he continued, “I’ve tried my hardest to connect with them as you told me to but I can’t,” he explained as he rubbed his hands on his face.

Marline stood up, “It’s time, I have to show you something,” she said, “Follow me.” She walked out the house. Ryan promptly arose and followed her.

They both walked to the back of the house, “I’ve been keeping this from you for years, but I think you’re ready now,” Marline confessed.

Ryan was confused, “What do you mean?” he asked.

Marline looked up into the night sky, “This world... Is linked to another,” she revealed.

“Huh?” he muttered.

She turned and looked at him as he glanced at her in confusion, “Both worlds are destined to end, only you can stop it from happening,” she stated as she turned back and looked into the sky, “You have incredible power that you have not yet learned how to control. You must harness this power. The dreams you speak of are signs. It may seem confusing but we must act now.”

“I... Don’t understand...” he fussed. Ryan sat down on the ground and leant onto the house, “What power and why me?” he asked.

“These dreams are people who are praying, praying that someone will save them. You can see their dangers and you must act. To them, you are salvation. You wondered how you couldn’t control them or how it was always someone else’s perspective, then there is your answer. You are to stop this from happening,” she explained further.

“But... How do I save them?” Ryan queried.

Marline turned around once again and peered into Ryan’s eyes, “Are you ready to know?” she questioned.

“I’m always ready,” he answered her.

“Close your eyes and think about the world in your dreams,” she requested. Ryan closed his eyes and thought hard about the world he had seen in his dreams. His head shaking as he searched through his mind for a clear vision.

“It’s not working... I can’t do it,” he said. Ryan paused for a moment, “Grandma?”​

 

[Sytec]

[FONT=&quot]Chapter Three:[/FONT][FONT=&quot] Brand New

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He opened his eyes. His grandma had stopped still, as well as everything that surrounded him. There was no summer breeze, no forest sounds, just an incredible silence and stillness. “What is this?!” he voiced as he got to his feet.

Ryan placed his hand on Marline’s shoulder, touching and tapping her hoping for a sign of life. There was nothing, no movement; she stood lifeless fixed in one place. “Grandma?” he spoke softly into her ear, to which there was no reply.

From under his finger tips he noticed her body begin to phase out. Dissolving into the air and leaving behind nothing but a white haze. “No!” he shouted as he made an attempt to grab her. As he did, she vanished. He turned around quickly and seen that the house was disappearing in the same manner. “Tanya!” he yelled at the top of his lungs.

Ryan soon realized that the whole forest was dissolving in front of his eyes, each tree vanishing one by one. Very quickly the whole area was just a white mist. Ryan stood still for a moment in shock. A few seconds past and he was just stood confused in a cloud of white fog.

A tinkle sound commenced in the distance. Each second it got closer to where Ryan was standing. “Hello is anyone there?” he asked the blank canvas in front of him. Suddenly two sparks appeared through the mist; one was gold and the other silver. Both were travelling at immense speeds directly towards Ryan. As they clashed into him, they began to spin around each of his hands and somehow making him rise off of the ground.

Floating in mid air, Ryan was fascinated by these sparkles. They were completing laps around each of his hands, progressing upwards towards his arms and leaving a trail of gold and silver light behind them. The floating speed was increasing and he found himself lifting off into the sky at a high speed. He looked up fast to see no obvious destination.

To his amazement as he looked back at his hands, he seen that he had been wearing white gloves with finger holes. He examined further and each held gold tribal markings all over. The sparkles were changing him, he watched as they progressed up his arm.

The light from the sparks caused the sleeves on his white polo shirt to extend to his wrists; adding some kind of feather weight plated armour onto his elbows and the gap between the gloves and his arms. Again these gold tribal markings spawned all over. [Wow!]

The sparks now jumped around his body, starting from his shoulders and moving onto his neck. A plate armoured neck piece was conjured slowly around his neck. It forged upwards and stopped at his jaw, covering the left side of his mouth and continuing around to the back of his neck to which it steeped down and conjoined with the back of his shirt.

White plating appeared on both shoulders and as the sparks spiralled downwards they added plating to almost all joint areas. Even producing a chest piece that extruded Ryan’s chest. “What’s happening to me?” he uttered as he glanced around his body.

The floating came to an abrupt halt. Immediately Ryan looked forward with wide eyes. In front of him stood an exact image of his current self; it seemed to be a reflection. He began to examine what he was wearing. The blue jeans he had on were now white and again the gold tribal decor was fashioning them. His trainers held the exact same markings all over. Ryan was truly astounded.

Around the left side of his face, he noticed a marking unlike the ones on his clothes. It was a scar and it lay underneath his left eye.

The white of his clothes began to shade darker, as if colour was dripping in. Soon enough his whole outfit changed to a dark black colour which caused all of the tribal markings to become clearer. The only white left were on his gloves and shoes.

“Rai, get the fuck up!” called a teenage boy from somewhere in the mist. Ryan looked around but seen no one. “I said get up! It’s not the time for naps,” the same voice shouted once more. The sparkles left Ryan and flew over to his reflection. They began to spin around each other at tremendous speeds, causing the mist to spin with them.

The mist gradually disappeared and a land was beginning to emerge. A few moments later Ryan was sat down in the middle of what looked like a battlefield. The sky was blue and the light shined brightly making everything clear as day. Explosions and bloodshed could be seen all around him; strange creatures were attacking humans and Ryan was directly in the middle of it. Although a war seemed to be erupting, the land itself was nothing short of amazing. The grass was lush and green, stained only by the blood of the wounded. A soft breeze pushed his hair backwards as he got to his feet.

Out of nowhere someone grabbed Ryan’s hand. “We have to go now!” a voice shouted in distress. Ryan turned and looked only to see another teenage boy grabbing his hand. He stood wearing similar colours and the same markings but with leather armour instead of the plating Ryan was wearing.

On his right shoulder lay some type of extruded leather coating that pushed up like a spike. His left shoulder was un-armoured and the jacket he was wearing seemed to be closed together by black leather belts which had no particular pattern. His hair was dark black and long, his fringe swept over his right eye and the back was spiked up. Both eyes were dark blue and glowed as the explosions on the battlefield reflected off them. On his nose lay three deep cuts and he was bleeding. The boy grinned with a cheeky smile and said, “It’s good to have you back man.”

“Where are we?” questioned Ryan while looking across the landscape.

“In hell,” the boy replied in a sad tone, “We must leave now, follow me.” He pulled Ryan and forced him to run towards a large city in the distance. From afar it looked huge. Tips of buildings could be seen above the large wall surrounding it, and a huge barrier of light circled the city. “You took a pretty big hit back there, you okay?” the boy asked meaningfully.

“I... Uh... Yeah I’m fine,” he replied. The two were now running past ongoing battles, jumping over wounded soldiers and creatures, dodging stray bullets that swished past. Ryan looked back and seen a group of soldiers get ambushed by three gigantic creatures, “We have to save them!” he cried as he pulled away from the boys grasp.

“We’re not strong enough!” yelled the boy as he grabbed his hand once again.

“No!” snapped Ryan while struggling to release himself from the boys hold. The creatures had bested the soldier’s efforts. Ryan watched as the monstrous fiends feasted on the bodies and eventually making them haze into the mist. “No...” he whispered in anguish.

“We must run now!” cried the boy again forcing him to run towards the city. Ryan was almost tripping, the plated armour did not allow as much freedom as the leather the boy was wearing. All of a sudden the boy stopped running and Ryan tripped and rolled across the ground. He was now sat looking back at the boy who looked terrified.

“Move...” the boy commanded. From inside his jacket he drew two identical daggers, both decorated with the same gold tribal on his clothing. “Rai... Get up,” he said. The boy switched to an offensive stance as if he were ready to strike. Ryan looked over his shoulder. He had seen the problem.

Standing there on all fours was creature like no other. Its size was comparable to that of a lion and it held a coat of hair around its neck which showed another similarity. Ryan stared into its eyes, seeing nothing but black. Its skin was rough and leathery and its body was pure muscle. As Ryan crawled back he noticed red markings in a different style tribal than the gold ones on his clothes. Red circles over lapping each other and glowing. From its skin dripped black liquid and killed the grass as it splashed on the ground.

The beast opened its mouth revealing its vicious, blood-stained teeth. It pushed back on its hind legs as if it were ready to pound, “Incoming!!!” the boy warned. The creature pounced towards Ryan but the boy in leather was too far away to do anything. The fiend’s power was immeasurable; he managed to cover a twenty metre jump at an immense speed. Ryan threw his hands up and closed his eyes in desperation as the creature drew closer.

A large crunch sound erupted and Ryan instantly opened his eyes. In front of him was the creature, floating in mid air; held up by some sort of force. The boy in leather began to charge what looked like fire between his hands. The flames grew larger and he formed them into balls by swishing his hands in a circular motion. “Argh!” the boy screamed as he launched the ball of fire at the fiend, forcing it to hit the ground and lay on its back. “Run! Now!” the boy exclaimed.

Ryan jumped to his feet and began to run beside the boy. “Nice teamwork back there bro,” said the boy in a proud tone.

“That was me?” asked Ryan as he shook his head in confusion.

“Huh? Let’s just hurry,” answered the boy.

Out of nowhere they heard a vigorous roar. The beast had got to its feet and was now chasing close behind. “Don’t look back! Just run!” the boy yelled. The sounds of the battlefield clouded any chance of conversation. Even the shouting from the boy was hard to hear.

They closed in on the city gates; as they got in range, the gates slowly opened. Emerging from the them were two men in heavy armour equipped with broadswords, “The guards, we’ll be okay,” said the boy in relief.

They ran past the guards and through the gates. Stopping and watching as both guards charged towards the fiend. As they ranged within striking distance, both slid their swords across the ground and slashed with unstoppable power, slaying the creature and evaporating it into black mist. The boys carried on walking and entered the city.

Ryan’s Thoughts

Where am I? How does this kid know my name? I remember seeing this place in my dreams, but not as clear as this. Is this really happening? I’ve got to find out more. Today was too much. Did I really help attack that creature? I don’t know...
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[Sytec]

Chapter 4 - Exploration

Coming 14th October​

 

[Sytec]

I'll be re-writing part one during this week. It will be up by Friday. I've thought about the story itself and I'd like to change a few things. Sorry if anyone was actually interested in this.

Peace.