Misplaced fate (Solo Quest)

[Passionate_Anomaly]

I’m coming Micheal; I’m coming to meet you.

Morning sunlight gently poured in through an open window on the far side of the room, caressing the old oak flooring with a lover’s touch, easing ever so slowly up its cracks and swells as the minutes passed by. No breeze furled the curtains today, yet a crisp coolness pervaded the air, as sure a sign as any that it was autumn. Feather-like clouds chugged away in the distance, spotting the picturesque blue sky in effervescent style.

The room itself was old, very old; fifty years to be exact, and it would stand for seventy-three years longer before the property the room stood upon (with its house included of course) was bought by a young, rich couple and a manor was built in its stead. For now, however, it stood, or rather, it remained. It had witnessed the depths of the abyss, in the darkest parts of the human heart. But that was another day. A day far away. Those memories wouldn’t make themselves at home here for years. Today was a happy day.

Sitting in the very center of the room was a large, burgundy chair; the kind grandfather’s and grandmother’s use when telling a story, you know the one. It was faced towards the window, placed specifically to get the best view of the sky. It was a beautiful thing, the chair. Like the room, it was old, but it also had a tinge of refinement, like it had belonged to a duke or duchess or some other silly thing. Something even more beautiful, however, nestled itself in this chair’s hollow.

“Mom?” a voiced creaked out, barely more than a whisper. There was silence for a moment. An earth shattering, monumental silence, bottled up in a small room, overlooking a small neighborhood, sitting quietly in a small town.

“Yes, my darling?” came the reply. The universe sighed.

I’m coming Micheal; I’m coming to mee-.

The world was light. An explosion greater than anything ever witnessed in the length of all humanity tore through reality with vicious ferocity. It was enough to cause all but the most powerful of gods to tremble.

Ian Shaffer was there, at that very spot, on that very day. The day that humans became the destroyers of worlds.

[Passionate_Anomaly]

Part one

“Mister Shaffer?”

A damp wind howled through the air, pulling along chilled gusts and shocking Ian awake.

“Mister Shafferrrrrrrrr.”

Without so much as a twitch, Ian laid where he was, not even opening an eye. He was lost in his head, his thoughts running around like children on a playground. Try as he might, he couldn’t seem to grab a hold of any of them.

What… What is this? He finally managed to assemble in his mind. It was a feeble thought, but a thought nonetheless.

“Well it’s your afterlife Mr. Shaffer! Or rather, your real life I should say.”

Too subdued to notice that he had never actually spoken a word, Ian slowly let his eyes slide open to the world. What he saw was the sky, painted with endless amounts of stars flowing in all directions. For some reason this calmed him immensely, allowing him some semblance of control over his brain.

I’m alive.

“Well, sort of. Remember, I said AFTER-life? You know, as in something that has happened after you have been alive? Are you even paying attention to me?”

Ian blinked furiously, suddenly aware that the strange voice he had been hearing wasn’t a figment of his imagination. With a hearty groan he slowly pushed himself onto his elbows. His body was beyond sore, every muscle feeling as though it had been run through a meat grinder. Grunting through the pain he began to take a better look at his surroundings.

He was a mere two inches away from the edge of… well, something. With a cautious lean he peaked over the side to see that he was on a cliff overlooking a large, sprawling forest that continued on well past his field of vision. Not being a very big fan of heights he quickly inched away, reeling slightly in pain from the hurried movement.

Glancing in the opposite direction showed him nothing but more trees, looming over him like a crowd of school bullies lined up together for miles.
His thoughts were becoming clearer now, the grogginess from before dissolving away, leaving a slight panic in its wake. Hadn’t he just heard a voice?

“Why yes, you did. Not just any voice either, but MY voice.” It said with a prideful chuckle.

It seemed to come from every direction at once, or rather, from NO direction. Ian swung his head around, looking all around him for the man speaking to him.

“Oh, I’m sorry friend, but I’m not actually there with you. Erm, how do I put this? It’s sort of like how on Earth they use telephones right? Well, this is the same thing but without the telephone!”

Ian quickly decided that he was dreaming and that he would wake up momentarily. Did the voice just say like how on Earth?

“Why yes Mr. Shaffer, I did! You see, I’m not from Earth and, technically, neither are you!”

[Passionate_Anomaly]

Ian's eye began to twitch. Refusing to to even acknowledge the voice, he began to stretch out his limbs more thoroughly, twisting his arms behind him with a few audible pops.

"You can't ignore this Ian", it said, suddenly solemn "I know you're having a hard time remembering anything but you must try..."

Ian loosened his limbs with a heavy sigh. Something was wrong here. All he could remember was his name. He settled his gaze off the side of the ledge and shivered, though not from the cold.

Somehow, within the depths of his psyche, something was cracked. Every word this... Well, thing, spoke, it added pressure and he felt as if he were about to break.

"Please.", he whispered, barely audible in the midst of a passing breeze. He lifted his hands to his eyes with shuddering exasperation.

"Please stop..."

"I can't.." said the voice like beacon of empathetic sorrow. "I know what you're doing. I know you're forcing yourself to forget. The pain must have been unimaginable. You didn't belong on that world..."

Ian slid his hands from his eyes slowly, staring at his palms. Without warning a flash of brilliant light ravaged his vision. Alone, atop a crest overlooking a small tower he stood, hints of morning light dancing across the horizon, painting the area with a magnificent glow. The air around him seemed to breath. Slow, steady hums of tremendous respiration. Then it came.

No.

Ian shuddered slightly and looked over at the trees, swaying steadily in the pale starlight.

"I remember..."he said, forcing a strangled chuckle. "The project, the explosion, everything..."

The pain in his body had begun to subside and he began to stretch a little bit more. With a bit of effort he brought himself to his knees, noticing with only passing curiousity the peculiar amount of time it was taking for the packs of dirt to come sliding off his hands. With a final, determined breath he heaved himself up to his feet, catching himself as he nearly toppled right back to the ground.

He almost wasn't prepared to ask but it was the only question on his mind.

"Am I... Am I really dead?" he stuttered, after he finished steadying himself.

"I'm afraid so Mr. Shaffer, your body on Earth was completely obliterated. Your manner of death was actually fortunate, err, well sort of. "

"Explain" Ian demanded assertively, finally gaining a measure of confidence now that he was on his feet.

"You see," the voice continued, in a matter of fact tone that suggested this was somehow normal," your world, Earth, is one of exactly five thousand, six hundred and four worlds habitable by sentient, bipedal carbon-based life-forms. Each and every planet within this subset has significant stipulations for all beings placed unto its birth-sphere. It just so happens... Well... This is actually kind of embarrassing... Well, due to a clerical error, and I do mean the paperwork kind, you were born on the wrong one."

Ian felt as if that information was supposed to be meaningful to him but all it did was provide him with a hollow pit at the very center of his stomach.

[Passionate_Anomaly]

"Who are you?" he asked gently.

A few seconds of silence passed as if the being wasn't quite sure how to answer.

"Well, my true name can't be pronounced by the human tongue, let alone comprehended. You may call me Alexander however. It is the name I use whilst dabbling in the dealings of Earth."

Ian could hear the voice sigh slightly, foreshadowing the glut of information it didn't seem too keen on sharing.

"I haven't much time left, so listen carefully to what I say next."

Apprehension stirred inside of him. A root of fear had taken hold of this Alexander's voice.

"Those of my race maintain the homeostasis of the worlds in which life inhabits within this universe. Souls are usually guided to their proper destinations through channels we have control over. Earth is under the scope of my responsibility. Due to a mistake, my mistake to be specific, you ended up there instead of here, where you belong."

Ian, having no face to focus on in the conversation, stared thoughtfully into the distance. None of this made any sense to him.

"I realize this is hard, but I'm afraid the amount of information I can give you is limited. Suffice to say that this place will begin to feel more like a home than Earth ever did. You belong here Mr. Shaffer. It is your birthright."

Other worlds, life after death, these were fodder for the fantasy novels he had kept in chest beneath his bed. Yet, here he was, most definitely no longer in the deserts of New Mexico, speaking to a man who wasn't there. A wave of nausea rolled up from his pelvis to his stomach like an air bubble yearning for the surface of water.

Micheal

"I'm sorry Mr. Shaffer, but I can explain no further, my time is up. Others of my race severely disapprove of my bringing you here... It has greatly disturbed the fabric of reality. I- I just had to right my wrong."

"Wait!" Ian cried, a thousand questions suddenly scalding the interior of his skull.

"I will return, but for now I can only leave you with this." The voice seemed to echo hauntingly, pulling farther and farther out of the crevices of his mind.

"Micheal is here." It came as a drop of sound but had the weight of an elephant.

Ian broke. Suddenly he felt as if he had been smashed in the stomach with a sledgehammer.

"Wait! Wait!" he exclaimed through furiously labored breathes, toppling to his knees in the process.

"Wha-What,"he tried to scream.

"What do you mean?.."the words slid out finally, breathlessly, as a tear streaked down his face. Silence, deafening and cruel, came as the only reply.

A small flock of seagulls noiselessly floated across the sky as errant rays of morning sunshine began piercing the frigid blackness of night, as if to mock his sorrow.

He was lost. Minutes passed as hours, his brain vainly attempting to absorb everything he had just heard. After what felt like a lifetime he brought himself slowly back to reality, shifting carefully in the dirt and bring himself to his feet again.

Micheal is here.

He clung to that thought as if it were water and he a man dying of thirst. All he had to do was find Micheal. He pushed everything else from his mind with vicious prejudice and let his focus narrow. His heart began to slow now that he had a tangible goal, something to give him some measure of confidence.

He took one step towards the forest opposite the ledge, then another, and then another, repeating his brother's name in his head with every inch. Soon the slow walk became a paced stride. The sun was now perched well above the horizon and a light warmth ran along his backside as he moved along.

The treeline now loomed before him ominously, the cavernous spaces between individual trunks seeming to shelter the darkness of the hells.

Ian stood there for a moment, his heart plagued by a sudden pang of fear and doubt.

Branches groaned tenderly under their own weight as small birds chirped noisily amidst their leaves.

It was truly alive, this forest. So is he.

Without any more hesitation, Ian stepped into the blackness and never looked back.