City of IF

[The Meaning Of Fear]

Chapter 2- Door

After a few moments of consideration, Rel decided the best thing to do in this situation was to climb a tree. It would give him a good vantage point of the clearing, and protect him from anything that might come out of the Door.

Looking around, he tried to pick a tree suitable for his intentions. They all looked the same to him; trunk, branches and leaves. Finally, he selected one that was part of the second ‘line’ of trees from the clearing. It wasn’t too close, but would give him enough of a view to find the Door.

Throwing caution to the winds, he immediately jumped up and grabbed a protruding branch to start climbing. Unfortunately the branch he chose was thin and weak, and broke upon receiving his weight. Rel promptly fell back onto his ass.

Rubbing his behind and groaning, he decided to try another branch. Luckily, this one was thick and he could hang onto it without a problem. Unluckily, he wasn’t very strong; he found it hard to lift himself up to the branch, and it took him more than five minutes, after which he had to stop and catch his breath.

Grabbing onto the trunk of the tree with a shaking arm, Rel slowly moved himself into a sitting position on the branch. A glance towards the direction of the clearing told him he would need to climb higher; right now, the top of a bushy plant of medium height was obstructing his view.

Stopping to rest, he relaxed and listened to the sounds of the forest, and of the life around him. Once again he could hear the birds calling above him, accompanied by a gentle rustling of leaves. He grinned to himself, grabbing and holding on to a branch just above him gingerly, his arms still sore from climbing the first one…

A loud, booming call of a horn deafened all the noises of the forest, and startled Rel so much he lost his grip. His arms windmill around for a few seconds, then his feet slipped and he fell a short distance to the ground.

Rel’s body hurt all over. Even getting back up on his feet was a problem, and he felt slightly disoriented. After struggling for a few minutes, he was able to stand, albeit wonkily, and considered the new predicament.

The horn was a signal for all those out searching for the Door: return to town. Either someone had already found the Door, which seemed unlikely to Rel because he was sure it was right here, or it was almost nighttime.

Amongst the thicket of trees, he couldn’t judge where the sun was in the sky, but a streak of orange was beginning to show in the blue. He must’ve been out here longer than he thought.

Indecision gripped him for but a moment; if he didn’t go back now, he would miss supper, and more than likely get lost in the dark. Even so, feelings of exasperation and frustration soon clouded his original good mood. Then an idea hit him.

Maybe I could just take a peek he thought, just a small look inside the Door, then I’ll head ba-

“YOU LITTLE BUGGERS BETTER GET BACK THIS INSTANT,” Bern’s voice rang through the woods, and Relius’ thoughts, even more so than the horn, “OR THERE’LL BE HELL TO PAY!”

That, he couldn’t ignore. Bern was not known for empty threats.

With a final glance back at the clearing, Relius Door began the long march back through the forest and to Jurnster.

***

It was quite dark by the time Rel got back to Jurnster. He’d gotten himself lost in the woods, and had by sheer luck stumbled upon a well worn path used by hunters who go looking for deer and smaller animals in the forest, either in tough times or if one fancied a delicacy.

The moon’s light was blocked by clouds on this night, but various forms of house lighting spilled onto the street from windows, and lit Relius’ way. That was the only thing it lit, however; the walls’ pale beige was hard to see, and the roofs’ colours were indiscernible. Rel thought this look was much better for the town.

At long last, he stopped in front of yet another of the small, simple houses, unadorned by decorations of any kind. Light from the fireplace shone out, as if beckoning him to enter, and Rel shivered. The cold night was beginning to make him numb.

He approached the door, and slowly, ever so carefully began to push it open. It wasn’t terribly late, but he would rather sneak in and be scolded later, than be caught and punished as soon as he entered.

The old, scratched pine-wood door moved in, ever so slowly. Warmth and light flooded from the tiny crack that had opened, encouraging Rel. Perhaps ol’ Henry wouldn’t catch him, after all…

“Finally found your way back, have you?” called a deep, gravelly and obviously irritated voice, “Stupid boy.”

Rel swore under his breath. His mind ran through any excuses he could possibly use, to no avail. Without any way to divert the displeasure of his caretaker, he decided to step in as boldly as he could.

He failed miserably. Opening the door to its fullest, Rel managed a sheepish grin before ol’ Henry’s gaze forced Rel’s own eyes to the floor, one thought ringing clear in his mind:

I’m so screwed.

The large, pot bellied man loomed above him, dressed in a simple white shirt, brown apron and trousers. Various stains colored the plain apron, but many more had landed on the white shirt, giving it a peculiar spotted pattern. Beefy fists hung on equally beefy arms, and his round and freckly face scrunched up, scrutinizing Rel. Short, messy red hair covered his head, save for a spot right at the top of his noggin. Stubble made his chin look like a raccoon’s behind.

The fireplace cast shadows upon the large man, flickering across his feature and landing on the wall. It made him look twice as intimidating, and three times as fat.
Henry Pallinston, better known as “ol’ Henry” or “fat Henry”, is Rel’s adopted father. A leatherworker by trade, ol’ Henry always smelled of the strange gunk he used to treat the hides, and of the hides themselves. A widower, he had lived and worked alone until 13 years ago, when a tiny baby came into his care.

He named him Relius.

“I don’t know what I’m going to do with you, boy,” ol’ Henry sighed and raised his head to the heavens, relieving Rel of his gaze, “your future seems bleak. I daren’t get you a job; you can’t be a scribe, because you’re too darn stupid; you can’t carry heavy loads because you’re too darn skinny; you can’t be a farmer because you wouldn’t be able to find the barn, not to mention the animals…”

“And,” he added in annoyance, “you won’t be a leatherworker like me because you don’t want to.”

Rel only nodded in response to these statements, not wishing to enter an argument with his foster parent. However, his body betrayed him and proceeded to emit a loud rumble from his stomach.

Henry put his hand over his face, breathing deeply and slowly, “Supper is in your bedroom.”

Rel nodded, face completely red as he walked hastily across the room, dodging the furniture and finally reaching the sanctuary of his own bedroom. When his door was closed fully, Rel was startled by an explosion of laughter. He’d be let off the hook this time, but if he got himself lost again, no amount of hunger-induced-bodily-noise would save him.

Examining his small, cozy little room, he found a tray, and on it a decent sized bun, along with a bowl of thin potato stew. Both were cold, but he’d been outside in the forest at night, so it didn’t bother him. He finished the bun in two huge bites, and gulped the stew down all at once.

When he could breathe again, Relius jumped onto his stiff little bed, content. He found himself unable to sleep, so he attempted to think through how he had found the clearing. This was in vain, because as soon as he started thinking about it, frustration clouded his mind, and he could not think about anything except imaginative ways of relieving Bern of body parts.

Snorting at a particularly gruesome dismemberment he conjured up in his mind, he wrapped himself in his blanket, and drifted off to sleep. I don’t need to remember the route, he thought right before he fell asleep, I can find it tomorrow morning, and prove I’m not stupid.

***

“Damn it!”

It had been a week of endless searching for the children and teenagers of Jurnster. Endless, fruitless searching for the Door that most of them didn’t know a thing about. The most frustrated out of all the searchers was Relius Door, who, despite his initial confidence, could not find his way back to the clearing. He was also reluctant to tell any other person about the possible location of the Door, since he wanted to take a look through it first, and he also wished to get some recognition from this. If he told someone who had a better sense of direction (which, Rel knew, was practically everyone) he wasn’t sure he’d still be able to take credit.

He made his way through the streets, back to his home and entered without a word to ol’ Henry. He retreated into his room, ignoring the greetings and promises of supper from his foster father, and went stubbornly to sleep.

***


Relius opened his eyes. Rubbing them sleepily, he looked through his window. It was dark, and in his drowsy state of mind he imagined the stars were the winking eyes of a fair maiden, beckoning to him…

Shaking his head to clear the images, Rel instead focused on any noises in the house. A loud snoring was heard over in the next room, presumably coming from his adopted father. He must’ve only slept for a few hours.

Still tired, Rel attempted to fall asleep again, but a fleeting, nagging thought prevented him from doing so:

I want to find that Door.

Knowing he would get no more rest, Rel rose from his bed, and sneaked outside his room. He paused to consider the inconveniences of such a venture, and quickly went back inside to retrieve his blanket.

Now all he needed was something to help him see.

He found the object he required in his neighbor’s house. He had entered quietly, taken a lantern from a bench, and quickly went back into his own house.

Using one of the matches his father stored in the kitchen, he lit the lantern, and wrapped in his trusty blanket, made his way into the woods.

Progress was slow, and the light from the lantern was barely enough to see a few meters in front. Still, he continued, his feet leading him further and further into the forest.

He paused, and passed the lantern-light over his surroundings. Something was different.

After a few seconds, he found it. It was a tree, almost the same as any other, except for one patch of bark that was scratched and slightly dented. Rel realized this must’ve been the tree he’d hit his face on.

He laughed at his own stupidity, and walked on.

Another while later, he passed through the thicket of trees, and into a small clearing. Excitement gripped him, making his heart race faster and faster. Taking a small sniff at the air, he confirmed it.

This was the clearing from before, along with its weird smelling air.

He rushed forward, eager to see what the Door really looked like. Holding his lantern forwards, he swung it slowly from side to side as he jogged.

So intent as he was to use the light of the lantern to find the Door, that he neglected to watch his footing, and tripped over a fallen log. He fell forward, but put his arms forward to try and cushion the fall. His hand reached the ground, trying to hold him up-

And passed through.

This surprised him so much, Rel attempted to pull his hands back. This did not, however, stop his fall, and he continued to pass through the ground, until all of him was on the other side… The other side of the Door.

The side he was coming through was a Door that stood upright, and as strange as it may seem, Relius then continued to fall forward until he had completed 180 degrees. Having retracted his arms slightly, he could not stop all of the impact from the fall and ended up jarring his head and hands, not to mention destroying his lantern.

Head still spinning from a combination of the strange fall, the change of gravity’s direction and the impact from connecting with the ground, he laid there for about a minute to recover.

As he rested, he began to notice his surroundings. He was in some sort of cave. Light spilled from a large hole overhead, which made Rel stop and correct himself. He wasn't in a cave, he was in a hole in the ground. There were, however, tunnels around the hole.

A keen, scratching noise came from behind him. It forced his mind back into a fully functioning state, and made him turn around to find the origin of the noise.

Rel was slightly confused to see nothing there. He could see the lower half of his body, connecting to his legs and one foot, but nothing beyond that might have made the noise.

Wait a sec. One foot?

He pulled his right leg towards himself to examine it more closely. Nothing wrong, foot still attached.

The strange high pitched scratching noise came again, this time much louder and lasted longer. Pressing his hands to his ears, Rel forced one eye to remain open to see what was going on.

A strange distorted area in the air was now visible to him. It stretched and twisted, then removed itself with a pop. Only then did Rel realize what had happened.

His foot had still been in the Door, and he had pulled it out just before the Door closed on him. A twist of fate; he had managed to save his limb, but is now left with no way to return home.

Panic began to run through his heart. I’m stuck here!

~Even with his battered and sadly inept mind, Rel knew the odds of him making it back home, or even anywhere near Jeranaea, was less than nothing. It was unheard of for any place away from the planet to have a Door on it more than once. Some surmise that this is due to the sheer abundance of other lands, other planets that Doors may lead to; other, more eccentric individuals say that there may be more than one Door on other worlds, but they lead to one another instead of to Jeranaea.

In his desperation, Rel abandoned all logic. He jumped up, and with all his might, he jumped at the spot the Door had just been. He clawed at it, hollered at it, and even charged mindlessly through it, only to fall flat on the floor.

He lay there for a long time, his mind no longer functioning properly. It was almost as if, he knew he was done for, but his body refused to accept it. Fighting desperately for a chance to see home again…

A few minutes later, a raindrop fell on his cheek. More and more of these came down from the heavens, and the biting cold from the miniature droplets snapped him out of his daze. Self-preservation kicked in, and he scrambled over to the nearest opening in the rock.

The solid shelter above and around him protected him from the weather, and soon the rhythmic pitter-patter of the rain soothed his troubled mind. A small spark of his natural curiosity returned, and he looked more closely at the area.

It was just as it seemed; a hole in the ground. However, the rock floor towards the centre of the hole was sloping down ever so slightly, creating a shallow basin. The water had already filled it up in about a minute of light rain, the solid ground now serving as a bottom of a large, albeit extremely shallow pond. Rel noted, with some dismay, that the broken remains of his (Or, rather, his neighbour's) lantern was still where he had smashed it into the floor. The rainwater that spilled over the edge of this ‘pond’ started running down into some of the recesses in the walls of the rock, including Rel’s. It trickled down slowly, into the darkness of the cave.

The rainclouds above blocked most of the light from the sun, so it was hard to see much into the cave. This didn’t deter Rel, however, and in his short moment of excitement, he decided to go deeper down.

The tunnel sloped down gently, coupled with the lack of proper lighting, made for a precarious walk. Rel made sure he was always touching the right wall with his hand, as an attempt to keep his balance and at the same time lead him further into the tunnel.

Within a few minutes of walking, the light from the opening behind was gone, leaving him to rely only on his sense of touch. The cave wall was often quite damp, and at times his hand passed over wet, rough material that almost felt like fur. He shied away the first time, afraid he had touched some weird subterranean animal, but then realized it must’ve been moss.

Laughing shakily and wiping his hand on his own shirt, Rel trudged off deeper into the cave.

***

It seemed like he had been walking for a long time. Without the sun, he couldn’t correctly judge the time, but he was getting quite tired, which suggests he’d been walking for at least a few hours. His enthusiasm had worn off long ago, and now his mind wandered to darker thoughts.

How am I going to get home, he wondered, Will I even find another person in this stupid place?

These negative and unhealthy thoughts continued to circulate around his head, until he realized his hand was no longer pressed against a soaked, cold wall. Looking around, he saw that he’d wandered into a wider cavern that was somehow lit faintly with a strange, fuzzy light in the centre. Stalagmites and their hanging counterparts reached for each other, like lovers torn apart. A few of these pairs had actually been around long enough to bind together, and now sat in the edges of the cavern, like some strangely jagged pillars.

An opening was visible on the other side, presumably leading deeper into the tunnel. What captured Rel’s attention, however, was the rather strange light source. It hung there, floating from the ground by a few centimeters, and seemed to be nothing more than a cloud of luminescent air. The light it gave off was gentle, and made the otherwise gloomy cavern almost seem hospitable. It shone on Rel’s face, warming him slightly, and made him feel better.

Then, that comfortable feeling blossomed into hope as he saw it for what is really was.

A Door!

Crying out in joy, he sprinted towards it, arms outstretched as if afraid it would disappear. Words could not describe how happy he was, and he didn’t even seem to mind slipping on the tiny flow of water still worming its way deeper into the cave.

I can go home! I can see home again!

The tips of his fingers passed through the strange cloud ahead, but they stopped there. Rel felt resistance against his hand, and even as he pressed against it with all his might, he could not go through. He tried again and again, but only about an inch of him would pass through before he was stopped by something.

Tears invaded his eyes. The shining radiance that had been his hope now turned to further his despair, taunting him, mocking his simple-mindedness. He had managed, against all odds, to find a Door on the new world, but one that lead directly into a barrier, perhaps a wall of some kind.

He laid there, body heaving with sobs. "Why? Why!?"

Why what? said a soft feminine voice, that seemed to come from all directions.

Shock made Rel jump, dispelling his grief. For a moment, he thought that the voice must have been his own, echoing off the stone walls, until:

I said, the voice called again, sounding a little impatient, Why what?

Rel twisted around, desperately trying to find the source of the voice. No one had entered the cavern. Confused, he twirled around, again and again, but he still couldn’t locate the person speaking to him.

Over here!

Rel slowly turned again, and stopped, facing the Door. Only this time, this wasn’t what was capturing his attention. He looked beyond it, into the tunnel in the rock. He didn’t know how, as the voice didn’t seem to come from one direction, but this time, he could tell it had come from inside.

Well? Are you just going to stand there, asking yourself stupid questions, or are you gonna come here?

[The Meaning Of Fear]

This came out a bit later than I thought.

I realise my writing tends to be somewhat inconsistent. Please tell me about such errors and I will correct them.

Suggestions and critiques welcome! o-)

[The White Blacksmith]

Good chapter, but I'm not entirely sure what the dp is.

[Crunchyfrog]

Good chapter.

Just a few niggly techie things on first looking:

Para 5 - Right now should be lower case after a semi colon

Para 7 you've slipped into the present tense, for windmill, slip and falls

Para 11 - all out search - think it should be all out searching

ol’ Henry’s gaze forced Rel’s own eyes to the floor - lovely phrase! :)

Para 10 (after scene break) - should be beefy fists

Para 12 - Probably better to start it as 'The large pot bellied man' as we've already been introduced to Henry. Good description.

Could do something more indepth, lemme know. :)


Wooo! Liked the passing through the door, the detail of the change of gravity, and having one foot stuck in it!

Well I'm not sure what the DP is either - although there seems to be no alternative but to explore.

There are tunnels leading from the hole he's in, so he could go down those. He's obviously not much of a climber, so I don't know whether he'd want to attempt to climb out!

Does he still have the lantern with him? If so, he could use it to look around the hole, and the entrances of the tunnels.

[The Meaning Of Fear]

EEEK! Sorry about that... I think I might have rushed this in too quickly.

About the DP... I'm sorry, but I'll have to go and add in a bit more to this chapter later. It'll add some more options, which I hope won't be quite as bad as how I left it out this time.

Expect about another 300 or so words in sometime this week, although I mgiht not get it done. Exams and school are taking their toll :(

And thanks a lot for the crit, Crunchy. :D I'll get on to it as soon as I can.

Sorry about confusion and everything.

::EDITZ 1::

Fixed up those mistakes. Currently working on the final part I'm adding in.

[The Meaning Of Fear]

Sorry about double posting, but I didn't think editing my last post would be very useful. Better yet to do a new one and attract more attention.

Anyhow, I've just put the last addition to chapter 2 on. You should see it on the original CH2 post. For easier reading, I've also put in a tildas where it originally ended.

It came out much later than I expected, but then again, it was also much longer than 300 words. About 1000, actually.

Hope you enjoy it!

::EDITZ::

And I've just realized I forgot about the lantern. Crap!

[The Meaning Of Fear]

I left this to wait for suggestions, but that obviously isn't working.

Please answer a few questions, if you will.

Firstly, I want the reader's opinion on the DP. Do you think I should stick to the current change? Or maybe I should add a bit more (again)?

Secondly, after I have knowledge of the general readers' opinion, I'd really like it if there would be actual suggestions. Please. Pwetty pwetty pwease with sugar on top.

[Crunchyfrog]

Meanie wrote: Firstly, I want the reader's opinion on the DP. Do you think I should stick to the current change? Or maybe I should add a bit more (again)?


I'm not sure looking for an obstacle/surroundings DP is the way to go. You've already described the cave, there's nothing in it, apart from this Door, which he can't get through.

I don't know if you realised, you actually had a really good DP staring you right in the face which could bring about loads of suggestions. :)

Quote: Well? Are you just going to stand there, asking yourself stupid questions, or are you gonna come here?

This is coming from a disembodied voice, which sounds like its coming from everywhere. He thinks its coming from inside the door, or inside the tunnel.

So he could either ask questions, leading to suggestions on what he asks the voice, or he could attempt to find the voice, leading to suggestions on how he does this.

So, if the DP was - How does he react to the voice? my suggestion would be - throw a stone into the Door to see if the voice is coming from in there, or alternatively shout back at the voice 'Where are you?'

Does that help?
:)

[The Meaning Of Fear]

Thanks, Crunchy! :D

That was really helpful... I didn't actually realise that could've been a decent DP...

Anyhow...

The DP is now decided as "How should he react to the voice". I'll be putting the poll up with sufficient (3-4) suggestions, or in about one and a half week's time.

Till then, happy reading all!

::EDITZ::

Okay, I did a fast edit to patch up the lantern problem. Should make sense now, but it might screw up the flow of the story. If anyone finds this lantern explanation isn't needed, please tell me.

[TruePurple]

Italics means thoughts right? Well why is it that every bit that seems to be spoken, is in italics? It makes it hard to determine if any of it is thought.

[TruePurple]

Well instead of if he should approach, how. Hesitantly, should he ask who is speaking, or should he rush to it just happy to hear someone else

You could break it down into different emotional takes.
Joyful: He just rushes in so happy to finally find something other then dank dark tunnels.
Fearfully: Perhaps he asks "Who are you?" and pleads for mercy & help.
Suspiciously: "Who are you?" Again, along with other questions like "What do you want with me?" "Why are you underground here?" and so on.
Resignationally: Realizing his options are limited, he approaches without much emotion. May or may not ask questions.

This is just some rough ideas, feel free to refine them.

[The Meaning Of Fear]

Poll's going up in 24 horus or so.

Get those polling fingers ready. :P

[The Meaning Of Fear]

Poll is up.

I didn't put in the poll options as emotions, as I feel that as the author of Rel his emotions, if not his choices, should be of my choice. Sorry about that, Purps. I have, however, fitted most of your suggestions into the poll, leading to a decidedly large one.

Anyhow... VOTE AWAY!

[TruePurple]

Those are fine poll options. Such a silly billy though, posting about making a poll that you hadn't made yet. :lol:

[The White Blacksmith]

No, I don't like bananas.

[The Meaning Of Fear]

And we are finished. Not a very popular poll, this, but nevermind that.

Because we all know you people like throwing rocks no matter what the situation. :lol:

The poll will be taken off shortly, and the chapter shall be coming up in about a week.

Hopefully. :shock: