Rayman: The Land of Orthiyamin (incomplete)

Termonaptir · Post by **Termonaptir** » Sun Jan 27, 2008 10:41 pm

Well, here's the first chapter of my incomplete fanfic... Yes, I know I'm horrible. But hey. I gotta start off somewhere, right? Anyways, here it is. (P.S. This is the shortest chapter on the story... I was just a bit lazy today, I guess...)

Note: Well, to be honest, this doesn't always have happy parts to it. There are definetly more of the dark scenes than the light. If you prefer the kind of story without the touch of sadness, drama, violence, blood, and torture, then this isn't the story for you, mon ami. I'd advise you to read something else. Something of your taste... Hey, books need to reflect the author's personality, yes? I'm not exactly the type of 'sunshine' person. I have rather low self-esteem, a short temper.... So, this is what came out when I typed what my heart told me. I'm sorry for the darkness I put in this.... Truly...

Chapter one:
Darkness

The sun was beginning to set beyond the green hills, turning the sky into an orange-pink. Our little limbless hero was lying on his hammock, staring at the beautiful scene, thinking about what an older Teensie (and wiser than the rest, who only fought constantly over the crown) had said to him earlier on that day.

“Rayman… Do you ever wonder where you came from? I mean, I would be quite troubled if I didn’t even know who or what I was to begin with. Does it ever bother you? You, the hero of our land, out of all the citizens who live here… doesn’t even know who he really is, or why the gods wanted him to save this planet in the first place? How can you live like that?”

Rayman had only replied with a mere shrug, but he thought deeply on the question. Who was he? What was he? And why him? Why was he the one that had to be chosen? The hero… the Guardian. He even wore the mark to prove it. The white O just below his chest. But what if they had chosen the wrong Rayman? What if he wasn’t the hero everyone was raving about? He clenched his fists in anger at the thought of it…

Why would anyone choose him? So what if he was the last of his kind? How does that make him special? Being the only Rayian left simply made him feel alone… Nothing else. And he was just too carefree… What if he did something wrong in the future? Everything and everyone… They would all hate him. His friends… Ly, Globox, Murfy, Clark… The reasons why he even lived would be shattered.

“Rayman…?” A voice broke out. Startled, Rayman jumped and fell out of his hammock, rolling on to his back.

“Oh, Globox… I’m sorry…” he kicked himself up, smiling sadly at his friend.

“For what? If anyone’s apologizing, it should be me… Sorry for the scare, pal.” The blue character jumped up and down happily, acting as if he had just received a present.

Rayman stared at his friend, raising one eyebrow. “What’s up with you? You’re acting as if you ate too much sugar…”

Globox continued jumping joyfully. “I’m just happy… Is there something wrong with that?” He began clapping his hands in a tap-tap rhythm.

The limbless hero sighed sadly. “No… of course not…” He hung his head, staring at the orange swirls on his dandelion-yellow sneakers.

His friend stopped his jumping and clapping, and stared at his miserable-looking friend. “Hey… What’s wrong? Something’s troubling you, isn’t there? I know my best friend, and he usually doesn’t hang his head like that…”

Rayman looked up at Globox with those huge blue eyes of his. “Globox… at least you don’t have to live while wondering who the hell you are. How on earth was I able to beat all of those bad guys without even knowing the details about myself? Mr. Dark, Razorbeard, Reflux, André, the Rabbids… What if they were simply a quiz to test my strength? What if the real test comes soon, and I’m not prepared? Was I only able to beat the previous enemies out of mere luck? How do I even do it without knowing who I truly am? And what if they chose the wrong hero? Did you ever think about that, hmm?”

Globox began playing with his hands, unable to look into Rayman’s sad gaze. “Hey, don’t worry about it. We the citizens know for certain that you were the right hero chosen by Polokus to save our planet. If he had chosen the wrong one, then this place would be nothing more than thousands of space fragments by now.” He began to hum oh so very quietly, just so his friend can barely hear it.

Rayman looked at Globox again, this time smiling lightly. “I guess you’re right…. Maybe I was overreacting a bit, eh? But still… It digs into me so much! And don’t you feel anything? There’s dark evil lingering in the air… I can just feel it! What if it is the real test this time? If anyone gets hurt, it’ll be all my fault!” He began to pace right and left rapidly.

“What? Evil? Lingering in the air? I don’t feel anything… Are you sure? Is it just your overreacting mind? Damn it, did those Rabbids do some kind of experiment on you?! You know how crazy they are when they get their grubby paws on a victim!” He began to inspect Rayman closely for any signs of serious injury. “They kept you locked up in that cell for fifteen days, yes? Then you had to disguise as one to foil their plans… Disguise! See? You’re going crazy already! Who would put two socks in their hair just to blend in with a bunch of rabid rabbits? You can just beat the stuffing out of them!”

Rayman jumped back, his face turning a little pink with embarrassment. “I-I had to… There were too many of them…. They would easily overpower me, and throw me back in that cell! I can’t stand it in there. No place to exercise, no sunshine, barely any fresh air. I coulda died in there!”

Globox replied with a soft giggle. “I would imagine. Hey, you wanna visit Ly? I assume that you want to, since you started visiting her every day… Why is that?”

The limbless character blushed again. “Err, it’s nothing! We’re just friends…. And I gotta ask her about the strange feeling in the air, don’t I? I want to make sure I’m not losing my sanity here. Sure, let’s go… I want to ask her a few more questions…”

Globox jumped to Rayman’s sides in his famous clumsy style. “Then what are we waiting for?” He smiled widely. “Let’s go then.”

The two friends walked into the forest, chatting about random things as they ventured off to find Ly. Rayman jumped, flipped, and ran. He occasionally waited for Globox to catch up with him, watching him clumsily run and trip over a few tree roots.

“Globox…” the limbless said, breaking the silence that covered the area like a blanket. “Don’t you feel there’s something wrong with the forests as well? Normally the birds sing their songs all day, but now…” He stopped talking, and allowed Globox to listen to the forest itself. “There’s nothing,” he continued. “It’s so suspicious, so creepy. The woods that used to be so lively with sound are now deathly quiet. As if someone has muted it… I don’t think something’s wrong, Globox. I know something’s wrong. It’s just so obvious!”

Globox stopped in his tracks. “Aren’t you being a bit paranoid about this? You should seriously take it easy. You know, I really think that…”

“I’m not being paranoid about this!” Rayman bellowed. “I’m just worried! This evil or whatever the damn it is, is sneaking right in front of us, and we’re not doing anything! We’re just watching it, letting it do whatever it wants to do! What kind of a hero am I anyways?!” He was breathing heavily now. He gritted his teeth and his fists were clenched. And before he knew it, tears of anger were already rolling down his cheeks, dripping on to forest floor.

Globox, upon seeing Rayman’s tears, approached him slowly and quietly. “It’ll be okay… Rayman… even if you do ever mess up, we’ll be friends forever. And I highly doubt that you’ll ever do something so terrible. And even if you do, so what? We all do that sometimes, don’t we? Take Uglette and myself for example. On our wedding day, I told her that her fingers were too fat for a ring. That was a bad mistake I did there. Hey, I’m still in one piece, right? And she forgave me. What’s the difference with you?”

Rayman smiled. “Thanks for trying to cheer me up, buddy… But I’m the hero of this planet. Nearly everyone knows me. If I mess up, then the people would obviously hate me.”

“Who said that?!” Globox testified in a surprised tone. “What about Ly, Murfy, Clark, and I? We would never hate you! Well, Murfy might get a bit upset. But ignore him. The green boon’s got problems.” Rayman looked up, and Globox knew that there was a trace of a smile in those blue eyes.

“Since when did you start calling people ‘boons’? Are you the same Globox I’ve known the majority of my life? Or are you the culprit behind all my stress, in my best friend’s body? Out of all my years with Globox, I never heard him call someone else ‘boon’.”

Globox couldn’t resist smiling. “When you’re feeling down, I’ll try my best to reverse your mood. Even if it means calling Murfy by rude names. Promise not to tell him?”

Upon seeing Globox smile, he couldn’t help but to do so himself. “Deal. I won’t tell him.” He shook Globox’s hand. “Hey, it’s getting late… We should hurry and find Ly already…” He looked at the sun disappearing behind the hills. “You don’t want to end up getting stuck here at dark… when the nocturnal creatures come out and play, do you?”

Globox’s eyes got big with fright. “Nocturnal creatures? Coming out to play?! I don’t make a good midnight snack, Rayman!” And with that he dashed off to a run, not aware that his friend wasn’t following him.

Rayman sighed, and with that he ran off to follow Globox. But to his surprise, his friend was faster than him. Was it his fright that was giving him that outstanding boost? He normally wasn’t the speedy type… What was going on? Was Globox faster, or was Rayman slower…? Was it both? Impossible… or was it? The forest was giving him the creeps… Something dark had to be at work there. It was making things upside-down, inside out…

“Globox…” he panted, trying to keep his pace. “Wait!” Normally he was able to run at the same pace for such a long time… His vitality was weaker than usual… He collapsed on a nearby tree, trying to catch his breath. He heard and felt his heart race. Sweat was dripping down from his hair…

“What… the hell…?” he whispered to himself, still trying to catch up with his own rapid breathing. Could it be possible? The Heart of the World… Was it in danger? Was that the reason why he was so weak? He steadily got up, still breathing hard. He put his hand on his chest, trying to calm himself down…

After retrieving his lost stamina, he ran for it… He didn’t care what happened to him. Was the Heart really in danger? It was one of his duties to protect it…
Knowing Globox, he’s probably out of the woods already, wondering where his best friend is. Rayman was indeed worried about him, but he had other things to do… If the Heart were destroyed, it all wouldn’t matter anymore. Everything he tried so hard to protect would be gone. Gone… The word made him stumble. He tripped over a tree root (similar to what Globox did earlier that afternoon) and crashed to the ground.

He banged one fist on the soil, not even raising his head. Steadily, carefully, he got up slowly… A pain from his ribs suddenly shot up at him. Rayman fell back down, groaning in pain. No doubt about it – he was definitely weaker. His sides were screaming at him, telling him to just lie there forever.

He simply ignored it, and with all his might, got up (slowly and painfully). He grit his teeth to ease himself. There was no chance he would be able to escape the woods tonight… He was tired, in pain, and the sun had already disappeared. He would have to spend the night. What other choice was there? Keep wandering around not knowing where on earth to go and get even more lost? He put his gloved hand on his forehead.

Rayman was many miles away from his tree home (he mostly spent his nights sleeping in his tree’s hole), and there was no going back…The forest was like hell at night. Spending a night there was like gambling for your life. You can’t know whether or not you’ll escape it alive… The limbless character shuddered at the thought of it. The last thing he needed was to be even more worried. Sighing, he carefully climbed a tree (his ribs still screaming) and settled himself on a thick branch. Hopefully this would keep him out of reach from hungry nocturnal creatures.

“Please, Polokus…” he whispered. “Keep the Heart safe and sound…” He closed his eyes, but no matter how long he waited, he couldn’t fall asleep. Several things were coming in and out of his mind. They just wouldn’t leave him alone. They came in, taunted him, and left… Only to be replaced by another thought.

“Shut up… Go away…” He mumbled. He began to squirm angrily, punching and kicking at nothing. He turned his head left and right, continuing his torrent of cussing… He was losing his sanity. He knew he was attacking nothing, but yet he continued…

A moan was suddenly heard. Rayman, thinking it was only his imagination, simply ignored it. He slapped himself, his eyes still closed. “That’s all you’ve got?” he spoke to himself. “You’re gonna have to try a lot harder than that to scare me…”

And there it was again – that same ghostly moan… Rayman finally opened his eyes. “I thought I told you to…” Just then, he felt a sticky goo land right on his left hand. “What the…” He inspected it. It was green, bubbling, and sticky as glue… Slowly, frightened, he looked up. There it was – a pair of two glowing red eyes staring down at him. He could just make out the shape of sharp teeth that seemed to want to dig right into his flesh… Startled, he jumped; unaware that he was still on the branch. The wood below him snapped, dropping both the branch and the limbless creature. Rayman fought to start his helicopter, but his weak state disabled him from doing so.

He braced himself for a painful landing. He heard the ‘snap’ of the wood, and few moments later, he felt himself hit the ground below. Rayman felt searing pain throughout his whole body. This could be the end of it… Slowly opening his eyes and barely lifting his head, he watched the strange creature jump gracefully down the tree, landing a few yards away from him.

‘What the hell is that thing…?’ a voice in his mind said. It was like a skeleton of… what was it called again? A human being? Its eyes glowed a bloody red, its razor-sharp teeth the color of rotting gold. It sheathed a huge spiked club from its belt…

Rayman watched in horror as it advanced slowly on him. He wanted to run – run and never stop. But he couldn’t. The pain was pinning him down like a boulder. He couldn’t move. He could only watch.

Only a few inches away from the limbless hero, the strange creature raised its club… And brought it down with great force – which was the last thing Rayman saw before he completely lost all consciousness.

The skeleton had smacked him right on the side of the face. And very hard, too. It smiled upon seeing the limbless hero’s unconscious body.
“Consider that blow a warning…” It said in a ghost-like voice. And with that, it began walking deeper into the forest, leaving Rayman lying there, all alone.

Limely · Post by **Limely** » Tue Jan 29, 2008 8:21 pm

This is great. Can't wait to read the rest. : D

Loved the comment about Globox's wedding day and Uglette's fingers being to fat.

Termonaptir · Post by **Termonaptir** » Tue Jan 29, 2008 10:31 pm

Thanks. But to be honest, this is AWFUL for me. Normally I know the exact right words to say. I guess I was just bummed out... Chapter two will be longer, and hopefully more descriptive.

Limely · Post by **Limely** » Wed Jan 30, 2008 3:23 pm

Sounds nice! : D I thought this was good, though...

Termonaptir · Post by **Termonaptir** » Wed Jan 30, 2008 10:26 pm

Thanks, but still... *buries face in hands* I'm so ashamed... I wanted to put my abilities to the limit when typing this fanfic... But I was just so upset (and furious, considering I have a very short temper) when I typed in Chapter One... Ugh... DX

Limely · Post by **Limely** » Wed Jan 30, 2008 10:32 pm

If you're not happy with it, then you could always revise it.

You say yourself it's incomplete.

Termonaptir · Post by **Termonaptir** » Wed Jan 30, 2008 11:33 pm

*sigh* Guess you're right. I'll correct and spiffen it up later. After I'm done typing chapter 2...

Zay-el · Post by **Zay-el** » Thu Jan 31, 2008 2:40 pm

I must say I really like this so far. The thought of failing once, is every hero's curse, and you wrote it down very neatly in my opinion. I could trace step-by-step how Ray lost his touch with reality. I also like the way you picture Globox; I swear everyone who truly pictures him as a fairly normal person, and not an idiot, deserves at least a cake, to boot with. ^^

I think you wrote it pretty well; maybe it's the curse of every author, that they never like what they've written. Anyway, I really enjoyed this story so far, and I'm awaiting the next part. 83

Termonaptir · Post by **Termonaptir** » Thu Jan 31, 2008 10:47 pm

Thanks so much, Zay-el.

I'm basically reading the dictionary nowadays so I can finally find some complicated, long adjective words... Wanna make the rest of the story the best I can.

megajbb · Post by **megajbb** » Fri Feb 01, 2008 5:36 pm

it's a good story.

Termonaptir · Post by **Termonaptir** » Sun Feb 24, 2008 10:59 pm

Well, here's Chapter 2... Took me forever to finish it, it seems.

Chapter two:
Dreams are only Dreams

“Rayman…” a voice echoed from the darkness. “Wake… up….”
“Let’s see you try and make me…” Rayman’s corrupted mind responded weakly, thinking it was another one of his dark thoughts taunting him. Was this death? Would he ever wake up from this nightmare? How long had he been unconscious anyways?
“Rayman…” that same echoing voice said yet again. “Please…”
“What do I have to do to get you to shut up already?!” Rayman thought angrily, twitching his right hand slightly.

“Will he be okay…?” Globox asked, holding on to Uglette’s trembling hand. She was mourning quietly upon seeing the badly wounded Rayian. Of course, no one would blame her. Several of their children were wailing loudly around the limbless hero, only to be hushed by the doctor.
“Would you all just shut up?!” he scolded angrily, lowering his eyebrows. “Do you all think that it’s easy to work with this racket? How do you live like this anyways? Ugh…” He began to check Rayman’s breathing, watching his chest slowly rise up and down, in that same, repeating pattern. Up, down, up, down…
“Will he be okay then?” Globox repeated, letting go of his wife’s hand (who was still sobbing). He put his hands on his hips, frowning sadly at his best friend. “If he isn’t, I’ll never forgive myself… How can I let fear overcome my best friend?”
“Gee, shocker there…” Murfy muttered from the sidelines. “You let fear overcome everything, you imbecile.” He began to hover over to the shaken blue frog (at least that’s what Murfy thought he was…). “Oh, and by the way… Rumor says that you called someone a ‘Green Boon’ yesterday…” He lowered his eyebrows and smiled with a touch of insanity.
Globox put his hands in front of his face and waved them, each going the opposite direction. “N-no! You must have heard wrong… I-I would never!” He was stumbling terribly over his words, his hands still waving in front of his face. “Seriously, Murfy… You have everything wrong… You know me better than that!”
Murfy was still advancing upon him, his smile getting more insane every second. “You’re right… When it comes to Rayman, you’re willing to do almost anything. Including calling me a Green Boon! Funny though… You can call your other friends ‘insulting’ names for him… But you can never overcome fear for him, eh? That’s quite pathetic, no?” He began shaking his head, his smile disappearing from his face. “When will you ever learn…?”
“HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO SAY SHUT UP?!” The doctor interrupted, his face turning a rosy-red with fury. “Argh… This is ridiculous… How can…“
He was suddenly stifled by the sound of Rayman groaning quietly beside him. He was kicking lightly in his sleep, mumbling deliriously.
The limbless creature’s fists were shaking; he was ripping his head from left to right. The doctor could only watch him in horror. He was frozen in his place, watching Rayman mutter words below his breath, kicking and moaning in pain.
“Uhhhhhnnn….” He groaned quietly. Then he stopped. His kicking, twitching, shaking… It all stopped. The only sound that could be heard in the room was his quiet breathing (even Murfy’s wings seemed to have muted themselves). Everyone was struck. They only stared at him, afraid that their limbless hero might end up dying there.
“No…” Globox sobbed, breaking the silence. “This… This is all my fault!” He was crying now, covering his eyes with his hands. “If only I didn’t let fear take over me… Rayman would have been okay. He wouldn’t be lying here right now… The reason why my best friend is possibly dying is because of me! I’m such a failure!”
The citizens shifted their gaze from Rayman to Globox… His best friend. Was it really his fault? Well, everyone knew that Globox had the tendency to chicken out and run away every time danger faced him. Yes, it was a possibility… It was indeed, a huge possibility that this crisis was his fault.
However, there was only one among the crowd who knew for sure Globox wasn’t the cause of the situation… She stepped up to encourage him.
“Globox…” He heard a soothing voice call out to him. He moved his hands away from his eyes. Ly… such an encouraging friend… Always there when you were in trouble. Globox honestly couldn’t mention one time when she wasn’t there when he needed her. He couldn’t resist smiling faintly.
The fairy put her hand on his shoulder. “It’s never your fault… Things just happen. It was an accident. You would never mean to hurt Rayman… I know that for certain.”
Murfy chuckled a bit, still on the sidelines. “Yeah, right,” he said in that mocking voice of his. “Everything that goes around here is that chicken’s fault. I could list forever on the things that he did with R –“
Ly shot him a dirty look that froze his mouth. “And I could list on forever about your insults. Isn’t there any time when you’ll actually do something useful? Instead, you go all around the place, making fun of everyone you come across with.”
The words that came from Ly’s mouth struck Murfy like a slingshot. “I’m useful! Rayman probably wouldn’t have survived without me! Who gives him advice? That’s right – ME! Reflux would have probably pummeled him to a mere puddle if it weren’t for me!” He made a standing position while fluttering in the air, smiling widely and looking proud of himself.
The fairy only rolled her eyes, her left hand still on Globox’s right shoulder. “Then where were you when Rayman was captured by the Rabbids? Polokus and I were scanning the entire planet for him! The Teensies and the other citizens searched on foot, inch by inch, looking for him. And what were you doing? Taking a nap! That’s simply ridiculous. Some so called ‘friend’ you are.”
Murfy’s (who appeared stricken for the second time) jaw dropped, his eyes widened. “WHAT?!” He shouted angrily. The Globox kids winced. Never before had they seen Murfy that angry, that red. Even the room itself seemed to vibrate along with the angry Green Bottle’s voice. “I AM SIMPLY INSULTED! AND YOU CALL ME RUDE! EVER LOOK IN THE MIRROR?! Rayman wasn’t even in our planet! He was in this strange place called ‘Earth’! What was I supposed to do? Fly up to space and continue floating on until I land wherever he was? That would be the dumbest thing EVER! You bastards just don’t appreciate anything that I do around here! It’s as if I’m invisible!”
Ly took her hand off Globox’s shoulder and looked into Murfy’s eyes with extreme calmness. Her face was completely expressionless. She simply stared at him… Even her eyes had hidden themselves from feeling. Ly was just a blank piece of paper. No words were imprinted on her.
“Murfy, I’m sorry if I insulted you,” she said quietly, her voice as blank as her own face. “But try to remember – you can never relax when your friend is in trouble. You are Rayman’s friend, right?”
The Green Bottle sighed, beginning to regain his cool. “I’m more like his coach, but yeah, I guess you can call me his friend…” He shrugged, frowning slightly. His wings beat against each other rapidly, making a vibrating sound that echoed throughout the room. The majority of the crowd had their eyes fixed on him, curious to what he would say next… More insults, perhaps? Most would guess that would be the answer… Murfy did have a big mouth when it came to making fun out of the community, after all. Seeing him lose an argument was quite inconceivable.
But to the crowd’s astonishment, he did lose. He lost to Ly the Fairy, one of the most caring creatures in their planet. Yes – she had won her kindness over Murfy’s anger. The fluttering Green Bottle hovered in place, defeat stained upon him. How could he lose that quickly? It was indeed, a total mystery. One that even the wisest and oldest Teensies wouldn’t be able to solve.
“Globox,” Ly turned away from Murfy and faced the shaking blue creature. “Please tell us the details – and I mean the exact details when you found Rayman in the forest. And what were you two talking about the other day? I want you to be as specific as possible… Maybe then we can find out what happened to him. As far as I know, he’s suffering from that huge bruise on the left side of his face…”
Globox simply nodded, and began to tell the crowd his story. “The other day, Rayman was saying something about ‘an Evil lurking in the air’… I don’t exactly know what he meant, as the region seems completely peaceful to me. But he seemed so paranoid about it, and he was worrying about failing as a hero in the future. And…” He paused for a moment, struggling to remember what his friend had said the other day.
“And something about a real test? He said that the previous enemies he defeated were only used to test his strength, and that if another ‘evil’ comes by, he may not be prepared… I can’t remember all to well, however… I’m just too shaky…”
Ly only nodded. “Okay that’s good enough for me… Now, do you remember what you saw when you found Rayman in the forest?”
Globox put his right hand on his head, thinking hard. “Uhh… I don’t really remember… I was only focused on Rayman… All I remember is…. The blood, the broken tree limb, and… and… a bone… I have no idea where the bone came from… It couldn’t have been from Rayman… It was around twice as long as his torso in length! It was…” Globox paused, gulping. “Scary… The whole scene seemed so ominous. So creepy… What if he was right? What if this ‘evil’ that Rayman was talking about is true? It seems to be all falling into place… A blow leaving a bruise the size of two fists couldn’t have been from some ordinary forest-creature…” He gulped again, putting his hands near his mouth. “This is all very disturbing… It could have been a monster… or maybe a ghost…” He shuddered from his own thoughts.
Murfy stepped up again. “Globox, you nitwit, don’t be ridiculous. It couldn’t have been a ghost… Their blows would just go through Rayman. And he’d be standing here telling us the real story on the whole incident. If it’s anything else, it could be a monster… Like what you said.”
Ly put her finger on her chin, thinking deeply. “I hate to say it, but I completely agree with Murfy… And I don’t think Rayman is imagining any of this… True, he’s been a bit paranoid lately, but his hero instincts are possibly correct… Like him, I’ve also been feeling some strange dark force while I was meditating…”
The audience in the room began whispering to one another.
“Is it really true…?” one Teensie said to another.
“My daddy’s in a crime scene!” whispered one Baby Globox excitedly.
“He’s such a smart daddy!” replied his sibling.
“WOULD YOU TWO FOCUS ON THE REAL SITUATION HERE?!” barked their oldest brother, Toumy. “WHO CARES IF DAD IS IN A DAMN CRIME SCENE? WE’RE ALL GONNA DIE!” (For a Globox Kid, it was quite shocking to the spectators that he knew cussing words. Toumy would occasionally snoop around at night, spying on Rayman as he struggled furiously to untangle his hammock after a thunderstorm.
“Damn it!” the frustrated Rayian hissed, making a mess with his tangled hammock. “How the hell do I fix this thing?!” He threw the whole sheet on the wet grass, storming away to get some help.
“Hmmm…” Toumy said curiously from the nearby bushes. “Damn and hell… Never heard of those… I’ll use my new words in front of mom and dad… Surely, they will be proud.”)
The whole room was no longer silent. Everyone was giving out his or her opinions, shouting and making noise at the thought of a rising evil. Why – even the doctor (who normally hated noise) was joining in on the conversation.
“Indeed, it does sound quite logical…” he said, adjusting his monocle into place. “But I hope none of this is true…” He began combing his beard with his fingers. “Imagine the havoc it would cause throughout the region. Something I would definitely not want to be a part of… Who would?”
“An imbecile, maybe…” Murfy interrupted, shaking his head in dismay. “And unfortunately, there are a ton of them around these parts… Can’t do anything right. Why, the smartest guy I know around here… That would be me. No autographs, please!” He made his proud pose, still hovering in the air. His eyes were half-closed; his right fist was on his chest, while his left hand was behind his back. And he was smiling widely, showing off his pearly-white teeth. The Teensies around him simply rolled their eyes.
“Is today opposite day…?” One of them whispered. The female next to him giggled.
“Well, the Green Bottle is vain, that’s all I can say,” she whispered back, covering her mouth to stop her own snickers.
Murfy moved his feet up and down, making a tapping movement with them in mid-air. “Excuse me?” He said suspiciously at the two Teensies, raising one eyebrow. “Did ya say something about me? I thought I said no autographs! Sheesh, how clear do I have to make it? No – the opposite of yes! Autographs – me no sign your paper, or whatever object you want. Man oh man… This fame is too much for me. But of course – who wouldn’t want me to sign their pictures of myself?”
The female Teensie’s giggles were leaking through her mouth. Murfy… What a nitwit. The more she thought of it, the more she laughed. She bit her lower lip to cancel out the laughter.
“Murfy…” she whispered. “You really are something…” She said those words so quietly; the hovering Green Bottle could barely hear her.

On the other side of the room, the Magician and Betilla sat next to Rayman, watching his slow breathing. He wasn’t in the best shape – his hair was full of twigs and leaves, he had cuts all over his body, and that bruise… Definitely not a pretty sight. He began to tremble slightly, mumbling words under his breath yet again.
“Betilla,” the Magician said, his eyes still fixed on Rayman. “It’s strange… Usually his body is able to take pain… He’s a strong fellow. Normally, after being knocked out, he’d wake up after a few hours. But it’s been almost two days now. Something bad is happening. Perhaps this ‘evil’ or whatever it is, is affecting Rayman from the inside. Not only mentally, but physically. I have a horrible feeling about all this…”
Betilla looked up, frowning slightly. “You’re not the only one… Everyone seems to get sick to the stomach just by thinking about the details… The details about this rising crisis.” She sighed and looked back at the limbless hero. “I hope he’ll be all right… He seems to be suffering so badly… And judging by the way he kicked earlier in his sleep, he must be having some kind of nightmare. I could have sworn he mentioned the Heart of the World… You don’t think…?”
The Magician raised one gloved hand. A hovering one, just like Rayman’s. “Betilla, I checked the Fairy Council earlier. The Heart seems perfectly fine. The Teensies are guarding it with their lives. I don’t think it’s the Heart of the World that’s affecting his health. It must be something else… But what is it? It can’t be all a mere coincidence. There has to be something we’re missing here! A part of the puzzle…” He got up and began to pace back and forth, scratching his chin thoughtfully.
Rayman coughed quietly, groaning yet again. The Magician stopped his pacing and glued his eyes on the sickly Rayian. “Don’t tell me he’s caught a cold… He looks rather… red.”
Betilla swallowed and put the back of her right hand on Rayman’s forehead. Her face looked so pale compared to his. She retreated her hand hastily. “This is bad… He’s developing a temperature. Mind getting me an ice pack…?” She looked at the Magician and smiled faintly.
He smiled back, revealing a small portion of his teeth. “Of course… Hopefully this isn’t too severe.” He dashed out of the room and into the kitchen.
The fairy looked at the limbless hero again, sighing deeply. “Don’t tell me this is happening…” She whispered to herself. She took hold Rayman’s bleeding hand and began to stroke it, muttering a prayer to herself.
The whole racket in the room began to calm itself. This, of course, was a good thing. Finally, Betilla could hear her own thoughts and not others. She held Rayman’s hand a little tighter, hot tears beginning to roll down her cheeks. She and the Limbless Wonder had been friends for a long time. Ever since he rescued her from Mr. Dark, they had been very close. Not best friends, but just close… They had each other’s backs for all those years. This couldn’t be the end of her friend… It simply couldn’t. He was strong, wasn’t he? Just like The Magician said. Then why couldn’t he withstand this pain? What was going on?
She sobbed quietly, thinking of the many memories she and Rayman shared. Betilla felt something touch her shoulder. She let go of the limbless hero’s hand and shrieked quietly in shock. “Oh, Ly… It’s just you…” She sighed and smiled weakly. Her eyes were still wet from tears.
“I’m sorry, Betilla…” Ly replied, smiling back sadly. “How’s Rayman…? He doesn’t look good at all, does he?”
Betilla shook her head disdainfully, replacing her smile with a frown. “He’s developed a fever… I sent the Magician to get him some ice. I’ve been thinking… Globox said something about a tree limb, correct? Maybe the branch snapped while Rayman was on it… I’m guessing he was there to get away from the many predators in the forest. It’s not the safest area to be at night, that’s for sure…”
Ly’s smile was wiped away from her face. “That sounds like a good guess… And yes, I can see he’s got a fever… Look at the shade of red on his face… This is awful… I tried using my magic to heal him earlier, but it had no effect on him. There had to be dark magic involved to attack him. It’s the only type of injury I can’t heal…”
“Dark magic, huh…?” the other fairy said suspiciously, looking at her own fingers. “What creature would use dark magic in this area? I’m not familiar with anything that has the ability to use it around here… So, it definitely wasn’t an accident… Someone, or something attacked Rayman… I’m positive of it. Yes, it’s all falling into place… But it can’t be…”
BOOM!
The two fairies jumped in the air, screaming in shock. The sound came from the kitchen. Everyone watched in horror as they saw smoke drifting in the room. The chandeliers were swaying violently from the explosion, swinging left to right.
Betilla jumped in action, running toward the smoke-filled kitchen. Ly followed her, covering her mouth and nose from the smoke. The two coughed, finding it difficult to breathe.
Ly leaped ahead of Betilla and into the kitchen, her right hand began glowing ready to attack. “Anyone in here?” she barked fiercely, raising her shining hand. The spectators began fighting their way into the room, yelling and shoving one another.
“Get out of here!” yelled Betilla angrily, pointing her hovering hand at the door. “It can be dangerous!”
Instantly, the crowd began pouring out of the house, tripping and screaming at each other. The Teensies shrieked; the Globox Kids were hopping around everywhere. Their parents were chasing them around, collecting one offspring at a time.
Back in the kitchen, the two fairies began inspecting the room warily. Betilla waved at the smoke angrily, struggling to see clearly. “I can’t tell what’s what in here!” she coughed. She continued fighting her way through the smoke.
Ly couldn’t agree more with her. The two of them were walking around blindly, not knowing which direction they were going.
“Ahh… the Magician!” she heard Betilla sputter. “Where is he?!” She began to search every corner (although she didn’t know which corner was which), her waving getting more violent and frustrated every second. “Argh, why did they have to make this place so big?! It’s only for cooking, after all… Not like it’s a library.” She smacked a few old cups from the wooden cabinets.
Ly began to cough, putting her free hand toward her mouth. The glow from her right began to subside, and she put it in front of her, touching every object blindly. She touched bottles, pans, utensils… and the next thing – something living. She jumped and screamed, following another scream by the living being she had just touched. They took turns screaming for a few seconds, ending by the two of them screaming together.
“Who are you?!” she shouted demandingly. “And are you the one that made the smoke?”
“What?” she heard the voice say. She could barely make out the word – he was coughing from the smoke. “The whole thing was an accident! It’s just me! The Magician!” He began coughing wildly.
“What did you do?” Ly gasped. “I’ve never seen any of your magic causing a mess as big as this one… What happened?”
“There was…” His cough interrupted his sentence. “No more ice! So, I decided to use magic to make some. Y’know… to be prompt. Ray…” He began coughing again, putting his hand toward his mouth like Ly. “Man is severely injured, after all… But for some reason, something interrupted the spell, causing an explosion… So, that’s where all this smoke came from…”
“Something reversed your spell?” the fairy wheezed. “How can that be?”
Betilla stumbled into the scene, almost knocking over the Magician. “There you are! I decided to follow your voices when I heard you two scream… Anyways, we should get out of here, before we end up choking to death… I know the way… Come with me…”
The majority of the smoke had already subsided, only to be replaced by dust. Betilla lead the two coughing characters out of the dust and smoke-filled room. Time over time, she would stumble over a few broken objects, cursing to herself as she recovered her pace. The few minutes that passed seemed like hours. The three of them were finding it rather difficult to breathe or even see.
“Betilla…” Ly started. “Where’s the door? It seems like it’s been forever… I’m on the verge of fainting here!”
The confused fairy looked around. “Umm…” she said, waving her hand again. “I kind of lost my way with all this dust and smoke…”
Ly put her hand on her head and sighed (coughing after she did so). “That’s okay… I don’t blame anything on you… It’s hard, isn’t it…? Hey…” she looked at the Magician and smirked. “Can’t you just use your magic to clear this place?”
The fairies saw the Magician’s shadowy figure back away. “What are you saying? What if my magic messes up again? It can make this place even worse!”
Betilla nodded to Ly. “It’s worth giving it a shot… Just do it… Before we get even more lost.”
The Magician looked down. All Ly could see was his tall hat. He looked up again, with uncertainty in his voice. “Are you absolutely sure? What if I…”
“Hurry!” Ly cut in, coughing wildly. It was rather difficult to make out her words. Her voice had become hoarse and dried-up, similar to a sick child’s.
The Rayian sighed deeply. He pulled out his wand, chanted a few words, and flicked it. Sparkles radiated from his wand began to circle around him, spreading out to every inch of the room. The three figures closed their eyes, hoping for the best.
“This is it…” the Magician murmured. “We’re all going to die now…” he thought. “I wish the best for our planet…” He waited for the next explosion… 5… 4… 3… 2… 1… 0…
He opened his eyes, looking around the room. “What? No explosion?” To his shock, the smoke and dust swirled wildly around the room, and was sucked into his wand like a vacuum cleaner. He sighed deeply, and laughed. “It worked… It actually worked!”
Ly took a deep breath and smiled. “I can finally breathe,” she muttered. She stretched out, laughing a little.
Betilla smiled awkwardly, but something was on her nerves. “How come this spell wasn’t reversed?” she said, raising one eyebrow. “It’s as if something was watching you in the first place when you did your first spell…” she looked at the Magician, who had stopped laughing.
“Impossible…” he said, frowning slightly. “I could have sworn no one was with me in here… Unless this creature; that is, if it even exists, has the ability to use invisibility. The idea itself is rather doubtful.” He smirked and lowered his head. “What creature around here does have invisibility? A chameleon?” He chuckled quietly to himself. “You’re being a bit paranoid about this. Maybe it was just a coincidence… Who knows? Maybe I muttered the wrong words.”
The fairy lowered her eyebrows. “You’re one of the best magicians out there. Never before have I ever seen you mess up a spell. Even when you’re worried sick out of your mind, you can perform the best magic so effortlessly; so flawlessly.”
The Magician blushed, turning a light red. “Aw, c’mon,” he said in his mocking tone. “You don’t mean that… There’s got to be other magicians out there who are more skillful than myself. The world is a huge place. And I’m just one tiny inhabitant. Me – I’m just one magician out of the millions out there. Everyone messes up once in a while. That’s just a part of life. It’s completely natural. A magician who never makes mistakes – that’s ridiculous. Magic is an extremely complicated power to master. Very intricate and hard to handle. I guess I was being paranoid myself… Eheh… Sorry guys.” He put his hand on his hat and smiled guiltily.
Ly smirked. “Betilla, he’s right… Maybe we were overreacting, don’t you think? A creature that has the ability to reverse magic… That’s out of the ordinary, simply unnatural.”
Betilla scowled and lowered her head. “How can you two change your minds all of a sudden? Ly – you said it yourself earlier. You felt a strange power while you were meditating. Think about it! Something attacks Rayman with ‘dark magic’, and now the Magician suddenly messes up with his spells. It – can’t – be – an – ACCIDENT!” She hissed the last five words through gritted teeth, clenching her fists angrily. “Something has to be sneaking right below our noses here!”
The Magician frowned and put his hand on Betilla. “Hey… Put yourself in my situation. Imagine if your spell just caused an explosion. You’d be shaken and would imagine strange things, correct? That’s exactly what I did… Yes, something had to attack Rayman. I know that wasn’t an accident… But it couldn’t be the same creature that ‘reversed’ my magic; that is to say, if my spell was even reversed. Maybe it was just me. Betilla, even though I can normally perform spells with extreme ease – even when I’m nervous, I felt different today. The hero of our planet is suffering here! And it happened so suddenly, who wouldn’t be shaken from this awful incident?”
The fairy groaned quietly to herself. “Let’s just head back to the living room… I wonder if Rayman was bothered by the smoke…” Without another word, she hovered out of the kitchen, cussing to herself.
Ly sighed and looked at the Magician. “Do you think she’ll be okay? She seems so startled…”
The Magician shrugged, twirling his wand in the air. “To be honest, I don’t know. Let’s get out of here,” he said, catching his flying wand and pointing it at the door. “I’m getting tired of standing around in this room.” He withdrew his entire body into his tall hat and hopped after Betilla.
Ly flexed her bushy tail like a squirrel, looking at the mess she had made while blindingly wandering around. She sighed. It definitely wasn’t a pretty sight. There were broken glass and spilled liquids everywhere. Wooden utensils were knocked from their shelves and on the floor. They would have to clean it up later – but they had other things to worry about at that moment. Taking one last look over her shoulder, she traced the Magician’s steps and out the door, avoiding the broken shards of bottles that were scattered around the floor like traps.
Betilla and the Magician were both sitting on the sofa next to the limbless hero.
“Hello, Ly…” Betilla waved with a hint of a smile in her eyes. “What took you so long?”
Ly waved back and hovered next to her, settling herself in the leather furniture (leather was an extremely rare material in their planet, and furniture made from it was a sight seldom seen). “You know, we made a huge mess back there. We’re going to have to clean it up sometime, before the Teensie elders become upset. This house means a lot to them, and if we destroy it, I don’t think I’d want to know the consequences.”
The Magician sighed, looking down at his pointy shoes. “Ugh, this is all my fault… What exactly happened, anyways…? Was it really me? The idea sounds rather understandable… Ly, if anyone’s going to take the blame for the damage, I will. There’s no need for you two to be involved.”
Betilla put her hand on his magician hat. “No, if you take the blame, we’ll both take it with you. It was an accident, after all… What’s more, I’m probably the one who knocked all those cups from the cupboard.”
Ly sighed, putting her hand on her head. “We’ll discuss all this later… How do you think Rayman’s doing?” She looked at the fast-asleep Rayian. He was breathing peacefully, as if nothing had ever happened to him. He groaned quietly, shifted his position, and laid still. “His face is still that bloody-red color,” she murmured. She put the back of her hand on his forehead, made a face, and retreated. “He still has a temperature,” she said, frowning. “Betilla, can you fetch me some elixir from the kitchen?”
Betilla put her hovering hands on her hips. “Sure… that is, if we didn’t end up breaking all the bottles.” She got up, brushed herself, and headed for the kitchen, humming a tune quietly to herself. She was walking, for the first time that day, without any tense movements. It was as if she didn’t have any care in the world as she danced and pranced across the room, her graceful movements put to the limit.
The Magician watched her as she disappeared into the kitchen, her humming slowly fading away. He raised one eyebrow, making his tall hat rise slightly. “How the hell can she seem so relaxed now?” he quirked, smiling awkwardly at Ly. “Wasn’t she the one who was so worried earlier? Sheesh! She must have heavy mood swings, eh?”
Ly smiled back at him, snickering slightly. “I could tell from her eyes she was still worried. You know, you shouldn’t always judge someone’s mood from his or her movements. I’m sure she must be extremely tired of constantly worrying about everything. I know I would be. It must be hard for her, all that stress weighing down on her body like a boulder.” She shook her head and sighed, looking back at Rayman. Ignore all the incisions on his body, and he looked normal, as if he were sleeping at ease, like every night… Ly ran her finger through his dirty hair, removing the twigs that were tangled within. She looked at her finger, full of dirt and blood. Rayman’s blood. She sobbed quietly and flicked the substances in the air. The fairy watched as the drops of red splashed on the floor, making a tiny puddle. She put her hand above his bruise, feeling the invisible dark aura that wafted about it. Ly closed her eyes, focusing her healing powers on the palm of her hand.
The Magician watched as her hand began to glow, collecting more and more light drops, getting bigger and rounder every second like a snowball rolling down a hill. Still focusing on her palm, she touched Rayman’s black bruise lightly. Almost instantly, a dark beam shot out of the wound and into the ball of light, canceling the healing effects. Ly jerked back, breathing heavily. The glow had completely disappeared from her palm, and she was left a small burn from the dark magic. The Magician flinched from the sight, and he inched toward Ly, peering at her injured hand.
“What was that?!” He said, getting out a bandage from his pocket. He began wrapping it around Ly’s blistered hand.
“That didn’t happen before!” Ly moaned through gritted teeth. She shook her head and growled, looking at the mummy-like bandage that was wrapped around her hand. “It was as if touching fire… Luckily the dark magic that was shot into me doesn’t seem strong enough to be permanent… It should subside in a few hours or so… Thanks.” She winked at the Magician and forced a smile.
He smiled back faintly; unable to take his eyes off the black sparks that illuminated from her right hand. “There’s a possibility Rayman is shielded by dark magic. Obviously something no creature around this region learned. And seeing how long it’s lasting, I assume it’s from a powerful creature… Ly…” He stopped smiling and put his finger on his chin. “Maybe Betilla’s right. About this whole dark creature thingamajig, whatever she said.” He began playing with his wand, levitating a pot of roses and setting it gently next to Rayman. “He always liked colors… Remember when you two were younger? He used to play around in the meadows and search for the perfect flower for you.”
Ly chuckled, her face turning a deep pink. “Hehe… Oh yes, I remember. Such a sweetie.”
The Magician smirked upon seeing Ly’s rosy face. “Oh, don’t tell me you’re sick too! It’s bad enough having a Rayian lying around with a fever.”
The fairy smiled at him, turning a deeper red. “Haha, very funny. Remember how much of a troublemaker he was back then? Always sticking his nose into others’ properties. It’s so hard to imagine he’s grown up to be so well built. The Limbless Hero of the planet. I remember it all… that day, when the gods told him he was the one chosen to be the hero. I remember it as if it just happened yesterday.” She began stroking Rayman’s golden hair, forcing the dirt and twigs out.
He groaned quietly, inching slightly toward her direction. “Ly…” he murmured. “She’ll be okay… I swear, I’ll protect her with my life… Ly…!”
She gasped at the sound of her name. He was really thinking about her? When he was unconscious? Tears began rolling down her cheeks and splashed on the floor, mixing in with Rayman’s blood. It was an involuntary action – she always had feelings for him. She kept it hidden in her mind for all those years, sealed away, unable to escape, trapped like a defenseless animal. Was it really possible that he had feelings for her as well? The thought was completely overwhelming. It took hold of her, grabbed her throat like an icy hand. It wouldn’t release her; the thought was compressing on her, freezing her on her spot.
“Huh? What’s going on?” Betilla had just entered the room, shaking her bottle of elixir. “Ly, are you crying? Are you okay?”
Ly blushed again, wiping away her tears. “It’s…. nothing.” She sniffed, covering the leftover tears on her face. “I see that you found so medicine,” she said, pointing her right index finger on Betilla’s red glass bottle.
“That’s right,” she said, smiling as she took out a silver spoon. “Last one left. We knocked over the rest of them, sad to say. And thank Polokus; it’s the right kind! Can’t be a coincidence, that’s for sure.” She sat next to Ly, pouring the red liquid into the silverware. “This is a painkiller… I have to give Rayman a copious amount of it. Let’s hope he won’t mind it. It’s supposed to taste extremely bitter. Obviously something he’s not used to… You.” She looked at the Magician, who instantly jerked at the sight of Betilla staring straight at him.
“Mind helping me out?” she started again. “Help me open his mouth…”
The Magician winked, sheathing his wand from his belt. “Of course…” He drew a symbol in the air with his wand, making the round tip illuminate. Instantly, Rayman was forced to open his mouth, just enough for Betilla to be able to give him his elixir. The fairy stuck the spoon to his lips, pouring the red substance toward his throat.
The Rayian jerked up, coughing wildly. He began to turn a seaweed green, thrashing about wildly. After moments of making unnecessary noises, he began to calm, breathing peacefully in his sleep.
Betilla sighed, reading the label on her bottle. “What did I tell you?” she said mockingly. “It’s very bitter… possibly one of the worst things he’s ever tasted. But he had to take it in order to relieve the pain. It was worth it, I believe.” She put the instruments on the table and fixed her hat into place. “We should give him some sleep, don’t you think?” She looked at the Magician again. “You and I have some work to do near the Fairy Council.”
The Magician’s jaw dropped, making a shocked expression. “Oh my god, I almost forgot about that! Uhh… Ly, we gotta go. See ya!” He withdrew his body into his hat and hopped out the window hastily, cursing quietly to himself.
Betilla smirked, watching the Magician’s hat bounce out of view. “Now who’s the paranoid one?” She looked back at Ly. “You can do whatever you want, but I have to head off. I’ll see you later. I hope Rayman feels better…” She smiled one last time to Ly and levitated out the door after the Magician.
Ly waved at Betilla’s disappearing figure and looked back at Rayman. “I guess I’ll keep you company…” she said quietly to herself, stroking the Rayian’s gloved hand. He groaned quietly.

Termonaptir · Post by **Termonaptir** » Sun Feb 24, 2008 11:00 pm

Very sorry for the double-post, but the stupid thing wouldn't fit into one post...

Rayman was hurled into the eternal darkness, looking around the area warily. “Where am I…?” he asked himself. It barely made a difference whether he opened or closed his eyes. Everything was consumed in the dark; no light or creature could escape from its deadly clutches. “Ly…” He whispered. “Ly!” His voice echoed throughout the area, slowly being swallowed up by the black itself.
“Globox…? Globox!” He shouted across the room. “Isn’t there anyone here?!” He was tired, hurt, and alone, trapped in the darkness. He wanted to see some sort of life – anything. He was tired of being by himself, being in this cursed place. Where was the light? He needed it; it was where he belonged, where he was born.
Rayman began running – running away from the pitch-black area. He held back his tears, his sapphire-blue eyes beginning to water slightly.
His nightmare… losing his friends. It couldn’t be reality now. Globox, Ly…. Everyone. “Where are you…?” he whispered, keeping up his pace. “WHERE ARE YOU?!” He stopped running and collapsed, tears rolling down his cheeks and on the black floor. He was tired of the dark. He was damn sick of it.
“Curse this place…” he whimpered, letting out his tears. “CURSE THIS HELL OF A DAMN PLACE!” he shouted angrily, banging his fists on the frosted ground. His sobbing echoed endlessly throughout the room. It was quiet – deathly quiet. Not a single sign of life covered the place. He was the only one – the only living, breathing being. He would be alone forever, no one to talk to, and no one to look up to. Why was it him? Why was it him who had to live up to this curse? The curse of being a hero. He never volunteered, and there were the gods – suddenly appearing to him one day and telling him he was the one chosen to be the hero for his planet. Him… Rayman, the troublemaker. Out of all the chances, it was him.
He began to scream angrily to space, cussing to himself angrily, leaving dents on the ground from his powerful punches. His knuckles began to bleed from the blows, turning bloodier on every hit. He simply ignored the pain and continued punching, still crying to himself, cursing to the darkness, his blue eyes glowing with fury.
“Polokus… What did I do to deserve this?” Rayman had lost faith in himself. He was completely useless; some hero he was. Was he even a hero? Crying his mind to bits in the darkness… But what was he to do? Anything living in eternal darkness – the chances were slim. What could have the ability to stand living in such a dead place? The light; the place where life bloomed so beautifully and new beings came to exist. The darkness, the complete opposite of it. It was the place for death, where all life ended.
“My life…” Rayman said, opening his eyes. “Is going to end here?” He pounded the ground again, blood bursting from his fist. “Impossible!” He sobbed angrily, a tear falling from his eyes. He blinked and watched the dark figure of a drop fall to the ground with a quiet ‘plop’. He inspected his fists, wincing slightly at the sight of them.
His hands were completely soaked in blood, and his knuckles began to throb intensely. He groaned through gritted teeth, biting off his gloves and rubbing his bare hands.
Rayman put them on his torso, keeping what was left of his warmth and doubled over, crying angrily. He closed his eyes, picturing Ly’s face in his mind. All that beauty in it, all that life… All that light. He held on to her, keeping the last of the light in him.
He sniffed, opening his eyes and lifting his head slightly. He took the dark shadows of his gloves and fit them back on his hands, breathing heavily. He would be alone here forever, trapped in this darkness for all eternity. His bruise began to stab him with its pain-filled sword, hitting him straight on the head. He screamed and felt his head slam on the cold ground, shaking his body and extremities uncontrollably.
He was panting for air, his breath clearly visible in the cold night air. He rolled his right hand into an angry fist, opening his eyes and scowling furiously. Feeling the stabbing pain leave his head, he got to his feet, stumbling slightly while doing so. Catching himself from collapsing again, he carefully took a step, struggling to walk.
“Right, left, right, left…” Rayman thought. “What’s so hard about that? C’mon, you’ve stood up to pain before… Be strong! Now move!” Clenching his fists harder, he stumbled his feet in front of his torso, his right sneaker, following his left… Repeating the pattern and ignoring the buzzing pain in his head, he moved on, unaware of any danger that wafted about in the air.
He wandered about endlessly, following twisted corridors, cursing to the darkness yet again while doing so. “This place,” his mind said to him solemnly. “Is where you’re going to die, Rayman… Welcome to your new coffin.”
“Shut up!” He shouted to himself, slamming against the stone wall. “Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP!” He put his fist up to his face, struggling to make an energy ball. Anything to light the place – even if it would cost him much pain. Shutting his eyes and baring his teeth, he struggled, focusing all his light energy to his palm.
Running out of power, he watched as a spark spluttered from his palm, only to be killed by the darkness. He looked at his blistered palm helplessly, feeling all the light being drained from his body.
“That’s it then…” that same, mocking voice said again. “There’s no light, there’s no life… You’re going to die very soon, my friend… Wanna say your good-bye prayers now, while you have the chance?”
Pulling his hair angrily, he screamed, turning a deep red. He looked at his own shadow in a nearby mirror, built inside the wall that stood high above him. He scowled angrily at it, shattering it with his fists, only to get even bloodier.
“Damn it…” he whispered to himself, staring upon his incisions. “Curse this bloody place…” He sat on the stone floor, breathing heavily. He blinked at the darkness, staring at the dark figures the portraits across him held. They all had those same gleaming bloodshot eyes, and those dark grins, holding those sharp fangs. He closed his eyes, the memory of the skeleton creature coming back to his thoughts. He shuddered slightly, his golden hair bouncing along with his movements.
Listening to a distant tapping sound, he smiled slightly. “Nice try,” he thought. “You’re not fooling me this time, you son of a bitch… I’m alone… Someone being here with me – the thought of that is extremely foolish, indeed. What can possibly stand being in a dump like this? I always wondered how nocturnal creatures did it…” He put his left hand on his torso, refusing to open his eyes and letting his insane mind have the pleasure of knowing it had succeeded in disturbing him. He fought himself to relax, continuing to listen to that mysterious tapping, getting closer and closer, louder and louder. Frowning slightly, he began to lose yet more of his sanity. If he knew it wasn’t his mind, why didn’t the noise stop?
He groaned slightly. “Damn it, fine! I’ll look and see who it is, bastard…” Taking his hand away from his torso, he lifted his eyelids slowly, scanning the area with his glowing sapphire eyes.
He looked to his left – there was nothing there. Just more darkness, not a single being in sight. He looked at the region in front of him – still nothing there. Nothing but thousands of portraits, staring devilishly at him. He sighed impatiently, finally looking to his right.
“What? There’s nothing here… Just more and more – wait… Who is that?!” The being had been with him the whole time, blended perfectly in the dark.
Rayman widened his eyes, kicking himself up, his powerful fists in front of him, ready to fight. “Who are you?” he demanded angrily, lowering himself.
He could just make out the creature smirking at him, its sharp teeth bearing down at him.
“So…” it said, folding its arms. By the sound of its voice, Rayman could tell this strange creature was a female. Not the highest of all voices, but definitely not a male’s. “You finally found me…” she continued. “It took you long enough, y’know. What are you, blind or something?” She put her hand between the two of them, still smirking at him. The creature snapped her fingers, creating a burning torch in her hand.
Hypnotized, Rayman fixed his gaze on the flame, his shadow dancing wildly around him.
“Attracted to the flame, eh?”
The Rayian lifted his head and stared at the female creature. “You’re,” he sputtered, pointing his bloody index finger at her. “A human…”
The human wore a black jacket, fit for blending in the dark perfectly. A red scarf was tied around her neck, covered by her long coat. A gleaming amethyst, pulsing a nasty black, connected the two ends of her collar. Her hands were covered with purple biker gloves, only leaving her fingers. And she wore those baggy jeans, wrapped around it was a golden belt. She wore a green bandanna, her raven-black hair parted to the left side of her head, covering the majority of her right eye. Even those, Rayman thought, were like two black holes on her face, sucking in everything she fixed her gaze upon. Built behind her right ear was a type of device; tucked into it was a glass screen.
She put her free hand on her hip, frowning slightly. “Yeah, what’s it to ya? Ever seen one before? Am I really that scary to you? I’ve heard a lot about you, Rayman, but I’ve never heard about the rumor that you’re a wimp.”
Enraged, Rayman waved his fist in front of her face, speaking in a furious tone. “I never said I was scared of you! Who are you, why are you following me, and how do you know about me?! You don’t have a familiar face around my homeland!”
The human smirked again, completely ignoring his questions. She pressed the button on her ear-device, popping out the glass screen that covered her eyes like glasses. A beam of light shot out from its lenses, scanning Rayman’s thoroughly, from head to toe, toe to head. Tiny symbols began to appear on the screen, in a language the Limbless Hero could not read.
The girl’s smirk began to subside from her face, leaving an emotionless expression. “Your stats are completely off the chart,” she murmured. “There’s no doubt about it – you’re the one…” She pressed the button behind her ear again, making the screen slide back inside the device.
“Well?” Rayman interrupted, tapping his foot impatiently. “Are you going to answer my questions or what?” He didn’t even bother trying to find out what this girl meant by saying, ‘he was the one’.
He saw the human stare at him with those intimidating black eyes that seemed to burn holes into his skin.
“I’ll tell you later… When the time is right.” She looked at Rayman’s beaten hands, frowning slightly at the sight of them. “You really don’t have much self-control over yourself, do you? What’s wrong? Wittle Wayman afwaid of the darky-warky?” She snickered mischievously, crouching down to meet Rayman at eye-level.
The Limbless could feel the heat rising up to his face. He knew the human could see the anger in his eyes, all the pain. But she didn’t flinch nor frown; she simply smiled at the sight of it, her dark eyes twinkling joyfully.
“Oh, did I just hurt little Ray’s feelings?” she continued on, that mocking, hurtful tone still on her tongue. She scowled darkly at him, raising her torch nearer to his body. She waved it around his face, inspecting his facial characters. That bouncy golden hair, those blue eyes, and that big nose of his…
“Were you born like this, or did you get nose surgery somewhere? Not to mention the obvious, but that thing on your face is huge…”
Rayman jumped back, all the fury running through his body like a wild animal. “Why are you so cruel?! What did I ever do to you, huh?” He began shaking his fists uncontrollably. The anger inside him was taking over. This human girl was too much for him to handle. He didn’t like her – not one bit. And how old was she? She certainly wasn’t an adult. And yet here she was, making fun of Rayman as if he were her younger brother. He could certainly out-age her anytime, anywhere.
“I’d die from shock to know if you had any friends,” he continued.
The girl moved the fire away from his face, her eyes showing a hint of victory. “Yes I do, you little limbless rat. Tons, in fact…” She quirked one eyebrow. “So, are ya gonna drop dead, now that you know I have friends? I could use some amusement.”
Rayman scowled at her, putting one gloved hand on his hip. “You’re lying,” he muttered. “And even if you had so-called ‘friends’, I’m sure you just forced them to hang around with you… I know I wouldn’t, no matter how high the price!”
The black figure smirked, standing up straight. “Rayman, I like you. Unlike other losers I’ve met, you’ve actually had the guts to stand up to me… Congratulations, shrimp.” She rubbed Rayman’s hair vigorously, making it stand up, crackling with static electricity.
He growled at her, patting down his electricity-filled hair. “Don’t ever call me shrimp… It’s bad enough when my friends call me short!”
The human snickered, patting the Limbless on the top of his torso. He wiped it off, scowling violently at her. “What are you doing here anyways? You live here or something?”
Rayman could see her fighting to hold back her laughter. “Nope, nobody lives here, really… and I’m here…” she sighed for the first time, looking sadly at the Rayian. “To warn you. To make sure you’re prepared. Heed my words, Rayman. You and your friends are in grave danger. Grave danger, I say. Just keep your head up, boy. You’ll never know what will come around the corner…”
Rayman raised one eyebrow. “How do I know I can trust you? You’re not exactly the kindest person I’ve met… What makes you suddenly want to protect me?”
He took a step back. The girl took a step forward, putting her face close to his, staring into his huge sapphire eyes.
“Because,” she said in a cold voice, making the hero flinch. “I’ve been trying to protect you for the last half-year… You said it yourself – you felt something sinister going about in the air. Your hero instincts tell you so, ol’ chap. And guess what?” She moved her face away from his, straightening herself out. “You’re absolutely right. The skeleton creature was a sign… A sign of the darkness that will soon cover your land at its full strength.”
Rayman took another step back, away from the devilish girl. “You’re… you’re crazy!” He looked down at his shoes. “This can’t be happening,” he murmured. “I can’t believe I’m saying this – but for once, I wish I was wrong about the whole situation… I wish there was nothing evil at work here! I want to get out of here, leave this darkness, leave you!”
The black figure advanced upon him slowly, frowning slightly. “Believe whatever you want, Limbless. And hate me as much as you hate the darkness – it’s not going to change anything. Even I can’t stop it… All I’m saying is, you must be prepared.” She gave Rayman her torch, putting her hands on her hips. “Take that with you. Something’s coming…” She pointed down the corridor, scowling impatiently. “Go, hurry up! I’ll explain everything later, I promise…”
She began to walk down the opposite direction, the tapping of her boots echoing throughout the area.
Rayman held out his hand toward the girl. “Wait! What about you?”
The human looked back her shoulder, looking at him coldly. “Enough! Go, NOW! It’s dangerous for you here… I’ll be fine.” She smirked, continuing to walk down the hall. “Nothing here can harm me.”
The Limbless Hero nodded, holding up his torch. He listened for a moment to its quiet roaring, its light casting an orange glare to the many portraits that surrounded him. He looked back one more time, scanning through the shadows to look at the girl one more time. But she had already disappeared. He was alone again, alone with himself and his shadow.
He looked down at his shoes sadly, thinking about what she had said to him earlier. There was a possibility she was simply fooling around with him, messing up with his mind. But her voice – that cold, intimidating voice, is what convinced him she wasn’t lying. She really was trying to protect him. Rayman, his friends, and his planet. He sobbed quietly to himself, suddenly having the urge to vomit in his spot.
Rayman jumped at the sound of a scream, nearly dropping his torch. He regained his balance, jerking his head in the direction where he and the girl had talked. It definitely wasn’t her voice, but he wanted to know who it was – to know if they were in trouble.
He cupped his free hand around his mouth. “Is anyone there?” he shouted, squinting his eyes through the darkness, waving his torch around. He took a step back, feeling a chill run through the back of his head. He began to run in the opposite direction, away from the noise.
He scurried through the many halls of portraits, the pictures staring hungrily at him. He ignored them and went further – further away from everything. He wanted to get out of this place more than anything else, leave the darkness and never return. The torch wavered, following his fist as he thrust it back and force, struggling to keep up his pace.
Rayman eyed the portraits angrily, returning their deadly gaze. He scowled at them, growling slightly as he ran down the twisting corridors, completely clueless to where he was heading.
He ran faster as he heard a torrent of snickers, nearly tripping over as the maniacal laugh drifted over to his ears. He slowed to a halt, struggling to catch his breath. Everything began to spin around him, dizzying his mind. He stumbled slightly, putting one foot in front of himself to balance himself.
The fire sputtered at him, nipping at his hands with its bright sparks. Rayman groaned, putting his free hand on his forehead, looking at his visible breath in the cold air. He scowled and looked at the fire, its orange gaze reflecting upon the hero’s eyes.
Rayman choked, feeling an icy-cold hand take hold of his chest and slamming him against the wall, constricting him. He looked up slowly, fighting to pull away the creature’s grimy claws away from his body. The portrait behind him was indeed living, its frame a home for the strange monster that squeezed the hero’s breath away.
He made contact with its swirling purple eyes, a never-ending merry-go-round. He couldn’t take his eyes off it; he felt the blood rising up to his head, his heart thumping rapidly in his chest.
The monster tightened its grip around his torso, crushing him slowly. Rayman couldn’t yelp, he couldn’t gasp, and he couldn’t breathe. He felt its knife-like claws digging into his flesh, slashing the Guardian’s Symbol while doing so.
With what breath he had left – Rayman screamed in pain, struggling weakly to free himself. Everything around him blurred intensely, throwing off his balance. He was finding it difficult to lift his eyelids, clinging unto his consciousness for life.
Mindlessly, half-awake, he thrust the torch to the creature. Watching the blurred figure of the monster being eaten by the flames, he smirked victoriously, feeling the hard grip on his chest letting go of him.
Rayman closed his eyes, feeling his body drop to the solid ground. He breathed deeply, struggling to hold the torch upright. He still felt the pain, the stinging, burning sensation on his chest. He hasn’t lost consciousness – he was still alive.
The Limbless character groaned, fighting for air. The sounds of his faint breathing echoed throughout the halls, only to be replied by that same, insane laughter. That sound that made Rayman’s ears bleed, that made him want to go deaf.
“Get up!” his mind ordered. “Get up, now! You’re stronger than this! Do you want to protect Ly and your other friends or not? Do you want to see them die; see them in agony?”
Opening his eyes and raising his head slowly, he fixed his gaze on the fire, coughing out splashes of blood. The pain in his chest had spread throughout his entire body, traveling rapidly through his veins. The burning feeling forced a groan out of him, making his head crash back to the ground.
“How many times do I have to say it?!” his mind started again. “Get going, you wimp! How can you be so useless, so weak? Get up, get up, GET UP!”
“I’m trying,” Rayman gasped, unsteadily rising to his feet. Involuntarily, he twitched one eye, all the pain weighing down on his back.
Recovering a fraction of his lost stamina, he began running for it – running away for life.
“Don’t give up,” he told himself. “You have to keep going, Rayman – never stop… Just go, go, go… Now’s not the time to take a break. Your friends – the ones you love, they’re counting on you! So c’mon, let’s go!”
He kept on running, never stopping, ignoring his constant wheezing. Ly… oh, Ly. She was depending on him – everyone was depending on him. He couldn’t fail; he couldn’t quit. He had to continue, continue running away from the darkness and toward his friends.
A tear began to form in his eyes, rolling down his cheeks and splashed unto the dark concrete floor. He wiped the liquid away from his eyes, refusing to cry yet again.
He continued to dash through the endless halls, focusing on keeping his balance. Right, left, right, left… Running had never been this hard for him. He was slowly losing his breath; the fatigue was weakening him intensely. He felt himself run into something; making him lose his focus and drop to the ground.
Groaning and clenching his fist, he slowly got up and opened his eyes. What he saw next put a lump in his chest – made him freeze on his spot.
There he was, standing before Rayman, renewed and looking even more powerful than last time – was Reflux. He smirked at the flabbergasted Rayian, crouching down to meet him at eye-level.
“Wh-what?” Rayman gaped, flinching slightly from the Knaaren’s gaze. “I thought I got rid of you several years ago!” He scowled bravely at him, his dark-blue eyes blazing angrily.
Reflux only laughed at the sight of him. “You’ll never defeat me, Rayman. As long as evil lurks deep within your heart, I will never disappear.”
Rayman began to struggle away from him, away from the insane monster that glared at him. “What are you saying? The only one who has evil within their hearts here is you!” He wavered his torch around Reflux’s face, baring his teeth viciously at him.
The Knaaren laughed harder from seeing Rayman’s face. “Well, don’t you look so violent,” he said sarcastically, sheathing out his scepter. The tip of it began to glow a faint purple-white, illuminating more of the area around them. He pointed it at the Limbless and scowled. “This is the moment I’ve been waiting for… Bye-bye, you little twerp…”
A powerful beam suddenly shot out from the scepter and at the little Limbless Hero. Rayman gasped and dodged at the knick of time. An explosion occurred as the beam made contact with the ground, creating a thick dust that wafted about them.
Cursing to himself, he cleared the smoke with his powerful hands, his weapon above his head in ready to squish the little Limbless character.
“You can run all you want, but heed my words – I will get you! You hear me?!”

Rayman was running yet again – away from the destructive monster. He gritted his teeth in frustration, clenching one fist. The fire on the torch had died out from the blow, throwing him back into eternal darkness.
He had no idea where he was going, and he didn’t really care. As long as it was away from this place. Oh god, anywhere but here. This hell of a place.
He looked ahead, seeing a dim silver-colored light. It was a hundred yards away from him, beckoning him into its illuminating door.
Rayman couldn’t resist smiling. He had found it – he finally found the way out. He ran faster, feeling the terrible sensation of air being drained from his body. He was running out of breath, he could barely take the pressure.
“Just a little more…” he told himself. “Come on… Keep it up!”
A little more seemed to be miles for the exhausted Rayian. What would he give to just collapse there – to give up forever.
But his friends… They needed him. He couldn’t give up. He didn’t have any other choice. He couldn’t fail on them – he had come this far. Failing would be worse than death in this situation. He can’t, he couldn’t, and he wouldn’t.
His head began to throb furiously as he lunged toward the door, but he ignored it, as if it were invisible. He dived at the door, and collapsed to the ground. He did it, he actually did it…

Rayman opened his eyes to the real world, and smiled faintly as Ly’s face loomed into view.
“Hey…” he whispered to her.
The fairy got up from her chair and held him close to her. “You’re okay… Oh my god, thank goodness…”

Limely · Post by **Limely** » Mon Feb 25, 2008 7:37 pm

Excellent, really. :3 It gets a bit detailed here and there, which in some places is good, but some places it seems a little bit uneccesarily detailed, maybe.
Other than that, this is very exciting. Looking forward to the continuation! : D

Holy Crap · Post by **Holy Crap** » Tue Feb 26, 2008 10:46 pm

reminds me of zay's fanfic. i haven't read yours yet, but if you've read zay's, you'll know what i mean.

Termonaptir · Post by **Termonaptir** » Wed Feb 27, 2008 1:16 am

Yes, he's a very good writer... I'll never get even half... no wait, not even a quarter of how good of a writer he is.

"OMFG, she's being super negative again!
OMG, OMG, OMGGGGGG!" Well, it's in my personality. Nothing I can do about that, mate.

And lately I haven't been in the best of moods... I might get off the internet for a while soon... Unfortunatly, also leaving the great Pirate-Community members for several days... maybe a few weeks. I need a break from the computer, after all... I only come here to encourage and cheer on my friends in need...

This chapter took me freaking forever. You won't be seeing another one in a month or two... Probably. Unless a miracle were to happen and I would get off my lazy ass and get back to work. Don't worry though. This is by far one of the darkest chapters in the story... It has its better points later on. You'll see that part in around.... Hmm... I dunno.... Summer vacation.

Holy Crap · Post by **Holy Crap** » Wed Feb 27, 2008 2:22 am

i haven't read this yet, the comparison to zay's was that it's really long, with chapters that exceed the post count. that's what i meant when i said its like zays. and also, you are still being very negative about yourself. here's some advice: optimism = happiness. a bit of ego and a general sense of "oh well" helps too.

Zay-el · Post by **Zay-el** » Wed Feb 27, 2008 2:28 pm

No whining about long chapters there! X3 When Zay starts to write, he writes until he can't feel his fingers anymore! XD

Seriously, you won't get any break from my huge chapters. The next part is already 9 pages long, and I'm not even half done with it...though if one thing, I can assure that it'll be exciting like hell! 8D If all goes well, I'll be done by the end of the week. When I really start writing, I get a chapter-part done in a week, or two, tops.

@Brayissimo: Though I can't say it didn't make me feel all warm and everything, don't say that. I'm still just a wannabe, just as much as you. You can hold your work up to mine with no problem, so no whining from you either, you hear?

Limely · Post by **Limely** » Wed Feb 27, 2008 2:53 pm

I can take me a month or two just to write ten pages. I'm a slow writer. I'm working on something original, for a comic, but my computer crashed and I lost everything, so now I have to start over again.

Looking forward to your next chapter too, Zay. : 3

Termonaptir · Post by **Termonaptir** » Wed Feb 27, 2008 10:18 pm

Thanks, Zay. Thank you, everyone.

Well, it seems that I'm in the years when life gets a bit... harder. When I start to realize there are thousands - no, millions of idiots out there who get their pleasure from making fun of others. I'm still quite young, and the majority of my life is still ahead of me. That may be the reason why I've been so negative. Sorry, guys.

I happen to be a bit lazy... Of course, I have to take breaks between my writings, or else my brain would get busted. I need to think adjectives, tons of them... I'll probably start writing again in... Hmm... two weeks maybe? Then it'll take me around a month to finish... Also, another project of mine - draw every freaking character (well, at least the major ones...) in the story. It's slowing me down greatly...

Limely · Post by **Limely** » Wed Feb 27, 2008 10:54 pm

Mmm, drawing. You should post your Rayman-drawings here on PC too! : D

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