| Oba grew up in a somewhat typical village. The trees bustling with excitement, birds chirping as they whistled in the wind. Her village was calm, peaceful. Unfortunately, her parents were quite the opposite. Oba was always pushed to be better, to excel past their expectations. She always had her nose in her studies, forever pushing to please the ones before her. Yet, this took quite the toll. After an argument with her parents, she took to the forest. Oba had always been one to adventure and seek the unknown. She frolicked through the tall grass, swirled her hands through the luscious moss-filled creek. Wonder filling her eyes at every sight. The world, magical and extraordinary to her. As she trampled through the never-ending grass her feet suddenly let out on her, tumbling to the ground, she threw her hands out in front of her, catching herself before eventually falling to lay on her back. Slowly catching her breath, she gazed upon the sky. The sun had almost set, the clouds dissipating into the warm orange glow of the afternoon atmosphere. After catching her breath, she’d suddenly stand up. Opening her eyes.. when had it suddenly become midnight? Oba blinked in confusion. The stars twinkling in the pitch black sky. Suddenly, the bustling environment shifted. Mist slowly encroaching around her. The buzzing forest fell silent. Oba waded through the thick misty fog, her eyes watering as it crept, encircling her face. Holding her head high, she gasped for any amount of air she could. She’d blink a couple times as the peak of a housetop came into view. Unlike her houses, this one had pointy roofs, and appeared much bigger than anything she had seen before. The stature of the house, much darker, and much, much older. To flee the fog around her, she ran towards the mystifying building. Eventually, she stumbled upon a gate and a path leading up to this structure. After searching for any opening, she found a small square cut out of the metal by a past explorer. She entered, the mist abruptly disappeared behind her, the gate acting almost as a barrier. She treaded forward, walking past the rows and rows of roses that lay at her feet. The house seemed quite abandoned, yet, the garden perfectly preserved and blooming. She finally reached the large door that stood at the end of the pathway, it looming over her. She reached her hand out, patting the giant entryway. To her surprise, her hand phased right through it. In shock she stumbled back, staring at the front, then back of her hand. Had the castle also been made of this entrancing mist? Ultimately, she gained the fortitude to walk through. Immediately she was met with darkness. The quiet whispering wind of the outside promptly stopped, the only light source that was visible being small sconces lining the walls. She finally mustered enough courage to continue walking. Ever so quietly she paced the halls, it feeling never ending. Unexpectedly she turned a corner to a room she had never seen before. Jewels decorating the walls, painted glass entombed within the ceilings. She continued onwards, admiring every sight. Reaching the end stood a podium with a black and red scroll placed atop it. Approaching this scroll she suddenly heard faint whispers around her. She quickly turned around, yet, the whispers quieted and drifted into the room’s buzz of silence. Turning back around she slowly reached her hand out, the scroll.. almost.. calling to her? She picked it up, mist slowly pouring out of this mystical relic. Oba eagerly unrolled it, the whispers getting louder around her. “Open me.” one uttered. “Read me.” another articulated. She finally unrolled it fully, it reaching to her knees. The second she looked at it, the whispers silenced once more. It read.. |
| “Wake up.” a voice called to her. Oba blinked, a sudden wave of drowsiness hitting her. The scroll, still within her hands. She leaned against the podium, her head feeling fuzzy. Placing the scroll upon the podium, she looked down. Her gray and red hair, falling upon her face. She swiped her gray hair back, pushing it over her shoulders. Her gray hair. Her.. gray hair? Sudden realization hit her, it feeling almost.. unnatural. She quickly spun around, assuming someone to be behind her. Yet, she was met with not a soul but the glowing gems reflecting onto her. Grasping at her hair she peered down at it. When had her hair gotten so.. gray? |
