Here is a brief 500-word story that Mara wanted me to share. Make sure your lights are on.
A nighttime thunderstorm splashed rain against the picture window of the darkened living room as Adan and Mara read by a luminous orb Adan had created with a runic spread. They were not certain if this was an actual storm or just more of the violent disturbances that had plagued the house for nearly a week. And they had not found any reference in the notebooks belonging to Adan’s father about thunderstorm attacks. Leafing through books related to dimensional disturbances, Grams sat in the kitchen at the massive wooden table covered with large pillar candles. Odin, whose fur was its normal grey and brown, lay undisturbed by the fireplace.
Then the lightning flashed.
Intense, blinding light flooded the living room; Grams ran in from the kitchen, forced to shield her eyes from the glare. Odin ran toward Adan, who like Mara kept his head down on the floor.
“What is it?” screamed Mara.
“It’s definitely NOT a thunderstorm!” Alex shouted. He turned his head slightly to see Odin pressed against his shoulder. Odin’s fur was changing to iridescent silver.
“Grams!” yelled Adan. “Odin is silver!”
Grams grabbed a blanket from a chair and made her way to the center of the room and got down on the floor with Adan and Mara, spreading the blanket over the three of them.
They were now able to open their eyes with only the pulsating orb light illuminating their makeshift tent. But they could still see the light through cracks in the throw and hear a deep throbbing bass sound that vibrated the floor. Adan tried to open a journal that lay near his head. He quickly thumbed through the pages.
“What is it? What’re you doing?” Mara asked, her voice still rising above the pounding sound.
“I remember something I saw in this journal about silver,” said Adan.
Grams lifted a section of the blanket to see Adan and Mara more clearly. “I think it ah might be the ah Clarion dimension,” she said as her voice faltered, trying to outdo the volume of the storm.
The light began to fade, and the floor ceased vibrating, and within seconds Adan threw off the blanket, only to see glowing symbols hovering in front of the window. They looked as if they were written with fire.
“Mara! Can you read these symbols?” Adan asked in his normal voice.
Grams stood with a look of amazement.
Mara grabbed her digipad and ran closer to the symbols, which were at least three feet high. “I’m pretty sure it’s….” She found the reference. “Yeah! It’s a cuneiform variant. The symbols mean…”
Grams interrupted Mara and stepped within inches of the fiery script. They were dimming, and the room was slowly returning to darkness. “They ah say ‘Help’”.
Adan ran toward the last visible rune and reached out. As it dissipated, Adan yelled out, “Mommmmm!”
Grams approached Adan, who sank to the floor.
“We’ll find her Adan,” said Mara. “We’ll find her.”
“I’m leaving for Clarion,” whispered Adan.
A nighttime thunderstorm splashed rain against the picture window of the darkened living room as Adan and Mara read by a luminous orb Adan had created with a runic spread. They were not certain if this was an actual storm or just more of the violent disturbances that had plagued the house for nearly a week. And they had not found any reference in the notebooks belonging to Adan’s father about thunderstorm attacks. Leafing through books related to dimensional disturbances, Grams sat in the kitchen at the massive wooden table covered with large pillar candles. Odin, whose fur was its normal grey and brown, lay undisturbed by the fireplace.
Then the lightning flashed.
Intense, blinding light flooded the living room; Grams ran in from the kitchen, forced to shield her eyes from the glare. Odin ran toward Adan, who like Mara kept his head down on the floor.
“What is it?” screamed Mara.
“It’s definitely NOT a thunderstorm!” Alex shouted. He turned his head slightly to see Odin pressed against his shoulder. Odin’s fur was changing to iridescent silver.
“Grams!” yelled Adan. “Odin is silver!”
Grams grabbed a blanket from a chair and made her way to the center of the room and got down on the floor with Adan and Mara, spreading the blanket over the three of them.
They were now able to open their eyes with only the pulsating orb light illuminating their makeshift tent. But they could still see the light through cracks in the throw and hear a deep throbbing bass sound that vibrated the floor. Adan tried to open a journal that lay near his head. He quickly thumbed through the pages.
“What is it? What’re you doing?” Mara asked, her voice still rising above the pounding sound.
“I remember something I saw in this journal about silver,” said Adan.
Grams lifted a section of the blanket to see Adan and Mara more clearly. “I think it ah might be the ah Clarion dimension,” she said as her voice faltered, trying to outdo the volume of the storm.
The light began to fade, and the floor ceased vibrating, and within seconds Adan threw off the blanket, only to see glowing symbols hovering in front of the window. They looked as if they were written with fire.
“Mara! Can you read these symbols?” Adan asked in his normal voice.
Grams stood with a look of amazement.
Mara grabbed her digipad and ran closer to the symbols, which were at least three feet high. “I’m pretty sure it’s….” She found the reference. “Yeah! It’s a cuneiform variant. The symbols mean…”
Grams interrupted Mara and stepped within inches of the fiery script. They were dimming, and the room was slowly returning to darkness. “They ah say ‘Help’”.
Adan ran toward the last visible rune and reached out. As it dissipated, Adan yelled out, “Mommmmm!”
Grams approached Adan, who sank to the floor.
“We’ll find her Adan,” said Mara. “We’ll find her.”
“I’m leaving for Clarion,” whispered Adan.