For those unfamiliar with Myst, all you need to know for this story is that one can use a technique called "The art" to write books that link to other worlds, called ages, in essence one can write their own world. Just inside the cover is a panel that when touched (usually with palm of a hand), the user is transported to that world. There are countless books like this.
Edit: I should've put this in as well. In the game series, the character "Stranger" is just a player avatar. He could be me, or you, or even Sarah Palin. Sorry if I didn't include that in my description of Myst.
![Embarassed :oops:](./images/smilies/icon_redface.gif)
Without further ado, I present my fiction. It is a oneshot.
Attempt
Stranger was very familiar with the legends of the D’ni people. Having heard countless tales about them from Atrus, he was no stranger to the topic.
So it was no surprise that the numerous stories got Stranger interested in the workings of the civilization. After all, it was their linking books that were able to take him to many fantastical places. Tomanha, Channelwood, Serenia, Ameteria, even Riven was a result of their art. It was the book of Myst that had started it all, and the idea behind that book was also thanks to the D’ni.
So one day, Stranger asked Atrus how linking books really worked. The man was more than happy to tell his old friend the story. He even went so far as to show the ancient writings to Stranger.
When Stranger seemed to become interested, Atrus taught it to him. As he had already taken the J’nanin lesson course, although he was forced to and the course had been altered, so all he needed was the art of writing and he could make his own age.
He had kept the teachings very well, and remembered them for a very long time. Eventually, there came a time when he came bored of his explorations.
Myst Island was getting old, as were the four other ages connected with the island. Riven was gone, and there was currently no spare linking books to J’nanin, otherwise Stranger would have gone to the 223rd age or Edanna right away. Even though Serenia was a fantastically beautiful place, there was nothing else to see there.
However, there was another solution. If there were no other places he wanted to go to, and if the places he did want to go to were barred, there was one other option previously unopened to him. He could create his own age.
It could be a world of his choosing. An age he could create however he saw fit. And he would be able to explore it all by himself! It would be something to remember.
And so, he took a blank linking book that Atrus had given him should he ever decide to try his hand. The red cover was soon unseen as the book was opened. He began writing.
It took him a long while. Stranger lost all track of time. He was sure it took him many days at the least. Exactly how many he was uncertain, it seemed like forty days total. Of course, he took breaks.
But he soon had his very own age. After working for so long, he was finally done. As he looked at his work with excitement, he could barely wait any longer.
He quickly inscribed a name for the age on the cover. Stranger was satisfied with the result.
Stranger sucked in a breath. It was time. He grabbed a nearby linking book, one that actually linked back to the age he was on; he would need a way to return.
Then, with the sheer amount of anticipation forcing his hand to shake, he slowly opened the book to reveal the panel. A moment later he was gone.
For a moment, the area was devoid of activity. Only the wind was there to disturb the silence.
Then a sound was heard as the Stranger rematerialized a few moments after he left. He was back.
For a second, he looked around as if trying to find out exactly where he had linked to. As it turned out it was exactly where he had been before. And he looked down to the linking book he had previously used to go to the new age below him.
He sat down, and at the same time he reached to pick up the linking book. He looked at the panel for a moment, which was still visible as the book had not closed since he linked away.
Stranger then remembered the uniformity with Atrus' ages, how they all had balance and simplicity. Stranger's age, on the other hand, was very chaotic and random; to the point he could not navigate it. There wasn't even a comparison, Strangers' age had turned out very bad.
With a sigh, he tossed the linking book away. I should leave the art of making ages to the professionals. He decided.
Please don't hesitate to comment, I would love to know how good I did, and if not how I could improve. Thanks for reading!
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