Fate and Choice, Chapter 1

As mentioned in the prolouge, this is in third person even though the prolouge was in first person. If you think it's a strange first chapter, I'm sorry, but there are some things in it that are important.

Prolouge:  http://www.youngwriterssociety.com/work.php?id=88975

~Chapter 1~

            Subtly, the terrain under his feet changed, abandoning the lush meadow it had been before and taking up a more grainy, sandy feel before the plant life disappeared completely leaving a newfound desert. Around him, the tendrils of mist slowly disappeared, burned off by a scorching sun that he had not known before. Soon he was wandering through this new desert land, over hill after hill and across dune after dune. He wandered under the desert sun, quite honestly worried about where in the world he was, or if he was even on his world anymore. He reflected on how it had seemed like forever walking through the mist, yet at the same time like no time at all. Confused and hot, he wandered on, beginning to severely doubt that he was, well, anywhere.

            He paused on the crest of a dune. Not a soul, no life in sight, except for the random dead bush that dotted the landscape. But even that isn’t exactly alive, is it? He slid down the dune before wiping the beads of sweat off the back of his neck. Ripples on the horizon made him wonder if the oceans he had heard about from legends came in shades of tan and gray. The sun climbed higher in the sky, even when it seemed it couldn’t go any farther and merely hung there. He glanced at it, wondering how long he had been stuck in the endless sandy waste. No cooling mist greeted him from anywhere- Is this really where I am supposed to be? Surely Vermillion wouldn’t send me somewhere I couldn’t survive for long. He remembered her commenting on how he was ‘immortal’ and could not be injured. Yes, but does that count for dehydration as well?

            The ripples in the distance grew more intense as the heat peaked, and he soon began thinking he saw something bright and colorful poking above the dunes. He had heard about this from others, when one wandered in deserts for too long. Now I’m going delusional and seeing things that aren’t there. I have a feeling this will not be a good day. Against his better judgment, he kept walking towards the strange structures. Slowly, he was proved wrong, as he climbed yet another pile of sand and hesitated. That’s a pretty real delusion.

            Below him, lightly and brightly colored tents stood starkly against the endless brown and tan of the desert landscape- purples and greens and shades of blue he had never seen before. He blinked, watching figures dart in and out of the tents, and others as they meandered lazily, chatting and pausing to poke around some of the stands outside the tents. He heard bodiless laughter drift up from the scene, and finally noticed the soft din of the place. His heart skipped a beat in his sudden relief. Civilization- however strange it may be, was certainly welcome at the moment.

            But still he hesitated. Something told him that this was a place he had never known the likes of. It appeared to be some sort of market, a larger scale of the bits and pieces he had seen now again in a small community. Then it occurred to him- this was a perfect place for supplies, but what had he to haggle with? Last he had known, he hadn’t exactly had much money as most of the important things he had bought with his time.

            Frowning, he casually stuck his hands in his pockets to cool them off for a second- a second was all it took for his skin to feel the cool metal of coins he had never known were there, and some sort of slip of paper. Curious and surprised, he pulled out this piece of paper. Vermillion’s neat yet elderly handwriting was on the small page, neat and orderly.

This is your money. All the things you never had. Use it now for whatever if is you will need- even I don’t know what will fit those specifications at this point, but I suggest starting with getting yourself something new to wear- I know you haven’t looked at your shirt lately, but you’ve had it long enough that you should replace it sooner than later. Think and use this wisely, plan ahead. If you don’t know what you’re getting yourself into, then pack accordingly. If something looks useful, stop and look at it in more detail. If you can think of multiple practical uses for it, then it’s not a waste of your money. No, this isn’t a currency you’ve ever seen before- if I had more time to explain I would have, but the time I had was very short, as this page is only so long. I would suggest not wasting any on food, you won’t need any, and if you have any left over then you should go around again, as it means you’ll have missed something. Don’t underestimate yourself. Keep yourself alive, try not to get yourself into something you can’t handle.

Good Luck, lad.

For some reason, it was encouraging yet at the same time it really wasn’t. Why wasn’t food important? Why couldn’t she be more specific? These questions added to the ones that already had taken up floating about his mind, but still he was left answerless and slightly agitated. But, it was true when she said it not a currency he had seen before- but he could make good guesses at which were most valuable and which ones not so much. The numbering system it used was very close to his own, and he soon had it straightened out enough in his mind to actually make use of them. With that, he slid the mass of coins back into his pocket, baffled by how he had not noticed them before…

            Finally, he was able to enter this strange marketplace. It had a welcoming air and the people he passed seemed either friendly enough or used to strange people, seeing as no one stopped and stared at his ragged clothes or seemed to notice him at all, for that matter. Some of the stalls he passed was trinkets and some gear, others were full of fans and more of water bottles and practical equipment. Making a note of that one, he continued, since the note said to start with clothes. It was actually not hard to find the right tent, due to the calligraphic sign outside it that read ‘Tailor Talberts’. He ducked into the large purple and yellow tent and would have gasped if he hadn’t have been specifically trying not to draw attention to himself. Even with how big it looked on the outside, it seemed much larger under the top. Candles and some lights were shining overhead, and other people wove in and out of the aisles and patterns of clothing racks. He had never seen so many clothes in one place, it was…. Amazing. His village had been small, local maidens and older woman had sewn clothes to trade to the others of the village. But this, it was… like a market in and of itself. Rack upon rack of all different sizes, styles, colors, it was confusing and complex. He wandered through the aisles and rows, trying to get a feel for the place and figure out exactly what he was looking for.

            Here and there were displays or shelves of other small items and accessories. Bandannas, bracelets, necklaces, gloves, he passed many things that looked similar to things he had used before, yet at the same time, very different. He also passed things he had never seen before, and things that he couldn’t imagine anyone wearing.

            Eventually he got the feel of the place and its complex designs laden with flare and… something else. Something that he couldn’t place. Something alien that made others drawn to them but he did not understand. Many of them did not look practical at all. How could you smith tools, bake bread, or mind your garden with any of those things on? He looked for simpler things, things more suiting to the lifestyle he knew well…. Then he remembered Vermillion’s note, and he realized he had no idea if he would be doing any of that ever again.

            He continued to search, finding that he actually had a lot more money than he had first thought from looking at how the clothes were labeled and priced. So, not much to worry about, it seemed. He still browsed until he found the small section that he was looking for, the most regular things in the large tent- shirts and pants.

            What caught his eye was what he found here, something that seemed totally out of place between some small, short shirts. An outfit hung there, perhaps something that had been put back in the wrong place. It was totally black, and stuck out because it was not just a shirt- a black shirt hung under a long, black coat and over a set of long black pants. Curious, he looked at it in more detail- the coat went down very far, longer than many coats he had seen. It would rest around the wearer’s ankles, and the short-sleeved shirt and pants seemed to match it exactly- a fake pattern on the shirt reminded him of some sort of robe that would wrap around and tie, or some tight outfit. It was basically a shirt that had an extra flap on the outside to give this effect, more for show than anything else, put did create a bit of a pocket. On the matter of pockets, the whole outfit seemed riddled with them. The pants had hidden pockets further underneath the ones at hip level, and the coat had a lot of them, ones at hip level that were accessible from both the outside and inside of the coat, ones inside the coat at chest level, and even had pockets or holders of some sort in the sleeves and shoulders. The pants not only had some elastic bands but also had belt holes, and loops farther down like carpenters’ pants. The whole thing was made of sturdy materials, the coat was insulated, but the shirt and pants were light and loose. I suppose that would be right for both the hots and the colds. Practical use, it has much of. He didn’t even mind that it was all black- black was a color he had lived with and could live with, and it was what he had worn most of the time anyways. This was not surprising, as his hair has actually black also. The thing that did seem unusual, though, was how cheap it appeared to be. But, as he looked around, he decided that was probably because it was all black and had no decorations or anything on it at all. Removing it from the rack, he took one last look over it, and decided that it was okay. Maybe it stuck out when placed between vibrant, short shirts, but anywhere else it was just a casual outfit that would last a long time. Good enough for me.

            He looked around, trying to figure out what to do next. He saw several men, in the same outfit. Perhaps they handled this store. Seeing him looking at them, one approached him.

            “Do you require assistance?” The man asked. But, it sounded… strange. Almost like it wasn’t actually his language. But he could understand it clearly… Perhaps I will ponder this later, as now does not really seem like the time.

            “Er, yes.” He responded. “I have never been here before… And…” He tried to continue bewilderedly.

            The man nodded, understandingly. “Come.” He waved to the younger, and then led him to a curtain that closed off a smaller room. He motioned him to continue inside, and the lad slipped behind the curtain. The man secured the curtain behind them. “Now, you can try it on, the clothes you have chosen. We try not to send you home with something that may or may not fit correctly. I’m here to adjust them so that they’re comfortable for you.” He told the younger, producing a cushion of pins and some thread, and setting them on the floor.

            The shop assistant helped the young man into the clothes, the strange shirt, the light but sturdy pants, and finally, the long coat.

            “It’s been a while since I’ve fitted a trench coat, but I used to do it all the time.” The assistant mentioned as he was pinning up one of the sleeves.

            So, it has a specialized name… He noted. A trench coat. Perhaps they are made to be used in trenches of some sort?

            The assistant worked quickly and easily, only having to do little bits here and there to have it fit him just right. “You have an interesting body shape. Where are you from?” He asked, to make idle conversation.

            “Well, my village wasn’t very big at all, a few large farming families connected by some shops and crafters. We called it Ryetiset.” The young man told him, watching his careful work.

            “That’s an interesting name.” He responded.

            The lad blinked. He didn’t really think it was. Its name was very self explanatory. He felt strange, talking to this man. It was like… They could understand each other, but they weren’t speaking the same language. “It… It just means grain like sand.” He told him, saying the name slower.

            “I guess that would fit then, with a farming community.”

            He must have heard something different the second time… This was becoming strange. But, there wouldn’t be a way to investigate it, he decided, without getting some strange looks. So he would stay quiet about it.

            “Might we interest you in some new shoes also today?” The assistant asked, finishing the hemming on his coat.

            In his wanderings around the tent, he had passed their selection of shoes. They had been flashy and complex, or small, simple, and not very sturdy. None of those would he even want to take home with him. “No thank you. Perhaps some other time.”

            The assistant nodded, standing. “Alright. Does it feel comfortable? Pleasing?”

            He looked at it. It was light. It was easy to move in. He took a few steps and did a quick turn. The coat fluttered out behind him but didn’t wrap around his legs. It wasn’t restricting at all. He smiled. “Yes, I do believe so.”

            “Is there anything else I can help you with?”

            “Well, you can show me the way up to where I can buy it.”

            The assistant nodded and led the way out of the changing room towards the front.

            It actually wasn’t hard to find. He was led to a counter where another man was watching the activity uninterestedly. When they neared, he looked at them and broke out a smile.

            “Did you find everything you need?”

            He nodded. The assistant put the price tags on the counter, and they exchanged idle conversation as it was rung up. He paused to glance at a strange table that was near the counter. On it were laying ovals of material. They were all plain, white circles of material. What really caught his eye was how high they were priced- now, he didn’t know much about clothes, but seeing plain white material pieces priced almost as high as a fancy t-shirt had to mean something. He carefully picked one up to examine it closer, and his eyes widened as a color seemed to seep from where his fingers laid on it- the whole material slowly turned black, like dye spreading. His eyes widened, wondering what he had done. As he held it, the material began to shift and change. He stared at it blankly. “…Woah….”

            In his hands was now something totally different than what it had been before- something he had never seen, much less that it was just a piece of material before.

            “I think it thinks you need a hat!” Snickered the cashier as he appeared near the baffled customer.

            “I didn’t do anything, I swear.” He blinked earnestly.

            “I know that! This material just works on its own, you see. What you have here is made of fine chromolotus fibers held together with moonspider silk paste. Some call it magical, but I don’t think so. I just call it Gifted material- they say it changes into whatever the possessor needs most… No one understands how it chooses the color though.” He scratched his head. “I suppose black’s your color… and your own choices seem to agree.”

            It was amazing. This material had somehow read his thought and soul or something and transformed into a black hat. He supposed that since he was not short on money or anything, he could take it too. The man rang him up and he walked away with several things he had never seen before, and thoughts swirling in his mind of how it all could have happened this way…

            The rest of the supplies didn’t take too long to find, he scoured the place and found many useful things, some in the form of knives, others as stray mirrors or paperclips. Finally he ran out of money, and it was only after he was sure that there was no way he was buying any more. Everything he had had tied to his waste he tranferred to spots on his new coat, and everything seemed to fit very nicely. It amazed him.

            Not long after that, sunset came. All at once people seemed to disappear from the market, and he took that as his cue to leave as well. He wandered out the other side of the market from where he had entered, and to his astonishment right after night fell, white clouds of fog and mist appeared on the horizon. Oh my. This much fog can’t be normal for a desert like this... Could have it come back for me?

            Within moments, he was surrounded, but this time it felt more familiar, and he was much less surprised. As he knew now that he couldn’t control where he landed, he just kept walking, letting the cool tendrils brush his face… and realizing that he really didn’t feel like himself anymore. He was no longer a boy from a farming village.

            But then… who am I?