Back at a different net cafe. The owner of the last one I used to go to figured out I was a savage. I'm kind of surprised it took them so long to figure out. Somehow, it's written all over my face. I guess I'll never understand.
Where did I leave off? Oh yes. My sister. Right now she's in Lazu with Monica and I'm stuck here alone. It wasn't always like that though. For about a year I lived with my cousin, Sabrina. I had always known I had a cousin named Sabrina, but I had no idea she was human.
When I first met her I was ready to give up, just following my feet. I accidentally bumped into a human and a fight was about to break out. It was then that she picked me up and took me to her house. She saved me. Not just that, she told me that she knew exactly who I was at first glance. She also told me that there was no difference between humans and myself. She hated how people referred to me as a "savage". She bought me clothes and shoes and let me live with her. Her apartment was my second home. I loved her dearly.
It's thanks to her that I was able to go to school and make friends. Well, I made two: Amy Brendal and Zachary Oddenwal. I learned a lot of things from Amy. She was my first friend. She was the the first person to be nice to me (well, second. The first was the principal, who knew my cousin. the receptionist doesn't count). She taught me about refrigerators and merry-go-rounds and movie theaters. She even invited me to her house once. Her mother didn't like that at all.
I met Zack one morning that I got to school early. He played the piano every morning in one of the music rooms, all alone. I was the first to be able to listen to him play at that time. after a while, we started meeting every morning. Both he and Amy were my only friends at school. Sabrina always said that I was lucky to have such caring friends. She said it was proof that changes needed to be made in the way we think. Back then I never really understood her.
Just when I thought things were going to be ok again, the media took notice that Hemmstead High had a savage as one of their students. That however, was only the diversion. The real problem was that by staying on Earth, I had not escaped my attacker. They kidnapped my cousin and took her to an abandoned house, and used the media to slow me down. When I finally got to her is when I met her. The same woman who stole my ticket back at the harbor was the same woman who...
She could have killed me right there. But she didn't. Instead she killed... before my very eyes. Why didn't she kill me? I would have gladly accepted death if that meant...
I collapsed. When I came to, I was at the police station covered in blood. I only wished it was mine. There was a very kind reporter and psychiatrist there. Aside from them and the, everyone else believed I did it. No matter how much I wanted to stay, I couldn't. my cousin's death was a clear sign that I was not strong enough to protect myself... and those that I care about. So I left.
It's been 6 years now. I'm definitely stronger than I was before. I've been training in and out of my village all this time. My goal is to be reunited with my sister again, but until then I've decided to resume my studies, in honor of my cousin, who didn't want people to say that I was "ignorant". Come August, I will be in touch with the principal of Hemmstead High and enroll as a senior. Thank goodness the principal is the same as when I was a 6th grader.
Wish me luck!
Tuesday, July 28
Before we begin...
It's been a while. I'm still trying to get settled. My cousin left me an apartment, in her will, but I keep being denied this right. It's because I'm a "savage" that I don't have any rights. So, in the mean time I've been living off of performing on the street. I'm all dressed up and my face is painted so that everyone will think I'm just that, a street performer. I don't mind sleeping on the floor. Some of the other homeless people have been nice enough to lend me a dirty pillow. They take it away from me in the morning, though.
In my previous post, I said I arrived at New Armsdale when I was 11... but then I got a little carried away with talking about my village. I guess, that's what I should get to. If not, you'll never understand what I'm trying to tell you.
I have a twin sister named Lily, and on our 11th birthday our parents died in a fire. Our Elder thought we were being targeted, so he felt it best we leave to a safer place. Everyone knows that in Lazu no one is prejudice against "savages". It was our Elder who gave us the tickets to the Falckon017. It's the only ship that can take you to and from Lazu. We were supposed to meet a friend of my parents' there. her name was Monica.
But something happened. I got separated from my sister and someone stole my ticket. I'll never forget the face of the thief. It was the face of a pale woman with ice eyes and red lipstick. Just looking at her paralyzed me.
No matter how much my sister, who was already on board, pleaded, no one would let me on. I watched my sister fly away on that ship. I'll be 17 in August. I still haven't seen her. I hope she's doing well. I wonder if she ever got in touch with Monica.
Ack! I need to get off this computer before I'm charged extra. I'll have to continue my story in another post.
In my previous post, I said I arrived at New Armsdale when I was 11... but then I got a little carried away with talking about my village. I guess, that's what I should get to. If not, you'll never understand what I'm trying to tell you.
I have a twin sister named Lily, and on our 11th birthday our parents died in a fire. Our Elder thought we were being targeted, so he felt it best we leave to a safer place. Everyone knows that in Lazu no one is prejudice against "savages". It was our Elder who gave us the tickets to the Falckon017. It's the only ship that can take you to and from Lazu. We were supposed to meet a friend of my parents' there. her name was Monica.
But something happened. I got separated from my sister and someone stole my ticket. I'll never forget the face of the thief. It was the face of a pale woman with ice eyes and red lipstick. Just looking at her paralyzed me.
No matter how much my sister, who was already on board, pleaded, no one would let me on. I watched my sister fly away on that ship. I'll be 17 in August. I still haven't seen her. I hope she's doing well. I wonder if she ever got in touch with Monica.
Ack! I need to get off this computer before I'm charged extra. I'll have to continue my story in another post.
Saturday, July 25
An introduction of my setting is in order
I haven't always lived in New Armsdale. Where I was brought up until I was 11 was in the Village of Arx, in the De Minn Forest (just outside of New Armsdale). I still go back every so often. It will always be my first home; the home I am most comfortable in.
Some historians call my village the "miracle village". After all, it was the only thing that survived after the Big Bang. Yes. The Big Bang. You know, when the Earth exploded and miraculously unified itself again; only to leave out a small chuck, about as big as our Moon, named Lazu. Yes well, throughout that whole ordeal, the only think that remained intact was the Village of Arx. No one really knows how it happened. The only one who supposedly knows is our Elder, but he won’t tell us, no matter how much we plead.
Most think that it’s because of this miracle, that most humans share hatred towards us. They have given us the name “savages” because we live in the forest. Every since the Big Bang, there has been an unwritten treaty. We, the “savages”, do not enter the realm of the humans, and the humans do not bother us. Even though no human has ever entered the realm of the forest, they have made up this story of how we live; which, by the way, is a complete farce.
We have wooden houses, not huts. Some houses do have straw roofs, but that doesn’t mean anything. We have furniture. We have books, clothes, modern tools (just not electric ones), and musical instruments. We do not worship animal deities, we worship the 4 elements. We believe that it is the 4 elements that saved us. We may not have refrigerators, microwaves, air conditioning, and skateboards or cars, but those things are of no use to us. We hunt to obtain our food (and we don’t over do it too), salt to preserve it, fire to warm and cook it, take a dip in the many rivers and lakes the forest has to provide, and if we ever need to get somewhere fast… we use the strength of our legs.
We are a peaceful village. Even so, every child trains to become a warrior, even girls. Girls tend to have more precision, which is why there are more female archers than male. Those who can not or decide they do not wish to, service the village in other ways. Blacksmiths, seamstress, teachers, and medics are a valuable part of our village. Training is part of our teachings in school (like “physical education” in human schools). When the adults are not training, there are other things to be done: gardening, cooking, and the making of jewelry, clothes, swords, and other such things. As I said, we are a peaceful village. During my 11 years, and many, many years before than, my village has not once fought another village (humans call them “reservations”) nor entered in any kind of war. It was more like a past-time; a sport, if you will.
Perhaps, I’ve bored you with the details of my village, but believe me. I could go on and on. I never cared of the human world, mostly because it didn’t care about me. On my 11th birthday everything changed.
Some historians call my village the "miracle village". After all, it was the only thing that survived after the Big Bang. Yes. The Big Bang. You know, when the Earth exploded and miraculously unified itself again; only to leave out a small chuck, about as big as our Moon, named Lazu. Yes well, throughout that whole ordeal, the only think that remained intact was the Village of Arx. No one really knows how it happened. The only one who supposedly knows is our Elder, but he won’t tell us, no matter how much we plead.
Most think that it’s because of this miracle, that most humans share hatred towards us. They have given us the name “savages” because we live in the forest. Every since the Big Bang, there has been an unwritten treaty. We, the “savages”, do not enter the realm of the humans, and the humans do not bother us. Even though no human has ever entered the realm of the forest, they have made up this story of how we live; which, by the way, is a complete farce.
We have wooden houses, not huts. Some houses do have straw roofs, but that doesn’t mean anything. We have furniture. We have books, clothes, modern tools (just not electric ones), and musical instruments. We do not worship animal deities, we worship the 4 elements. We believe that it is the 4 elements that saved us. We may not have refrigerators, microwaves, air conditioning, and skateboards or cars, but those things are of no use to us. We hunt to obtain our food (and we don’t over do it too), salt to preserve it, fire to warm and cook it, take a dip in the many rivers and lakes the forest has to provide, and if we ever need to get somewhere fast… we use the strength of our legs.
We are a peaceful village. Even so, every child trains to become a warrior, even girls. Girls tend to have more precision, which is why there are more female archers than male. Those who can not or decide they do not wish to, service the village in other ways. Blacksmiths, seamstress, teachers, and medics are a valuable part of our village. Training is part of our teachings in school (like “physical education” in human schools). When the adults are not training, there are other things to be done: gardening, cooking, and the making of jewelry, clothes, swords, and other such things. As I said, we are a peaceful village. During my 11 years, and many, many years before than, my village has not once fought another village (humans call them “reservations”) nor entered in any kind of war. It was more like a past-time; a sport, if you will.
Perhaps, I’ve bored you with the details of my village, but believe me. I could go on and on. I never cared of the human world, mostly because it didn’t care about me. On my 11th birthday everything changed.
Friday, July 24
"Start at the beginning..."
Hi. Give me a minute to collect my thoughts. And I'll start from the beginning and when I get to the end, I'll stop.
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