Melancholy Summers Axis: Chapter Four: The Eye of Pity

Chapter Four: The Eye of Pity

              “Finally home again?” A familiar voice called out to Claire, but she could hardly concentrate on walking. “What’s wrong Claire? You look pale, did something happen?” Once again Claire did not answer the voice of her mother. In fact she didn’t even know where the voice came from.

              “I…” These were the words Claire let out before collapsing on the kitchen floor…

OOOO

              “Wake up human… Don’t let her use you…” A soft angelic voice rang through the sea of darkness that Claire floated over. Her feet nearly dipping into the pitch black water. Nothing but the dark sea could be seen for miles and miles.

              Although the voice had told her to wake up, Claire found it very hard to do so. Claire felt safer with her eyes closed, and so she kept them that way.

              “No! Child of man! She’ll take control of you if-“The voice was interrupted as Claire let out an ear piercing scream, her body falling from the air and into the black colored ocean. Even though her body had been tossed under water, Claire could not find the strength to close her mouth, and continued to let out a blood curdling scream. The water started to fill her lungs, making it hard for her to breathe, and her vision grew weaker and weaker. This was the end, this is where Claire would leave her mark on fate.

              “Oh my! Looks like this is the end, huh?! Ahahaha~” A very snooty voice rang through Claire’s head, though she could feel reality slipping away. “Alright I’ll just skip all the boring crap no one cares about and get to the important stuff!” The voice continued to yell out. “Anyways, You’re about to die right?! So why don’t you call on your princess and protector, Coraline, to save you from this mess?!” Coraline received nothing but silence as Claire continued to drift to the bottom of the pitch black ocean.

              “Well I’ll take that as a yes then!” A strange snapping sound could be heard throughout the still ocean. All of a sudden Claire’s entire body pulsed and she flew to the surface of the water, leaving a great impact on the ocean and shaking it so hard that ten feet waves began to rise.

              Claire flew higher and higher into the air, though she was still unconscious. The soft angelic voice spoke up once again. “No Coraline! What are you doing? I won’t let you have her! And if that doesn’t work I’ll possess her body myself!”

              The cocky voice spoke let out a laugh. “Are you kidding me Pulse? I just saved her life! It wouldn’t make sense to kill her… at least not yet.” And with that statement Claire flew higher and higher up until she was light…

OOOO

              “Can you hear me?” A voice called out from somewhere, but Claire couldn’t tell where it came from, or if it was male or female. For Claire still stood on the border of consciousness.

              “Oh come on now! You’re stronger than that!” Coraline’s cocky voice echoed through Claire’s head, which surprised Claire, since she thought the recent events were all a dream. “Wake up now, my Claire~” The voice said in a strange soothing tone.

              Upon hearing the awkward tone of voice, Claire awoke to a very strange sight.

              She appeared to be in some sort of hospital bed and was surrounded by a white curtain, but more importantly was the girl in front of her.

              The girl had light purple hair that was completed by two wolf ears. She wore a nurse’s outfit that was complete with yellow colored eyes and a long light purple, bushy tail. The girl was very cute, and Claire couldn’t help but be attracted to her. She especially loved the small tooth that stuck out of the left side of her mouth.

              “How ya feeling?!” The girl asked while swishing her long bushy tail. Seeing the tail made Claire blush. She liked fluffy… things.

              “U-Um… I feel… great?” Claire said as her face flushed even more.

              “Claire! We need to get away from her! She’s dangerous!” Coraline’s voice rang through Claire’s head once again, but she ignored it and gave into her feelings.

              “Hold on… I think you might have a fever…” The wolf girl put the back of her hand on Claire’s forehead, but the contact was too much for Claire and she passed out…

OOOO

              “Are you crazy?! That girl is dangerous!” Coraline’s voice rang out once again. However it echoed not in Claire’s head, but in a very fancy room.

              The room’s walls were made of fine carpet and so was the floor, both were a crimson red color. Glass ornaments lined the shelves of several glass cases. But most importantly was the chair that sat in the middle of the room, and the girl that sat in it.

              The girl had long light red hair and emerald green colored eyes. She also wore dark gothic Lolita style clothing, and a large claymore with a jeweled hilt and a blade made of gold lay next to the chair, resting on the arm to be exact.

              “Claire what are you doing? You belong to me…” The red headed girl said soothingly, then teleported behind Claire, feeling her hair with her own fingers. “You have such soft hair~” The girl cooed. Claire blushed, and also tried to say something, but she felt as if her mouth had been sealed shut.

              “Oh! That’s right! I made it so that you can only hear my voice Claire~ Oh! I’m sorry! I haven’t introduced myself! I am the one who saved you from a frightening new curse. I am Coraline! A new part of your conscience! You need me and I need you. Now awake Claire! You will find out about the curse that nearly took your life! I want you to save others from it too! Goodbye for now my sweet~” And with this the whole world turned a bright milky white.

OOOO

              Claire awoke in what seemed to be her own bed; at least she hoped it was her own bed. She also heard the annoying ringtone of her cell phone, signaling that she had received a text message. Claire reached for the cell phone on her night stand and flipped it open, nearly throwing it in shock at what the message contained.

              -End of Chapter Four: The Eye of Pity

Melancholy Summers Axis: Chapter Three: Leon and Melissa

Chapter Three: Leon and Melissa

Leon breathed a sigh of relief. His father was not angry; in fact he was the exact opposite. Leon’s father Vincent Somerset had agreed to speak to Leon about what they could do for the empire. Together they would think of a plan that would change the world. And together they would carry out that plan.

              The plain silver cell phone in Leon’s hand started vibrating. It was a text message from a girl very special to Leon, Melissa Hayashi.

              The text message read: “Hey when will you come and visit me?”

-M

              Melissa had always been very neat and orderly in everything she did. If it wasn’t for Melissa, Leon would have never become the polite young man he now was. Melissa had practically raised him. After Leon’s mother gave birth to him, she became bedridden with a mysterious illness, and his father worked hard in the imperial palace, living his days there. Leon had no one to look up to, until that one fated day the two children met.

OOOO

              It was a clear sunny day, and a small warm breeze blew across the yard of the Somerset manor. The large manor stood above the fields of Azurness, a place full of fertile and rich soil, great for farming. The manor was made of red and brown brick and contained a large steel gate along with a stone water fountain. And at this fountain a striking scene was playing.

              Four kids stood around the fountain, one of them appeared to be a girl with short pink hair and sapphire blue eyes. She wore a light blue summer dress, along with simple white sandals that had a flower design near her toes. The rest of the kids were boys who looked to be around eleven or twelve years old. The oldest looking boy, and the one who seemed to be in charge, continued to torment the girl by insulting her.

              “Heh, I heard your parents aren’t that rich! Is that why you sell flowers? Cuz they look like crap!” The boy said while smiling, the boys behind him laughed. Tears started to form in the girl’s eyes, sapphire colored tears to be exact. “See you’re nothing but a freak! No human would cry tears like that!” The boy chuckled, he was a lot shorter than the girl, but he thought he was tough apparently.

              “Hey! Why don’t you pick on someone your own size?!” A voice called from behind the fountain.

              “What was that?! If you think you’re so tough then show yourself!” The oldest boy yelled out. The other boys also yelled out random insults that mostly backed up the leader of the group. There was nothing but silence from behind the fountain for almost a full minute, until a young boy who seemed to be about ten years of age sprung out from behind the fountain.

              “Stop making fun of this girl! What gives you the right to do this?!” The boy had messy medium long silver hair and gold shiny eyes. He also wore a black colored suit that mirrored his family’s social status, but the boy’s face was full of sweat, as if he was scared of facing his new enemies. Despite this fact, he stood lean and tall, his right fist extended outward toward the group of boys.

              The leader of the group laughed so hard that tears formed in his own eyes, and his low cronies backed him up. “And what are you going to do about it? Pinch me?” The boy let out another loud laugh. However a few of the boys in the group looked nervous, as if they finally realized who the boy in front of them really was.

              The boy who looked to be second in command spoke up nervously. “W-Wait! Aren’t you Leon S-Somerset?! Son of Dallas Somerset? Let’s get out of here! This kid could have use arrested this very second!” As the boy ran off in fear, so did the rest of the group, only leaving the bewildered leader behind.

              Leon smiled smugly. “Well?”

              “Humph! This won’t happen again! From now on you and I are rivals! I’m Shinji Inoue! And you better remember that name!” The boy yelled this as he made a thumbs down motion with his hand, then ran off to catch up with his gang.

              “Hey are you okay? I’m glad I could chase those boys away.” Leon said as he approached the shy pink haired girl. He held out his hand for the girl to shake. “Hey, I’m Leon, Leon Somerset. Though you’ve probably heard of me… haha.” After saying this, Leon smiled widely and put his other hand on the back of his head.

              “I-I’m Orion Hayashi… Thanks for saving me.” The girl looked down at her feet and blushed. She spoke really softly and it warmed Leon’s heart a little. He felt himself getting attracted to this girl, she was unbelievably cute too 

Melancholy Summers Axis: Chapter Two: Blinded Eyes

Chapter Two: Blinded Eyes

Claire ran as fast as she could until she reached the outskirts of town and approached a small junkyard. The junkyard was place Claire would always visit if she was feeling depressed. And today was one of those days. There wasn’t much in the junkyard except the old scrap metal and hollow vehicles that the empire no longer had a use for. It once had a title engraved in a sheet of steel hanging above the fence post, but it long since faded away leaving nothing but the letters “L” and “E” visible.

              As Claire progressed farther and farther into the junkyard she had thought of unfair her life had been for the last couple of years. Almost everyone she ran into had treated her with utmost respect, and not because they wanted to, it was as if people feared her and felt they needed to respect her because the empire treated her and her family with special care. Her father was never home; he stayed at the capitol and worked there full time, only taking a break when a major holiday occurred. Her own mother expected her to grow up and always addressed her with an air of seriousness. Yet when she talked to Claire’s younger siblings she always had a smile on her face. “I’m only fifteen years old you can’t expect me to grow into an adult overnight…” Claire thought to herself. Thoughts swirled around in her head as she made her way to her favorite spot in the junkyard. The only people who really accepted her as friends were Leon, and her childhood friend Grace Velvet.

              The two had known each other since they were very small children. And they were always seen together after that one fated day they met…

OOOO

Ten Years Earlier

The two small girls had walked off to go play in a forest nearby the gathering of the two families. The Velvet family also served the empire, and had done so for many years. So while the adults talked the children played amongst each other.

              Grace Velvet and Claire Willow were the oldest of their family and both were to work with the empire. The girls began to wander until they made it to a strange clearing. In the middle of the clearing lay an old grave stone, it was carved with words of the ancient language. “Hey! What do you think it says?!” Grace said happily as she began to approach it.

              “Wait Grace! Do you think it’s safe to go near it?” Claire asked nervously. Her large brown eyes were filled with fear. However Grace had already begun to approach the stone. The girl’s orange pigtails swayed in the wind, and her crystal blue eyes were filled with wonder. She lifted out her hand to touch the stone, and as she did this something terrible happened.

              The entire clearing radiated with a bright indigo light, but a strange force also swept through the clearing, knocking both the young girls off their feet and into a nearby tree, rending them both unconscious. The light dimmed down to leave another large and odd figure standing in the clearing. It was a large statue of a headless woman. The woman wore what looked like a simple robe and held a long and sharp looking harpoon in her right hand.

              The statue approached the two girls, but it only seemed to be interested in Grace. It picked up the girl by the back of her shirt and set her on her own two feet. The statue then dropped its harpoon and covered both of Grace’s eyes with its stone hands, spouting six angelic wings in the process. As the wings spread an indigo colored aura formed around Grace and her body went limp, though she was still held up by the statue’s firm hands.

              Grace immediately began to scream as the aura began to fade. The statue removed its hands and Grace fell to the ground, her once crystal blue eyes were now a dull misty gray and devoid of life. “I-I can’t see anything!!” Grace yelled out. Her yelling eventually awoke Claire who was still resting at the foot of the tree. And once her eyes opened and set their sight on her friend, she began to panic.

              “G-Grace?!” Claire yelled out in utter panic, her eyes widening at the sight. However Grace had stopped screaming and blinked in surprise.

              “I-I can see everything… So this is how the world really looks? This is… amazing!” Grace yelled out happily as she extended her arms toward the sky. “The sun is magnificent! The sky, the trees, everything!”

              Words could not easily describe what Grace was seeing. It was as if everything had been glorified ten times over. Everything shone with a new light, for this was how the world was supposed to be. Unlike the grim dark world it truly was. And it was then that Grace began to understand what her goal in life was. She wanted to bring peace to Velvus, to return it to its once glorified state. When the strange statue had made contact with her she had felt a burning passion to change the world, and she would change it in the most peaceful way possible. Maintaining peace became the most important thing to her on that day, so important that she would lose sight of other things…

OOOO

              Claire had finally made it to her favorite part of the junkyard. It seemed to be some sort of pit that contained lots of scrap metal. Used vehicles and other abandoned pieces of metal lay in the pit. If anyone were to fall into the pit the metal would cut them to pieces. Lumber also lay on each side of the small walkway through the junkyard. All these things that lay before Claire were all familiar to her. But one thing surprised her. In the middle of the pit of scrap metal stood a very familiar stone statute. And on the headless statue’s shoulder sat a familiar orange haired girl.

              “Oi Claire! How are you?!” Grace called out cheerfully. Grace had hardly changed over the years. She still wore pigtails in her orange colored hair, and fine Victorian styled clothes that showed off her family’s social status. Not even her chipper personality had changed. The only thing that was different was the magenta colored glasses with oval shaped lenses she wore. The color and shape of the glasses went well with her personality.

              “Grace! What are you doing up there?! You could fall and get hurt! Are you crazy?” Claire’s motherly instincts almost kicked in instantly. Ever since the incident she felt like she needed to protect Grace from all harm. Though Grace often told Claire she could do things on her own. And this was the friendly relationship Claire and Grace had with one another.

              “Oh I’ll be fine! Here watch!” Grace extended her hand and the statue did the same. This made a small bridge that Grace could walk one, albeit a narrow one. Nevertheless Grace walked across the statue’s arm like it was a balancing beam, out stretching both arms and jumping onto the cliff Claire stood on. “Tada! Was that cool? Or was that cool?” Grace said with a large grin.

              “You could’ve fallen! What were you thinking?!” Claire yelled as Grace winced and smiled goofily.

              “Ya, but didn’t I look great? Nihihi~” Grace added her signature laugh to the end of her sentence.

              “How did you learn to control that thing anyways? Last time I saw you, you could only make it appear and disappear when you wanted to!”

              “Are you forgetting you haven’t seen me for about a year? You’re so cute Claire!” Claire blushed at these words then quickly replied. “A-Anyway! What are you doing in Nottus? I thought you lived in the capitol now?” Claire asked.

              “Oh! My uncle Reynold came to visit! He said he wanted to see his hometown again! So my siblings and I agreed to come with him! Anyways want to head into town and buy some lemon shakes? That’s the best thing about this place!” Grace said cheerfully.

              “Boy is she as chipper as ever…” Claire said under her breath. “Sure I guess. It’s the middle of summer and I haven’t even had a lemon shake yet? How lame am I?” The two girls laughed and caught up with each other as they headed into town…

OOOO

              “Man! Talk about delicious! D-e-l-i-c-i-o-u-s!” Grace said as she and Claire sat down at a table with a large umbrella to shade them from the sun. “I can’t believe I haven’t had one of these in 365 days! Heck I could eat one every day!”

              “That wouldn’t be good for your health…” Claire trailed off as she took a sip of her lemon shake. She noticed a silver haired man approaching them. He had crimson colored eyes and his hair was very oddly placed.

              “Hey Grace! We should head back home, it’s starting to get late.” The man said as she placed his hands in his pockets. “Oh? Who is this?” The man said as she caught sight of Claire.

              “Hey Uncle Reynold! This is my friend Claire! The one I told you about!” Graces said cheerfully. “Claire this is Uncle Reynold, Uncle Reynold this is Claire.”

              “It’s nice to meet you Claire, Grace talks about you all the time.” Reynold held out his hand and Claire shook it. “Well I’m afraid it’s time to go Grace.”

              “Aww but I just started eating my lemon shake! Oh well… See ya later Claire!” Claire waved goodbye to Grace and Reynold. Even though she had seen her friend for only a short time she was glad to have seen her again. But she couldn’t shake the new buzzing noise that had entered her head...

-End of Chapter Two: Blinded Eyes

Melancholy Summers Axis: Chapter One: Claire Willow

Chapter One: Claire Willow

The girl had chosen to walk away from her own emotions. She had decided to do everything on her own now. The empire would do nothing to judge the vile and evil people of the world. Even her own father would sit around and kiss the emperor’s feet, just like everyone else…

              Claire was the girl’s name, followed by the family name Willow. The Willow family had always possessed very unique abilities compared to others. One such ability was to see the outcome of events, or rather several possible outcomes. This made the family very useful to the empire, for a family member who possessed such and ability could easily see the outcome of a war and stop the worst result from happening. And it was Claire, the oldest child of the family who had this ability. She was destined to become a pawn of the empire, and she would not let this happen.

              She had realized that all the empire cared about was money and power, they did not care how the citizens acted. Crime filled the streets of every city, town, and village. The people basically ran wild and did what they pleased. What had happened three months had changed Claire, and she decided to become a vigilante at the young age of fifteen…

Three Months Earlier…

              “Claire, do you often wonder why there are so many bad people in the world?” These words were spoken by Claire’s best friend, Leon Somerset. Leon was a stunning fifteen year old boy with silver colored hair and gold eyes. His eyes and hair, along with the expensive clothing he wore, made him stand out in the small village of Nottus. He was rumored to be the son of a noble, but no one really knew, for he tried to keep a low profile.

              The two friends sat on the front porch of the Willow residence. They had only known each other for a short time (two months to be exact), but they slowly got to know each other every time they met. Claire brushed her silky black hair behind her ear and thought about Leon’s question. “I honestly don’t know… But isn’t the empire going to do anything about it? Velvus could be a peaceful place if they wanted it to be…”

              “Claire what if I told you my father is trying hard to change things? However, Emperor Topaz won’t do anything about it, let alone listen to our complaints. Our family works hard, yet he won’t listen?!” Leon slammed his fist on the porch floor, hurting his hand in the process. “I’ve had enough, I think it’s time the empire realized how serious we are. If they don’t want to listen to my father, then they’ll just have to listen to me! I’ll show them that I’m more than just a child!!” Leon spoke these words with such courage that they planted a small seed in Claire’s own heart. But it was a seed that would grow much differently than his.

              “Leon… As your friend I will support you. I’ll try to help you wake the empire up.” Claire had spoken what was on her heart but they only seemed to anger Leon even more.

              “You shouldn’t have to do anything Claire. Only our family can do this, or rather only I can do this. I will do everything in my power to change this corrupted world.” After saying this , a very plain ringtone could be heard. Leon reached into his pocket, pulled out his cell phone, and answered it. “I see… I’m sorry father.” He then hung up and told Claire he had to leave, which saddened Claire, but she knew she would see him again.

              Even though she didn’t want to, Claire walked back into her house and went up to her room. She would have to be bored for the next two hours until her mother came home from work. Claire’s room was very plain, with only two bookshelves. A small bed also sat alone in the farthest corner of the room. Claire chose a thick book that was a collection of poems by Harrow Pond, and sat down on her bed to read it.

OOOO

              Claire awoke to the sound of someone knocking on her bedroom door. “Come in!” Claire said. The door opened to reveal a woman in her mid forties. The woman, who had silky black hair like Claire’s and also wore oval shaped glasses, looked over Claire with a face of seriousness. She seemed to be a very down to earth woman.

              “Claire did that Leon kid visit again?” The woman asked sternly.

              “He did mother, but does it really matter?” Claire said as she put her book down on her bed.

              “Didn’t I tell you to stop hanging out with that boy? Do you realize his father is trying to rebel against the empire? Did you know he could be arrested for tre-“

              “Okay mom! I get it! You don’t want me to hang out with the only friend I have! I finally find someone who actually cares for me as a person! Doesn’t that matter to you?!” Claire lashed out in her anger. The feeling had whirled up inside of her faster than she could control it.

              “Claire! That’s not what I meant! I only want to keep our family safe! The empire could arrest us too if they found out we knew the kid!” After hearing these words Claire dashed out of her room, passing her younger brother and sister in the hallway. She needed a place to think, and she knew exactly where she was going…

-End of Chapter One: Claire Willow

Melancholy Summers Axis: Prologue: Prodigious

Prologue: Prodigious

A young girl with long silky black hair and deep violet eyes approached the bulky bald man. They seemed to be standing in some sort of strange junkyard, what with broken down trucks and cars surrounding them. The girl had a very piercing gaze in her eyes, her pupils had somehow grown larger than that of normal humans, or so it seemed. The man didn’t know what to think; as the girl moved closer to him he backed farther into the junkyard, until he had finally decided to run faster and faster into the abandoned junk, but this would not protect him, instead his fate would be sealed.

            “Why are you running Reno? Do you know what you have done to that Jerrica’s family? You must be brought to justice…” The young girl advanced farther into the junkyard, hoping to pursue the older man she had set her eyes on. She would do it, she would kill him. God knows the government of wouldn’t do it, they were too busy brown nosing the emperor. Only she could do it, her father and the police were powerless.

            “C-cant you just leave that to the police? I hardly did anything and almost got away with it! It’s not in your power to bring judgment on someone! You’re just a child!” The bald man, whose name was Reno had yelled this out somewhere deep within the junkyard, revealing his exact location to the young lady. The young girl smirked as a dagger appeared in her hand with a flash of light, living mist to hang in the air like fog. This was the first time she would commit such an act, but she was sure she would do it more than once.

            “Come out Reno…” The young girl ran through several endings in her mind, it was just one of her abilities she possessed, and she chose the one she liked the most. She followed the sound of Reno’s heartbeat until she had backed him into a corner of timber and scrap metal. Rows of timber lay on each side of the two and a pit of scrap metal lay behind Reno, who looked scared out of his wits. “So Reno… You get to choose. Should I stab you in the heart? Or let you be impaled by the sharp scrap metal in the pit behind you? You decide, because I have all the time in the world…” The young girl smiled cruelly, she even added a chuckle to lengthen the suspense.

            “Now c-cant we just talk this over?! Look I’m sorry for killing the girl’s horse! It’s not her fault her father is a complete jerk! I had to get back at them somehow!!! It was just payback for what he did to me! I can also tell you were the girl and her sister’s are!! Just let me go okay!! Please?!” Reno continued to beg and plead for his life while the young girl looked bored and uninterested, as if she was waiting for the coward to stop spewing about a lost cause. However Reno stopped talking and backed up to the edge of the pit.

            “You done yet? Is that what Jerrica’s sisters said to you too? Did they ask and beg to be let go? Did you let them go? No! That’s why I must bring judgment upon you, you sick sick man…” The young girl advanced towards Reno, who fell backwards and would’ve fallen to his death if the girl would have not caught his hand. “I think I might be having second thoughts… Actually… nope!” The girl smiled cruelly as she let go of Reno’s hand, his face stricken with pure terror, the girl smiled even wider as she heard the metal tear through the man’s body. “It’s over…” She said happily…

            

The Melancholy Summers series as a whole

I decided to write one long blog post about my Soon to be series, Melancholy Summers. Now for those of you who don't know, Melancholy Summers is a series based in the single fantasy world of Rove. However each entry in the series is a different story with a different cast of characters. Although I want each entry to have a common theme of hopelessness or just dark elements in general. Though it is written by me an American, I hope to have an overall manga style art for this series. I also don't want to the Melancholy Summers series to be restricted to novels but to expand into games and other media too. My first novel in the series, Melancholy Summers: Solstice can be read on fictionpress.com under the manga section. It has a bit of a slow start but I promise it will deliver.