Chapter Text
A voice said,
Look me in the stars
And tell me truly, men of earth,
If all the soul-and-body scars
Were not too much to pay for birth.
- Robert Frost, A Question.
Pain. That was the first thing they felt. At least they thought it was pain. They couldn't seem to recall anything else. Why couldn't they remember anything? Limbs, bones, flesh and blood all ached in a chorus, singing as if they wanted to drown the world out. Trying to open their eyes brought discomfort, as they were trying to open eyes that didn’t exist, along with the two in their skull. Did they used to have other eyes? But humans only have one or two, and they are human…right?
Focus, focus, focus. They needed to figure out where they are, instead of WHAT they are. Straight forward, they could see a piano. Old make, but it looked quite new. Dust had settled on some of the keys. Doesn't look like it has been used often. Looking to the sides, they could see file cabinets, knocked over furniture, and a desk with an open packet. Three doors were scattered across the room, all closed. They groaned in frustration. Movement would be required for further investigation. Maybe they could delay that part, just for a minute.
The Fledgling closed their (two) eyes again. The pain across their body had dulled, making it easier to reach into their brain, and with that, their memories. So they reached in. Something faint seemed to surface in their mind’s eye, causing the stranger to pull hard on it. Suddenly, a recollection flashed into their mind.
They were arguing, yelling at someone, or something.
“ꖎ╎ᓭℸᒷリ! ∴ᒷ ᔑꖎꖎ ⍑ᔑ⍊ᒷ ʖᒷᒷリ ᒷᔑ⊣ᒷ∷ ℸ𝙹 ℸ𝙹 ↸╎ᓭᒲ╎ᓭᓭ ̇/ᒷꖎᑑ⚍ᔑ, ʖ⚍ℸ ꖎ𝙹𝙹ꖌ ᔑℸ ⍑╎ᒲ. ⍑ᒷ ᒲᔑ↸ᒷ ℸ⍑ᒷ ⊣ᔑᒲᒷᓭ, ⋮𝙹╎リᒷ↸ ℸ⍑ᒷᒲ ᔑリ↸ ∴𝙹リ! ⊣ᔑ╎リᒷ↸ ᒷ̇/!¡ᒷ∷╎ᒷリᓵᒷᓭ ᔑリ↸ ⎓ᒷᒷꖎ╎リ⊣ᓭ ∴ᒷ ᓵ𝙹⚍ꖎ↸ リᒷ⍊ᒷ∷ ⊣ᒷℸ ⎓∷𝙹ᒲ ∴ᔑℸᓵ⍑╎リ⊣!”
Thousands of voices seemed to reply, in a tone full of anger and frustration.
“ǁ𝙹⚍ ꖌリ𝙹∴ ℸ⍑╎ᓭ ᔑᓭ ∴ᒷꖎꖎ ᔑᓭ ∴ᒷ ↸𝙹. ∴ᒷ ᔑ∷ᒷ ᒲᒷᔑリℸ ℸ𝙹 𝙹リꖎǁ ∴ᔑℸᓵ⍑!”
Pain coursed through their head, pounding at each syllable. But they couldn’t stop. Not yet. They needed the answer. But it seemed the more they reached out, the more the memory started to blur.
“リ𝙹 リ𝙹 リ𝙹!”
They remembered falling, failing. Clawing at something dark and hard frantically, as if trying to cling to the edges of the world. A kind face with a six-sided dice and coin in hand. Offering a sentence only partly there.
“The man with yellow eyes…find him…Grab the key.”
Then the memory stopped, and they were left alone again. But not directionless. In a sense. The task was simple, in a sense. It would be been even easier if the Fledgling had any idea who “Mr. Yellow Eyes” is. That fact made a part of them even more frustrated. If anything, this just added more confusion! How are they supposed to know how to find this man! Everything around felt most unfamiliar, the only comfort being the sense of sweet dread lingering in the air.
Calm down. Get up and look around. You got this. They felt around them, until their hand something smooth and cold. Picking it up, they raised the object up, to see a blade made out of some dark, shiny rock. An obsidian knife? It seems as if the rock had been hastily craved, with the ends being radged and almost blunt. In the middle of the obsidian. Bedrock. Something no average player human could break. They had no recollection of having this dagger ever in their life, but the dark blade felt like it was meant for their hands. I should keep this. They patted their waist to find that they had coat pockets, which their prompts killed with the knife. Hopefully it wouldn’t cut their pockets.
Okay, I’ve been putting it off for long enough. Time to get up. Finally, they push their aching body off the cold floor, their balance shaking as they got onto their feet. Looking down, they saw that their trembling feet were bare, seemingly tanned as they had spent weeks in the desert sun. As they raised their head again, they noticed something off about one of the doors. A sickly sweet feeling, almost a scent, emitted from what seemed like a closet. Slowly, they wobbled over, like a toddler taking its first steps, over to the closed closet door. Was opening this door which they knew must have something Not Good behind it a smart idea? No, but maybe knowing what it was fully was more important. Hands trembling, they grasped the seemingly gilded handle and opened the closet.
As soon as they opened the door, the body of a man fell out, giving them only a moment to leap out of the way. Oh my stars that better not be Mr. Yellow Eyes. They paused. Or maybe that would be a good thing? Easier to get the key. They cautiously tip-toed over to the body, before looking into the man’s eyes. Nope. Average human eyes. They sighed, it wasn’t gonna be as easy as it could have been. After cursing quietly, the stranger decided to take a better look. The man was bulky, in almost a muscular sort of way. If he stood, he’d be much taller than the corpse finder. With this realization felt a little sense of fear, prickling like powdered snow in their soul. This man recently died, probably killed because of where they found them. If he couldn’t fight back, there’s no way they would be able to take the killer on. Should they get out to avoid being the victim? But the Fledgling hadn’t seen anyone alive here. Maybe the culprit moved on.
But before they could debate on the matter any longer, they heard footsteps coming. And the relation they were alone in a room with a dead body hit like a truck. Panic flooded their mind. How were they going to explain this? The person on the outside gave no time for them to figure this out, knocking on the door hard. When met with no response, the person started banging on the door, with such effort the Fledgling thought the stranger was trying to break it down.
I need to get out.
As if listening to their thoughts, the door was slammed open, revealing some sort of burly maintenance man. Without missing a beat, the Fledgling bolted to the gap between him and the doorframe.