DREAMS of a CLOUD
Peruse the many random ramblings of a writer-in-training as I build stories and develop my craft.
26 September 2023
“Why are you telling me this?”
I paused. That was a good question. Was I trying to help them reconcile? It’d probably been too long for that. Even if it’s possible, there are better ways to go about it. Vindictiveness, maybe? That’s probably it. I wanted Tairsi to understand at least part of the pain she’s heaped on Elsenaia, to feel some of it for herself. “You’re right. I’m sorry; that wasn’t my place to say. I’m just… frustrated, I guess?”
23 September 2023
Adam sidled up next to me, hands on his weapon. “Uh, by any chance, would you mind telling us what the heck is going on?”
“Well, basically, the guards are all freaking out because Robin took out their captain so easily. Especially since she wasn’t using any magic. So Elsenaia–that’s the princess, there–is telling them to knock it off, especially since her captain attacked us first. I think she wants to make peace with us.”
8 August 2023
Darrett scoffed. “So you debased yourself for nothing, then? Typical.”
Something snapped inside me. With a smile that did not reach my eyes, I quipped, “That’s rich, coming from the king’s pet hound. All you can do is bark insults at your betters.”
The glade grew silent for a moment, then Darrett unsheathed his blade and lunged at me with a roar.
7 August 2023
Not that the scowl on my face helped matters at all. I glared at Darrett, then turned on Tairsi and drawled, “So princesses aren’t allowed to have friends, was it? No wonder she can’t trust anyone.”
Except… that’s not what I said. Or… it is, but not in English. Somehow, I spoke to them in perfect Elvish.
9 June 2023
He found Elsenaia with her hair tied back, pointy ears showing, and dressed in a ratty shirt and old jeans, both covered in fresh paint of all colors. It was probably to most casual he’d ever seen her, and somehow, it made her seem even more radiant.
15 May 2023
Suddenly Elsenaia had a flashback, clear as the moon of the day Tairsi had left. The day they stopped being friends, and were merely a princess and her subordinate.
After all, princesses aren’t allowed to have friends.
Then Elsenaia saw him, eyes burning. Nick was there. Nick was watching her memories. Somehow, Nick was inside her head.
3 January 2023
“Every family’s different. Some are like yours; cold and distant from each other, too concerned about pride to care about love. A lot are way worse; there are whole portions of our local governments dedicated to dealing with abuse and shattered homes. But yeah, this is real.” I mused for a moment, then added, “I wouldn’t be surprised if many of your own people had families like this. What was Tairsi’s family like?”
Eenaia had no response. The palace around me shifted, somehow, as Esenaia tried to withdraw, close herself off.
29 December 2022
I was dead tired, and had no idea what I should write. So I decided to brainstorm, because I wanted a clearer image of who the guy in Elsenaia’s story is. A lot of it was based on me, but not everything, and I want him to be clearly distinct from me. Hence the brainstorming below.
22 October 2022
My mind froze with horror, and I was whisked away to an imaginary battlefield, where elven sorcerers unleashed powerful magics on a faceless horde. It was devastating; if they’d been real people, thousands would have died within seconds. However…
Inside my head, Elsenaia grew bewildered as the setting changed. From afar, based on the video clips I’d seen of them, clips of various mushroom clouds started to play. Then the image zoomed in to blasted homes, vaporized shadows against what remained of the walls showing where people stood. Empty. Desolate. Even the ground was poisoned.
“What is this?” Elsenaia whispered.
15 October 2022
I did notice, however, that none of the memories showed Elsenaia when she was a kid. At first, I assumed that was because magic training started at an older age, but then I caught a glimpse of a child Elsenaia smiling happily at her tutor, and I began to wonder.
Before I could investigate more closely, however, those same mirror walls came down around the memory and pulled it back into the depths of her mind.
10 October 2022
I turned my attention back to the dioramas, and found one that seemed to represent her argument with the guard earlier. While both were jointed like artists’s mannequins, it was curious that only the guard had a proper face, while Elsenaia’s did not. Instead, she wore an elaborate silver diadem I hadn’t seen in real life. On top of that, she was held in place by puppet strings leading to the ceiling, although the guard had none.
30 September 2022
Elsenia grabbed one of my arms. “Wait! Please!”
I turned to look at her. “That’s you, crying on the other side, isn’t it?”
She didn’t answer, but her eyes still pleaded with me to stop. I put one hand on her head and said softly, “If I stop now, who is ever going to let you free?”
26 September 2022
The results of my one-hour brainstorming session to learn more about Elsenaia’s past and why she is the way she is.
24 September 2022
Another time, I was poking around to see if Elsenaia had anything she actively enjoyed doing, rather than felt obligated to do, when I heard her scream from my mind.
I popped over, only to find Elsenaia running desperately from a hulking skeletal figure wearing ominous black armor and wielding a scythe.
“Why do you have Death wandering around your head!?” Elsenaia screamed, and she headed straight for me.
17 September 2022
When I opened my eyes, or whatever I used to see in this astral projection, I stood in a hallway with a red velvet rug running down its length. Scattered down the hall on both sides were doors of every possible shape, size, and material, interspersed with countless small tables. Some had random items, like dolls, books, or even a pair of old boots, whole others projected a 3d image from the surface. The one in front of me had an image of the guard she’d been arguing with before.
16 September 2022
“It seems harsh to kill a bunch of people when our only crime is to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
Her eyes flared at that, but she held out a hand, stopping the guards, and stalked up to me. “Very well, then,” she hissed, a dark smile curling at her lips. “Prove it.”
With one eyebrow raised, I asked, “And how do I do that?”
Her smile grew darker. “By letting me inside your head.”