Ch. 3 – A Crash Course Introduction



Any lingering hopes that what happened could have been a dream were instantly dashed when Dante came to.

Slurp!

“Ew! Yuck!” He pushed the green muzzle away from his face, sitting up as he did. “Stop that.”

The creature, Kibou, obliged by sitting back on the blanket covering the boy, tail still wagging and his head tilted as he gazed happily at Dante.

After wiping off the worst of the drool, Dante finally took in his surroundings.

He was lying on a thick futon in a room that looked as though it had been made from bamboo. From a nearby window, he saw some of the same tropical forests he’d landed in earlier.

The sun had set some time ago and it was completely dark outside. Over in a corner near the futon, a yellow crystal emitted a light that softly illuminated the whole room.

Dante stood up from the futon. Next to the mattress was a folded set of clothes – some shorts, a sleeveless tunic, and a pair of soft leather boots. Realizing he was still only wearing his boxers and a T-shirt, Dante quickly put these on. They were a bit big on him but comfortable nevertheless.

Kibou yipped at him before he bounded to a door across from the futon. After looking back eagerly at Dante, he pushed it open and dashed out.

It was clear that he wanted Dante to follow.

On the other side was a large room with many doors leading to other parts of the house, including a pair that presumably led outside. More of those glowing crystals shone in each corner of the room.

A long table was set up in the very center of the room, and sitting at one end was Prospero.

“Finally awake, are you?” he asked, not looking up from what he was doing.

Dante stepped closer, following behind Kibou. He could see an assortment of items on the table – potion vials, a few sacks, tiny crystals, coils of multicolored rope, some random articles of clothing, and even what appeared to be musical instruments.

As he got closer, Dante saw Prospero looking over the cards again. After scrutinizing one, he would place it on the table. The card would shake when released before turning into the item it depicted. It was almost as though he were playing some strange version of solitaire.

“I’m certain you have many questions,” Prospero said, placing another card on the table. “Now would be as good a time as any to ask them.”

Dante watched in fascination as the card changed into a piece of paper covered in strange writing. It twirled in the air and slipped between the covers of a leather-bound book on the table.

Still uncertain about what was happening, he sat at one of the chairs. Next to him, Kibou sat on the ground, the top of his head peeking over the tabletop.

“How long was I out?” Dante asked.

“For a decent amount of time,” Prospero said, placing down another card that turned into a blue potion. “It is currently very early in the morning, just before dawn in fact.”

“I see…” Dante thought for a moment. “Where exactly am I?”

“We’re in my home, on the outskirts of Haven Village, on the island of Kortana.” Another card was placed, changing into a crystal and joining the others.

“Right,” Dante replied, “and that’s in the Cross Wind- ”

“Channel.”

“Excuse me, the Cross Channel Archipelago… in the world of Nibiru… a game I bought.”

“Only partially right there, my young friend.” Another card became a glowing moth fluttering inside a spherical jar. “This world isn’t some lines of code made to generate the terrain around us. It’s real. I made the game to act as a link between worlds.”

Dante was starting to feel hopeless. “I’m afraid I’m still not getting it.”

“Then allow me to explain from the beginning.” Prospero placed down a final card, which turned into a blue, crystal rose.

He finally looked up at Dante. “You must understand, the situation is different now. I’m about to divulge information I wouldn’t have given had this been a normal introduction.”

“You mean… if I had still been in my room?” Dante asked.

“Precisely.”

Prospero gave a wave of his hand, and the light in the room began to dim. In the near darkness, a ball of light appeared next to the man’s face, highlighting his features as he began to speak.

“First off, I am not from this world nor from yours. My world is long gone, destroyed decades ago by a grave threat.”

An image appeared in the air between him and Dante. It looked like a dark purple thundercloud, crimson lightning bolts crackling around it.

Even though it was just an image, Dante couldn’t help but feel something unsettling about the cloud. Ill intent seemed to radiate from it.

He was almost startled at the feeling of fur against his leg. A moment later, he realized Kibou was pressing close to him, shivering in fright.

“It is simply referred to as the Void,” Prospero continued, his expression deepening. “I don’t know where it came from or even if it began as it is. What I do know is that it’s constantly hungry and satiates it by draining the energy and life force from the different worlds it travels to.”

A strained expression briefly crossed Prospero’s face as though trying to hold back painful memories.

“I alone managed to escape,” he continued, “and since then, have been trying to find a way to combat the Void. The means of doing so did not present themselves to me until I came to this world.”

Another image appeared next to the evil storm cloud, a swarming ball of small, blue lights that almost looked like fireflies.

“The creatures of this world emit energy which, when strong enough, can counter the Void and hold it at bay. It’s not too powerful and can only last for so long. After a long period of research, I found that the energy of a being from a different world could boost it to a level where it could be more effective.”

As he spoke, a gold aura appeared around the blue lights, and they began to glow brighter. They became a bright green and then suddenly launched into the purple cloud.

With a CRACK, the cloud vanished, fading away and only leaving the green lights.

Prospero waved a hand, causing the images to disappear and the crystal lights to illuminate the room again. Kibou looked around warily, whimpering slightly. Dante touched the creature’s head almost without thinking, trying to comfort him.

“That is where the game came in,” Prospero went on, holding up another of the game cards – looking closely, Dante recognized the gold-bordered card as the one for Tenzin, the immortal artifact.

“I found a way of transmitting energy from one world to another, from a human being to one of the creatures here. There were limits to the process, but it was effective enough to hold off the Void – all the while, the human player would merely think of it as a game.”

Prospero’s face fell at this point.

“I hadn’t counted on how quickly the game would slip from popularity to near obscurity. By then, we’d been successful enough to fend off the Void and make it retreat, but it wasn’t gone for good. Since then, it’s changed its strategy. Instead of trying to take the world all at once, it’s spread its influence slowly. By now, this island is one of only a small handful of strongholds that the Void hasn’t managed to take. I fear it’s only a matter of time before it can make its final move.”

Prospero then pointed at Dante. “And that, my young friend, is where you come in. You and Kibou.”

Dante looked down at the green creature before looking back up at Prospero. “W – what do you mean?”

“You are the first to try playing the game in almost two decades. Whether you like it or not, you have become our only hope.”

Prospero placed down the card he had been holding. It shook like the others before changing into the maroon scarf-like fabric from the picture.

Dante stared, fascinated, as the tether reared up like an angry cobra. The fabric seemed to look around for a moment before focusing on the boy and then lunged at him.

Before Dante could react, the fabric had wrapped around his forearm like a decorative armpiece.

“It is now yours,” Prospero explained, rising from his seat to come around the table. “It will only listen to your commands and even defend you in combat.”

Dante stared in disbelief at the fabric around his arm, not knowing how he felt about the ‘combat’ part.

Prospero then kneeled and looked at Kibou, the green creature looking back curiously.

“As I’m sure you’ve read on his card by now, Kibou here used to be normal by this world’s standards,” he said, rubbing the creature’s head. “Therivorums are strong warriors and great allies once you’ve gained their trust. He was among the few creatures who volunteered to be imbued with an experimental power.”

“The Super Transmogrification thing?” Dante asked, trying to remember what the card had said.

“A crude way to put it, but that is correct. It was a power to enhance their normal evolutionary abilities, completely experimental and with certain risks. However, all of them managed to bond with the power.”

Dante looked down at Kibou. “So, you’re saying he can now… what? Transform into some all-powerful warrior at will?”

“Not as such I’m afraid. As his power grows, he can obtain stronger forms. And then there’s another piece to the puzzle.”

Prospero reached into a pocket of his robe and withdrew an orb of black obsidian. He held it out to Dante, the surface glinting in the crystal light.

“Go on, take it. It’s for you.”

Slowly, Dante reached out and took the orb from Prospero’s hand; it was baseball-sized, though it weighed slightly heavier.

And there was… something else. A thrum traveled up Dante’s arm, warmth emanating from the orb as though it had been left out in the sun. It was like something sliding into place.

He truly understood then that what he held was an incredibly powerful object.

“I’ve explained everything I can for now,” Prospero said. “Do you have any more questions to ask?”

Dante stared at the orb, the fabric wrapped around his arm, and then down at Kibou on the floor beside him. What he felt was like being on the edge of something big, a grand adventure he had never experienced before.

Finally, he looked back up at Prospero.

“Yes. When can I go back home?”

---

An so we get our customary explanation for what's going on and why - out of everyone on Earth - a preteen was chosen to become the savior. We've had so many shows that use the "prophecy" excuse, I've made it my own goal to either not use or at least come up with a better twist on it.

Also, it can be surprising just how quickly protagonists tend to be accepting of the unusual circumstances - so, instead we have a protagonist who wants nothing to do with the adventure... at least for now :D

As far as improvements, nothing really comes to mind. Let me know if there's anything you feel needs fixing.

Read and enjoy ^_^

~Aaron