The Challenger Read online

  "Do you know where you are at the very least, Jonath?" Jeremy asked tilting his eyes to look over. Jonath doing the same, their eyes meeting again as he shook his head shortly afterwards.

  "No... I don't remember anything like that either. Only things I remember to do is basic stuff like breathe, talk and walk. Stuff like that..." He replied defeated as he brought his knees up to his chin and hooked his arms around said legs. His mind drifting back to the images he saw written across that tree, and the events that happened after he'd read them aloud. What did it all mean even? Should he tell Jeremy? No, he should keep quiet; some things are best left as a secret anyway. Jeremy nodded in response, an aged hand reaching up to scratch at his rough-looking features while he cleared his throat to speak.

  "That blow to your head must've been serious... Yet you said it disappeared so you might be one of those Nightborn or whatever they call it." He said pondering the accusation himself. Jonath glancing back at him with a briefly furrowed brow of confusion. Nightborn?

  "Nightborn?" He asked. Jeremy glancing back at him and then chuckling as he nodded. He needed to remember Jonath was an amnesic and didn't know any terms like that off the top of his head. Leaning forward in his chair to feel closer the warmth of the fire his brown eyes stared into, Jeremy elaborated.

  "Nightborn are beings born with supernatural powers in these lands. The powers can ranged from anything from simple stuff like being able to turn a door knob with nothing but your mind to drastic stuff like calling meteors from the heavens themselves to crush all opposition." He paused, letting that explanation seep into Jonath's mind as the platinum silver-haired man narrowed his eyes slightly. Right hand raising up to look into the palm of the torn black glove slid over it in silence.

  "Nightborn aren't necessarily rare, but they aren't common either. About one in maybe five people are Nightborn? Or they might be rarer than I thought... Highest I'd go is one in every one hundred people are Nightborn. I dunno, never really paid attention to the average Joe like that haha!" Jeremy scratched the back of his head sheepishly as he spoke. Jonath peering at him quietly again and then looking back to the fire. Nightborn huh? Was that what he was?

  "What are Nightborn meant to do?" The amnesic asked in a soft tone. Jeremy replying with a scratch of the ear and a grunt as he mulled it over in his head trying to come up with a suitable response that made him look like he knew what he were talking about.

  "Honestly? They aren't meant to do anything to my knowledge... Though they have shaped the course of history when they started appearing centuries ago back in the Lunar Era." He said tapping his chin next and reaching for his can of juice once more. Jonath narrowing his eyes again upon hearing "Lunar Era". That was over centuries ago?

  "What was the Lunar Era?" Jonath asked wanting to know more about that particular part of his answer than anything else. Jeremy pausing again in silence, scratching his neck this time and the rubbing his pants legs with another grunt and a chuckle.

  "Oi kid you're gonna make me become a history teacher aren't ya? Hahaha!" He joked smiling at the boy, Jonath shrugging lackadaisical at that and still awaiting an answer to his question. Jeremy eye rolled, a bit disappointed Jonath didn't seem to have any sense of humor as he cleared his throat and answered in a calm and informal tone. His words laced with investment in his explanation and his body language calm and relaxed atop the metal chair as the fires shadow danced across his gruff features and black hair.

  "The Lunar Era predates the era we are on now and was perhaps the most profound era this world has ever seen. It started at the turn of the New Luminous Year. UY 1200 as we call it on the calendar and lasted till UY 1400, about two hundred and fifty years ago as we are in UY 1654. During that Era many things happened. Introduction of the Nightborn, Vihros the Father of the Accursed Horde ravaging Anryos. Lady Lahavera's Siege of Luminous... Those were the dark ages..." He sighed to himself as he ran aged fingers through coarse, shaggy hair. Jonath completely confused by everything he just said... Vihros? Lahavera? Who and what were these people and terms he was talking about? This wasn't the explanation Jonath had seemed to have wanted to hear.

  "I don't know any of those people... When I asked what the Lunar Era was I was more hoping you explained what it had to do with the bringing of these Nightborn that you're assuming I might be." The pale-eyed young man spoke politely despite his irritation at the answer he received. Jeremy chuckling again slightly embarrassed and rubbing his thighs as he sat back in his chair and shook his head apologetically. Jonath seemed to want more knowledge than he had to offer.

  "Sorry lad, details about that era are sketchy and few in between. I'm not historian, I only know the basic stuff everyone knows about." As he said this, Jeremy hoisted himself up from the seat and walked towards the fire holding his hand over the dancing flames to warm them from the ever-growing chill of the night air. A few passing seconds of quiet, and then his right hand that hovered over the flames flexed out an index finger in the direction behind Jonath somewhere in the forest. Jonath following the man's pointing, glancing over his shoulder confused for a bit as he saw nothing but trees and rocks intertwined together in a messy thicket of glowing crystals and foliage.

  "I'd say if you really want to know more about the history of this planet you head to Luminous City off to the north beyond the Luminous Forest." Jeremy started packing up his things as he said this. Jonath raising a brow at him while watching the old man slowly move towards his collapsing tent after snuffing out the fire and then moving back to his chair with the tent tucked under the arm of a black leather coat he'd just put on. "Son come help me with this will you? Least you could do for the guy who fed ya eh?" Jeremy sneered gesturing for Jonath to grab the chair for him and the cooler. Blinking, Jonath eventually got up and walked towards the metal chair, collapsing it and tucking it under his arm while grabbing the cooler by the handle shortly afterwards and looking at Jeremy confused.

  "Why are you packing up?" Jonath asked. Jeremy snorting at his question while simultaneously gesturing with his head Jonath follow him towards the very same direction he'd pointed. Boots crunching grass and twigs beneath his feet Jeremy led the way with a reluctant Jonath soon following suit. Another gentle breeze greeting his pale skin, the coolness much more profound against the flesh without the warmth of the fire to stave it off. Taking one last look up at the night sky, Jonath's eyes followed after the fleeting figures of a flock of birds flying across the night-time canvas. The full moon casting a gleam in the reflection in his own eyes that seemed to hypnotize him momentarily before he snapped out of it and picked up the pace to catch back up with Jeremy.

  "When does the sun come up?" Jonath asked.

  "Sun? Haha there's no sun here.; it's a never-ending, eternal night." Jeremy replied with a chuckle which made Jonath stop walking and stare into space in disbelief. Jeremy looking over his shoulder again with another huff, brow furrowing as he watched Jonath apparently be shocked by his response. "I have to admit, gonna take me a while to get used to that amnesia of yours." He chuckled heartily and continued on his way assuming Jonath would follow. "I keep talking as if you understand it all. Kynerva, the continent you're on, has been trapped in an undying night ever since the end of the Lunar Era, so about two hundred and fifty years." He added on. Jonath not saying anything, merely looking at the sky again and focusing on the moon in both awe and astonishment... A never-ending night...

  A never... ending... night...

  But, why?

  Shaking the thoughts from his head Jonath jogged to catch up to Jeremy with his own luggage of a metal chair and a cooler still in his possession. The two walking side by side, Jonath taking slower steps as Jeremy seemed to struggle with walking too fast due to his age and body. The two following an old dirt path that carved and curved through the expanse of the soft glowing crystal forest, many shades of red, blue and green meeting his eyes and illuminating the darkness with the moon. It truly was an amazing sight to see... After some more silence
, noting himself how this seemed to be a common occurrence between him and Jeremy, Jonath began to mull over the images he saw on the tree again before meeting the old guy.

  Know thy name, and remember...

  What did that mean? Looking down the road, Jonath lamented on the question more and more. Glancing over at Jeremy as they walked in silence before closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. Luminous City...

  Guess that's as good a start as any...

  If only he knew however, of the events to come...

  Welcome to Luminous City!

  The Challenger Chapter Three - Welcome to Luminous City!

  "Feels like we've walked for hours..." Jonath muttered to himself, the cooler and metal chair tucked under arms and an ever growing, irritated stare from the walk. His eyes casting upwards towards the thick greenery of the canopy above and the night sky beyond. All of this walking, without any visible progression of time threw off his sense of advancement; as if he were walking in a loop for eternity. Groaning rather audibly, Jonath lowered his head and closed his eyes as he walked at the same stagnant pace as Jeremy. Halfway thinking the reason this venture was taking so long was because of the man's decrepit body taking eons to walk a few feet. This carried on for gods know how long, eventually hitting a point he couldn't take this feeling of limbo and spoke with slight yet profound irritation in his still generally respectful tone.

  "How long have we been walking? Are we even halfway there yet?" He asked with an audible groan afterwards. Jeremy looking at the slightly taller boy with an amused expression across his aged features as he walked even slower a moment as if playing a joke on Jonath. The deadpan stare that was shot his way afterwards showed quite clearly Jonath didn't like that joke of his; a chuckle escaping Jeremy before he nudged his head at the glowing crystal growths jutting out of the trees around them.

  "It's close to midnight, these lands have evolved ways to tell time when we don't have clocks convenient for our leisure. Look for the brightness differentiation between the crystals when you're walking through these woods again. The green shades glow brightest during the day, the red during dusk and dawn, the blue during noon and midnight. It's a cycle that repeats at the same time every day." As he said this Jonath turned to look at the crystals on the nearest tree to his right, several jagged glowing growths lining the base of a tall and strong tree that towered above him. These crystals were rather big, erupting from the ground as high as his shoulder at the tip of the tallest one. The green glow overshadowing the other shades of yellow, red and blue. His brow furrowing, pointing slightly at the yellow and white crystals at the base.

  "What about those colors?" He asked not recalling Jeremy saying anything about those being related to time. The old man hand waving away any concern about those as he cleared his throat and started walking again with a hum to his voice.

  "The crystals when they aren't red, green are blue but aren't white are newer structures that will eventually take root. The white crystals are the ones nearing the end of their lives so to speak. When they 'die', they break down into something akin to glitter residue, scattering to the wind. When this happens on a larger scale we call the residue that scatters across the forest diamond dust." He paused, glancing back to Jonath and gesturing he pick up the pace again. Ironic since Jeremy was the one walking slow to begin with. "If you see diamond dust in large amounts it's said to be good luck. Rarely do multiple crystals die at once and leave the dust in such a large volume it can sift through an entire forest." He chuckled turning ahead to walk down the dirt path once more. A soft breeze washing over Jonath, ruffling his thick layered bangs of spiky platinum silver hair that framed his face and his eyes catching what looked like glitter in the smallest amount floating in the air.

  So that was Diamond Dust? It was very little, almost missed seeing it entirely, but it was pretty to look at...

  "Jonath! Come on now don't let an old man out pace you!" Jeremy clicked the bottom of his boot against a rock slab beside him snapping Jonath out of his focus on the wind. The young man shaking his head to wake himself and jogging to catch up to Jeremy who was about a meter away.

  "Sorry..." Jonath said quietly as hands moved to the pockets of his torn at the knees, calf and ankle black jeans. Looking at his own bare feet tapping against the soft dirt of the ground. Jeremy glancing over at him again, appraising the young man's figure for a moment before snorting and catching Jonath's attention.

  "I guess... once we get to the city I'll throw in a bit of Lunis and buy you some new clothes. Goodness knows you need it haha." Jeremy sighed reaching to tug on the tail end of Jonath's torn black shirt that left portions of his upper chest and flank on the left side exposed revealing pale skin. Jonath blinking quizzical at him, thinking to himself the gesture wasn't really needed as he had already done enough to help.

  "I... You don't have to do that. I can figure out some things by myself when we get there." Jonath tried to decline the offer only to get ignored by Jeremy in fact continuing on about what he was going to buy Jonath as a change of clothes. The two walking side by side at the same stagnant pace, how long has it even been since they started he wondered...

  "Think since it's getting cold out a nice black fur-trimmed coat and jeans coupled with some reliable boots would be to your liking? I know the guys your age in the city like to dress stylish to impress the vixen and the like haha." Jeremy chuckled while Jonath didn't say anything back. He didn't even know if anything he said would skewer the decisions the geezer made anyway. Looking around again at the tall trees, to the stout bushes and intertwined thickets all around dotted with rocks and boulders with short grass, Jonath couldn't help but yet again admire the scenery. This forest was vast, yet it felt tight-knit and narrow along the path they were going. The only clear pathway being a dusty old trail the two were following now for what felt like an eternity.

  Jeremy stopped talking, and stopped walking. Jonath doing the same shortly after and glancing at him with a furrowed brow wondering why again they were stopping. Brown eyes staring forward and never breaking line of sight to peer at Jonath, a small smile and a chuckle crept across old man Jeremy's face as he tilted his head forward and cleared his throat. All the while Jonath cast his gaze in the direction of the man's own view towards a large clearing at the farthest end of the forest now visible with a wide valley with pathways leading to a massive walled by black stone city that looked to be carved into the side of a mountain in the shape of a climbing pyramidal structure that creeped upwards towards the peak.

  "That my boy..." Jeremy paused, walking forward again and nudging Jonath on the arm with his elbow as Jonath was awestruck by how large the city was it could be seen from here through the forest now. "That, is Luminous City. The Jewel and Capital of Kynerva the Crescent Moon continent you're on. Well..." He paused again, tilting his head in silent thought before moving forward yet again. "It's pretty much the last standing city and thus the capital by default now. Only city to stand ever since I've been born." He said a bit more melancholy than usual which of course Jonath didn't notice. Having been too star struck by the massive walls of the city built into the bedrock of a giant mountain that seemed to graze the heavens. The clouds of the night sky shrouding the landmarks icy peak and an arching arch of rock touching coast to coast in a half-moon hovering over the long winding road to its gates.

  "It's more impressive than I thought it'd be..." Jonath muttered to himself, starting to walk again. His eyes flaring up in their soft pale glows for but a moment as he moved and fixated his gaze on that city in the distance in another hypnotic focus. Tapping his foot again to get Jonath's attention Jeremy gestured they hurry to the end of the forest where the wide open valley leading to the city began. An audible clearing of the throat as he coughed shortly afterwards.

  "We won't have to walk across the valley when we get to the edge of the forest. Carriages regularly travels to the outskirts of this place and back to the city carrying goods and people. The road we took through the
woods here was more a nature trail than an actual merchants road. Probably why it felt so closed and claustrophobic huh?" Jeremy laughed lightly which surprisingly got a chuckle from Jonath himself as the two walked. The amnesic yawning soon, showing a bit of fatigue was finally hitting him while he wiped watery eyes with his right arm.

  "I'm assuming you're going to pay them to take us all the way to the city too?" Jonath eye rolled. Jeremy immediately responding in a proud tone of voice.

  "Damn right! What old man really walks this far out in the woods just to build a campfire and relax? Oh no no-no not this geezer!" He as this was said nodded very matter of fact. Sage like almost! Jonath very quickly raised his brow incredulously at Jeremy as the two then looked at one another in pausing quiet.

  Both Jeremy and Jonath started laughing in unison at the old man's words; Jonath a bit more calmly amused while Jeremy was a bit more dramatic about it. Eventually the two stopping at the edge of the forest, Jonath feeling a lot more expansive and spacious once he stepped away from the last few thickets that swallowed him up in the forest and was now among vast rolling green plains and wide open scenery. A herd of rather large quadrupedal herbivores with imposing tusks and robust black-skinned bodies seen far off to the right in the distance travelling to a flowing river not too far away. Jonath could only imagine the types of predators and prey that called these grasslands their homes. Hopefully he never had to meet any up close and personal.