Returning to the main thread?Credits and Characters────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
⊹⋆✦✰✦⋆⊹
The throne was never quite fit for Zera. She had no interest in being the queen. It was a very lovely planet, yes, but why would she want to rule it? It was all so much to do, and what really made her better than everyone else? Why was she the one who was supposed to rule, as opposed to every other person? It made no sense, and she saw nothing but corruption. Anyways, if she were to be crowned as the queen, she would have to get married. That was another main thing that she didn’t want to even begin to get involved in. She would rather have another queen instead of a king anyways. Yet it seemed that her destiny was already locked into place, without Zera even wanting it.
But Zera had heard of a way to escape it all. It had been a traveling prophet who informed her that there was a way for her to be free from any duties that might be forced onto her.
Zera hadn’t been planning on finding her way to a cave that might not even be real. The one who told her about it had just been some pastel guy with a halo and horns who claimed to be a prophet named Polaris. He could easily be lying, considering what some people did to make a little bit of money. Zera found it horrible how some people felt they had to just lie about everything they knew just so that they could carry on living their lives. That was beside the point, though. She had to get to the cave, whether it was the last thing she did or not. Because inside, there was supposedly a shimmering pond that dazzled as the moonlight reflected upon it, along with a crystalized tree right in the middle of the pond. And if she just stepped into the pond, her fate would no longer be sealed, and she would finally be free from the burden of having to become the queen.
The trek up the steep, rocky mountains had been absolutely treacherous alone, but there had been even more obstacles in Zera’s way, as well. Just her luck, obviously. There had been creatures and beasts constantly interfering with her. And to add on, there had been many times where the path was supposed to be, yet instead, it tapered off into nothing, leaving her to only guess where she might be going. Branches had constantly whipped back at her, thorned brushes had left scratches on her, and deep, blistering cold streams had chilled her right to the bone, but she hadn’t let anything stop her. She was going to change her destiny, and it would not be the last thing that she ever did. So she had found the cave, as she had sworn to herself that she would do.
As Zera slowly crept into the eerie cavern, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of unease wash over her. There was something about the way the shadows seemed to move, and the way the jagged rocks seemed to create figures. She swore that there were noises as well, but it also seemed that her only sounds were her own footsteps. She blamed it on her own paranoia, though. There was no creature that would dare to enter the cave, and she almost began to question why she had come herself. She shook off her feelings of dread and continued to trudge forward, undoubtedly tracking grime over what seemed to be pristine floors. She wasn’t sure how they had exactly become so clean, but she didn’t want to question it either. She just continued along, refusing to second guess anything.
A faint light seemed to shine down upon something, and Zera swore she saw something sparkling there as well. She began venturing closer, interested now. Was this what she was searching for? Had she finally found it? It seemed like her heart was beating so hard that it was echoing throughout the entire cave. Despite her increasing anxiety, she continued closer and found the glistening pool of water, as well as the glittering gemstone tree in front of her. She tried to mentally take in the sight, wondering if she was dreaming or not. She looked down into the shimmering pond, seeing herself instead. It was an unfamiliar voice that finally scared her enough to where she actually jumped.
“So you chose to come,” said the masculine voice.
Zera turned around, seeing a mysterious-looking man in bedazzled robes. She could only really make out a few of the man’s features. “Who are you?” she demanded, puffing herself up to seem larger. Perhaps she was mistaken when she said that nobody would dare to make the dangerous trek up the mountain to find the cavern.
“I am Artimise,” the man, Artimise, declared. “Polaris told me that you would likely make an appearance here.” He slid the hood off of his head, where Zera could clearly see that he was a defined, wise man. It was clear that he had been through many things in his days, considering his missing arm and his blinded eyes.
Zera seemed slightly suspicious. “Why are you here?” she inquired and put a hand on her hip. She moved it close to the satchel around her waist, preparing in case anything happened.
“To guide you. To give you what you seek. You want to escape your destiny. To be free of everything that will be placed onto you. Is that correct?”
Zera nodded slowly, cautious now. How did he already know all of this? Had that prophet told him all of it? It was likely, considering he had mentioned Polaris. That was the prophet’s name, wasn’t it? Now she was truly becoming certain that this wasn’t just a sick prank. “Alright, yeah, maybe. So what? What could you possibly have to tell me about it? I’m gonna assume that you want to give me some sort of warning for it, and to be honest, I’ve had a lot of time to think this through on my way up this dumb mountain, and I really don’t think a warning from you is going to deter me,” she sassed back.
Artimise blinked at Zera, slightly taken aback. “Well, yes, that was essentially what I was about to tell you. I was going to warn you that you may not be prepared for what is to come in the future if you follow through with this-”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah, whatever, that’s what they all say. Nothing ever happens. It’ll all work out fine,” Zera interjected, cutting him off. Artimise shook his head and rolled his eyes.
“You truly are stubborn, aren’t you? Refusing to listen to what I have to say will get you nowhere. It will only be worse for you in the end,” he warned. Zera scoffed. This man probably had no idea what he was even talking about. He was probably just trying to scare her away.
“Nothing you say is going to change my mind,” Zera told Artimise.
Artimise started to speak up again, “You should listen to what I have to say. You’ll end up regretting this. Are you sure you’re ready-?”
But Zera stepped through the pond before Artimise could finish what he was saying. Instead of plunging into deep water like expected, she plunged directly into darkness.
────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
But Zera had heard of a way to escape it all. It had been a traveling prophet who informed her that there was a way for her to be free from any duties that might be forced onto her.
Zera hadn’t been planning on finding her way to a cave that might not even be real. The one who told her about it had just been some pastel guy with a halo and horns who claimed to be a prophet named Polaris. He could easily be lying, considering what some people did to make a little bit of money. Zera found it horrible how some people felt they had to just lie about everything they knew just so that they could carry on living their lives. That was beside the point, though. She had to get to the cave, whether it was the last thing she did or not. Because inside, there was supposedly a shimmering pond that dazzled as the moonlight reflected upon it, along with a crystalized tree right in the middle of the pond. And if she just stepped into the pond, her fate would no longer be sealed, and she would finally be free from the burden of having to become the queen.
The trek up the steep, rocky mountains had been absolutely treacherous alone, but there had been even more obstacles in Zera’s way, as well. Just her luck, obviously. There had been creatures and beasts constantly interfering with her. And to add on, there had been many times where the path was supposed to be, yet instead, it tapered off into nothing, leaving her to only guess where she might be going. Branches had constantly whipped back at her, thorned brushes had left scratches on her, and deep, blistering cold streams had chilled her right to the bone, but she hadn’t let anything stop her. She was going to change her destiny, and it would not be the last thing that she ever did. So she had found the cave, as she had sworn to herself that she would do.
As Zera slowly crept into the eerie cavern, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of unease wash over her. There was something about the way the shadows seemed to move, and the way the jagged rocks seemed to create figures. She swore that there were noises as well, but it also seemed that her only sounds were her own footsteps. She blamed it on her own paranoia, though. There was no creature that would dare to enter the cave, and she almost began to question why she had come herself. She shook off her feelings of dread and continued to trudge forward, undoubtedly tracking grime over what seemed to be pristine floors. She wasn’t sure how they had exactly become so clean, but she didn’t want to question it either. She just continued along, refusing to second guess anything.
A faint light seemed to shine down upon something, and Zera swore she saw something sparkling there as well. She began venturing closer, interested now. Was this what she was searching for? Had she finally found it? It seemed like her heart was beating so hard that it was echoing throughout the entire cave. Despite her increasing anxiety, she continued closer and found the glistening pool of water, as well as the glittering gemstone tree in front of her. She tried to mentally take in the sight, wondering if she was dreaming or not. She looked down into the shimmering pond, seeing herself instead. It was an unfamiliar voice that finally scared her enough to where she actually jumped.
“So you chose to come,” said the masculine voice.
Zera turned around, seeing a mysterious-looking man in bedazzled robes. She could only really make out a few of the man’s features. “Who are you?” she demanded, puffing herself up to seem larger. Perhaps she was mistaken when she said that nobody would dare to make the dangerous trek up the mountain to find the cavern.
“I am Artimise,” the man, Artimise, declared. “Polaris told me that you would likely make an appearance here.” He slid the hood off of his head, where Zera could clearly see that he was a defined, wise man. It was clear that he had been through many things in his days, considering his missing arm and his blinded eyes.
Zera seemed slightly suspicious. “Why are you here?” she inquired and put a hand on her hip. She moved it close to the satchel around her waist, preparing in case anything happened.
“To guide you. To give you what you seek. You want to escape your destiny. To be free of everything that will be placed onto you. Is that correct?”
Zera nodded slowly, cautious now. How did he already know all of this? Had that prophet told him all of it? It was likely, considering he had mentioned Polaris. That was the prophet’s name, wasn’t it? Now she was truly becoming certain that this wasn’t just a sick prank. “Alright, yeah, maybe. So what? What could you possibly have to tell me about it? I’m gonna assume that you want to give me some sort of warning for it, and to be honest, I’ve had a lot of time to think this through on my way up this dumb mountain, and I really don’t think a warning from you is going to deter me,” she sassed back.
Artimise blinked at Zera, slightly taken aback. “Well, yes, that was essentially what I was about to tell you. I was going to warn you that you may not be prepared for what is to come in the future if you follow through with this-”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah, whatever, that’s what they all say. Nothing ever happens. It’ll all work out fine,” Zera interjected, cutting him off. Artimise shook his head and rolled his eyes.
“You truly are stubborn, aren’t you? Refusing to listen to what I have to say will get you nowhere. It will only be worse for you in the end,” he warned. Zera scoffed. This man probably had no idea what he was even talking about. He was probably just trying to scare her away.
“Nothing you say is going to change my mind,” Zera told Artimise.
Artimise started to speak up again, “You should listen to what I have to say. You’ll end up regretting this. Are you sure you’re ready-?”
But Zera stepped through the pond before Artimise could finish what he was saying. Instead of plunging into deep water like expected, she plunged directly into darkness.
────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
