" 𝓐𝓷𝓭 𝓲𝓷𝓽𝓸 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓯𝓸𝓻𝓮𝓼𝓽 𝓘 𝓰𝓸, 𝓽𝓸 𝓵𝓸𝓼𝓮 𝓶𝔂 𝓶𝓲𝓷𝓭 . . .

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Username + ID:
ChristainAnimalLover
278223
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Name:
𐌋𐌵𐌂𐌀
𝔐𝔢𝔩𝔦𝔬𝔯𝔫
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Prompt:
850/850
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Extra:
Quote & Coding
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The woods have voices.
Overlapping, disembodied whispers that echo through the shadows.
--===--"Look! It's Meliorn!"
"Greatest warrior-"----
"… Guide of lost s-"
--"He's come to lead us!"
"Meliorn, the one foretold-"
"No! No, my name's Luca!" He shouted back. "Leave me alone!" He shook his head and pawed at his ears, eyes tightly shut. "Please.." he choked out desperately, too tired to run any longer. He'd been running from them for years. He just couldn't do it anymore.
Somewhere a twig snapped. He turned slowly and found a pair of glowing red eyes staring ominously from the shadows. With a gulp he took a step back and two more sets blinked into focus, moving to either side. They were going to surround him.
He turned and bolted. No plan, just
run.
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Time had no meaning here.
There was only
survival.
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He was scared, alone and half-mad when the upside-down reality he called 'normal' was interrupted.
He woke to sounds of a fight. That didn't make any sense, he was the only one for miles this deep in the forest. And yet…
Staying low, he crept closer. Normally, he avoided uncommon sounds. They always meant trouble. But he couldn't stop himself. Curiosity had a clawed grip and wouldn't let go.
Peering around a tree, he found two figures battling the shadows. He watched in awe as they swung blades of light and mumbled in a language foreign to his ears but beautiful all the same.
"Hey!" The lighter one called suddenly.
He froze, trying to meld with the rough bark at his shoulder. Surely he hadn't been spotted-
They turned and stared straight at him. "We could use some help here!"
He ducked back behind his tree, ready to take off again, and nearly jumped out of his skin with a startled cry. Secret was directly behind him.
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Secret had been his imaginary friend for as long as he could remember. She didn't say much, didn't do much either, just hovered at the edge of his awareness. But her constant companionship was a welcome comfort.
In his late teens, he discovered that she was in fact in the ghost of a young Kalon, claimed decades ago by the icy creek in the woods outside his hometown. As soon as he discovered this, her innocent appearance changed. Her fur became matted, perpetually dripping, and her eyes cold and hard.
He ran but she followed. Always following. Always the movement in the corner of his eye._____________________
Now she glared at him pointedly.
"Well you go do something about it if you're that insistent." He hissed.
She left without a word.
He didn't watch. There was a flash of light and then silence. When he dared peer back around his tree, he saw only a peaceful forest.
"Thanks for the assist!"
He nearly had a heart attack at the sudden voice beside him.
"Your ghost is very powerful."
"I didn't- she's not-"
"We shouldn't linger." The darker one said flatly, ignoring his stammering.
"Come on! The Ili will explain." The lighter one chirped before jogging off.
Once again, curiosity won out and he followed them to a glowing portal. He stepped through after only a second's hesitation.
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"Meliorn, you have been long-awaited-"
"Luca." He corrected quietly.
"Apologies. You must have spent quite some time in the Shadow realm to see my warriors in battle today."
"Uh…"
Without warning, the leader reached out and touched his forehead with a single finger and he was suddenly floating effortlessly above a world shrouded in fog. Watching the past unfold.
He drowned as a kit. It was hours before his body was discovered on the riverbank by a cloaked figure. They bent over him and a soft light pulsed. Then they were gone and he was scampering along, none-the-wiser."This is why you can see us. Her." They nodded to Secret and he blinked in surprise. Her coat had returned to it's soft, fluffy appearance and her bright eyes sparkled with mischief.
"Do you believe in Fate? Are you ready to join the Circle and fight for the Light? We can teach you our ways but you must accept who you are."
He glanced at Secret.
"She is your soul guide, she will stay with you regardless of your decision." They assured.
It was so much change at once. But he was done hiding in the woods. Done running. He nodded.
They smiled and dipped their head, "Welcome home, Meliorn."
That was something he'd longed for for years.
Home.They taught him to fight with blades of light. To battle demons and monsters; protect the Light from within the shadows. To speak incantations in that melodic foreign language. To guard and shepherd lost souls. To command ghosts who joined their cause.
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With a deep breath, head held high, he stared down the Shadows. There was no more running. No more hiding. No more denying it.
This was his destiny.
He walked in both worlds, Shadow and Light. He was a Warrior of the Circle. He was a Guardian of Souls. He was King of the Ghosts.
He was Meliorn.
. . . 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓯𝓲𝓷𝓭 𝓶𝔂 𝓼𝓸𝓾𝓵. "
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Credits:
forest image by Atanas Dzhingarov on Unsplash
Secret is another Kalon of mine | all others are random
NPCs "created" specifically for this entry
character concept and story arc are loosely inspired
by Freeform's Shadowhunters(adapted from the novel
series The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare)
and Stuart Beattie's I, Frankenstein