11 Alabaster castle
Lightless day +4
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Downhearted.
The discovery has placed a pall over me.
My darkness has vanished.
This time, they'd buried it deep in my anus! Thank you, dude! My shadow has been taken away from me.
My shadow did not leave me of its own free will, I am certain. I'm confident my shadow still cared about me enough to stick around.
Really? Is that something I'm certain of? It must have despised me for not saving Kerry. Yes, another failure to add to the lengthy list of issues that need to be addressed.
How do I reclaim my shadow? Where do I begin?
I was completely unaware.
Especially because I had no idea it had fled! How could I look for my shadow if I didn't know when it vanished?
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Lightless day +7
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Behind one of the curtains in the room where I had awoken was a balcony.
It had only recently come to my attention.
Down the mountain where I was standing, a sleepy metropolis sprawled as far as the eye could reach.
At that time, the city appeared to be still calm.
My chest pinched once more. My restlessness reappeared in my head.
"I want to return to Paris!"
I got an electric jolt, the kind you get when you don't grasp what's going on with your body. This time, it went from front to back across my brow.
"Oh, my goodness! It's excruciating! I'm ready to return home! I'd like to reclaim my shadow!"
Without my shadow, I feel naked.
"Hey! You hear what I'm saying? I want to return home! Return my power to me! Please return all you have taken from me!"
I have no ambitions beyond that.
To become who I was before, I need to uncover and focus my abilities.
I'd like to see my mother again. I'm missing her horribly. I'm in desperate need of her assurance, and I'm missing her self-assurance. I'm not sure I can do it without her.
I'm on my own. It's more than a phrase; it's a fact.
Kerry is also someone I miss. I became even more depressed when I realized she was so far away and I had no idea how she was doing.
Was this going to be my fate? To act now or to wait until I figure out what I should do?
The feeling that I've forgotten something crucial...
What really is the cause of this inexplicable agitation? This sudden... annoyance?
I omitted something crucial. My frustration is consuming me.
Do I have a sense of being unfinished?
What have I failed to accomplish?
The drab terror grew stronger. Finally, a word came to me in hushed tones...
'Protect.'
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Lightless day +10
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The city was perpetually under the shadow.
The eyes, my true eyes to correct as my spirit and conscience had been transferred in this body by some unknown miracle, supported the lack of light very well and were able to discern the environment using varying degrees of refraction.
Was God responsible for the transmigration of my consciousness into this body? I'm not sure what God has to do with it, but between us, I'd say a few nasty words to him, since he's replaced the baccalaureate exams with those of the world of the winged monsters, and now with this world whose name and purpose I'm not sure about.
I exited the room where I had awoken sweating.
I began my journey into this realm by visiting this structure, which boasted impressively high ceilings.
The corridors were brightly lit. They started with large rooms almost every 100 meters on the right and left.
A room at the end of the largest and longest passage was filled with dancing shadows and a warm glow, thanks to polished braziers at the bottom of each of the six alabaster columns. Images that I discovered with curiosity were depicted on beautifully crafted tapestries. While marble sculptures gazed down to the porcelain floor, chandeliers hung from the slanted ceiling, swaying in the flashing light.
A saffron carpet ran from the doors to the far corner of the room, where a huge seat sat, and pointed banners embroidered with needlework hung on the walls. A tiny chandelier hung between each banner. All of them were lit, which in turn illuminated the heroes' creative portrayals below.
Draperies in the same saffron color as the banners were used to conceal large windows of colored glass. Ornate spikes and superb stitching graced the curtains.
The magnificent seat, unmistakably a throne, was embellished with religious motifs and a sapphire crescent moon on each of its legs. Golden quilting was often used on lightweight dark saffron cushions.
There was no one here, as there was no one everywhere in the castle. Order and cleanliness reigned, but no one seemed to be in charge of the area.
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Lightless day +11
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To get into the city, I had to descend the mountain and through the spooky forest that surrounding the castle. The trees were replaced by their vibrant, living shadows, which began to sing as soon as I got near enough to their trunks.
The song makes me shiver. I'll count this one as a win. Maybe one day I'll be able to reclaim my capacity to hear shadows' whispers.
My foot became stuck, and I slid backwards into the snow after colliding with some vegetation. The forest was encircled by creeks, and murky waters surged and rolled toward the town, enclosing it and cutting off all access.
If this forest had been shown at a period when there was a large audience, Discovery Channel would have made a killing.
My phone, my internet connection with 100 GB down, my evenings wallowing in the couch, my buddies, and the basketball championships... I have to thank myself for being here, with my nose in the snow, isolated from all civilization.
I dashed across an old drawbridge that led into town. I came to a halt at the edge of the abyss, out of breath. The mountain and the city that I had seen from the heights of the castle were divided by a large crater that was filled with mist to the depths of sight.
"Ha! You wouldn't have me!" I said aloud, my index finger pointing to the heavens.
I waited for a response.
Nothing.
"You're wrong if you think I'm going to cross that... phantom bridge!"
I screamed even louder.
"Lighthill," I read a worn sign hung on a post to the right of the bridge, the town's name nicely spelled but crossed out with a black line. A shaking hand had scribbled 'Ombrehill' and 'Enter at your own risk' farther down.
Bah! Come on, now! As if I didn't realize that my student liability insurance, which my mother had paid for the entire school year, would be useless in this situation. This world was unknown to the insurance company.
Worrying is no longer an option.
At this point, I wasn't going to stand around like a shadow!
