Rough Draft: Prologue

Prologue

Talitha, a world of marvel and wonder; it is home to all kinds and types of creatures. These creatures range from plants, animals, humans, and strange monstrous things. Talitha is not alone when it comes to inhabited worlds, in actuality it resides between the celestial world of Spéir and the dark underworld of Lour. It has been said that Talitha is where Heaven and Hell meet, the place where one could interact with good and with evil, providing one with a nearly unpredictable day to day life. This my friends is where the story begins, in the jungle of Uto to be slightly more precise. Two adventures in the prime of their lives, one a billy goat, the other a spud. . .

Viola had been a dream for Wilmer Horn and Taitor SpudMuffin since the day they came across a map in the great ruined library Ida Raibura. When compared to the current world map carried with them through their previous expeditions an entire kingdom in the north was revealed in the ancient copy. A piece of Talitha was erased from history. It was then that the two ambitious adventurers silently agreed upon their next discovery. Weeks already into the journey north Wilmer and Taitor found themselves deep within a jungle and no sign of Viola.

Late one night while Taitor slept soundly, Wilmer sat awake contemplating the stories this vanishing kingdom would hold, his eyes were drawn to an open journal lying next to Taitor’s bed. Curiosity overcame Wilmer as he found himself reaching for it. To this day he does not regret doing so, for what he read from the open entry was this:

It has been weeks now and there has been absolutely no indications pointing to this lost kingdom known as Viola. However, I will not lose hope just yet. If the tales I have heard are true and Viola is indeed inhabited they are obviously a secluded people. With this said I will use what will be viewed as higher knowledge to rule their people and possibly discover secret treasures therein. If I but remember this as my drive to press forward I will not be giving up any time soon.

 When morning came Wilmer confronted Taitor about his underlying intentions for finding Viola. Taitor was absolutely furious that Wilmer had read his journal, but what stuck out to Wilmer through the argument was Taitor’s inability to take back what he wrote. The argument ended with Wilmer packing his things and suggesting to go separate ways. If Taitor was to be the founder of Viola, Wilmer wanted no knowledge of it. This took the two adventures on two separate paths with equally limited supplies and knowledge of where to go next.

Days past and the limited supplies Wilmer had turned into no supplies. Struggling as he scaled a rock face he managed to reach the top only to collapse and shut his eyes due to extreme exhaustion. Blacked out, Wilmer had finally lost hope in what would have been his biggest discovery yet.

When he awoke he was in a sheltered surrounding with rather strange men in armor standing at each corner of the room watching him intently. Their attention was drawn to a door on the far side of the room as it swung open. A rather short, bearded man with crimson robes and a bright gold crown stepped in. The intimidating large men fell to their knees at once. The finely dressed man walked over to Wilmer’s bedside and placed a hand on his shoulder. There was a mix of butterflies in his stomach and a chill down his spine as the man spoke the words, “Welcome to Viola.”

Violan guards had found Wilmer at the edge of the cliff just outside the forest that bordered Viola and carried him to the nearest post where, upon arrival, word was sent to his majesty to dictate whether Wilmer would live out the rest of his days in Viola or if he would be on the next butterfly fish home. It had been years since someone such as Wilmer had reached the borders of Viola, it had been removed from all the world maps after all.

The king’s decision was determined by the aura he felt as he stepped foot into the room. Surely it caught him off guard, due to the fact that he had only felt this aura within himself as a possessor of future sight. It was apparent to the king that Wilmer had something to offer and the decision to allow him to reside in Viola was made through his welcoming words. A friendship formed between the two when Wilmer revealed that with a simple touch he could review an individual’s entire life up until that point if he so chose to. The bond between the two became stronger within a matter of days, one seeing glimpses into the future the other seeing the past.

The trust was immediate and it was truly apparent when the king presented Wilmer with a journal. Its purpose was for Wilmer to record every detail of Viola and all of Talitha. He did not gift him with a simple blank book; it was endowed with his ability to foresee segment s of the future. Not just an individual’s future, but the significant future events surrounding all of Talitha. Wilmer knew how much power he was suddenly given and the responsibility that he now carried.

This gift, while extremely useful comes with a price, a price the king knows oh too well. The consequences of foresight  for the king as well as the journal revolve around the subject of age. When one taps into these visions the users aging process is slightly accelerated. An individual such as the king must determine for himself how often this ability is used so not to age to the point of death within a short amount of time. By bestowing this power into an object, such as the journal, after each use it too ages slightly, fortunately for Wilmer this does not affect the receiver at all.

With such a tool in hand Wilmer began with an uninterrupted tour of Viola followed by recording visions with the journal, which when written could only be seen by Wilmer. The king made sure that only one being at a time could access the journal. The key you could say was trust. Gifting the journal to Wilmer allowed him to be the new owner of it.

Now enough about the past, let’s move forward to present day Talitha. We are introduced to the village of Towne, one of several rural communities mapped across the world. It is the day of the grand Harvest Festival, where the neighboring cities and towns come to celebrate in this small rustic village bringing a variety of crops and produce. This is the season of gathering and storing, which is appropriate due to the fast approaching winter. Blocks away from Towne’s square where the festivities are held lays the Ladyman residence; home to Kern Ladyman and her son Corn.