‹ Prequel: The Fifth World
The Fifth World 2
The Horn Of Seabrooke
Cynric: I sigh as the sun shines down on my face, warming my skin and casting some kind of calm spell over me. I can hear the grass sway beneath the wind as I move across the field and towards the forest. When I look down I see the path created from flat grass where many have walked over these last few days. During the reconstruction of town Wendell and the rest of the Council made plans for a memorial to be built in honour of those we lost during the great battle. It was finished two days ago. Today is the first time I am going to see it, it is the first time I have really had time to myself whilst the sun is up.
Once I walk beneath the trees the light seems to darken and I look up and see a ceiling of leaves and branches and different flowers above my head. I keep moving, following the fresh pathway towards a beaming light at the end of the gathering of oak trees. The smells here are moist and somewhere in there I can smell the luscious scents of different flowers. Wild ones. Ones that you would only find in a beautiful forest of the Fifth World, one that has been untouched by humans, one that has been preserved. You do not find many forests like the ones in Seabrooke in the rest of the Fifth World. Many have been wiped out.
I finally reach the end and walk out from the trees and into the light. A glistening stone carved in a rectangular shape and at least my height stands above another stone. Carved into the face of the larger stone is a symbol that takes a second or so for me to recognise - the shape of Seabrooke, the symbol is an outline of the walls of Seabrooke that now have been demolished. Beneath the map is a list of names each carved perfectly. Some of the names I recognise, some of them I do not, one of them stands out most amongst them all. I sigh deeply as I let my head drop when I approach the stone.
Along the bottom of it reads, In memory of all of the brave souls lost during the Great Battle. Now you are truly free.
It is beautiful.
I close my eyes as I feel my breathing lurch a little, I gasp once and I feel my eyes begin to tear up as I remember the death I witnessed the day... and how I felt with Janine's lifeless body in my arms. I have seen death but never like that.
"It could not have been better, could it?" I hear a voice and immediately turn around.
I am not embarrassed but I quickly try to hide my pain and compose myself when I see Wendell standing at the edge of the trees, the sun shining down on his old yet young face.
I look back up at the memorial and I nod my head once, "No, it is perfect."
He walks out from the trees and I notice that he seems a lot better today. It has been some time since I have spoken directly to Wendell as I know that he is in a lot of pain since the death of his daughter Isabelle.
"Life is not always fair, Cynric, but at least here in Seabrooke it is somewhat easier. Preserving this place is what truly matters and of course those who were once part of it." I watch him as he walks right in front of the stone, in front of me, and how he runs his thumb over his daughters name as if he is greeting her, "I know you miss her and I know that having her brother here is a constant reminder but you must accept that she cannot come back-"
"She will come back," I say, cutting him off abruptly and rudely, I instantly regret opening my mouth.
"And I would be delighted to have her here, Cynric, all of Seabrooke would but the reality is the moment she steps foot out of a portal and into the Fifth World, she will be in constant danger. I know what it is like to lose someone you care very much for, someone whose life you value more than your own, so please, do not hope for her return. Only death awaits for her here."
I stare at the ground, "Either way, I lose her. If she stays in the Average Human World I may never see her again, or if I do, very little. If she comes here, she could have a chance."
"But would she be willing to do that? And to risk that?" Wendell asks me, "She has a family, Cynric. Of course her brother is here but what if she decides to bring him home? Her mother is an Average Human too, I highly doubt she would abandon her mother. Do you really think that she would choose the Fifth World over her mother and brother?"
I do not say a word. Of course I know the truth - Bo would never choose the Fifth World over her family. She would do anything to protect them. She would not risk bringing them here or even coming here alone to live forever knowing that she would just be living a life in hiding.
Wendell sighs and runs his hand through his almost white hair, "If she does return she will be hunted, the government has too many Angelicans with brilliant powers that we cannot even imagine. If she returns and trouble finds Bo, Seabrooke will fight for her, but many will die. Many will die."
He takes a step towards me and places his hand on my shoulder. He takes one last look at the memorial and closes his eyes. I know that at this very moment he is picturing Isabelle. A beautiful and courageous vision of pure white hair. Finally, he opens his eyes and then looks over at me before disappearing into the trees. I sigh and I look into the trees to see if I can see him but he is gone. I try to relax and not even think about the consequences of Bo's return to the Fifth World, all I think about is how happy I will be when I finally lay eyes on her again.
All senses dart. I hear a twig break behind me, cracking and then it is muffled by the grass. I instantly turn around and see Felicity standing directly in front of me, not even a metre away. I smile at her and she smiles a small smile back at me.
"He is right, you know?" she says quietly to me. "Even when Bo comes back, it would be nothing more than a mistake. We know she'll return, Cynric, we just don't know when. Bo would never abandon her brother... or you, but every one of us knows that there will be an even greater battle once her arrival is discovered."
I ignore what Felicity has said because I just want to ignore the truth... the inevitability... the future. I turn away from her and run my fingers over my heads and in a second I have shaken off the worry and pain.
"So, where is that Alastair of yours?" I ask her with a tone that is even surprising to myself.
Felicity scoffs both at my change of subject and the thought of Alastair, "Alastair," she whispers his name, "he is brilliant but even if the laws of the Fifth World do not govern us here, I still could not see myself being with an Angelican. No offence."
"None taken."
"Honestly, I could not see myself being with anyone. There is too much going on here. The Fifth World has been nothing but running and pain and war ever since I arrived. There is no time for love, not unless you already have it. There is no time for anything... we're not even at war at the moment but still you're out with Adam everyday - training him. Everyone is training. Myself, Nancy, Caine, everyone. It's preparation for a war that is going to happen over and over again and that's what I think this life will always be. We are nothing more than soldiers."
I almost open my mouth to say something but I am stopped when I hear a loud horn echo across the land.
"The horn of Seabrooke," Felicity whispers.
Amongst the ruins of what was left of Seabrooke a legendary and historic horn was found once being owned by a Shape Shifter named Willow. She was part of the Council and was one of the first people to have lived in Seabrooke. When she would sound her horn it would mean danger approaches.
Felicity and I both turn around towards the town and look into the trees. Our eyes are wide. Felicity sprints first and is gone by the time I begin move.
Once I walk beneath the trees the light seems to darken and I look up and see a ceiling of leaves and branches and different flowers above my head. I keep moving, following the fresh pathway towards a beaming light at the end of the gathering of oak trees. The smells here are moist and somewhere in there I can smell the luscious scents of different flowers. Wild ones. Ones that you would only find in a beautiful forest of the Fifth World, one that has been untouched by humans, one that has been preserved. You do not find many forests like the ones in Seabrooke in the rest of the Fifth World. Many have been wiped out.
I finally reach the end and walk out from the trees and into the light. A glistening stone carved in a rectangular shape and at least my height stands above another stone. Carved into the face of the larger stone is a symbol that takes a second or so for me to recognise - the shape of Seabrooke, the symbol is an outline of the walls of Seabrooke that now have been demolished. Beneath the map is a list of names each carved perfectly. Some of the names I recognise, some of them I do not, one of them stands out most amongst them all. I sigh deeply as I let my head drop when I approach the stone.
Along the bottom of it reads, In memory of all of the brave souls lost during the Great Battle. Now you are truly free.
It is beautiful.
I close my eyes as I feel my breathing lurch a little, I gasp once and I feel my eyes begin to tear up as I remember the death I witnessed the day... and how I felt with Janine's lifeless body in my arms. I have seen death but never like that.
"It could not have been better, could it?" I hear a voice and immediately turn around.
I am not embarrassed but I quickly try to hide my pain and compose myself when I see Wendell standing at the edge of the trees, the sun shining down on his old yet young face.
I look back up at the memorial and I nod my head once, "No, it is perfect."
He walks out from the trees and I notice that he seems a lot better today. It has been some time since I have spoken directly to Wendell as I know that he is in a lot of pain since the death of his daughter Isabelle.
"Life is not always fair, Cynric, but at least here in Seabrooke it is somewhat easier. Preserving this place is what truly matters and of course those who were once part of it." I watch him as he walks right in front of the stone, in front of me, and how he runs his thumb over his daughters name as if he is greeting her, "I know you miss her and I know that having her brother here is a constant reminder but you must accept that she cannot come back-"
"She will come back," I say, cutting him off abruptly and rudely, I instantly regret opening my mouth.
"And I would be delighted to have her here, Cynric, all of Seabrooke would but the reality is the moment she steps foot out of a portal and into the Fifth World, she will be in constant danger. I know what it is like to lose someone you care very much for, someone whose life you value more than your own, so please, do not hope for her return. Only death awaits for her here."
I stare at the ground, "Either way, I lose her. If she stays in the Average Human World I may never see her again, or if I do, very little. If she comes here, she could have a chance."
"But would she be willing to do that? And to risk that?" Wendell asks me, "She has a family, Cynric. Of course her brother is here but what if she decides to bring him home? Her mother is an Average Human too, I highly doubt she would abandon her mother. Do you really think that she would choose the Fifth World over her mother and brother?"
I do not say a word. Of course I know the truth - Bo would never choose the Fifth World over her family. She would do anything to protect them. She would not risk bringing them here or even coming here alone to live forever knowing that she would just be living a life in hiding.
Wendell sighs and runs his hand through his almost white hair, "If she does return she will be hunted, the government has too many Angelicans with brilliant powers that we cannot even imagine. If she returns and trouble finds Bo, Seabrooke will fight for her, but many will die. Many will die."
He takes a step towards me and places his hand on my shoulder. He takes one last look at the memorial and closes his eyes. I know that at this very moment he is picturing Isabelle. A beautiful and courageous vision of pure white hair. Finally, he opens his eyes and then looks over at me before disappearing into the trees. I sigh and I look into the trees to see if I can see him but he is gone. I try to relax and not even think about the consequences of Bo's return to the Fifth World, all I think about is how happy I will be when I finally lay eyes on her again.
All senses dart. I hear a twig break behind me, cracking and then it is muffled by the grass. I instantly turn around and see Felicity standing directly in front of me, not even a metre away. I smile at her and she smiles a small smile back at me.
"He is right, you know?" she says quietly to me. "Even when Bo comes back, it would be nothing more than a mistake. We know she'll return, Cynric, we just don't know when. Bo would never abandon her brother... or you, but every one of us knows that there will be an even greater battle once her arrival is discovered."
I ignore what Felicity has said because I just want to ignore the truth... the inevitability... the future. I turn away from her and run my fingers over my heads and in a second I have shaken off the worry and pain.
"So, where is that Alastair of yours?" I ask her with a tone that is even surprising to myself.
Felicity scoffs both at my change of subject and the thought of Alastair, "Alastair," she whispers his name, "he is brilliant but even if the laws of the Fifth World do not govern us here, I still could not see myself being with an Angelican. No offence."
"None taken."
"Honestly, I could not see myself being with anyone. There is too much going on here. The Fifth World has been nothing but running and pain and war ever since I arrived. There is no time for love, not unless you already have it. There is no time for anything... we're not even at war at the moment but still you're out with Adam everyday - training him. Everyone is training. Myself, Nancy, Caine, everyone. It's preparation for a war that is going to happen over and over again and that's what I think this life will always be. We are nothing more than soldiers."
I almost open my mouth to say something but I am stopped when I hear a loud horn echo across the land.
"The horn of Seabrooke," Felicity whispers.
Amongst the ruins of what was left of Seabrooke a legendary and historic horn was found once being owned by a Shape Shifter named Willow. She was part of the Council and was one of the first people to have lived in Seabrooke. When she would sound her horn it would mean danger approaches.
Felicity and I both turn around towards the town and look into the trees. Our eyes are wide. Felicity sprints first and is gone by the time I begin move.