Cloud Tempest

Cloud

“Is she always so stony faced and silent?” I asked the woman cleaning the gash on my leg once the exotic beauty had left my sight. The woman, like Solana, seemed to be keen on ignoring me.

“Do you mind if I move to get my bag?” I asked, and she moved away from me slightly to allow me some room. “So you do understand me, then, and you’re just choosing not to respond,” I leaned down and grabbed the satchel that I’m sure Mika and Menas thought was now empty, wincing again and roughly biting back a groan.

“I guess you’re going to stay silent as well. Is it because everyone here thinks I’m a Siren? ‘Cause I’m not ya know. Though I guess there’s not really any way I can prove it to you other than just being myself, but I don’t want to confuse you guys because I don’t know what you guys know and don’t know. Maybe I should just assume that you know nothing and work from there. What do you think?” I looked down towards the woman again, and again she harbored no response.

Silently, I began to unzip the pockets of my bag to see what else my family packed for me. I knew that they would send me with more than what was dumped earlier, if only just a note adorned with sparkles–courtesy of my mother and sister. Sure enough, there were several survival items–such as “Surviving the Wilderness For Dummies” and a pocketknife–stashed away where the men didn’t find them.

“How did you do that?” said a voice to my right, and I attempted to hide a triumphant smile as I met the eyes of the woman who was tending to my wounds.

“Do what?” I replied in attempt to make her speak again.

“Conjure those items from your bag? All of the items were emptied onto the ground earlier, I saw it!” This time, I couldn’t control my smile.

“You were spying then? Eavesdropping?” The woman quickly turned away and refused to look at me.

“No!” I said loudly, moving foreword slightly and throwing her off guard. “Don’t get me wrong, I think that eavesdropping is a great way to get information. I mean, that’s how I found out I was going to be a big brother, both times! And it’s how stole an unfinished poem from my brother to give to Julia Stackhouse in the eighth grade; and how I discovered that my sister can sing; and how I realized that she’s not the innocent girl she was before,” my face fell slightly at the recollection, “She was on the phone with one of her friends, talking of the boy she likes and how he gave her first kiss. I was so ready to find this guy and beat the shit out of him for touching my sister, but I knew that she would probably hate me forever, and I figured that the ass kicking was best saved for the guy who takes her virginity. I’ll kill him I swear I will. My little sister is way too young to even think about that stuff. I mean, I guess fifteen is old enough–hell, I started thinking about sex when I was twelve–but she’s like an innocent little angel! I could never possibly think that my little angel would know of such things,” I took a deep breath, sighing dramatically in the process and noticing for the first time in a few minutes that the woman had stopped working on my leg and was staring at me with a raised eyebrow.

“You talk too much, and all of it nonsense,” she said simply, and I lay back down.

“Only sometimes, dear friend, there are days where I don’t feel like talking at all. Most people think I’m sick, but I just feel heavy. By the way, I don’t know your name.” She seemed to hesitate as she stood up and walked slowly towards the closed tent flap. Before she exited, she turned and curtseyed, her legs spread slightly and her hands flatly over her heart.

“I am Aria, this village’s medicine woman,” she said simply, and I smiled largely at her.

“It was wonderful to meet you Aria.”

“Sleep well Master Cloud,” and with that I was alone.

Attempting to keep my mind off of the growing pain in my body, I closed my eyes and tried to remember how it is that I ended up in this strange place. It was obvious to me that I was in another world, but who sent me here? Why am I here? How did I know the Lead’s name without him telling me? When I looked at the map earlier, I felt as if I had seen it before, but I couldn’t place where or when. I felt as if I knew something about this place. The only thing that came to mind, though, was Aunt Millie. She has always been the one to introduce me to new and strange things throughout my life, and surely at least she would know something about my current situation, if not be the cause.

I have always been grateful to have a woman such as her in my life. My parents, Nova and Gale, are extraordinary people, and it was obvious as my siblings grew up that they were as well. I was the only one in my family who didn’t have some sort of amazing talent or creative gene that took form through the arts. When I was feeling left out and extra ordinary, Aunt Millie seemed to sense it. It was always on bad days such as those that she would call me over to her home and give me a lesson in mythology, or medicine making, or building and take my mind off of my lack of everything for a day. Afterwards, I was comforted in the fact that I now knew something that not everyone knew, and I felt special. That’s all I ever really wanted in life, to stand out amongst a crowd of those who can never fit in.

That was what I wished for on my last birthday. I was turning twenty, and I thought that maybe since it was a special birthday–me no longer being a teenager–that I could make a special wish and have it come true. My mother and father took some creative license with my cake and crumbled in into pieces, decorating the pile with an intricate design in purple frosting and my name. The entire house was dark save for the small area around my “cake” illuminated by one large candle. It was probably a foot high and wide enough to cover the entirety of the palm of my hand. The wax was melting at the top, slowly bubbling until it popped and the hot liquid rolled down the side and created yet another design. I remember that I was intrigued, but still focused on exactly what I wanted.

The moment seemed to drag on for eternity. Eerie shadows danced across the kitchen counter as the flame of the candle flickered. The faces of my family almost seemed demented in a beautiful way, and the song they sang for me was deep and slowed and nearly drowned out by the sound of my heart pounding in my ears. Silence eventually enveloped me, and my eyes took all the time in the world to close–the prelude to what would hopefully be an epic adventure. I prepared myself, taking a long, deep inhale, and letting loose the gust of air that would hopefully seal my fate. As the air met the flame in attempt to extinguish the light, a single thought crossed my mind: make me extraordinary.

In the time it took for me to blow out a candle, I had expected something amazing to happen. Perhaps I would burst into song like a bad musical, or a tail would pop out through the back of my jeans, but nothing happened. I opened my eyes, blind without the light of the candle, and stood completely still. I felt as if I had been thrown back into real time, the sound of my family cheering filling my head and causing a migraine to form. The moment had passed, and life would go on just the same as it always had. I was extremely grateful for my dim home, and I am now indebted to the darkness that shielded my family from the wet sign of disappointment that rolled down my face.

How long ago had that happened? Hours? Days? Months? I don’t remember. I don’t remember anything after that night, which certainly didn’t help my current situation. Surely Menas would come back to interrogate me further, and how could I ease his suspicion of me if I didn’t know the answers to his questions. Why am I here? How did I get here? Honestly, who even knows? I certainly don’t, and I doubt that anyone else does. Somehow, my family packed a bag for me, but they most likely did it without asking the purpose. My thoughts back on the bag for a moment, I remembered that in sifting through the other items, I found a single slip of paper.

Dearest Cloud,

We hope that your journey is all you ever wanted and more. We will be eagerly waiting your return.

Always loving,

Nova, Gale, Wren, and Willow

I carefully folded the note and stashed it back inside of my bag, tossing the bag back onto the floor. The candle to the side of me was burning bright, and I quickly extinguished it. I decided that now was a time to be masked by my trusted friend–the night–as I wallowed in my thoughts and tried not to stain the fabric used to cushion head with hot liquid.