At long last, I completed the first part of my plannedly looooong fanfiction detailing who Kupi is and where's come from and where he's going. I can't really say much more about it... I'll let the rest of the post tell the story! ^_^
---
They had called it planet Coral. Not that many people called it that in any time frame we're concerned with right now; at this point they called it "a pile of dust floating in space." This planet had been destroyed to practically nothing, though fair warning was given in the form of dying plants, dehydrated land, rampant monsters, and more. Nobody was beyond these warnings, not even a small, innocuous village on a peninsula far removed from common trade circles and politics. It was a city unto itself, self-sufficient and rooted in a religion that seemed to be dying with the planet itself.
The city was of moderate size, and largely residential or farmland, though very little could be wrested from the dying ground. Most prominent in the city of Auris was the governor Paretae's mansion, a building that towered above the rest and spoke of hope amid desolation. Their religion oft demanded peace from them, but the people of this city weren't stupid; any town lacking walls and defenses was a sitting target for monster and human attack alike. Its inhabitants, as everything on Coral, were affected by the planet's throes of death, themselves barely carrying on from one day to the next. There was, however, an exception in their midst.
He was short, very short for his age of 18 years. Somehow, amid all the death and desolation surrounding him, he had been blessed with a hopelessly optimistic personality that refused to be brought down. At the moment he was walking to his home where he and his brothers lived with a bag of meat, the only food he'd managed to purchase. The brothers lived alone, having lost their father to monsters and their mother to disease. He and his brothers had all been born three years apart, with the eldest 24 and the most youthful 15. His hair, a bright orange, fell down nearly to his waist. This was not a great distance, however; the boy was rather short, and with his unblemished face he was often taken for being far younger than he truly was or, worse yet, as being of the opposite gender. Those who suggested the latter often got a kick in the shins.
The boy's name was Kupi.
Presently Kupi opened the door to his home and yelled, "I'm back! What's up?" The first to notice was a man reclining on a sofa near the back of the room on the opposite side from the house's entrance. He had spiked black hair and wore a robe of matching hue, with a red dragon embroidered onto the front. His face displayed emotions utterly opposite that of Kupi's; if anyone was fit to live on a dying planet, this man would be it. Perhaps a few of these emotions stemmed from a significant difference of anatomy compared to humans; the man had pointed, elfish ears protruding conspicuously from the side of his head rather than normal ones, and such an anomaly would certainly attract suspicious attention, the kind that could annoy one to no end when one had to tolerate it for 21 years.
"The stench of death hangs over us all," he spat.
"Ah, you say that every day, Kupe," answered Kupi knowingly, heading for the kitchen. "I got the meat, but not much. And monster meat, at that. Sorry, Kupu..." he said to the boy that was there after he arrived.
"That's okay, Kupi," Kupu answered. "I'm glad you managed to get any. And we probably ought to only eat half what we usually do at that; we don't know when there'll be more. Man..." At this, the teenager dropped off. Such lapses were common to Kupu. Whereas the rest of the family barring Kupi had been born before Coral began to show signs of its collapse, Kupu had been raised to be used to it. Kupi had his odd personality to keep him afloat; Kupu had to develop a hardened shell of sanity to survive. He was always planning ahead, ready for anything. Perhaps it was for that reason that the 15-year-old served as an intern at the city's walls of defense, helping to avert monster attacks before they started by sniping encroaching beasts before they got too close.
Kupi was just about to return to his own room and was actually halfway down the hall before the front door of the house burst open and slammed against the wall, so great was the haste behind its opening. The one who had burst in was the last of the brothers, and the eldest at 24 years. In the absence of a father, the job of supporting the family had fallen on his shoulders, which had adapted to the task. In his muscular arms he held a scythe, an heirloom from his father. It served two purposes; primarily to harvest the meager crops that Coral yielded, but it also performed well in combat when the need for meat drove the city's people to hunting and eating monsters.
"What's up, Kupae?" asked Kupi, who had crossed the gap immediately upon hearing the door bang. Kupe remained fixed disinterestedly on the couch, and Kupu seemed to care more for the door's well-being than Kupae's.
The scythe-wielder panted, the sweat of a run running off of his brow. His message was imperative enough, however, to cause him to gasp it out before his breath returned. "Monsters!"
Kupu ceased examining the hole in the wall that the doorknob had created. When Kupae said "monsters," it didn't mean two or three. It took far more than that to unnerve this warrior. "How many?" Kupu asked, spending only as many words and as much time as he needed to.
"Thousands."
Things moved quickly from there. Both Kupu and Kupae rushed for their respective rooms and grabbed whatever gear they owned. Kupu was the first to leave the house, bearing solely a large rifle. Kupae took more time to gird his loins for battle, requiring armor, a helmet, and a few secondary weapons. He was, of course, captain of Auris's defense. Only after both of the combatative brothers had left did Kupe rise from his seat, striding coldly out the door. This left Kupi alone, which unnerved the boy. After several seconds of this, he couldn't stand it any longer and bolted to find one of his brothers.
Kupe, seemingly, had disappeared. Kupu was stationed at the wall, beyond Kupi's reach of authority. Kupae was talking to his subordinates, but Kupi could at least wait on the outskirts of the increasingly large crowd of citizens ready to defend a failing way of life. They wielded pickaxes, pitchforks, and reaping scythes. Hardly the weaponry of a mighty or conquering army, but they didn't have anything better, for resources or time. Kupi could hear Kupae shouting orders to everyone, apparently finishing up.
"Look for the biggest monsters and attack them first. Form groups; take them down as a team. They're big and they've got the superior numbers but you all remember the War of Shades, right?" This was followed by a roar of approval. The War of Shades was a legend passed down through the generations of Auris regarding a similar assault that had once befallen their city. By now it was largely fictional but inspiring nonetheless. Once the din had died down, Kupae shouted a general order. "Everyone spread out and face the wall on the monsters' side. We want to surprise as many as we can!"
The people obeyed save one, which was Kupi. He made a beeline for Kupae, who had positioned himself near the center of the plaza that the impromptu battle council had taken place in. "How can I help?" Kupi asked.
"Stay out of it, Kupi," Kupae answered bluntly. "You're going to get yourself hurt if you try to fight."
"But...! I can do some healing, and--"
"No. Kupi, everyone's fighting to save their homes and their families. It's a matter of providing for the people they love, and that's my role." With that, the elder brother was quiet. There was something was on Kupae's mind. Kupi could tell by the way Kupae was so resolutely focused on the task of staying focused, gripping his scythe tightly and staring a hole in the city gates.
"...Kupae?" Kupi prodded.
"Find somewhere to hide, Kupi," Kupae ordered. "And good luck."
It appeared as though the debate was, for the time, settled. Though likely due to Kupae's forceful tone and position of power over Kupi, it was equally likely that it was the way that Kupae charged off to the front of the town.
Just prior, the town snipers were doing their job dutifully, taking potshots at each and every monster they could get within their sights. One intimidating insectoid creature collapsed in its tracks as a photonic shot blazed through its neck. The creature downed was so large that its fall took a few lesser monsters with it.
"Good shot, Kupu," said one of the boys fellow guardsmen. After a brief "thanks," Kupu returned to his work. With the skill and reflex of a hardened mind, Kupu nailed the three skittering horrors that had managed to survive getting fallen on. If they could keep this barrage up, they might just save the city before it needed saving...
The Captain of the wall defense peered out into the putrid throng with binoculars, scanning for targets to order the men to focus on. In the worst possible scenario, he wanted to have as few of the big ones get to the city. The Captain's mind wandered as his vision panned back and forth across the field. Why were all these monsters attacking at once? It felt like their city had been singled out as a threat. What had they done to deserve this plague, and this single-minded bum rush?
Then he spotted It.
A chill ran down the Captain's spine as he realized what was to happen next. He slowly dropped the binoculars, which hit the stone floor of the guard tower with a clack. Silently, the Captain prayed that at least his soul would be saved.
It let out a scream.
The entire wall exploded in a giant string of fireballs, leaving nothing but some charred rubble behind when the smoke had cleared.
That was why, at this moment, Kupae was heading for the remains of the wall. The monsters would be coming over soon, and he had to be there to defend Auris. With determination born of shock, Kupae forced his body into motion, leaving Kupi confused. Kupae had far better reflexes than Kupi did, and Kupi's mind hadn't fully processed the fact that the city's defenses were down and everyone that was on the wall, including his brother Kupu, was dead.
"Come, Kupi," said a voice behind him, before the body connected to the voice grabbed him by the shoulder. It was Kupe. "Things are going to move quickly. We must go to the governor's mansion."
With no coherent thought running through his mind, Kupi allowed himself to be guided.
"What?" he managed at last.
"Kupu is dead. Kupae will soon die, as will I and everyone else. Death hangs over us all," Kupe said with the stony absence of emotion that only a prophet of death can manage. That jarred Kupi's mind back into motion.
"N--... No! That's not possible!" he shouted. "We've gotta do something!" What that happened to be, or what exactly he actually *could* do in this situation entirely escaped Kupi. But the will to action was there, at least. To this, Kupe simply sneered and kept his regular, disdainful pace.
Open warfare had erupted at the city's front half. People were jabbing, stomping, smashing all manner of repulsive beasts, and the monsters were just as easily returning the favor. Kupae circled behind a large, mantislike being that had crossed the pile of rubble while a few townspeople kept it distracted. In a single motion, Kupi leapt onto to the mantis' back and took off half of its body with a single swipe of his scythe, resulting in one dead bug and a lot of green blood. Jumping off, Kupae glanced at the four people currently under his command, scanned for another bug, found one, and then pointed at it, yelling, "That one! Go!"
The four people went. Kupae, however, felt a sudden presence that demanded his attention. Looking over the mound of wall remains, Kupae saw It float over. From where the feeling came, he didn't know, but Kupae was overwhelmed with the will to destroy It. Everything else disappeared from his perceptions expect It and him. Kupae let out a thunderous war cry before pounding towards It. He gripped the scythe by its very end, preparing to cut It with every bit of leverage he could muster...
Every bone in his body snapped in two. Instantly his grip released, with no conscious function behind it. Kupae's dead body fell, driven forward by the previous mortal energy put into it. It hadn't even looked at him.
Kupe and Kupi had reached Paretae's mansion. The house of government, even for the chaos ripping its way through the city, stood strangely unaffected. It had some sort of architectural poker face to it that would not shift for the end of the world. Kupe pushed the massive door open and stepped into the welcoming hall, a rather huge room for its purpose. It was large and open, with very little actually in it besides a few columns. Apparently all else had been taken from it to aid the war effort.
As the duo reached the entrance, Kupe halted, which prompted a questioning look from Kupi. "What's wrong?" he asked.
"This is as far as I go," answered Kupe.
"What?"
"I said, this is as far as I go. Continue down the hall, to Paretae." It was less a request than an order.
"But... why?" Kupi inquired. There was a momentary pause as Kupi began to sense something wrong. "Kupe? What's going on?"
Kupe sneered at Kupi derisively once again. "You pitiful idiot," he spat. "Why did it have to be you?"
Though Kupi was miffed at that, he'd come to expect and quickly recover from that sort of treatment from Kupe. "Why did what have to be me?"
"The one destined to survive this encounter with the demon's avatar. The one destined to save this mortal universe, that's what!"
Kupi blinked.
"It had to be you, of all people! The weak, stupid, helpless one! Not me! Of course it couldn't be me, I'm special enough already, right?! I've got these stupid-looking ears! And you know how I was found outside the city, not born! I'm the logical choice, but... I always knew... of course... it can't be me... my heart's too blackened..." Kupe gritted his teeth and dropped off, leaving Kupi unsure of what exactly what going on. There was a long silence as Kupi simply observed the way Kupe seethed.
"...Kupe?" Kupi prodded.
"Go! Run to Paretae! If you don't, all the universe is damned!" Kupe shouted at him suddenly. "They're going to get here shortly, and I have to fulfill my part of your destiny." There was venom in the word "your."
Kupi blinked once again, turned, and ran deeper into the mansion.
Kupe grinned cynically. Fine, Great Light. Have it your way, Kupe thought. If you destine my body destroyed and my soul annihilated, so be it. But I'll not be wrent without some fun.
Kupe held both of his arms out, focusing all of his spiritual force in bending the very world around him to the shape of his will. Blackness spread out from him, engulfing the entire hall. Within moments, the whole room was nothing but a void, the single dark wizard floating in the middle of it. The hall had become Kupe's own world. Let the monsters come. They would face the wrath of a man blacker than even themselves, a tiny evil deity.
Kupi hurried through hallways, up stairs, down different ones, into and out of doors. He honestly didn't know where he was going; he'd never actually met Paretae face-to-face before or even been to the governor's mansion, and the sounds of very unpleasant things being done to the wrong side of the battle lent extra urgency to a futile situation. On top of all that, Kupi was running out of doors. But, at last:
"Ah, Kupi. Come in," said a smooth, silky voice that Kupi could only assume was Paretae's. Both government officials and priests eventually attain a level tone of voice that calms and charms in the midst of anything, and since Paretae acted as both to Auris, the effect was twofold. Like or not, Kupi had found Paretae and entering the room was no worse than the alternative...
...such as what was occurring in the only true exit to the building, its entrance, which had currently lost nearly every connection to the outside world. The doors still worked, and quite well, but they led to a pocket of space completely under the control of Kupe the sorcerer. He was a powerful psychic, and knew quite far in advance that the monsters would have broken down the walls if the dimensional interference hadn't repulsed their attempts and in just a few seconds they'd figure out that needed to use the door.
It fell down with a crash. The first creature to attempt to attack Kupe was some sort of furry, clawed monstrosity whose sole vocal ability seemed to be extremely repulsive mumbling. With a grand "grmph," it charged into the darkness and fell. It simply fell; there apparently wasn't a floor to the arena. It took about twenty of the sort of monsters that could actually fit through the door before they realized that all their attempts were accomplishing was a lot of lost monsters.
Kupe smirked as another of the furry mumblers apprehensively attempted to take a very light step onto the confirmedly unsure footing and disappeared into the lower blackness with a "grrffmmmll.....*" Kupe waved at a hand at the assembled creatures. "Try again," he taunted. A lesser mantis-beast did so, and found that the blackness that had swallowed up its comrades now, by whatever means, provided footing. That fact established in its simple mind, it charged. Kupe stayed still right up until the point that it began swinging a bladelike arm at him. At that point he held out his arm with a single finger extended. Just as the mantis was about to hit him, a fireball leapt from Kupe's outstretched finger and detonated at the mantis's torso, leaving very little but some green goop spattered on Kupe's robe. With psychic force, he caused it to disappear. That finished, the wizard turned his gaze to the rest of the monsters.
"Bring it."
On cue, a flood of monsters of all breeds and dimensions poured through the doorway. Dealing with each one individually, Kupe cut them down. Magic flames burnt down anything with fur. Lightning bolts rained upon anything that seemed solid. If it radiated heat, Kupe froze it with icy winds. Despite the loss of hundreds, the monsters continued to charge, even rushing around piles of fallen fellow beasts if they had to. They began to surround Kupe, using the fact that he couldn't kill them all at once to get around. The mass closed in, brandishing claws, scythes, burning appendages, anything they could use malignantly. Kupe grinned. Perfect. Summoning every bit of his spiritual might, Kupe unleashed an unseen shockwave. The mortal eye could only see the effects; everything save Kupe was reduced to a minute wisp of vapor in an ever-expanding circle of pure destruction around him. The attack concluded at the edge of Kupe's domain; nothing outside was harmed but the monsters were no more.
Kupe panted, but pulled himself upright nonetheless. Was that all? The great forces of darkness reduced to an odor. That struck a chord with Kupe's cruel soul, causing him to laugh. It started slow, but rose to that of a maniac's. He didn't waver until It arrived.
It floated over to him. Kupe defiantly stared into its face. That was about all he could stare into, as that was all It had. It was just a floating blue head with narrow, pointed eyes of red energy and a mouth filled with ghastly off-white canine teeth. For a moment the wills of both It and the magician clashed, before Kupe did what is considered in dark magic circles to be spitting in your foe's face. His corporeal hand choked the life out of his body, causing it to simply fall to the floor, dead. Annoyed, It floated onward as the blackened void reverted to the entrance hall it once was.
While this was going on, Kupi was being briefed by Paretae. Paretae stood unshiftingly in the center of the room, eyes closed, with no special adornments. No jewelry, no makeup, nothing but a simple pink dress without so much as a design on it. She struck Kupi as beautiful, not so much by appearance as by aura. Very little of Kupi's mind actually processed that, however, given the circumstances.
"There is no time to explain your role in these events, Kupi," said Paretae. "I can only tell you what you must do in the future. Worry not; all will revealed later."
Kupi nodded, then realized that with her eyes closed Paretae would be completely oblivious to the gesture. "Ah-- Okay..." he said.
"Good. Listen closely; I have only the time to say this once. On the side of the frame of the mirror in the corner, there is a small catch. Push this in while pushing on the glass. This will reveal a passage; take the stairs downward and run. There will be a long hallway, at the end of which is a machine. Climb into it, sit on the seat, and press the white button. You will be taken to large colony ship called the 'Pioneer 2.' Find your way on board. That is as far as I may direct you," Paretae concluded.
Kupi blinked. He then blinked again. He'd gotten the directions clearly enough, but it was all too surreal to believe at first. However, the sharp, "Kupi! Go!" from Paretae within a matter of seconds snapped him into action. The catch was right where Paretae had told him it would be, and the mirror swung in as she had said. Just before he descended the stairway, Kupi stopped.
"Wait a minute! Paretae, you can come with me!" he exclaimed.
"No, Kupi. That is not destiny's plan."
"But--"
"No, Kupi." It was far more forceful the second time around, and Paretae's sheer will was a thing to be reckoned with. Rather, it was a think people avoided reckoning with, and Kupi was hardly one to debate the issue. If she wanted to stay, she'd stay. Thinking it inappropriate to leave with nothing, Kupi uttered a brief, confused, "Goodbye, then..." and hurried down the stairwell in the still-open mirror.
As the footsteps subsided into faint echoes and then silence, Paretae still stood vigilant at the room's center, undisturbed. The mirror closed seeming of its own accord, leaving no sign of anyone's presence but hers. "You may enter," she said.
It floated through the door, not deterred a bit by the fact that it remained closed the entire time. Paretae did not waver in the slightest. It came to rest in front of her face, staring at her, then looked around the room.
"I am not the one you seek," Paretae said to It in a monotone. "He is long gone."
It snarled at her, which appeared to be its only form of communication, and turned three degrees before halting violently. The cease of motion was apparently not its intent.
"You may not leave," Paretae said, this time with far more force.
A look of perplexion followed by fear swept Its face. It might have been an amusing sight to see such a demon with that expression on its face, had Paretae been able to see through her eyelids.
"You can feel it, can't you?" the high priestess asked It rhetorically. "Yes, but it is not to happen quite yet. He must complete his escape first."
It began to mumble and whine incoherently, attempting to jostle Itself free of whatever invisible bonds held It. Paretae simply stared ahead. It began to get even more agitated, wresting with the air for the ability to move. After a small eternity, Paretae said nothing, but opened her eyes. They were aglow with yellowish flames, not a standard feature in the human anatomy. It cried out in pain.
"Do you now understand what's going to happen to you?" she asked It.
It wailed.
Paretae tilted her head, with a smile not typically associated with the holy on her face. "You're just one of the little ones. A pawn, like me, in this game of the eternals. Ha. This... is... the end... for... us... both!"
Paretae threw her hands above her head and for a moment the world was silenced. What followed was what was called, in the vernacular, Grants. A spell that strikes its victim with rays of light before burning them with holy energy. However, Grants does not usually remove a city from a map with its collateral damage. This one did.
Somewhere beneath the sea, a small submarine unit carried a boy, the last survivor of his people, to his destiny...
---
Phew. All comments appreciated, besides nitpicky grammatical stuff that there really shouldn't be much material for anyway... ta! I'm off to write more. ^_^
<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Kupi on 2003-10-04 18:16 ]</font>
Reply With Quote
Connect With Us