The Vision and the Circumvention: Chapter Two

Chapter 2:
Novitious Awakens

Something wet and cool touched his face, sliding across it delicately. Somewhere in the darkness of his sleep he could hear whispers and giggles. They slowly became clearer as he began to wake.
“Asio really did a number on him, poor thing…” A soft, feminine voice said.
“You know Asio. He’s always thinking with his fists.” Another sighed. This one also sounded feminine, but it was slightly rougher. There was the sound of something moving through water, then dripping, then that cool, soothing feeling again.
Halian made a small sound and forced his eyes open. One opened completely, but the other was still swollen. He stared up a bit dazedly at two, blurry faces. The forms leaned over him, peering back.
“Oh! He’s awake!” The sweeter voice cried. Halian reached up and rubbed at his good eye, trying to clear his vision. The blurriness soon subsided and he found himself in the presence of two females. One looked to be around eighteen. She had long silvery hair and kind blue eyes. There was a strange sort of lump on her forehead though that seemed out of place. It was quite large. The other woman seemed to be somewhere in her mid thirties. She was slightly plumper and her eyes were dark and hard. She looked as if she’d experienced far more in hardship than her companion had. There was a scar over her left eye and a slight frown on her face.
The girl with silver hair leaned closer to Halian, taking up his vision.
“Good morning!” She said, smiling. “My name is Yale, and this is Elise.” She said, motioning to the sulking woman. “How are you feeling?”
Halian stared up at them in confusion. Who were these two? Where was he? He tried to sit up, but Yale pushed him back down.
“Ah, ah, ah~! You can’t go moving about, not until I know you can handle it.” She chided, smiling so brightly that it almost made Halian’s stomach turn. Something about that smile felt familiar to him. It was sitting at the edge of his mind, like a word on the tip of the tongue that refused to be spoken. The fact that this stranger seemed so familiar was beginning to disturb him. He didn’t know her, he knew he didn’t, and yet he could feel something pressing at every corner of his mind, begging to be remembered. Shaking the feeling loose he scowled. He was really beginning to lose his patience with these strange kidnappers.
Halian forced himself up, standing and wobbling a moment as he glared down at Yale and Elise, who were beginning to rise as well.
“Halian! Halian please lay dow-” Yale was cut off when Halian snapped.
“Don’t tell me what to do! Now, where the hell am I?! What do you and that sick freak with the feathers want from me, eh?!” He demanded, grabbing her by the arm. Yale’s eyes went wide as a look of fear manifested over her face. Before she could answer Elise grabbed hold of Halian’s hair and yanked, causing him to loosen his hold on her arm. The woman then tucked Yale under her arm and dashed out of the room, closing and locking the door behind her. Halian growled and ran over to it, pounding on it and trying to yank it open.
“What the hell’s going on?! Let me out of here right now!” He shouted, continuing to pound and ram himself into the door. After about ten minutes he finally surrendered to the fact that it wasn’t going to budge, at least not before he’d broken every bone in his body trying to break it down. He heaved a sigh and slid down to the floor, his back pressed against the rough wood of the door. He had no idea what was going on anymore. Who were these people? What did they want with him?
Halian allowed his eyes to wonder over the room he was currently imprisoned in. It looked like a bedroom. There was the sleeping mat in the corner which he had been lying on previously, and across from that were two windows which were currently covered with thick, red drapes. The floor and walls were made of a rich, honey-brown wood that vaguely reminded him of the desks at school. As for furniture, the only thing besides the sleeping mat was a desk sitting against the wall to his left. There were papers strewn across the top of it, lots of papers. Curious, Halian stood and wondered over to the desk, peering down at the sheets. He was surprised to find that the papers were blank, just like the paper in his room, just like the paper in his father’s house. He’d sworn that he’d become a better artist than his father, that he would make something of himself, and yet his paper was just as white and empty as the paper his father had. The ivory sheets seemed to glare back at him blindingly, almost filling his vision.
Overcome with the sight of the paper, Halian swiftly turned and marched back to the mat on the floor. He plopped down and covered his eyes with his hands. He could still feel the burning white in his irises. It haunted him.
It was a while before he heard the lock turn and the door open. He looked up to see Asio standing in the doorway, silhouetted in sunlight and looking just as sour as he had back in his dorm room. Halian jumped to his feet, instantly on the defensive.
“Don’t you come near me! Stay back, you hear?!” He shouted, glaring at Asio with his one good eye. The owl smirked amusingly in response. He obviously found Halian’s unnerved manner comical in some way. There was an awkward silence before he released a bored sigh.
“If you’re quite finished, I’d like you to come with me.”
Halian stared, not having moved an inch in the last few minutes. He definitely felt skeptical of Asio’s request.
“Where to? I’m not doing anything until you tell me what the hell is going on.”
Asio narrowed his eyes a moment before glancing back over his shoulder. He then walked towards Halian, arms crossed.
“You have been brought here out of necessity. I don’t like it any more than you do, believe me, but we need your power.”
Halian blinked, looking utterly clueless and confused.
“My power? What do you mean? Where am I?!” He demanded anxiously.
“You’re in Nowhere. Halian Stratton’s Nowhere, to be exact. And as for your power, that will be explained shortly.” Asio said bluntly as he reached for Halian’s arm. Halian had no idea what the strange being was telling him. Nowhere? His Nowhere? Nothing was making sense! In a flurry of panic, he shoved Asio back and ran out of the room into the daylight.

Halian panted as he ran down the dirt road that wound around and down the small cliff his prison had been sitting on. He noticed a small town nearby and hoped that he could find safe haven there. It wasn’t until he reached the first few houses that he realized the inhabitants of said town were just as abnormal as Asio and his horde. There were creatures that floated through the air like bubbles, talking animals, people with all sorts of weird abstractions and some that he couldn’t find the correct words to describe. Filled with both confusion and terror, Halian rushed between two of the houses and crouched down behind some bushes. What was going on? How did he get here? How was any of this possible? He closed his eyes tightly and panted, hoping that when he opened them again he’d be back safe in his bed at school.
“Um…..excuse me…”
A timid voice reached his ears and he opened his eyes to see not his bedroom, but a small boy with strange petal-like hair and vibrant purple eyes. Halian stared at the tiny creature with a bewildered look, taking in its snow-white skin and flower-petal locks.
“Y-Yes?” He asked finally, catching himself. He wondered if he should be talking to it.
“Um……my ball….”
It pointed to a small round ball sitting near Halian.
“Oh! Uh, sure.” Halian responded, handing the ball to the child if for no other reason than to get him to go away. There was something about this creature that confused him, though. He felt once again as if he’d seen it somewhere before.
Upon receiving its toy, the child smiled happily, its big eyes brightening.
“Thank you.”
It looked like it was about to turn, but then paused, glancing at Halian again.
“….Do you wanna play with me?” It asked sweetly. Halian didn’t know what to say. He was trying to hide from Asio, so he couldn’t really just go out into the street and start tossing a ball around.
“Sorry….I’m busy right now. Maybe later.” He said, hoping that the kid would take the hint. The child’s expression sunk a little and he nodded before toddling off back to the front of the house. Halian sighed and thunked his head back against the side of the building. He had to figure out a way to get back home…where ever that was.
Not five minutes later the escapee heard Asio’s voice from nearby.
“Where the hell did he get off to?! I’m gonna wring his skinny little neck!” He hissed. Halian could only imagine what he looked like at the moment. It was going to be bad when he found him.
“Asio, you shouldn’t say things like that…I’m sure he’s just frightened.” Tupin’s voice responded quietly. Halian peeked carefully around the bushes to see the two of them coming his way. Indeed, Asio looked as if he was about to molt all of his feathers. Their eyes met and the owl jumped.
“There he is!” He shouted. Halian gasped and jumped up, starting to run. It wasn’t even ten seconds before Asio had jumped him, again. He grabbed his hair and sat on his back, giving painful yanks every time Halian tried to resist.
“Get off of me! Let me go!” Halian shouted, cringing.
”I don’t think so.” Asio snarled, baring his sharp teeth. “I’m tired of chasing you. Are you going to comply or do I have to tie you up and drag you with me?”
“Asio!”
The owl-boy turned his head to see Yale standing nearby, next to Tupin. She had her hands on her hips and a scowl on her face.
“What do you think you’re doing? Stop hurting him!” She demanded, marching over and picking the creature up off of Halian. Asio growled and flailed, obviously unhappy at being lifted in such a way.
“Put me down woman!” He screeched angrily. Yale huffed and dropped him before helping Halian up.
“I’m so sorry about that….Asio has a bit of a temper. Are you alright?”
Halian brushed her off, backing up from all of them. He didn’t trust a single one of them.
“No, I’m not alright! I want to know why I’m here, and I want to know right now! Who are you people? What is this place?”
The group looked at eachother nervously, heads lowered a bit. Asio was the first to speak up.
“As I mentioned before, we’re all your creations….your characters.” He started, keeping back so as not to make the other too anxious.
“This place is where we exist. It’s the place you brought into existence the moment you began to invent us and shape us.”
Halian didn’t know what to think of Asio’s explanation. Could this place seriously be something he’d created? Were all these creatures really his? But….if so, why couldn’t he remember any of them? Asio drummed his fingers against his bleached-bone mask a moment before continuing.
“As for bringing you here, it couldn’t really be helped. Something beyond our control has been taking place, and only you can stop it.”
Halian’s ears perked up at this.
“Why only me? What exactly is going on here? I can’t remember any of you…how do I know you’re not lying?”
Asio had opened his mouth to speak when bells began ringing in the distance.
“Oh! They’re here!” Yale cried, putting her hands to her mouth anxiously. Asio growled and turned to look at her.
“Get inside. I and Tupin will handle this.”
The girl nodded and ran off, leaving just the three. Asio looked at Halian again, his gaze intense.
“We don’t have time to explain right now. Will you trust us?”
Halian wasn’t certain why….but something about the way Asio looked at him made him feel as if something bad was about to happen. He had no idea what would occur if he went along with them, but it seemed to be the only way he’d ever get to the bottom of this.
“Fine. I’ll go with you. But you better not try anything fishy!”
That was enough for Asio. He grabbed hold of Halian’s arm and started running alongside Tupin, whose large feet shook the ground a bit as he wobbled down the street.
The threesome soon came upon a large stone building circular in shape. It looked ancient, and was chipping and bleached from the sun. Asio pulled Halian inside quickly, glancing over his shoulder every now and then as if he worried they were being followed. It was dark inside, very dark. The only light came from a large hole in the ceiling, faintly illuminating the stone pillars and statues inside. There was something mystical and almost spiritual about this place. Halian got the feeling that it had been waiting for him for some time.
Asio shuffled past Halian to an especially dark part of the room while Tupin stayed at the human’s side. There was the sound of something being opened, then lifted before Asio came back into the light. In his clawed fingers he held a long, wooden case. It was so large compared to him that Halian wondered how he had the strength to carry it.
“Go ahead. Open it.” Asio said, holding the case up towards Halian. The young man hesitated a moment before reaching out and opening the lid. Inside there lay a simple but immense brush with a handle about twenty-three inches in length, and bristles nearing ten inches long. Halian stared at it in wonder, his mouth nearly hanging open. He’d never seen a brush so large before! It looked like it would be quite cumbersome to use, too.
“Take it.” Asio pressed, holding the case just a little higher. Halian ran his fingers lightly over the smooth wooden handle before taking it from the case. It was strangely light for something so large. It felt light enough to be a normal-sized brush.
“Its name is Novitious.” Asio explained, eyeing the brush. “When the creator of its Nowhere holds it, it has the power to make anything possible.”
Halian turned the brush a bit in his hand, looking at it. All of this felt crazy to him. An imaginary world, living creations, magic brushes? He had no idea what to think. He felt a bit shocked, to be honest.
The sound of screaming reached Halian’s ears and he turned quickly towards the entrance. Asio growled, grabbing hold of Halian’s wrist and pushing him into the shadows.
“Stay here. I mean it.” He ordered before letting go of the young man and heading for the exit, along with the clumsy Tupin.
“What’s going on?” Halian asked, watching them head outside. Asio glanced back at him, his yellow eyes keen and intelligent.
“We have some unwanted visitors.”
With that he turned and followed Tupin outside and out of view.
Halian wasn’t sure how long he stood there before he became too anxious and curious to wait any longer. He crept sneakily to the entrance and peered out. He could see a large group of what looked like soldiers standing in the street just a short distance away. One of them sat on a horse, his face mostly covered with a large helmet. A plume of vibrant red hair flowed from the back of it and cascaded down his back and over his shoulders. In his hand he held a weapon similar to a yari-a spear/lance-and his body was protected with armor. The other soldiers were all pointing their weapons outward, towards the small crowd of imaginary beings that had gathered in the last minute or two. Halian couldn’t see what was going on, at least not until one of the soldiers shifted a bit, revealing a small creature that seemed to be struggling against their grasp. It was the little flower boy from before! He felt his heart leap in his chest and his grip tightened on Novitious without his realizing it.
The imaginary beings surrounding the soldiers and their captive were showing a variety of emotions. Some were teary-eyed, others looked raving mad.
“Let the child go! Please!” Someone nearby shouted. Halian saw some of the soldiers chuckle as a response. The helmet-donned figure raised the yari up, until it was pressing against the small creature’s back. The captive froze up as a response, its eyes wide and startled. Halian thought he heard someone mention something about food, about something tasty. The very thought of it made his throat tighten. He felt the sudden urge to do something, anything, to get that innocent child out of their grasp.
I shouldn’t get involved…. He told himself. This has nothing to do with me.
He wanted to believe that, but deep down he knew that he couldn’t just stand there and watch them hurt that kid.
There was a sudden rustling of feathers and flapping of wings before Halian saw Asio shoot up out of the crowd and dive toward the soldiers restraining the flower child. The sea of imaginary beings started surging forward and the soldiers began swinging their weapons in defense. Halian felt torn. If the beings were indeed his own creations it was his responsibility to protect them, right? And yet what could he do? He was a useless artist, and he didn’t know the first thing about fighting. What good could he do with nothing more than this oversized brush in his hands? He clenched the brush tightly, biting his lip a little as he wrestled inside himself. What if he ended up getting killed? Could he die here? Probably.
His feet hit the ground with loud slaps as he flew into the swarm of angry, dueling imaginations. His body was moving faster than his mind at the moment, though the latter was beginning to catch up.
Damn it, damn it, damn it! Halian thought as he dodged out-swinging arms and fierce teeth. He had to be some kind of fool to go rushing into a fight like this! He held Novitious tightly in his hand, looking this way and that. It was hard to tell who was who with all these creatures shifting and lunging and running about! He heard a small shriek and turned to see the helmet-wearing figure raising the yari up, preparing to strike the flower child from before. Halian was there in a flash. He screamed and rushed the helmet-donned soldier, who quickly averted his attention from the child to the opponent rushing towards him. Halian did the only thing he could think of and swung the brush at him, feeling a sudden and searing heat in his chest. At that moment, just as the brush made contact with the yari, it burst into a brilliant glow. The bristles shifted and waved like flowing water.
Halian stared at the brush in shock. How was it glowing? Why hadn’t it broken when the yari hit it? His opponent looked just as shocked, but it didn’t last long. As Halian was distracted the horseman swung again, knocking the brush from his hand. He then sliced Halian across his chest, causing him to cry out in pain and collapse to the ground. The horseman pointed the yari at Halian, pressing the very tip of it into the young man’s flesh.
“You do not belong here, boy.” The horseman growled. He looked strangely amused as he said this, however. It made Halian shudder in disgust. Before the stranger could do anything more, Asio suddenly jumped up at his face and clawed at him. Halian watched the two of them struggle until the horseman managed to throw Asio off of himself. The man looked enraged, and he had scratches all along the lower half of his face. He stared down at Halian a moment before putting his fingers to his mouth and blowing a sharp whistle.
“This isn’t over!” He shouted, turning his steed and rushing off down the road and out of sight, his surviving men running after him as the imaginary creatures hurtled whatever they could find at them.
Halian could feel something warm running down his chest, but he couldn’t bring himself to look. He tried to pick himself up, but it hurt to move. Asio got up and hurried over to him. The owl looked a bit beaten up himself, some of his feathers missing and a little blood on his partially-exposed face.
“Halian. Halian, don’t move.” He said, his voice starting to sound muffled and distant. Halian blinked, it was starting to get darker, like shadows were pressing in from every corner of his vision. He saw Asio turn his head towards someone, his usual piercing gaze now replaced by concern.
“G…t…som….ove….h…re!”
All sound faded, as well as vision, as Halian slipped once more into unconsciousness.