THE ELEVENTH ETERNAL - known as Delphi - was one of the Eternal's thinkers; like Sprite, Druig, Ajak, Sersi and Phastos. The Eternals were her family.
All but Druig - to Delphi, he felt like more than just family, he felt like home, a safe place.
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FINLAND — 1959
A LIGHT STREAM of snowflakes covered the near-permanent white-covered landscape — all else that could be seen was the murky green of the untameable forest. Dressed in a heavy coat of furs and navy, Delphi trudged steadily through the snow, an elderly Husky, whom was named Luna, steps behind. Age prevented her from totally keeping up with her companion, but the stubborn dog trudged on silently.
With each sobering breath came a translucent mist of air escaping her icy lungs. Despite the protection of two pairs of gloves — one aged and woollen; the other new and shop-bought — the brunette's hands were numb, tinted with a hue of milky blue. Winter was on its way but nothing could stop the Seer's unwavering stride as she made her way to the nearby village.
A new shop had recently opened — a book shop to be specific. Delphi's proclivity for books was in no way new. In fact, she visited The Great Library of Alexandria — one of the largest and most significant libraries of the ancient world — on a number of occasions and upon entering each time, whether it was her first or last, she was on the verge of tears. Pallid eyes glistened, sparks of exhilaration alight within them. It was truly splendid, magnificent in size and distinguished in reputation and contents; a wonder if she'd ever seen one. Kingo and Sprite had sniggered at her preposterous reaction to merely entering a library because they didn't cherish it the way she did. When she saw a premonition of it burning down she was near inconsolable, poor Druig was given the unfeasible task of brightening her sour, distressed mood. Somehow he was able to do so.
Eventually, realising it was frankly impossible for her to keep up with Delphi, Luna cried out for her companion's attention; age was not on the dog's side nowadays but she was iron-willed enough to refuse to let Delphi coddle her too much. Stopping instantly, Delphi crouched down to gaze her pallid eyes into Luna's amber ones. A heartfelt, fond connection had been formed years ago when Luna was a tiny pup. The pair were seldom seen apart. The brunette's heart already ached to know that her time with Luna was limited. On the bright side, Luna's runt, an overly excitable Husky called Anubis, would remain by Delphi's side long after Luna's tragic passing. Never would she admit it, nevertheless, Luna's place in Delphi's ancient heart could never be displaced.
"If you feel old imagine how I feel," joked Delphi, which earned little response from her aged companion, "Wow, tough crowd. We just need to go into town so I can go to this new book shop and I promise to buy you all the salmon you want." Luna perked up and took off in a gleeful trot, leaving a good-humoured companion in her wake. Books were Delphi's Achilles Heel; salmon was Luna's.
Time rolled by like a whirlwind; the village silhouette expanded across the frozen landscape. People, seemingly no bigger than a pea, bustled around their daily life, ignoring the bitter weather. Envious was Delphi. These people were born, grew, lived however they wished and died; Delphi was neither born nor could she grow. She was created for a task and a task only. Imprisoned in her own body, she could not live like them, like humans. Death was something she believed would never visit her. She supposed that was where her love of reading stemmed from: it allowed her to live the lives of countless others. With swirling thoughts quilting her mind, Delphi entered the borders of the village sooner than expected. Speedily walking past all of the shops — including the fishmonger, which incited a ravenous growl from Luna's stomach — Delphi kept her head down, avoiding making eye contact with those around her.
Towards the end of the row of shops was the book shop. Above the entrance was a wooden sign, letters engraved and painted a warm yellow. It read, in Finnish: 'The Book Emporium'. "There it is, Luna," declared the blue-eyed Seer with great pleasure. Surveying the outside, she took in every noticeable detail, both big and small. From the snow-covered windows and green painted door with a round brass handle to the creaking of the timber sign in the delicate wind and the tall man inside carrying a goodly pile of books in his sturdy arms, a lit cigarette draped from his closed mouth.
Gently, Delphi twisted the handle, disregarding the anguished scream it let out. In she animatedly leapt, not before she shook away the layer of snowfall resting on her — although her long, brunette hair lost little of the dainty, white flakes hidden within it — an action imitated by Luna. Instantly the comforting scent of aged paper filtered over her senses, accompanied by strong smoke, black coffee and earthy wood. In the corner of the room was a radio from a few decades ago, lightly jazz music fluttered out filling the otherwise silent room. Now, standing in the entrance of the book emporium, Delphi could examine the smoking man more closely; Scandi blond hair excellently styled to appear as though it had not been touched, eyes like the crossing between the shallow sea to the deep ocean, evidently he was taller than Delphi and many others. "Hello," greeted the brunette pleasantly in the native tongue, making her presence fully known to the man, "my name is Delphi, and this is Luna, is this your shop?"
He turned suddenly away from one of the shelves he had been lining with books, oceanic eyes scanning the figure of the woman who just spoke. A bright smile rested on her graceful face — she made no attempt to mask her excitement. "Yeah, that's me," he replied, deep voice chuckling softly, which was unlike him, "it's nice to meet you, Delphi. I'm Otto...Otto Jaakola. May I ask, did you just leap through the door?"
Blushing intensely, Delphi stuttered out. 'Why couldn't I walk in like a normal person?' she thought, before answering her own question immediately after: 'well it is books so that is a reasonable reaction. At least I didn't burst out crying again.'
"Um...yes, yes I did."
Luna whined, missing any form of attention.
"A pleasure, indeed, to meet you, Luna," smiled Otto, scraping the Husky gently behind her large, fluffy ear,"I don't think I've ever met someone as excited about books as you," joked Otto, "besides myself, of course."
Feigning insult, Delphi's hand rested above her heart, mouth wide open. "How dare you! No one is more excited than I."
"No true," arching her dark brow in mock disagreement, Otto heartily laughed, surrendering to the shorter women: "fine, fine. How may I be of service for you than today, Madam?"
"First, don't call me 'Madam' it makes me feel old. And second I'm looking for a few books that I haven't read." Delphi explained. Otto continued to smoke his nearly finished cigarette, nodding along to her words. "I haven't read many recently written books, mostly older ones: what do you suggest?"
"Well, Madam, I can help there," another brow was arched, this time in mock insult, both giggled childishly, "sorry, I just couldn't resist. These are three of my favourites from this decade: Lord of the Flies by William Golding, Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov, and Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury." Procuring said books from a small heap on the treen countertop, he handed them to her, never moving his eyes from her, gazing at the happiness in her eyes. Her eyes did not leave the covers, or else they would have easily connected with the deep blues of Otto and melted under the undivided attention.
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I know I haven't updated in a while so I hope you enjoyed this latest chapter.
