Burn the Ashes [DISCONTINUED]

(Ante)

Life was a fickle thing that I could never hold onto. It trickled through the cracks of my airtight mind in the moments where I least expected it. Every time that a hint of color seeped through, the seal tightened until only black and white remained. Every cell in my body says that there should be more to this — that somewhere along the line, I should've been cured of this worldview by the fantastical tale I spun about pirates and gold and debts.

Yet here I sit, hoping that the next story will give me the life that I so suddenly lack.

White tile, white walls, and white, ambient light. In the jungle of arched windows and vaulted ceilings, a fern in the corner brings a lonely spot of color. Smooth, flowing shapes decorate the architecture of the liminal space. All of them blur at the edges. I sit in a black armchair that threatens to swallow me whole. Daniel sits across from me, stiff and anxious, in a chair of his own. It doesn't flicker in its existence.

I can't help but smile. "You've learned a lot."

His shoulders drop. "So I'm good? I passed?"

"Mmhm." I nestle back into my chair. "It's fuzzy at the edges, but the concept and endurance is what counts. You've got that down. You even got the fern! That's something."

He beams. "Sweet!! Okayokay, what does this mean?"

"It means my job's done. Also means that I need to start the next story." I stand, allowing my chair to vanish. "You can drop the setting; I'll pick it up"

He sighs in relief. The room fuzzes for a moment. I step in and focus until it sharpens. Intricacies flood the walls: texture, cracks, shine on the windows, specific shading, and deeper contrast. A part of me relaxes, now in control.

"Jesse has to train Fennie more."

"Am I really prepared, though?"

"If you don't start now, when will you? After all, I'll be right there if you ever need help. Ok?"

He nods. "Alright. What should I expect?"

"Of the story?" I ask.

He nods.

"Well, the culture's definitely different, but you probably know that by now. The world around us will be brutal, but it will be under control. Comfortably realistic, I suppose.." I rub my hands together, standing from my chair. "For me, it may not be comfortable. It's going to be as real, and harsh."

His brow knots. "Well, uh... I guess that'll be fun."

"It will! If not, it'll be interesting enough to be worth it."

I leave my chair behind, allowing it to vanish. Ahead of me stands the end wall, a plain, forgotten wall. With some focus, it morphs to accommodate a grand window, showing nothing but the blank emptiness beyond our room.

The world awaits. "Daniel, I'm going to be someone else entirely. I'm going to step into those shoes and make something."

I can feel him watching from his seat. "Are you sure about this?"

"About what?"

"Doing that. Aren't you worried about losing yourself?" I hear him stand.

"Of course not. I know the difference between me and my characters." Far off in the void beneath us, blue appears. "But most of all, I don't use them for wish fulfillment like Jesse."

"Then what?"

"Story. Suffering, learning, growing."

A continent appears beneath us. Swamps shield stretches of green land from the rivers that cut through the country. Mountains jut into the skies, forming a ridge that arcs across the northwest. Snow cakes the north. In the middle of the sweeping continent, a great bay carves out the earth, shaping the land into a grand C-shape.

Daniel joins me at the window. He gasps, pressing his face to the glass. "Wow."

I don't know if I'm smiling, but an energy courses through my veins. "Welcome to Phia."

"So this is Phia?"

"Mmhm. I'll be in Blackwater, right here." A dot appears over Blackwater. I gesture to another area, and the tip of a peninsula lights up. "And you'll be there. That's the District of Valens."

He nods, excitement shining in his eyes. "That's so cool!"

"Visuals, right?"

"Visuals! Alright. Picked a name yet? For you."

"Yes. I think I'm going with Cado again. I chose it because of this story. It's one of the most popular Phian names. That may come in handy."

"Why?"

"Oh, nothing much." I grin. "I'm just going to break the law."

He laughs. "Catherine, you're insane."

I laugh with him. "Maybe to you. I'd better go get it all ready." I create a door in the glass window, allowing the map below to vanish. "Jesse and I worked on a few meetup points. He'll take you to Valens when it's time!" The glass handle opens easily. A winding staircase leads into the depths of the nothingness.

"Wait! You're leaving? Like, now?"

"Yes. See you on the other side!"

And I'm off, giddier than a child on Christmas morning.