Six Paths - Prelude Part 2
#2 of Six Paths
Part 2 to the Six Paths Prelude
Six Paths Prologue Part 2
This prologue will be the starting point of all six paths. I thought about it, and felt it would be redundant and unnecessary to start off every one of the paths with the exact same thing.
Just a note - I will be using "" and <> for dialog.
"These will be used when speaking in English" or
"Luno. Suni sua ono" Runga that isn't translated.
<These will be used for translated Runga.> The above would be <Hello. Nice to meet you>
Upon arriving in Lukea I began to realize just how different it was from the Saro Islands. Sure, I knew that I was heading to a continent, but I was surprised to see how differently things work here.
Cars are the primary form of transportation on the islands, but here cars are basically non-existent. There are cars here, but they fall into one of three categories: the first being that they are owned by someone very wealthy, the second being is they are available to transport anything from people to cargo somewhere in the city. The third it that they are owned for safety- the police force in Lukea, the Nevase, are able to get around more efficiently here since the streets are practically clear.
I couldn't help but chuckle saying their names. Nevase... never say what?
So... it made me wonder how I was going to get to Serona. Cars are confined to specific cities and there are no roads connecting cities together.
The solution? I'm taking a train.
Trains are the backbone of Lukea, the primary form of transportation. There are subways interlacing the cities and above ground trains for traveling greater distances.
When I arrived at the train station I was surprised by two things. The first that had plagued my mind since landing at the airport was that none of the Koja were paying attention to me.
Huh... either humans aren't that big of a deal here... or they are just too distracted to really care about me being here. The lack of attention actually made me feel like I was still on the island, something that made me grin.
The second thing that surprised me was how huge this station was. There had to be at least a dozen tracks that led to different areas all around Lukea. The larger, longer trains were obviously heading for the more popular destinations; perhaps another city or maybe one of the suburbs?
So yeah... the size of the train was dependent on how popular the destination was... I looked over at the track were my train was... wow... I couldn't help but chuckle. The train I was going to take was only one car long.
I went to the electronic map in the center of the station to make sure that was the right train. This was a cool device. There were two maps... a smaller one that displayed all of the trains, their destination, and their departure time. There was also a larger map that showed the routes of every train. Little lights on the paths showed where each train was.
I looked at the smaller map and confirmed that the small train was indeed the one I needed to take to get to Serona. I sighed... I was hoping to ride in one of larger ones.
Whoa! The train was going to leave in a few minutes!
All trains work on a precise schedule. There are no conductors; everything is computer controlled to maintain efficiency. There wasn't going to be another train coming for four hours and the current one wasn't going to wait for me! I quickly went back to the small car and boarded.
Well... it wasn't so bad in this car. I was able to stretch my legs more than I could in the plane, and I would be able to walk around during the trip.
An automated voice spoke on the intercom saying that the doors were about to close. I looked around and figured I was going to be the only one riding this train. As I began to sit back I heard the sound of frantic footsteps and looked just in time to see two Koja narrowly making it into the car.
They were huffing with a look of triumph on their faces. I asked them if they were alright. They looked up at me and their eyes widen with surprise. I guess it was only a matter of time before I would have gotten that reaction...
<Human?> the male Koja said. He was a feline Koja, similar to a Lynx. Both he and the female Koja, a brown wolf, were dressed very formally.
<Did the two of you just get off work?> I asked.
<Yes.> The wolf said. <We were lucky today... most days we end up missing the train back home...> The two focused on me intently. <Are you going to Serona?>
I nod my head and smile. <Yeah... I'll be staying there for a full year.>
The two of them yawned as they took a seat opposite of me. <Looks like our town is going to be lively soon.> The Lynx said as he let out another yawn. <Sorry we aren't more social right now. We get up very early to catch the train to work. We usually take a nap on the ride back.>
I told them I didn't mind and allowed them to slowly fall asleep as the cityscape started disappearing on the horizon.
I was engrossed in watching the sights pass by out the window. As far as I could see there was nothing but land. It was an odd but exciting thing to see. I watched as the scenery changed from wide open fields to lightly dense forests to rocky slopes. We must have been getting close. No sooner that I had thought that the intercom came on and announced that the train would be coming to a stop in ten minutes.
This woke the two Koja. They stretched their arms and legs as their eyes slowly adjusted to the light again. <Has it really been almost two hours?> the wolf asked as she looked out the window. The train started to slow down to take a few sharp turns.
It was a shame that the ride was coming to an end. I was really enjoying the sights. Luckily... it decided to save the best for last.
The mountain walls became wider and wider until I was able to see the sun again, and that wasn't all. My eyes widened as I looked out the window and saw huge valley. There was a large river separating the valley that flowed into a huge lake. On both sides of the river were buildings that spanned all the way to the edges of the mountains. The area around the lake was less dense.
I couldn't believe all of this existed within these mountains.
<What do you think?> The lynx asked.
"Wow..." I didn't realize I had said that in English. I looked behind myself and noticed the two of them trying to figure out what I had said.
The train stop in Serona wasn't anywhere near as big as the one in the city and definitely nowhere as crowded. As the train came to a stop I noticed there wasn't a single person waiting to get on. I grabbed my luggage and waited at the door with the two Koja.
<Well it was nice meeting you> said the lynx.
<Perhaps we'll see you again sometime> said the wolf.
<Perhaps.> I responded as the door opened. I let them step out first and watched as they walked away.
I stood outside the train and stretched myself as I took in the horizon again. I could clearly see both moons on the horizon. They looked so different here.
I was brought out of my minor stupor by the sound of the train doors closing behind me. As the train started rolling away I noticed there was another map like the one at the station. It didn't have the smaller screen that displayed all the trains, but it did have the larger map. This one, however, didn't have all the paths the like the other did. There was only one path on here... and only one light.
I followed the map in the direction the train was now heading. There seemed to be another town to the north. It looks like the train does a loop in that town to turn around. Well no wonder the time between trains is so long. That car is the only one on the track! I was definitely glad I hadn't missed it.
<I sure am glad you managed to make it on this train.> I heard a voice behind me say. I turned around and saw a black wolf in an officer's outfit.
<A Nevase, huh?> I made sure not to chuckle this time...
<That's right.> He said.
<You don't seem surprised to see me...> I motion my hands to point out I'm human.
<Well... you aren't the first human I've seen, but you are the first I've spoken to.>
<I meant aren't you surprised to see a human in this town?>
He shook his head. <We were contacted ahead of time and told that a human would be residing here. The problem is that not all of the residents know about you.>
<You've told them a human would be coming?>
<Yes... but we didn't tell them when you would be arriving.> He scratched his ear. <We thought it would be better for you and the town if everyone didn't flock to see you.>
<Yeah... thank you for that.>
<We also thought it would be a good idea to drive you to your destination so you don't wander through the streets, attracting attention... unless that's what you want?" He gave me a coy smile.
I quickly shook my head, eliciting a bit of laughter from the officer. He loaded my bags into the back of this car.
<So where are you heading?> he asked me as he started up the car.
I reached into my bag for the paper that had the address. I pulled it out and handed to him...
Well the stories will start after this.
What do you think about Runga? I'm just wondering if I should bother creating this language or just use the <> every time they speak. I wanted to do something creative, but I don't know if anyone cares about it or not. ^_^ '
I have less than three weeks left of college. Once I'm done I'll be able to focus on Andun's story. I'm experimenting with the point of view. I'm not sure if the entire story will be told from the first-person perspective of the human, or if I'll switch between him and the kid.
It won't be like the narrative of my first story series where basically both told their sides of the story during the same events. I intend to have no overlap. Instead I would do one scene with one person's perspective and then the next scene would show the other's perspective. It would all be dependent on what needs to be focused on during the scene.
I'll be working that out.
Hope you enjoyed this short prologue.