{"sf1_id":7760,"sf2_id":"Rm0jgbL1","title":"Words: Prologue","author":"The Roseblack Dragon","words":2196,"posted_at":"2005-11-04T09:07:00.000Z","tags":["Adventure","Character Development","Dragoness","Plot Development","Various Species"],"url":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/7760-words-prologue","original_url":"https://sofurry.com/s/Rm0jgbL1","image_url":"https://cdn.sofurryfiles.com/submissions/thumbnails/99/f7/99f71a79-80f0-4abd-9abb-9ff6d46e6b68","description":"#1 of Words","content":"Words  \nPrologue  \n  \n  \nAuthor's note: this one's a bit different take on my usual stuff, with a bit more fantasy to it. I  \ngot the idea from playing 'Myst', really... Books that can take the person to another world,  \nliterally. It was really appealing to me, so I set this story to focus on it. There's nothing yiffy  \nin this first chapter, but there will be... Oh, there will be... ^\\_~ Just gotta be patient.  \n  \n  \n  \nhere goes nothing:  \n  \n============================================================  \n  \nThe rain came down heavily over the city, soaking the steel and stone edifices  \nthoroughly with the deluge. Nobody walked through the rain-coated streets. Everyone was  \nrunning or walking as fast as they could, holding umbrellas and other rain-deflecting devices  \nup against the downpour. Even the few aquatic anthromorphs steered through the rain  \nquickly, the heavy impact of the massive water droplets anything but comforting. The city  \nwas suffering under the fourth day of constant rain, but the current day was by and far the  \nworst. The rain was so heavy that sight was impossible at a distance of ten feet. Humans and  \nAnthros alike were miserable, an intense melancholy brought on by the lack of sunlight.  \nAlong the street, clad in a thick forest green raincloak, a lone figure walked leisurely through  \nthe angry downpour, as if baring its defiance of the elements. The figure was tall, just over  \nseven feet in height, with broad shoulders and fluid movements, a long leather swath of  \npearlescent Tail dragging along behind from underneath the raincloak.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; Several stopped to stare at the cloaked individual, moving clear of its path out of  \ndeference. On the right breast of the cloak was the badge of The Office of Authors...  \n  \n  \nOver the Millennia, Technology had advanced at an amazing pace. Superconductors has been  \nformalized and made commonplace by the end of the 24th century. Humanity had colonized  \nthe entire Sol System a century later, and only a century after that genetic enhancement and  \nmanipulation had become widespread. The last advancement led to the creation of  \nAnthromorphs, people with a great deal of animal traits. Although some saw them as animals  \nwith a great deal of human traits. Over the years the 'anthros' as they were nicknamed,  \nbecame widely accepted, and even commonplace, with types ranging from the mundane, to  \nthe fantastic.  \n  \nWith the advancements of technology, other advancements were made as well.  \nThe most notable was the formation of The Offices. Seven in all, The Offices became the  \nfoundations of the key points of life. The Office of Society replaced the antiquated 'Space  \nGuild', which had been the lawmaking body for the entire system. The Office of Relics was  \nformed shortly after, and it was charged with categorizing all the ruins and artifacts of  \nprevious eras, seeing what was useable, and what needed to simply be remembered. By this  \ntime, humans and anthros alike were starting to show various talents. This led to three more  \noffices being created. The Office of Stars was charged with guiding the more massive  \nstarcruisers on their long distance voyages into far reaching planetary systems. Guided by a  \nmember of the Office who was skilled in 'reading' the ether of space, much like one  \nwould 'read' the winds in ancient times when mankind could only sail the seas, the ships  \nwould be able to travel safely.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; The Office of Unusual Insight came to be after that, With its members travelling  \nthe planes of consciousness, it was the subject of much scrutiny and controversy. Even  \nthough the Office had put down many internal conflicts with its sheer presence; it was still  \nlooked down on as being secretive and self-serving. The Office of Self was on the other side  \nof the coin from The Office of Unusual Insight. The Office of Self was directly concerned with  \nthe well being of every creature under humanity's wing. Through training and structured  \nliving, members of The Office of Self were able to manipulate the energies of life, healing  \nothers, and helping to ease the suffering of the infirmed.  \n  \nWhile The Office of Authors was the last Office formed, it was by and far the most  \nrenowned. Members of the Office, or simply 'Authors', were skilled in the writing of books.  \nThis was not to say that just any writer could become an 'Author'. The books the Authors  \nwrote were written in such exacting detail, that once the book they had written was finished,  \nit was possible to Travel to the location described in the book. As such, within a short amount  \nof time that the ability to Traverse was discovered, the Office of Authors became  \nindispensable. To combat the needs for food, Books were written describing lush worlds  \ncovered in naturally occurring grains and sustenance. Natural resources were handled in a  \nsimilar fashion, with Books made about worlds of rich steel deposits.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; Over the times, The art of Authoring became mostly lost however, as the Books  \nthat had been written were well, known, and well used; Most serving as natural preserves, or  \nresource areas. Authors were steadily growing more and more rare, and to see someone  \nwearing the badge of that Office was rarer still.  \n  \nThusly, people made way for the imposing figure that calmly turned and waked  \ninto a tiny bookstore on the corner of 15th and Market Street...  \n  \n  \n  \n\"You still wear that absurd cloak?\" the not so young man behind the counter  \nasked, his graying beard and moustache shifting with his grin.  \n  \nThe cloaked figure pulled the hood back, Her finely shaped reptilian features  \ndimly lit by the candle lamps of the antique store, \"Yes, I do... and until you close up shop, I'll  \nkeep wearing it.\"  \n  \n\"Aaach, I'll never understand you authors... Especially you, Rosie,\" the older man  \ngrumbled, smiling, \"Yer the only Author I've yet to see waste away under her pen.\"  \n  \nThe Dragoness smiled, \"That's because I don't sit in a locked room, Writing.\" She  \npulled the cloak open, her clothing underneath fairly simple, yet wholly archaic. An ankle  \nlength cotton skirt covered her legs, with her top covered by a gray tunic, the back of which  \nwas opened to allow her wings room to move. Her wings, while functional, hardly looked the  \npart, as there was no skin stretched between the long 'fingers' that formed the frame of the  \nflying appendages. She held in her hands a cloth wrapped item. \"I brought you something...\"  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; The older man's eyes lit up, \"Ah? Some Ancient text, I assume?? An appraisal?\"  \n  \n\"A present,\" she said curtly, smiling brightly, \"from me to the man who should  \nhave been my father...\"  \n  \nThe elderly human's eyes grew soft, \"I... I see...\" He took the cloth bundle and  \nopened it, a thick, leather and platinum bound book was what he found. \"This... this isn't what  \nI think it is, is it?\"  \n  \nThe dragoness smiled, \"That depends on what you think it is...\"  \n  \nThe human opened the book, reading the first few passages, \"My god... I didn't  \nthink these were made anymore... Did you do this?\"  \n  \nShe smiled, \"Well, I AM an Author. It makes sense that I can Write.\"  \n  \n\"Still, is it... real?\"  \n  \nShe sighed and flipped to the middle of the book, where the right page was blank,  \nbut the Left page had a picture in it... a picture that looked so real, it could have been a  \nphoto, or a window within the book. \"Looks real to me, Ian... Wanna try it?\"  \n  \n\"What about my shop?\"  \n  \nShe nodded, \"Lock up early...\"  \n  \nThe older man sighed and got to his feet, The ancient knee-brace creaking with  \nthe motion as he hobbled to the front door of the musty old shop and locked it. The  \nDragoness watched him and sighed, \"When are you going to get that knee adjusted?\"  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; \"I don't trust those nanos, Rosie, you know that.\"  \n  \n'Rosie' sighed and shrugged, \"yeah, I know... So, ready to go?\"  \n  \nThe older man nodded and led her to a back room, cradling the book in his hands  \nas if it were a living thing. \"You've got the Return Book, right?\"  \n  \nShe nodded, \"Of course. I'll have to stay a day or two to Write it, but I've already  \ngot one there that leads to my study. We'll use that one for now, so don't forget your keys to  \nget back in.\"  \n  \nThe older man sighed and pockets the heavy keys for the door, \"Anything else?\"  \n  \nShe smiled, \"Be ready to take that jacket off, It's a nice spring day there.\"  \n  \nHe nodded and watched as the pearl white Dragoness placed the open book on  \nthe table and pressed her hand to the picture on the page. She gave a wink to him as she  \nvanished from sight in a faint sparkle of light. The Bookkeeper was old, and he'd seen his fair  \nshare of people Traversing, but he'd yet to experience it first hand. With a bit of uncertainty,  \nhis fingers touched the page with the window on it and he lightly pressed his palm to the  \nframe. The world spun around him as he felt his feet leave the ground and the picture on the  \npage surround him. A rush of fresh air assaulted his senses and he blinked on reflex, finding  \nhis unsteadied feet on solid ground.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; \"Easy there... that first step's a doozy,\" the dragoness Cooed, steadying her older  \nfriend.  \n  \n\"Wow... that was... wow.\" The Bookkeeper laughed.  \n  \nShe smiled, \"Fun?\"  \n  \n\"Unsettling, actually... but somewhat fun.\" He smiled and looked around, they  \nwere in a small stone cave, the rustle of trees and the smell of dew-covered grass just  \noutside the cool comfort of the cave. On a shelf lay a red leather book, and Rosie pulled a  \nblue leather book from her shed Raincloak, setting it on a small desk-like outcropping of the  \ncave. \"The red one goes to my Study, this blue one will go to your back room.\"  \n  \n\"Right.\" He looked around again, \"Can we go out?\"  \n  \nShe smiled, \"Of course... this is your world after all...\"  \n  \n\"Mine?\" He blinked.  \n  \nShe nodded, \"I said it was a gift...\"  \n  \nHe smiled and hobbled out of the small cave, blinking in the bright afternoon sun.  \nIt was pleasant outside, not warm or cold, but a fresh breeze ran through the small meadow.  \nAround him for miles stretched unsullied countryside.  \n  \n\"I'm told this is the Lehvasi Plateau.\"  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; He blinked, \"told? By who?\"  \n  \nShe nodded, \"The natives, of course.\"  \n  \nHe suddenly found himself gripped by a nameless fear, \"N-natives?\"  \n  \n\"Natives,\" The dragoness smiled, pointing to a small group of humans crossing the  \nmeadow from the forest about four hundred yards away. The bookkeeper's eyes only knew  \nthat there were people coming, and he couldn't make out details.  \n  \n\"Let's go meet them, they're quite anxious to see you,\" she smiled and walked  \nahead.  \n  \nThe Bookkeeper trod along behind her, knee brace creaking the whole time. He  \nfelt his hear pounding and he tried to calm himself. Within minutes he was face to face with  \nthe group, all of them ad diverse as the inhabitants of the city he knew as home. There were  \nten in all, and the one that caught his attention the most was a young girl who had tanned  \nskin, save for several lighter bands around her upper arms and uncovered thighs. The group  \nwore simple clothing, tunics and short breeches or skirts, and he imagined them to be like  \nthe folk from the ancient stories of King Arthur's era. The girl smiled to him and bowed  \npolitely, and he could only return the bow, unnerved by the group's friendly attitude.  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; \"Lady Rose! You have returned again, and you bring the friend you have spoke  \nof?\"  \n  \nThe dragoness smiled to the older man, \"Yes, Ku. He's a very close friend of  \nmine, and he's going to be coming here a lot more, and I will be coming by a lot less.\"  \n  \nThe older man nodded, \"We will miss you greatly Lady Rose, but we understand  \nthat you are busy. You will of course be attending the festival?\"  \n  \nRose nodded to the bookkeeper and smiled, \"Tonight's their festival for the spring  \nequinox. There's food, music, dancing...\"  \n  \n\"Well, I don't know about the dancing, but I'm never one to turn down hospitality,\"  \nhe laughed.  \n  \nThe one Rose called Ku smiled, \"Most excellent! Syui Will be thrilled!\"  \n  \n\"Who's Syui?\" the Bookkeeper asked.  \n  \nRose smiled, \"Ahhh... Syui's been keeping me company on my trips here...\"  \n  \nKu nodded, smiling, \"and you simply must read his latest work! He's become the  \ntalk of the City!\"  \n  \nThe bookkeeper arched an eyebrow and looked at Rose. Rose grinned, \"I've been  \ngiving him pointers on creative writing... He's got talent, just like someone I know.\"  \n  \n\n\u0026nbsp; The Bookkeeper grinned and the entire group started back through the woods.  \nAfter an hour's walk, the woods gave way to a wall crafted from heavy slabs of granite and  \nfestooned with brilliant green flags with the shape of a white dragon on them. The  \nbookkeeper stared at the vision before him, and laughed, \"I think I'm going to like it here...\"  \n  \nRose nodded to herself and smiled, looking towards a small hut to the south  \nwistfully.  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n\n"}