A Day in the Clouds (Chapter 20) - The Hours Between 0000 and 0100

jedau (67)in #fiction • 7 years ago (edited)

_{This is a continuation of the Steemit-exclusive, original novel A Day in the Clouds. Be sure to check out the previous chapters to catch up with the story. Enjoy!}

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_{The multi-talented @verbal-d (who, by the way, edited this chapter) has bestowed a wonderful gift for this story. Known for his lyrical rhymes, he's also a master when it comes to mixing melodious beats. To enhance the reading experience, play this on loop in the background as you read this chapter. Take a deep breath, and allow yourself to be consumed by the entire experience. Please be sure to follow and donate to @verbal-d! You can also follow his work on SoundCloud.}

Being left alone with the computer had its perks. I was basically handed the keys to every information imaginable. Wasting no time, I furiously typed on kibo. Granted, I didn't know what I was doing. But, if the giants were the ones who thought about all these, then how hard could it be?

"Kibo show me how to create a weapon out of random trinkets," I requested. "Specifically, the trinkets found in the hallway outside."

With every press of its keys, kibo changed the screen's display. It provided me with more information than I could ever hope for. Hours went by without any trace of my titanic captors. I constantly looked over my shoulder to see if I was being watched, but I detected no such danger. All of a sudden, the screen's display refused to change.

_{Cloud Image Source}

"Kibo change the display," I demanded. "Show me the next instruction."

Even with my polite plea, kibo refused to change the display. I pounded on it more forcefully, but it didn't make any difference. Angered, I slapped the keys until it heeded my command.

"Kibo, what's wrong?" I asked, irritated. It didn't respond, and it didn't change the display. My hands became sore from all the pounding. Looking at them, I realized that I was becoming no better than my adversaries.

Was this their reconditioning taking hold of me? Or, was this a side effect from absorbing their power? Did siphoning their power caused me to acquire their behavior as well? Get it together, Ledd. You're better than this!

"Forgive me, kibo," I begged, while I gently stroked it. "I-I ... I don't what came over me."

Still, the device refused to give a reply or change the screen's display. In that moment, I understood how the giants feel whenever I refused to comply. The realization that I empathized with those colossal monstrosities infuriated me. I wanted to crawl out of my skin.

Investigating further, I examined the screen more carefully. Almost immediately, I noticed that there was a white arrowhead that refused to move. Could it be the key to changing the display?

Damaus stared at me silently, unmoving. I could feel it laugh at me as I flailed around blindly. Clenching my fist, I took a swipe at it and shoved it over the edge of the table.

When I checked back at the screen, I was surprised to see the arrowhead missing. Sadly, the display remained the same. I grabbed both sides of the screen and tried to strangle it, but I remained calm once I realized what I was doing.

It was then when I realized that the arrowhead moved when damaus was thrown off the table. Could they somehow be connected? Was that why damaus was latched onto the computer? Was moving that white arrowhead its purpose?

Perhaps I was wrong to think that damaus was a tiny prisoner. Instead, it might merely be a component of the computer — a mechanical device just like kibo. I outstretched my right arm to the side of the table, and grabbed hold of damaus.

"I'm sorry I ... I was wrong to antagonize you. I just ... When you blinded me that time we first met, I ... I took it as a sign of aggression when, in fact, it might've been self-defense. What I did was from aggression, brought upon mainly by the giants ... No, I don't want to make excuses, but I do want to make it up to you. I'm leading a rebellion to oust the giants and make this prison a safe haven for us all. No longer will you be forced to become the giants' slave. You will be free to choose whatever path you wish to take. But, I can't do all those things without you. Will you help me in my quest for knowledge?"

I placed it back on the table, and put my hand above it. It took some time, but damaus eventually moved. In conjunction with kibo, it changed the display of the screen. A deluge of information flooded my brain. With the help of my two-giant empowered viento, I was able to grasp every single bit.

"Thank you, my friends. I will never forget this."

Pages and pages flew by in rapid succession. My eyes became strained, but I didn't want to waste the opportunity. Everything started to make sense. Knowledge was the missing glue needed to bind all the disjointed trinkets together.

"What are you up to, little man?" a horrifying voice bellowed. Without warning, Dadier came up behind me and turned the mobile throne around. It seemed like the effect of my draining of his powers had already worn off. He looked like he was back to full strength.

I smiled, then tried to wiggle my way out to read the information plastered on the screen. The giant grabbed me by the waist, lifted me up, and set me down on the ground.

"Oh, hey, if I could just ... If I could just read that last bit," I pleaded.

The giant took out a rectangular device from his side pocket, fiddled around with it for a bit and handed it to me. It was about the length of my head, and it looked like a miniature version of the computer's screen. He called it foam or fown. I wasn't quite sure which was the right term. Unlike the computer though, it didn't need kibo or damaus to navigate it. It responded to the touch of my fingers.

"You take care of that now, you hear?" Dadier requested, as he entrusted me with the device. "Be careful not to drop it, or we could all explode!"

It sounded like a thinly veiled threat, but I took it positively. I wasn't sure, but it might have meant that I have already gained Dadier's trust and my efforts were not for naught. I couldn't take my eyes off the fown, but I nodded in agreement.

"Yes, I ... I will take extra care of it," I replied. If he was telling the truth about the fown being a weapon, then this could be huge. This may very well be the same gesture that Ayesa received when she acquired her bow. It all became very suspicious.

Why would the giant entrust me with a miniature version of the secret weapon that won them the Great War? Add to that, did it, in fact, double as a devastating explosive device? Or, was this a miniature version of the teevee instead?

I closed my eyes trying to evade its stare, but the bright colors lured me in. The video it played was simply captivating. It made me feel like I had all the answers to all the questions that had ever been asked and will ever be asked. Fown sounded less muted than teevee and the computer, but that just made it more bearable to listen to.

I averted my gaze and found that I was able to do so with ease. It didn't steal time from me like teevee did. Upon touching its surface, I discovered that it was so much more. It provided me the capability to move the video forward and backward.

My eyebrows furrowed upon the realization. Could this be real? Can this device really control time or at least view things outside of time? With a flick of a finger, I was able to rewind events back to its previous state. And, when I moved it in the opposite direction, I found that I was able to see the future. Teevee and the computer didn't have the same capability. Perhaps I was wrong, maybe this was the secret weapon that won them the war.

I sat down on the wooden floor, amazed at fown's capability. It allowed the giants to see how events would unfold so that they could readjust their approach. With that knowledge, they were able to change the outcome of every scenario.

If that was the case, could they have predicted my revised plan? Were they, in fact, just playing along with everything? Perhaps what they've already seen dictated their current actions. Did they give me the device to show me how futile any of my attempts would be?

I looked at Dadier, but he refused to turn his back. My eyes welled up as I thought of the possibilities. If all my actions were already predestined, then what was the use of making any choices? Theoretically, they already had a counter before any thought crosses my mind. Why bother making any effort to change the inevitable? What was the point of living?

If the elders were here, they would certainly have a tidbit of wisdom to impart. Sadly, I am all alone. The last of my kind. I stood up, set the fown softly on the ground, and made my way to the outside corridor.

Looking at the trinkets, they all made sense to me now. I saw the connection of everything, and I knew how to merge them all together. But, what was the point?

Dadier left me with the computer knowing that I would research everything I possibly can. He left me unguarded, without any objection or resistance. Mamie didn't wipe the memories I stowed away in the droplets of water. The giant knew that I spread it around so that I can retain them. She knew it all along, and still allowed me to reacquire it.

All this time, I've been going along with their plan. The fown had already predicted everything, and they were just waiting to see it all unfold. They knew I was organizing an uprising, they knew that I was tricking them to gain their trust. Every action they have taken were all based on the predicted outcome. If fown showed them my victory, then they had already adjusted their strategy. They had already performed every measure to keep me from achieving my goal.

Depressed, I picked up the trinkets one by one and started to merge them. It was a futile effort, but one my hands seemed programmed to perform. My hands had a life of their own. They carried on with the task even though existential questions preoccupied my mind. In the end, my hands fashioned a sword, about three quarters tall as I was. The seemingly random trinkets littered around the hallway merged together to form it.

Its weight was heavy, but its grip fit nicely on my palm. I swung it around, feeling the wind whoosh with every slash. Alas, the giants had already foreseen this, and there was no use in practicing how to use it.

I set it down on the ground, not even bothering to hide it from the giants' sight. Dejected, I walked towards the prison cell. The night was young, but the giants had already won.

_{The extremely passionate @ryivhnn has created this magnificent viento-inspired artwork for this story. Close your eyes and picture this masterpiece, as you imagine Ledd soaring to new heights. Please be sure to check out @ryivhnn's wonderful artwork and in-depth logs of her experiences with homeschooling her children. You can also become a patron of hers on Patreon so that you can support her regularly.}