A Day in the Clouds (Chapter 22) - The Hours Between 0200 and 0300 (Part 1 of 2)
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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.
The billowing smoke made it hard to maneuver, but I eventually made it to the town square. Flyers were scrambling all around trying to fight the lone threat. They were accidentally hitting each other with their armas. The obsidian fog that had enveloped more than half of the village made it hard to see our opponent.
I waved my hands above my head, trying to use my viento to clear the air, to no avail. The winds were only fanning the flames, and they were doing more harm to us than our titanic adversary. I ran between the giant's legs, then propelled myself upward. Using my viento, I shaped my armas as a force field that surrounded my entire body. It was a technique commonly used when retreating or charging into battle. The technique was also an effective means of self-protection. Knowing the giant's weak points, I used it to make myself like a cannonball.
The giant flinched upon impact, but didn't seem like he took any damage. I tried to steady myself on my way down to the ground. Even with a wind force field as protection, the attack still took a lot out of me. I unfurled my wings and looked for higher ground.
As I was surveying the surroundings, I spotted Adobo tending to the wounded. I retracted my flight apparatus to dive down to where she was.
"Hey," I said, almost out of breath. "Are you alright?"
"I-I ... I'm alright," she replied. She looked worse than the people she was treating, but she didn't want to admit it. "It ... The damn thing came out of nowhere. How could it—"
"Have caught us off-guard? Hidden itself without anyone noticing?"
"Yeah, that. And, how the hell do we beat that thing?"
"Together, that's how."
The gigantic monstrosity let out a deafening wail. It incapacitated almost all the warriors flying above it. The ground shook as the giant pounded on it.
"I need to rally everybody to hit its weak points," I remarked. "We can't win if we strike without coordination."
"How are you so sure of that?"
"I just am. I ... Just trust me. Get these people to a safe place and hide out there until this all blows over."
I clasped my hands together and focused my viento between them. With all my power, I then formed a ball of concentrated wind. My knowledge of the giants helped me to identify their weaknesses. If I could've found a way to coordinate our attack, only then would we have stood a chance. I held my hands high above my head, then slammed the armas down on the ground, propelling me high above the air. Once I was about as high as the giant's head, I spread my wings and glided through the air.
"Hit the back of its knees!" I shouted to anyone who would listen. Unfortunately, everyone was too preoccupied with their own strategies to pay attention. I dove between its legs and aimed short bursts of viento to my intended target, with little to no effect.
The giant was nimbler than the others. I hadn't gotten the chance to get a good view of its face to see if it was familiar. It was much more athletic than I anticipated. The giant swiped and stomped faster than anything I had ever seen. In fact, I thought I had never ever seen this before.
This whole scene, this whole battle — everything felt new to me. It was like I was living a memory of something I wasn't even a part of. The first time I had ever encountered a giant was when I dove off our village's cliff. It was around the time when the Great War had already begun. I had no recollection of any giant invading our village. But, seeing my village in ruins on the teevee made me wonder what could've caused it.
Was this memory erased from my mind during the giants' reconditioning? Did I recover it when I ingested my memories from the tiny water droplets?
All of a sudden, a humongous palm pressed up against my body and threw me to the outskirts of the village! I tumbled wildly, hitting trees and rocks, before I finally settled on the ground.
Out of breath, I laid myself down on the dirt for a couple of minutes. I suffered a few gashes here and there, but there were no broken bones. My body ached every time I tried to stand up. I had to be careful not to get hit again, as I might not have been as lucky next time.
"Are you alright?" Lumpia asked, as she descended from the sky. She stretched her arm forward, offering to help me stand up. "That was quite a hit."
"I was hoping everyone was too preoccupied to notice."
"Tough luck. I was calling you back there right before you got slapped silly. I was so worried that ... I trailed quickly to see if you were still breathing."
"It would take so much more to take me out."
"I know ... I just ... From where I was flying, it really didn't look good."
"I'm alright, Lumpia. No need to worry."
"No one would blame you if you sit this one out. I don't even know how we're going to beat that thing. It's swatting us in droves."
"I do. But, I need your help to rally everyone. Have you seen Prito?"
"Oh *Bathala, *Prito," she exclaimed, sobbing. Lumpia broke down and kneeled on the ground. "I-I ... I don't—"
"Easy, easy. Breathe," I suggested, trying to console her. I stroked her back, scared to think of the words left unsaid. "Breathe, Lumpia. I'm sure he's okay. Prito's way tougher than I am."
"Y-You don't ... You don't understand. That thing ... That thing clapped his hands, and Prito just ... Prito just disappeared. It ... It clapped Prito out of existence!"
"No, shh ... Ease your mind. I'm sure Prito's just stuck in a tree somewhere sleeping it off."
"I looked for him everywhere. Everywhere! When I got back to the town square that's when I saw you get hit."
"Prito's safe. If I know him, I'm sure he'd be the last of us to fall."
"H-How could ... How could you be so sure?"
"I just am. Trust me."
Lumpia nodded silently, as she remained crouched to the ground. I could feel her body shaking as she recounted the events.
"Let's end this now," I urged, trying to remain optimistic. As I stood there, I felt like the weight of an entire mountain crushed my body. "So that we can get back to looking for Prito, and there will be no more casualties."
She sat silently, trying to regain her composure. I felt her viento rising with every second. Lumpia took a deep breath, stood up, rubbed the sweat off her face, and gritted her teeth.
"Lead the way," she said with an almost impassive tone.
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.
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Another compelling chapter. If Zepp's inner world is even half as vivid as Ledd's, it's quite something!
I imagine Zepp's inner world is way more vivid, and that Ledd's is trying to catch up :D It's been a fascinating ride trying to explore a child's mind, and I really do hope that I'm doing it justice. Thanks for stopping by to leave your thoughts, my friend :D
We (comparatively) neuro-typicals might look at an autistic child and think that they are terribly disadvantaged, and in certain ways they are. But perhaps they have an inner world that is so rich that it compensates. It would be nice to think so, anyway.
Oh yeah, especially after writing this, I've developed a whole new appreciation for their uniqueness. The way they go about their lives is so fascinating. Even though they lack in some areas, they're surprisingly quick learners in other interesting aspects. I found myself impressed by the different things they could do.
Excellent post dear friend @jedau, I admire your work, ere very profecional in what you do, I would love to have half of your talent to be able to write.
Thank you very much, my dear friend, for sharing this great work.
I send you a hug and have a good day.
Oh, man, that is so nice of you to say, my friend. Thank you for those touching words and also for taking the time to drop by my humble post. I send you a hug back as well, and hope that you have a wonderful day ahead as well! :D
Okay firstly the Bathala did not get italicised due to a misplaced * XD
Now, goodness, how big is that giant/how small are the Sachaphoyans D: It brings me back to the first chapter/prologue where Ledd is waking up and I thought he was a small bird XD
Prito getting clapped out of existence is terrifying, poor Lumpia, I'd be severely traumatised too.
Living someone else's memories hm, he's onto something there, this is obviously another brainwashing tactic by the giants to destroy his hope!
Good catch! Man, I can't believe I still haven't fully fixed the italics. I thought I had handled everything but apparently not. Thanks for spotting it, already fixed, and for your continued support, my friend :) The feels are real, and since we're nearing the end, it's really getting to me..
The funny thing with dreams is that the manifestations can be based entirely from perception, so there's room to go a little wild with it :) As we know, our little tends to be a bit dramatic at times haha Only a bit!
Did you happen to research the names of Ledd's comrades? If you did, you can imagine the sound of Prito meeting his doom. I know it kind of takes away from the gravity of the situation, but yeah.. Those damn giants! Damn them! Damn us... Oh Bathala... :o
I did but wasn't sure what I should be looking for out of what I found XD (which doesn't help at all but figured I better not say anything to avoid spoilers XP)
I did think some of those names were things I was or should be familiar with and as it turned out I was to some degree or other, however I'm not sure if the connections I'm making are the correct ones.
Bah this trying not to spoil is aggravating XD I'll just wait and see like everyone else XD
Let's just say these are names that Ledd had been accustomed to. In researching dreams, I took careful consideration how manifestations are chosen, and how even subconscious faces and things would be brought front and center. Peppering in easter eggs is delicious, but I don't always insert them with the intent of them playing a spoiler-y role haha! :D
No I meant I didn't want to spoil the discovery for other people XD
Ah shoot >.< I should've stopped after the first sentence haha oh well!
But why there's so much fun to be had XD
At this point in the story, there is only the ending to be spoiled. Anything other than that is fair game, so I'm fine with some easter eggs to be given away freely :D
It's looks like a good story I hope I can find the opportunity to go back and read form the beginning. You are now being followed by @anothervoice .
Oh I really wish you would find the time to do so! Thank you for the kind words and I hope you enjoy the story :D
I will do my best. Thank you my friend.
Awesome! Fun fact: this and the previous chapter was set in the Andes haha! Of all the places, huh!
That is funny!
Isn't it? Haha! I haven't been there ever, but I admire the whole place. I wish to one day trek it in person.
Beautiful chapter, my @jedau!
This was one of the most action packed chapters I've read from your book so far. The descriptions as Ledd flew through the air were mesmerizing. Especially when he got hit and went down. You could feel the fear and desperate situation they were all in. Phenomenal stuff, man!
You've also done exceedingly well on this post too. I'm over the moon because of that. You already know the high esteem I hold you in on this platform so this was way overdue the way I see it. You yourself are now just gonna cruise to higher altitudes as your writing skills keep getting better and better.
Really enjoyable chapter, my young brother! An astounding job showcasing what you're capable of! :)
Brother, I always feel happy whenever you express your delight. Warms my heart to no end! :D The nature of the chapter allowed me leeway to just let loose and go wild with it. Admittedly, I still had lingering restraints, that's why I didn't go all out, but I'm happy with the degree I put out.
Thank you so much for your kind words and continued support. You already know how much it means to me, my bro! :D
I am really loving this dream sequence, again, it's exactly as a dream would be, mixing things together. The way he is now thinking about both worlds and it seems natural to do it...I really am impressed with this, it's no where near easy to capture something like this so well! Like casually thinking about the tee-vee and mixing an idea of actual giants with adults...just really great Jed!!
Why does everybody keep thinking this is a dream?? Jeezz... :( Can it be that this is the real world and everything that I've written before was the dream? Haha!
Thank you for the kind words, sister! This truly has been a labor of love :D With only a few hours left, I'm already mourning closing the book on this story. It's going to be hard following this up, so I have tons of decisions to make. Maybe I won't even follow this up and retire early hmmm... In any case! Thank you for your undying support, you have been such a crucial part in this journey! :D