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View Full Version : The Caged Bird -Part I-



Airinal
2012-06-05, 12:34 AM
Skip to the dotted line to miss all the boring forward information

What you are about to read comes from the folk tales of the land of Casrial; A land where stories are born at every turn. This style of writing began two years ago as a facebook note series (The land itself I created 6 or 7 years ago) and will progress in parts which will make up a chapter. This story, of Mira, Kalus, and Caiden, will be a single chapter story made of between 3 and 5 parts. If you enjoyed this you can find more by messaging me. I normally just post to facebook but wanted to try my luck here. I hope you enjoy this and don't worry, this story isn't finished yet; there is much yet to come.


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"Kalus! Kalus wake up, please wake up."

Darkness.

"Kalus, you need to wake up."

A voice.

"Kalus, please…"

The taste of blood.

"please…"

Can't feel my right… no, left lung… arrow… how did this…

"RUN!" Kalus boomed as he forced himself between Mira and the Defender.

Mira tried to push back, "I won't leave you!"

With a sudden rip Kalus' broadsword sent a spray of blood upon the nearby stone column. The deep red stain was quickly washed away by the pounding rain but the young man in front of Kalus would not clean up so quickly. Shouts could be heard from the steps and three more steel clad Defenders appeared. Kalus wiped his head around to look at Mira and Caiden, "RUN!"

"Kalus…" Mira started but the blond haired man behind her interrupted.

"Mira, if we don't open this door we're all dead. Help me." Reluctantly, Mira ran back nearly slipping on the slick stone slabs of the temple. The rain fell at such a rate that the flat surface of the rooftop transformed into a stream which was slowly growing into a river.

With Mira out of the way, Kalus turned his attention to the oncoming assailants. Three more, no, two (one slipped on the last step) men in heavy steel armor pressed through the vale of rain; towards Kalus. Upon their breasts they bore the emblem of the Blazing Sun an ironic symbol to wear in such weather.

The closest Defender raised a silver blade and proclaimed, "Kalus Alriker, you and your companions are under arrest for murder, treason, and consorting with demons. Drop your…" The Defender's speech was cut short as he was forced to dodge a dagger Kalus threw.

"The only demons I have consorted with stand before my blade. To the Fold with you!" Kalus said. With that the two, now three (the third had regained his footing) rushed forward to slay Kalus.

Kalus pushed away the black hair that was now matted to his face and closed his eyes. He gripped the hilt of his chipped blade; letting his shoulders relax. He dropped to defensive stance; ready. The first of the Defenders lashed out but fell to the ground; the space between his helmet and full plate violated by Kalus' sword. The next one was more fortunate as his armor deflected the first several of Kalus' blows.

The fight continued in Kalus' favor. If he could have heard anything over the pounding rain and adrenaline coursing through his veins he would hear Mira muttering a prayer as she and Caiden opened the enormous wooden double doors. Finally the great portal was open large enough for a man to go through. Caiden looked to Mira and pointed through the opening.

"You first!"

"No, we must help Kalus!" As she said this she turned and screamed.

Even with the two Defenders on him, Kalus spotted the dark figure that ascended the stairs. Merely a shadow in the rain yet a shadow with a bow; raised and drawn. The arrow was not aimed at him but behind. Mira. Kalus leaped to his side, gritting his teeth.

Twang.

Kalus fell to the ground and the last thing he heard was Mira screaming his name.

Darkness.

A Voice.

The taste of blood.

Kalus' hand moved up and felt the shaft of an arrow protruding from his chest. He forced his eyes to open and found himself staring into two deep pools of green. It was impossible to tell whether tears or rain dropped to his face. Mira lifted his head and cried.

"Kalus. You can't die. We need you."

Duty swelled up inside of him and Kalus broke his gaze with Mira. He turned his head and found his blade lying just out of reach. Before him Caiden fought off the Defenders and mysterious shadow. Kalus tried to move but the only result of his efforts was to cough up a mouthful of blood. He felt the darkness closing in again and turned his eyes back to Mira's.

Again she wept, "Kalus, please, please."

Kalus mustered his strength and raised his right hand, placing it on her cheek. Every form of word and emotion swirled inside of him and he opened his mouth to speak.

"Daddy daddy! Look!" The sun shone brightly and in the distant woods birds could be heard composing their symphonies. A young black-haired boy ran across the fields with a cage in his hands soon to reach a more elderly version of himself.

"Well look at this. What do you have son?"

"I caught her, look! Isn't she beautiful?" The son raised the cage to his father and showed him a gorgeous blue bird, "She sings the most beautiful songs, listen!"

"Now son…"

"No, listen! Wait… why isn't she singing? Comeon bird, sing for my dad!"

"Kalus, she's scared."

"Why?"

"You have her in a cage, Kalus."

"But I don't want to hurt her."

"She doesn't know that. To her, you're someone much bigger, much scarier. You might eat her."

"Don't worry birdy, I won't eat you."

The older man knelt down and put his hand on his son's shoulder, "If she knew how much you cared about her she would sing. But it wouldn't be the same song you heard in the woods son."

"What do you mean?"

"Some tunes only caged birds know and caged birds only know how to sing some tunes. If you want to hear her sing like she sang before then you have to let her go."

"But, but if I let her go, she might not come back." Young Kalus said as he looked down at his wonderful prize. The bird stared back at him with deep pools of black, almost knowingly.

"But if you don't let her go, she will never know how much you care about her."

Kalus looked from the bird to his father and sighed. His eyes closed and he put his hand on the lid of the cage. The bird let out a pitiful sound when Kalus' hand landed on the lid. "Are you sure, dad?"

"I'm sure."

With the greatest reluctance, Kalus lifted the lid and held the cage to the sky.


Darkness. It almost gripped him again from the effort of raising his arm but Kalus held on. He opened his eyes again and looked into Mira's; his head in her hands and his hand on her cheek. He could feel the glands in his eyes forcing out tears, thankfully invisible in the rain. He opened his mouth, let the blood run out and spoke three simple words.


"You are free"

Darkness.

Omeganaut
2012-06-12, 07:36 AM
I like the characterization you fit into action, dialogue, and storytelling. One nit-pick; Please separate the flashback better. It's a little tough to see where it starts and stops, and that interrupts the flow of reading. Still, that's just one minor orgnizational thing, I do like everything else.

Airinal
2012-06-13, 11:59 AM
I like the characterization you fit into action, dialogue, and storytelling. One nit-pick; Please separate the flashback better. It's a little tough to see where it starts and stops, and that interrupts the flow of reading. Still, that's just one minor orgnizational thing, I do like everything else.

Thanks for the feedback! This will be the most abstract of the series... guess I could have included --------- between the sections.