Sunshine Award

I was surprised to find that, when I checked my email today, I found one saying that a comment had been posted here. It was from Cweenmj, who passed the Sunshine Award on to me. Her great blog is here: http://cweenmjsphotos.wordpress.com/2010/02/07/sunshine-award/#comment-35

At this present moment, I know not 12 fellow bloggers, and therefore cannot continue the tradition. However, I will edit this post in a few days with a list of at least 2 bloggers XD. I can’t just NOT pass it on, after all!

The Traveler Part 10

            They were in a city now. And The Traveler knew exactly what he was looking for. They weren’t really on a planet, but a small, artificial one in the orbit of a gas giant. Somewhere there were controls that could send the artificial planet plunging down to the gas giant’s surface. The Traveler was already walking through the door of a building before he wondered how he knew this was the right place.

            You know because I want you to know, Traveler. I am your master, and I control your very mind.

            He had a habit of telepathically communicating with The Traveler at random moments, and it tended to annoy him. The controls were in the center of a large, dark room. Guards stood around the area. Lort looked at The Traveler and asked, “How’re you gonna pull this off?”

            “I have a plan,” The Traveler replied.

            ———————————————————————————————————————

            Sirens went off as Lort and The Traveler ran to meet their newest acquaintance at the space shuttle launch pad. Their new friend, a young space shuttle pilot named Sara, had learned what The Traveler had done and, making the smartest move anyone could in her position, volunteered to help him.

            The Traveler was again struck by his ability to know things, as he led Lort to the launch pad without acquiring directions. The pair quickly threw themselves up the stairs as the artificial ground they stood on made its way toward its demise. There was only one shuttle at the pad, and that meant that no one else would get away.

            Moments after they stumbled into the shuttle, the hatch closed and the shuttle, which was apparently very advanced, took off. Seconds later however, there was a bright light, and the shuttle vanished from space. The Traveler was on the move.

The Traveler Part 9

           Lort hadn’t spoken in a long time. He was too busy trying to decide whether he was mad at The Traveler for leaving Jackson behind or feeling bad for being mad at him in the first place. He imagined being The Traveler wasn’t easy, but he never would’ve guessed how hard the man’s life was.

            Throughout the trip, The Traveler had not spoken either. He was thinking again. His hat. He had found it on Earth, shortly after arriving there. It was in a large building with the word ‘Museum’ hanging on a sign at the front. The hat had supposedly been the only thing left from some sort of battle, and The Traveler had liked it. So, he stole it.

            The trench coat he had found on a different planet. A world in an endless war. He had ‘joined’ the side trying their best to protect their planet. All the warriors on this side had worn trench coats of varying colors, and The Traveler had received a black one, largely due to the nickname given to him by the other warriors, “The Shadow.” When he had the situation under his control, and was prepared to leave the planet, he turned on those he had been fighting beside. At the time, he had felt no regret. After all, he was only doing his job, and he was never really one of them.

            What’ve I done? The Traveler asked himself, Is this really what I was meant to do? Destroy and kill because I know no other way of life? Because I’m told to?

            If you are smart, Traveler, you will do as you are told. Another failure could result in more than just a scar. Remember, you live because I want you to.

The Traveler Part 8

     “I can’t believe you just left Jackson there, and then destroyed the planet!”

     “Yeah, you don’t know me very well then.”

     Lort stared at The Traveler, astonished.

     “For some reason or another I was under the insane impression that you two were friends or something…”

     “No.”

     “I see that now! Where are we?”

     “Dunno. This place reminds me of something though… Like one of the planets I destroyed…”

     “One of the planets,” Lort repeated.

     “You remind me of Jackson, y’know that?”

     Lort shook his head. The Traveler looked around, thinking. This place really did remind him of something. Definitely one of the planets he’d destroyed before. One of the first ones. The one called… Earth.

     “That’s what it reminds me of…” The Traveler muttered.

     “What?”

     “One of the first planets I destroyed. But I didn’t actually destroy the planet itself. It was… The star it orbited. They called it the Sun.”

     “So you went one step farther, and attacked a star instead of a planet?”

     “Yeah. Took out most of the other planets orbiting the Sun too. That was my first real failure…”

     “How? You destroyed a bunch of planets at once!”

     “The people on all the planets got away. They were more advanced than I thought they were. He was not amused. He saw it as a waste of a star.”

     “Who’s He? And what star? The Sun?”

     “He is the one who commands me to destroy planets. He provided me with a smaller star, which I controlled and sent straight into the Sun. It took time however, and the people saw it and evacuated all the planets. He punished me for my failure,” The Traveler ran his finger along his scar as he finished speaking.

     Lort didn’t respond. The Traveler turned and, without another word, began walking away.

The Traveler Part 7

“What were those things?” Jackson asked their new companion.

                “Those things are people. Living. Breathing,” Lort replied.

                “But they were so savage!”

                “Primitive warriors left behind by The Collapsing. Nothing more.”

                “But-“

                “The Collapsing?” The Traveler interrupted.

                “A time in our history, only a few decades ago. The core of the planet collapsed in on itself for unknown reasons. Since then, there have been those primitive hunters,” Lort paused, “And us.”

                “I see,” The Traveler muttered, “So the core’s already weak and unstable. I’m surprised the rest of your world didn’t die with it. Come on, I think that core’s gonna be the answer to our problem.”

                “Bye Lort,” Jackson said as he began to walk away, “It was nice knowing you, even if for only a few minutes!”

                “He’s coming with us Jackson.”

                “I am?” Lort asked, surprised.

                “He is?” Jackson said, equally surprised.

                “I’m assuming you want to live, right Lort?”

                Lort nodded slowly.

                “Then you’re with me. Now, let’s go.”

  ————————————————————————-             

                “Where are you Lort?” The Traveler yelled. No response.

                They had come out on a volcano. An active volcano. An active volcano that was beginning to erupt. The Traveler hadn’t had time to explain how they magically disappeared and reappeared somewhere else to Lort. All they had time for was running.

                Now The Traveler was on a small island in the center of a lake, not far from the volcano. He had swum out to the island to be safe and in the process lost Jackson and Lort. Great, he thought, just… great.

                Shaking his head, The Traveler dove back into the water and swam quickly back to the shore. He got his hat and trench coat from the large rock he left them on and set out in the direction he had last seen Lort.

The Traveler Part 6

     The Traveler ducked under a branch and pushed through some vines. Jackson was still a few yards back so The Traveler stopped to let him catch up. They had to be careful in here. This place was full of life, which was usual for a jungle.

     Yet something still didn’t feel right to The Traveler. It seemed to him that in the several hours they had been walking they would have found some form of civilization. Suddenly he felt that he was being watched.

     “There you are!” Jackson said, stepping up next to him.

     “We aren’t alone,” The Traveler responded.

     “What?”

     “Have anything we could use as a weapon?”

     “No”

      “Good”

     As if the word ‘good’ were a summons, a dozen people pushed through the vines. They were all carrying spears made from wood and rocks. Some had paint on their faces as well.

     “I think we’re in trouble,” Jackson whispered.

     “No,” The Traveler replied sarcastically, “They’re the welcoming committee.”

     “Some welcome…”

     The people, which The Traveler assumed were a group of warriors, began to close in around them. The warriors held their spears in both hands, ready to attack. One of them stepped up to The Traveler. It made a series of strange noises and waited for a response. When it got no response, it turned and made a loud shrieking noise.

     “That didn’t sound good,” Jackson said.

     What happened next happened almost too fast for The Traveler to follow. As the warriors stepped forward, their spears now raised above their heads. Another group of people suddenly leapt down from the trees, waving some kind of weapon at the warriors. The warriors ran off. One of this new group turned so that he was facing The Traveler and Jackson.

     “Hello,” He said, “The name’s S. P. Lort.”

The Traveler Part 5

               They were in a jungle. A very dark jungle. The Traveler examined their surroundings before determining that it was night on this planet. Or at least this side. That was fine with him, as he hadn’t gotten sleep in awhile.

                “We’ll camp here,” he told Jackson “Tomorrow the destruction can begin again.”

                “Always so cheerful,” Jackson responded, glaring at The Traveler.

                “You don’t seem too happy yourself,” The Traveler said, sitting down and leaning against a tree.

                “No, I’m not. I’ve never really been too thrilled about jungles anyway. Too much wildlife. But I find it hard to enjoy anything when I’m stuck with a psychopath in a black trench coat who isn’t entirely sure if he wants to be an explorer, rescuer, or destroyer!”

                “You didn’t seem to have a problem with me before.”

                “That was before the old guy that made you start to rethink what life you might have! Who exactly do you think you are?”

                “I don’t know,” The Traveler said quietly. He turned his head and looked out into the darkness. As he sat he could hear the patter of rain. Then he felt the raindrops on his head. But he took no notice. The end of the conversation had caused him to begin thinking about his origin.

                He really had no memories at all past a few years ago. As far as he knew, he had been destroying planets all his life. However long that may be. He knew a lot of things yet had no memory of learning them. He had no idea who he was or even how old he was. All he knew, was that he was supposed to destroy planets and not ask questions. That made him wonder—

                “Ah! Traveler? It’s startin’ to rain hard! Can we get shelter?”

                “Yeah.”

The Traveler Part 4

     The Traveler and Jackson stood on either side of the door, unmoving. Not long after arriving on this world they had been sought out by a man named Jark, who said some scientist was looking for them.

     I wish they’d hurry up. The Traveler thought. Almost as if in response to his thought, Jark came through the door. “The Professor will see you now Traveler. Your friend must stay.”

     The Traveler followed Jark into a small room with two chairs and a large telescope-like object in the corner. One of the chairs was occupied by an old man who he assumed was the scientist. Jark left the room.

     “Hello Traveler,” The old man said, standing up, “I knew you were coming. How is unimportant. I want to show you something.”

     The old man pointed over at the giant telescope and The Traveler walked slowly up to it. He looked through it. He could see something. A planet. But there was something strange about it.

     “There’s no stars,” He said to the scientist, “The planet’s alone.”

     “Yes and no,” The old man wheezed, “It is two planets. Not one. I have recorded them over long periods of time. They are moving away from each other. They are not one planet but two. They are Kcors.”

     “Kcors?”

     “Halves, dear boy. And they have names. Retsnom and Reklats.”

     “You know this… How exactly?”

     “Retsnom has spoken to me. All planets are alive, Traveler.”

     “Okay…”

     “Now. About you. You are the  destroyer. But I am told that there is good in everyone. Your friend out there. He will not be alone. You will save others on your journey. You have a destiny Traveler. You may leave.”

     The Traveler left the room. When he got back to Jackson he grabbed the man’s shoulder. “We’re leaving.”

The Traveler Part 3

            “So, for the fifth time, you wanna tell me how you did that?” Jackson asked “Where we were there and then we were gone and-“

            “I didn’t do it,” The Traveler answered.

            “Then who did?”

            “I wouldn’t be lying if I told you I’m not exactly sure”

            The two had come out in a desert. This was one of the few times The Traveler wished he didn’t wear a black trench coat. Without checking to see if Jackson was following, he turned and began slowly walking across the sand.

            “Do you know where you’re going?”

            “Away from here”

            “That’s genius. Shouldn’t we, you know, be lookin’ for civilization?”

            The Traveler stopped. He turned around so that he was facing Jackson. “Look, I think we better get a few things straight here. First, if you’re gonna follow me, you’re gonna make yourself useful” He took off his trench coat and tossed it to Jackson. “Next, you have no say in what we do. Understand? You do as I say. And no more questions.”

            “Fine,” Jackson replied “So exactly where are we going, Travelin’ Guy?”

            “West. There’s some sort of monster in a cave not far from here. And don’t call me that.”

            “Okay Traveler, how do you know about this monster?”

            “I said no questions, do you remember that?” The Traveler said, turning and continuing to walk.

            Within what The Traveler estimated to be a half hour they reached the cave. Jackson hadn’t asked anymore questions. The ventured into the cave for another half hour until they found what The Traveler was looking for. There was a huge creature with four legs and a pair of pincers. It was bound to the wall with two dozen chains.

            “Gotta set it free now” The Traveler said.

            “What?”

            “Welcome to my life”

The Traveler part 2

            “So, uh, Jackson, right?” The Traveler asked the man in front of him.

            “Yes.  Jackson,” Jackson responded.

            “Good, I have a job for you. You said you have access to a ‘Central Explosives Unit’ right?” The Traveler waited for Jackson to nod, then went on “Good. I need you to take me there.”

            “Why?”

            “I’ll give you more details when we get there.”

 

 

            The Traveler watched Jackson punch keys on the large computer.  He had explained to Jackson what was going on and how important it was that what they were doing was done quickly. As he watched, he saw Jackson slam his fist against one of the controls and mutter in frustration.

            “Hey, uh, Jackson, what happened?”

            “Just a little hacking- er… Logging in issues…”

            “You don’t really have the authorization to be here do you?”

            “Uh… No”

            “You’re not really with the military either are you?”

            “No”

            “And at any moment they’ll probably barge in and kill us right?”

            “Yeah…”

            “No”

            At that moment, heavy footsteps came from outside the door. There was a bang on the metal door and a voice called in, telling them to come out. The Traveler shook his head to Jackson and stepped into the corner. The door burst open and men charged in, aiming weapons of all kinds at Jackson. Jackson continued his work. Almost… The Traveler thought.

            “Hey Travelin’ Guy! I got this!” Jackson yelled out and turned around “Thirty seconds!”

            “Hey, you! Who are you talking to? And what are you doing in here?” One of the men asked.

            “Gotta go!” Jackson said as The Traveler ran out and grabbed his arm, “Fifteen seconds!”

            The Traveler and his new companion disappeared before the eyes of the soldiers in seconds. Mere seconds later, the world was blown to pieces.