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Deep on a middling blue star…
The horizon twinkled with the light from the sun and myriad stars. In the east, the amber glow of dusk was chased away by an endless void staring down at them all. The mountainous fields, plains, and orchards rolled on to indent their fields with winding streams and ponds. They rose toward the peaks and crevices in white wisps of clouds that blew in gentle winds over open skies rather than caressing mountainsides.
An enormous futuristic metropolis rested on the northern side of one such mountain. There, massive silver condors, golden eagles, and multi-colored peacocks dominated the sky in group formations as they ferried the masses. Their wingspans were larger than the largest aircraft carriers; titanic beasts of myth come to life. A single look into their eyes would cause a man to lower his gaze in respect and awe.
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To the far west, monstrous sea beasts lurked in the unfathomable depths of the vast oceans, their sprawling homes a place of terror for any brave enough to venture out. The sight of these imposing creatures, with jaws large enough to swallow a man whole and eyes that seemed to hold untold horrors, would strike fear into even the most daring sailors who dared to brave the open waters.
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When compared to these monsters, even the largest naval vessels seemed puny and insignificant, like toys for giants – no ship could ever hope to defeat one of these beasts in open waters.
Further west, on the other side of the sea, lay a colossal landmass shrouded by an azure light dome. The brightness of the barrier illuminated even from miles away, drawing attention to the ethereal landscape within. It was like nothing seen in this world - towering mountains, lush and verdant forests cascaded with waterfalls, and strange, foreign flora. It was a breathtaking sight, even from a distance.
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Located within the metropolis on the smaller of the two massive continents…
Beyond a majestic mountain range, under ethereal clouds swirling with seven colors, that extended up the majority of the eastern shoreline...
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Beyond a vast valley where two strange young men drove a fascinating flying craft before crash-landing behind a group of men in black attire…
Into the rundown, dirty, and largely abandoned part of a now-bustling and futuristic city…
There was a small but gaudy house.
Although it was a house, it could be better described as a shack. The entire structure was barely the size of two or three large walk-in closets. A high-tech sofa bed lay on its side against the wall in one of the two rooms. Posters of machines and heroic figures flying on spacecraft in space littered the room's walls, inspiring the boy to dream about space travel. The neighboring living area and kitchen were only feet apart, separated by only two wall shelves. Many clothes were scattered on the living area's floor, but none entered the kitchen.
The only other room, the bathroom, had every surface so white and clean that it was spotless. Tile covered every inch of the surfaces and even spread over half of the low floor in this small space. Anyone who knew how hard tile was to clean would have been stunned at the state of this bathroom. If anyone ever used this bathroom, they did so early in its history.
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
The brown-skinned boy tossing and turning on the sofa bed must have been at least ten or eleven years old. His curly hair was twisted into dreadlocks that bobbed just above his shoulders. Each lock had perfectly pointed ends—for some reason, he found this fact reassuring. His handsome little features would make any older lady immediately run up to pinch his cheeks. He was plainer than his sisters but still far too pretty for a boy his age.
Girls usually loved him even more than they did the beautiful men who always seemed full of themselves. If they saw him here, they would have thought he was adorable and brought him home with them as soon as they saw how cute he looked sleeping peacefully.
Yes, the kid was downright lovable.
Yet, he was alone here in this small space. Although his face looked incredibly tranquil, he was actually in the middle of a nightmare. Right then, the only item resting on the south wall's shelf lit up, buzzing obnoxiously.
*BURMP!*
*BURMP!*
*BURMP!*
*BURMP!*
"[ALERT, ALERT! RYATT DRAKE, YOU ARE LATE!]"
"[RYATT DRAKE, YOU ARE LATE!]"
"[RYATT-DRAKE-RYATT-DRAKE-YOU-AR…]"
Bang!
A loud alarm's buzzer and mechanical voice immediately started squealing, urging any fool silly enough to be peacefully unconscious to correct their ways. Fortunate for the dreary, it quickly started to malfunction. It started smoking, and its speech was rapidly becoming harder to understand.
And then...it exploded into pieces.
"AH!!" the explosion woke the boy up with a start, and he looked all around himself in a panic. He screamed out desperately, "RAINA!!"
This boy was none other than the drowsy and confused Ryatt Drake, the self-proclaimed boy wonder.
"Wait…was it…another dream?" Ryatt's head ached as he tried to process his surroundings.
From being the tragically handsome hero in the plot of some low-budget science-fiction movie to his poor accommodations in lower Acadia. Ryatt's situation had him feeling dizzy, and lying in a heap of broken glass made three options come to mind.
He couldn't help but consider if he'd time-traveled after living through an intense life or if the nutrient drink he had last night was spoiled and caused this hallucination. He wondered if his late nights studying were taking their toll on his sanity at such an early age.
Looking at the pieces of his alarm clock, Ryatt chose to believe that the bad batch of nutrition was to blame—though he wasn't quite sure if he could cross out the third possibility yet; something similar had happened just recently.
"Damn! Another one blew up, huh…" Ryatt yawned as he lamented another failed alarm clock, easily sliding out of his sofa bed.
The bed immediately rearranged the sheets on its own. Gears shifted, and locks were clicking as it quickly transformed into a sofa upon which the boy briefly sat.
Lucky [https://sudoart.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/sudowrite-images/image-1.0-gwTvC0JlkTyvFW5-0.png]
The sleepy Ryatt yawned again as he stepped into the bathroom. As he approached the sink, a stream of water poured down automatically. He hit a switch, and metallic arms emerged from hidden compartments. Each claw offered a hygienic option to start his day.
Ryatt smiled and brushed his teeth thoroughly.
"Turns out it was a nightmare…man…so realistic. I've never had a nightmare like that before," Ryatt thought. "Except for yesterday. And the day before that. And the day before, tsk. So unoriginal."
By the time he walked out, the sofa had just settled. Ryatt didn't even glance at it as he took a seat. Gathering his thoughts, the young boy could only cradle his little head, subconsciously twisting his curly brown locks.
"That dream…was so weird. That girl…looked so sad as they took her away. Who was she? Raina? We spent years together in that dream. Would things happen like that in reality? All those intergalactic battles…does technology like that really exist? Well, we do have a new tech on the way, but those weapons were next-level. I felt my heart tighten so much that I thought I would die," Ryatt felt slightly frightened, just remembering that feeling.
He remembered the girl they had taken away, Raina, and all those intergalactic battles. His chest had tightened in terror that was still fresh in his memory.
"Is that what it feels like to be in love? Emotions seem so complicated…and then the battle on that crazy spaceship…man, I'm confused…."
Dreams similar to this had bothered the boy for most of the month. At first, he would dream vividly but couldn't remember any of it after waking up. After a while, the memory got a bit clearer. Today, it was almost complete. But it was quickly fading away as if vapor in the wind, it was done right remarkable.
"Well, no time to worry about that," Ryatt suddenly hopped up and looked out his window, feeling invigorated by the beams of sunlight that poured in. "It looks like I'm late again."
Ryatt quickly changed out of his night trousers and wore a proper shirt. He then put on his Acadia Primary School uniform. Of course, he was not wearing the traditional red skirt and blazer that matched the purple–lined collar shirt; by now, he had added twists to his uniform.
The original—the first garments he had modified—had been a basic scarlet skirt, blazer, and slacks with a purple collar shirt. There had also been an option of a scarlet tie for those who wore blazers and slacks or a purple ribbon for those skirts adorned with ribbons rather than belts.
Ryatt's uniform not only consisted of a bowtie made from the ribbon for skirts, but his blazer was inside–out, revealing the chevrons of blue and gold on white along its back. At the same time, his sleeves were cut off in precision cuts, something no one would notice while he wore his blazer. Meanwhile, his smooth leather running shoes were intended for more active people. These shoes were his creation, cosmetically designed by his best friend, Micayle.
Micayle was the best drawer he knew. Her calligraphy was also top-notch. She was a true artist. Ryatt loved how his shoes were adorned with small designs that looked similar to waves in water, created by Micayle. Over time, it had become clear that this pair of shoes was special to him.
Some students would grow too big for their uniforms, so cutting the sleeves off was not strictly against the rules. The rules only stated that students who wore blazers and slacks had to have their blazers on to be in the hallway. Ryatt would definitely still have his blazer on in the hallway because he knew how to respect the rules.