Eternal Harmony

David Wu

Description

The Grand Angel seeks to create a world of perpetual peace and prosperity through mercy and redemption. One girl living in the town of Balearty follows each and every one of the Grand Angel's laws and edicts. She is rewarded by having her entire life planned out ahead for her. Then one day she confesses to committing a sin that cannot be redeemed and was executed for her actions. However, forces beyond her comprehension bring her back to life with a simple goal in mind for her: decide for yourself on what must be done.

Informations

• Publié par: Book Venture Publishing LLC
• Date de parution: 24 septembre 2018
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781641662420
• Langue: English

Extrait

xxx

Copyright © 2018 by David Wu.
 
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher, addressed “Attention: Permissions Coordinator,” at the address below.
 
BookVenture Publishing LLC 1000 Country Lane Ste 300
Ishpeming MI 49849 www.bookventure.com
Hotline:
1(877) 276-9751
Fax:
1(877) 864-1686
 
Ordering Information:
Quantity sales. Special discounts are available on quantity purchases by corporations, associations, and others. For details, contact the publisher at the address above.
 
Printed in the United States of America.
 
Library of Congress Control Number
2018941436
ISBN-13:
Softcover
978-1-64166-239-0
Hardback
978-1-64166-240-6
Pdf
978-1-64166-241-3
ePub
978-1-64166-242-0
Kindle
978-1-64166-243-7
 
Rev. date: 07/31/2018

 
To my grandma, who words cannot describe my thankfulness for helping me every step of the way
 


 
What we do in the face of society does not matter. The true nature of humans can only be seen when they are completely alone. And only in total loneliness is your true self tested.
 
—Grand Angel Caerula
 



A ONE-EYED CROW FLAPS ITS wings hurriedly as it flies through a dark forest deep within the night. It reaches a small clearing where a loose mound of dirt sits in the middle. The crow lands on the loose dirt and begins pecking at the ground. It rises up and begins to caw noisily and frantically flap its wings, scattering away loose feathers on the ground. Eventually, the crow calms down, flaps its wings once more, and flies to observe the mound of dirt while resting its talons on a nearby tree branch.
A loud gasp is heard from beneath the dirt. The mound of dirt begins to shake as a white-gloved hand bursts from the ground. The crow begins to caw frantically as the Quiet Girl rises from her hastily dug grave. Gasping and wheezing, she attempts to speak. She speaks in a soft, mousy, and delicate voice in a posh accent, sounding so fragile that if something were to apply just a little too much pressure to it, it would be lost forever. Barely able to speak, she summons up a couple of words.
“Where…where…”
The Quiet Girl is a young woman wearing a fancy, elaborate light-blue dress with tall laced boots. Her hair is pitch-black in sharp contrast to her skin, which carries a paleness of undeath. Her body is sickly and thin and completely covered in dirt. She rubs her brown eyes and attempts to brush the dirt off her dress but to no avail. Still gasping and wheezing, she attempts to speak again.
“Where am I?”
The one-eyed crow flies down from its tree branch and lands in front of her. It caws and flaps its wings to grab her attention, further scattering its feathers. Scared and confused, the Quiet Girl stares at the odd creature. The one-eyed crow suddenly stops, turns its head away, and hops forward once; and then it turns back to her again and caws at her.
“Do you want me to follow you, is that it?”
Unsure of where else to go, the Quiet Girl ponders for a moment and reluctantly follows the crow through the forest, taking her time with every step to make sure she doesn’t trip the darkness. The one-eyed crow flies up to the trees and flies from branch to branch, constantly cawing to get her attention. As she follows the crow, various carrion animals begin to surround her from a distance, including scavenger wolves, rats, and other crows.
The Quiet Girl and the crow make their way through the forest, pushing past brush and foliage. As the Quiet Girl begins to regain her focus, she starts to recognize where they’re going but says nothing, unsure if her guide can even understand her. They reach a hidden grove deep within the forest as the Quiet Girl realizes where she was being led to and awkwardly blurts out a question, forgetting that she doesn’t know if the crow can even understand her.
“Wait…you’re taking me here?”
She rushes into the grove as fast as her dress can allow her as the crow follows behind her, and she scans the area. She attempts to shout as loudly as her small voice can allow.
“Veronica! Veronica, where are you?”
She looks around for an answer but finds one she neither expected nor wanted. A Dark Voice bellows throughout the grove in a deep and menacing tone.
“She is not here. However, she is not needed. Unlike you.”
More confused than ever and intimidated by the presence of this voice, she stammers out a simple question.
“Wh-who are you?”
The voice answers patiently, “I am the one who decided to give you a second chance.”
Shocked at this answer, her mind grows increasingly confused and distressed. She wonders to herself what sort of earthly power could undo what has befallen her. She collects her thoughts and asks a second question to confirm.
“So does that mean you’re…”
Unable to bring herself to say the word, she simply waits and hopes the Dark Voice will explain itself further. Simultaneously, the Dark Voice both answers and doesn’t answer her question with a statement of reassurance.
“Don’t worry, I am only here to offer a gift.”
No longer confused at who she is talking to as her confusion turns into fear, she attempts to summon up what little courage she has to speak against the Dark Voice.
“Get away. I don’t want anything you have to give.”
Scared that she might have displeased a power she shouldn’t have, she begins to slowly back out of the grove but the voice speaks before she could do anything meaningful.
“You will learn the charity of others will not be so generous once you leave this grove. You can leave now, try to find Veronica, and then…die trying. Or you could see what I have to offer.”
Terrified at whatever force is powerful enough to bring her back to life, she attempts to stammer out a response that would excuse her from its presence without upsetting the Dark Voice. Lacking in both eloquence and courage at such a presence, she summons up a few words.
“I’m…I’m going to leave now.”
Without changing its tone, the Dark Voice attempts to convince her to stay.
“Think for a moment. What could you possibly do when you leave here? Who could you turn to now? Veronica? You will not find her. Come, let me show you what I can offer.”
She attempts to remain stoic in the face of the Dark Voice, but her composure crumbles as she realizes the truth in its words. Wordlessly, she cautiously walks toward the center of the grove. Now with her under its mercy, the Dark Voice issues a command.
“Kneel down and look upward.”
Confused at this request, the Quiet Girl attempts to ask why, but before she can speak, the Dark Voice asks her a question they both know the answer to.
“Do you have anybody else to trust?”
She does as instructed and bends her head backward. The one-eyed crow opens its mouth and a purple spectral crow leaps out of its mouth and flies over on top of her head. The crow tunnels itself into her right eye as she screams in terror and pain. She reflexively grabs her eye in agony as the crow begins pecking about inside her head, unconcerned of what pain it would cause her. Then, in an instant, everything stops; and the pain subsides. The Quiet Girl takes her hand off her face. Her once brown right eye’s iris changes into a sanguine red, and the rest of it darkens into pitch-black. She drops down, oddly physically unharmed, and begins to sob from the shock and pain. As she gasps, the Dark Voice offers some advice.
“You cannot be so easy to harm. The world has changed for you, and you must change for it.”
Still confused as to what she should do, the Quiet Girl asks for her next order.
“So…what now?”
“Now you will learn your newfound gifts.”
Some ruffling is heard at the entrance of the grove as an unlucky soldier steps outward. He is dressed in a white-and-gold uniform with tight gloves and polished boots and wields a musket in his right hand. He looks up at the Quiet Girl and becomes shocked and confused as he attempts to understand the situation he stumbled into. He speaks to her and begins to slowly approach.
“Wait…you’re that sinful witch! How are you—”
A tree root spontaneously grows out from the grass and trips him over, and he falls on the ground.
The Dark Voice commands the Quiet Girl, “Place your hand on his head.”
The soldier attempts to stand back up as the Quiet Girl approaches him.
“Wait…what are you doing? What’s that voi—”
She places her hand on his head, and he freezes in place.
The Dark Voice continues to explain.
“Now you have total and utter domination over his mind. His memories, his thoughts, and his actions are all yours.”
The Quiet Girl begins to pace as her eye glows faintly. She begins to process the mind she was just given control of and recites facts about the soldier’s life.
“He…is married and has two children. He was late to church twice. He is also afraid of spiders.”