Special Presentation: Spirit evolution. Part 1.

Hey! I hope you all have been doing well in these rather turbulent times. 

I have been okay, taking life one day at a time you know?

O.L.K. has been doing great on the views folks!

And for that, I will never be able to be grateful enough. 

You all are my greatest source of inspiration, and I hope that you continue to return and read along for as long as I continue to write! 

one day I will drop a physical copy for the world, and I hope you all are there for that as well!

I love you dearly.

I really do.

This entry is special.

It is based on -as nearly all of my characters- someone close to me that I know personally.

This is her characters introduction to Enverdolmal, and I hope she enjoys it! 

It is a Special presentation because it is an unusual event in the world, an anomaly I would say. 

It is something that will change the direction of the story on a base level, so yeah lol there is that.

This isn't the first of these Special presentations, and it won't be the last, just bare with me lol.

I will see you all back here soon enough, yeah?

I present to you"

"Spirit evolution. Part 1." 

Enjoy!

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The rain fell in heavy sheets, pounding the roof of the faded yellow school bus as it rolled down the dimly-lit back streets of Southside Milwaukee. 

The three kids who remained aboard sat spaced out from the front of the bus to the very back, none caring to conversate with the others for reasons of their own.

One sat at the very front near the driver, afraid to be too far from any adult.

One sat near the middle, far enough from the front to be alone yet far enough from the back to feel safe.

One sat in the very back, her head against the window, thumping softly with every bump and pothole. 

Her Bapple headphones in, her favorite songs flowing into her ears. 

Her eyes closed as she imagined what the band was like whose songs echoed in her head.

This last child, her name was Saki. 

Saki was not very far from your average 13 year old American child. 

She did very normal "American child" things. 

Shopping, hanging out with friends, watching her favorite shows, and playing her favorite video games to name a few.

She was a bit of a loner yes, but not by choice.

She had just moved into this new neighborhood not so long ago, and the apartment building that she now called home was an old and kind of run-down ex-factory that didn't seem to house a single other kid her age. 

That last part, she didn't mind as much.

She had her BelayStation 5, her custom gaming chair, her snack and hydration station, and her two pet cats.

Life was simple enough.

Life was good.

Well...usually.

She had -like most kids- the occasional bully to deal with at school, she lived in a neighborhood that was far from the best, and it was just her and her mother, A tough and independent woman who ran her own custom crafts online store from the spare bedroom in their two-bed apartment. 

Her father had passed away before she could walk or talk, so she had little to no recollection of him. It was maybe for the best, as he had not been around anyway. 

At 13, she was just old enough to be home alone while her mom ran errands, and tonight would be no different. 

She would get a bit of gaming done after her chores and homework.

A pretty normal night.

After a couple of hours, her mom would be home to check her work, and prepare dinner before she showered and went to her "office" to get more work done,

A pretty normal night.

Saki didn't mind. The two of them hung out and did things together on the weekends.

Every weekend.

Even in her youth, she understood the concept of a single parent, and she loved her mom that much more for her grit and determination.

She would leave her to her work and throw a few hours into Fort Knights before heading to bed for school in the morning.

A pretty normal night indeed.

But first, she had to make it home.

As the bus rolled along, thumping over speed bumps and maneuvering around idling vehicles, Saki sat up and threw her backpack over her shoulder.

Her stop would be coming up relatively soon, and she would have to sprint for the porch of her apartment complex.

The rain had not let up even a bit, and she had not considered bringing her zip-up or umbrella.

It was what it was.

"I'll be gaming soon enough!"

She thought to herself as she slipped her legs over the edge of her seat and onto the too-often sticky floor of the bus. The large vehicle slowed to a stop as it neared her corner, its tall double doors swinging open to allow her to exit.

Saki stood and jogged up the isle past the other two kids, nodding to each of them in kind as she passed. Neither said a thing in return, her status as a ne

She stopped and hesitated at the door, the rain outside promising near-instant discomfort. She pulled the straps of her backpack, making sure that it was taught to her back before she skipped down the steps and leaped the small gap between the bus and the curb, landing with a huff in a growing puddle. Her socks immediately began to absorb the rainwater, promising to soak her shoes just as thoroughly. 

Before she or her clothing could become more drenched than was necessary, she took off at full speed for the awning that would grant her harbor.

In her haste, she had overlooked the span of grass that lined the block between the curb and sidewalk.

More accurately, she had misjudged her launch.

Her left foot hit the grass just fine, sticking as she put her full weight down, but just as her right foot left the ground her left lost all grip.

In an instant, she was mid-air and nearly horizontal to the ground. 

"FACK!" 

She had a split-second to let loose a single curse word before she landed unceremoniously on her back and in the deepest part of a massive puddle. Her backpack forced her back to bend, blasting the air from her lungs upon impact. Her elbows banked against the concrete to either side of her, gashing open the kind of shallow wounds that tended to bleed more than they hurt. 

Thankfully, her head was aligned with the grass and it thumped almost painlessly off of the soft, wet turf, her air aiding in the cushioning of the blow. 

The rest of her was not so lucky...

With a bruised tailbone and lower spine, the soaking and embarrassed girl rolled over and onto one elbow. She changed a glance back and upward.

She almost instantly locked eyes with those of the bus driver...

The balding, fat little man let loose a wry chuckle, closed the hinged doors, and drove away.

The girl who sat in the middle of the bus just happed to witness it all as well Saki learned as the pale face flew by just seconds after the pus began to move.

"Great...Monday is going to be amazing..."

She thought to herself.

There was no way that this wouldn't be a new and juicy story by the end of the first period...

Saki was...well many things in that moment:

Angry, embarrassed, drenched from head to toe, and in pain just happened to be the most obvious. 

She shook off the urge to cry.

She was over it.

All of it.

She just wanted to be dry, sitting in her chair, and logged into a different world.

Fack her chores...

Fack her homework...

Her mom would understand.

She gathered herself and stood before mentally pushing herself to walk to the front door.

She fished her keys out of her pocket, and slipped the slightly bent key into the keyhole. 

It turned with an audible click. 

She pulled the door open and walked into the lobby, her head hung low in defeat. 

The lights were dim and flickering as always but shew noticed that the corridor was eerily quiet. 

Greed kept the owner from simply replacing a few old and fading light bulbs. 

Poverty kept the apartment complex from staying full for any amount of time. 

She walked the two-meter distance to the elevator and pressed the little black call button, water dripping from every bit of clothing on her person. 

The janitor would have to mop in the morning.

Not her problem.

The ride up to the fourth floor seemed to take an eternity, so tired and overwhelmed was she. 

The day was almost over...

Almost.

The elevator car stopped with a jolt that caused Saki's backpack to slip off of her shoulder and land with a heavy, wet slap on the dirty floor.

It scrapped against her raw elbow on the way down, sending a reminding jolt of pain up her left arm.

She looked down at the bag, closed her eyes, and bent over to grab a single strap, refusing to bother with picking it up in full.

Blood trickled down her arm, mingling with the rain water and leaving a murky trail as she made her way.

She dragged the bag and herself down the creepy hall and to her door.

403 it read.

She juggled the keys about in her right hand for a moment, searching for the one that would grant her sweet entrance.

The jingling notes echoes unnervingly down the passage, making Saki quicken her pace.

With a slip, and a turn, and a push, the door slid open and she was finally home.

She rolled around the door, closed and locked it in one go, and slammed her back against its inner side, leaving her backpack where it lay just to her right.

She breathed a couple of deep breaths, letting the familiar scent of home bring her some measure of comfort. 

Her two cats came around the corner, exiting her bedroom and strutting over to greet her.

Water from her still-drenched clothes dripped onto their heads and bodies as Saki bent to pet them. They sprinted away at the introduction to her wet state, another slap in her already bruised ego.

"Oooooookay. Okay. Okay okay okay!" 

She said to herself.

She was over being resigned.

She was over being wet and angry and in pain.

She was over this entire day and this entire world.

It was time to log into Fort Knights!

Saki sprinted down the hall.

Past her bedroom.

Past her moms office.

Into the bathroom.

She had notice a faint light emanating from the bottom of the office door as she flew by.

Curious...her mom shouldn't be home yet.

An after thought. 

She was already out of the wet clothing and into the shower.

Within a half hour, Saki was dressed in a warm set of clean pajamas, her elbows cleaned and bandaged, her feet tucked snuggly into her favorite Goodnight Kitty house shoes.

She was ready to unplug herself from the real world for a bit, and her chair was calling her name.

She turned and opened the bathroom door, letting the steam from her shower roll down the hall and dissipate as it closed the distance between her and her moms office.

That faint light was still there.

"Hmm..."

She thought aloud. 

Maybe her mom was home early for some reason. 

It did kinda look like it could be her computer monitors light. 

It wasn't so farfetched to think that she may have had a few less things to get done today, it was Friday after all. 

That was fine by her, it meant that dinner would be ready that much sooner.

She could eat sooner, game a bit longer, then head to bed.

Win-win.

She decided to say hi quickly before she made herself invisible to the real world for the next two to three hours. She was sure that her mom had heard her come in so she didn't think that it would be a problem.

"Mum?"

She said as she crossed the hall and approached the door, raising her hand to knock.

For a second she wondered why her mom hadn't come into the bathroom to check on her in the shower. 

Another after thought. 

The glowing from the base grew more intense as she got closer, but this escaped her attention as she just wanted to be in and out and on with her own plans.

As her hand was about to make contact, the door swung open all on its own.

Saki's eyes widened so greatly that it was painful.

She reflexively took a step back. 

The hallway around her was suddenly and starkly filled with the brightest and most brilliant white light that the girl had ever seen.

She braced herself against the intensity, raising her arms to block it as best she could but to no avail.

Suddenly and forcefully she was pulled forward and into light.

Into that should have been her mom office.

So quickly had it happened that she hadn't even had the time to scream.

The door slammed shut behind her.

Where she had stood, lay the damp towel that she had wrapped her hair in to help it dry, and beneath that, a pair of house shoes.

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Welcome back to the gates of Enverdolmal folks!

I hope this sits well till next we meet.

I am sorry that I haven't been as consistent with my drops.

Life has changed a bit since I got out of the hospital a few weeks ago, and I have started posting not only more poetry on my Shadows Before Dawn series, but I also started a new short story series called" Old journals of a Millennial." It is literally just a collection of my childhood journals lol and some crazy and comedic commentary by yours truly! 

Feel free to take a look and even comment!

I would love that.

I will leave you all with that, and I hope to see you all back here for the next instalment!

I have World lore to drop, Character Dives, and more!

See you all soon and safe travels!

As always:

Stay safe

 Stay healthy

 Stay vigilant. 

-Redd,