Writing Fantasy story....O_o

[eleanor]

[size=1]I'm writing a fantasy story for the program I'm attending right now, and I felt like posting it. Yes, the background plot is a rip-off of .hack//SIGN with the whole 'Game' thing....>__>;;


The usual rush of air surrounded the girl, every inch of her body enclosed in a hot, metal bodysuit. She stood patiently in the pod, her back hunched over. Numerous wires sprouted from the back of her body suit, all leading into the small, dim-lit, flat screen computer than sat lonesome on a worn, beaten down desk. The red body suit looked like something out of a futuristic TV show, with sleek metal and bindings intricately designed into the layers of sheer ___?__. Jade eyes immediately glazed over, the girl?s vision fading slowly. She could only see the faded outline of colored wires attached to the inside of her head case. Maarie closed her eyes patiently and sighed, preparing herself for the transfer. Time itself seemed to slow down as the whistling wind quickly dulled down to a soft buzz.
She was in the mountain stage. Rocky boulders balanced ominously on various formations, a rustic-brown coloring flickering before her until her eyes finally adjusted. The sky was a dark, brooding purple, the stars steadily giving off a faint light. No clouds drifted about, and the full moon glared down at the mountains, casting an eerie glow against the girl?s fair face.
The sand dust kicked up and danced in the wind as Maarie made her way forward. Her various belts and buckles thumped against her thighs and each other annoyingly as she cautiously quickened her pace. Her gloved hands shot backwards like a dart, her fingers glued to the weapon hanging diagonally across her back. The wind stirred briefly, making the boulders creak forward and backward. The girl bent her legs, bracing herself for an attack. Her green eyes darted back and forth, desperately seeking something out. A long, black pole of some sort was in front of her, both hands clenched tightly around it at the bottom. Various limes ran along the stick, curving and making intricate designs. The wind whistled for a moment, and the girl?s lips moved. Soft words came out of Maarie?s mouth and immediately a soft; green light struggled to burst through hurt tightly held hands. A mechanical whirring sound reached the girl?s ears as the pole molded into a sword. The polished, black metal reflected the moon?s blue light as it quivered in the cold air.
Maarie tensed, her eyes narrowed down to a flare, her arms trembling despite her high level in the Game. Her worn out, brown boots dug into the ground, making semi-circle depressions into the soil.
A quarter to three. He was late. The girl?s whole body seemed to relax, if only a tiny bit. Her breathing softened, and she put her sword down. Maarie stood right up, looking off into the clear night, the bitter winds biting at her bare skin. A blank look settled into her forest green eyes, her arms dangling at her side. The full moon?s light stared back at her, its light like a beacon in the dark, far, far away. Her hand unconsciously balled into a loose fist and then stretched out again, the sword edge making a tiny mark in the dust. The black sword reacted to the idleness, transforming itself to its original state; a smooth, black pole.
?Augh!? Maarie cried out in surprise, her knees falling to the ground as she dropped her pole. An alarming (yet at the same time annoying) beeping noise sounded as the girl?s power drained a considerable twenty points. The young man behind her held an expressionless face, his eyes coldly looking down on the girl?s fallen figure. His hand shot out to the right, swiftly shooting through the air making a dangerous cutting sound. The sleek pole trembled slightly before it lifted into the air. The biting wind blew harshly against it making it shudder before Maarie snatched it away.
?Well, don?t just sit there. Fight.? His calm, cold voice making Maarie flinch involuntarily. It took a moment before the girl could regain her posture.
?You?re late you idiot,? She snarled aggressively at him, ?when did you log in?? The boy?s startlingly red eyes remained calm, his mouth frowning.
?You shouldn?t have put your guard down. What?s so interesting about the moon, anyway?? Russ asked rather frostily considering the fact that he was late. Maarie scowled.
?Always changing the subject, I see. I?m leaving. Next time, try to get here on time.? She stamped her boot on the ground before receding into the darkness. A smile twitched at the boy?s mouth, his eyes closing in a knowing way.
* * * *
Blankets rustled softly as Maarie stirred. The alarm clock had gone off again after three hits on the snooze button, of course. A partly muted groan came from under the mess of white sheets, the girl?s head finally popping up. Her black hair was in disarray, her dull brown eyes looking out. She was a mess. She stretched her legs and grabbed the clock. It was noon, and she was late to school.
?Hn.? She didn?t really care, actually. She looked forward, watching her reflection in the mirror. She hated her black hair, and she hated her brown eyes. They reminded her of her mother. Maarie desperately wished everyday. Wished for a better life, a loving family, some close friends.
It was better in the Game. The girl dressed into the clothes she wore yesterday. She didn?t have time to wash them or buy new clothes. She quickly ran a broken brush through her raven-black hair while she looked around her room. Her bed was a disgusting, dirty mattress carelessly thrown on the floor. Her white sheets were more of a bluish color, and she had no pillow. A crumbling desk was in the corner, her clock now thrown on the floor. Ugly brown stains littered her walls; her ceiling was covered with old plaster. Tiles lined her floor. Maarie suspected that her room was supposed to be used for washing clothes. Her brown eyes went cold when she thought about it. Her parents wouldn?t care if she died right then and there. They probably weren?t even in the apartment.
?Probably getting drunk again. Damn.? Maarie muttered angrily as she tied up her hair, her fingers aggressively pulling at her hair. She hated herself in the real world. She was disgusting. She looked in the mirror again. She had stringy hair, her eyes red because of the lack of sleep she got. She was impossibly skinny, her ribs showing plainly through her shirt that was two sizes too small. She had low cheekbones, and her mouth a thin line. Her nose was flat, her eyebrows bushy. She hadn?t taken a bath in weeks. She remembered the last time she took one; her mother hit her and screamed about the water bills. Sometimes Maarie wished that her mother would hit her harder, hard enough to cause ugly purple bruises. She could call the police then.
She would much rather go into the Game. It was her life, really. But for now, she would try to learn something at her run-down building, known as her school.
* * * *
The girl?s dirty sneakers kicked at the brown leaves and cigarette butts as she walked down the road. She glanced out from beneath her baseball cap, glancing momentarily at the dark alleyways that lined the streets. Old trashcans overflowed with all sorts of rubbish, stray dogs snuffing the ground, drunkards leaning against the wall. She
thought she saw her parents. Gunshots fired off in the distance. Near-broken cars strayed down the street, sometimes going onto the sidewalk. Beer bottles and trash littered the floor; you could barely see the cement. Food wrappers and newspapers flew about in the gentle wind, the occasional homeless man trying to walk straight while holding beers. New York City. This was the infamous New York City. She heard that a long time ago it was the busiest city in the U.S. She heard that a long time ago cars and taxis lined the streets and people dressed in nice coats filled the sidewalks. She heard that a long time ago shops and malls with dazzling lights filled the streets, and everything exciting happened in New York City. She didn?t know what happened.
She looked at a newspaper, the front cover filled with battleships and airplanes and tanks. ?THE WAR RAGES ON? it read. There wasn?t much to read in newspapers. It was mostly just pictures. Maarie angrily kicked it aside, continuing her depressing walk down to school. She frowned as a beaten car slowly tried to wade its way through the huge water pond that had gathered in the street after the thunderstorm last night. She felt someone on her shoulder. Her eyes grew cold and her body tensed. She was ready.
?Hey kid-? A sinister, rough voice sneered out. Before he could breath another word, he saw a gun pointed to his head.
?O-oh, come on kid, I?ve got plenty of money I-? A blast fired off and he fell to the ground. His eyes rolled and he looked at her in fear. Maarie?s eyebrows buried in confusion. Where was the winning noise? And where were her points?
?Is the Game malfunctioning? What-? Maarie stared in horror as she saw blood ooze out of the man head. His gray eyes were turning white, and his mouth was slightly open.
?Oh no-oh?.no- I- no, I didn?t mean to- I? She stuttered out, her breath shaky, her skin was sweating. She felt sick. The Game is broken the Game is broken the Game is malfunctioning the Game is malfunctioning the Game is malfunctioning the Game is malfunctioning its---- Maarie ran. Run home, she thought. It would be okay.

Everything was okay. Maarie rubbed her forehead as she gently landed on familiar lands. She had been here before; it was her first stage when she was just a beginner. A sea of grass stretched out before her, a calm blue sky overhead. The wind blew warmly, sending ripples across the plains. Every once in a while a tree would come into her sight. Maarie?s breathing relaxed, her green eyes nostalgic and warm. Her soft brown bangs blew into her face. A content sigh came out, her lips smiling. She heard the familiar noise of boots landing on ground. Russ calmly walked towards her, until he was right next to her. He closed his eyes and breathed in the sweet air.
?How did you know I was here?? Maarie demanded. She was still quite angry about the surprised attack.
?Don?t you ever wonder?? A strong, unemotional voice came out of Russ as he lowered himself to sit on the grass.
?What is it with you and evading subjects?? Maarie shot back, as if trying to get back at him for yesterday. No answer came, and the silence between them was deafening.
?It?s so real.? The calm voice said after a while.
?What?? Maarie asked, irritated.
?The air, the winds. The sky, the grass. Everything is so real.?
?Well, it?s not.? Maarie snapped quickly, trying to veer the talk to another subject.
?You?re avoiding something.? Russ accused coldly. Maarie sneered.
?And you don?t? Huh, how ironic.? The young girl made a face and turned away. Russ shifted after a moment, his red eyes piercing the back of Maarie. A dreadful silence followed after, the only sound being the soft whistling of the wind. Maarie?s sea green eyes lowered.
?You?re right, you know.? She said timidly, trying to strike up a conversation for once.
?When I first came in-? Russ started abruptly, his hand clenching the semi-long grass as he spoke, ?when I first came in, I thought it was something majestic. It felt like I was in my fantasy world that I?ve been dreaming of in my sleep. I thought I would never leave.?
?Heh, when I first came, I didn?t leave for a day! It felt so wonderful.? Nostalgia coated every word that came out of Maarie, her voice sounding romantic and airy.
?Did you?.ever think ?? Russ started, his voice letting a hint of shakiness enter. He stopped, and cleared his throat.
?Hm?? Maarie looked at him questionably, trying to see his hidden face. Russ raised his head and looked into the horizon. The sun about to set, and the sky had a tinge of orange. The occasional breeze blew his raven black hair around, his eyes almost a soft purple because of the orange sky. He took a calm breath.
?Never mind.? He said finally, his eyes once again turning impassive and cold. He suddenly stood up, his hands brushing the dirt off.
?Where are you going now?? The girl asked, also getting up. Russ smirked.
?Feel like fighting??
?No. Actually, I don?t. I feel good for once. I don?t want to ruin it or-?
?Fine by me,? Russ said in a blank voice as he cupped his hands and closed his eyes, ?I?ll be at my usual place if you want to know.? Small black balls of light curved around his lithe body and he was gone.
?God. He always ruins the moment.? Maarie huffed and sat down again.

* * * * * *

Russ walked silently through the gloomy landscape, his face looking straight ahead. The small crunching noises usually made by his boots were now silenced by a spell.
?That blasted monster! God, I-? Russ shut his mouth quickly. He heard a small rustling sound. Quickly, he summoned a small, gray ball and levitated it in the air, his hands partly covering it. The small ball shook dangerously before it transformed into a silver pole, deadly sharp on one end. His left hand darted out and snatched it away from the air, and swiftly cut off a disgusting, yet dangerous looking arm from the darkness. A piercing of anger came from deep within the black shadows, more arms poking out of the darkness.
?Human arms?!? Russ whispered to himself. Dirtied, gooey human arms strained out of the darkness, as if trapped by some horrible prison. His blood-red eyes tightened in fear as he saw something come out of the shadows, its power level topping the charts. The boy stumbled back, his breathing shaky and his arms trembling. A swift arm reached out, clenching at the boy, its sharp fingernails digging painfully into his skin. A small gasp came out as he saw blood running down his arm, more arms clawing out and grabbing his wrists, his elbows and shoulder, his neck!
?No, NO! This isn?t right, this isn?t right, this- something is wrong!? Russ screamed painfully, struggling wildly against the pull, his fingers still tightly grasped around his weapon. More blood, more pain. Russ didn?t understand. This was just a game; we felt no pain in something fake! Tears fell down the boy?s cheeks, his teeth biting down on his mouth and then-
Russ sat up quickly. His hand was on his burning forehead, and he saw nothing in sight. He sat up quickly, and looked around. It was black. Everything was black.
?Ah!? Russ gasped and turned around to see a figure walking towards him. He tried to walk back, but he was rooted to the spot, and he couldn?t move a muscle. It was like ropes were tied up all around him, duck tape slapped across his mouth. He couldn?t see he couldn?t move he-
?Russ?.? A familiar voice rang out in the distance. Red eyes widened in amazement and fear; he struggled against the tight bonds. There in his hands was a stuffed animal. It was a dog, to be exact. Its ragged fur and beady eyes stared up at him, like it was pleading. Begging. The boy desperately tried to throw it away, tried to get it away from him. A giant mirror suddenly appeared before him, and Russ gasped. He was a small little boy, holding a furry, cute dog in his arms. The little boy had a somber expression written on his face, his big gray eyes looking back at him. Russ softly touched his face, and brushed his fingers across his eyes. He had almost forgotten?almost forgotten what he had looked like. In the real world. The little boy looked at him with gray eyes and a sickly colored brown hair, his clothes were filthy and ragged, his shoes made of SHOEBOXES! PWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA WHAT A LOSER HE WEARS SHOEBOXES FOR SHOES! Just kidding, I just wrote that to laugh. His shoes were torn and mangled, but his dog was clean. Its silky fur and black eyes, (the dog is a stuffed animal) and its brown ears.
?William?.? Russ whispered, his voice shaking wildly. His fingers lightly touched the mirror, and the little boy frowned.
?Go away.? The little boy?s ragged voice echoed throughout the room.
?William, my name is still Will-? Russ was saying, his red eyes staring aggresively at the mirror.
?Go away, get away from me!? The boy was crying now.
?No! Stay away!? Russ screamed and his body collapsed to the floor. The little boy?s screams pounded in his ears.
?No! NO! Give it back, give it back!? The boy was screaming, tears running down his ears. But Russ no longer needed to look at the mirror. Of course, it was all in his memories. He made himself stand up, his hands clamped down on his ears, and he turned around, away from the mirror. He turned around and saw a string. It was a small string, more like sewing string. He touched it gently. It was moving. Gently, slowly, the string was moving. Russ fell back, his ears closed, his ears covered. But he remembered that day very well. The dog doll hung from the ceiling, a hangman?s noose tied around its neck, holes torn in its body. Russ screamed.
And he sat up, sitting on the damp floor of the Shadow stage. He was sweating, his hands and legs shaking miserably. He curled himself up, pulling his knees to his chest. His eyes widened profoundly as he noticed streaks of dried blood on his arm, and small spasms of pain throughout his body. He could barely see the faint outlines of distant trees and other obscured things, and after a quick moment he fell back with a thud.

* * * * * *
Maarie sighed. She had just woken up from a nap on the fields, and she felt peaceful for once. She slowly straightened herself out, and stood up. It was nighttime, and the moon was high in the sky. Millions of stars twinkled cheerfully, and the purple sky looked comforting. Monsters barely came out into the fields; it was too open and wide. After seeing that she had nothing else to do, she decided to go look for Russ.
?I hope he?s still at the Shadow stage?? She murmured quietly to herself. She stretched her arms as she walked in a random direction. She stopped after a while and held her hands in front of her. She focused on the Shadow stage and soon black lights surrounded her. Before she left, she felt a jab of pain as something bit her on the leg.
*In Shadow stage*
?Russ?!? Maarie called out, her throat getting a bit scratchy. She had been calling the young man for about thirty minutes now, and she was getting irritated. Behind her followed a group of white balls, giving off enough light so that she could see. She walked through the lands with a quietly, trying to be as discreet as possible. Her eyes were looking about everywhere, and her black pole as held tightly in her hands. Maarie shrieked as she felt a gloved hand grab her violently.
?Maarie, Maarie-?
?Russ!,? Maarie said in relief, but immediately got angry, ?I?ve been looking for you everywhere! What were you doing??
?We?ve got to get out of here. Now. Come on!? Russ tried to pull her with him. Maarie stood her ground.
?What?s with you?? She asked, annoyed by the fact that he paid no attention to her question.
?Come on!? Russ said anxiously and finally managed to get the reluctant girl running. Leaves and twigs crunched loudly as they ran through the underbrush, the white lights following them quickly.
?Why are we running?? Maarie asked angrily.
?Are you some kind of moron? To get out of here!? Russ yelled back from ahead. Maarie stopped abruptly.
?Have you lost your mind? We can just transport ourselves!? The hotheaded girl shouted. Russ stopped, his knees falling to the ground. Maarie stalked up to him.
?Well?? She demanded. No reply came. She bent down and looked at Russ. His arms were supporting the body, his knees pathetically sinking into the moist mud. Tears ran down his cheeks. Maarie had never seen Russ cry before.
?Russ? What?s wrong?? She asked gently, her eyes wide.
?You?re right. You?re right. We can transport. Come on, let?s go.? Russ answered, cleaning up his face with his gloves. Maarie decided to drop her question.
?Where are we going?? she asked.
?Transport station. Let?s go, what are you waiting for?? He answered quickly. He slashed his hands through the air diagonally and a purple shield surrounded him. Maarie quickly did the same (but of course she cups her hands to transport) and they both left.
* * * * * *
As soon as Maarie arrived at the station, she could see Russ running towards the metal circles implanted on the ground. Maarie gave the place a quick look-about and frowned. Normally, there was a fair amount of people there. Even if it was this late at night. The only person she could see was Russ. She grumbled a bit and then ran toward him, running as fast as she could. She was even getting tired. Before she reached him, she stumbled back and screamed. Her right arm instantly went up to shield herself. [big shield comes up and russ falls back. Whenever he touches it, it pains his body. He tries to break through it, but it?s too strong and he is knocked out. The sheild goes away. Maarie comes and she takes care of him.]
* * * * * *
Russ had woken up about an hour ago.
?Are you okay?? the usual question had popped out of Maarie?s mouth as soon as he got up. Russ looked at her, but made no answer. He sat up and bent his knees in front of him. Russ leaned forward and rested his arms on his knees.
?Did you go to sleep?? Russ asked her.
?What? Of course I-? Maarie said before she realized something. She went to sleep. In the Game.
?It doesn?t make sense. You?re never supposed to feel pain or fatigue in the Game. It- It?s not possible!? Russ said angrily, looking at Maarie with hard eyes. Maarie kept silent, not knowing what to say.
?I was feeling tired yesterday. I went to sleep in the fields.? She said softly, trying to break the still atmosphere. Russ scowled.
?I don?t understand. And we can?t even transport ourselves home!? He said.
?Well, maybe they?re having some kind of malfunction or-? Maarie started nervously.
?Are you crazy? It can?t be a malfunction, this place practically runs on its own. I doubt it.? He replied irately.
?What?s your theory, Einstein?? Maarie shot back.
?Our computers! They must be shut off or-?
?Computers? Hah! If our computers were shut off we?d immediately be transported back home. It happened to me once.? Maarie exclaimed.
?Someone may have hacked into the html programming, or the program itself,? Russ said after thinking a moment,?but I highly doubt it. Such a complex program must have an extremely strong security!?
"You're not the only genious in the world, Russ. Someone could have hacked in." Maarie said, annoyed. Russ' eyes narrowed dangerously.
"I don't think so," He said coldly, "Anyways, I-" He stopped himself and looked away.[/size]

[nezzyjean]

Whoa Hoa! Good job Ginny!! Finish it soon...K??? I wanna read more!