Writing This Phenomenon

[Raiha]

[COLOR=DarkOrchid][font=times][i]In another world, there is an enemy; enemies that will threaten minds, and take away imaginations. These enemies, the Restrictors, take the children with promise for the future into captivity, and force them to work for their foul purposes. Their minds are bent to serve the Restrictors, all free thought and creativity completely repressed. But there are those who have the wills and the minds to take stands and fight against this swelling, seemingly boundless evil. They are what some like to call the Hopeful, others, the Wise, but a select few know that they are simply people with the ideas that can truly change the world. The Resistors, those that will go to any length to save the children taken captive by the Restrictors, are the only ones that will take a stand in this other world.

The brave and reckless, known as the Forerunners, will take all of the risks within the ranks of the Resistors, for they too were once what they now seek to rescue. When the times are right, when the moons glow silver, they will seek out the hated prisons where the children are kept, and sink within, infiltrate with their cunning and stealth. Inside the jails, the walls are painted gray, the toys are broken and few, and the children are held in tiny cells, no larger than a closet. The doors are barred and heavily locked, but that will mean nothing to a Forerunner. Once inside, they will find one child, usually the most far-gone, and chose that one to rescue. Very carefully, they will take out the child and imagine the shimmer of the Pale Road. This road will appear at the window they open, and once they exit, they will be free to run down a road of gold, shot with light, and full of its own promises.

As long as they keep running down the wide curving road, they will make their wearisome way to the Bookshop, a storehouse of ideas and theories and unknown power. It is well lit within, made of marble and light maple and beautiful light. Within are shelves of books, worlds of knowledge, just waiting to be opened and read. And anyone could walk in and take the learning for himself or herself, if they are able to enter the door of their own will. Once they?ve passed through the door and entered the realm known as the Bookshop, the two will find temporary rest. The owner of the store will give them what they need, then let them refresh their minds. In a secret room they will wait for as long as it takes, before one of the Phenomenon takes them under their wing.

A Phenomenon is one of the strongest forces within the Resistors. They have great power, the ability to travel wherever and however they please, to sink down under the land that all mortals walk on, and into their own lairs and perspective sanctuaries. A Phenomenon will take one of the children with them, and possibly the Forerunner that rescued them, if they?re very tired, and walk them out onto the concrete sidewalk. On the sidewalk, the Phenomenon will take the hands of both child and Forerunner, and by sheer force of will, sink down into the concrete, through the wires, until they reach their lair. Inside the chambers that belong solely to the Phenomenon, filled with everything they?ve imagined and cared to dream up. They are usually large, warm, well lit, and very well kept. There is food, wealth, and light, but wealth means very little to the Phenomenon.

The two leaders of the Phenomenon are the vastly powerful Lacy and Sven. Lacy, a warm motherly creature, is well versed in all Plays and Poetry, and very fond of small children. She wields her umbrella as a way to transport people through the concrete and also to fight off the foot soldiers of the Restrictors when they appear. They are known as the Fell, and they prey on all things of light. Sven, on the other hand, is a quite man of dark features, knowledgeable in the realm of both Fantasy and History. He knows everything there is to know about the enemy and fights against them with the power in his mind. If one is lucky enough to be brought to either Lacy or Sven, they can rest easy in the knowledge that they two are marked to be leaders within the Resistors.

Once the children have absorbed the first set of knowledge the Phenomenon will impart to them, the time will come for the Forerunner to take them to the Station. Using the Forerunner?s skill to pass through the Underground itself, they will transport the child safely to the destination. In the Station, there are tests. Tests of daring, wisdom, and understanding that all rescued children and aiding Forerunners must do. Some involve traveling through dark tunnels alone, others fighting off the Restrictors with the power held inside their imaginations.

If the children are of sound mind and intelligence, they will pass and be granted passage to what people refer to as the Underground Café. This is the first time when children use their gained power to travel by themselves. The Forerunners will follow close behind while the Phenomenon watches all. In the cafés, they meet the Waiters. They wear aprons, are excellent cooks, but also wise instructors. Their intelligence comes from years of survival on the other world?s surface and inside the Underground Café and also from so many children, Forerunners, and Phenomenon?s passing through, on their way to gain some small amount of knowledge. Sometimes the Waiters are of another species within or without the human race. More often than not, there are sylphs, sprites, and faeries in humanoid form, willing to serve the Hopeful. The interior of the café is made up of dark marble and wood, but there is light where one cares to look. The counters are low enough for the children to peek over, and the Waiters, clad in their servant attire, will stand at the counters, menus open before them, and smile at the children who are becoming more than just children. They will make excellent coffee and chocolate, succulent cakes, fresh cookies, whatever you wish for, and then, they will give wisdom. As they sit and eat the good food, the Waiters will stand at the counters and speak their knowledge into your mind. While digesting their physical food, they also digest the food for thought. When finished, the Waiters will make a phone call and then open a window into a seemingly dark, endless void. Then, when there is an answer on the line, the window?s view will change and the child will find themselves looking at the Pale Road once more. If they are brave enough, and no longer a young child, the Waiters will smile, bow, and wish them well. Then the non-child will be escorted out the window and onto the Pale Road again.

No longer a child, but a Forerunner in the quest for freedom, they will travel down the road to the Bookshop alone, to receive new orders, and prepare themselves to rescue yet another child enslaved by the enemy. Once the new Forerunner has made their way to the Bookshop, they will be given their weapons. A manual, full of the wisdom they?ve learned, and blank pages to add what they learn. A staff, to fend off the Fell that might appear to harass or re-capture. And a simple charm on a cord, that which can open the path to the Pale Road and bring them back home.
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