Dreams and nightmares are both of the same masters but serve different purposes.
Lumark had been fixated on them for what seemed like hours, though time in that dark, eerie hall was hard to gauge. From his hidden vantage point, a small opening on the wall, he watched the Trinity with unwavering attention. Their enigmatic presence both intrigued and frightened him, stirring thoughts of their immortality and the nature of their existence. The First Elder's warnings about such ponderings only adding to the allure.
Alantus was a planet where life thrived for far longer than in other systems. The Norgs, including Lumark himself, could live up to two thousand Earthly years, while the Oreahs' lives were shorter by one thousand six hundred. The mysterious Deblantes, though, remained an enigma. No one dared venture to their lands, not even the Oreah tax officers and scouts.
His Mami, like many, feared the possibility of Lumark succumbing to the "bad blood" curse, seeing his curiosity as a dangerous path. But the First Elder saw something different in Lumark—a potential for greatness and a revival of the Norgs' glory days. Lumark's father believed that if one Norg could dare to ignite the flame of change, the rest would follow, and Alantus could witness a new era.
The tales of the dark ages before the goddess Diniir's arrival were etched into Lumark's memory. The era of self-governance by the Norgs, a time the First Elder fervently wished to see resurrected. Such desires were shared behind closed doors, for voicing them openly to the Oreahs, the ruling class, often led to dire consequences. Yet, hopes and dreams were what defined them as living beings—beings with desires, aspirations, and even nightmares.
In his contemplations, Lumark couldn't help but question the essence of the Trinity. Were they truly alive? They lacked desires, dreams, and emotions, appearing more akin to the soulless creations created by the humans—the monstrous civilization of machines. The thought tugged at his heart, pondering whether he still desired to be like them—existing but devoid of life.
"Death indeed has his toll."
Thorne's sudden voice interrupted Lumark's musings, snapping him back to reality. Thorne, the striking figure with his uncanny resemblance to the First Elder, stood beside Lumark, a smile gracing his features. Lumark turned his attention to the Trinity, wondering if Thorne's presence might disrupt the enigmatic beings' stillness.
He frowned, recalling the thought of him turning out as a bad blood during his bleeding. It unsettled him every time, but now was not the moment to let it consume his thoughts.
"What brings you here, Thorne?" Lumark inquired, the coldness of his tone betraying his aversion to his brother's presence.
"The First Elder requests your presence in the first place," Thorne responded without hesitation.
Lumark sighed inwardly, hoping Thorne would take his message and leave. But it seemed his father had a cunning plan in mind, knowing full well Lumark's feelings about his younger brother's company. His silent stare conveyed the unspoken message: "You are coming with me, whether you like it or not."
Thorne's next words, however, caught Lumark off guard. "They moved."
Startled, Lumark turned sharply to the Trinity, observing their seemingly motionless figures. But Thorne's calm demeanor was a sharp contrast to Lumark's mounting anxiety. Suddenly, all five of them raised their right hands in unison.
A sense of foreboding enveloped Lumark as he felt the temperature in the room drop significantly. The hall that had already been cold turned even colder. Thorne's voice seemed distant and muffled, as if his surroundings were fading away. Lumark's gaze remained fixated on the Trinity, the world around him seemingly dissolving into nothingness.
And then, everything changed. The cold breeze intensified, carrying an eerie chill that seemed to penetrate Lumark's very soul. The hall itself appeared to shift, its dimensions warping like a mirage. Lumark felt as though he were being pulled into an unsettling abyss, a place where reality and illusion intertwined.
His heart raced, and he wanted to scream, to escape this nightmarish trance. But his body felt paralyzed, trapped in the clutches of an otherworldly force. The siren-like sound filled his ears, a cacophony that seemed to mock his vulnerability. He clutched his head, trying to block out the haunting noise, but it only grew louder, reverberating through his mind.
Through the darkness, Lumark could feel the piercing gaze of the Trinity upon him. Their eyes, glowing with an otherworldly blue light, seemed to penetrate his very essence, laying bare his innermost fears and doubts. He was exposed, vulnerable, and utterly powerless before their ancient wisdom.
"You," their collective voice echoed, searing into his consciousness like a branding iron on flesh. "It is you, Lumark. You are our doom....."
The words struck him like a bolt of lightning. Doom? Lumark's mind raced, desperately trying to make sense of the revelation. He had always sought answers, but he had never imagined that his own actions could lead to such a dire fate.
The vision intensified, and amid the chaos of his thoughts, Lumark caught sight of something else—a faceless Norg behind the Trinity. The figure whispered something he couldn't comprehend—the word "unity." But before he could grasp its significance, the image vanished, leaving behind a trail of enigmatic fragments.
The Trinity raised their right hands once more, their collective cry echoing through the hall. Lumark couldn't endure it any longer. He felt himself falling into the abyss of the black waters whilst trying with all his might to scream for help. Panic overwhelmed him as he struggled to stay afloat. "I can't swim!" he cried out, his voice laced with desperation.
Suddenly, a hand reached out, pulling him to safety. Thorne's voice.
* * * *
"What do you mean you can't swim?" Thorne asked, confusion evident in his voice. "Where would you even do that in Norg land?"
Thorne's observation was valid. It seemed absurd to consider swimming when their only water source was the fountain of spirits flowing from Oreah lands. It was a means of control they had over the Norgs.
"It's nothing," Lumark replied.
"What do you mean it's nothing, Lumark?" Thorne protested. "You were out for almost thirty minutes, and you say it's nothing?"
Lumark felt a strange sensation. His blue skin grew cold as ice, and his heart rate slowed. He couldn't understand the cause. Had he just awakened from a shocking experience that lasted for thirty minutes? 'No, it can't be that long' What was happening? Why was he shivering? The Trinity still sat on the concrete floor as if nothing had happened. Did the event truly occur, or was it a product of his imagination? Was he descending into madness, becoming one of the crazy Norgs cast out of the great house because they were believed to herald doom for all?
He attempted to speak several times, but his voice refused to emerge. It seemed he had spoken a few times, yet not even he could hear himself. Thorne's hand touched his shoulder briefly, then withdrew as if he had touched a blue-hot burning steel.
"Something is coming," Lumark whispered, his voice barely audible.
"You are as cold as ice," Thorne said softly, clearly concerned.
"Father... Where is he?" Lumark finally found his voice. Thorne was taken aback; he had never heard Lumark refer to the First Elder as 'father,' and even Lumark himself had never used that term before. He had always addressed him as the First Elder.
"In the first place," Thorne replied.
Mami would surely demand that he undergo the cleansing ritual with the Umparlda if she ever heard of this. She had often stressed that no member of their household should be a bad blood, and they would rather not bleed at all than bring disgrace to the First House. But now, Lumark realized that not even the Umparlda could save him from this impending doom. He wasn't just a bad blood; he was a harbinger of certain destruction for the entire planet.
The Trinity's gaze fell on him once more, and they uttered a single word that echoed through the hall:
"LUMARK."
Thorne, usually brave and resolute, trembled like a frightened child. "They said your name," he stammered.
It was undeniable. The Trinity's pronouncement confirmed it. Lumark's own thoughts had indeed set in motion a chain of events that would bring about certain doom.