Monday, November 22, 2004

   Part 1 of Episode 1(more to come later tonight)

"With the rise of anarchy and a baptism of fire, the 'Third Star of Atlantis' will shift it's position... bringing forth 'the beast' to envelop the world in chaos. There are many who are in synch with this star, and only one holds the power to cease the apocalypse. The light must be followed. Cause only then can the diamond be found among the crystals." ~Doomsday prophecy of Atlantis Episode 1 - Bloodlines 3215 BC It was dark. Shadows engulfing the scenery of a great city. Marble and granite structures as far as the eye could see all cloaked in the darkness created by an un-natural storm. Lightning struck in the distance to reveal a grand temple overlooking the rest of the metropolis. The architecture suggested that it was the meeting place for important people. Inside this building, many were gathered. All wearing fancy robes and clothing of the old world. One man stepped up to the center of the meeting hall. “The gods have forsaken us! Someone amongst us has betrayed them and now we all stand guilty for their crime. Atlantis is lost!” Another man stood up, “What do you mean lost? Our city has withstood many assaults, by both man and nature! What do we have to fear? It’s only a storm.” “A storm you say?…” the man at the center inquired. “This is a storm that will spell the end for our ‘invincible’ city. It has been raining for 36 days now, with no sign of letting up. Our walls are the only thing keeping the water out of the city. If we wait any longer to abandon our homes, we will be swallowed by the ocean!” “Areiacles, NO!” A man from a table of people in front of the gathering stated seriously. “If we just perform a sacrifice, all will be fine! We must show the gods that we truly are sorry for whatever it is that we have done to upset them. We cannot and will not abandon the city. What kind of example would it send to our enemies and allies alike if the entire populace of Atlantis were to flee in terror of a rainstorm? Appeasing the gods is our guaranteed way of survival.” Areiacles spoke up in his defense, “You are wrong senator! This storm is different, can’t you see that!” Areiacles pointed towards the clouds outside, “This storm has an evil aura within it. An aura of destruction. We are DOOMED if we stay here. A sacrifice will not help us. It is foretold that Atlantis will fall into the ocean when it’s third star changes position!” “I have already spoken with my advisors on this! The star is still in it’s original position, and has not changed. And for one thing, I am not too sure that the alignment of stars has anything to do with the fate of one city on our planet!” the senator debated. “I call that this meeting be concluded!” “You are sealing your own fate senator!” Areiacles shouted as he looked at the entire audience with contempt. “I can’t believe that you all are so ignorant that you’d be willing to throw away the lives of yourself and your loved ones for the sake of pride and reputation!” “That is ENOUGH!!! Areiacles, you are expelled from this court! Resist any further, and I will have you arrested and you will be used in the sacrifice to the gods instead. Is that clear?” Areiacles snorted in disgust as two armed guards began escorting him out of the meeting hall. As he and his escorts walked through the main entrance, Areiacles heard the senator who ejected him saying, “Round up those who are to be sacrificed, we will prepare the ceremony.” and then a gavel struck. The wind was getting harsh as a young man continued loading up supplies on a small boat docked along the wall that kept the rising water out of the city. The rain was in a constant downpour. A woman was at the side of the boat with another crate of food waiting. “You forgot one silly. And an important one at that I might add!” the girl said as she crossed her arms playfully. “Father sure is pushing us to get out of the city isn’t he?” the man said. “With good reason though. The storm seems to be getting worse. I hear Areiacles was trying to persuade the Senate to evacuate the city as well. However, no one is leaving, so my guess is that he had no more influence than our father on this. The senate is run by fools. Intelligent… but fools!” “Whatever you say Dianthe! All I know is that father wants us out of Atlantis tonight. Leave the rest of the city to it’s fate.” “Nicodemus! I never knew you could be so coldhearted! There are many in the city that deserve to be saved.” “Yes, but the fact is that the Senate wont let them be saved. We’re doing this without their consent you know. If we’re found out, we will be executed.” “I know, but I just can’t leave people behind like that. There are plenty of innocents that will die if we leave them in the city!” “Well, they all think that we’re insane and that the city is invincible. Maybe we should let them think that, cause it will only cause problems if we save someone who doesn’t want to be saved.” Nicodemus said as he grabbed the crate. “A prophecy that was written by the gods themselves foretold the destruction of Atlantis, yet nobody wants to believe it. They are all too ignorant.” “Well spoken Nicodemus.” said an older man with a full beard just graying at the edges. “The people of this city have fallen victim to the lie that their city cannot be defeated, even by the gods. The only problem is… that they believe in those gods to save them.” He said as hail started to fall. Right then, four others appeared. “Father!” Dianthe hollered as she ran to him. “I thought they had arrested you! Who are these people?” Dianthe’s father introduced the others, “This is Basil, Dyna, and Soterios. They are the children of Areiacles. And this…” he said as he pointed to a familiar face, “Is Areiacles himself.” “Good timing!” Nicodemus said happily. “Did they let you go father?” “No!” Areiacles said sternly. “I had Basil and Soterios free Thanos from custody by force. We need to get going. The storm will get worse very shortly.” “How do you know this!?” Dianthe asked demandingly. “Areiacles is a master astrologer!” Thanos stated. “I have believed everything he has prophesied for it has always come true. Finish loading the boat, we have little time!” “What about the people of Atlantis!?” Dianthe asked with a seriously concerned tone. “There shall only be two bloodlines that survive the cataclysm of Atlantia. When the ‘Dark Storm’ arises, the ‘Great City’ shall sink. These bloodlines must survive throughout history to protect the sacred prophecy.” Areiacles said as he handed a large scroll covered in a water-tight container to Thanos. “This way, when the ‘Dark Storm’ arises again, the chosen one can rise from it’s slumber and the third star of Atlantis can return to it’s rightful place!” “It’s just a bunch of gibberish father!” hollered Dianthe. “I believe we need to get out of Atlantis, but…” “HALT! You’re not going anywhere!!!” yelled a man on the top of the wall. He was surrounded by an entourage of armed troops. “We have specific orders to not let anyone out of the city. Doing so will make the gods angrier and jeopardize the success of the sacrifice!” At this, Thanos whispered something to Nicodemus. Nicodemus nodded. Areiacles turned to the captain of the unit. “You can save yourself and the lives of your men if you come with us!” “I’m afraid that my duty comes before my personal feelings Areiacles!” the captain said as he turned to his men. “Archers, prepare to fire!” “What are they planning to do? They can‘t kill us can they?” Dyna asked. Areiacles then turned to his children hastily, “Basil… you’re with me. Soterios, you protect Dyna always! And NEVER, I mean NEVER let that prophecy get into the wrong hands!” Soterios gave his father a brave nod as Dyna’s eyes began to water. Thanos looked at Nicodemus briefly, tossed the scroll to him, and pulled his sword. “Get this ship going! You four must survive, no matter the cost! Do you understand me?” “Father!!!” Dianthe hollered as Soterios stopped her from jumping onto the wall. Nicodemus pried the rope off the ship that held it to the wall, setting the ship adrift. She watched as Basil and Areiacles pulled their swords as well and turned to face the unit sent to kill them. Soterios and Nicodemus both began to row, pulling the boat away from the wall. “Kill them! Don’t let them leave, we cannot risk the gods wrath any further!” yelled the captain as his men pulled their swords and began to charge down the stairs toward the makeshift dock. The boat swayed in the rising waves as the scene of carnage played out before the four in it. A volley of arrows struck the side of the ship and the water, signaling that they had just passed the extent of the archers range. Dianthe and the others looked to the sky as a large bolt of lightning streaked from the sky and contacted the top of the senate building in the center of town. A weird shape in the clouds then formed. A shape they had never seen before. The clouds began to descend into the city as lightning struck all over. As a large wave rocked the ship and sent it careening down the other side of the swell, the four onboard saw the last view of the Atlantis they knew being besieged by a storm of storms and the sight of Thanos screaming something at them as a man behind him cut him down. As the ship rose on another gigantic wave, the view of the city had changed. Thanos, Areiacles, Basil and the men sent to stop them had all disappeared, along with the wall that was protecting the city from the rising ocean. With every rise on the waves, the scenery of Atlantis changed drastically. Dianthe, Nicodemus, Soterios and Dyna all looked on with shock as they slowly pulled away from the destruction. “All we have left to do… is head for the mainland.” Soterios said with a heavy heart as Nicodemus stared at the scroll case in his hand. Current Day A young man in his late teens rode down a dirt hill on a bicycle, letting gravity propel him faster. His medium length black hair streaming in the wind as the countryside of his island flew past him. He loved taking the shortcut to school, cause it was so thrilling to him. The street came up fast as he slowed down just enough to turn onto the sidewalk, around a small business building and continue down the hill cutting off a pedestrian in the process. “Hey buddy! Watch out!” the pedestrian yelled at the boy. The boy snickered at the event as the hill gradually became more level causing him to begin peddling again. He passed a road sign pointing in the direction of his high school, that read “Siantorros High, 1 mile ahead”. He pulled out his water bottle as he maintained a cruising speed and looked around at his town. Wow, this city is starting to grow. I remember when there was only about 500 people living here. Now there is more than 9,000! I can see how they say when the U.S. moves in, the economy attracts everyone. The boy shook his head. All around him was the vision of a small, but extremely busy port city. His island of Velba had just recently asked to become a territory of the U.S., and now that they had been accepted, business in his once small hometown began booming. One good thing about it though, is that all the stuff in the city was brand new. It was no longer boring for the kids who lived here anymore. They had a bowling alley, a movie theatre, numerous fast-food restaurants, a small theme park, and some other things of interest. He felt something tug him backwards and heard a small crash and instantly felt lighter. Oh no… my books!!! He turned his bike around as a car passed him on the road. “Man, talk about luck!” he said as he took off his book bag and noticed the broken strap that kept the pouch shut and bent down to collect his stuff. I haven’t been very lucky lately, which is weird cause I’m usually the one Lady Luck smiles on all the time. He thought to himself. At that moment another car drove by, but this one stopped and honked. “Khahrei!!! What are you doing? You better hurry or you’ll be late for school!” hollered the driver. “Late? What do you mean? I’m always EARLY!” Khahrei responded as he looked up at the car. He recognized the person behind the wheel and sighed. “You know that Sianna! Why do have to start giving me crap this early in the morning huh?” “Because I can, and because it lightens my day!” Sianna said as she laughed for a second. “Why don’t you just toss your bike in the back seat and I’ll give you a ride the rest of the way. How’s that sound?” “You… going to school?” Khahrei asked as he raised his eyebrows in disbelief. “That’s not like you.” Sianna smiled as she said, “Just get in stupid.” “Sure, whatever you say ma’am.” Khahrei exclaimed with a salute as he tossed his book bag to her and picked up his bike. As Khahrei slid his bike in the back, Sianna spoke again. “You know Khahrei, you should really invest some money into a different form of transportation.” Khahrei just stuck his tongue out at her as he climbed into the passenger seat. “You do know where to go …right?” Sianna gave him a serious look of ‘don’t mess with me’ as she began to accelerate. To be concluded... Sesshy pic of the day:

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