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    I awoke in a old shack, not too much to it. This shack consisted of a bed, an old wooden box, and a closet door. This was my house and all it would ever be. I looked at the old box across the room from me. A note was pinned to the cover of the box, it was from Audicia Aerosent, an old friend of mine who hasn't been around for awhile. I got up from bed and slid into my old leather boots and walked over to the box. I flung open the box to reveal my belongings: a pale orange tunic, a satchel, and my family heirloom; a pendant with two overlapping triangles with a green gem in the center. My father had given it to me before he went to war. He told me to protect her with my life no matter the cost.
    I put on my tunic and satchel while throwing the pendent in the satchel. I shut the lid to look at the note. It read: Keep everyone safe, i’ll be fine. Just forget about me. Keep the rest safe from harm. A storm is brewing and this is something I need time to fester on. Your dad once told me that you were special. I see this now. I ripped off the note and shoved it into my pocket. I stepped outside the door and looked up at Sol, a big star that provided warmth for a millenia and years to come, and began walking through Demonbail, the town between Life and Death. I walked off the hill which my shack was perched atop of. The air was a sticky, warm mess, filled with the scent of fungi. Huge toadstools stretched from the ground, permitting only the truest of light from Sol above. I looked at all the tiny villagers below. They were the E’atics, a normal sized, plant-like people, who are roughly 5 feet tall, have a huge love of pumpkin seeds, and are happy, yet poor, people nonetheless. I walked down the sandstone bridge and nodded my head at the few whose names I remembered.
    I told myself at least a thousand times, the way to the city of Shiningdale, but I always forgot the correct path. I sat down on the suspension bridge which was at least forty-five feet elevated. I let my feet hang off the side of the bridge; that was when I heard her voice again.
    “Metal! Metalqui is that you?” I could recognize that voice anywhere, it was Insania. She was one of my childhood friends that I hadn’t seen in at least 4 years. I stood as fast as I could to see if I was correct. She was a couple inches shorter than I and had dark hair that fell to her shoulders. Her skin was snow pale and was wearing red, knee-length shorts and a black, sleeveless tunic. Lastly she had a big, red bow tying a ponytail in her hair. She walked across the beige bridge and hugged me.
    “How have you been lately?” she asked.
    “Well,” I replied, “I haven’t given up my search.”
    “Do you have any idea where he could be?” Insania tilted her head to the side quizzically.
    “No, but I got a lead a couple days ago. An E’atic villager down in Demonbail told me that Audicia had spoken with him. He said that he needed to find the Shiningdale Castle and that he was looking for an old friend.” I answered.
    “You don’t think he’s looking for the 35th do you?”
    “I hope not.” I said with a sense of doubt in my voice.
    “Take me with you. I could always help you in your search.” She reasoned.
    “Of course.”
    We sent out on our journey to Shiningdale. With hopes high and doubts low, we knew we would find our friend. We walked for what seemed to be forever, then we saw it. A huge castle trimmed with gold and lined with purple cloth. Giant ivory towers scraped the sky showing their violet tops as if they were new hats from a store. Insania and I walked toward the massive steel gate, which was guarded by two who were a species of Valkyrie that were both with one wing. This was used as a sort of social classing system. Two-wings, as they were referred to, were the ones who lived in the Aether, a world only seen by those who try to go past the sky. While the One-wings lived in Shiningdale because they couldn’t reach the clouds above.
    “Sorry kids, no outsiders are allowed beyond the gate today. Its the princess’s birth-anniversary. The festival is starting right now act-” A loud noise interrupted him. They opened the gate to see the situation. Insania and I ran through them and through the gate to scope the scene. Only till then was I able to say “I haven’t seen Audicia”.