Trollface And :-) Having The Same Birthday Is Incredible. It's Beautiful. It's Meaningful. I Am Crying

Trollface and :-) having the same birthday is incredible. It's beautiful. It's meaningful. I am crying

Children of the Barge

Hi. This is a story I have been working on. This is the prologue. I have no idea what I’m doing:

Prologue

Jordan watched with curiosity as a strange alien figure slowly pulled itself up from the dark waters and onto the edge of the massive floating island known as the Barge. Night had fallen, and she was having trouble seeing the creature’s face from her makeshift bed inside the trunk of a hollowed-out tree. She stared in wonderment as the colossal creature pushed itself up off the ground. It could easily have been mistaken for a human, but its size and movement reminded Jordan of a giraffe. Its long, sleek body moved with poise as the dim moonlight reflected off its wet, shiny skin. Whatever this thing was, she had a terrible feeling that her eyes were not meant to see it.

For a moment, she thought her mind was playing tricks on her, or that someone was walking around in a humanoid costume, planning an evil prank on the children that were fast asleep in their dorms on the other side of the Barge. But no, this thing was as real as she was and it was moving in her direction. Jordan contemplated running into the darkness, but there was no way to be sure that the creature wouldn’t give chase if it spotted her. After all, she was just a child, and with its long legs, she knew that the being would prove to be much faster than her. Instead, she huddled under her blanket inside her hollow fortress, praying that it wouldn’t detect her presence.

5 minutes passed.

Then 10 minutes.

Hearing nothing but the faint sound of seagulls in the distance, she slowly pulled the blanket off and peered outside.

The creature was nowhere to be seen.

Jordan slumped back halfway into the tree and breathed a sigh of relief. She wondered what she would say to the other kids about what she had seen, but then her adventures to The East Edge would surely end once everyone knew that she was sneaking around at night; it was strictly forbidden on the Barge to be out past curfew. She didn’t even want to think of the consequences if she were to get caught.

She poked her head out and looked around once more for caution. Emerging from the tree cave with care, she wrapped the blanket around her shoulders. She had heard no footsteps or sounds that told her the creature had moved on, but she couldn’t stay there any longer. It was almost sunrise, and she needed to get back to her dorm before everyone woke and saw that her bed lay empty.

Jordan took a single step forward before freezing at the sound of branches cracking overhead. Her stomach quickly dropped into the pit of her belly, as if she were about to be sick. She remained motionless and quieted her breath as best as she could while a handful of leaves fell from the tree, landing at her bare feet. Slowly, she began to lift her gaze up, fully aware of the strange pair of eyes that were looking down at her in curiosity.

Long, grey legs dangled like twigs from the large branch it comfortably sat on, hands folded in its lap. It smiled wide at her, revealing large human-like teeth. Jordan remained still, but slightly less afraid than when she first spotted the creature coming out of the water. It would have attacked her by now, a mere child, had it wanted to hurt her. Instead, it leisurely sat in the tree, observing her next move with piqued interest.

“What is your name, child?” it called out to her. It was a boy’s voice.

“J-Jordan. Jordan Park,” She croaked, tightening the grip she had on the blanket for false comfort.

“You should not be here, Jordan Park. The humans that run this island would not be too pleased to hear that you have discovered my existence,” he said.

“I know. I’m sorry,” she wiped the sweat off her forehead with her blanket, “but I always come here at night, and I have never seen…you…before.”

She sensed no anger or malice in his voice which made her wonder: would this creature reveal her secrets to her superiors? Would he keep their encounter to himself? Or would he tell on her and have her immediately thrown off the Barge because she violated God knows how many rules? Her head began to spin.

The alien laughed softly and shook his head. He pushed himself off the branch with both hands and dropped his way to the ground, gracefully landing with a soft thud.

“I will not tell anyone your secrets, Jordan Park,” He reassured her. “You see, I do not wish to be in trouble myself. I, too, have snuck out when I was not given permission. This is why you have never seen me prior to tonight.”

Jordan was expressionless. For some strange reason, the notion that this being could read her mind didn’t faze her. The fact that he was twice her size, however, was slightly intimidating.

The creature brought a slender hand up to his chest and hesitantly bowed. “I have been given the name of Noah. I am pleased to meet your acquaintance, young Jordan Park.” Returning to an upright position, he chuckled slightly. ”I apologize if my pleasantries are incorrect. Earth has many different customs. Some shake hands while others tend to bow. I simply just choose to bow. It seems more…dignified, don’t you think?”

For the first time since their encounter began, Jordan managed to crack a smile. She was beginning to think that this alien was oddly charming.

Noah tilted his head to the side like a curious puppy, his silver eyes reading her with interest. “Your smile…it is just like your mother’s smile.” He said as he pointed a long figure towards his mouth.

Jordan’s smile faded just as quickly as it came. Gripping the blanket harder in frustration, she met his gaze with an angry scowl. “I don’t have a mother.”

“Don’t be silly, Jordan Park. All of the humans on Earth have a mother. Dr. Cecilia Park is your mother.” Noah said, realizing that his words seemed to be doing more harm than good. To him, understanding why she would say such a thing was, for lack of a better term, alien.

Jordan kept silent while maintaining her gaze. She kept her mind clear just In case he decided to read her unforgiving thoughts. Noah closed his eyes and sighed, letting out a deep breath of cold air from within his chest. A flurry of images began invading Jordan’s mind without her permission. It took her a moment to realize that these visions were coming from Noah and that these were his personal memories and interactions with her mother from deep within the confines of the Barge. Jordan recognized the giant medical lab that was just below the surface. Typically, the children on the Barge were prohibited from entering this area, but since her mother headed the entire research operation, Jordan had been there once or twice. What they researched there was beyond her, though.

“AHH!”

The visions faded. Snapping back into reality, Jordan saw that the alien was grabbing his head; his sudden outburst had startled her. Opening his eyes, he dropped to his knees and placed both of his hands on Jordan’s shoulders. “You are a special child, Jordan Park. Your mind has just shown me that. There will be things that happen to you in your life that you simply cannot explain. I have a feeling this will not be our last encounter.”

“I don’t understand,” she said, deeply confused about what had just happened. Aside from reading and invading minds, could he also predict the future?

Noah looked towards the horizon. The sun was rising quickly, and he knew that Jordan needed to be back in her dorm before the Barge’s first alarm rang. He turned his head towards her once more. “There is no time for me to explain. The sun is rising. You must close your eyes.”

“But…I…I don’t under…”

Noah placed a giant hand over Jordan’s eyes. “We will meet again, young Jordan Park. Now close your eyes. The first alarm is about to ring, and you need to be elsewhere…as do I.”

Jordan hesitated for a moment but did as she was told. A warm and comforting sensation overcame her body; she felt at peace. When she awoke from her unconscious state, she found herself staring up at the ceiling above her bed. She was dumbfounded and thought the impossible. How had Noah transported her so quickly back into her dorm room? She folded the question away into the back of her memory, saving it for the next time she encountered the alien.

As if on cue, the sound of the first alarm shot across the Barge.

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short story novel story

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perfectserenad3

9 years ago