CHAPTER ONE: NEVER ENDING CARNIVAL
The walls of five large buildings loomed over the crowds. They stood in silence in the the large empty space between them, called the Alleys. The four multicolored lamps hanging from thick cables around the Alleys were shut off. The only light came from the globe lamp hanging over the center, it's light cast dancing shadows on the walls. The light illuminated the three men and one woman holding the people's attention. All held some sort of instrument in their hands.
The woman was no taller than five feet six with long layered black hair that cascaded over her thin shoulders and bowed head. The top layer had a thick streak of red on her right. She wore red plaid cargo pants that were rolled up to just bellow her knees where the ends of black laced boots disappeared. The tips of her boots were covered in polished pieces of steel. Her black t-shirt stuck to her thin frame and was splashed with red paint to resemble splattered blood. From her neck hung a long silver chain with a rose pendant and around her neck were several cords of black thread. Her face was hidden from view, as she held her electric guitar. The strap was over her right shoulder so she could press down on the strings to produce the different notes while her right hand, with a red pick held in her fingers, hovered over the strings near the bridge. The light made the metal she wore gleam, including the spiked wrist guard on her right arm and the two rings on her hand, a small silver band with a cross cut red stone on her left index, and a silver rose that wrapped around her middle finger.
Her flashy wardrobe made her stand out from the other three, who wore simple shirts and baggy jeans with flip flops. The man beside her had long brown hair tied back into a pony tail, in his hand he help a small microphone near his lips. His brown eyes stared out at the crowd with childish glee. Behind her was the drummer, who held a pair of drumsticks in his hands. And behind the vocalist stood the keyboardist. His fingers hovering over the keys, ready to play at any moment.
All of a sudden she broke the silence by running the pick over her guitar strings. Her guitar wailed and the sound blared out of the two speakers that flanked the four of them. She began to play a series of notes as the keyboard and drums followed and timed to her beat. The vocalist began to hum into the microphone. His deep voice rose over the other instruments when he began to sing. The crowed cheered momentarily before falling back into silence so they could listen.
The woman, Mara, snapped her head up as she played, her hair flew away from her face as she smiled and stared with bright gray eyes at the crowd. The glee was plane in her face as she preformed. Music was the biggest part of her life, she was always happiest when preforming. Her heart soared with joy as she played her guitar. She scanned the crowd, looking at all the people watching them with enjoyment and awe. She loved their smiles and shouts. However her happiness was suddenly interrupted as she noticed a certain face in the crowd. Though it was cast in shadow by the darkness she still spotted the form standing within the crowd before her. It was as if all time stood still and the others were suddenly black silhouettes. Only he stood out. She knew it was male and a sense of recollection and fear ran through her, but as much as she tried she could not remember where she had seen him. She could remember nothing of who the person was.
After the wave of déjà vu ran through her the spell broke. The smile did not leave her face as she kept playing. When she tried to get a better look, though, the face blended into the crowds and was lost. Deciding to overlook the moment she poured her heart into the music once more.
Mara was one of the many inhabitants of the Outskirts, the forsaken district of Diamond City. The outskirts were where those who did not wish to live in the city, or could not live in it, went. After being abandoned by the Diamond Government those who lived in the outskirts formed their own rules to live by and became a small town. The Alleys was the place where performers and people came to pass the time. It was the place of relaxation for many, where they could momentarily forget their problems and worries and enjoy themselves.
Earlier in the evening, about an hour after arriving in the Alleys, she had been asked by the vocalist to play with them for the night. At first she had refused but after an hour of constant invitations she finally gave in and joined them. The four of them had then moved their equipment to the center of the place. She did not regret joining them. Mara had forgotten how good it felt to play music with others, like she had a long time ago.
Mara played with the band the entire night.
The end of the night soon came. Before she knew it there was only an hour left before dawn. They were all exhausted by then. The crowds cheered and clapped when the performance came to an end. Rubbing the sweat from her brow with her hand she thanked the people who came up to her for their compliments.
“You were awesome.” The vocalist said to her, also wiping sweat from his face.
She thanked him and knelt down next to her guitar case and pulled out a small hand towel she kept there. She rubbed it over her face and neck to remove the perspiration. She was always hot after a performance, and being in a crowd of people with so much body heat didn't help. Still she was content, the rage inside of her was now sated. She had even forgotten what had made her angry in the first place.
Mara turned to face the three musicians. “I have to go now. It was a lot of fun playing with you guys.” She held out her right hand to the vocalist first.
“It was fun, you sure you don't want to join us?” he asked as he shook her hand.
She shook her head. “Sorry but I cant. Thank you for inviting me though.” She turned to shake the other two's hands.
"No problem, if your ever in the neighborhood feel free to join us again."
She smiled at them and nodded. “I will.”
After saying goodbye to her new friends and a few admirers she decided it was time to leave. Mara picked up her speaker in her left hand and slung the strap on her guitar case over her right shoulder. She made her way to the western exit and turned back to gaze at the scenery one more time before leaving. The lamps on the four walls had been turned on again. Once more the entire place was lit up with colorful lights. Smaller lamps with images painted onto them cast large colorful shapes on the walls, there were stars and leaves and she even saw a witch flying on her broomstick. Laughing to herself she held onto the warmth she felt in her heart. She watched the jugglers to the sides toss up knives and flaming batons. She was amazed every time she saw them catch the items with they teeth. She watched her new friends laugh and clap each other on the back as they packed up their things. Couples danced all around them as other musicians began to play near the spot she and the three had played. Memories like these were the kind she held dearest. Even now she considered the Alleys a never ending carnival. Engraving the scene in her mind she turned her back to everyone and went into the small narrow alley that was the exit.
Outside was a completely different world. Looking up at the sky she saw only darkness.
Tonight must be the new moon.
The flames inside the small cases atop each street lamp blinked and sputtered as she passed by. The buildings lining the dirt road were old and crumpling, a few were nothing but rubble while other were covered in ivy that even penetrated a few shattered windows. She could see light from a few windows. Even though the area was poor, she rarely saw a miserable face. There were always smiling faces during the day. At night there was rarely anyone in the streets, most were inside or at the Alleys. Unlike those in the city, the people here could live their lives however they wanted, freely and without constant orders from the government. Like them she had traded her safety for her freedom. The Outskirts were dangerous, but Mara did not care. She had learned how to protect herself. In fact there was hardly a person who did not know how to fight within the small town.
She made her way down the lonely streets, heading towards the apartment building she lived in. She felt calm in the afterglow of the past event. However she did not let her guard down as she made her way home. She kept her senses sharp to avoid any unwanted surprises.
When Mara was near her home she began to hear another pair of footsteps. To make sure it wasn't her imaginations she stopped walking. Seconds later the steps stopped. After waiting a few seconds she began to walk, and sure enough she heard the footsteps far behind her again. She kept herself calm and actually felt bad for the person who had decided to disturb her good mood. While she walked she maneuvered her right hand into her pocket to pull out her switch blade. She did this while she was in the shadows before reaching the next street lamp. She flicked it open and slipped her fingers beneath the steel guard over the handle that served her as like brass knuckles when she fought. She made sure the light from the lamps illuminated the blade. Mara hoped her stalker would think otherwise about bothering her once he or she knew she was armed. However there was no such luck, the footsteps continued at an even pace a ways behind her.
This person's either stupid or very sure of themselves.
That's all for now folks, stay tune for next time.
(Note this is protected by a creative commons attribution license, cant be distributed or changed or plagiarized without my permission since it is original. Same goes for other chapters.)
1 comment:
Its awesome.. continue, continue, continue...lol its getting me curious.. :D I want to know who it is? lol
Aya
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