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ADAM RAVENOFF
[Orphan Mage] I do not know how I got to this place. There was a bright flash and pain, a lot of pain. Now I am here. It is cold, very cold. I hear the voices in my head, it feels like a hundred people all talking at once. This headache feels like a spike being hammered into my skull. I am lost; I do not know where I am. It is snowing big, wet flakes just like it used to snow when I was a little boy. That was, oh for the life of me, I cannot remember. I am thirsty and hungry. It is dark. Those horseless carriages ride by making noises as they go passed me. They seem odd to me, but then again it must be odd seeing me. I see a body of water over here to the east. I can quench my thirst there. As I walk through these woods I see a great spectacle, a huge metal arch sticking up out of the ground. It must be at least 100 men high! That must be some sort of monument to the gods of these people. Hell, at the time I did not know. I was a babe transformed into this world unlike any other. Thanks to the caring Jasmine LeRoux, she saved me, although I dislike others of her kind. There is a special place in my heart for her. Well, I will get on with the story of my beginning. I had walked down the stairs from the Gateway Arch onto the sidewalk, and out onto the street. I heard a great noise of brakes screeching and a horn blaring; out of instinct I jumped to the side and tumbled down the hill into the freezing cold, muddy Mississippi. I look up to see 2 figures approaching. “Hey are you ok?”, I hear one of them say to me. I also hear what they are thinking. The female is thinking, “What in the hell is a man walking around in the January snow naked?” The male is thinking, “At least we do not have to look for food.” Crouched down in the cold water, I barely notice how cold it is. I am seeing the auras around them but they are unlike any auras I have seen in my life. The man reaches out a hand. “Here buddy let me help you out of there.” Scared and alone I summon my avatar; as his pale hand reaches for me, a burst of static electricity discharges from my hands to his body in a bright, blue flash and a loud crack. The pain is unbearable, like nails being driven into my body from 100 different areas. Then it fades out. The last thing I remember is seeing the man flying through the air and crumpling to the ground. When I awaken, I am in room and it is warm. There is a fire burning in the fireplace and I smell the aroma of spices. The light hurts my eyes and I squint until they make the adjustment. I sense movement and hear voices, actually conversations all about me. “Ms. Jasmine, he has awakened”, I hear someone say. Then the door opens and the lights come on. She is the most beautiful woman I have ever laid eyes on. She is standing there smiling at me a curious smile, as if trying to figure out this person before her. “Do not fear me”, she says. “I am Jasmine; I want to help you...” I sit up, shifting on the big, comfortable canopy bed. “I Am.” “Who am I?” I think, but cannot remember. “I can not remember.” I stammer confused. In the fire I see a face, my face. I close my eyes to try and think of who or what I am. The face in the fire stares blankly back at me. Looking around, I see an old bible on a bookshelf. A name pops into my head. “Adam is my name. I am Adam.” I say smiling at the beautiful Jasmine. She smiles and steps forward, extending her hand. “It is nice to meet you Adam.” I take her hand and shake it. Her skin is very soft and warm. It seems to absorb the warmth from my body. “Your friend, is he okay?” I ask, finally. “I hope I did not hurt him.” I ask, staring into her warm inviting, blue eyes. “Oh yes, he will be fine.” She says still smiling at me as if trying to find out what I am all about. “I think the only thing on him that got hurt was his pride.” “Are you hungry?” “Yes, I am famished.” I reply, running my hand through my thick, black mane of unkempt hair. She then motions with a flip of her head. “Come on young man, let me get you something to eat.” She then takes my hand and helps me out of bed, points to some clothes on the chair, by the wall. “Try those on, I think they should fit you.” She then leads me out into the hall and down the stairs. The house is brightly lit and tastefully decorated with warm rich colors, and mostly wood, mahogany and cherry wood. How I know that, I do not know. Oil paintings and antiques adorn the walls. Through the sitting room we walk on our way to the dining room. The smell of cooking food makes me realize just how hungry I am. My mouth is watering and my stomach is grumbling. She points to the dining room table, which is big enough to seat eight. “Sit down love, dinner will be up in a few minutes.” She walks over to the bar. “Something to drink?” she asks, as she grabs a dusty old bottle. “I am going to have some wine.” “Good, I will have some too.” I say. “I only drink the reds, though, I must warn you” she says around a rather odd smile. She grabs a newer looking bottle and pours a goblet for her, out of the old bottle, and a goblet for me out of the newer bottle. She comes walking over carrying the two goblets, handing me one of them. She takes a sip and points at me with her goblet. “Where are you from, Adam? I know you are not from around here.” I look at the goblet. It is black and very heavy, quite possibly made of carved, polished stone. I raise it to my lips and take a sip. It is a very good tasting, rich flavored wine. One of her servants interrupts us. “Ma’am dinner is ready, have a seat and we will bring out the salad.” “Thank you, Bonnie.” she says and waves a hand at me to take a seat. I sit down on one of the chairs closest to me. Jasmine sits to my immediate right. Her bright eyes wide in a questioning look. “Well my dear, where are you from?” Bonnie brings out a couple of plates of a mixed green salad with an oil dressing. “Yes, you asked me, I remember you asking, but honestly Jasmine, I do not remember.” I close my eyes trying to remember. All I remember is the present, the here and now, so to speak. I grab a handful of salad in my fingers, it feels cool to the touch, and shovel it into my mouth. “Um Adam, use your fork dear.” she says looking at me oddly. I mutter a sorry and grab my fork and dig in. I eat like I have not had any thing to eat for 300 years. The whole meal Jasmine just kind of moves her food around on her plate, watching me eat like a savage and with a measure of curiosity like I was some kind of hard to solve enigma. When the meal was over we retired to the sitting room to talk. She asks me about how I defended myself against her friend, the way the electricity shot from my fingertips and how I did it. I explained to her that I did not know. I was just able to do it. We had polished off a couple of bottles of wine throughout our night long conversation, throughout which she always deflected my questions away and turned the points of interest back onto me. She did tell me that she ran a couple of successful bars and nightclubs in the city. She also offered me a place to stay whenever I needed it. Finally, she said that she had to be going to bed to get her beauty sleep and took my hand leading me back upstairs. “You have had a very busy night my dear, you should get some rest.” I was feeling rather drunk and lightheaded. She led me to a bedroom similar to the one I had slept in before. She then bid me a peaceful rest and told me, that she would be right down the hall, should I need anything. Then she leaned in, taking my face in her hands and kissed me on the lips; turned and left closing the door behind her. I lay down on the big bed and closed my eyes, falling into a deep but fitful sleep, full of nightmares of witches being burned at the stake, being taunted and having garbage thrown at me. The faces float in front of me, leering at me, taunting me. Jasmine is in the crowd weeping, as the flames lick at my body, as I scream in agony. ~More to Come
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