#the anathemans | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

theanathemans · 1 year

Text

The stars twinkled above the Only City. The sun shone on the other side of the earth, but there was no doubt it would return in a few hours to warm the City. The sun is a constant to humanity, always has been.

Roque had gone to bed at the same time as the sun, exactly eight o'clock pm, a firm believer in Benjamin Franklin virtuousness. Around midnight, his leg had started to ache. As he'd done many times before, he strapped the brace to his twisted limb and hobbled downstairs for painkillers, trying not to put pressure on his throbbing calf. He didn't normally have to limp, the brace made it so both legs were the same length and it didn't hurt most of the time. He'd had the deformation since he was born so naturally, he'd learned to live with it, and not to let it slow him down. People weren't going to wait for him to catch up if he fell behind because life, unfortunately, dictated the survival of the fittest.

As Roque made his way downstairs to the kitchen, he noticed a faint golden glow from the bottom of the stairs. He dismissed it as the streetlight outside the kitchen's picture window. It wasn't the streetlight.

He nearly had a heart attack when he turned the corner to the kitchen and saw a young woman sitting on one of his stools at the kitchen counter. She glowed the color of sunset, having the unsettling appearance of molten lava roiling like a nest of adders beneath clear skin. Like a lava lamp, he thought. Her molten eyes turned on him and their piercing gaze was almost physically painful. Roque made an inhuman sound. They stared at each other for what felt like hours until Roque remembered he possessed the ability to speak.

"A-are you an angel?" Roque asked stupidly. He didn't know why he wasn't running right now. Calling Thea or his dad. Of course she wasn't an angel. What even.

"Not really." The woman replied. Roque almost relaxed a little, because she had a beautifully comforting voice. She sounded like she could be a mother.

"Am I dead?" Roque asked, half to himself.

"Do you smell almonds?"

"What?"

"When I died, I recall distinctly smelling almonds."

"So you're a ghost?" Roque was dreaming. He was dreaming all of this. That was the only explanation.

"Can I help you with something..? Do you want tea?" He babbled. This was probably a hallucination. Why was he offering tea to a figment of his imagination? Roque strove to be a polite host in all situations but this was too far. This was a kitchen ghost, for Saint Peter's sake. She shook her head, declining the offer. He noticed that her hair floated slightly longer in the air than a gravity-obeying object should. Of course her hair didn't obey physics. Why would it.

"I look strange to you." The woman-creature stated.

"Yeah, a little." Roque replied in wonder.

"I came to ask you a question."

"Okay? Go ahead, I guess."

"I would like to tell you my son's story, if you'll listen. I thought it might be helpful to you."

"I would, but I have to go back to bed. I have to work tomorrow." He was not going to waste his night talking to someone who was probably not real. His leg hurt still. And he was so, so tired.

"It will take no time. Please, I don't have many hours left on this plane of existence. And I leave joyfully, so I will be glad to make it short."

She seemed to be sincere. Roque's conscience wanted him to stay as well. The woman may be just a figment of his imagination, but she looked almost desperate to tell her story, and if she was about to die, the least he could do was be with her in her last hour. He didn't see anyone else around to comfort her. And death was terrifying.

"Alright, I'll listen."

She smiled softly. "My name is Astoria. I was once a star. I believe your kind called me Polaris. And your name is Roque Saphelt Harrelle. A true mouthful, but a pretty name in my opinion, and it honors your heritage well."

Roque's jaw seemed to forget that it could close. "How did you know my name? You were the North Star?"

She merely smiled at him, and again he thought how much like a mother she looked. Kind eyes that crinkled at the edges. Short, lovely, but practical hair. Eternal wisdom hidden behind young features.

"Come." The woman, Astoria, did not answer his questions but instead gestured for him to follow her. Roque had no idea why, but he obeyed. He let her lead him out the front door of the duplex he called home into his front yard. Only it wasn't his front yard any more. He gawked at the new surroundings. Ruined, smoking buildings crumbled like dying giants in the distance. The sky was a hazy yellow-red and the air smelled like death. It looked like the Only City, just, well, utterly devastated. What had happened here? He turned to stare at where his home had been moments ago, and saw a building that was still relatively intact. A school. The sight of a learning institution in the midst of the desolate, groaning surroundings was jarring. Astoria walked lightly to the window and peered in to one of the classrooms. She motioned for Roque to join her at the window, and he made his way across the grey-grassed schoolyard, avoiding broken glass.

'There he is." She pointed to a boy, sitting in the back of the classroom, peering out the window. The boy seemed to stare directly at Roque and he stepped back from the window hastily.

"It's okay." Astoria assured him. "They can't see us. We are merely accessing the echoes of the past that still reverberate through the plane of time."

"Oh." Roque was too overwhelmed to say anything else. He returned to the window to get a better look at the boy. He was wearing a red sweater, carefully patched black jeans, and looked cleaner than most of the other thirty or so kids in the room. He looked like he was taken care of.

He had thick black hair and deep blue eyes that seemed to reflect the very universe back at Roque. He looked lonely.

"That's your son?" Roque asked Astoria. She smiled and nodded.

"He doesn't look like you." Roque stated. Obviously. The boy wasn't a glowing yellow kitchen ghost.

"I didn't always look like this." Astoria sighed. "Before I died, I looked very much like him. He had my eyes, and his father's face."

"What's his name?"

Astoria took a deep breath.

"He was Junius Remus, named for the month of his birth. He saved your life."

First | Next

#ta #the anathemans #idk what this is #not very good #but nobody except jess will see this so #hi jess #oc #my ocs #our ocs #that ones for you jessie #cringes #so hard

4 notes · View notes

actaeoncross · 7 years

Text

Eschatos: The Prologue

“The Mayan Calendar came to an end on the winter solstice.

The exact date of its end was December 21, 2012; the same as the aeon of man's greatest accomplishments. It is said that the day began the same as any other with people awakening to slight apprehension before laughing off the apocalypse hysteria. The world they knew ended later that day while people snuggled under warms covers and the weather outside grew frightful. Hail of a size unseen before or since battered into the earth, destroying everything it touched. Forests were torn apart, buildings demolished to rubble and governments quickly gave way to chaos.

It was then that the sun came into alignment with the center of the galaxy for the first time in twenty-six thousand years. Those who remained through the storm to witness the astronomical event were still to witness further destruction. The new alignment of the planets disrupted the gravitational energies setting the solar system's delicate balance awry. The earth was placed upon a new course that led to an ultimate and irreversible change as the star Wormwood collided into Earth with devastating results. Fire swept across the land on impact, a massive amount of land was pulverized and much of the world was quickly polluted. The sun was blocked by massive clouds of ash the fires bellowed into the skies and even after the sun peaked through once more it shone upon a new world. Entire continents had been destroyed leaving only a few surrounded by contaminated oceans.

Most of the world's population was lost by the time the sun shifted to the galaxy's center. Those who survived now faced challenges they could not have imagined previously. One of the most notable changes being the world wasn't as bright as it once was, in both spirit and the sun's rays. Some think this was because of chemicals released into the atmosphere or the results of Wormwood's collision. The dangerous toxins released decimated the people that remained. Regardless of the ordeals, survivors slowly came together and began the work of salvaging what they could from the world they had known. Many of the buildings that once stood proud now offered very little shelter for men and even less were considered safe enough to attempt entry. There was one skeleton reaching towards the sky, its shattered glass coating the ground that the survivors approached and it was here that life began anew.

The building was given the name Adlai and the first inhabitants set the framework for the new world. Slowly the gaping holes of Adlai were covered with planks and fabric while work began to recreate glass and other luxuries. The population slowly began to increase and as structures rose around Adlai scholars began keeping time and recording events once more. As mankind grew confident in the new world leaders stepped forward and religion began to gain power once more. Peace wasn't kept for very long after the original founders of Adlai passed away and neighbors turned upon each other. New generations spilled forth into the world and more wars followed, each had their reasons but many centered around land, power and religion. Decades passed before the Great Wars ceased and lands were established on the remaining continent.

It is now the year 2364 and this is nothing more than lectures teachers speak in class attempting to preserve the culture of a once great land. The church tells a different story however, one of a war between angels and demons which led to the events known as the Cleansing. When the Mayan calendar was said to end the church teaches us that a doorway to Hell was opened and demons flooded Earth to spread the chaos and destruction that is our history. The Earth of before had been evil which is why demons swept across the land so easily and the fires of Wormwood were necessary to cleanse the Earth for a new age to begin. They say the war will continue unless humans change their ways, but we are a flawed species doomed to fall into sin. The rise of the Branded has proven as much and those apart from the church can't even find a valid argument for their existence. The Branded, those marked either from dealings with demons or from Gates of Hell are said to be condemned souls. The strange markings alone might be explained away but the supernatural power each seem to possess cannot be so easily discarded.

Some nations attempt to use the Branded to bolster their strength, encouraging their soldiers to summon forth demons, while others are bent on exterminating the Branded from existence. The Church of Adlai leads the crusade with forces specially trained to identify Branded and dispose of them, without regard for where their mission may lead. The Church of Adlai trains all their clergy in ways to ward off demons but the elite soldiers called the Anathema are Adlai's glory. Anatheman Knights are trained to exterminate demons, casting them back into the hell from whence they came," the young boy finished his narrative breathlessly. He bravely attempted to keep the apprehension from showing as he faced down the two Anatheman Knights standing before him. Benjamin's father had been one of the greatest in their ranks. Until a year ago when he met his death in combat with one of the Branded. Benjamin refused to believe his father met death as simply as that. In just one more year he would be thirteen and able to enter training as a knight to begin the work of avenging his father.

"Not bad, sounds too much like a story though," a knight responded before moving past the child and into the orphanage. Benjamin frowned watching the men leave the front yard of the building where the unfortunate children were playing. He didn't belong here with them. His father had been the greatest Anatheman Knight to have ever lived. His son at least deserved better than some second-rate orphanage in the slums of Adlai.

"Told you they wouldn't take you."

Benjamin turned to glare at his nemesis. A young girl that was all odd angles with the long limbs she had yet to grow into. Black, unruly curls framed a freckled face that was situated with a smug smirk. Maxine, lovingly shortened to simply Max by the younger kids she played mother hen to among the orphans. The boyish name was nothing else compared to her other crimes.

"Filthy scum like you wouldn't understand the first thing about Adlai's Anatheman Knights," Benjamin retorted peering down his nose as best he could. It was a difficult feat to accomplish when the girl was as tall as he was. The words instantly brought a bright red splotch of anger to his opponent's cheeks. The other children hushed and drew closer, long since accustomed to the telltale signs of the two close to a fight. Max's eye twitched slightly and the muscles in her throat were working to keep the girl's temper contained.

"At least I was aware they wouldn't take you."

"I bet the Knights are here for you, they say the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. They already disposed of your sinful father, how long before they-"

Benjamin didn't get a chance to complete his sentence as Max closed in swinging a fist. With no regard for the fact she was a girl Benjamin instantly swung back. Unlike the girl he had been taught the basics from his father in the ways of fighting. Despite the disadvantage of proper training Max had lived far longer unsheltered. As soon as Benjamin managed to pin the girl down he found himself brutally yanked back. Father Christopher maintained a firm grip on Benjamin's arm as the boy regained his footing. Fixing Max and Benjamin with a sharp glare it took one glance up for the children to instantly disperse.

"I will see both of within my office after I see our guests off," his stern voice grated against their young ears. Benjamin only briefly glanced at the Knights before trudging silently alongside Max towards the doors. A year's worth of experience in fights with one another had taught the two punishments were easier managed when they made it to the Father's office without dissolving into another fight on the way there. Benjamin couldn't help but glance over at the disagreeable girl next to him as they walked. She had her head carried high, no doubt believing she was in the right. The thought bristled his nerves all the more and once within the office he made a point to maintain the absolute most distance possible from her. It wasn't too long before Father Christopher swept into the office, the door clicking shut behind him. Before the middle-aged man could sit both children were offering their stories. A hand raised along with an eyebrow as the priest took his seat behind his desk.

"I already know the basics of what happened and both of you will not have dinner this evening. Further punishment will be decided at a later time. Run along both of you," he dismissed them. Max was gone instantly though Benjamin remained. It was unlike Father Christopher to put such a thing off and if it wasn't for the Anatheman Knights' visit he would have run instantly like Max.

"What were the Knights here for? Priests that take over orphanages and schools abandon their position as informants for the Church."

"Priests never abandon their duty, Benjamin," Father Christopher gently chided the child. "They are simply in less of a position to speak with the adult population where Branded are more common. Children notice remarkable things elders fail to."

"You didn't answer my question," Benjamin stubbornly pointed out.

"No, I did not," Father Christopher frowned at the young boy. "You're a bright child Benjamin, why would you fight with another child so often?"

"Maxine's father was-"

"You should never hold the crimes and accomplishments of the parents to their children. Your actions were hardly befitting of you father's legacy. Maxine has been a great help and influence to the younger children since she arrived and knows her psalms better than even you," Father Christopher sharply answered. It wasn't until a tense child in front of him had the first tears attempting escape the priest seemed to soften. "Benjamin, your heart is in the right place but allow yourself some time to grow and experience life. Make decisions of your own before blindly following what others tell you."

Benjamin was gently ushered from the office and stood only momentarily against the closed door. What more could he do to live up to his father's legacy? That statement alone had shut the boy's mind down from hearing all else from the priest. Brooding to himself Benjamin headed to the boy's wing where he flung himself upon his bed. The bells signaling dinner were ringing but there was no need for him to appear there. Benjamin closed his eyes meaning to rest for only a moment. It wasn't until something slammed into his bed and on top of him that Benjamin realized he had fallen asleep. The moonlight from the window showed a young boy with tousled hair and glasses looked at him in a silent appeal. Shoving the other boy off, Benjamin sat up to notice the others had entered and were peacefully sleeping in their beds.

"I know why the Knights were here, want to see?" the kid with glasses called Ellis asked. "I was on cleaning duty and overheard them talking in Father Christopher's office."

Eagerly Benjamin hastily scrambled out of his bed and followed the younger child from their quarters into the hallways. Since his arrival at the orphanage Ellis had clung to his side and Benjamin enjoying the feeling had allowed the boy to follow him. Ellis had dreams of being an Anathema Knight as well. Benjamin knew he wouldn't make it, the child didn't meet any of the qualifications his father had drilled into Benjamin. It wasn't long before the two boys stood in front of a door. The wing had been closed and Father Christopher had given strict instructions against anyone entering. Trusting the Father's word of construction being done to the old building no one questioned him.

A frantic tug at his sleeve had Benjamin glancing down to Ellis. It was clear even in the dim light the younger boy was getting cold feet. Yanking his arm away Benjamin closed his hand around the cool metal of the door handle. It took only a slight turn and push to realize the door was locked. A disgusted sigh escaped Benjamin before he turned on Ellis.

"Did you bring the key?" Benjamin glared at the boy vigorously shaking his head. "You do know that lying is a sin and can make you a Branded?"

"I-is that t-t-true?" Ellis stammered out his face paling even more if such a thing was possible. A nod of Benjamin's head had the boy gulp down his fear. After quite a bit of shaking Ellis managed to retrieve the key from his pocket and hand over to Benjamin. A triumphant smile came across Benjamin's face. All he would need to do was take care of whatever was in the room and he would gain an instant place among the Knights. Benjamin flung the door open greedily stepping inside to observe the room. At first nothing caught his eye but then he saw it, there against the wall.

A dark spot on the wall easily the size of a man. Disappointed at first Benjamin was ready to rant at Ellis for wasting his time when the spot moved. The movement was so slight Benjamin wasn't sure he had seen it. Unthinkingly he stepped forward trying to get a better view and the spot begin to spin slowly. Benjamin continued moving closer as the spot gained a light from the other side of the wall. The light was flashing red hues and the movement of the now liquid spot was thick like the molasses Father ate with breakfast. Whispers slowly filled his ears and though he strained Benjamin couldn't make the words out.

"A hellhole," the astounded whisper escaped his lips into room.

"B-Benjamin, let's g-go. We s-shouldn't b-b-be here," the stuttering became worse as Ellis cautiously approached Benjamin's side. Ellis tugged as hard as he could on the other boy's arm in an attempt to move him towards the door. The effort was ineffective and succeeded only in Ellis being savagely shoved down. As he hit the floor Ellis looked up to see Benjamin turn to him a feral look on the older boy's face. Teeth chattering in fear, Ellis sat for only a moment before scrambling to his feet and fleeing the room.

The whispers became louder though remained unintelligible. He had to know what they were saying. Benjamin could leave the portal to hell after he discovered this. No conscious thought of self preservation crossed his mind as a hand reached forward into the hole. Instantly the taste and acidic smell of copper filled his senses. Everywhere, everything was red Benjamin couldn't see, taste, touch, or smell anything else of his surroundings. He could hear though and the screams were worse than the lack of vision. Stumbling back from the flow of viscous liquid against his legs bringing the feeling of nausea along with it. It wasn't until his feet slipped from under him and Benjamin landed with a splash he saw beyond the red. His eyes widened instantly as his shrill scream joined others.

The banging on his door woke Father Christopher and dreading his nightmares confirmed the man quickly moved from bed. His sudden appearance caught a pale Ellis off guard and he stumbled forward only slightly. The frantic Sister behind him began apologizing instantly saying the boy wouldn't share what he was so upset about. One glance down and Ellis's stuttered incomprehensible speech involving the out of bounds room had Father Christopher practically sprinting down the halls. He skidded to halt alongside Maxine who had tears silently streaming down her face. The young girl stood staring into the scorched and stained room until his hand landed on her shoulder.

"W-why did they take him Father?"

Come support me on Patreon for quicker updates and bonus content if you’d like to read more!!! https://www.patreon.com/actaeoncross

#Original Work #original writing #support me on patreon #My writing #novel work

1 note · View note