Interlude 03-Twins
Everest Twins
"Hey, look at that one!"
In an open, grassy meadow surrounded on all sides by a pine forest, two twins were lying flat on their backs and gazing at the vibrant night sky above.
It was truly a spectacle. Millions of tiny stars dotted their heavens, accompanied by massive patterns and waves of light illuminating the dark sky like a distant aurora.
Having lived in Vancouver for most of their lives, before their parents moved to a rural town a few years ago, the twins knew how rare such a clear night sky was these days. It was one of the perks of living quite rurally.
"Oh! Oh! That one! What about that one then-
Before the latter of the two could finish her sentence, the ground underneath them shook rapidly, jolting both twins up and on their feet.
In the distance, near the edge of the meadow, a massive rupture seemingly erupted from nowhere. Large fissures spread, and the scenery surrounding it seemingly bent. A colour they had never seen before erupted from the gaps of the rupture, forming a glowing crack hovering mid-air.
The twins stood still, unsure of what to do. They stood there for a few minutes, rooted to the ground. Seized by inexplicable fear and confusion, the two of them simply stood silently, watching the strange phenomenon before their eyes as time passed them by. But just as the sister was about to start running away in the other direction, the brother of the two held her hand, and started making his way closer to the Crack.
Torn between following her brother or running through the woods alone without him, the sister relented and followed him with baited breath.
As the twins cautiously approached, one of them went in front of the other. It was the elder of the two (by 4 minutes), a young boy who hadn't even reached the age of 13. Hiding behind him was twin sister, who whispered behind him in a rushed voice:
"Line, we should just go. Tell the adults? Anything! That looks scary! What if it's a monster?"
The boy in question, Lionel, simply replied without looking back.
"Abi, mom and dad are definitely going to nag at us for sneaking out into the woods again. Relax, maybe it's harmless? It doesn't look like an animal anyways."
After a brief pause, he continued on.
"Besides, it kinda looks funny, right? Imagine how far Oliver’s jaw would drop if he sees thi-"
Before Lionel could finish his sentence, a splitting headache assaulted the two of them.
"Aaagh-?!"
"Aeeek?!
The two collapsed onto the ground, clutching their heads in their hands.
A few minutes passed, before the headache finally began subsiding. It was gradually replaced by a pulsing sensation reverberating within their heads.
"This- h…… what?"
Lionel tried picking himself back up. Still on the ground on all fours after falling, he raised his head to check for Abigail behind him. She was laying on the ground sprawled out, torso facing up, and having seemingly passed out. Her chest slowly rose before falling, giving Lionel a brief respite in knowing she was safe and sound.
A respite immediately cut short. A nauseating wave of self-loathing enveloped through his heart. How could this have happened? No, this was his fault. The pain hurt so much. Both him and Abi. It was his fault Abi got hurt. This was his fault. If only he hadn't been so stupid. If only he had been more thoughtful. If only he wasn't so stubborn. Darn. If only he-
-
-
A second tremor running through the ground interrupted his thoughts. Looking up towards the Crack, he saw a massive figure emerge from its impossible colours.
Interlude 03-Twins
Everest Twins
"Hey, look at that one!"
In an open, grassy meadow surrounded on all sides by a pine forest, two twins were lying flat on their backs and gazing at the vibrant night sky above.
It was truly a spectacle. Millions of tiny stars dotted their heavens, accompanied by massive patterns and waves of light illuminating the dark sky like a distant aurora.
Having lived in Vancouver for most of their lives, before their parents moved to a rural town a few years ago, the twins knew how rare such a clear night sky was these days. It was one of the perks of living quite rurally.
"Oh! Oh! That one! What about that one then-
Before the latter of the two could finish her sentence, the ground underneath them shook rapidly, jolting both twins up and on their feet.
In the distance, near the edge of the meadow, a massive rupture seemingly erupted from nowhere. Large fissures spread, and the scenery surrounding it seemingly bent. A colour they had never seen before erupted from the gaps of the rupture, forming a glowing crack hovering mid-air.
The twins stood still, unsure of what to do. They stood there for a few minutes, rooted to the ground. Seized by inexplicable fear and confusion, the two of them simply stood silently, watching the strange phenomenon before their eyes as time passed them by. But just as the sister was about to start running away in the other direction, the brother of the two held her hand, and started making his way closer to the Crack.
Torn between following her brother or running through the woods alone without him, the sister relented and followed him with baited breath.
As the twins cautiously approached, one of them went in front of the other. It was the elder of the two (by 4 minutes), a young boy who hadn't even reached the age of 13. Hiding behind him was twin sister, who whispered behind him in a rushed voice:
"Line, we should just go. Tell the adults? Anything! That looks scary! What if it's a monster?"
The boy in question, Lionel, simply replied without looking back.
"Abi, mom and dad are definitely going to nag at us for sneaking out into the woods again. Relax, maybe it's harmless? It doesn't look like an animal anyways."
After a brief pause, he continued on.
"Besides, it kinda looks funny, right? Imagine how far Oliver’s jaw would drop if he sees thi-"
Before Lionel could finish his sentence, a splitting headache assaulted the two of them.
"Aaagh-?!"
"Aeeek?!
The two collapsed onto the ground, clutching their heads in their hands.
A few minutes passed, before the headache finally began subsiding. It was gradually replaced by a pulsing sensation reverberating within their heads.
"This- h…… what?"
Lionel tried picking himself back up. Still on the ground on all fours after falling, he raised his head to check for Abigail behind him. She was laying on the ground sprawled out, torso facing up, and having seemingly passed out. Her chest slowly rose before falling, giving Lionel a brief respite in knowing she was safe and sound.
A respite immediately cut short. A nauseating wave of self-loathing enveloped through his heart. How could this have happened? No, this was his fault. The pain hurt so much. Both him and Abi. It was his fault Abi got hurt. This was his fault. If only he hadn't been so stupid. If only he had been more thoughtful. If only he wasn't so stubborn. Darn. If only he-
-
-
A second tremor running through the ground interrupted his thoughts. Looking up towards the Crack, he saw a massive figure emerge from its impossible colours.
