Comments in the Discussion thread linked HERE please.
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In the slums of the city of Edge, church bells heralded the birth of a baby girl. Unwanted by her mother, unknown by her father, unimportant to anyone else, the child was placed in a watertight wicker basket, taken to a culvert leading outside of the city limits, and sent down the sewer runoff out into the creek beyond. From there, the basket took the little girl into the primeval forest that bordered Edge. The basket would wend its way along the course of the creek, which soon turned into a river, through the forest until it swirled around an eddy and into a small backwater. There it lodged itself against a bank of reeds and arrested its travel.
The baby squalled occasionally; there was no discomfort in the noise, only a new child testing out its lungs. The creatures of the forest noticed the basket and the sounds coming from its inhabitant, but they ignored the basket, content to go on about their business. All of the creatures, that is, except one: A creature with flaming red fur, with both feline and canine features.
This creature recognized the child in the basket as a defenseless human baby who, if left to the workings of nature, would not survive the night. The animal with flaming red fur took the baby back to its lair and watched over the baby, caring for it, feeding it when necessary, and protecting it from the harshness of the forest. When the baby was restless, and would not sleep, the creature sang to her softly, saying “Quietly, the morning sun approaches, not waiting for our greeting.” In time, the baby grew to a toddler and began showing signs of human intelligence, as the creature always knew she would.
On a warm night two summers after the creature had discovered the child, it returned the child to the city from which she had originally come. The creature escorted her to the northern border of the city of Edge, where an orphanage had been built some years before. The creature brought the child up to the doorstep. The little girl began crying softly, tears filling her bright green eyes, knowing that her protector was to leave her soon. The creature with flaming red fur sang softly, “Quietly, the morning sun approaches, not waiting for our greeting.” She pounded against the door with her paw to draw the attention of the sleeping headmistress, then left.
The girl grew up, and began wearing her long brown hair in a single thick braid down the middle of her back. At the age of 14, she left the orphanage behind and began scratching out a meager living in the slums of Edge. She worked as an errand runner for some of the nearby businesses to make ends meet. Throughout her childhood, she never forgot the image of the flaming red creature that nurtured her for the first two years of her life. Nor did she forget the song the creature sang, and she often repeated it to herself while she fell asleep at night.
“Quietly, the morning sun approaches, not waiting for our greeting.”
In the Industrial section of the city of Edge, church bells heralded the birth of a baby girl. Loved by her mother, doted on by her father, spoiled by all she came into contact with because of her last name, the child was placed in a cradle filled with blankets, pillows, and toys. The cradle remained in her parents’ room until she grew to be a toddler. She then got her own room with her own bed, and she was never asked to share anything else. When she reached school age, she was taught by the finest tutors in the city.
Upon turning 16, she was given a job in her father’s company, the Kisaragi Mining Corporation. She quickly ascended the ranks of the company, in part due to her surname, but also because she was good at what she did, and had a passion for the company. She is now the Head Inspector of the company at age twenty-two. A new mako deposit has been discovered near the Northern Crater. The youngest Kisaragi leads her inspection team down into the drill shaft to inspect the progress and the potential amount of mako that can be extracted. Some holes, however, can be dangerous if they are drilled too deep.
North north north. The planet tugged at him, pulling him northward. Red heaved a sigh, and took off onto the plains. It was a short rest, but he was hopeful that it would carry him the rest of the way northward, however far that ended up being. There was only so much farther north he could go as it was. He could feel the air becoming crisper with virtually every step he took. The winters were harsher at this latitude.
No, Red corrected himself. It’s not just the location. It’s the mako compression. The Planet is losing its ability to warm itself. They didn’t realize how much physical energy their compression procedure sapped from the Planet. And as greedy as they had become, they were compressing more mako than the Planet could keep up with.
So Red ran north, hoping against hoping that he would get there before the Miners set up their derricks. Or, more accurately, before they set up their makeshift security system. The Kisaragis had gotten wise to many of his tricks over the years, and they had become more and more efficient in starting the extracting procedures. It was getting harder and harder for Red to get to them before they got to the mako. And once the procedure was started, it was pointless to stop it. In fact, it was more dangerous to stop it mid-extraction than it was to let it continue. Uncontrolled mako left exposed to the elements could cause all sorts of trouble.
This was how Red spent much of his life: wandering across the continents, doing whatever he could to keep the two-leggeds from destroying their own planet. Preventing the extractions from taking place was one of the bigger undertakings he had. Not all of his projects were so grandiose; nor were they so dangerous, for that matter. But this was what the Planet needed him to do today. So he made his way in what was the general direction of the Northern Crater, hoping he would reach the site before the Kisaragi Corporation’s newest Inspector did.
The Inspector who looked painfully, heart-wrenchingly familiar to Red.
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The Echo and the Flame
Prologue:
The planet groans
Every time it registers another birth
But down among the reeds and rushes
A baby girl was found
Her eyes as clear as centuries
Her silky hair was brown
Every time it registers another birth
But down among the reeds and rushes
A baby girl was found
Her eyes as clear as centuries
Her silky hair was brown
In the slums of the city of Edge, church bells heralded the birth of a baby girl. Unwanted by her mother, unknown by her father, unimportant to anyone else, the child was placed in a watertight wicker basket, taken to a culvert leading outside of the city limits, and sent down the sewer runoff out into the creek beyond. From there, the basket took the little girl into the primeval forest that bordered Edge. The basket would wend its way along the course of the creek, which soon turned into a river, through the forest until it swirled around an eddy and into a small backwater. There it lodged itself against a bank of reeds and arrested its travel.
The baby squalled occasionally; there was no discomfort in the noise, only a new child testing out its lungs. The creatures of the forest noticed the basket and the sounds coming from its inhabitant, but they ignored the basket, content to go on about their business. All of the creatures, that is, except one: A creature with flaming red fur, with both feline and canine features.
This creature recognized the child in the basket as a defenseless human baby who, if left to the workings of nature, would not survive the night. The animal with flaming red fur took the baby back to its lair and watched over the baby, caring for it, feeding it when necessary, and protecting it from the harshness of the forest. When the baby was restless, and would not sleep, the creature sang to her softly, saying “Quietly, the morning sun approaches, not waiting for our greeting.” In time, the baby grew to a toddler and began showing signs of human intelligence, as the creature always knew she would.
On a warm night two summers after the creature had discovered the child, it returned the child to the city from which she had originally come. The creature escorted her to the northern border of the city of Edge, where an orphanage had been built some years before. The creature brought the child up to the doorstep. The little girl began crying softly, tears filling her bright green eyes, knowing that her protector was to leave her soon. The creature with flaming red fur sang softly, “Quietly, the morning sun approaches, not waiting for our greeting.” She pounded against the door with her paw to draw the attention of the sleeping headmistress, then left.
The girl grew up, and began wearing her long brown hair in a single thick braid down the middle of her back. At the age of 14, she left the orphanage behind and began scratching out a meager living in the slums of Edge. She worked as an errand runner for some of the nearby businesses to make ends meet. Throughout her childhood, she never forgot the image of the flaming red creature that nurtured her for the first two years of her life. Nor did she forget the song the creature sang, and she often repeated it to herself while she fell asleep at night.
“Quietly, the morning sun approaches, not waiting for our greeting.”
Never been lonely
Never been lied to
Never had to scuffle in fear
Nothin’ denied to her
Born at the instant
Church bells chime
All the while whispering
Born at the right time
Never been lied to
Never had to scuffle in fear
Nothin’ denied to her
Born at the instant
Church bells chime
All the while whispering
Born at the right time
In the Industrial section of the city of Edge, church bells heralded the birth of a baby girl. Loved by her mother, doted on by her father, spoiled by all she came into contact with because of her last name, the child was placed in a cradle filled with blankets, pillows, and toys. The cradle remained in her parents’ room until she grew to be a toddler. She then got her own room with her own bed, and she was never asked to share anything else. When she reached school age, she was taught by the finest tutors in the city.
Upon turning 16, she was given a job in her father’s company, the Kisaragi Mining Corporation. She quickly ascended the ranks of the company, in part due to her surname, but also because she was good at what she did, and had a passion for the company. She is now the Head Inspector of the company at age twenty-two. A new mako deposit has been discovered near the Northern Crater. The youngest Kisaragi leads her inspection team down into the drill shaft to inspect the progress and the potential amount of mako that can be extracted. Some holes, however, can be dangerous if they are drilled too deep.
Faith
Oh, faith is an island in the setting sun
But proof
Proof is the bottom line for everyone
Oh, faith is an island in the setting sun
But proof
Proof is the bottom line for everyone
North north north. The planet tugged at him, pulling him northward. Red heaved a sigh, and took off onto the plains. It was a short rest, but he was hopeful that it would carry him the rest of the way northward, however far that ended up being. There was only so much farther north he could go as it was. He could feel the air becoming crisper with virtually every step he took. The winters were harsher at this latitude.
No, Red corrected himself. It’s not just the location. It’s the mako compression. The Planet is losing its ability to warm itself. They didn’t realize how much physical energy their compression procedure sapped from the Planet. And as greedy as they had become, they were compressing more mako than the Planet could keep up with.
So Red ran north, hoping against hoping that he would get there before the Miners set up their derricks. Or, more accurately, before they set up their makeshift security system. The Kisaragis had gotten wise to many of his tricks over the years, and they had become more and more efficient in starting the extracting procedures. It was getting harder and harder for Red to get to them before they got to the mako. And once the procedure was started, it was pointless to stop it. In fact, it was more dangerous to stop it mid-extraction than it was to let it continue. Uncontrolled mako left exposed to the elements could cause all sorts of trouble.
This was how Red spent much of his life: wandering across the continents, doing whatever he could to keep the two-leggeds from destroying their own planet. Preventing the extractions from taking place was one of the bigger undertakings he had. Not all of his projects were so grandiose; nor were they so dangerous, for that matter. But this was what the Planet needed him to do today. So he made his way in what was the general direction of the Northern Crater, hoping he would reach the site before the Kisaragi Corporation’s newest Inspector did.
The Inspector who looked painfully, heart-wrenchingly familiar to Red.
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