Children's Long Story
One of my favorite classes in college was Children's Stories. We had a few assignments were we wrote different types of books for children : short stories, picture books, chapter books. I decided to write a chapter book, since I don't like writing anything too brief. This is the first of three chapters. It had a title, but I didn't like it so it remains title-less for now.

Chapter One
The rooster alarm clock crowed at the same time it did every morning. Elias woke up, checking to see if the clock hopefully hadn't done its job. Maybe it rang too late and he'd missed half of school. There was no way he could go to school then. He reached his hand over, pounding the snooze button at the rooster's feet a few times with his fingers and saw across the belly flashing in red numbers 8:30, as usual. There was a knock on his door and Elias kicked off his covers and rolled out of bed.

"Elias, you awake?" Dad called from behind the door.

"Yes, I'm getting ready now," Elias replied.

"Alright, hurry up. Your mom can't be late for her job if she has to stay and wake you up again. You know that," Dad said.

Elias listened to Dad's footsteps fade down the hallway. He heard muffled voices from the kitchen. Dad was now talking to Mom. He couldn't hear what they were talking about, but he thought he should just continue getting ready or else both of his parents would be mad at him. He only had twenty minutes to finish getting ready now, so Elias quickly hopped into the shower and walked back into his room.

He pulled out a shirt and some jeans out of his dresser. Like many of his other clothes, they had dried paint on them. Elias painted whenever he got free time. He would make pictures of things he saw and read about in books. Usually they would be very realistic looking. Mom and Dad were proud of his artistic ability, especially since he was the best student in his art class. He always got A's. However, they were so very proud of how he did in his other classes.

He ended up daydreaming during history, math, and English. He knew what the teachers were saying, but he ended up doodling in his notebook. Soon he had to buy mechanical pencils, because he found himself getting up too often to sharpen his pencil. One of his teachers had called his parents to complain that it was a disturbance. That night, they all went out and bought some mechanical pencils.

Gym was his weakest subject. He didn't really consider it a subject at all. Most of his other classmates used it as an excuse to goof off. If he thought they could goof off, he didn't see any reason why he had to participate. Elias got away with standing off to the side by himself for about half the marking period, until Mrs. Fillmore caught him one day.

She stared down at him, over her beak-like nose and narrowed her fuzzy eyebrows at him. He wanted to take a step back. She was only about three inches away from him, but he thought it might be rude. Elias held his ground, although he was starting to get a little frightened.

"You're going to get fat if you don't participate with the other kids, Elias," she said to him. She pursed her chapped lips together, her greasy hair clinging to her cheeks as she shook her head back and forth at him.

Elias figured this was an empty threat, since he was one of the smaller kids in his class. He scooted back and joined the other children playing dodge ball. He stood at the edge of the circle and pretended to be interested. He waved his arms a few times as if he wanted some one to pass him the ball, but no one passed him the ball anyway.

In his room, Elias tried to smooth out some of the wrinkles in his clothing, feeling the paint stuck on it under his fingertips. He wished he could just stay home and paint. His whole room was covered in paintings on every side. There were spots of paint on everything. His dresser, his bed posts, his bookshelf, and his desk all became part of Elias' daily hobby.

His parent's voices grew louder as he neared the kitchen. They seemed involved in the discussion and he didn't want to interrupt, so he stood outside the doorway and listened.

"I just want him to participate," Dad said. "Gym class is important. That's why he's so weak. He never works his muscles."

"He just needs some time to adjust to gym class," Mom said. "He's been painting for so long. Maybe we haven't told him to go out enough. We do let him stay inside his room and just paint."

"Well, if we make him go outside, he just brings his art out there too." Dad grunted in disapproval.

"Maybe you should throw the football around with him?" Mom suggested.

"Remember what happened the last time? He tried to throw it and it broke the kitchen window!" Elias heard Dad clap his hands hard once and almost jumped. "Anyway, no one picks on him. I don't see why he can't just get along with the other kids."

"I'm ready!" Elias said in a fake cheery voice and stepped through the doorway.

"Oh good, Elias here," Mom said. She grabbed his lunch and handed it to him. She bent down to kiss him on his forehead. "The bus should be here soon. Have fun in school today, okay?" She smiled at him, and he knew what she meant. To actually do something.

As Elias stood at his bus stop, he felt so confident suddenly. He would go to gym class and play the best game of dodge ball. Maybe he'd even be the team captain. He'd make his parents proud for once and Mrs. Fillmore would be so impressed by his awesome skills. Then again, when he actually got there and stood outside the door of the gym, he couldn't move his feet. He moved only when the kid in line behind Elias nudged him in the side.

Elias stood with the other kids to get picked for teams, but no one picked him. He was the leftover kid, so Mrs. Fillmore stuck him on a team. He heard a few groans and sighs, but he didn't let it get to him. He was still going to do well today. In fact, as the game picked up, his senses felt sharper than ever and he was alert to everything. As if by accident or miracle, the ball was thrown into Elias' hands. He didn't notice that he'd caught it until he felt the sting from the impact.

"Come on!" one of his team mates shouted. "Get her out, man! What the heck! Stop standing around."

"Watch your language, young man!" Mrs. Fillmore called, blowing her whistle from the side.

The kids were starting to get antsy and Elias didn't want to let anyone down. Now that he thought about it, he wasn't even sure of the rules of dodge ball. He looked around him for a second. From what the other kid yelled, he guessed he was supposed to get the girl in the middle of the circle out. Elias and she looked at each other and when she saw he was paying attention, she started running back and forth to have him miss his shot. Elias was going to win this time though. Victory would be his. He wound back his arm, closed his eyes, and threw the ball harder than he thought was possible.

For a split second, he didn't hear any kids talking. Then he heard the girl in the middle crying. The foul mouthed boy shouted, "Dude, what the hell?! You took her head off!"

"WHAT?!" Elias asked. It was the loudest he'd ever spoken. Some of the classmates noticed and looked at him strangely. He looked over to the girl in the middle. Her head was still attached to her neck where it should be. He sighed in relief. Mrs. Fillmore was bent over the girl, trying to console her or at least get to the nurse's office. Elias threw the ball at her harder than he'd meant to.

"Luke and Elias go to the principal's office right now!" Mrs. Fillmore shouted pointing towards the door.

"This sucks!" Luke said, stamping his foot on the ground. He marched towards the door like he was used to it.

Elias stepped forward wanting to apologize to the crying girl, but Mrs. Fillmore shot a warning glance at him. He swore she was breathing fire out of her huge nostrils like a dragon. So when she pointed to the door again, he didn't hesitate. As he left, he thought he heard her shouting something about calling his and Luke's parents. Great, he muttered to himself. I was just trying to do something right.

Elias spent the rest of the day in the principal's office. There he received three detentions and a pretty bad scolding. Luke got five detentions, because it wasn't the first time he cursed a lot during class. Being in the office took forever.

When Elias got out, all the busses were gone. All alone Elias raised his clenched hands to the sky and shouted. What would he do now? He would have to call his parents for a ride, but he didn't want to. Mrs. Fillmore had no doubt, already called his house and he didn't want to hear them yell at him. He felt horrible for hitting that girl in the face.

Elias dragged his feet back into the school and headed towards the library. They always had a nice selection of new paintings that arrived every month. Elias hadn't seem them recently. He headed over that way, before he had to confront the problem at home. When he headed inside the library, squeezing through the two doors, no other students where there. The librarian normally greeted Elias, but she was in the back offices, doing something.

He headed to the paintings and looked over them. Elias had seen them all before. Landscapes and still lifes were uninteresting to him. However, in the corner of the room, he found something he had not seen before in any painting. A dim light on the ceiling shone down on it.

Elias stared at the painting and it seemed to stare back at him. The painting was surrounded by a frame decorated with iron swirls of leaves and vines, their ends blooming into flowers. Inside the frame, was a forest that seemed to hold more than just trees and leaves. Dark, shadowy eyes hide inside bushes and the vines curled so sharply, they seemed to be moving. More interesting was that every paint on the canvas was black, gray, and white. Everything was colorless, except for the eyes of the hooded figure that stood in the forest.

Those eyes were such a bright emerald green that they almost glowed. Elias gazed back feeling as if he were about to get lost inside the forest. But there was too much to think about that had happened today. Elias turned his head away from the painting, feeling slightly dizzy.

Then curiosity got to him. He wanted to know why the artist chose to just use black, gray, and white paint. Elias looked to the lower right and left hand corners for a last name he could look up information on. There was nothing in either corner of the frame. His eyes scanned the painting for a signature. Nothing. Then Elias didn't remember he was looking for the name. He found himself staring into those green eyes again. His whole body felt locked and looking into those eyes was making him sleepy.

Why not take a nap? Elias thought. I'm not that hungry for dinner anyway. No rush to go back home yet.

Before Elias knew it, he was asleep in the floor. He didn't remember gym class, Mrs. Fillmore, or hitting the girl in the face. He didn't think about his parents, how mad they might be, or what he was missing for dinner. Elias didn't know he had fallen asleep. His mind was already drifting away into that colorless forest.

Chapter Two
Flynn, like everyone else in Evenda, could look right up at the sun and without hurting his eyes. From the way the rays of light began to dim, the fox could tell it would be night soon. Flecks of sunlight on the ground that poked through the trees were beginning to disappear. Soon it would be dinner time. He turned his eyes away from the gray sun and trotted through the forest towards the spot where he'd hidden his dinner. Since Evenda had turned into this colorless world, sometimes it was difficult to tell where one tree stopped and the next started.

As Flynn walked, his bushy tail dragged behind him, sweeping across the ground. He covered his tracks, not only so no one else could find his hiding spot, but also to make sure none of the Cylars would find him. The Cylars were the ghosts of lost humans, only their bodies had become deformed. They grew skinny and tall, with faces so sharp, their chins pointed past their shoulders. They had no eyes, no noses, no mouths, no hair - nothing. However, the screams that came from deep within their bodies was enough to make a person go deaf. Anyone could hear their screams from over a thousand miles away.

Their fingernails grew curled and sharp as claws. Their toenails formed into the same claws so they dug up the earth where ever they went. Their bodies were a metallic silver color and perhaps that is why the ruler of Evenda, the Sorceress Olyria, chose them to do her bidding. They were almost the same colors as the world.

The Sorceress Olyria had not always been the way she was. Her mother taught her to be fair and kind to every being on Evenda. Sometime after her mother's death, Olyria became vain. She sought out the four elemental guardians of Evenda. They were sylphs, fairy-like creatures, but they were much smaller, only about eight inches in height. For all of the four thousand years Evenda prospered, the sylphs guarded the elements of earth, sky, fire, and water. Then Olyria stole the elements from them, sealed the sylphs away, and took them for herself. The world became a void of grayness, as she took all the colors of the world. She was the only thing that had color. She made sure of it. Olyria sent the Cylars out after anyone who had managed to keep color. They were never seen or heard from again.

Olyria's powers had also gotten stronger, because of the elements. Anyone who dared to stand against her would not last long. Either the Cylars would get them, or she would. The Cylars' bodies were hot just like fire and their touch burned. Flynn had seen animals in the forest with charred or missing patches of fur.

Once, Flynn had dared to stand against her. He couldn't tolerate the sight of her radiant colors as she walked through the forest with her Cylars searching for people with color. He crouched down behind a tree and when she passed, he sprang out and bit her ankle. It was a futile attempt. She didn't even flinch.

Being a fox, he quickly ran back as stealthily as he could manage. She looked around for the person who'd bitten her and Flynn swore she saw him. However, when the Cylars moved to hunt Flynn down, she stuck out her arm.

"No," Olyria commanded. "We will see that creature again and there will be deeper suffering. There are more important matters at hand."

Flynn covered his tracks now to avoid any more encounters. He lifted his tail slightly off the ground when he came to the tree marked his three small claw marks. He leaned down and dug at the base of the tree with his paws. Four times in two weeks his dinner had been stolen. Here he had stashed a cube of cheese snatched from a dwarf, a few berries, and a tiny mouse. He pushed dirt out of the hole with his nose, and again, his dinner was already gone. Some one had dug it up before him and had been kind enough to cover the empty hole. It was way too late for Flynn to hunt for a new dinner.

He looked around the base of the tree for some crumbs. Maybe some berries had been dropped, but he was hoping for the cheese. It had been so hard to steal and it was good dwarf cheese. The fancy kind only the sorceress was allowed to have. Just when Flynn thought he might be able to eat some, there was nothing left. No crumbs at all around the tree.

Flynn turned to leave to find a safe spot to sleep in. It would probably be a prickly bush again, but something caught his eye first. Someone was curled up sleeping behind the tree. But more importantly, the clothing this person wore was colored blue and green. They had dark brown hair and their skin was not a light pasty gray, but a soft flesh color. Flynn's heart skipped a beat at the sight. He almost fainted when the person started to moan and wake up slowly. Flynn stepped forward and when he realized what was at stake, he knew there would be danger.

Chapter Three
This time when Elias woke up, no rooster alarm clock yelled at him. He wasn't sure if it was morning, noon, or night. He kept his eyes closed, because no one was rushing him to wake up. Elias knew he was sleeping, but not in his own bed. The ground felt damp, kind of grassy, and he was sure there was a stick poking him in the back. He was anxious to see where he was. Maybe some kid who hated him dragged him out into the woods behind school.

Finally he opened his eyes to look around him. The trees around him were thicker and taller than the ones behind school, so he knew he wasn't anywhere close to there. It took him a minute and by looking down at his clothes, he noticed the most drastic change. The world around him, just like the painting in the library, was black, gray, and white. Did he somehow get taken into the painting?

Elias placed a hand on his forehead. He had a headache from the thinking about where he was. This world underneath him felt different. It seemed to lack a certain emotion without having color. Even the leaves of the trees didn't seem to move by the wind. Elias' body wasn't used to these new changes. He felt very out of place.

"Okay, Elias. This is just a dream. What do people do when they want to wake up?" he asked himself. "They pinch themselves."

Elias held his arm out and with two fingers pinched himself hard. He let out a small yelp. It didn't wake him up at all. It hurt and he might develop a small bruise in a little bit. He shook his arm out trying to fling away the pain. Although, he had figured out one thing. That he was not dreaming and this was very real. That painting had sucked him down here and he had no idea how to get out.

"This is so unbelievable," Elias said shaking his head. He raised his arm to pinch himself again. It was worth another shot.

"Hey, hey there," a voice nearby said. "No need to hurt yourself."

Startled, Elias stood up quickly, gray leaves falling away from his clothing. He looked around ahead of him. There was no one in sight, so he turned to the sky for answers. There was no one hiding in the trees. Before Elias could look down, the voice called out to him.

"Down here."

Elias turned his head and behind the other side of the tree was a fox. The fox went up to Elias, sniffed him for the scent of viciousness, and then sat concluding Elias was not a threat. Elias, on the other hand, stood a bit shocked.

"No way... A talking fox?" Elias said more to himself.

"What? Isn't that normal?" the fox questioned, tilting his head at Elias.

"It depends on where we are I guess," Elias said. "I mean, I've read in books about talking animals, but here you are talking to me. I feel very weird."

"Nothing to feel weird about," the fox said. "Well, you should get used to it that is. Most animals and creatures are like that in Evenda."

"Evenda?" Elias asked.

"This land. Where you are," the fox replied with a nod.

Elias let himself drop into a sitting position on the ground. He bent his knees towards his chest and held his head in his hands. So, he thought, this is where the painting has brought me. Evenda. He wasn't supposed to be here in this colorless world. He obviously didn't belong as he stood out like vibrant flag.

"Now, you're not from around here or maybe any part of Evenda," the fox began.

"You said it, fox," Elias interrupted with a sigh.

"The name is Flynn," he said. "Anyway, this is no time to be sitting around though. We must get you some where safer."

"What? Why?" Elias looked around him for any signs of danger. He didn't see anything that could be considered harmful.

"Once there was color in this world, now there is none because of the Sorceress Olyria," Flynn said. "If there is any color anywhere, she can feel it inside her bones. She scans the land of Evenda with a powerful telescope three times a day to look for any spot of color. No matter how big it is, if she finds something she will either and take it for herself or destroy it. You, sad to say, are in grave danger."

Elias opened his mouth as if to say something, maybe even to protest. How could he trust this talking fox? How could he trust anything in this land? The idea of a sorceress who stole all the color seemed to crazy for him. But he had nothing else to go on. He didn't know how else to get back home. The thought of confronting his parents didn't seem so bad now compared to being destroyed by a sorceress. Elias stood up.

"What will you do with me then? Aren't you worried about getting caught with me?" Elias asked.

"Not entirely..." Flynn said so soft Elias barely heard. Elias didn't ask him to repeat it though. "To the blacksmith, Geras, who is not far from here. He can be of some help for a start. You walk ahead of me, and I'll tell you where to turn. That way I can cover our tracks."

Elias walked through the forest which he noticed was just as quiet as it was without color. He barely heard a sound and assumed animals were afraid of Olyria. Maybe she ate them for dinner. Perhaps seeing this Geras would help him understand. Elias looked behind him and watched as Flynn made sure all of their tracks were gone by sweeping his tail.

"You're pretty good with that. You must practice not wanting to be found," Elias said.

"Aye, well," Flynn began, "maybe one day you'll meet Olyria and understand why. But, let's hope you don't. Oh, stop please."

When Elias looked ahead, he was face to face with a small hut made from stone and a hay thatched roof. A small chimney blew out puffs of smoke that blended into the sky. Elias finally heard the first sounds of life. There was a banging of metal from inside. Elias followed Flynn when he walked towards the door. Flynn motioned with his head towards the door.

"It's a lot easier for you to knock," Flynn said.

Elias raised a fist and knocked. There was no sounds of anyone going to answer it, so he knocked harder again. That time metal clanged to the floor and a gruff voice shouted, "Coming, aright! Hold on. Geez."

The man who opened the door was much taller and stronger than Elias' Dad. He had a broad and muscled chest, defined even under the bulky vest he wore. The vest had many pockets which held a number of tools. The blacksmith seemed to not notice the weight. He stood his ground with clenched fists on his hips to look intimidating to anyone who knocked on his door. But when he saw Elias, his eyes softened and he dropped his hands away from his sides.

"Well, I'll be," Geras said. His voice had changed as well. It was still rough, but it seemed confused now.

"I know. Tell me about it," Flynn said. He let himself in and walked past Geras into the hut. Geras motioned for Elias to follow and he did. Geras closed the door snugly behind them.

They entered the only room the hut contained which was a combination of a kitchen, bedroom, and work area. On the wall and clustered in corners were axes, swords, and spears that Geras had forged. Elias examined them all from a distance, but he thought it would be rude of him if he went poking around at them closer. He stayed in the middle of the room and noticed that Geras was circling him as if stalking some prey.

"Been a long time since I saw some color," Geras said. "What's your name boy?"

"Elias," he answered. "I'm not from here."

The blacksmith almost smiled or laughed. "That's right," Geras said. "I guess it's kind of obvious why we've been staring at you so much."

"Very," Elias replied with half a smile.

"I'm not sure though what I can do for him, Flynn," Geras said.

"He can't go walking around dressed like this," Flynn said. "And well, I was wondering if you had any of your son's clothes? After all, they'll still be gray on Elias."

"Of course, I do," Geras said. "I wouldn't get rid of them."

"Your son won't mind me wearing his clothes?" Elias asked.

They were both quiet. Flynn looked down at his paws not wanting to answer. Elias searched Geras' face for an answer, but the blacksmith went to a closet on the far side of the room and pulled out a box. He took out some clothing and a pair of boots and went back to Elias handing them over. Elias took them hesitantly. He bit his lower lip and looked up at Geras.

"Don't worry about it. He won't be needing them anymore," Geras said.

"But, why?" Elias asked. Flynn coughed at him as if Elias shouldn't have asked, but Geras replied.

"The sorceress took him away with a shipment of swords she ordered me to forge. He had blue eyes. I pleaded to have him sent back to me," Geras began. "He came back, but he had no eyes and wasn't alive anymore. I'm only sorry I couldn't have saved him. But, maybe his clothes can help you from being saved. Maybe..."

Elias' stomach felt sick, like a part of it had just dropped to his feet. For a second he couldn't breathe, because he felt doomed. His color would be the end of him surely. But then again, he didn't know anything right now. He didn't know the ending. Perhaps he would get out of here safely.

Flynn and Geras turned to face the wall and allowed Elias to get dressed. When Elias put on the grayish clothing, he felt different. The clothes were a little big on him, but he felt sad. Not because he was wearing the clothes of Geras' son who had passed on, but the lack of color. He would try to adjust, because after all, he had to have some hope if he wanted to get back home.

"I'm done," Elias said, and both Geras and Flynn turned around. He handed his old clothing and shoes towards Geras. "What should we do with my old clothes?"

"I hate to do this, really, ya know?" Geras said. "To see the color go away as quickly as it came, but there is only one thing we can do with these now."

Geras walked over to the fireplace where he had once forged many swords for the sorceress before she took his son away. He opened a chain link door to the fireplace and stopped, letting out a shaky breath. As if giving in, he threw Elias' clothes in. Elias watched the fire consume his clothes. He saw the fire flicker like magic with color for a few seconds as it ate his clothing. Then, as with many other things that had been taken in Evenda, his clothes that he didn't really care much for, were now gone into a pile of gray ash.

To be continued...