Multiverse: by Nick Venomz (best books to read for beginners .txt) 📕

TBC…

The young girl woke up on a sturdy bed with a fluffy rabbit-inspired blanket on top of her; her hair and ears being hidden by a large rabbit-inspired hat. She looked around the freshly painted room, smelling the paint and herself. She flipped the blanket over, revealing her legs hidden under it. However, the blanket at the end of the bed didn’t move, instead, covering an unknown head. 

The girl let out a small shriek before searching for her weapon. The head woke up, flipping the bed and revealing himself. It was the boy that saved her---Tasu. He woke up, yawning before saying, “good morning” to her. She just stared at him, noticing his worn-out clothes. He wore a black tee-shirt with holes galore. His jeans weren’t any better, looking as if he got them from a dumpster. His messy green hair went down to his shoulders, knotted at parts, and fused with dirt at other parts. Besides his clothes, his skin wasn’t doing any better. His tan skin was stained by dirt and grime, making him look darker than he was. 

The boy noticed her stare, tearing her eyes off him by turning away. Instead, he directed her attention to the window in front of him, a glass pane that ran horizontally across the wall and fit two windows in length and width. The window allowed Tasu and the girl to see out and witness a piece of beauty. A small garden, taken care of by the sisters of the orphanage, was the crown jewel to many; Tasu including. The light brown oak trees, standing attentively, were surrounded by luscious green grass. The deep blue sky took the girl’s attention the most, sucking her in. It was open and free, with no clouds in sight. It was beautiful for the girl who always looked down. She never realized that the sky could ever be as blue as it was. She always remembered it as black, devoid of freedom and suffocating. 

“Is that the sky?” She whispered, not meaning to. 

“Beautiful, isn’t it? I’ve always liked the sky.” Tasu told her, not looking in her direction. 

“Yeah,” She remarked at the sky. “Wait, who are you?” She took a step back, glancing over her shoulder for a weapon. 

Tasu turned around and raised his hands, showing that he didn’t have a weapon. “I’m Tasu, an orphan here. I was the one that found you in the alleyway being bullied by some of my fellow orphans.” He noticed that the girl slightly relaxed for a moment before putting up her guard again. “Don’t worry, they’ve been identified and punished by the sisters. I doubt that they will ever go near you again.”

“You saved me? Why? You must know my identity.”

“I saw that you were in trouble, do I need any other reason aside from that?” The girl opened her mouth to speak, but no words were carried out. “By the way, what’s your name?” He asked.

“A-Angelica.” She muttered, barely loud enough for Tasu to hear.

“Angelica? That’s a nice name.” He walked around her, heading to the door. Angelica tensed up, grabbing a pencil behind her and pointing it at him. He motioned for her to lower the pencil, but she shook his head. He shook his head, remarking, “that won’t be needed”. He went up to the door, turning the doorknob. “You’ll be safe from the hunters here.”

“Hunters?” She whispered. “Are you in cahoots with them?”

“Me, an orphan, have connections to the Vampire Hunters? That’s impossible.” He joked. He opened the door and swung it open, revealing a freshly painted hallway in front of him. “I understand your circumstances, but you don’t have to worry about it here. Beastkins and humans live here peacefully. There shouldn’t be more of the racist orphans that you encountered before.” He then beckoned Angelica to follow after him. 

“This is?” She whispered.

Tasu turned around, extending his arms to fit the doorframe. “Welcome to… Greenfire Orphanage!”

TBC…

The witch introduced herself as Kat, the youngest witch living with the Witches of Fallen Society. “My power deals with the mind. I can mess with people’s minds and influence their memories.” She remarked. She showed off her power by applying her fingertips on the slave trader’s foreheads and reciting a spell in an unfamiliar tongue. She was speaking in an ancient witch tongue that all witches spoke in to cast their spells. 

A single light was emitted from her fingertips, surging electricity into the trader. The light descended and entered the trader’s head, disappearing inside of it. A moment later, Kat picked herself up. “It’s done, I made it so that he believes he’s a hunter and not a slave trader.”

Aksel thanked her as Roman handed Kat and the other slaves’ clothes. With new clothes in their arms, Roman cleared his throat remarking, “you are free to live here or leave. It’s your decision.”

“If you do choose to live here, then the only requirement is aiding us in our workload,” Aksel added. As soon as he spoke his words, silence rose into the atmosphere. It was then followed by one hand after another being raised. All of the slaves decided to stay in Hornsville instead of disembarking towards a new destination. 

“Good, then I’ll be sure to work you all to death.” Roman joked. His joke didn’t land, forcing Aksel to explain the joke and calm them down. After that, Roman ushered the slaves to temporary housing and decided their jobs based on their preferences and abilities.

Meanwhile, Liliana and Aksel stood at the town center, basking in the sunlight from overhead for a few seconds before Aksel turned towards his farm. Before he could leave, Liliana’s hand shot out and grabbed his arm.“Do you think the empire will attack us?” She asked.

Aksel patted her head, before telling her “they will, but we’re prepared to fight them.” With that, he headed back towards his field, leaving a blushing Liliana behind to stand awkwardly at the town center.

“Aksel!” shouted a new voice. That voice belonged to Liliana’s mother, Olivia. 

“Is everything okay?” Aksel asked.

“I saw people going into the forest nearby.” She said. The forest wasn’t under the protection of Hornsville’s witch, so the risk of being caught was extremely high there. Only people that could defend themselves were allowed to venture into the forest - being Aksel, Roman, and a couple of others.

“Bandits? Or runaway slaves?” He asked.

“I didn’t see them clearly, but they didn’t look like bandits. They were all females.” She said.

All females? Witches! He thought. “I’ll check it out.” He told her before running to his room in search of his weapon. As there wasn’t any real danger within the barrier, there was a rule that didn’t allow weapons to be used or taken outside their homes. This rule was especially important when the topic of domestic abuse was thrown into the air. The one that struck first would be booted out of the barrier before being sent to court along with their significant other. Fortunately, there hadn’t been many cases in Hornsville.

Aksel sprung into his room, taking out a sword hidden behind his dresser, hidden in a secret compartment, and unsheathed it. The sword shined bright as if it was brand new, being a broadsword with a white middle and blue towards the edges, some black at the teeth of the blade. 

The story of how he got it was that he received it from a hero who resided here until his death, years before. He granted Aksel the weapon in hopes of having him use it to defend the town. Fortunately, there was no need to use it, but in any emergencies, Aksel would brandish it. 

He left his house quickly and headed towards the edge of the barrier. The barrier covered a circular area of twenty miles in diameter. Its circumference was around 63 square miles, something that Hornsville’s witch was proud of. 

Aksel touched the barrier with his hands and chanted the words, “grant me the power to dispel the barrier while granting me the power to establish a new barrier.” The phrase originated from Hornsville’s witch, who also resided here until her death. She said that the chant was to thank the higher power who granted her the powers of a witch, even if others considered it as a burden - she always thought of it as a blessing.

As Aksel was dispelling the barrier, a familiar voice shouted out to him, interrupting his process. “Hey!” The voice shouted.

TBC...

Tasu brought Angelica into the hallway. She glanced down both sides of the hallways, noticing children’s drawings hung on the faded walls. Where it was freshly painted had no drawings while dried patches held countless drawings. It was an interesting hallway for Angelica to walk through. 

As she approached the end, she glanced at children playing on the floor with hand-sewn dolls and crumbling toys. The children looked up, putting all of the attention on Angelica. She panicked, taking a few steps backward but Tasu stopped her, resting his hand on her shoulder. “It’s okay, nothing is going to happen.” He told her. 

She slowly calmed down, nodding at him. The pencil she was armed with was discarded, given to a child to play with. A nearby adult noticed Angelica, rushing to her side. The adult was a nun, wearing a habit---a nun’s outfit---with only her pale face being exposed. She smiled at Angelica, her hazel eyes reflecting the slight sunlight hitting her. 

“Why, you must be the young lady that Tasu saved.” She said with a cheerful and mesmerizing voice.

“This is Sister Marie. She helped get bandages for you while you were unconscious.” Tasu told her.

“U-U-Uh, t-thank