Welcome to Gaia! ::

This is my story. It's a work in progress and I really want to know how people like it. It is best to try and see how people like it before I try to get it published. So read it and tell me what you think, if you don't like it I'm okay with that. You are more than welcome to tell me your opinion and tell me if I made a really big mistake. My friend pointed one out to me after I posted it here and I felt really stupid, because, well it was a really stupid mistake. Please don't go around creteaking every gosh dang word I mispell or something like that. Warning!!! : This story is a little bit girly because I wrote it, and yes, I am a girl. So if you aren't one for romance, please forgive me (guys). Some things in here are my opinions, my beliefs, (this happens much later on in the story, just so you know) But that doesn't mean you have to go all christian on me. This isn't the only book, it will be a series, so if all goes well I will finish this one and go onto the second. Please enjoy!!! (and bare with Usopp's grammatical errors!)


Here you go!

~Usopp



Chapter One: Chaos


In the great age of technology, where computer run metropolises lay in the depths of space, Earth sat forgotten. Her beauty long abandoned for the worlds un traveled, unknown to us for so long. All that we predicted during the time when Earth was uncared for, when we abused her, had finally come true. She had finally begun to fight back. Slowly, yet surely she was destroying our race? So space was the only wise option. We left the poor, the cruel, the evil, and we went into space. Leaving those we thought to be the worst of our race, and taking what we thought to be pure. Nothing that was left upon Earth was unaffected by her rage. All bear the scare of her wrath. Though she did subside, calm? let life try it?s best to become bearable again. Disease, war, disasters? They all began to slow down. The chaos did stay, though.

The chaos did stay...

Elise Stonewald dreamed to live upon that world, even though it was cruel and diseased, it was all she ever wanted. To walk upon land unmade by man, to see sky, not the cold unnatural depths of space. No, she wanted something real, something that did not threaten to murder her day after cold hard day. She wanted to live where man was meant to live, even if it meant that she would risk being robbed or some nonsense like that her mother warned of. It was horrible to be stuck in an artificial city all day, with artificial air and artificial sky. No one was ever meant to live in a place like that, even if it meant you wouldn?t have to live upon unstable Earth. It was just unfair. She watched all those movies on people who lived their wonderful lives on Earth, and then died at a ripe old age. People told legends and they became famous. Yeah, she liked those things. Earth couldn't be bad if it had legends!

Elise was a lovely girl, and if she had ever gotten into the sun she would be even more beautiful. She had long auburn hair, that would tend to hang over her shoulders loosely and get into her face, and bright green eyes that could make just about anybody smile. Her skin was unnaturally pale, like so many people who lived in space, yet in a way it accented her hair and her eyes. But the most beautiful thing about Elise was her smile. Anyone would melt if they saw her warm smile. Everyone said she got that from her mother, but even her mother would melt at her own daughters smile. It could make even the coldest person happy.

She sat by the windowsill of the small cabin they were in, waiting for any sign of her fathers base, and sighing time to time when her hopes went up to high because of a freighter or a pleasure cruse ship. Everything in the room was made of synthetic wood or metal, so it wasn't very pleasing to look at, and it most defiantly was not comfortable. The designers of the passenger ship tried their best to make the room a little less cold by painting it bright colors that would give anyone over the age of eighteen a migraine. But for a temporary room it was okay, and she was too busy looking for the moon to look around the room.

Her mother was sitting at one of the small chairs reading the latest catalogue, looking up at her daughter time to time, worried that she was just a little too excited for her age. She always wanted her daughter to be prim and proper, but how could one be when they grew up with a bunch of boys. There weren?t many girls who were willing to play at the military base. But she too would look up at the window whenever Elise acted like there was something to see. For a stern looking woman she was pretty, though anyone who looked at her could tell she worried too much. That?s why Elise was always set on the fact that her looks came from her father, no matter how many people said she looked like her mom. Besides, there was no way her blonde mother had brown hair up until the age of nineteen.

Finally, after many minutes of glancing at the girl, her mother looked up. ?How long are you going to sit there Elise, wouldn?t you rather read something?? She asked, though the way she spoke made it seem more like a demand.

?Not really, those magazines are out of date,? She replied, pealing her face away from the thick glass.

?It takes the same amount of time every time, dear, so why do you always watch from the window?? Her voice was so much like the many other citizens of Metria, plain and stiff.

?I?m not going to miss seeing the moon just because you think I shouldn?t. It?s always changing you know, asteroids hitting it, the occasional missile? I love the view.? She smiled at her mother as she spoke, hoping it would change her mind about making her sit down.

?Who told you that?? She asked skeptically.

?Dad, who else?? Elise said defensively.

?Hmm, well if that?s all you want to see why don?t you watch the Geographical Channel? I?m sure they have much better images than what you can see from that window.? She suggested, still using the tone of, ?You better get over here.?

?I also like watching Earth get bigger and bigger as we get closer and closer?? She said in an awed voice. ?Anyways what does that matter? Me watching through the window doesn?t hurt you.?

?What is it about Earth that interests you so much?? She asked, noticing her daughter change from the moon to Earth.

?You should know, you lived there. Maybe if you told me what it was like I?d take a little more interest in my studies, maybe.? She replied, adding an emphasis on the last maybe.

?Fine, but I?m telling you Elise, it isn?t something wonderful. It?s not like all those fairy tales your father reads you.? She warned, putting down the catalogue.

?Okay, then tell me,? She goaded, sitting down backwards on one of the table chairs.

?Well?? she began, then cleared her throat, ?Earth was a lovely place at one time. Everything you saw was filled with life and energy. That was when we took care of her, but soon --I?m afraid-- it all got very bad. We became lazy; we abused the only thing God gave us. Eventually she started to fight back, by that time we had already learned the privileges of living in space. So we left, we went into to space and left only those who were unworthy on the world we all were meant to live on.? As she began to tell the story her words became more and more heavy.

?Why didn?t we take them too?? She interrupted, upset by how we abandoned some of our own kind.

?We couldn?t take all the criminals, the worst of our already bad kind. It wouldn?t be safe! Plus, those who couldn?t afford to move into space had to stay; the money couldn?t just appear out of nothing!? She exclaimed, wide eyed at how naﶥ her daughter was.

?So what, the whole world is filled with the descendants of convicted criminals?? She asked, though she really didn?t direct the question to anyone in particular, just her being shocked.

?Not all of it, some of it is filled with wonderful people. Also most people from third world countries were left behind. There are also some cities where people just didn?t want to leave their homes.? She smiled at how much her daughter cared about the forgotten world.

?So some of Earth is a perfect place to live?? She inquired curiously.

?Not unless you are born there, no. Very few will accept anyone into their cities unless they were originally born there.? Her mother corrected calmly.

?So why did you leave?? She asked after a few minutes of awkward silence.

?I fell in love with your father, and he wasn?t from my city, so?? She said lovingly, letting her daughter finish the rest in her mind.

?You two must love each other a whole lot?? Elise said with awe, smiling once again in her warm way, day dreaming slightly on the thought of love.

?Yes, very much so?? She drifted off.

For a while they listened to the rhythmical sounds of machinery behind the ?sound-proof? walls, deep in thought. After a while Elise got up to look out the window once more, still anxious to see her father again. It had been two months since she had last seen the kind man.

After quite a while of silence Elise noticed something was wrong, usually when the ship is moved forward it made a whir like noise, yet all of the sudden there was just the sound of the oxygen and gravity machines. This of course worried her? After living in space for so long you start to worry when something isn?t working right. Elise was most certainly worried.

?Mom?? She asked with a worried tone, turning away from the window to face her.

?It?s probably just stopping because of a transport, dear.? She assured her daughter, though she could tell she was worried.

?Mom, I think something?s wrong.? She stated with the utmost certainty.

?Dear there is nothing wrong, any second now the Captain will broadcast something about how they?ll start in just a?? The over worrisome woman was cut off by a high pitched alarm that activated the emergency lights, casting a red glow on everything in the room.

?Some broadcast,? Elise said, trying to use sarcasm, though it can be hard to be funny with piercing alarms blasting throughout the entire ship.

?Oh God!? Was all her mother could manage to say.

?What is it?? She asked frantically, coming up to her mother in fear. ?What happened??

?God?? She repeated, pointing up at the window.

?What,? She turned around, ?is it??? Elise?s voice drifted off as she looked out the window.

Where the moon base had once been now was nothing but a heap of scorched metal and human remains. The two could do nothing but watch with horror as the ship slowly cruised past the destroyed rubble of what had once been their home. ?He?s dead,? Was the first thing that ran through the two?s mind, leaving them to just stand there in mortified shock. Never had Elise had such a feeling, the feeling of knowing your own father was dead. There was no doubt that was truth, it seemed like nothing had been spared? Elise was terrified.

They would have stood there forever if fate had been willing, and if it weren?t for the crewmember that rushed into their cabin and moved them out, she would have. She was in a fog, the one you go into when you realize someone you loved so much dies, and it seemed as if she was stuck in that fog forever. If it had not been for being shoved into a stampede of terrified passengers she would still be stuck in a fog of pure despair. Though it was not only being shoved into people who shoved you even harder that brought her out, it was the realization that her mother was gone. She looked around frantically, but all she saw was unknown horrified faces.

?Mom!? She yelled over the many voices, who along with her were screaming names of people they had lost. Half the women pushing through looked at her, then, once satisfied, pushed along looking once more for their loved ones.

She yelled again and again, until her voice became hoarse, so she was left to push with the rest of the people and hope that once they got to the emergency escape pods she would find her mother. She had no idea of knowing that she had no chance of finding her mother.

She pushed along for what seemed like forever until she found herself at the emergency escape pods, though when she went to enter one of them she was pulled aside by a young woman with sharp, cruel features. It terrified her at first, but something about the woman struck her as familiar. Though she had no idea what it was.

?Miss Elise,? She didn?t ask, like people usually do when they take you aside, she just said her name as if she was making a mental note of who she was.

?Y-yes?? She asked, still terrified by what had just happened.

?Come this way,? She said sternly as she pulled her through the still heavily pack hallway.

?Where are you taking me?? She asked, now more terrified of the woman, rather what had just happened to her.

?Just come on,? She took her aside to one of the smaller pods and shoved her in. ?Now, be a good little girl,? She shoved the door closed, ?And go to sleep,? She said over the small intercom that hung from the ceiling of the tiny pod.

That was the last thing she remembered clearly. Sure she had a vague memory of the pod launching, and going into the Earth?s atmosphere, but really that was all she remembered. Except one thing, she remembered watching the other pods go off in the direction of Mars? But that was the last thing she saw before the gas that had been injected into her oxygen supply knocked her out.

Which young Elise, if she had known, would have been very grateful for, because once she got into the lower atmosphere the pod rammed into one of the older satellites destroying it and greatly damaging her pod, and breaking both of her legs and fracturing her skull. Yes, for that Elise would have been very grateful.
* * * * *

The land her damaged pod landed upon was very rough and very rugged, some-thing any mountain climber would love to be at. But when you?re crashing into the Earth?s surface at the speeds she was going, you would not want to be there. That is another reason for why she was lucky, she didn?t have to feel her already broken legs be crushed ever more so, or having her own rib stab into her lung. So I guess being drugged into an unnatural sleep was a good thing in her case, if something of that sort could ever be good.

But the thing Elise was most lucky for was the boy who found her. A quite, almost reclusive boy with dark brown hair and even darker eyes. He could be called handsome, but you would have to get past the scars and the battered skin of traveling throughout our devolved world trying to find his place. So in many aspects he was someone who had every reason to be quiet, he had gone through many horrible things, and did not want to tell the tale. His name was Airick; he had no last name, for after losing one?s family at such a young age, one tends to forget. I know that if I had ever been in his position, I would have tried to forget much more than my own last name.

When he came upon her massacred pod he didn?t know what to think, and if it weren?t for Elise?s unnaturally pale skin he would have never seen her. He had to dig through many feet of rubble and out of date ship parts to get her whole body out, and was quite surprised to find that she was still alive. So the first thing he decided to do was get her to the local healer. Which he did very swiftly, and very carefully. Something you don?t usually expect from some one of Earth, for they tend to only think of themselves or family. Two things Elise unquestionably was not.

The healer he brought her to was also surprised, though it was her horrible condition that shocked her. Also to see someone she knew very well to be carrying a girl on his back up a partial mountain for almost a mile just to get her to the healing camp. Yes, that surprised her too.

If Elise had ever been awake during all of this she would have been very grateful, not so much because of being saved, but because someone she had never even spoken to had saved her life. She would have been very grateful to Airick. More than she knew when she woke up. It was something she found out much later.

The first thing she saw when she opened her eyes was gray skies of a cold cloudy day, and even though most people who looked up to see that sky would only think it was ugly, Elise thought it was beautiful. The way the clouds actually moved, swirling and spinning until they found themselves over new land, I think that was what she loved the most. They weren?t sim-clouds she saw all day when she was ?outside?. These were real. They moved as it they had a soul, as if they were going where they wanted to go. This, I think is what truly amazed her? Even though most people who would happen upon such a thing would just shake their head and hope they were inside when it started to rain.

The second she opened her eyes they became wide with surprise. Never had she seen such a thing. Then the trees, that surrounded the camp, came into view, amazing her even more. It was the loveliest thing she had ever seen. The way the green stood out so much against the cool gray, and the birds who flew from tree to tree, and occasionally over head. All of it was just beautiful. So naturally, the first thing that came out of her mouth was a slightly stifled gasp. You know, like the one?s you hear when you go to see something like the Grand Canyon and everyone gasps and says how beautiful it is. That kind of gasp.

When Airick heard that her rushed over, thinking she was in pain or something, but he really didn?t have to rush very far because he was sitting right next to her, reading a book.

?Are you okay?? He asked, setting down the book and leaning over her.

?Who are you?? She asked curiously, ignoring his question.

?Airick, but are you okay?? He too hardly took any notice of her question, ?I can go get Naida, and she can help. Or??

?No, I?m fine.? She cut him off, ?I?ve just, you know, never seen anything like that.? She said, her eyes still slightly wide, as she began to point up towards the sky, though a shot of pain rang down her arm and she had to bring it back down before she could even get it a couple of inches up.

?Yeah. You don?t want to move so much, you?re still healing.? He advised her, leaning back slightly.

?W-what happened?? She asked, still surprised by the huge amount of pain that still lingered in her upper shoulder.

?You don?t know?? Airick asked, puzzled by her lack of knowledge of herself.

?If I knew, I wouldn?t be asking.? She stated with a touch of annoyance.

?I just found you in one of those pods? I brought you here as soon as I could. You almost died?? He said grimly.

?I wha?? She stopped mid word as all the horrible memories flooded back into her mind.

In truth she had always known what happened, but she blocked it out as best she could, memories such as that are never ones you want to keep. You block them, hoping that one you never have to remember such things. Watching the remains of had once been her home, and possibly the remains of your own father, pass by as your ship floats next to them ever so slowly is nothing you?d ever want to remember. So once again she tried to block them out, to forget watching such a horrific thing. The pain that had been in her shoulder melted away as her heart flooded with crushing pain.

She couldn?t let him see her cry, even if she had no idea who he was. No one was ever supposed to see her cry. That was the first rule she ever made when she was growing up: No one would ever see her cry. It just wouldn?t happen. Someone who spends their time playing made up sports with boys and playing tricks on adults doesn?t ever cry. Even if it meant she had to run on a sprained ankle all the way to her house and hide underneath her covers, she wouldn?t let a soul see her cry. Her own mother had never seen her shed so much as a tear. Only one person ever did, but that didn?t count because it was before the rule. And it was the reason the rule came to be.

?Are you sure you?re okay?? He asked, seeing her eyes start become watery.

?I?m fine. Go away.? She demanded, shutting her eyes and shutting him out.

Which he did, reluctantly might I add, leaving her to stop the tears that wanted so very much to flood down her face. It?s hard you know, though I doubt you do, to lose somebody, so Elise wanted nothing to do with this boy. At the time she hadn?t really thought about if he had saved her, even though something like that is self evident. She just wanted to be left alone, to linger in her own thoughts. Even if they were the worst thoughts one would ever want to think. Maybe, if she hadn?t gone through so many horrible things in such a little amount of time, she might have been interested in the strange person, but she had, so she wasn?t. ?Maybe another time,? Was the last thing she thought before she went back into her deep sleep, her body?s way of healing.

When she woke again it was many days later, Naida had come many times to rebind her bandages, though in her slumber she took no notice. In fact many things went on around her, but the wounded girl never stirred. She was stuck in a dream filled with many things she had tried all her life to block out. Some of them just silly childhood memories that embarrassed her, but some of them were also things she had done wrong. Though the things in her dreams really didn?t matter, it was the dreams themselves that gave off an air of awfulness.

So she was very grateful when she awoke that morning, very grateful indeed. Getting out of that hellish nightmare was like having a million pounds taken off your shoulders.

?Oh, you?re awake?? Asked an aged woman who was rewrapping a bandage on her arm.

?Yes?? Elise replied, still half awake.

?You scared me quite a bit, dear.? She said, finishing on her arm.

?What do you mean?? She asked, wanting to rub her eyes, but she knew she couldn?t.

?Well, you were about to die when Airick brought you,? She began with a merry tone that seemed to be the only way she could speak, ?and if it hadn?t been for my amazing skill with medicine you would have.? She finished, bragging in a jokily manner.

?Oh? sorry if I caused you any burden?? She said, looking up at the old woman, who?s eyes had wrinkled in such a way that made it seem as if she had always smiled.

?You caused me no trouble at all, it?s what I do.? She assured her, getting up slowly.

?Where are you going?? Elise asked as she watched the woman walk away from her in a haphazardly way, as if her legs had fallen asleep while she sat there.

?To go get Airick,? She said, waving back at Elise without turning around.

The thought finally crossed her mind as she looked up at the still cloudy sky, the thought of who saved her. It had to have been Airick, he said that he had found her, and the woman, who she figured was Naida, had said that he brought her. Suddenly the feeling of being thoughtful came about her mind, rather than the feeling of pure depression she had felt even in her dreams.

?Hi?? He said awkwardly as he came up the soggy path that Naida had just gone down, ?Naida said it was safe to come back.?

?Safe?? She wondered aloud.

?Never mind,? He tried changing the subject as he sat down next to her, ?Are you feeling any better at all??

?Yes.? She said after a while of being silent.

?That?s good. She said that she gave you something to take away the pain.? He said, trying to sound slightly casual.

?Thank you.? Elise said quietly.

?For what??

?I figured out you were the one who saved me.? She explained.

?Oh? that? Don?t worry about it, Naida was the one who really saved you, you should thank her.? He said, trying not to blush.

?I have your name, but I don?t think you know mine.?

?Nope.? He agreed, shaking his head slowly.

?Elise.? She told him, smiling in her warm way. The way that could make even the meanest people melt. The way that some of her older family members joked and said it was a gift from the gods, there to make all the sad people in the world happy once more. But honestly, she only smiled because she wanted to, not really to make them happy. Though when Airick saw her smile he couldn?t help but do the same, which was something he had not done for a very long time.




everything written here is mine, if you copy it I will rip out your heart and eat it with taco sause. wink So you better just enjoy! (c) Samantha Garrett 1-11-05

wow. Not bad.

Really? Thankyou... I guess I'll post some more then... O.O

Okay, I will.... I'm gonna have to type some more out now... *sigh* typing is such a crule thing.