Chapter 1 (The Levoriani Family)
Across the stars and the cold emptiness of space was a system which appeared like any other. It's planets habitable, it's oceans filled with life, and it's people strange. The Shadow Walkers were a mixture of people from eight entirely different planets, each conquered by the last Valyan, Napoleon. As Valyan, he ruled over the planet of Alvaros for a century, until he dared to do what no other Valyan had done before him. He dared to imagine a larger empire which encompassed the other planets in their system. Napoleon's army swept through each planet, destroying the ruling governments and killing everyone who dared to oppose him. Years of gruesome wars had left the system in chaos, with many planets despising Alvaros and their people. As the years passed, Napoleon was executed, his reign, the last the system would ever have. His cruelty was attributed to the endless music which the people of Alvaros heard inside their mind, a gift from the Gods, some called it, although, many thought it to be simply madness.
As the twin suns rose over the planet of Alvaros, the people of its world readied for another day. Named after the planet, Alvaros city was the capital of the largest of their three continents. The grand city stretched for miles on end and was surrounded by an endless forest, which divided their land.
Near the outskirts of the grand city was a large mansion, which belonged to what was once one of the richest families in the entire system. Although they still maintained that imagine, years of trouble with the family company and poor investments had dwindled away a fortune built over five decades. Years of neglect had washed away the expensive paint of the majestic home and the bright red lights which decorated the mansion’s roof and hillside had all broken, except for a single light, which flickered during the cold and bitter night. Most of the land which had once stretched for miles had been sold to pay of a fraction of the family's debt, leaving only the topmost part of the hill and the mansion itself, the last remnants of the Levoranis wealth and power.
Inside the mansion, a thin, short child twisted and turned in his bed. He gripped his chest tightly, as he had done the days before. Sweat trickled down his cream colored face and stained the matress underneath. He continued to mumble words under his breath. His teeth grinding against one another. The faint music in his head grew louder until finally he sat up, barely able to utter a single word. Simon gasped for air and wiped the sweat off his face, using his shirt’s sleeve.
“Not again..." he whispered. Before he had a chance to move he noticed his soiled pants. “Dad's gonna be angry," said the blue haired boy. He had threatened to cover his bed in plastic should he ever find urine stains on the expensive sheets. He thought of his dreams, but all he could remember were blurry, unrecognizable faces. Names etched in stone had eroded away and pain filled screams had turned to whispers in an endless darkness. The only thing he wanted and yearned for was to see his father. The blue-haired boy tossed his soiled blankets under his wooden bed; the stench of urine would subside for a few days until he managed to throw the ruined blankets away. He reached into his closet door and pulled it open, revealing over a dozen dry blankets waiting to be used.
Simon wondered if he should shower to remove the smell, but the noise inside his head forced him to put the old shirt over his body, as well as the torn pants he hadn’t used in over a year. Simon could hear the screams of a woman and a man coming from down the hall. They argued over food and rent, but before their bickering could get any further, the sound of bells rang inside his head and replaced their voices and soon the beating of drums followed. When the last drumbeat was silenced, Simon turned and realized that he had had spent an hour listening to the music. The shy boy shook his head and pressed his head against the wooden door, he listened for his bickering parents but instead heard the familiar tune coming from the living room television.
Mother’s show is on, he thought. Simon pulled back his wavy blue hair and reached for the door’s metal knob and walked outside. The halls were painted a clean white, his mother’s favorite shade, however throughout the previous year, the walls had been used as Simon's canvases. He often drew what he saw on his walks and though he tried to make his drawings look realistic, they were anything but that. The bodies of the people he drew appeared mangled, their hands were attached to their torsos and their legs bent inwards as they reached the single-toed, block shaped feet. Many of his other drawings were even worse, often making anyone who saw them feel uncomfortable.
In the living room of the Levoriani home, Milly Levoriani read her favorite magazine while she watched her television program. She read through the pages, desperate for rumors about her favorite shows. It had recently become a daily routine for her. Milly was a slender, middle-aged woman, with a bony, long face, and thick brown hair covering part of her features. Unlike other women her age, she would never keep up with trends. Like her husband, she had forgotten what it felt like to even try to look decent for someone else. Her teeth had begun to darken and her thin lips would now give an awkward smile.
The cover of the magazine had a picture of a young, blond woman. A taller man with wavy brown hair stood next to her, his arm wrapped around her. “Sally and Diego to premiere in a week,” was written in bold white letters. She turned the page and the first words that caught her attention were: 'Apply today for a free trip to Earth!'
Milly tossed the magazine to the floor and glanced at the family portrait only a few feet away. Kel, her husband was on the right, Milly on the left side and Simon in the middle "When did it go wrong?" she asked.
Behind her, Simon wandered the halls, looking for his father. By now, he had searched every room on the second floor and found nothing. Simon closed his eyes and listened until he heard the faint sound of a saw tearing through metal.
“Found you!" he whispered, and quickly raced after the sound. His long, wavy, blue hair danced as he ran through the large, white halls. The whirring of the old, metal saw became louder as he reached the room at the end of the hall. Of course! He must be in his study room!
“Papa, I’ve been looking everywhere for you!” The child yelled out, nearly breaking through the white, wooden door. Kel Levoriani sat on his chair, his eyes never once looking away from the small machine on his desk. “I just had the most horrid nightmare…” Simon tried to get his father’s attention, but the man ignored the boy. His eyes stared at the machine, never once taking the time to even acknowledge the child's presence. There was a huge grin plastered on the child’s face. In his excitement he had overlooked the messy room and the putrid smell that filled the air. It wasn't until his father raised his arm that he gave his attention to wounds scattered through his father's skin.
Simon was shocked to see the condition the older man was in. A large deep cut ran down his nose to his chin. Two large scabs were beginning to form beneath the older man's brown eyes. The leather vest he had recently bought was nothing but rags, held together by a few stitches. There was leather in every corner of the room, as well as traces of dried and fresh blood. His father’s face was unshaven. There were over a dozen scars across the older man's arm; the fresh blood was enough to scare the child.
However, what caught the boy's attention was the horrendous smell emanating from his father. Around the man there were more than a dozen of half-finished alcohol bottles. He’s drunk again, Simon thought.
Simon gave his attention to the odd machine and tried his best to ignore the man's bitter aroma. A thin red layer of paint had been added to the oddly shaped machine. The paint which had been applied was cheap, which only made the machine look older than it actually was. Steam emanated from a hole near the top only peaked his interest even more. He reached out to touch the machine's bent edges but decided not to at the last moment.
“S-Simon.” he whispered, the man looked down at his son and forced a smile. “What a-are?” The man stuttered, yet did his best to remain calm.
The stench coming from his father's mouth made Simon's stomach twist in disgust. It had been days since he had talked to anyone and weeks since he had last showered.
“D-Do you know what-t this is?” The blue haired boy shook his head, simply examining the machine’s sharp metallic edges. Various thick cords hung from around its irregular corners. A few of the cords had needles attached to their ends, and near the top where the steam came from were a few red painted buttons and a small lever. What an odd design. Although the man's stench grew worse, the child ignored it.
“What is it Papa?” he asked. The boy eagerly reached over to touch the glowing red metal as if to caress it. The blistering metal in return made the child shriek in pain. Kel glanced at Simon once again, wondering what to say to such a sight.
“What does the machine do?” the child dared to ask again. “What is the machine for?” he asked a third time. This time the man turned to him. He realized the child would continue to ask until he received an answer.
“Y-you know we are all in danger of dying, Simon-" the man paused, wondering what he could actually tell the young boy. The child could barely grasp the concept of his own mortality, spending his days drawing on the white walls instead of reading. “We-”
“You’ve said that before,” Simon whispered.
“Don’t interrupt me, Simon!” his father yelled. The young boy quivered in fear and his large smile died away.
“I’m sorry,” Simon whimpered.
“O-our i-immune systems are fragile, m-meaning we are at the mercy of our own world.” His fingers curled one of the nearby wires. “We get sick too easily,” the blue haired boy nodded, understanding that at least. Simon recalled the last time he had gotten sick, his mother wouldn’t go near him and he was locked inside his room for days, he heard his mother screaming, begging the Gods not to take him. Although he struggled, he once again tried to explain his invention to the boy. “M-most of o-our planet want a cure, and it i-is my job to ensure that. I alone can fix the damage to our name, and make everything great again.”
“Is that why you’ve been working on the machine?” Simon asked.
“Yes,” his father answered. “The chemicals will be placed on the hole atop of the machine, and the serum will allow the patient’s bodies to resist the radiation which will make us easier to make better. It should fix their immune system.” As long as he spoke, the child simply nodded, not able to grasp the concept of the machine. How I wish you were as smart as Ariel, his father wanted to say. Ariel was the son of his company’s competitor, the other leader in the project to save the system. “I've been given the important task by the other scientists to fix the prototype, the machine which will brighten the future of our system!”
“So that’ll make them well?” Simon asked. Kel sighed in frustration.
“It should,” Kel whispered. He glanced at the machine and in his drunken state felt nothing but pride when looking at his creation.
“Is the machine done?” Simon asked.
“Yes,” Kel said. “All I need to do is test the machine and hope that the serum interacts with the patient’s cells.” Simon tilted his head, unaware of what his father was talking about. Like most people that had ever encountered the blue haired boy, Kel turned away, ignored the child and continued with his work. When he had finished, he began to wrap the wires around the machine, and walked out of his room. “Maybe now it will work.” Simon walked behind his father, waiting for him to say goodbye.
Once inside the living room, Kel grabbed a hold of his coat and tried his best to avoid any other distractions. As he was about to make his way to the front door, Milly quickly stood up, and rushed to the open door. They're at it again… Simon thought.
Given that he would always draw on the hall's clean white walls, there were always markers scattered around. What color do I choose today? He grabbed the closest marker to him, neon blue, and began to draw the animals he had seen the day before.
“You’ve been drinking again- … are you really that upset?” she asked.
“W-what gave it away, the stench, the beard, of the dozens of cans inside my room?” he quickly replied.
“Tomorrow’s the last day for the circus,- Are you going to take him?” Milly begged.
“I never promised I would.” he quickly replied, shoving his way past her. He continued to walk, not bothering to look back in hopes of avoiding another argument. However, Milly had grown impatient of her husband's excuses and called for him “Kel!” She angrily said. “Don't walk away from me!”
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