"Sheltered (far from finished hope it to be a novel)" by Jill O Connell

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The wind picked up steadily and a storm was soon heard thundering overhead.

Then the rain came strong, fast and relentless never giving in for even a minute.

The buildings all had tiny lights inside like candles lighting up the city.

From a distance it looked like a vast canvas, structured and solid, against the unyielding storm that raged above.

Newspaper pages blew delicately down the almost deserted streets and between ally ways of shadows and illusions. Down these paths of concrete and tar that twisted between the mighty structures of the heaven bound buildings lay mystery. Even when the sky bellowed loudly its defiance still the world below continued to move unflinching at its skyward guardian’s cries. Looming towers of apartments, business offices and workplaces tethered together like a malformed oppressive prison for the damned.

Shrade Averus looked scornfully at the sky and wished the heavens, for once, would just shut up and give his mind and body some rest. He had just left the pub where he and his drinking buddies had spent most of the afternoon and almost all night cursing, drinking and laughing at nothing. He wasn’t drunk. He never was. He refused to be like his father in any respect of the word. All he ever had been was a drunkard, hobo and absolute asshole.

He spat at the ground.

He looked to the sky and muttered something along the lines of;

“Glad the old bastard is dead…”

The lighting had taken him by surprise.

His cold, angry and irritated face flashed for a few seconds between lightning strike and the booming thunder.

His body was like a creeping demon lurking in the wake of the storm. His tall, thin yet masculine outline did nothing to alter the fact that he was strong for his looks and appearance.

He had dark eyes; the kind that people would prefer to look away from rather then into, the kind that looked like a wild animal surveying everything but saying nothing. His shoulder length black hair clung to the sides of his face as the rain pelted him hard. His face was hard angled and his mouth always seemed to smirk or grin enigmatically at everything and everyone. Under his left eye he bore a scar of the past. His father had hit him with a bottle when he was a kid. Almost lost his eye and that’s what had started a long lasting hatred between father and son.

His hand rested on his head as his hat was trying to fly away with the wind. His other hand clasped around his black coat collar so he wouldn’t be soaked through. He felt his whole body tense as he walked down alley way after alley way. This was a place of mazes and buildings that disappeared beyond his vision. He knew the weather was becoming more and more violent and he had to get to his apartment as fast as he could but he had to stop somewhere else first.

As he walked down a familiar walkway he looked ahead and saw the old dilapidated church. He remembered a time when people used to go there and pray but now this place was crumbling. Through the lights of the lightning it was a terrifying and ominous thing.

A tall building that at one time toward over everything but now it slumped like a person to exhausted to continue its existence. He pondered why its remains were still here and he remembered with a slight smile the reason. There had been a protest by the people of this area or neighbourhood to prevent a historical site from being demolished.

He sighed.

“This church….” He sighed.

He stood for a few moments gazing up at this magnificent structure thinking about how much work and effort was put into its construction only for it to end up dying like this. He walked slowly over to the large framed doors that stood once upright and strong now slightly slanted on their hinges. He pushed one of these doors ever so gently open and squeezed himself inside.

He bent down on one knee as he used to do as a child and put his hand over his heart in a sign of blessing to the great guardian.

“Such a long time ago now….so long ago…” he whispered solemnly.

He looked around and admired its reverence and dignity that seemed to withstand the tests of time. He glanced at the rows of seats facing towards the head of the church and basked in the colours of the stain glass window which was the only intact aspect of the church left. Even though a storm was angrily fighting above there was a still calmness that echoed through the building. It was as if the building was glowing in its own death and was peacefully giving up its remaining light to him.

Thunder blasted above.

He jumped slightly back into the world of reality.

He took one last look around the church. Seeing parts of the wall collapsed onto seats, the roof had an enormous hole in it where you could look up and see the sky tearing itself apart and as he looked once more to the head of the church the lights from the stain glass seemed to dance and jump with the lightning. Such beauty inside of so much destruction should have been a crime to behold as he turned and left a part of his long forgotten childhood behind him.

He turned his back on the building of ancient ways and returned to his walking through the mazes of concrete.

“Now….gotta go and see Autumn…. See if she’s alright….” He muttered under his breath.

The clouds lit up and the voice of the sky yelled in his ears and again he muttered in his low voice that he wished the sky would just be quite for once.

He was nearing her apartment.

He realised he was late tonight, more then usual, but then again he had never distracted himself with the church before. His hand twitched as he looked down the path ahead and saw them. They were all huddled together against the rain even though it was futile. He felt hate rising up from within.

“This will never change…. These people… why?” he glared behind him and could just make out the HeirSpirit.

The HeirSpirit was a tall building of offices and held the most powerful and influential man in this city within itself. The building was lit up on both sides by “luminescence” a rare alloy that allowed light to be controlled in any number of ways. Only the rich had it of course. Even in this day and age social uproar and class divisions were wide spread.

There were so many advancements and for what? For people to spend every night living on the streets, fending off starvation and fighting with the elements?

It made him sick.

He walked briskly pass them and shuddered with the thoughts running through his head about their lives before the HeirSpirit. He came to the end of the alley and he turned left. He grabbed the side of the building and pressed the number 28 button which made a light musical note and then lit up immediately.

A whizzing sound could be heard form within the building and the light sped from the button he had just pressed and ran up the side of the building through a tube to find the corresponding door.

She yawned.

Autumn was enjoying a good book about wars fought on horses, brave men defending women with their lives and evil villains bent on world destruction.

She sighed.

“I really should stop reading fantasy….” She giggled to herself.

She knew that was impossible. She loved fantasy too much. Fantasy was an escape from the harsh reality they lived in. in some ways it actually related to the affairs of the real world too but she ignored those facts.

She was comfortable on a blue sofa covered in feathers and had fur cushions it was her favourite reading place.

The sky outside lit up again and the thunder suffocated the tiny sound of the little musical note floating through her apartment.

“Autumn?” came a tiny boyish voice from the floor.

“Hmm….Leaf what is it?” she stretched, then marked her page and placed the book down.

Leaf was a Shard.

A Shard was a creature who could manipulate there own physical structure and become anything they wanted. They were never popular as pets because they had free will. Robots were preferable to living beings.

She shuddered. She hated robots.

At this moment in time Leaf was in the form of a small boy with bright blue eyes, short brown hair and freckles. He had a cute charm about him and he was very loving. She hated it when he took humanoid form though it made her think she had a child of her own and it made her feel insecure and uneasy.

“Leaf… what have I told you about that form?” she glared slightly.

“Oh sorry… I’ll change… what would you prefer?” he smiled.

“Change into a wolf … (she paused pondering)… black coat with a white tail and golden eyes please?” she smiled to herself.

He sat down and hunched foreword. He shimmered for a few seconds before becoming a wolf. He stretched his body, yawned and then jumped up beside her on the couch.

“Autumn?” he whispered.

“What is it Leaf?” she asked nicely.

“Someone downstairs wants to come up. From his scent it’s Shrade. Will I let him enter?” he asked. 

Autumn’s eyes lit up.

“Are you sure it’s Shrade? He’s late…” she smiled to herself.

“My nose has never let me down before now Autumn… I am sure it’s him… he’s drenched and smells of beer!” he wrinkled his nose.

“That’s him alright, he never drinks you know, just sits and talks with the others” she grinned.

“Autumn should I let him in he is getting wet and the ringing note has gone again?” he smiled and waged his tail.  

“Of course let him in…” she got up.

“I will let him in then” he jumped down from the sofa and wandered towards the door.

“I need to get changed…” she ran into her room.

Meanwhile outside with the howling wind, slashing rain and unpleasant sounds of the storm outside Shrade tried to stay as dry as he possibly could. Which given the circumstances was increasingly difficult as the storm became even more volatile.

“Where are you Autumn… Leaf… come on open the door… please?” he grimaced as he blinked the rain out of his eyes.

As if on command the glowing light that had vanished from the button was back and began to expand into the shape of a door. He hurriedly leapt into it and was glad when a shard of lighting hit the ground close by. He was then lifted lightly from the ground floor to the fifth floor through a transmit device. He was standing directly outside her door.

“Sharde I have missed you!” came the ever loving voice of Leaf.

Sharde looked down and found a sleek black wolf with a white tail and golden eyes staring up at him.

The tail was wagging as fast as it possibly could with glee.

“Leaf!” Shrade bent down and rubbed the wolf lovingly on the head.

“Is your mistress home tonight?” he smiled.

“Yes she is changing but she told me to invite you in and sit down on the sofa!” Leaf led the way through the door.

Shrade was drenched through, his clothes dripped and his hair was hugging his face in a hard embrace. He stood in the doorway for a while.

“Autumn?” he called gently.

“Yes? Shrade I’m getting changed… wait a minute… if you’re wet let the “Purity” in the corner get you dry and change your clothes… Okay?” her voice was warm and friendly.

“Alright” he replied.

Sharde walked over to a corner of the kitchen where a door stood. The words “Purity” were written on the door made of technology even he couldn’t begin to grasp. The word was supposed to have some meaning involving its creator.

Purity Ash was her nickname.

So the machine was named after her and every apartment, home and office has this appliance. The owners have the ability to nickname their “Purity” anything they want. It is used for cleaning the kitchen, dressing people and helping take care of the household chores. Autumn uses it only for guests, washing Leaf and as a bin for her rubbish everything else she does by hand. Autumn was an old fashioned person who preferred merit by achievement rather then let technology do it for her.

He entered the machine;

“Please state name, purpose of visit and which task you wish me to perform” cam the mechanic male voice.

“My name is Shrade Averus, I am here as a guest on a visit and I request to be dried and these clothes to be sent to my apartment number 32 row S and new clothes sent from there to materialize on my person” he replied calmly.

The machine made a low musical note that symbolized contact with another of its selves and it then stated;

“Contact has been made, which attire do you wish to be clothed in, and your “Mesh” is requesting to know what time you will be home” it’s mechanic voice rang.

“Hmm… my evening attire number 4 should do and tell “Mesh” I will contact him when I am ready” he said.

“Yes sir, right away!”

The machine hummed and his clothes began to vanish into tiny partials from his body, it tickled him lightly, and then his clothes began to flow away down a tube to his apartment. There was a warm current of air coursing through the tube as he was being dried from head to toe. Then just as suddenly as his wet clothes vanished from him a new set of clothes began to appear around his form. This suit consisted of a white lose shirt, black jeans with a belt, black shoes, socks and a black long coat down to his feet. He smiled as the machine’s hum came to a slow stop.

“I have finished my tasks sir, if you would kindly step out, I will now shut down for the evening, good night sir!” it slowly brightened as the machine ejected him softly.

He stood on the kitchen floor, dry and newly clothed, he smiled.

“Thank you” he said to “Purity”

“Sharde are you dry and dressed?” she asked playfully.

“Yes, your machine works better then mine, I’m jealous!” he laughed.

“That’s because you use yours too much!” she replied.

Autumn walked softly out of her room fully clothed in a beautiful white top, bright blue skirt and lovely white slippers. She was tall enough for a girl, she was only twenty after all, and she had a smile that could make you blush.

Her name suited her to the ground; she had beautiful hair that varied in colour from gold to brown and sometimes auburn. She had fantastic excited green eyes that sparkled and seemed like you were staring into green fields of grass. Her face was a cute shape; she was skinny, very cute and had great energy.

“Well at least you’re dry now” she smiled softly.

“Feels good to be out of that storm and inside somewhere dry” he returned the smile.

Leaf had wandered in and had fallen asleep on the sofa.

“I haven’t seen you in days what happened?” she asked the slightest bit of concern in her voice.  

“Sorry I’ve been busy, are you okay?” he asked calmly.

“I’m fine… a bit bored… but fine...” her eyes looked over at Leaf.

Shrade walked over and sat on the armchair set beside the window across from the sofa. Autumn took the free space left on the sofa beside Leaf: she petted him and he wagged his tail. 

Autumn giggled.

“He’s so cute when he’s a sleep!” she giggled again.

They sat together for a while just talking about the weather, Leafs progress and about Shrade’s business.

The storm outside kept going but that didn’t stop the two friends from talking all night long about memories of the old days, their friends and many other subjects.