Chapter 5.1: Vestige

Deep within the recesses of the Prince’s mind, a land far from reality showed itself in his dreams. Clouds of haze flooded the atmosphere whose presence reduced the visibility to no more than a few feet as it obscured the distance. The ground itself seemed a part of the clouds but its density much more tangible, creating a surface stable enough to stand upon. This impossible sight would prove difficult to find anywhere in the realms of life and definitely not on a small world in the corner of the universe where Earth found itself.

The fog was entrancing and Lancing spent the better part of the day staring into the vast unknown. Each second he felt he could peer deeper into the mist, but his progress showed nothing as there was little to see even as far as he went. Darkness was the only occupant of this land and its residency encompassed the entire area in front of him.

When Lancing’s best attempts yielded no results of fruition, his thoughts began to wander. How far beyond did the fog envelope this land? And even more curious, how about the darkness? Surely when there is the dark, its brother light must also exist. His eyes moved from the point he was staring, abandoning all of the progress he had made thus far.

The Prince looked to the sides but found nothing except the same fog that he had spent hours searching into before. Even behind him was only darkness, with no fog to speak of. Despite being lost within this place far from reality, time didn’t seem to mind if he was stuck here for the rest of eternity. Taking the opportunity, Lancing sat upon the ground as he began to examine the essence of this world.

Mixed in the surroundings were the four elements of nature. In the solid clouds beneath him and the open air above, the composition of the elements remained the same, all equivalent in amount. Moving forth his will, Lancing attempted to grasp at the essence to bend it to his will. However, the same scene as a thousand times before played itself. The essence all but ignored his will and once more the Prince was stumped.

He spent hours and hours, trying to move the mixture of elements along with what he wanted, but to no avail, the prince eventually gave up. Once more he tried to peer into the distance, but this time in the opposite direction as his first attempt. Minutes passed and at last, something entered into his sight. The gigantic mass observed in the darkness and fog looked ambiguous, but its presence in this desolate land was a curiosity. Standing up, Lancing walked towards the object.