Leon Dekar and the Sky Garden: Leon Dekar, #1

By Leonardo Adriel

A dream leads a young man on a new adventure filled with fantasy, mystery, and intrigue.

Leon's brother, Valcrist, disappeared some ages ago. So when Leon starts dreaming of his long-gone brother, he knows the dreams hold some significance… but will he discover what it all means before it's too late?

With his girlfriend and a small group, Leon and his party strike out in search of truth. They encounter fantastic beasts, traverse intensely beautiful landscapes, and fight heroic battles.

All the while, Leon's dreams continue to warn him that something is coming. Along his journey he's going to have to fight his fears, find the hero within himself, and become what—and who—he's destined to be. Will he discover his strength before it's too late? Can he save himself and his friends? Will he find all the answers in time to save his friends, himself, and the world?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Leonardo Adriel
• Release date: Aug 13, 2020
• ISBN: 9781973204947

Leonardo Adriel

Leonardo Adriel has always been a fan of deep fantasy. He’s been inspired by video games like The Legend of Zelda, Final Fantasy, the Mana series, Chrono Trigger, Metroid, Soulsborne, and others and he believes all this influence lends an unusual, but beautiful, touch to his work. He hopes to use the same combination of beautiful imagery, music, and art along with his stories to create an audiovisual product like none that have existed before. He was born in Argentina and hopes to inspire others to create with his powerful words.   You can find recent news and more by visiting his website: www.leonardoadriel.com/

Book preview

Leon Dekar

And the Sky Garden

First edition: August 2018

Correction y edition: Analía Ruth Gon and Tim Marquitz

Illustration: Andrés Agostini

To know more about the author: www.leonardoadriel.com

Copyright © 2015 -2017 by Leonardo Adriel Pizzio

All rights reserved. This book may not be reproduced in whole or part, by mimeograph or any other means, without permission. Making or distributing electronic copies of this book constitutes copyright infringement and could subject the infringer to criminal and civil liability.

ISBN: 9781973205913

For my mom and her love that I miss so much,

And this time, more than ever

For my brother, Gabriel

Whom may forever rest in the Magical Kingdom of Zeal

Index

Chapter 1: Have you ever seen the ocean?

Chapter 2: A voice calling from the darkness

Chapter 3: Dream of the shore bordering another world

Chapter 4: The wind sings of a journey

Chapter 5: Blue fields

Chapter 6: Alone in the world

Chapter 7: Overworld theme

Chapter 8: The phantom forest

Chapter 9: Rust color

Chapter 10: Evil tales and obligations

Chapter 11: Immoral rhythm

Chapter 12: Omen

Chapter 13: Circuits of time

Chapter 14: The fateful return

The heavens were of an immaculate blue and the meadows shimmered with an emerald glow.

The brave youth stared stoic at the deep vastness of the infinite field whilst the wind gently blew by.

Everything looked perfect, yet something was still missing in this boundless and spectacular scenery. Nevertheless, the kid remained there, nostalgic of days to come, firmly embracing the pendant that hung steady, but smoothly, by its neck.

Be wise among everything else...because life is as it is perceived Reminisced in shattered words, never stirring its sight from the cerulean skies.

Time flowed unimportantly, and in the far distance, the great blues were about to be conquered. A virtuous melody echoed from all-around and so, one by one, they appeared graceful and magnificent as legends foretold.

Dekar confirmed without hesitation, marveled at those dancing figures who awakened a sweet, soft fragrance in the pasture as they flew by.

Magnificent beasts soared through the sky this day, agile as birds, soft as cotton-fur, gargantuan as stars, and as majestic as God.

As the musical crescendo grew within the atmosphere, these magical beings painted the world with all the colors imaginable. A perfect harmony no single artist could ever grasp to dream about.

But as they came, they also abandoned this unending land. They left nimbly and beautifully, vanishing over their own symphony. Their formations formed gaps in the space, which only got bigger as they all disappeared, nonetheless, blurring an even more astounding painting as their farewell gift.

An island, un unconquerable piece of earth, floated forgotten over the celestial sphere. Knowing not of time nor death, it drifted eternal over the unreachable heavens.

But the impossible couldn’t stop the young spirit or its indomitable might from running faster than the wind and time itself. However, no matter how courageous the effort, the epic kingdom was naught but only unattainable as it only glided back towards infinity.

The child never desisted no matter how futile and overwhelming and this was truly admirable, but it would never be able to get on that floating island, that illusion of paradise.

... He wasn’t ready, not yet...

Chapter 1: Have you ever seen the ocean?

Good morning, Leon.

The mother didn’t need anything else to wake up her boy.

It was a normal day in Berlan. Leon heard the waves breaking over the town’s shore, while his mom welcomed the morning sunshine with a swift pull from the drapes near the bed.

It’s sunny today, continued his mother. Lanna came a while ago, asking about you. I told her you were sleeping.

Leon tried (and failed) to escape from the blinding light, hiding beneath his shallow sheets. A hot and bright day awaited him. Leon could already feel his nose itching.

She seemed urgent, his mother kept saying, lifting and folding the clothes. "She got nervous when I asked what she needed, then she squeaked goodbye and ran away. I really don’t know that girl’s problem is with your father and me!"

While his mother kept talking, Leon put on the slippers near his bed, his eyes still bothered by the sunshine.

But, well, Daddy already made breakfast. We better go downstairs, honey, she proposed, while holding the room’s door to the short and curly cinnamon[1] floor rug that extended across the small corridor, which connected every room in this floor, and the only staircase of the house in the exact middle.

He went downstairs, still sleepy. Today was going to be a humid day, he realized at the noisy crunches of the stair boards that his father promised to fix, and he promised to help fix (several times by now).

He reached the great hall the family called kitchen, living room, and main entrance, depending the circumstance. A smoky plate of leftovers awaited him on the kitchen table. His father entered through a door between the staircase and the fridge, having just finished attending their small garden.

There is my little lion. his mittens and shirt were filthy, but his father managed to hug and kiss his son on the cheek with his hands hovering over him.

How is this morning treating you? I suppose your mother told you about Lani, right?

Yes. I already told him about his little damsel in distress, she answered while washing the dishes.

His father laughed. So, it’s true? and sighed. I guess you’re lucky then. I mean, that such a pretty girl asks you for help. He exhaled, now more tired. Anyways, how is breakfast, champ?

Breakfast was fantastic, as always. The flavor was modest but strong, as any good and respectable home meal should be.

Then the whole family sat on the table to have a short chat while Leon ate, sharing some good amount laughs and silences for the day

... Until Leon emptied his plate.

His parents watched with a certain grief how Leon went upstairs with his pajamas and returned with his light summer clothes, now finding them in the most trivial part of their mornings, exchanging the town’s gossips while each one carried on with their home routines.

Leon kissed them both in a bit of hurry, then opened the door and left.

1

The shining sun over the celadon [2] heavens granted a vibrant tone, the great background sea brought a familiar and mellow harmony, and each step and babbling of the energetic people of the town carried the rhythm of what was going to be a happy and vigorous morning.

From the exit of Leon’s house, the wavy and grey, blueish pebble’s street went from left to right, to later rise and descend. The town of Berlan was set over a hill; the colorful houses of rock and cast first appeared over the high grounds over the east, to then abruptly descend unto the shore line.

There were few people walking this morning, not everyone dared to enjoy their free days under the roasting summer sun. Only Imus, the hairy and always barking neighbor’s dog, greeted Leon today, as it sometimes also turned around to ferociously bark at the air.

Leon went to the street corner to rub the dog’s back, and the creature licked him with the same kindness. He then glared up-street, maybe Lanna waited him over her house...but he turned to face the calm sea, maybe she was with their friends.

Before making up his mind, he stopped to watch the small, dirty slope next to his house, that fell over the neighbor’s roof. From there a curious path formed, that allowed one to jump from roof to roof until reaching the hideout where his friends hangout.

Leon examined this slope very often, remembering every person that he saw taking the so-called stairway to the ocean...the first jump was alluring, it was basically letting oneself fall, but the second was almost the distance of a street, that was the one that always made him doubt.

But after a short while, he decided to just follow the dog’s barking that now disappeared down-street. He justified himself thinking that today he had no one to witness and believe that he did it. Besides, he didn’t want to face the neighbors complain all alone.

The path to the docks was short, but he threaded it calmly, enjoying the comforting movement of the cerulean[3] waves that rested under the green sky.

When he reached the part where the dirt ended and the first plank of the docks began, Imus rocketed to the edge of the pier to growl madly at the coming waves; maybe trying to protect the earth from getting too wet.

At Leon’s right (where the sea’s mood turned more intimidating), the dock extended to shelter the marines and fishermen’s that loaded and unloaded heavy cargos in-between tired grunts. Leon’s destiny laid on the narrow beach to his immediate left, where a broken rowboat and an abandoned beach ball marked a small aperture on the cliff.

2

Leon always entered this small and dirty grotto carefully, like if anything besides his friends could lurk inside.

Hey, Leon, greeted Miller, the first one to distinguish the dark outline that blocked the only light-entry in this cove.

Leon found his friends chatting, playing cards over the big loading box that acted as a table, or scattered around the multiple objects dragged out from the sea that now decorated the place (and reeked of dampness). Leon greeted his dear friends here present: Evan, Cast, Rina, Sorono, Drico, and Fria.

Are you looking for Lani? asked Sorono.

Cast said, "Your giiiiirlfriend went out with Escad to the town’s square a while ago. You surely crossed and just kept going." He laughed.

She said she was waiting for you, but wait here with us, Le. They will surely come back anytime, resumed Sorono. Chey, did you hear what’s everyone’s saying about the lost ship?

Aagh! Chey, I wanted to tell Leon! grunted Cast. We were just talking about it...they still haven’t found anything.

The boat didn’t leave a single trace, added Drico from behind.

Nothing. I heard that someone stole it because it was full of treasures, said Cast.

So? That way it would have been easier to find. It surely sank.

My mommy told me that it turned into a ghost ship.

You’re all crazy! No way it’s sunken! With all the technology and the experience that the rescuers from Leicel have, it couldn’t have gone underwater with no one finding the remains yet.

Yeah, the people from the capital must have found it already if it went down.

Besides, what happened with everyone aboard?

Right, it was a hijack...that was surely planned from the very start.

Come oooon! Don’t start with those crazy ideas again, Casti."

Agh! Why don’t you shut up, moron?

Leon lost interest in the conversation the moment it began. He told them once and again that he was going out to look for Lani, until he realized they were all rather frenzied about screaming their opinions over each other’s faces to hear him, so he left the grotto in silence without anyone noticing.

3

He managed to see one of the grey corners of this town’s park looming in the distance, as soon as he returned to the wavy streets.

Sitting on a bench near the monotonous central fountain, were Lanna and Escad, swinging their feet and eating ice-cream.

The girl remarked something between laughs while pointing at the platinum blonde bangs that covered Escad’s eyes. Leon approached while he fluttered it with the dirty band-aid that covered his index finger.

Leon! announced Escad as soon as he spotted him at the distance.

Lele! continued the girl, who joyously jumped from the bench to hug and smooch Leon on the lips...and no matter how many times this scene repeated, Escad always felt out of place.

I have been looking for you all over the place! said the girl. Did you remember that we had to buy the stuff for school today? We have to buy everything before everyone else start remembering and they don’t leave anything.

I already have my things, commented Escad, while he slowly approached to greet his friend with a kiss in the cheek.

But you...are you, Ess, continued Lanna. We didn’t remember to buy beforehand, and the others surely didn’t either.

Well, didn’t actually buy anything, most thing were my brother’s—

Escad! shouted Lanna and everyone went quite for an instant. You are going to come along with us, right?

S-sure. You will go to Mirlo’s, right?

"No. I don’t like Mirlo’s. Everything’s so...finnicky and ugly there. Mommy told me that I could go to...do you know The Office of Art? The place near my home? the blonde nodded. Well, mommy gave me permission to buy the good stuff for both of us...it will be cheaper in the long run."

Oh...uuuh, very well then...

Lanna didn’t notice, but Leon did notice Escad’s forced smile. He felt a bit ashamed, because Escad was surely imagining all the luxurious things that Lanna was going to gift him; but this was the way things were, there was a reason townspeople said that ‘The higher you are on the hill, the higher you are in Berlan’ (phrase usually followed by an ‘if you know what I mean...’)

But, Leo, resumed the blonde, have you heard about the lost ship? There was another investigation and they still haven’t found anything.

And as that, with that somewhat random and unimportant topic, the three kids started walking down the streets beginning one of their many unending conversations; all under the morning sun.

4

B ut, Lani, it couldn’t have gone anywhere without being seen. A ship can’t grow wings and fly, or suddenly sail underwater. My uncle assured me it must have vanished away.

"Vanished? Like disappeared?" replied the girl, while she walked hugging and with her head resting over Leon’s shoulder.

"Yes. My uncle came yesterday and told that the only logical explanation was that an...angakuo appeared near the shore because of the cold winds of the nearing storm, a-and that it swallowed the ship whole."

Wow, really? This is the uncle who is a scientist, right?

"Ahem, Uncle Mak. He’s awesome and knows a lot about everything! The other night he told me about when he worked in the city of Mistral and explained me about what we talked the other day, remember? He told me that the sky is blue over there."

­"Naaaaaah, reeeally?"

Ahem. Not every sky is aquamarine like over here. Not only that! He told me that this sky is pretty weird, actually.

"Wow. And he told you why that is?"

No. I didn’t understand that part very well. Something about regions and thermic colors, but I really didn’t understand what he meant.

"Pfft. Well, I don’t know if it has anything to do with this, but the other day I read something about scientific-history and...wait, is history a science?"

Erhhh, I dunno.

"Mmh, anyways, I read about...well, you know how this town is always so calm and...everywhere is calm? Well, it wasn’t like that before. People died because they fought each other all the time."

Really?

Yeah. It happened like a million years ago, I dunno, but my daddy told me that it wasn’t so long ago. I mean, sarasa, but maybe all those deaths had something to do with the sky. I mean, people fought because they wanted to divide pieces of land for each other, and then fought to have the other’s piece. You get what I’m saying? Maybe they divided the sky, too, don’t you think?

"Yeah...I think I once heard sooomething like that."

Your uncle never told you anything about that?

"No. He only knows science-science. He says the other sciences are...are a word that my mom doesn’t allow me to repeat."

Hehe, oh dear.

And they kept talking and talking. They never forgot that they had to buy the stuff for school, but before that, they had to buy another ice-cream. After all, it seemed unfair that Lanna and Escad already ate one and Leon didn’t, especially if they had to spend the rest of the evening buying all those boring things for school.

5

Y ou know that I prefer adventure books because, if for any reason I stop reading it before the ending, I can end the story of the hero just were I left it. If everything was going well in that moment, he didn’t have any problems going on, it ends happily, but if he was searching for something to help someone, or was facing a certain danger, the hero fails if it has to fail, but the story ends right there.

You mean he dies?

Well...yes, Ess answered the girl, making sure to avoid spilling her ice-cream while they walked anywhere, apart from where they had to go. But, sarasa, I mean, I still prefer to read a bit more to let him live.

Well, but doesn’t that make it sad?

"Yeah, exactly! But it also makes it more beautiful, righter. The hero continues along its journey because one reads how it follows along, but if one stops reading. What? What happens? Everything freezes right there? No!"

Then you motivate yourself with guilt to keep reading?

No! Well, not so much. But it’s better to give the story an ending than leave it hanging there, don’t you think? I mean, if you make him fail when he’s about to achieve something, you can feel the sadness that he would feel for failing to do what he wanted so much. The adventure ends kinda sad, but you can imagine the...the...the determination and sacrifice from the hero for getting so far. I mean, you connect more with the character and the story, it makes it more...personal, you know? Even if he dies...

Yeah, I do. I never thought about it that way, but...it sounds great! C-can I do it, too?

Yeah...I guess. it came natural to me. I don’t know why it doesn’t come natural for everyone else.

Leon walked quiet, almost unnoticed, but his laugh always joined up with their friend’s when the moment asked. Even so, although the others may not have noticed, he never stopped spying over the sun that voyaged through the sky since they started discussing about lost ships, to lost civilizations and legends, to how do things get lost and forgotten, to how and what people do to lose and forget giant things like ships and civilizations, to why people lose common things, to why Escad always loses his sockets and shoes, to his idea of numbering or color highlighting each pair of socks to avoid losing them, and to the story that when Escad was little, their parents told him that naughty long-eared squirrels took their socks just to screw with him, to Lanna’s doubts that maybe his parents were actually referring about bunnies and not squirrels, up to what really were the differences between bunnies and squirrels aside from the ears, to the differences that biology school-books pointed out, up to finally admitting (after a short and uninformed debate) that the only books that they really read were fictions, thus then to the question of which fiction book could tell the difference between bunnies and squirrels, to what amount are they talking metaphor and reality, and finally, to the correct way to read books.

And even if the evening fell and even if the very mood suggested a break, Leon didn’t wish to end the day at The Office of Art, given that (even if he really couldn’t understand the reason why) this felt like a perfect day.

This was one of those summer evenings that were so calm, so paused and relaxed, and nonetheless, so habitual and routinely repeated at this time of life...the ones whose memories end up fusing together over the pass of time, and where the little details, the ones that makes the day perfect, fade away when melancholy needs them most...yet today, this was a problem for the future.

Chey, but think about this, resumed Escad. What if instead of ending everything there, you come up with the rest of the story?

What do you mean?

"Remember the story of The Chandelier of the Tower?"

Yeeees...?

Well, once I thought that...remember when Elan, the sacred Knight of Fear, went over at his uncle house? That he ate a piece of cheese?

Errh, yeah, let’s say I do...

"Well, I always thought that maybe if he didn’t eat it, everything, absolutely everything, would have changed. His whole adventure; he might have never even been able to defeat King Atos at the end."

Uh? What? How come he might not be able to defeat the king? Only because of a...teeny-tiny cheese?

Yes! I once thought about it. It’s possible that if you change just the part where he doesn’t eat the cheese, everything after that changes. Even the ending.

"Hold on! I can understand you telling me that he might have failed if he didn’t get the, eh...that holy sword, or if...he took a wrong turn at the castle to a trap, I dunno. There! maybe, I can start to believe that he might fail to defeat him. But the cheese, Ess? Are you serious?"

"I thought of the cheese because it was the silliest example I could come up at the moment, but yeah, maybe he wouldn’t have gotten the sword, or he might never find out where it was. I once read, and my uncle said something similar, that if you change a single thing in history, as tiny or dumb as it may look, you can change everything in the story. Maybe, if you make up another story from where you left it, it changes one way, but if you read a little more and quit again, it can change in a whole different way. As you said, adventures keep moving because of characters decisions and because we decide to keep reading."

Perhaps...and that would happen if he doesn’t eat the cheese then? He would lose everything?

"I don’t know. I said it might happen. It might be different. I never said how..."

...

Even so, I would like to know how, you know. It would be nice if someone writes a story that changes everything after a single detail.

The story of dismissing the cheese? Hah, sure. If you say it would be different, it would be great to know...hahahahah, imagine if aliens suddenly invaded just because, hahah, he didn’t eat the cheese.

Uhh, yeah...I dunno, Lani.

Chey! You just said that everything was possible, right?

I said possible...not probable.

And under Leon’s laughter, Lanna punched the shoulder of the blonde kid that didn’t know what he said to deserve that.

6

When the street gaslights turned on, no conversation could further delay the closing countdown marked by the starry night.

They ran like crazy to reach the refined shop that was soon to close down, but luckily, they were just wandering near there.

The three kids entered in such a hurried way that they couldn’t avoid bashing over the legs of a young lady that was on her way out and falling over the floor.

The Lennis! exclaimed the young woman, when she recognized the kids that bounced off her.

Nelbo! greeted the trio at the unison, then they jumped up excited to hug her at the height of her bellybutton.

Now blushed, the teenage girl kneeled to hug them all and then lift them up to squeeze them a bit harder.

Hahah, Nelbi. Lanna smiled when she finally dropped them, and they managed to catch a breath You’re also buying things for school?

"Hahaha, naaah. When you get to be my age you go to school with a pen and a piece of paper in your pockets, nothing else. But no, dummy! I’m here to buy your things!"

Uh?

"Well, yeah. Let’s say that someone found out that you hadn’t bought anything at the shop next door, then got worried, and therefore, seemed obliged to call her lovely neighbor, A.K.A., me, to buy everything for you."

M-mommy? inquired the little girl, instinctively pushing her right thumb against her clenching teeth.

Hahahahah, let’s say it was a little...ha, mommy-wind, hahah.

But mommy said that I c-could buy things for Leon, too.

Of course. I bought this sucker’s things, too, and shook Leon’s head, while taking out a black bag from within her own wonder bag. I think this was what you would have bought, right?

The three kids opened the container and scrambled through the wares.

You can still change it, if you want. Technically, it hasn’t exited the shop yet.

No, Nelbi. It’s perfect! It’s everything we need, thanked the girl and hugged her again. The teen, overjoyed, lifted her up and put her over her shoulders.

"I’m happy you’re satisfied. Now, Lennis...Sir Escardo," said and inclined her head gallantly and playfully (Even with Lanna over her), as the blonde did the same gesture for her, but with a hand over his heart.

I believe we’re nearing...sleepy-time. Huh, children?

The younglings lost their stare without replying. None of them wanted to go back, but neither wanted to argue with Nelbo, partially because she was right, but mainly because she was the strongest