Hi readers! If you have been going through my website, you may know that throughout November, I have been apart of the NaNoWriMo program. It is a program for writers to start writing anything during November. I was tasked by my teacher to write a 3000 word novel while following the POWER format. The format runs us through the writing process of a novel. It includes P: Prewrite, O: Organize, W: Write, E: Edit, and R: Rewrite. The P and O stage of this novel can be found by clicking these link embedded words:
In this blog you may find the entirety of my novel without having to go from one page to another. A marathon if you may call it. Now please sit back, relax, and enjoy travelling through the life of a traveler.
The Traveler - The Beginning
My eyes slowly open to the annoying repetitive sound of my alarm clock. I gradually reached out my hands towards the phone who is sleeping on the table and checked the time, 8:00am. The same as every day. Resisting to the force of Earth’s hand, I sit up, looked at my bright blue wall, and get out of bed. Dragging my soul to the toilet, I mimic the morning routine of showering, brushing my teeth's, and dressing up. Such a boring routine. Slumbering to the train station, I waited in the same position I did yesterday, the day before, and since the first day of work. Sitting down to the hard rocky chair of my office, I start doing my work. Reading hundreds upon hundreds of books, I marked out all the mistakes, dead air, and uninteresting bits in the demo. “Such a boring day at work, why do writers these days always follow the same kind of plot movement in every single story?” I mumbled to myself while I scan through the book. Speeding through the day, it was finally 7pm. Pulling my exhausted body back home, I quickly ate the bland dinner, clean up, and slammed myself down onto the bed. This was how my entire life was. It was the same routine every day with no significant difference, something I really wish would happen. Unfortunately, that only stayed as a wish, a wish that would dramatically change my life, a wish that would brighten up my entire adulthood, and a wish that only existed in a story. Or did it? This morning is as the same as always for our main character. He goes through his morning routine, got on the train, and went to work. As he goes through his day reading boring demos and books, he stumbled upon the book named “The Traveler.” “Ah, what a lame name, “The Traveler,” probably a lame story which has the same plot as every other fantasy story.” I mumbled to myself in a singular bored tone. My hands moved to grab the mouse sitting on the table and clicked to open the file. Inside was a 1-chapter long starter of a book. This is what was inside: “Wasn’t this a fun book to read? Are you satisfied with the adventure you just had? Isn’t this what you wanted, needed, something different? The answer to your goal and desire was right ahead of you, you just had to reach for it.” the wizard spoke told the murderer in a peaceful tone. To understand what had happened here, we need to investigate the future, the beginning of all these problems. The time is set 10 years ahead of today, everything was different there. The nauseating smell of trash and vomit filled the air. Trash and debris were the only thing visible in sight. It was the land of everything and nothingness, no sentient life can be seen, but everything there was overwhelming to the point of no return. Stood there in the middle of the land was golden city, inside it was mountains, rivers, and beaches. It was not the land anyone would have imagined to be in the middle of the trashed land. Surround the land was a gigantic wall, a one where no one can ever cross nor break. That is the end of the chapter. This might be an extremely random book for someone, but it was not for me. The moment I finished reading the chapter, I stood up, and rushed to the supervisor. I was eager to read more of this story and unravel what would be happening in the story. “Ma’am, who exactly wrote what I just read?” I spoke in an exciting tone. The supervisor mumbled back, “Which one, this? Oh, I don’t know, it was randomly sent to us with no subject and through a public email.” Many questions came through my head one of which is, “then why did you send me this when we can’t find the author?” “It was requested for you to read it in the email, so I gave it to you.” She replied. “This is such an interesting story that is worth continuing and producing though, why did the author send only one chapter then? And to specifically me on top of that.” Many thoughts were scrolling through my mind. I went on with day exactly like how everyday went but today was different, my head was not filled with blankness, but with the story and the endless possibility on how it could unravel. The curiosity was bothering me like crazy, it was extremely annoying. “Why wouldn’t it leave my mind! This is getting extremely irritating!” I screamed to myself while I was turning every stone on the internet to find the author of the story. The MC went on like this for many days having his mind engulfed by the story.
Taking Off
“WHY ISN’T THERE ANYTHING ON THE INTERNET, MY COLLEAUGES ARE ALSO USELESS!” I screamed the fuck out of my throat and brain.
“Judging from his skills, this wouldn’t be the 1st novel he wrote, it’s impossible. A beginner wouldn’t write something this crazy and complex.” I thought to myself while walking to work.
I sat down on my desk and start doing my daily work while still thinking about the novel. Pages upon pages of different story goes by, it was still simple as always.
“I don’t want to read these; I want to read that mesmerizing book!” my inner voice goes.
A decision was made, I stop what I was doing and focus on finding the next chapter of that book, this was to get rid of any distraction I am having from work and life.
The internet and office were fully turned over by me to find the author’s location or contact number. Dug up from the depth of my office’s file was the author’s name along with a line of code. It reads:
“00110110 00110100 00101110 00110001 00110001 00111001 00110100 10110000 00100000 01001110 00101100 00100000 00110001 00111000 00101110 00110100 00110010 00111000 00110000 10110000 00100000 01010111”.
A long indecipherable at first sight binary code. Sprinting at full speed, I went to my desk and keyed in the code to decipher it.
After some time, I was finally done and got a set of coordinates, “64.1194° N, 18.4280° W”.
This pinned point to campsite Langisjór in Iceland. I hesitated for several minutes before heading to Iceland air’s website and booking a direct flight to Keflavík International Airport in Iceland. It was a quick and on the point decision, but I do not regret doing it. I then continued by getting 3 weeks off from my work and went on an adventure to read that book.
Many thoughts ran through my head at the time.
“Is this really a clever idea?”
“There could be thousands among thousands of ways that this could go extremely wrong.”
“Why should I go the heck out of my way to this extent? It is just a story anyway.”
“Is this moment where I say, It’s now or never?”
“Should I be doing this?”
“No stop, think about the joy you would get by reading that book, the thing you always wanted was there, something new!”
“Didn't you bore the fuck out of yourself already?”
“Yes, but at least I’m sure I’ll be safe from the world!”
“It’s now or never.”
The day rapidly passed by it was a new dawn, the journey is beginning. Waking up to the warm fresh light, I did my usual routine, but today was different. I was no longer heading to work; it was to the airport. Everything changed, the scenery, sound, and smell.
I arrived at the airport in time for my flight. People chattering and announcements flooded my ears, it was a new experience I never had before.
“Wow, was the airport always this huge and busy?” I mumbled to myself.
The time has come, I hopped on flight and looked out of the window to see us gradually taking off. Not long after, I was served a steaming portion of slow roasted land. Just the smell alone was hypnotic. I was told it is an Iceland’s signature dish. Overall, a magnificent experience before even reaching the un-travelled land itself.
A considerable period passed, and we were soaring over the mountainy island. The iron bird landed, and so did I. Cars were available for rents and with no hesitation, I rented one and start driving to the camp.
The 2nd Chapter
According to the map, it was going to be a 5-hour long road trip, the most time I am gonna ever spend on a car. On the way to the campsite, I would pass through the city of Iceland. Although it is not the most beautiful view or the most hi-tech city, it gives a very soothing and calm tone and mood to me. The cyan sky was so clear, no car honks, and pollution was to be seen. This was my only road trip I ever took so far, and it is going, I nearly forgot what I was after.
The next thing I noticed was the navigator saying, “your destination is on the right.”
5 hours passed by like it was 5 minutes. This was nothing like what I am used to, it went by in a lighting. Upon arrival, I was punched by the elegant and glamorous view. A giant lake surrounded by mountains, the fresh, moist smell, and a hit of frigid air.
Experiencing this also reminded me of the dun time I was reading the book, the thing I am after. A small wooden hut was to be seen. On it states, “Welcome the Traveler.” I directly head to it and knocked on the door. No answer was heard so I crack open the door only to be disappointed to see no one there except a small piece of paper dropped on the ground.
Carefully walking to pick up the paper, the 2nd chapter of the book was seen written on it. My disappointment quickly disappeared. I ran outside and found a silent space to read it.
You would question would not you on how that fragment of land came into existence, on how the wretched land outside it became what it is, and how that affects the ending of the story. Those is not the main point of the story unfortunately. Inside that golden chunk of border was the place where everyone was living in peace. Doctors, workers, engineers, black smiths, wizards, orcs, and every occupation you could ever think of was living in harmony. All these thanks to the Traveler.
As the name state, the Traveler job is to travel, ironically, he does not do so. He was said to have “finished” his log and is now only living to govern the city. To which he finds mundane. But what can he do, this is his life now.
That was the end of the 2nd chapter. This brought nothing but questions to me. “Is that all?” was the first question that came to my mind. All of that travelling only for a short chapter? I was a bit gloomy by this. My head lifted from the paper only to be hit by the bright golden rays of the Sun. I took a deep breath and sit there quietly and blankly. Although the prize I got for this travel was not as much as I hoped for, it was a fun ride. Luckily, it was not over.
Surprisingly, behind the small piece of paper, there was a riddle. Supposing leading me to the next location.
To where you will seek next is the city which never sleeps.
The land of food, buildings, and historical monuments.
Flashing light overpowers the dark night.
Home to the tall copper statue given by the French.
The tower divided into 102 pieces.
In which the clouds are below you, is the place you will find the next chapter.
Without any drawbacks, I know where the next was going to be, New York. It was one of the places where I dream of going but never did. Like what the riddle stated, it is city which never sleep, lights flashing at every moment of the day, house to the Statue of Liberty, and most importantly, food from all over the world. I thought to myself, “maybe this trip isn’t as bad as I thought it would be.”
Long before I know it, the sunset was over. Luckily, this was a campsite and there were many free spaces. People who were camping there also set up some lights. This combined with the flashing stars made a delightful view I would not forget for the rest of my life. It was one of the best sleeps I ever gotten.
Concreate Jungle
Unlike my regular routine, today was different. No more walls, it was the bewildering view of the forever ending lake and the thin sheet of fog. I stood up, got changed, and went for a short walk to absorb the environment. Although it was only a night, it massively recovered my mental health. I packed up my belongings, hopped back in the car, and drove back to the airport while having some occasional drops to take photos.
Not long before I noticed it, I was driving into the airport and was waiting for departure. The trip here was fun but I cannot forget why I am here; the following chapters will be mine. Ice-cream and cheese were the last things I ate before leaving Iceland. Creamy ice crystals burst open my taste buds and left Iceland with a strong memory in my mind. I was ready for the next destination, the concrete jungle where dreams are made of.
Time instantly passed by as if I were in a novel. I am now flying over the Thames and the airplane was ready to board to the JFK airport. The iconic copper statue came into sight, I was amazed by how gigantic it is. Standing tall and high, its flame reached the sky. The airplane landed shortly after that. Stereotypically, New Yorkers rushed off the plane as if they are in an urgent need of the toilet. It was not a great first impression for me, but I quickly got over it. After getting off the plane, I passed through the usual mundane security process.
“Why are you here in America?” The supervisor asked.
In a calm yet ridiculous tone I answered, “to find a book, an excellent one.”
The supervisor stood still with her eyebrows lifted for a moment.
“So, you are saying you came to America just to find a book?” She spoke in a curious tone.
“Umm, yeah, kind of” I mumbled.
She shook her head and stamped my passport.
She then proceeds, “you’re free to go, with that craziness, you will do good in here.”
I was stunned for a couple of seconds before walking to the exit. Unlike the situation before, I was greeted by the sapphire wall along with colossal sized skyscrapers. Many restaurants and shops are in sight. This was the experience I longed for before the journey began. Although my goal here is the book, some fun along the way would not hurt. Starting out the journey, I went to a local pizza shop that crossed my eyes while I was scrolling through Facebook. The name was “Joe’s Pizza” located in Greenwich Village, Manhattan.
Joe's Pizza
Even though my ultimate purpose in New York is the book, this was one of the side-tracks I am going to take. I am in my dream city, anyway, why would I miss this holy opportunity to explore this utopia. My legs are moving faster than ever, I reached the renowned restaurant in no time. This workplace of Spiderman gave me chills the first time arriving. Pizzas are slowly reeled out of the oven piping hot. Melted cheese covered the thin pizza dough perfectly cook to standards. I bought 2 slices without even knowing it. One was margarita and another were pepperoni. Before it even reached my mouth, the marigold-colored cheese hit my eyes. Under it is the crimson marinara sauce. The smell is mesmerizing. All the components combined to make an aromatic scent. My mouth opens and devours the original slice. It was painful from the heat, albeit so enjoyable my soul nearly ascended to heaven. Saltiness, softness, and creaminess from the cheese contacted my taste buds and exploded them open. The soft yet crispy dough blessed my mouth. I reached the delicate thick crust before I knew it.
“Mmmmm, how can this pizza be so good.” I thought to myself.
I then asked myself, “Where have I been for the entirety of my life.”
“This is a work of art and yet I just discovered it. How long was I stuck in that fucking loop” I murmur.
I am finally finished with the pizzas.
“Wouldn’t it be good to wash it down with some sweet beverage?” I pondered while searching through my watch history of a New York restaurant tour.
I stumbled upon an 8-hour New York tour video on YouTube. I looked through the video and found out that they did a bubble tea ranking. I re-watched the finale of the video and found out that Kung Foo Tea ranked number one for the reviewer. With no hesitation, I googled the nearest branch around me and head straight to it.
I am now at the famous Kung Foo Tea restaurant. I ordered the “Brown Sugar Boba Milk” drink. I came in a flash and with full force, I plunged the straw into the cup and took a sip. The creaminess of the milk along with the sweetness of the brown sugar is irresistible. This trip is now better than what I thought it would roll out.
For the next few days, I went all over city eating renowned dishes such as the Halal Chicken Over Rice, Katz’s deli pastrami, and the cereal milk ice-cream. It was a pleasant experience.
The Finale
It is finally time for me to head to the iconic Empire States building to find and possibly finish my mission. I reached the castle right around the time people would catch the sunset. Ascending the tower gave me some shrivels and increased my eagerness.
“Ding!” The elevator chimed.
Steadily strolling out, I was greeted with another sensation completely different from what I am used to. A glowing shine of light kept the horizon visible. The never-ending view of skyscrapers and building covered the ground below. My satisfaction reached its limit. Tears of joy starts falling down my face.
“Even without the story, I wouldn’t complain. This is an adventure I would not have ever took. A step out of my comfort zone. An unforgettable experience.” I thought to myself.
Walking out on the balcony of the building, I saw a tall man. He stood there, in silence. Slowly approaching the man, I felt the chivalries go up my back. When I reached him, he looked at me and asked.
“How was it? Your journey.” He asked in a windless tone.
In confusion, I gave him a validating question back: “are you the author of the book?“
“Of course, why would anyone be waiting for you here?” He answered back.
Without any hesitation, I shot many questions towards him, “How did you plan out the whole route? Who are you? How did you know of my life? What is the next thing in the book?”
“I don't think those things are important right now, the most important thing right now is you! I didn’t bring you out of your mundane loop for you to look back and question it. Seeing you in that cycle of pain and boringness when there is the world out there for you to explore. Look back at your journey! Iceland and the recent New York! My answers wouldn’t satisfy you. The book wouldn’t satisfy you. What would, is the voyage ahead of you! You don’t think of ever going back to the repetitive series again, do you?” He lectured.
“Needless to say, no. You’re an eye opener to me, I now realize sunlight of the world.” I responded.
“Hmmm, that’s good to hear. To celebrate the next chapter in your book, why don’t you walk right around the corner and witness the sunset.” He replied.
Without any words, I strolled to the West side of the building.
Unexpectedly, there was a small piece of paper right around the balcony.
Inside it says:
“Wasn’t this a fun book to read? Are you satisfied with the adventure you just had? Isn’t this what you wanted, needed, something different? The answer to your goal and desire was right ahead of you, you just had to reach for it.”
“Now let’s turn to the next page of this chapter.”
…....
….
…
.
THE END
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