Skeleton Beach

[The Great Illusion, Birthed by the World & The Specter, Cursed with the Role of Observance]

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[Skeleton] | In a certain undisclosed location, far, far, away from any neighboring shoreline, there exists a very small island, roughly the size of what used to be the legendary Alcatraz Prison.

The water, carrying the exceptional stench of garbage, rotting corpses, chemicals, and any other hazardous waste thoughtlessly tossed into the ocean, is a murky, dreary black. The island’s impossibly shiny, golden sand remains—in some inexplicable way—untainted by the slow-rolling waves moving in and out. The sky, as if proving the duality between nature’s purity and the fallout of man, is a radiant shade of blue. Unsullied, pure-blue skies loom over a desolate, dull, and gloomy wasteland…

It certainly makes one wonder: Is this island—one that’s so perfectly out of place—Is this the world’s last-ditch attempt of a still-living, naturally-occurring mirage? If that’s the case…

Why?

Humanity’s gone extinct… did the planet actually miss their presence?

Ridiculous.

Because of them, the damage done to the air quality is irreversible, being both highly toxic and radioactive. Because of them, both the planet and the very earth itself are dead, uninhabitable beyond all repair.

With the world in such a state… why then, is this island here?

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As if answering a question not spoken aloud, a robed figure emerges from the island’s forest thicket.

As it traverses across the impossibly golden, sparkling shoreline, no hint of a single footprint is left behind in its wake. The robed figure, appearing to have a limp, trudges closer towards the unnaturally growing palm trees along the beach’s coast. These trees in particular look to be growing apart from the other unnatural greenery seen further inland, but that isn’t the only peculiar thing about them.

Unlike the coconut-bearing palm trees of the long-forgotten past, this new species of Arecaceae seem to contain, (or grow?), a varying number of human skulls.

The robed figure, upon finally reaching its destination, stops next to a particularly tall “skeleton tree” and lightly shakes it. Its intricately woven black robe, one that’s been purposefully designed to have elongated sleeves, shrouds the arms of its wearer in complete mystery. Did the figure have frail arms, or arms of an average build? Did it have well-developed, muscular arms? Or maybe… what if it’s nothing more than a bunch of old, reanimated bones?

🦴

A few moments pass. Then, one—

No two—

No, all six skulls fall off the tree’s crown.

Upon noticing this, the robed figure crouches down and picks one up.

Despite landing smoothly on the sand’s gold-like surface, this particular skill—unlike the others—bears a huge crack on its left side. Did the skull’s memories, that is to say, did the history of the human that this skull once belonged to suffer from some kind of blunt-force injury in the past? Did they live a life a little too close to the edge, barely managing to avoid a few close calls along the way?

In the end, it matters not.

The robed figure will discern for itself soon enough.

Like magic, multiple small, transparent clouds form over the cracked skull. Images can be seen flickering within its cloudy veil. The robed figure, focused and unmoving, appears hypnotically drawn to them.

Did any kind of benefit—say, like, entertainment or sustenance—exist from studying them so intensely? Just what kind of information did they possess?? If we take it a step further… could it be that the images we perceive to be inside the cloud are merely just that, while the figure is actually witnessing a playback of that human’s life???

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The first skull—Recounts the adventures of a girl with a unique penchant for weapon finding/handling and the messes that she finds herself in.

The second skull—Sets the scene in another world. It recalls the story of a boy, ostracized by everyone in his home world for possessing the Neon Heart, and the miraculous second chance granted to him by the God named…

The third—Tells the story of a boy born with never-melting ice powers and the many ways he abuses them, often engaging in calamitous fights with the only person he considers his rival.

The fourth—Reminisces about times past. The easier times, before a-certain-someone inherited a seat among the city’s board, working for and against its darkness.

The fifth—Depicts memories and events hazy to even the person’s own subconscious. Intense anger… and the curse of forced dual-ability wielding…

💀

As the robed figure gently set the fifth skull back on the sand, it slowly approached the final skull that fell furthest away from the tree.

For some strange reason though, the cloud took an awful long while to manifest.

There can be any number of reasons as to why this happened, but those details only tend to get in the way…

Nonetheless, a cloud still formed.

The sixth and final skull showcases a girl with white, messy hair and her way of life. It revealed the difficulties of developing a combat style of her own design and the many problems she involves herself in due to lending a helping hand. Even in her last moments, that fact never really bothered her…

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The robed figure, crouching down for the last time, sets the skull on the sand and walks away from the “skeleton tree,” satisfied with this day’s—could you even call it a “day?”—memory observance.

And then, something happened.

Despite never looking back, the skulls frantically shook; sand was thrown about everywhere, and they all reattached themselves back on the tree’s crown as it proceeded onward.

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In a certain undisclosed location, far, far, away from any neighboring shoreline, there exists a very small island, roughly the size of what used to be the legendary Alcatraz Prison…

Again, where did this island come from?

Who was that mysterious figure?

How did the world meet its untimely demise?

So many questions and so few answers…

When the robed figure approached the forest’s entrance, its tall frame melted into the shadows. Like dissipating smoke, its presence vanished completely; almost like it never existed in the first place.

The island, now reverted back to the way it once was, once again faded away into obscurity…