{"id":5025,"date":"2026-03-04T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-04T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.imaginarygardens.org\/?p=5025"},"modified":"2026-03-02T17:56:00","modified_gmt":"2026-03-02T22:56:00","slug":"dimension-of-abnormality-part-iii-the-prisoner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.imaginarygardens.org\/index.php\/2026\/03\/04\/dimension-of-abnormality-part-iii-the-prisoner\/","title":{"rendered":"Dimension of Abnormality Part III: The Prisoner"},"content":{"rendered":"
This entry is part 3 of 8 in the series Dimension of Abnormality<\/a><\/div>\n
By Rebecka Jones, Staff Writer
<\/h5>\n\n\n\n
\"A
In the abyss, she saw hope. | Kinosfinds (Pexels) <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Negasi Armani<\/em>. Her father\u2019s name rang through Nova\u2019s mind, transporting her back to Caligo. She remembered the warmth of her home, the memories she made with her father before everything was taken from her; she recalled the nights they would cook their favorite stew together, their intense rounds of Chess that ended with Nova flipping the board over, and them chasing each other in that field. That field\u2026where everything ended.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She hadn\u2019t heard her father\u2019s name come out of someone\u2019s mouth since her exile. Hearing his name on the lips of this Caligean soldier cracked something inside of her\u2014this weak wall around her heart she\u2019d been trying to build all these years to keep her emotions from ruining her ability to fight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But, there she was, her body weakened and her hand falling away from the soldier\u2019s throat, making his shoulders shake as he gasped for air.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her lips began to tremble as she parted them, and she feared she was unable to speak. All she could force out was, \u201cHow do you know that name?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The soldier loomed before her now, looking down at her with those silver eyes. Nova believed she caught a hint of concern, but it vanished in seconds when he spoke. \u201cYour father, Negasi Armani, is critically ill. He does not have any more time left.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Suddenly it was as if the world was crumbling down around them. Everything was shaking, and Nova couldn\u2019t tell if it was her body or if an earthquake had started. She quickly discovered the former was incorrect because the soldier was looking around with wide eyes, grabbing onto a pipe jutting out of the wall. The bodyguards that were backing her up had rounded the corner, trying to stabilize themselves against the wall as they approached.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nova zoned them out, her eyes focused on the soldier before her. She found herself unable to move \u2013 it was as if she was magnetically bound to the metal floor, for she felt electricity crackling in her veins. Her fingertips burned, itching for that power. Her eyes were bright like lasers, lighting the dimmed hallway in purple hues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The space tore between her and the soldier, opening up to a black abyss. The portal spun rapidly, consuming its surroundings and forming a wormhole into an endless nothingness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nova gasped. She hadn\u2019t thought up a place to travel to, and she hadn\u2019t felt the power release from her. She urged the portal to close, but it went rogue, stretching out and completely blocking her from the soldier with its infinite darkness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She heard the guards behind her shouting, but she couldn\u2019t make out their words. All she could do was stare into the void as it slowly began to swallow her up. She couldn\u2019t move. Couldn\u2019t think. Couldn\u2019t breathe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the darkness, she caught a flash of ocean-blue eyes. She heard a deep, familiar voice. \u201cNova?\u201d it asked in Caligean. When she didn\u2019t respond, it asked again, more urgently, \u201cNova?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Father!<\/em> she wanted to scream, but her lips were sealed. She thrashed, trying to unleash herself from whatever kept her from moving and speaking, but to no avail. A silhouette in the distance caught her eye, coated in purple light. She could make out those graying, brown curls. Those freckles peppered on his cheeks. She wanted to scream and cry her lungs out so he could hear her, but it was hopeless.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy little star,\u201d her father\u2019s voice boomed, filled with warmth. \u201cYou\u2019re almost there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then his silhouette is gone. The darkness surrounding her vanished and closed in on itself, taking her back to the dim hallway with the trembling soldier and the frozen guards behind her. Everything had stopped shaking. The electricity inside her disappeared, leaving her weakened and collapsing to the ground.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMiss Nova!\u201d cried one of the guards, rushing to her side as the other aimed his arrow towards the soldier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nova stared at the ground, bewildered and troubled. She couldn\u2019t understand what her father had said or why he had said it. She looked up past the guards and into the soldier\u2019s silver eyes, finding them to be already on her. He had let go of the pole and was rigid before her, his eyes wide with horror. She was filled with unease as she realized she was the one who gave him that look in his eyes, then that feeling turned into terror as she wondered how that portal even formed in the first place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There was so much she experienced in the past twenty minutes that she couldn\u2019t understand, but  what the soldier had said before the portal opened slowly came back to her. He was sent there to look for her. He would have the answers. And she had a mission to complete.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou,\u201d she began hoarsely, \u201care coming with me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

The Chieftess circled the soldier like a vulture, her long robe sweeping alongside her. She was all authority and beauty, taking up the entire room with her royal presence, while the soldier was dirty and wounded, looking meek and small in the Chieftess\u2019 chamber. His uniform was torn on the arms, and his black locks and tanned face were covered in dry, orange mud. Nova noticed that one of his legs was sagging, and she recalled how she first discovered him on the ground. Perhaps he was wounded from the crash.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHe is Caligean, correct?\u201d The Chieftess asked in Aprican while turning to Nova, black eyes sparkling with curiosity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYes,\u201d Nova replied in the same tongue. \u201cThe soldiers on Caligo wear that same symbol.\u201d She gestured toward the symbol embroidered on the chest of the soldier\u2019s uniform, a crescent moon with a sword going through it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cInteresting,\u201d exclaimed the Chieftess, a smirk spreading across her furry face. \u201cAnd you said he was sent to find you? To tell you that your father is on his deathbed?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The reminder of her father\u2019s illness sent chills down Nova\u2019s spine. \u201cCorrect.\u201d She made no mention of the portal or her father\u2019s words, and she had ordered for the two guards who had been with her to not say a word either.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe are to kill him, are we not, Chieftess?\u201d Adira spoke from beside Nova. She had arrived in the Chieftess\u2019 chambers as soon as she caught word that a human was present on Apricus, and she had been pacing before Nova brought the soldier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI would like to question him first,\u201d the Chieftess replied, staring at the soldier. Though he was wounded and surrounded by deadly Alaptera<\/em> guards, he remained still, showing no signs of fear. Nova took in his upright posture and the way he gazed at the noble creature with an unreadable expression. Was he hiding his fear?<\/em> Nova thought. The Chieftess turned to her then, her growing smile making her stomach drop. \u201cHonor me by translating.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nova bowed her head and nodded, fighting to keep her body from trembling under the creature\u2019s gaze. The Chieftess asked him a series of questions, and Nova obeyed in translating. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is your name? <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Amias Cruz. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is your business here? <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Caligean Council is close with Nova\u2019s father, and he wanted to see his daughter because he might not have enough time left. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why should we trust you? <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am simply a messenger. I deliver the message and complete my mission.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

His responses did nothing to calm Nova, and she still held her suspicions. She wanted to interrogate him herself, to figure out what happened on the ship\u2014why she saw and heard her father, and what his words meant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nova could tell Adira had questions burning on her tongue by the way she was shifting her weight back and forth between her feet and how her ears twitched uncontrollably, but the Chieftess seemed satisfied with those three questions. She ordered the guards to detain the soldier until she made her final decision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the guards had left with him, the Chieftess thanked Nova for following orders and dismissed her. Nova was not so easily satisfied like the Chieftess, however.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Nova had her hand outstretched in the field, eyes closed. The power was already at her fingertips as she imagined the dungeons below the Great Tree. Dark tunnels. Stone walls infested with moss. Dim lights from the flickering torches on the walls. The sound of water droplets in the distance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was not a pretty sight to imagine, but it worked. She opened her eyes and saw a portal open before her, the dark cells and stone arches of the dungeons within its cycling purple glow. She couldn\u2019t hold back the smile on her face at her success. She had known she could do it after almost opening up two portals\u2014one to Caligo and one to Lunella\u2014and, most recently, opening up a portal to a black abyss where her father was.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If only I could do that again<\/em>, she thought. Her heart sank. She still didn\u2019t know how she had done it. Hopefully this soldier\u2014Amias Cruz<\/em>\u2014would give her answers. He had better; her father\u2019s life was on the line\u2026 if the soldier was telling the truth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She pushed those thoughts aside and entered the portal. Her surroundings twisted and distorted then cleared when she stepped foot into the dungeons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The fresh air from outside became humid and suffocating. Instead of the natural light from Apricus\u2019 three moons, the light in here was dim and came from the wavering flames of the torches that lined the walls. Their flickering light only illuminated the hallway, leaving the cells in darkness, her mind and the vague light playing tricks on her as she looked through the prison bars into the unknown.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The hair on Nova\u2019s neck prickled, and her heart pounded swiftly against her chest. She knew she wasn\u2019t supposed to be down here because the Chieftess wanted to interrogate the soldier personally\u2014and Adira would probably breathe down her neck for this\u2014but she had to find answers. She had already made two guards swear silence about what happened on the ship, so she didn\u2019t want to convince more guards to let her through. Plus, she had her own way in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She looked from cell to cell, finding all of them empty. She knew Apricus didn\u2019t have many intruders. The last intruder besides the soldier was her. The dungeons were typically a forgotten space, only used for rare occasions such as this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As she came across the last cell in the hall, she heard the sound of shuffling feet from behind the iron bars. Grabbing a torch from the wall and holding it in front of the cell, Nova could see the soldier was pushed up against the cell wall, his head sagging downward and his chest raggedly rising and falling. He looked more disheveled and worn compared to when she had first seen him on the ship. His dark hair was shiny with sweat, the tips drooping over a face crusted with mud. His cheeks were also still covered in mud, but it couldn\u2019t hide how pale his face was. Her eyes scanned down his body until she noticed his left pant leg was stained with blood that trailed all the way to the hem, where fresh blood dripped to the dirt ground.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nova swallowed the bile in her throat. What was she thinking? This was a human. This soldier comes from the creatures who took her from her home and exiled her while they tortured many others of her kind. She shouldn\u2019t be trusting this man with anything. She shouldn\u2019t even be here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But she had<\/em> to know what was going on with her father. She had to figure out how she formed that portal back on the ship and how it connected to him. Despite her hatred for humanity, she felt something was different with this one. She recalled the look in those silver eyes when she asked how he knew her father\u2019s name. Genuine concern.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Without a second thought, she croaked out in Caligean, \u201cI can help you if you help me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His eyes flashed towards hers, narrowing then widening as recognition set in. She couldn\u2019t tell if the glint in his eyes was from fear or relief she wasn\u2019t a guard. Or maybe it was a combination of both.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMiss Armani,\u201d he whispered. Her name on his lips made her shudder, so she crossed her arms to mask the way his voice affected her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTell me everything you know, and I can get you medical help,\u201d she explained. Then, as if it would really help anything, she added, \u201cNo lies.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He blinked at her. Once. Twice. She thought he was going into cardiac arrest from all that blood loss until he finally replied, \u201cI told you everything. I\u2019m here to take you home to your father. Well, I was<\/em> until my ship got shot down.\u201d He paused as if he were recalling a memory. \u201cYou have the ability to open portals, don\u2019t you? Can you get us both back to Caligo?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nova cringed at the reminder of her first attempt to open up a portal to her birth planet, and how her weakness took hold of her and forced her to fail. She chose not to mention that to the soldier. She needed him to answer her honestly. \u201cTell me what happened on the ship. Did you do something to me to make me create that portal? And how did you know my father would be in there?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The soldier raised a brow. \u201cI had nothing to do with that. You did it all by yourself, and, to be frank, it was impressive.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nova narrowed her eyes. She wasn\u2019t buying it. \u201cI said no lying.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI am being entirely honest with you, Miss Armani. I haven\u2019t got a single clue as to what happened back there. I was searching for the exit after the ship crashed, but then I heard you and the soldiers sweeping from room to room. I didn\u2019t want to alert you, but this awful gash on my leg decided to open up even more and cause me a world of pain, so that is why you found me on the ground. I meant no harm. I only wanted to find you. I know nothing else except the fact I am supposed to bring you home to your father. Council\u2019s orders.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She didn\u2019t want to believe him. Shouldn\u2019t<\/em> believe him. But Nova couldn\u2019t see anything except vulnerability in those tired, silver eyes. She knew he was in great pain and needed medical assistance immediately \u2013 there was no telling how much longer he would be down here before the Chieftess came back and did who knows what to him, and Nova couldn\u2019t have him dead if she needed answers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is wrong with me? <\/em>she asked herself as she held her hand out towards the bars. The soldier stared at her, unmoving. But she wasn\u2019t offering her hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beneath him, a portal tore open in the ground. The soldier looked down in awe, but then Nova registered fear in his face as he fell through the portal. He fell from the second portal she formed above her, and she captured him in her arms. Nova was grateful for all that training for her upper-body strength, for this soldier probably weighed several hundreds pounds of muscle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat just\u2014?\u201d He began, turning his head left to right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cInterdimensional travel.\u201d She explained as she began opening up another portal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The soldier looked at her arms wrapped around his back and legs and then pressed his lips into a thin line. \u201cThis is a rather odd predicament.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou shouldn\u2019t be walking with your leg in this condition.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat are we doing, exactly?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEscaping.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then, with the soldier in her arms, Nova stepped through the portal.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This entry is part 3 of 8 in the series Dimension of Abnormality<\/a><\/div>

By Rebecka Jones, Staff Writer Negasi Armani. Her father\u2019s name rang through Nova\u2019s mind, transporting her back to Caligo. She remembered the warmth of her home, the memories she made…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5040,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_EventAllDay":false,"_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":false,"_EventShowMapLink":false,"_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":[],"_EventVenueID":[],"_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":false,"_VenueShowMapLink":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"series":[59],"class_list":["post-5025","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-creative","series-dimensions"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.imaginarygardens.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5025","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.imaginarygardens.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.imaginarygardens.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.imaginarygardens.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.imaginarygardens.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5025"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.imaginarygardens.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5025\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5093,"href":"https:\/\/www.imaginarygardens.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5025\/revisions\/5093"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.imaginarygardens.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5040"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.imaginarygardens.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5025"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.imaginarygardens.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5025"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.imaginarygardens.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5025"},{"taxonomy":"series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.imaginarygardens.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/series?post=5025"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}