Hazil 31

March 31, 2014
Shadowsea

Running out of room here! I have been named by many prisoners a heroine, and I can tell my work isn't done. Now, when Dad can get another tape…
Oh, rats! Its---

Hazil 30

March 30
Shadowsea

Mom and I had a good long mom-daughter chat, in which we sorted out many differences. She still is quiet, but its better than being ignored!
I haven't been able to record much, and I learned why: my tape is almost full! Sorry, but if I end now, I might have enough for tomorrow…

Hazil 29

March 29  2014
Home, at last

I won! I cannot believe it still. They are taking mesures to repeal the law, but I am home at last!
Mother has given me the cold shouler for the twenty point two minutes that we have been home. I will have to talklater.
It is past midnight, so I'd best be going!

Hazil 28

March 28, 2014
High Court

Can't write much- verdict about to be delivered. Crossing my fingers, toes, legs, arms, tongue, and eyes!

Hazil 27

March 27, 2014
Shadowsea prison

Well, at least the stand-in prison master was a bit more lenient then the last one! I now have an appointment at court, and this time it is something to look forward to!
I am certain the judge will rule in my favor. Unless the government has been severely corrupted (highly unlikely), the law is on my side.
Ha! Look at me, talking about court matters yet again! I know that no one listens to this (heavy security), but is one did, I'd be boring them to death. Crazy how a parent in the government affects you!

Hazil 26

March 26, 2014
Shadowsea prison

This might be short- an extra guard has been posted, and if I am not careful, he will here everything I say.
They laughed at my reasons, and beat me. I can barely move now, yet by some miracle this is not broken, and I can talk.
I must try again tomorrow, else both of us will die.

Hazil 25

March 25, 2014
Shadowsea prison

I don't care anymore. I am going to sue the government and the prison, and they can't stop me!
First, the government. They have just went against their own laws to pass this ban! And the Travelling ban was passed the day after we got back, so it would not be against the law when we were gone.
Than, the prison. There is harsh mistreatment of prisoners here! Dad is in the next cell over, and I can hear him groan ever so often because of the beatings he has been given. I am serious now- one more of those, and he dies!

Hazel 24

 March 24, 2014
Shadowsea prison

What have I done wrong? Nothing, I tell you- and yet they imprison me, a child, in their prisons.
Apperently, it is now a law. One cannot Travel without a license. Passed an hour before he left. Another problem is this: Father is sick, an there is no dicine.
He will die if I  don't do something.
Oh, by the way- sorry for the short entry. as I  mentioned earlier, I am in prison.

Hazil 23

Early March 23, 2014
Shadowsea

I can't sleep. The summons was issued for today, and I am seriously freaking out (as the Otherworlders say) here. What if it was for Travelling? It would be terrible. There would be so much evidence against us! I really hope Father's smart enough to lock it up tonight/this morning.
It can't be illegal, though: Travelling is allowed through Anabru's Constitution! If it has been passed, I will challenge it. There is evidence for us as wel!
Wow. I started this cassette diary thingy with the hopes of it being adventure, and it turned out to be of stories from random fourteen-year-old girls freaking out at one AM the day they go to court. Yikes.
If I get out, I'm never going to dream of the Otherworld again. It's caused me so much heartache and pain- I can't stand it anymore.
From now on, it doesn't exist.

Hazil 22

March 22, 2014
Shadowsea

We have been given a court summons. I think it may have to do with Mother's upset-ness, and that worries me.
What could we have done wrong? Travelling has never been illegal! And even if they did find out about the man, we didn't hurt him at all- just beat him to the portal.
But what if Mother is showing guilt, not regular depression? I don't think she would, but it is completely possible, with the influence she has. If she has a say in this, I will… ugh. Why is life so complicated!?
Dad and I have to appear in court soon. What'll we do?

Hazil 21

March 21, 2014
Shadowsea

I caught Mother in her room, sobbing. She had finally seemed to snap! I don't know, but she took one look at me and cried harder.
Wht'a wrong? I am now getting scared, again.
Sorry fof the short post!

Hazil 20

March 20, 2014
Shadowsea

Mother's acting funny. It's not like she's sick or anything- stranger than that.
She won't look Dad and me in the eye. She seems startled when we talk to her, and can only mutter incomprehensibly in response.
My sisters aren't much better. All, except for Maia, refuse to talk to me, so it is extremely lonely for a house with fifteen people, not counting servants.
Maia is the oldest, by the way, and the nicest. I think she really did miss me when I was gone, and I find that sweet. She has no desire to inherit the True Traveller title, but supports Dad. I do not think she has believed in the Otherworld until now.
Something must be wrong. But what?

Hazil 19

March 19, 2014
Thank heavens we're home!

I thought we were dead meat out there! The man caught up (granted) and surprise-attacked us (also granted).
Yeah- two against is unfair, but it would at least go in our direction. We had two helpless people (one a fourteen-year-old girl) against one heavily armed one. Opposite.
Anyway, the portal opened right as it was sprung, and just like the books, Dad and Mr. Stalker grappled for it outside the thing.
Ugh- my head is still sore from getting whacked. My new scientific theory is this: "It never occurs for one to duck until wjatever it is is swinging towards your face at a billion miles an hour, and is now two centimeters from your face."
It is more true than mny people realize.
Well, after the epic battle (which I spent staring dumbly at), we obviously got control and jumped through. It was only too kind to spit us out at the front door of home!
Now, at least I can get a nice, peaceful, non-interesting life.
Can't I?



    

Hazil 18

March 18, 2014
Almost to the portal

We should get home tomorrow- whoo-hoo! I can't wait to get home, and live the rest of my life normally!
Problem? I climbed a tree for lookout, and spotted him a  mile away: never good with a crazy stalker!
On the plus, Dad finally has started paying attention to me. He and I are now hurrying as fast as humanely possible, which is why this entry is very short.

Hazil 17

March 17, 2014
Paraguay Jungle

Well, it's been a day, and we haven't died yet! This, I consider an accomplishment. I saw the man enter with us, but I haven't seen him in several hours. Despite this, he is still a threat.
On a more positive note, Dad says that the portal to Anabru is in here. We will reach it sometime on the nineteenth, I guess. Can't wait to be back home!
I know- weird to be homesick for grey, dreary Anabru, but I am. Seriously. Don't tell anyone (or I'll murder you [Can you murder a book?]!), but a few nights ago, I woke up sobbing because I missed my cat, who just so happens to hate me. Go figure.
I suppose it's a thing with growing up. I'm fourteen- high time to grow mentally. Unfortunatly, that gives yours truly the consequences.
Can't wait to get home!
(If the stalker guy tries to kill us now, I think I'll hit something)

Hazil 16

March 16, 2014
Paraguay

Father has told me of a rainforest trek that we shall make to study this tropical land. It sounds amazing- brightly colored birds, strange monkeys, and snakes three times the length and girth of my arm?- perfect.
But I'm scared, too. This stalker still follows us, and has not given up yet. If we meet him in the forest, no one will hear and/or understand screamed pleas.

On a nicer topic, I have noticed something. Instead of being the person wishing for an Otherworld trip, I find myself just wishing for home. I see it in the way I speak these words: and in the language of Anabru, not any other.
I miss home, but I must carry out my task here. If I cannot speak to Dad soon, we will die- I see it.

Hazil 15

March 15, 2014
Somewhere in Paraguay

Well, I was wrong on landing thing. We are at an archeological dig site, and no one has attacked us yet!
That's what I call a plus…
Anyway, I am recording this from our cabin: a straw hut that you might see in comics here in the Otherworld. It's raining pouring rain right now, and although we closed the shutters, the humidity and a constant drumming can be heard. I have rested all day, and I'm still sticky!
 On a more serious note, the man is here. I'm frighteed now!

Hazil 14

March 14, 2014

Plane to Paraguay

Ohhh, I'm now really nervous! A man got on our flight in the Swiss airport, and now he's on this flight. Trouble comes with stalkers, I say!

Dad hasn't talked much yet. I think he's still mad about the Otherworld visit I have paid. Now, no matter what I tell him, he won't listen!

Especially about the stalker. We land tomorrow, and I think something will happen when we do. 

Hey, I just thought of something incredibly random: what if I'm a Seer? That'd be so cool… 

Oh, rats. My brain is trying to keep occupied rather than go crazy, which I would. 

Part of me doesn't believe the threat, and wants to sleep. The other knows that it is, but it can't be too bad, right? And still another- the smallest- sees how

bad it really could be. Just knowing that part is there frightens me all the more.

Hazil 13

March 13, 2014
Somewhere in the Alps

I found him! He was documenting something by a creek when I found him, so I had to wait, but it didn't matter. I found him!
The only problem? I am in massive trouble. Remember, I wasn't supposed to go, and I had wanted to badly. He thinks that I made up the dream, got a random visiting Iona elf to spirit me over, and went globe-trotting to find him. Wrong on all counts!
Not that anyone besides you will believe it.
Now, he won't listen to anything I say! We have to fly to Paraguay, a South American country next, but I have a sinking feeling that we are walking into a trap. Whenever I try to tell Dad, he ignores it! Seeing as he's mad, it figures, but if I am right, he will have a lot of talking to do!

Hazil 12

March 12, 2014
Liechtenstein (?)

I made it o the hostel, at last, where I will spend the night. The place is packed with people, and I can tell just by looking out the front door!
The hostel is perched at the foot of a beautiful, snow-capped peak, with mountain meadows surrounding.
I have never seen so much green or white in my life! Everything is brown and dead in Anabru thanks to the acid rain. Here, there is obviously no acid rain like that, and for that I am thankful. The world is so much more beautiful!
While I'm here, the hostel-owner's son has it in mind to teach me High German. I am failing miserably.
I only know how to say hello (Guten Tag!), yes (ja), no (nein), and bye (Tschüs!). Not good for an hour of study!
Anyway, they have his contact information. Oh, I hope Dad's okay!

Hazil 11

March 11, 2014
A 'plane'

I am flying in a giant metal bird thing now! I'm heading to that hostel to perhaps find Dad, in what's-it-called. The couple was sad to see me go, but the man at the hostel said that he'd take me in for free.
I hope Dad is there! Sandi says that he could be anywhere by now, but I don't know…
Anyway, I'm landing tomorrow, so keep watching!

Hazil 10

March 10, 2014
Hong Kong

We got a call! Someone in a country called 'Liechtenstein' (most likely spelled it wrong!) called us about Dad, saying that he had seen him in his 'hostel'.
I will never get used to this strange place.
I will not lie! Someone saw him! Someone knows where he is!
I wonder when I can go over there! Sandi (the woman) showed me a map of the world, but it can't be that big! The oceans only look as big as the one I crossed from Shadowsea to Ostbourne. Nothing more than overnight, right?!
I never thought I'd have to say this, but I'm homesick. I miss my sisters, and my mother. I miss the grand old buildings, marred only with the ol' tin roof and occasional acid pockmarks.
Yup- I miss the acid/orange soda rain. Although meant as a 'practical joke' by the first Nameless One, I wonder if he ever thought it would destroy an island and make for some serious cases of homesickness…

Hazil 9

March 9, 2014
Fairview Park

Well, we searched all day for him with no luck. They say that he might not have ended up here, ad the world is much bigger than mine, and I believe them. If Hong Kong is one of the smallest nations in this world, it has to be.
I had a 'photograph' of Dad in my bag, and they helped me turn it into a Lost Poster, written both in English, Cantonese, and the language of Anabru: to let him know that we were telling the truth.
What if we're too late? I cannot stop thinking it. If he has gotten himself into trouble… I can't think it. It's too hard.
I should have stopped him in the first place. My life would be so much easier!
And my last worry: What if the dream was wrong? What if it's only mission was to show me the location of the portal?
I could be stuck here forever.

Hazil 8

March 8, 2014
Somewhere in the Otherworld

Well, I made it! I landed in the Otherworld an hour ago. I'm in this place called 'Kowloon', and it's huge. I knew Anabru cities were small, but compared to this, I can't believe it!
I met this wonderful couple at a 'YMCA' place downtown, and the have offered to let me stay at their home. They took me in one of those 'cars' Dad told me about, to this charming HUGE neighborhood called Fairview Park. I'm not sure if they believed me when I told them why I was here, but they told me that they would help me find him.
This bed is so soft and warm. It won't hurt if I roll over, and get... some... rest.....

Hazil 7

March 7, 2014

Northern Wastes

Bitter out here- I'm not dead yet, but if I don't find this place within two hours, I will be. 

Sorry for the short entry!

Hazil 6

March 6, 2014
On a boat

Well, I'm off! I am currently on a boat sailing for Ostbourne, a town sandwiched by coast and the glacier also known as the Northern Wastes.
Do I regret leaving without telling my family? No. Chances are, they're relieved I'm gone!
It'll only take overnight to get there, but I cannot sleep. There is nothing to do here but think about various random things.
First, Iona. Father says that there is another island in the Otherworld named Iona. Apperently it is in the country known as Scotland! Also, Iona is a girl's name. Stange, but also pretty! Our island-Iona is ruled by a so-called king (dictator) called the Nameless One. In Anabru, whenever we have acid rain, people curse his line. My family abstains, but we still hate the idea of that particular joke.
I cannot stop thinking about Dad, though. What if he's hurt? If I am too late, I will never forgive myself.

Hazil 5

March 5, 2014
Shadowsea
Ugh. Mom is really nervous today, because she has a huge law everyone is voting on. We're the only democracy in the world, as Dad told me, and it's pretty cool. Instead of a dictator-like monarchy (like Iona), or a council (like Lashar), we get an awesome president!
Speaking of Dad, I had a dream about him last night.
(Dad says that in the Otherworld, most dreams are insignificant and strange, unlike the rare dream in Anabru that means something.) He was trudging through a blizzard, in an icy wasteland. Suddenly, the wind dies down, and he is between two walls of solid rock. Coming to a bend, he suddenly disappears.
Dreams about a Traveller don't just mean anything.
See, the location of the portal is a highly kept secret in my family. I only knew it was in the far North.
If my dream showed the exct location of the portal, and it wasn't me just hallucinating (Highly unlikely), there is only one possible explanation:
Dad is in big trouble. And I am the only person that can do anything about it.

Hazil 4

March 4, 2014
Shadowsea

My dad tells me stories from the Otherworld- when he was home, that is. Although now, the stories are more of current events, and experiences experienced, it was fairytales when I was little.
One of these was a stories was called Cinderella. The gist is this: First a little girl's mom dies. Her dad remarries an extremely mean woman with two equally stuck-up girls, then dies/goes on tons of trips (versions vary). When he's gone, the stepmom and stepsisters make her life miserable, and treat her like a servent instead of an heir. Then this whole business about a ball and a prince and some really bad representations of magic: I don't remember it all.
That's what my life is like. My mom and sisters don't understand me at all- they make me do more work because I'm younger (14), which doesn't make sense at all. Shouldn't they have more responsibility?
I just hope my dreams are wrong- for the sake of Father's life and mine. 

Hazil 3

March 3, 2014
Shadowsea

He's gone! He left this morning (without me, I should add!), and won't be back for a week! I'm still mad…
It's weird, though: I woke up with a distinct feeling that something would go wrong during the trip. But what could? He's got the highest technology to see the Otherworld (nanotechnology and the lot), and if anything does, he'd buzz us.
But, heavens to Betsy, what if something does, and he can't buzz us?
Being a Traveller is dangerous. He knows that. I know that. The portal messes with your mind, and much as I love Dad, every time he comes back, he is a tiny bit crazier.
Not that he was crazy in the first place.
The risks don't deter him. He loves the Otherworld, and there's actually a family rumor that he happened upon the portal to Anabru on accident, and was raised in the Otherworld. I don't really believe them, but they certainly would explain a couple things!
I am slightly freaking out now. What if he doesn't survive it, or the mind-messing-upnpermanetly breaks him?
That, my friend, is my biggest fear.

Hazil 2

March 2, 2014
Shadowsea

Okay, about me: I'm the youngest of thirteen daughters, and the only one still obsessed with Dad's travels. I am fourteen, and my full name is Hazil Mari Nightshade. My father took several Otherworld names, and Anabru-ized them. That was probably the first latch of fascination I had on the Otherworld.
My mother, the congresswoman, is very interesting. Although she is a wise and just woman, she doesn't really understand me.  Dad is the only one who does, but because he travels so much, I don't see much of him.
He tells me that, despite tradition, the role of the Traveller will fall to me someday. I wish I could go with him sometime! The Otherworld sounds like an interesting place: filled with seas, and forests, and libraries filled with knowledge surpassing that of the Anabru Government. That, I think, is the most exciting of all the wonders there, even though I have never seen a lake or a forest before.
Dad leaves for another trip tomorrow. It'll last ten days. Oh, I wish he'd take me.

Hazil 1

March 1, 2014
Shadowsea

Hi! My name is Hazil, and I am currently using my favorite birthday present: a so-called tape recorder.
Yeah- I'm using language that's not found pretty much anywhere in Iona or Lashar, but it's perfectly acceptable in Anabru.
I live in Shadowsea, the capital of Anabru. My mother is a congresswoman (with enough influence to be practically the president), and my father is a Traveller.
He makes journeys to the Otherworld, the- duh -other world outside our own. This thing is one of the things he brought back, a little late for my fourteenth birthday. It isn't really high-tech and complicated like the others, but concise and easy to use: press a button and speak into the mic.
Dad visits the Otherworld at least once a month, and stays for at least two weeks. He brings back information, stories, objects, and always a present for us. It's a nice life- comfort, prosperity, adventure- what more could a modern teen ask for?