The morning sunlight shone on their faces, and a calm silence entered the room. He tilted his head, seeing Aletha on the other side of the space.
Sunlight bathed Aletha's face in gold. She yawned, stretching her arms high, fingers spreading to the ceiling. Suddenly, urgency crashed over her. Caution was a luxury they could no longer afford; they had to save Akwan.
Their eyes widened. They locked in a silent pact as the room's scent tingled with anticipation. In a heartbeat, urgency surged between them. Asahi's voice broke the hush.
"We must find Akwan." He said, clenching his fists. "Before something happens to him."
Just as they braced to dash out, Sadiki burst through the door, clutching a bag of steaming croissants, the buttery aroma curling around his fingers like a spell.
"I have analyzed the situation," Sadiki said, dropping the bag onto the floor. "In order to save Akwan, we have to venture northward and enter the ruins."
"Ruins?" Asahi asked, turning to Sadiki as their gazes locked seriously. "Where are they?"
Aletha reached into her bag, pulled out her map, and spread it wide on the table for everyone to see.
"Oh?"
Asahi and Aletha watched Sadiki and Belial plot their route. Sadiki circled the destination with erasable ink, sketching the tangled terrain.
"We shall start our trip here…" Sadiki said as he zoomed the map inward. "From there, it will just be us and monsters of The Ending. They will attack from the north and east."
Belial stepped in, memories of Akwan buried deep in his mind. "If we must run to the core of the ruins, then we have to do it cautiously."
As Asahi and Aletha nodded, understanding Sadiki's plan, they rolled up the map. Sadiki tossed croissants to the group; Asahi devoured his in a heartbeat, while Aletha battled the sticky, sweet mess clinging to her fingers.
"If it makes you feel better…" Sadiki said, eating one of the pastries. "Take this. Treat this as a reward for fending off the Ending yesterday."
With pastries in hand and the magical map as their guide, they stepped boldly into the unknown. Meanwhile, Belial darted through winding corridors, searching for the nurse to warn Drimi and the others of their imminent journey.
Belial flung himself at the door, pulling Sadiki and the others into the blaze of morning. His green eyes blazed with urgency. His mind was fixed on Akwan's fate.
"If we were just this close to Akwan…" He said, clenching his fists and squinting at the blue firmament. "Then perhaps we would have saved him."
As they approached the village's entrance, Belial snatched the map, seeing the sign with the words Welcome to Milmoor Village plastered on the wood above.
"This is as far as we can get from the village; what lies ahead is filled with danger and treachery," Belial said as he prepared his bow. "I suggest you unsheathe your swords. If we want to retrieve Akwan, we must do it efficiently.
Asahi and Aletha nodded, then started down the dirt pathway toward a circle of rocks. Just before they left, the nurse hurried over to Belial and called out for his attention.
"There has been lots of activity in the old ruins down that cliff." She said, "I suggest taking that stream."
As the wanderers looked at each other and back, the nurse revealed.
"Please find out who stole the crops here. I heard one adventurer say they stole crops and scattered it over the forest for the wolves to chew."
After one last wave, she bowed her head and implored.
"Please be careful."
. . .
"So tell me, Asahi, Aletha. What exactly are you two?"
The question lingered, echoing through moss-draped ruins half-swallowed by the earth. Sadiki waited, but the wanderers' silence spoke louder than words…
"We are owners of this world."
"Owners?" Sadiki retraced the words with a foul step. "You two are the owners of this world? The world of Gincad?"
Wind tugged at their shimmering white hair. Asahi and Aletha nodded silently to Sadiki. Though the grip of Paxon, the Ruler of The Forgotten, haunted their thoughts, memories of a radiant white castle and floating mountains shimmered in their minds.
"We used to be Sovereigns of the Kingdom of Rulers," Asahi said, pushing his white cape to the side. "The Kingdom of Rulers, Cleira, was a gathering place for all who wield and 'rule' a certain element. So, for example, the Ruler of Snow would reside in one of the many rooms and buildings in the imperious white city. The Ruler of Dirt controlled the lesser side of Rulers, at the bottom."
Aletha added, reaching a crevice earthed into the soil.
"It was nothing short of a glorious and flourishing kingdom," Aletha said, tilting her head up to the sky. "A Kingdom of Rulers isn't bound for destruction. And yet…"
They struggled to shake the memory of their nation's fall. Yet, when the past surfaced, it was always the faces of love and joy, ripped away by the merciless Engulfing Light.
"It was destroyed," Asahi said coldly. "Withered, uprooted, and crushed with no renown."
Before more could be said, the wanderers arrived at the halfway point, seeing a river pass by.
Sunlight spilled through scattered clouds, lighting their path with blue and silver as they walked.
They pulled out their magical map and traced their fingertips northward, following a blue line curving down the page like dewdrops.
Sadiki studied the map while Belial watched for monsters. The twisting landscape's meaning slowly became clear.
"So…. where do we go?" Aletha asked as she felt the sun beating down on her head.
"Far, near the pond near that divot," Sadiki said as their voices resounded over the cliff.
They descended a natural ramp past jagged rocks and old wooden huts. Forgotten outposts stood, untouched by time.
On their way, they met with jumping slimes that bounced back and forth. After remembering Akwan's voice regarding the price of the slime substance, they shoved it into their Soul Storage and proceeded.
A heavy somberness settled over the group. The air was thick with sorrow they dared not voice.
Mist trailed along the ground, and wilted flowers clung to the dry earth. Daylight faded beneath weak sunlight.
Odd fungi zigzagged toward slender trees arching over the divot.
When they closed their eyes, visions of towering, lush mountains and floating citadels shimmered before them.
Slowly, faint echoes of the past drifted away like leaves on a stream, slipping by without pause. As the vision faded, Belial turned to the two, curiosity flickering in his eyes.
"Nothing."
Belial paused but kept walking. Aletha felt unease rise inside as she saw tall statues crumbling in the divot. She reminded herself this was for—
"Akwan," Aletha said, clenching her fists in rage. "This is for Akwan."
They reached the ruins' edge. Ruined structures loomed as streams and ponds gathered in the shadowy forest.
As they arrived at the entrance of the ruins, the two saw scorched grass and trees expanding. Then, they met with a flower. Its petals were covered in a goopy black while its core shimmered like a star.
They stared in silence, noticing how the flower's glow echoed the colors of Aletha and Asahi's clothing. But as a hand reached for its stem, it vanished into shimmering essence, leaving only white petals behind.
Belial caught on and threw an arrow straight at the flower. Quickly, it dissipated like a balloon losing air.
Then, Sadiki pointed at something.
"Over here. I found the entrance."
At first, they thought the entrance was the pond and the divot, but now, upon closer inspection, it seemed not to be the case. It was only outside.
They found a giant underground city. Ancient shapes were carved on stone walls, with boxes, shelves, and books scattered in a grand mess.
Then, as they descended deeper into the crevice wedged in the earth, writings of the wanderers' languages were written.
"Cathedral of Cleira."
What followed this grand reveal was a glowing inscription caked in lettering foreign to the wanderers.
"The two owners of this world shall return…." Sadiki retraced with faint mumbles. "And all souls shall rest. And they shall wander the entire world."
"Wait…" Belial said, scratching the back of his head. "This is one of the many prophecies of Alaunus!? What is it doing here in this corner of the world?"
"Alaunus?" Asahi and Aletha said in unison. There it was, that name again, plastered deep on the edges of their minds.
"If anything, now that there is no danger here…" Sadiki said as he clutched onto his blade. "Belial, now would be a great time for you to explain who she is. The wanderers must know. It even says in the prophecies back in Dreamtoe Forest that there would be a soon-coming king to reclaim the land."
Awestruck by these revelations, Asahi and Aletha leaned in, curiosity burning as they wondered about the mysterious Alaunus.