A barrage of luminescent orange strings spewed out from thin air, slicing through the dirt and targeting the beast like a swarm of swift serpents. Phthonus swerved his right arm into the air, controlling and using the strings to his advantage.
The creature roared, tossing the strings aside like twigs. Phthonus backflipped, slid his foot across the glowing ground, then lunged up to kick the beast's fat green legs.
The beast's slow might sent Phthonus flying. He slammed down near the wanderers' feet, his outfit torn, streaked with ash and crimson blood.
"Damn… it…"
The eclipsing orange flickered and dissipated from the madness of vomit green. Asahi bent toward Phthonus and pulled him up, questioning and asking what in the heavens was happening currently.
"What are you doing?!"
Phthonus wiped blood from his face, lowered his scarf, dug his hands into sand, then sparked his palms in orange fire, glancing at Asahi.
"Fighting the beast. He roused up something that should have been in slumber. The well is now contaminated with toxic greenery, and the source corrupted the village."
As blasts and tremors from the battle sounded behind them, Aletha tied her hair up and unsheathed her sword. Eager and devastated that the tame village transformed into a monstrosity, she turned in the direction of the well and prepared to jolt—
"Wait!" Phthonus interrupted and shouted as debris flew across his face.
"The Well is uncontrollable! Don't go anywhere near it! Some villagers got caught and forced into the ground—
Suddenly, Phthonus was tossed and pierced through the walls, forcing it to crumble and collapse on his legs. He shrieked in pain, felt blood seeping through the edges of the rocks, and screamed to the wanderers.
"GET OUT OF THERE!"
The beast stomped toward the wanderers, eyes shrouded in crimson fog. Slime coated its crooked green skin as it tackled the two, pinning them to the ground.
Pinned and choking on toxic fumes, the wanderers' vision flickered as their own blades pressed to their skin.
"I can't…."
A massive purple bolt struck the beast, causing it to trip, fumble, and collapse onto a smoldering building. Rocks caved in from its shape, toppling and suffocating his foot. It roared and screamed in pain.
"GROOOOOAAAAHHH!"
Green essence spewed over its elbows, and its eyes were almost gouged out from the swift strikes.
The wanderers were immediately pulled out from the pile, dragged behind a wooden building still left untouched, and steadily placed on the ground.
Abruptly, a green luminance hovered over their chests; their wounds rapidly closed, their white essence flew back into their bodies, and the dull coating on their eyes glistened and shattered apart.
Fire haze blocked their view of the healer, who quickly rushed out and leaped at the beast.
Asahi and Aletha scratched their heads and muttered.
"Who was that?"
(RUMBLE!)
The wanderers tilted back to the battle.
A silhouette flashed from the wreckage—a pale figure with shredded clothes and light purple eyes, illuminated by flame.
Her long hair covered her eyes as she gritted her teeth, trembling and lifting her hand.
The wanderers' eyes widened as they saw her crawl and drag her injured arms off the floor.
"DRIMI?!"
She tried to balance herself on the ground. Her eyes widened, noticing the wanderers' presence was near. With a lack of strength, Drimi tremblingly tilted her head to the wanderers and gave a thumbs up with a crooked smile. She called out to them in a strained tone.
"Just stay there… I… will handle… this…."
(Thump)
(Thump)
(Thump)
Hearing the beast stomp closer to her, she slowly turned around and pierced her eyes through the beast. She clenched her fists, snarled, and charged toward it with all the force she had. Before the tip of her knuckles skimmed over the green skin of the beast, her vision flashed to white.
* * * * * * * *
"Wow, Drimi, your tiny little hands DO know how to steer the ship! Haha, well done, daughter!"
A memory flashed in her mind.
She was small, with short hair and dark eyes. Drimi was so young she could barely walk. Her body was grasped and pulled up by a tall man whose height was so tall that Drimi couldn't see his face from eye level.
"Almost there..."
He slowly placed Drimi's tingly little fingers around the steering wheel, turned his head forward, and grasped onto the edges of the wooden wheel slightly beneath Drimi's hands.
Surrounding them was a vast azure sea with waves rocking the ship, reflecting the clear blue sky, and revealing beautiful sea creatures.
A fresh breeze blew across the scintillating surface, blowing against both their faces, with the smell of saltwater tingling their nostrils.
Drimi's face shone with awe as she felt the ship turn from her sudden movements on the steering wheel. Of course, she couldn't truly steer the wheel; her father helped her by turning by himself.
However, that wouldn't ruin the moment as Drimi still believed she steered the boat. As the sizeable dark ship continued to coast across the extensive waters, Drimi's father carefully placed her back down on the floor and smiled.
"Maybe one day, when you're older, maybe you can truly steer the ship?"
The memory faded, with Drimi happily jumping up and down out of joy and excitement after 'steering' the ship. The father silently stared into the ocean, sighed, and turned to Drimi.
"If only your mother were here to see you do this..."
The ambiance of the waves sounded over her ears; Drimi's father pulled her back up and allowed Drimi to continue 'steering the wheel.'
. . .
A young girl with long dark hair, glistening purple eyes, an eye patch, and a thick brown sailor suit replaced the young child. Her hair was longer, her height was taller. It was still Drimi, but she looked older, fifteen years of age, staring at the tropical seas.
"Hm! Hm-hm-hm!"
She whistled and hummed a catchy tune, swayed her long dark hair, and wrapped her palms over the steering wheel.
"My, the sea is quite rough. I still can't believe I'm steering the ship!"
The sun beamed over her head, with the crew working and washing the decks behind her. While the wind whistled across the beaming wooden decks, Drimi heard the sound of shoes slipping across the floor.
(Creak)
The rest of the crew panicked.
"HUH?!"
Drimi swiftly tilted behind and darted her eyes toward the deck. She captured a glimpse of a thin man tripping over a tool, slowly sliding over the edges of the rocking ship.
She hurriedly rushed down the creaking wooden stairs, took heavy, steep breaths, and tightly grasped onto the man's hand. His legs dangled over the water, nearly about to fall.
"!!!"
(Creak! BWAM!)
Drimi's father, who looked slightly older, barged through the door in a panic, seeing if everything was fine. Racing across the deck, he halted himself and wiped the sweat of relief as he saw his daughter saving one of his sailors.
"What the--?!"
Drimi hastily pushed the sailor away from the edges, hid her torn clothing, and nervously wiped the sweat off her face. She tremblingly hollered at her father.
"Papa, it's fine!"
His face didn't look too pleased. Approaching and aggressively stomping across the floor, Drimi covered her mouth, closed her eyes, and flinched. She was scared that she would be in trouble.
However, instead of punishment, Drimi's father…
"Heh heh!"
… patted his daughter's head with a smile on his face. Drimi scratched her head and heard the other sailor's laugh. She turned to her father and asked.
"What's going on?"
"Don't worry, sweetheart, what you did there was one step closer to becoming a captain! Every leader must care for their followers before themselves!"
Drimi turned her head, and her face glowed red in embarrassment. She pulled her father's arm and mumbled.
"Why are they laughing?"
The father shook his head and grabbed his captain's hat. He slowly pulled it off his head and placed it on Drimi's.
"They're not laughing at you; they're laughin' with you. You will make a prideful captain if you keep this up, Drimi!"
Suddenly, the sailors applauded and cheered around Drimi, encouraging her and amplifying her spirits. She slowly nodded her head, grabbed a telescope from a rocking table, and sprinted up the stairs.
As the sailors cheered and whistled for Drimi, she stood proudly behind the steering wheel, turned to the glistening sea of blue, raised her telescope to the skies, and shouted in a cheerful tone.
"Let's sail all the way to the shores of Obrus! Let's go across the seas and gather loot! Who's with me!"
"Aiye, aiye, Captain Drimi!"
Beneath the sun, smiling brightly and clasping onto the steering wheel, Drimi cruised the ship as if she were a young captain. Her father nodded his head and smiled, proud of his daughter's rapid growth.
"There's my daughter!"
Her figure shifted to an even taller version, with long, dark hair and a towering height. She looked to be more of a young woman rather than a child. She even still had her father's captain's hat on her head.
Surrounding the ship, Drimi silently peered through her telescope and saw that the shores were covered in thick coats of ice, swirling snowstorms, and chilly fog. Gargantuan glaciers drifted over the horizon, clouds flew in all directions, and a massive silhouette of arctic land stood behind a stream of snowy mist.
"My... isn't the wind a little chilly today, isn't it?"
As the ship sailed and cruised over the cold expanse of nearly freezing water, Drimi's round purple eyes widened, noticing that there was an even taller shape of land seeming to have pierced through both the clouds and the stars.
Stunned with excitement, Drimi sprinted down the wooden stairs, raced to the captain's room, and knocked on the door, hollering.
"Papa! Come outside! I think I found the mountain!"
"WHAT?!"
Loud sounds of scrambling and shuffling sounded out from the veins of the door. It swiftly creaked open, revealing an even older father scurrying across the deck, steadily walking up the stairs.
"Where?!"
Drimi pointed her arm toward a towering silhouette in the distance, seeming to have overlooked everything. The shores of the Arctic region were expansive, stretching for nearly two kilometers. The father patted Drimi's back, grinned, and rubbed his gray beard.
"Man, isn't she a beauty? The greatest and largest mountain in Gincad, in the nation of Astait. I… forgot its name--
"Isn't the name… Brittlefrost Peak?"
He slowly rubbed his head and lightly grinned.
"Why… yes… of course. Drimi, I'm getting old. There's so much I have done for the world, my body is degrading, and life isn't just what it used to be."
Drimi slowly nodded her head, released a deep sigh, and patted her father's back.
"Papa, don't say that. Come on. You were always saying how you ALWAYS wanted to visit the shores of Astait. And now look at us, we have arrived, and I have sailed the ship on my own. Let's just plant the flag and be proud that we made it through the dangerous parts of the shores."
Her father slowly nodded his head and grabbed a bottle of green liquid. From his pouch, he grabbed a curly patisserie, and quickly, he dug his teeth through it and devoured the treat. He then pulled out his bottle and poured its contents into his mouth. The moment he gulped it, he sprang up with energy and asked Drimi.
"Alright, I'm awake. Let's mark our anchor once we reach that second glacier over there."
Drimi felt bad that her father had to depend on stimulants to act like his usual self. It pained her inside, yet she kept her feelings secret, despite having a bad thought about it.
As the ship slowly approached the marking point of the second glacier, Drimi and her father rushed toward the anchor and tossed it through the deep, dark water.
"Prepare the rowboat!"
Drimi rushed to the edges of the ship and pulled the large wooden rowboat by using a lever. They sailed off toward the edges of the sandbar and approached the shallows of the shores of the Arctic region. The chilly winds whistled and blew on their hair and ears.
"Alright."
Both of them steadily stepped off the small wooden boat and plunged their legs through the frigid water. Luckily, the massive sandbar was only ankle-deep for Drimi and her father. The light blue-tinted water was crystal clear, revealing the dead plants and fish lying peacefully on the surface, like transparent glass.
They stared silently at the beautiful, towering cliffs blanketed in thin ice and thick snow. Among the expansive, snow-white shores was a cluster of solid, stagnant, curved icicle bodies, shaped like a tilted-down crescent. They spread across the shores and cliffs, like a herd of gargantuan, rock serpents.
The swirling, bleached blizzards, combined with the mixture of shallow, frigid water that stung their feet like needles, made Drimi and her father have second thoughts.
Though questioning if they should return, Drimi realized that she was too far from their rowboat. So, she pulled out their 'expedition flag,' a pinpoint used to commemorate their achievement on traveling toward the harsher lands of the world, and dug it through the halfway point marked on the vast arctic shores of Astait. Drimi brushed snow off her hands and muttered.
"It seems that this nation's weather is at its worst."
Her father took two steps forward. Above his head, he saw a towering triangular-shaped mountain overshadowing a massive expanse of snowy cliffs and serpent-shaped icicle sculptures.
He was appalled, filled with beautiful thoughts stirring inside his mind, as the sun's rays leaked onto his chin.
Although his face couldn't be seen, it was clear that he was smiling. He faintly whispered as he slowly tilted upward toward the cyan-glow atop the peak.
"Such a wondrous and fascinating sight. It's shocking that even after a long period of everlasting winters in Gincad, the only ice that remains… is located right here. The weather patterns and magnetic fields from the outskirts of Gincad shift the tides and even unleash random outbursts that sweep and contaminate the lands if one were to interfere with its forces. However, for now… the only harsh nature is located in Astait."
Drimi raised her eyebrow and asked with a confused tone.
"Father, what are you rambling about?"
"N-Nothing, sweetie. It was just…."
An almost quiet chilly breeze ran up through his pants up to his spine.
"Daughter, if only you were to know the dark happenings that occurred here. Such cold-blooded… monsters in thirst for smudges of dominance, they were lucky that I was there to protect and make the nation flourish…
He deeply sighed.
"But that was long ago."
. . .
The chilly breeze whistled. It sounded as if thousands of cries were reverberating within the atmosphere. Haunting cries chilled and threatened Drimi's father. He quickly turned toward the boat and hastily dragged his feet across the frigid waters.
"We… should get out of here. I feel the frost biting my fingers."
Drimi stepped back, hastily nodded, and covered herself with a thick coating of soft cotton-like material. Even she, the mighty, was cold and restless.
What remained of their brief expedition was the glorious flag, made of dark, solid platinum, finished with a topping of smooth, lavender-colored fabric. It stood there and waved even after Drimi and her father parted and sailed off from the shore.
. . .
It wouldn't be long before she comes back. The skies were a lot clearer, showered with bright sunlight reflecting the blinding white snow; however, the haunting winds still remained, and the approaching blizzard was creeping around the corner.
Drimi's flag, the one that had been planted almost fifteen years ago, still stood and waved toward the vast expanse of the deep blue ocean, proudly coated in a hint of light blue that scattered over at the bottom of its pole.
The snow-coated cliffs seemed to have eroded, and a few serpent-shaped icicle formations collapsed onto the shores.
"HELP! ANYONE!"
A young girl wearing a white dress tattered in crimson sprinted across the snowy fields and raced down a steep snowy slope. The sounds of gunshots, muzzles, and even explosives echoed over the hollow, carved-in cliffs, as if a battle was playing out.
Her breaths were rushed. Her eyes trembled. Her heart raced swiftly.
She cried out again as her silhouette pierced through the thick wall of icy fog.
"P-PLEASE! I… please…"
Out of hopelessness, as she heard the distant roars of the rushing shores, she slowly wiped a tear and sprinted down the last pathway she knew. Her whimpering cries sounded over the empty cliffs. No one was there. Not even a single creature seemed to prey upon these lands.
She bent her knees, turned toward the flaky snow, and wept with pain stinging in her throat.
"It wasn't my fault. I don't understand the envy of my followers. What did I do wrong to lead our nation to anarchy? Why did my family abandon me and give me control of the nation? They knew I never wanted control, yet they still… left me! W…Why… I don't understand…."
A tear slid down her rosy cheeks, eventually seeping onto her long platinum hair. Her dull pink eyes stared toward the reflection of the dark blue water. Her leg grew numb as if she wanted to become one with the environment.
The roars of the winds increased, shivering and splintering her soft skin into a hardening shell. Paralyzed, she turned toward the sky and smiled, accepting that this fate was a gift for her.
However, standing near the edges of the left cliff, distant and furthest from the girl's sight, was a short platinum-haired boy with cyan eyes, smirking and smiling.
"Finally, we can get that horrible mistake away from our precious family."
Then, a tall man with long platinum hair patted the boy and chuckled.
"I knew she wouldn't handle the pressure. She was always avoiding social life, and we knew that she wasn't REALLY part of the family. If anything, SHE was the leech who drained our reputation. I don't want our family to rot with the other six rulers' other decrepit, repugnant fools. I'd rather let her die than for our royal status to vanish."
His words were anything but far from the truth. The girl's family was a corrupt family, with evil ways and inhumane views on life, all in keeping their status at bay. They fed her, educated her, and let her grow for ten years. All for it to collapse after her mother spat on her face and called her 'unworthy.'
It was an accident that she embarrassed their nation in front of the other rulers of Gincad.
As the father silently watched their daughter's tears freeze, he slowly stepped back and walked away from the edge of the cliff.
"Father, where are you going?"
"She doesn't deserve to have witnesses to her death. Come on, son, let's leave her be."
Even the brother felt horrible for walking away. Although his mind was corrupted, just like his parents', he couldn't help but silently cry inside, remembering all the times they had played together while growing up. He tried to hide his tears and sniffles so painfully that it made his body sting and crawl from the thoughts.
. . .
Meanwhile, as the roaring winds of the blizzard slowly consumed the girl's body, rushing footsteps sounded from a distance. She sniffled, her face was blistered in a pale blue, and her tears froze over her skin.
She felt weak, powerless, and unworthy in the world. Despite being in extreme pain, the girl still had a slight smile on her face while quietly humming and whispering a tune to her demise.
"I'm sorry… but I still love you. Even if I'm not with you, my heart will always be whole…
As the girl continued singing, the rushing footsteps, followed by the jangling of metal gadgets, gradually grew louder and closer to the girl. The snow roared and cried as if it was angry at the girl's decision; however, that didn't stop the distant figure, as they pushed through the deafening blizzard as if it was just soft trickles of rain.
"I know that I was abandoned, and you saved me. Cherished, loved me. I just don't understand--
(Thump)
The girl's eyes widened. Her face was tilted upward, almost about to freeze completely. The unrecognizable, slim figure hastily carried the freezing girl on her back and rushed across the shore as swiftly as possible, with her body warmth slightly stopping the freeze. Suddenly, the girl's sight flashed to darkness, and she fainted.
. . .
Not much later, the girl opened her eyes and saw herself lying against a rowboat, with the mysterious individual rowing as fast as she could; sweat and tears slid down their face. Reaching the warm light from a ship shrouded in fog, the mysterious person whispered faintly to the girl as she was cradled in her lap.
"You're going to be fine. T..Trust… me."
The girl closed her eyes and felt the ice latched on her skin, slightly thawed from the warmth of the woman's legs. She smiled and tremblingly answered.
"O…kay…"
* * *
At last, hearing the muffled sounds from outside the window, the girl peacefully awakened against a wall, near the warmth of a small, lit fire. Her hands were moistened from thawing ice, her eyes glimmered from life surging back to her, and her long platinum hair rested softly against her back, like a soft pillow.
"Are you alright?"
It was a soft, deep, feminine voice. A pleasant, soothing, yet feral voice.
"I'm… not much of an experienced caretaker, so please don't get the wrong idea. I was just on my way back to retrieve my flag, but then I saw you and… I couldn't afford to see you like that. No one could."
Her long dark hair rested near the warm orange glow of the fire, illuminating and revealing her appearance to the girl. The girl bit her lip and remained silent, unsure of the stranger's reasoning for saving her.
The girl didn't trust her because of the woman's appearance; however, her thoughts shifted completely when the woman whispered and covered her with a soft blanket.
"My father always told me that no matter who the person was, they could change if they were rescued. A good captain never lets anyone, not even their sailors, be abandoned."
The woman slowly rubs her soft palms against the girl's head and smiles.
"I don't know what happened out there, but if it's a better life that you want, it's one that you will receive."
The girl slowly tilted her head toward the woman and saw her vivid purple eyes, her long, silky, dark hair, and her smooth, fair skin, all standing out against her hair. A rare sight was beheld before the girl; it was a strong-looking, independent, and fierce-looking woman, smiling at her with a loving look.
The girl tremblingly grinned back at her, falling into disbelief that she was now finally feeling safe. At last, after all those painful years in her past, the girl can now finally feel comfortable with a person, instead of fearing them.
The person, the woman who saved this girl…
"If you want, you can call me Drimi."
By the time Drimi stopped, unable to believe what she was doing, and smiled back at the girl, the girl herself replied with her sweet, quiet voice.
"My name is… Sally."