The midday sun illuminates a section of the underground room. Daichi's eyes slowly opened.
Still leaning against the wall as he's sitting on the ground. His eyes hazed, struggling to focus. Then he finally sat up properly.
Looking around at Rhea's space, making out the drawings and notes on the walls. And then he realized. Rhea's gone.
He stands up fast. Staggering as his eyes blurred more, and then slowly focusing.
She's...not here.
Looking around. He's confused. But he saw the bow on the desk she sat on the night before. That same strange bow she picked up from the village. He tried to pick it up but a sharp pain ran through his hand the second he touched it. Waking him up properly.
OW...what the hell?!
How can she hold it, but I can't.
He thought to himself. Looking at the bow as it lies on the desk.
Never mind that. Where did she go...
He walked over to the entrance as he noticed the trap door was open.
It's...open.
Could that mean she's nearby?.
He climbed out. His eyes hurt from the sudden exposure to the sunlight. His eyes slowly adjust as he's surprised by the beautiful environment. Taking a deep breath. But started coughing as he exhaled. His lungs were still damaged from all the intoxicated air he inhaled.
Wow.
Just perfect.
Closing the door. He sat next to it. Waiting for Rhea. Looking around as he noticed the sun's placement.
It almost feels like it's the middle of the day.
Wait...
He checks his pockets quickly for his phone. And to his surprise, It's there. Taking it out hastily and trying to turn it on he noticed all the new cracks it had on it. But before long, his it powered on.
YESS!!
As soon as it turned on, a photo he took with Mori greeted him as the phone's wallpaper. He paused, looking at the photo as if he's never seen it before.
"My boy..."
He said softly. His eyes glued to the phone. Remembering the day he took that photo. The time, the place. Everything. The memory hits him like a speed train.
"Dad!! Dad!!"
"Look at this cool stick I found!!"
"I told you not everything's bad because the world's decaying"
Mori declared, Enthusiastic about the stick he found, and trying to prove a point with it.
"Yeah yeah a stick doesn't change the fact that there's almost no natural green life anywhere."
Daichi responded as he laughed slightly.
"come here for a sec. And bring that cool stick with you."
He called out to Mori. Who walked over to him.
"Oh so now you wanna steal it huh. I thought it wasn't cool enough."
Mori said teasingly. As Daichi ruffled his hair and took a selfie of them both.
"Oh shut it you."
Daichi playfully responded. Both of them were laughing.
His little bubble of memory shattered. As tears splattered against the phone's screen.
"You gave a dying world a lot of life...Y'know kid"
Daichi said to himself. tears slowly flowing down his face.
"What's that?" A familiar voice interrupting the moment. Startling Daichi as he looked up. and saw Rhea.
"When did you..."
"It's a phone."
Daichi said. Wiping away his tears. Noticing the three creatures she came back with. But two were...dead. But the alive one was kicking around and trying its best to escape.
"A phone?."
"Is that what humans from earth used to protect themselves?"
"And why were you crying?"
Rhea looked at him with discomfort, but she was genuinely curious. While Daichi was puzzled.
"No, it's like a communication device, and what the hell are those things?"
Looks like mutated rabbits that got a steroids shot...
Rhea looks into the forest, then throws down the two dead creatures.
"They're sprinters."
"And this one" She held the alive one toward Daichi as she looked back at him. "Is how you'll get your life-fog activated and your first stage of Vhis."
She said softly. The sprinter kicked and flailed around in her hand as she held it by its neck.
She wants me to...Kill it?.
But. It's...It's fighting to escape.
"Why do I have to kill it?. Isn't there any other way I can get this life-fog stuff activated?..."
He asked. Feeling sympathetic toward the poor thing.
"Well. You could either kill an animal for positive life-fog and Vhis output. Or a person for negative life-fog and Vhis output. Which is a lot more destructive. But you need one of the two to survive anywhere in Astheria."
"Even in passive regions."
Rhea said softly. Walking over to the trap door. Opening it and throwing the alive sprinter down into the underground room.
"Kill it before I'm back. I'm gonna look for drinkable water."
She said as she walked off. Leaving Daichi confused. And disturbed from the two dead sprinters in front of him, and the alive one down in the underground room.
Weren't we supposed to be heading to Nervaal today.
Well she did say day break. And somehow I slept all the way to noon.
And she even brought back whatever the hell these things are.
He thought to himself. But his thoughts were interrupted from all the noise coming from inside Rhea's underground room.
Walking over to the trap door. He looked down into the room.
WHOOSH
THUD.
WHOOSH
THUD.
WHOOSH
THUD.
The sprinter was dashing around the room. Using the wall as leverage to increase its speed as it bounced from wall to wall. Occasionally crashing against it. But still trying to escape.
Daichi's eyes widened. Surprised at how fast it's moving around the room.
"W-What the hell?!"
"How am I supposed to kill that thing?"
He asked himself. Clearly frustrated. He stands up and looks around. Tucking his phone in his pocket.
"Rhea's gonna kill me if that thing destroys down there before I kill it. What do I do!"
His mind raced. Looking around for anything. Then he spots it. A stick. He ran over and picked it up. But there's not much it can do alone. So he starts scanning the surroundings for something more. And as he searched, he found a rock and used vines to tie it to the stick.
"AHA!!. A WEAPON!!"
He said triumphantly. Walking over to the trap door and looking down. Noticing the noise has stopped.
Did it use up all its energy?
He mused as he looked down into the room. Not seeing the sprinter or where it could be.
His curiosity got the better of him. So he started climbing down, with his rock-on-a-stick in hand.
THUD
He jumped the rest of the way down. But as his feet touched the ground, he heard shuffling for a second. He turned around.
WHOOSH.
The bottom of the sprinter's feet were only inches away from his face.
THUD!!.
The back of his head slammed into the wall after the sprinter kicked him in the face. His teeth gritted while blood ran from his nose.
WHOOSH
THUD.
WHOOSH
THUD.
The sprinter started bouncing around the walls fast again. Daichi stood up straight. Staggering as he tried to see it or recognize a pattern to its movement.
What the hell is this thing?
He wiped the blood from his nose with the back of his hand. Then he heard it.
THUD
WHOOSH!!
He looked up quickly. Sensing another attack. But he only saw the bottom of the sprinter's feet again.
THUD!!!
The back of his head slammed into the wall again, creating a small crater in the wall painted with his blood. This time, even harder than the first. His warm blood trickled down the back of his neck.
What the hell. This thing's gonna kill me!
His thoughts raced, and his heart thumped in his chest. While the sprinter went back to bouncing around the walls fast. But Daichi's eyes tracked it. Slowly, but they were catching up.
Then his signal came again.
THUD
WHOOSH!!!
Daichi dodged after predicting the impact.
THUD!!!
The sprinter crashed into the wall. Smashing the stone like glass as dust engulfed the area. But before it even moved. Daichi's hands were raised with his weapon.
Got you now, you little piece of shit!.
He swung his weapon through the dust fast!.
THUMP!!
SPLAT!
The sprinter's body hit the ground. It's blood splashed onto Daichi's shoes. His hands went limp as he leaned on the wall. Catching his breath while the dust cleared.
Did she really kill two of these things and capture one?!.
This thing was out for my life.
He thought to himself. Dropping his weapon as he walked over to the sprinter's body. Bending down to it and looking at it.
"What...are you?"
He wondered. But abruptly remembering the whole death process as he stumbled back. Not wanting to be close to the sprinter. But also remembering what happened to Rhea when she absorbed life-fog.
He looked at the sprinter. waiting, but still creating distance until he's on the other side of the room.
White-green mist began rising from the sprinter. But there wasn't any cracking, or deformation.
It's not...deforming.
Wait. So does that mean it's not dead?.
His confusion was unbearable. And his thoughts weren't connecting any dots.
But it's life-fog. It's right there.
He said. Looking at the mist gathering above it.
The white-green mist flew at him. His eyes widened. But there wasn't anything he could do.
It crashed against him. His teeth gritted as he fell to the ground.
NGHHH!!
AGHH!!!
He rolled and thrashed on the ground. His eyes and mouth bled. And he felt as if every muscle and nerve in his body was thrown into a shredder while he could feel every tear, rip and slice.
Eight minutes went by of pure agony. Hearing incoherent voices. Seeing flashing images of battles. Remembering moments he's never lived. And then it happened. The whole forest went silent. And the room was quickly engulfed in black mist.
Daichi's pain subsided as he felt a presence. His hands trembled, and his eyes scanned the darkness to see something. Someone. Anything.
But all he saw was the faint glow of patterns pointing upward like horns. And eyes that shimmered like gold.
"Interesting..."
"Another human that's not from Astheria."
"Hm.."
Said a soft, feminine voice. Daichi looked to the direction he heard it. But the darkness blinded him.
And like a switch. Everything snapped back to normal.
The mist was gone. The forest went back to normal. And Daichi is left there laying on the ground. Panting and heaving. Still recovering from absorbing the sprinter's Vhis.
What was that...
He was confused. He laid there for five more minutes in unease. Did he really even see anything?.
THUD.
Someone dropped in the base. But Daichi recognized the presence somehow.
"R-Rhea..."
He went. Struggling to sit up.
"You managed to kill it"
"Good"
Rhea said. Looking around her underground base. Noticing the Blood on the wall in the small crater. The sprinter's padded footprints on the walls. And Daichi's state.
"I guess..."
"How did you...never mind"
He said quietly. His voice was hoarse. But he felt the pain slowly easing from his nose and the back of his head. looking up at her. He wiped the blood from his face. Noticing the wet pouch made from animal skin. The two sprinters she left on the surface, And some wood she brought down.
"This is dinner."
"We won't be going to Nervaal until a you've gotten established with Vhis."
She said softly. Gathering the wood and starting a fire with her Vhis. And setting the sprinters corpses over it.
"But I need to find my son. We can't wait any longer!"
Daichi insisted. Looking at her as she has her back turned to him.
"Okay then. Go. Go find your son Daichi."
She responded. Clearly upset and fatigued from the day she's had.
"Tch."
Does she not understand why I can't waste time?
He thought to himself as Rhea stood and looked at him.
"It's worth it to wait. Okay. Going out there now will only guarantee your death."
"Trust me"
She said softly. Noticing her hands trembling slightly. Then looking at the bow on the desk. Which was gently vibrating.
Something dangerous is here with us.
In the far south...