Another side

'Where.... am i?' Kaluar thought to himself, his voice echoing through an a plain he had no familiarity with.

His feet dug against the ground, ripples and vibration flowing through his feet. His vision was nothing but darkness. As he finally got up, his vision cleared, the sun shining over head, its rays rippling through the sky.

Marine life floated over head, as if he was at the bottom of the sea, hue's of blue and the pink colorful life of coral surrounded him in this surreal scape, a pocket of air in the shape of a box keeping him from harm.

'C-Celi?' He called out, as he looked around him, but no one responded. He stood in that scape all alone, as the flowing waters filled the ambience. Water splashing behind him the sounds few and far between. The sound got close and closer.

'So you're Kaluar.' He heard someone say behind him, quickly turning around to see an elf just like him. His hand on his hip with a bright smile similar to his.

'Nice to meet you, the name's Kalder, Kalder Brooks.' He stretched his free hand towards the traveler. His yellow eyes shimmered under the depths of the ocean floors, his silky white hair shining in what little sunlight met him, his skin lightly tanned and dirtied with oil, wearing nothing but a white vest, his brown jacket wrapped around his cargo pants.

Hesitantly, Kaluar looked down at his hands, before taking it into his in a firm shake.

'It's nice to meet you and all.' Kaluar murmured not sure how he would be able to say it without sounding rude.

'But how do you know my name? And where am I?' 

'How I know you is not important, but as for where you are...' Kalder grinned at his question, pulling his arm away from him and stretching both of them as wide as he could, accepting the sea into his arms with a warm smile. the ray's of the weakened sun made his tanned skin shine under it's influence.

'You're inside your subconscious, my domain of water!'

'That makes no sense-' Kaluar commented, looking all around him once more, with all the confusion from before, he didn't notice how calming it was until now, the soft whale song in the distance, the sound of calm flowing water moving along, being shifted by the tails of what inhabited inside. 

'it will all make sense in due time.' Kalder smiled.

'Isn't it calming down here though?' He asked, clearly enjoying the company after so long.

'Yeah it's nice.' The young elf murmured as he enjoyed the sights.

'I love water it's my favorite element! The calmness of the waves, the way it turns from a calm serene masterpiece into a raging inferno that stings hotter than fire.' The white haired elf ranted on and on, clearly getting side tracked, his fingers tapped against his arm as he spoke with such vigor and happiness.

'That good and all..' Kaluar muttered trying to get back on topic.

'But why am I here, wait better question, why are you here.'

'Right that, sorry I got distracted for a second, haha.' Kalder sighed, his face getting a bit more serious as one hand rested on his chest, showing his sincerity. 

'The truth is,' he murmured trying to get the news over and done with, his breath still cold remembering the events that time.

'I died in the forest of Vagabond.' Kaluar's spine crawled hearing that, his mind now only wandering to all of the gruesome way's he possibly met his end, the boy right before him, a boy so young, the same age as him.

His mouth agape to the news, hands running cold to this forced revelation.

'But he's so young, Around my age even, and he-' Kaluar couldn't form coherent thoughts in his mind, the sadness of witnessing a life that had be cut short so thin and so fast saddens him, his heart aching sympathy and fear of what could've been in this forest.

'Yeah I know, I clearly wasn't careful enough, I left a dear companion alone.' He hand grips the fabric of his clothing, remembering the situation like it was yesterday.

'And I still regret it, even to this day, fifty years in the future.' He looked up at Kaluar, his determined gaze staring into the eyes of the boy before him, a determined gaze that looked so familiar. 

'And i'm here to maker sure you don't make the same mistake, so that's why you Kaluar..' He started to walk closer to our hero, his footsteps splashing against the distilled water, grabbing onto Kaluar's collar, their faces inches apart.

'Need to wake up! Now!'

'Honestly,' Celi murmured to herself, tending to the wounds of her fallen friend. Her tiny little hands stretched out before him, a green aura looming the young hero.

'How can you be that reckless. You've been walking for days now look at you, you can hardly breath.' She continued to rant to herself, tears stinging her eyes the more and more she talked about the current situation. 

'Why, why didn't you listen to me, what happened?!' She buried the head in the chest of the young elf, her soft quiet tears falling onto his shirt.

A silent whistle blew past her, the wind tickling the back of her neck. Celi stood up, startled by the sudden contact, looking everywhere to see what it could've been. Footsteps echoed throughout the forest, stomping noises crushed the leaves and twigs below. The hallow area carrying a heavy breathing.

'W-what's that?!' Celi cried, clinging the the unconscious body of our hero as she looked around, her eyes panning for danger in the dark woods.

'I want to go home.' A hushed voice whimpers, it's words ghostly and soft, whispering it's cry over and over.

'I want to go home, please take me home.' The voice cried, others soon joining it in a melody of sorrow, playing at the ear of the young elf in her moment of grief.

Celi stepped back, her eyes wondering all over the forest in search of the source of the sound, often coming up short with little patches of darkness etched into the dark woods.

Footsteps that would shake the earth stood proud amongst the hushed noises, fingers clawing into the bark of the dead tree's crushing and moving them out of their path. Heavy breaths followed suit, glowing red eyes piercing through the darkness as it emerged.

A jaw strong enough the crack the shell of the mightiest of beasts, it's teeth piercing through it's gums erratically, claws big enough to tear apart anything in it's wake, danced in the air as it looked for it's next victim. Yellow scales that lined it's relatively huge body exposed to the damp air of the forest, it's hunched posture covered in slime, bug eyes staring directly at the tiny elf.

She was at a loss for words as the creature slowly approached, it's jaws opened widely over the body of the petite elf. She was paralyzed, too stunned to move. Her hand ever so slightly reaching for Kaluar's gun besides her. Praying to god that it works, for their sake.

The cries of those left behind, continued to echo throughout the forest, their tears sending chills up her spine as the gun moved away from her. Her blood ran cold, no longer feeling the weapon she needed so badly. Giving in to her fate, she closed her eyes, awaiting the cold grip of death to surround both her and her companion, seeing nothing through her eyelids never knowing when the attack would land.... and it never did.

The sound of a musket was fired and the heat of flames shot out behind her like a flower about to bloom, her ears perked up to the sudden warmth that grazed her skin, the monster screeching in pain. Slowly she opened her eyes to see the darkness illuminated by the light of furious flames. Crackling by her side, protecting her from the monster ahead.

She slowly turned, her eyes fixed on her savior, seeing a boy with hair as red and as prominent as his flames, cyan eyes that burned brighter than any fire magic could cast. His brows furrowing in defiance and determination. Fingers clutching his gun close to him, ready to fire again if necessary. 

'Kaluar...' Celi said, her voice barely above a whisper as she watched in awe at the boy who fended off that monster despite being in a coma a few seconds ago.

Kaluar looked at Celi, flashing her a smile before giving her a thumbs up.

'You ok?' He asked, his smile as warm as the fire he wielded.