Test of courage

Looks like those winter clothes didn't go in vain, but I am still very hungry. This is..." (Elric collapsed).

"Elric, wake up! Wake up!" both Julius and Karl shouted.

After a few hours, Elric woke up and said, "I slept like I would never wake up again."

"Don't worry, there's water and eat these berries," said Julius.

"Water? Berries? Where did you find those?" asked Elric.

"When you were unconscious, we went to find something to eat and found some berries. As for water, we just boiled some ice," said Julius.

"The entire place is frozen far and wide. There's nothing but ice. It's extremely chilling; every time we speak, fog comes from our mouths. I've never experienced this much coldness in my body before," said Karl.

"It's not just that it's cold. We have to think about what to do now," said Julius.

"We have to find those books, but I'm also thinking about how this place is just plain ice with nothing in sight. We don't even know how big this place is," said Elric.

"In the story, it's also mentioned that with frozen water, the sky is also colorful, but there are no colors in the sky. It means we are not there yet," said Karl.

"So, now where should we move?" asked Julius.

"Maybe south, because behind us is the ocean, and the other directions don't seem right to me. My conscience says south is the most favorable direction to move in," said Karl.

"So, it's decided. Let's wrap up all the necessary things, extra clothes, and I think this time we won't run short on water, but collect all the edible berries," said Julius.

Now they were all ready to march towards their destination with hope and excitement in their eyes, but it didn't last long. As it got darker, the coldness in the environment increased rapidly, but this was not their only concern. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a cold storm began, chilling them to the bone.

"It's too strong; we can't move forward," said Elric.

"You're right, but we are very far from the ship. We have to find shelter or else this is the end," said Julius.

Karl panicked and said, "No, what will happen to my ship?"

"We are about to die and you're concerned about your ship?" said Elric.

"Don't waste energy, just keep walking or this ice will cover you here," said Julius.

"Look, there's a stone ice cave. Can we be safe there?" asked Karl.

"Hope so. Let's go, we don't have a choice," said Julius.

"Oh, it's much better here. Quickly, burn the wood; these clothes are wet, let them dry," said Julius.

"Elric, give me the tool I gave you," said Karl.

"Here, but it's not working anymore. Looks like it's frozen from the inside," said Elric.

"Oh no, no! How will we be able to navigate here? There's no sun in the sky," said Karl.

"Navigate? How does this little tool help in navigation?" asked Julius.

"It belongs to my grandfather. This tool tells the direction—North, West, East, and South—but it doesn't work. Maybe I should warm it up," said Karl.

"You have such things and you didn't tell me?" said Julius.

"Oh, because you're usually controlling the sail and watching the ocean, and I only use it to check the right direction. I don't necessarily need it because in the ocean, the sun is clearly visible in the sky," said Karl.

"So now, how will we know about South?" asked Elric.

"It's not that the sun is completely hidden. It shows some light, so we have to guess where it's coming from and then we are good to go," said Karl.

Waiting for tomorrow's sunrise, they rested in that cave. The storm passed, the sun was about to rise, but as expected, it was not easy to find from which direction the sun was rising because of the fog. Somehow, they assumed a direction that seemed right and started walking. After walking for long hours, the cold desert didn't change a bit; it all looked the same. As time passed, their bodies were about to give up. They wanted rest and started finding a cave like the previous one, which they eventually found, but this time it seemed different. It felt like they shouldn't go inside, but the sun was about to set, and it was getting darker and colder, so left with no choice, they entered the cave. As they entered, Elric said, "It's dark but not that bad. Guys, guys!?" He searched around but didn't find his friends, not even the opening of the cave which was just behind him a few seconds ago. He was shocked. How could this happen? It's impossible! (Panicked).

"What happened here? A few moments ago I was with them, but now they are gone and where the hell am I?" Julius said to himself.

"Did they leave me and steal my ship? I hope that's not what they did. That would be very dirty; they will have to pay for this. But where exactly am I?" said Karl.

Elric was all alone, moving forward in the cave. As he moved forward, he saw light and ran towards it. What he saw, he couldn't believe. He saw his village, but different this time—all the land had crops, and the river had water in it. He ran towards his house to see his mother. On the way, he met Paul and asked him how he was doing. Paul replied, "Fine, but where were you? Your mother was waiting for you, go meet her."

"Thanks, Paul, take care," said Elric, and reached his home. He shouted, "Mother, where are you?" His mother was sitting on a chair knitting a sweater for him. He was very happy and said, "I missed you so much, I thought..." (Crying).

"Why are you crying? I am fine as you can see. But tell me, where were you for the last few hours? Were you again sleeping near the river?" asked his mother.

"Hours?" Shocked, Elric thought he spent years far from the village, but his mother remembered only a few hours. What is happening? He couldn't understand, but he was happy because he could see his mother. That night, he slept like he never slept before. He felt like all his problems were solved. The next morning, his friend Paul came to his home and asked him to play. He eagerly went to play with him.

After playing, Elric told Paul about the incident that happened with him since last year.

Paul laughed so much and said, "Last year? Yesterday I saw you sleeping near the river for many hours straight. When did this happen? Did you hurt your head? Maybe you had a long dream," said Paul.

After Paul left, Elric thought, "Was that all a dream? Maybe. It's already sunset, strange," he said to himself.

Days passed, everything seemed normal. Elric was very happy. One night, he thought, "Thank God that was all a dream. This is good; everyone has food to eat, my mother is well and fine, everything is good."

(Strange realization) "Everything is just too good." When he was sleeping, he suddenly started feeling cold. He asked his mother, "In summer, why am I feeling cold? Are you not feeling any coldness?" said Elric.

"No, my son, but if you are feeling cold, then wear this sweater I made for you," said his mother.

Suddenly, Elric started running away from the house. His mother and father shouted, "Where are you going, Elric?" but he didn't listen to them and started running towards the forbidden forest, which was a restricted place in Elric's village. He ran deeper and deeper inside the forest. He ran for years. Strangely, his stamina was limitless; he couldn't feel any stress in his body and just kept running, but the forest didn't end. For sure, he realized that it was not his village.

"Elric! Elric! Elric! Wake up, wake up, Elric!" Suddenly, Elric woke up. "What happened?"

"It was a bad dream," said Julius.