Elias felt an irresistible urge to walk to his side as if someone was compelling him to do so. At first the pull was weak, but as he started walking to his side, the pull became stronger and stronger. It was as if something so important that he had to take it.
Elias's steps became hurried as he rushed to the source of his meaning of life. If he can not take what he wants now, what he wants so deeply and urgently, how can he even become the strongest?
As Elias got close to the object, he got a clear view of it. An ethereal slate with some unreadable carvings in, it was of pure stone rather than clay. It was cracked and chipped but still had an alluring charm to it.
Elias licked his lips as he frantically picked it up
I have to protect it…
I must keep it safe
He held it close and finally looked around and grinned
"How do I make covering again?"
…
The great cloud grew near as a tan boy was walking on a path. His body was covered in layers of leaves bound hastily by vines; A stone slate was bound to his side of his thigh. His rough hair swayed in the wind as he walked on a path — well, at least something like that.
The path was just a long, grassless patch meant to connect tribes.
The soft sound of water flowing and wind enveloping Elias; When he opened his mouth and took a deep breath, the taste of slightly humid air and grass filled him.
The 'path' was narrow with no grass covering it, trees were sparsely spread out in the meadow; the path led north, where the Red Tiger Empire resided. Elias was having a contradictory discussion with himself.
One part of him wished not encounter another tribe settlement and experience that horrid stench of blood again. While another part of him wanted to stumble across another tribe to plunder, after all, he would not like to enter the empire empty handed.
The sound of water flowing was getting louder steadily as Elias glimpsed a river.
Did he see a river? Or was it his imagination? Because the river disappeared instant. With a confused face, Elias took some steps back, trying to see the river at the right angle.
Why can't he see it now?
A Requim beast in the form of a river?
Elias felt his hands get damp with cold sweat as he muttered, "Too confident"
He had just dropped his guard for a second, and he
He
He
He had to go into that river.
It did not matter whether it was a Requim beast or a trap, something in him compelled him to check the river. Elias's eyebrows furrowed as he slapped himself.
Why would it not matter!
The pain brought him a faint sense of clarity. Thus, biting his lips, he started running. His movements jerky and irregular as he felt compelled to go to the river again.
He bit his tongue harder, a bead of blood appeared on his lips as he ran northeast, taking a detour from the disappeared river.
The air got more and more misty as he was slowly getting tired. The exhaustion made his thinking slow, making him want to go find that river.
Why do I want to go to that damned river!
He bit his hand as hard as he could; saliva slowly coated it and soon the saliva was colored red. His eyes started to tear up, but he was too tired. The pain was making him tired. Running was making him tired.
He was out of breath. His lungs told otherwise, but he was out of breath. He needed to open his mouth and inhale deeply to live.
And so he did; he opened his mouth, tasting the strangely sweet mist.
The air was so refreshing, so invigorating… Elias Kiefer felt as if he could run more, more towards the river.
Elias suddenly felt his body asking him to run; he strained his body and started running.
Running towards the river, of course!
He slowly felt his lungs scream with joy.
His muscles stretched and contracted as if laughing in joy; they were causing him pain as if they were laughing too hard.
He started shed tears of joy!
Elias fell to his knees, his eyes beaming with joy. He crawled to the river blissfully.
He couldn't see it; but he could sense it, as if it was calling out to him.
***
"Shit!"
A young girl cursed as her blue hair swayed, her clothing tied, her neck was flying upwards and her hand was smeared with a weird liquid.
The girl immediately pulled her covering from her neck and covered herself, taking out a knife from it.
She grimaced and cut her hand off!
So Flieday kicked the opossum to gain momentum and floated towards a giant yak; she knew that the chances of her escaping were thinner than hair, but not trying is losing anyway!
"Where is Hadrien?"
She frantically turned her head, trying to make out the figure of a man in the rubble. She could not find the man, but found a giant yak.
The giant yak was confused and agitated; it snorted loudly as its grey fur danced around, floating upwards. An enormous piece of stone was slamming on its leg but did negligible damage.
"No, no, no, I know what to do!"
Flieday's eyes shone with understanding and eureka!
Her speed of floating was getting faster as she pushed herself towards Rien with the help of rubble leaving a floating trail of blood in her wake.
Flieday whistled loudly, making Rien focus on her; she floated near her and made hand signs showing herself getting pushed. She pointed towards a giant bedrock tree and herself, trying her best to communicate.
Immediately she felt the space between herself and the yak increase; Flieday felt going farther and farther away from Rien and the tribe, her body moving at an impeccable speed!
Gravity cannot be reverted in a small area! A Grade 3 beast cannot revert gravity in the whole world. It must be doing something… and if my guess is correct...
So Flieday felt gravity assault her again as she fell on a giant tree getting scratches all over her body; her covering had flown away the instant Rien was increasing space between Flieday and itself.
"It worked! It was not anti gravity, rather the grade 3 beast was making an opposing gravitational pull. I got out of its range!"
Flieday was laying on the soft snow, getting multiple frostbites already as she shivered. When she finally stood up, she felt another figure falling near her. She ignored it completely and instantly started running towards the bedrock tree.
"Thank God that there is a lone bedrock tree away from the batch…" So Flieday was already feeling her legs go numb in snow and her nose getting blocked, but it did not matter - she had to persevere!
She felt someone behind her start running too, shouting, "Flieday, wait!"
But she did not. She had recognized Hadrien's voice but she could not wait. She had to get to the bedrock tree and warm herself in its bark; then use its thick leaves to make covering.
"Flieday!" she finally glanced at him — Hadrien was looking extremely concerned. Flieday did not even notice how she had stopped running and was now feeling sleepy.
So sleepy… can't she rest now? Didn't she just pull off a crazy stunt to tame that damn opossum?
No! She had to survive; she had to, she…
Her blue hair was sprawled on her back, silently spread on the white snow. Her face was blue with frostbites, her lips slowly painting themselves into a darker shade of blue.
She had no covering to protect her skin from the cold; her arm was bleeding heavily, contributing to her unconsciousness. Hadrien finally stopped near and picked her up, running towards the bedrock tree…
…
So Flieday found herself covered in thick black leaves. She was still covered in blue dye and was wearing a roughly made covering of layers of leaves and animal skin. She was sitting in a small crack in black bark; she was in the bedrock tree!
Her hand was covered in vines, stopping her bleeding; blue dye on her hair was slowly fading too.
The gravity beast should not be able to break the bedrock tree; after all, it is one of the strongest trees in Kle.
But if that was the case… why were the black leaves floating?!
"Ah. can't I simply try to find my family!"
The tribe from which she wished to live in itself failed to do so.
Sometimes, I think the militarists are not that bad…
"Hadrien?"