The City of Karnia (1)

"Are you... Okay?" Sakku asked, still looking worried, no matter how often Elian said that he was alright.

"Yeees, I am! It was scary, I bet, but it wasn't as dangerous as you think it was! Trust me, I was on the receiving end, so I know. She wanted to see how I would react to real danger, but it wasn't as dangerous as it seemed." Elian repeated the same line over and over again, almost making himself believe it, too. Nika was ready to kill and try to push him over the edge with the genuine threat of death, but it didn't work. Elian was sure of it and also knew that he was right... He felt it before. Death, that is. Something maybe really was missing from within him, but what...? Perhaps the transfer did fail...

"You managed to keep up for so long with the Commander! It was incredible! I have never seen anybody managing that without any Aspects to boot!" Sammy interjected, bouncing around Elian as the trio entered their dorm room, coming from the showers. "Okay, I never saw Knights or other Aspects... but I read a lot about them!"

"Well, the only boot I received was on my butt..." Elian joked, groaning as he sat down on the bottom bunk.

"Setbecks are only there to make the Hero even stronger!"

"..."

"..."

The sudden silence in the room became tangible as Elian glared at Sammy, whose smile slowly disappeared. He became increasingly nervous and tried to look away without much success. At first, Elian didn't think much of it, but as the words settled down, they lit a lightbulb above his head. The way Sammy acted around him and how he was like a starstruck kid started to make sense...

"Was he... awake when I talked with Sakku? Most likely... huh, oh well, it isn't the end of the world." He thought, slightly smiling, speaking as an older brother would talk to his younger sibling when he was caught doing something naughty. "Hey, Sammy... what did you mean by it?"

"N-nothing!"

"Why are you not looking at me?" he asked again, but by now, Sammy was looking everywhere but at him.

"I wasn't able to sleep... I didn't eavesdrop on purpose... it was an accident! I swear! Please don't hate me..." He mumbled at the end of a minute-long silence.

"It's okay!"

"Haaaauh, we were careless, Elian!" Sakku yelled, hopping into his lap, agitated and shaking her round, pink body.

"As I said, it's okay," Elian repeated, not getting angry. "I just want to keep it on the low side of things because the previously summoned Hero turned out to be... as is. And well, he is also the reason why I ended up here. I think you can understand what I am trying to say, yes?" He asked, looking at Sammy, who was now nodding like a pigeon, bobbing his head up and down.

"I won't tell it to anybody! Promise! But... Shouldn't the Princess, I mean, the Commander, know? I think they and the rest of the Knights would be delighted..."

"I think she already does..." Elian answered, whispering and leaning back on his bunk, scratching Sakku behind her ears, quickly making her melt away. "And, of course, I will tell her. But I want her to know she can trust me. I am afraid that if many people learn what I am, they won't trust me... Not after everything. I know, I wouldn't."

"I trust you!" Sammy shouted while climbing up to his bed and looking down from above. "And many people would!"

"Maybe..." Elian replied, but this time, he was not so sure. "No matter! I am no use to them anyway if I can't function correctly, no? Let's wait until this Aspect of mine shows itself... Until then, I can't change anything."

"It will be awesome..." Sammy whispered, his voice dreamy-sounding, "I can already tell. It will be even cooler than a dragon!"

...

....

......

It was early morning, and Elian already felt way better after a good night's sleep. It seemed his body was way more adaptive than ever before, regaining its peak condition just by having a night off. What was also weird was that he didn't remember dreaming at all. Somehow, he managed to fall into such a deep slumber that he was sure not even Nika's thunder would wake him up. Yet, when the time came to rise and shine, his internal alarm buzzed, and his eyes opened by themselves.

"Do I have a new, better inner clock now? Weird... Is this how it feels to have a healthy body?"

"Good morning..." Sakku murmured, waking up with him, using his chest as a bed, yawning and licking herself with her tiny, pink tongue.

"We should get ready. I don't know what our fierce bunny has planned for today, but I don't want to be late. Hm?" With a chuckle and a stretch, he quickly got up and pulled himself up to the top bunk. A firm shake was enough to wake Sammy, almost making him start complaining before he remembered where he was.

"Is it... morning...? Ugh... It's still dark..."

"It isn't; you just didn't open your eyes yet. Wakey-wakey kiddo, or we are going to be late, and then our balls will be busted for another week by the Commander!"

"I'm up... I'm up...!" he moaned, sitting, drooling a little, and having trouble dressing up and walking out of the dorm rooms, falling over twice by kicking out his own legs.

"I hate mornings," Sammy complained before Elian echoed his complaint.

"I used to, too, kid. But now... somehow, I like the mornings..." he sighed, stretching and looking towards the rising sun, feeling the refreshing wind blowing through the streets and his open fingers. Everything was still sleepy like Sammy... And it was what gave it a picturesque atmosphere. It was just as the world began to slowly wake up, yet it was still in a dream-like state... it was... beautiful.

"I agree... Everything looks innocent at times like this. As if the troubles of the world are also still asleep, yet to awaken."

"Commander!" The trio shouted, surprised that the voice belonged to the Princess, who was already here, yet their scheduled time was still half an hour away. "We weren't late... were we?" Sakku asked, worried, but Nika shook her head with a smile.

"No, you are early. Hm...? What is it?"

"Nothing," Elian answered, reacting and shaking his head. He was a bit mesmerized by seeing her in average, everyday clothes. "I didn't think the Commander would feel comfortable with wearing skirts." He continued, being honest, as he was expecting her to show up in pants, not in a pink skirt and white blouse.

"I will let that slide, rookie." She scoffed, rolling her eyes, "You look like someone out of this world, you know that? Those are your everyday clothes? They were weird the first time, too; I thought you just threw things on, rags and whatnot. Things you found on the way towards the capital."

"Er..." Elian wanted to rebuke her, but she was right. He was wearing the same clothes he had on when he ended up here. It was... Unusual. Alien even. "Okay... She knows." He added in his head, laughing, finally finding a reason to keep playing the innocent, curious how far he could push it. "I have no money, Commander. I am broke, so that is exactly what it is. I picked up anything I came across and wore it. I can't and couldn't afford to buy clothes."

"Hauh! I am sorry, it is my fault! I didn't even think about money!" Sakku yelled, jumping around him in panic, "My tribe never used money to begin with; it is such a weird concept!"

"Huh..." Eliot hummed but kept his words to himself so as not to look like a total idiot. "Later..." He whispered, seeing that Sammy was ready to explain it, wanting to teach him about the world, even if he knew very little of it.

"Oh well, I can see that people escaping their homes must leave behind a lot. I can also understand that a hermit would be self-sufficient, somebody who doesn't rely on common items, money, or the like, living off the land. Commandable." Nika continued, looking directly at Elian, piercing his gaze with her crimson eyes, barely holding back her laugh.

"Now you are just toying with me, bunny girl." He answered wordlessly, yet Nika nodded her head as if she had managed to read his thoughts. "Creepy." He added at once, gulping, finally letting the words form for real, "So? What are we going to do besides lambasting my fashion sense? Are we going to run laps around the city? Through the different layers or maybe up on the walls?"

"Please, no!" Sammy moaned immediately, feeling that that could be a real possibility, one he was not keen on tackling right now.

"We are going to do nothing," Nika answered plainly, causing them to look at each other in surprise. "Come! Follow me, and you will understand."

By the time they came to their senses, their Commander was already a dozen meters away, ready to disappear in the morning sunshine, causing the trio to hurriedly rush after her.