Chapter 2: Three Travelers

Chapter 2: Three Travelers

Zeth narrates. “It has been a month since I escaped from the Hawk prison. However, ever since then, I have had this feeling that my life is half empty from time to time, and I don’t know why. It’s strange. I have also just been living in some forest area the whole time.”

It’s night, and Zeth is sitting at a campfire he started in the woods, trees surrounding him on all sides. He is still wearing the gray jumpsuit, but it’s worn out. Over his campfire, he is cooking a skewered squirrel. While it cooks, he looks up at the starry night sky.

"I miss home. I miss my parents," Zeth says quietly. "To make matters worse, I have no idea where in Harmone I am. I just need a sign… something that will help me get home. I know some people pray to the Light Goddess to guide them, so maybe I should try that."

Zeth raises his hand up high. "Light Goddess Harmona, please send me a sign that will help me return home. Something… Anything… Please…"

He lowers his hand and begins to eat his cooked squirrel, his eyes gloomy through the whole first bite.

“All I can do is hope for the best,” he thinks.

After he finishes eating, he walks over to a small pile of nearby dirt and sprinkles it over the fire, smothering the flames. He stirs the ashes with a stick to make sure no embers remain, then drops the stick and gives the ground a gentle stomp for good measure. With the fire safely out, he sits underneath a tree. His eyes start to close.

"Tomorrow brings new hope…"

He falls asleep.

***

The next day.

Zeth is training. He looks at a dead tree, charges magic into his arm, and then punches the tree, causing it to break into two pieces. He wipes sweat off his forehead.

"Well, that should do it for today," he mutters.

He continues to wear the gray jumpsuit, now with the sleeves torn off. He starts to lie down to rest, but soon takes notice of three strangers walking by in the distance, even with a lot of trees in the area. His eyes widen.

"Other people? Yes! I’ve finally found other people! They should know where this is, so I can finally return home!"

Zeth starts running over to the three strangers walking through an open part of the woods, two of whom are males and one of whom is female.

Zeth waves his arms while shouting. "Hey, strangers! Over here!"

The three strangers take notice of Zeth and look toward him as he approaches.

"Hi! My name is Zeth. It’s nice to meet you all."

The front man has short brown hair that sticks up at the front and brown irises in his eyes. Though he doesn’t have a full beard, visible stubble frames his jaw. He wears a green adventurer's uniform and stands about six feet tall.

Adventurer – Kurt – Age 22.

"Hi. We are just travelers," Kurt says. "Though I’m from around here. My name is Kurt."

A girl with neck-length blonde hair and bright blue eyes steps forward. She wears a purple adventure uniform and stands about five feet, nine inches tall.

Adventurer – Emily – Age 17.

"My name is Emily."

The third traveler, a young man with completely short and flat light brown hair and green eyes, chimes in. He wears a red adventure uniform and is around five feet, ten inches tall.

Adventurer – Joe – Age 18.

"And my name is Joe."

Emily glances at Zeth’s torn jumpsuit. "A torn jumpsuit? You’re not from around here, are you?"

Zeth shakes his head. "No. I have nowhere to go right now. I’ve been in a Hawk Clan prison for a year, and now that I’ve escaped, I have no idea where I am. I want to get back to my home, but I can’t do that without knowing where I am."

Joe offers a suggestion. "You could join us. We’ve been doing some traveling, but if you need help getting back home, we can take some time to do that."

Emily agrees. "That would be a great idea!"

Kurt nods. "If someone needs help, I'm not going to turn them down."

Zeth smiles. "Sure. It beats being alone all the time out here in the woods."

"My hometown is nearby," Kurt says. "We were on our way there, so come with us and we'll figure out how to help you get home from there."

"While we’re there, I could use a change of clothes," Zeth adds.

Kurt chuckles. "That can be done."

***

They walk through the woods, passing through many trees and plants along the way, and soon reach the outside edge of town on a higher elevation. Smoke rises from a few areas, and some buildings are partially destroyed. The travelers come to a halt, alarmed by the scene.

"What happened?" Zeth asks.

Kurt looks around in shock. "This wasn’t like this earlier!"

"Let’s go and see if everyone is all right!" Emily exclaims.

They rush toward the destroyed buildings. An overhead view of the town reveals the damage, smoke drifting above collapsed rooftops, rubble in the streets, and many worried townspeople gathered in small groups.

Kurt’s eyes scan the chaos until they land on a familiar figure.

"That’s my father!" he shouts, breaking into a run.

A man in his late forties turns at the sound of Kurt’s voice. His short brown hair is starting to gray, and a pair of glasses rests on the bridge of his nose. Despite the tension in the air, he seems relieved as he sees Kurt approaching.

Kurt’s Father – Beck.

"Kurt, there you are," Beck says, stepping forward to meet him.

"What happened, Dad?" Kurt asks.

"It was awful," his father replies, adjusting his glasses with a tired hand. "It all happened so suddenly. No warning, no sign it was coming."

"Was it the bandits?"

Beck nods grimly. "Yes. Those damn bandits came again. Only this time… they brought destruction too."

"Damn them. How did they do it?" Kurt growls.

Beck looks away, eyes filled with helpless frustration. "I wish I knew. I only saw their escape."

"Why don’t we go after them and take them down?" Zeth suggests.

Beck turns to him with disbelief. "Are you insane?"

"I have magic power," Zeth replies calmly. "So, I can fight."

Joe steps forward beside him. "Zeth, we didn’t mention this earlier, but the three of us have magic power too."

Zeth’s confidence grows. "That makes it even better. Then we'd better head off to stop the bandits!" He glances down at his torn clothes, then rubs the back of his head with a sheepish grin. "But first, I should probably change into something less... prison-y."

Kurt chuckles. "I got something for you."

***

A bit later.

Zeth emerges from Kurt’s house with new clothes. He has on a white shirt with an unzipped, short-sleeved black over-shirt that has a blue X pattern. He’s also wearing brown pants.

"How does it look?" he asks.

"I think it looks great," Emily says.

"Much better than that worn-out jumpsuit," Joe confirms.

"You can keep it too," Kurt adds.

"If everything is all set, then let’s go!" Emily cheers.

The four of them start heading toward the exit of the town. Kurt furrows his brows as he walks with a serious expression on his face.

"This will be the last time they ever attack our little town," he mutters.

Zeth has met three new acquaintances. And now the four travelers begin their first journey in what will lead them on the path to deciding the fate of the world!

Chapter 2 END

To Be Continued in Chapter 3: The Bandits’ Base