Ethan slowly opened his eyes to find himself in a vast white space with no visible end.
He began wandering inside this emptiness, searching for an exit. After some time walking, he spotted something in the distance.
He stared in its direction for several moments, trying to figure out what it was. Then he slowly started heading toward it. With every step he took, it became clearer and clearer. And the closer he got, the more he began to hear a strange crying sound that grew louder and louder.
The sound was familiar to him, but he couldn't remember where from.
He kept approaching until he reached it and discovered that it was the same old lady he had seen before.
She was collapsed on the ground, crying just like the previous time.
Ethan approached her and placed his hand on her shoulder.
The old woman stopped screaming, and complete silence fell over the place for a few brief seconds.
She didn't move at all during those seconds.
Suddenly, the old woman slowly turned toward Ethan—her entire face rotating toward him. Ethan's eyes widened in shock at the horrifying sight: her face was completely devoid of features, covered instead by intense black fire.
The old woman placed her hands on Ethan's shoulders. Even though she had no mouth, he could hear her voice clearly.
Her voice was sharp, echoing as if she were speaking inside a cave: "My child did nothing, yet they killed him! They killed him!"
Her voice grew slightly rougher: "I hate the Katuran Empire. I hate it with everything I have. Everyone hates it, but no one can do anything about it."
The old woman began gripping Ethan's shoulders tightly, making him feel anxious and uneasy.
He tried to pull her hands away, but she only tightened her grip on his arms and said: "No one can do anything about it. No one. No one. No one."
She kept repeating the words over and over while Ethan struggled to remove her arms from his shoulders. Eventually, he managed to pull one hand off and struck her in the face. She fell to the ground, releasing her second grip.
Ethan stood there breathing heavily and took several steps backward, moving away from her.
He felt something strange in his left arm.
He raised it and looked, only to see that his fist had filled with darkness.
Ethan felt terror and tension as he watched the blackness slowly spread across his arm until it became completely black.
He turned his gaze toward the old woman, his face full of worry, and saw her still lying on the ground repeating the same phrase. Then she suddenly stopped screaming.
Silence fell over the place. Nothing could be heard except the sound of Ethan's breathing.
The old woman raised her head toward him and stared at him with her pitch-black face.
Ethan remained tense, sweat pouring down his face.
Suddenly, the old woman spoke in a strange voice—a mixture of her own and a man's: "But… can you do something?"
Ethan slowly opened his eyes to find himself lying in his bed.
He got up from the bed and looked around the room, confirming that no one else was there.
He walked over to the clay jar, poured some water into a cup, and began drinking.
After finishing, he headed to the door and left the hut, where he saw Joseph waiting for him outside.
Joseph greeted him, saying: "Good morning, you lazy guy. Sorry to say that so early in the morning, but Mira asked me to wake you up and bring you to her. So please, follow me."
Joseph turned around and started walking toward Mira's place, with Ethan following him.
On the way, Joseph glanced at Ethan with a slight smile and said: "Well, I don't know if you want to know or not, but Mira asked me to bring all of you for your first mission. It's the first one, so it probably won't be too difficult. Most likely it'll just be retrieving something or exploring an area."
Joseph stopped in front of one of the huts.
This hut was different from the others—it was larger, surrounded by white flowers except for the stone path leading to the door.
Joseph looked at Ethan, gave him a light pat on the chest, and said: "So, what do you think of this place? It's nice, right?"
Ethan didn't pay him much attention and kept staring at the flowers in fascination.
Joseph placed his hand on Ethan's left shoulder, chuckled a little, and said: "You like these flowers? They're the most beautiful thing in this simple village."
He pointed at the flowers and continued: "The villagers consider these flowers a symbol of hope, kindness, and tolerance. When they look at them, they feel that there is still hope in this barren world."
Every time Ethan looked at these flowers, he felt a sense of comfort and peace spreading through his body.
The boy remained staring at them for several minutes until Joseph gave him a light nudge to regain his focus.
Then Joseph walked over to the flower field, picked one, and handed it to Ethan: "Alright, if you like these flowers so much, you can take one. But we need to go inside quickly—Mira won't be patient for much longer."
Ethan took the flower from Joseph, and they headed toward the hut.
After entering, they found Jesse, Jenny, and the rest waiting for them.
Mira looked at Joseph irritably and said: "Why the delay?"
Joseph apologized to her, and he and Ethan moved toward the available chairs.
Ethan sat in front of Jesse, while Joseph sat in front of Nicholas.
Jesse noticed the flower in Ethan's hand and said: "Oh! Those are the flowers from outside. You like them too?" He patted Ethan's head with a light laugh.
Mira asked everyone to pay attention.
All eyes turned to her, waiting for the reason she had summoned them.
She said: "Alright, I already explained why I called you here before, but I'll repeat it because these two were late. I brought you here to do your first mission in this village. If you have any questions, feel free to ask."
Nicholas spoke: "Is there any material reward or benefit from this mission?"
Mira replied: "Of course. For every mission you complete, each of you will receive 30 Anru. Any other questions?"
Jesse raised his hand: "What exactly do we have to do in this mission?"
Mira answered: "Well, the mission is simple."
She turned toward a large map on one of the walls and placed her finger on a certain spot covered with simplified drawings of trees.
"You will head to Sokata Forest. There, you will search for a tree in the middle of the forest, different from the rest—shorter, thicker, with a hollow in its center leading deep inside. There you will find something resembling a mix between a seed and a worm. I think that's the description the Elder gave me. Anyway… my advice: do not harm the trees in any way. They can feel it."
Nicholas whispered, "Tree lover."
Jesse replied to her: "But we don't know exactly where this place is. We're not from this area."
Mira pointed her finger at Joseph and said: "I know that, which is why Joseph Anderson will go with you on this mission. He has complete knowledge of the area, so no need to worry about getting lost."
Jesse took a deep breath and looked at her: "Also, what's the use of that seed?"
Nicholas added: "Yeah, exactly. Why are we going through all this for a seed?"
Mira replied: "It's a secret matter, from what they told me. That's all I have. Sorry."
The latter sighed in annoyance and said: "When are we leaving then?"
Mira answered: "Now. And also, Jesse…"
Jesse turned to her in surprise: "What do you want?"
Mira said: "It's no problem if you take them in your car, right?"
Shock appeared on Jesse's face as he quickly turned toward her: "What? My car is here? Where did you put it?!"
Mira replied: "Calm down, man. You'll find it at the exit gate."
Jesse and the others left the place, following Joseph's lead.
They kept walking until they reached a massive gate. In front of it was a man in brown clothes and a matching hat, sleeping on a chair inside a small square room full of openings on all sides.
Joseph approached him quietly and said in a sarcastic tone: "How are you, Joe?"
The guard lifted his hat slightly, revealing his tired eyes.
As soon as the guard saw Joseph, a slight smile appeared on his face. He replied in a calm but optimistic tone: "I'm good as long as you're good, my friend. Nice to see you again."
His pupils shifted toward those with him as he continued: "So… what's new?"
Joseph replied cheerfully: "I've been sent with the new arrivals to get something from the forest."
The guard said: "So that's how it is… Then I won't waste your precious time. Good luck."
He pulled a lever in front of him, causing the gate to slowly open all the way. After Joseph and the group exited, it closed behind them. They found themselves facing barren land with some dead trees scattered here and there outside the wall.
Jesse looked to his right and saw his car parked against one of the walls.
He hurried toward it and started the engine. Hearing the sound of the car, relief returned to his heart. "Thank God it still works."
The rest headed to the car. Joseph sat in the front passenger seat while the others sat in the back.
Before driving off, Joseph told them: "No need to fear getting lost as long as I'm with you."
Joseph pulled out a map from a small bag he was carrying and told Jesse to head right. Jesse followed Joseph's directions as they set off on a new journey.
While driving, the sun slowly rose in the sky, and the weather grew hotter.
Jesse continued following Joseph's instructions, turning right and left across the barren desert.
The car shook slightly due to the rough terrain, and dust rose behind them.
Nicholas looked out the window and said sarcastically: "I was wondering why those monsters hadn't followed the sound of this thing yet, but after seeing the area we're in, I'm not surprised anymore."
Jenny chuckled lightly and said: "Maybe you're right."
(The End)