The wolf was so amused that he stood up and placed his paws on Sayda's shoulders. He grinned widely.
"You want a hug...?"
For a brief moment, Eldras moved closer and gently licked his face, leaving trails of warm saliva across his cheek. The unmistakable scent of rotten meat caused Sayda to frown immediately.
"Eeee... don't lick my face"
Sayda wiped his cheeks in disgust, but a smile crept on his face. Somehow, after everything that happened, they had changed onto something different, something else... comforting.
Suddenly, the sky darkened and the sun slowly set, replaced by the moon. The forest gradually lost its light, becoming pitch black. As the night wind began to blow, the leaves trembled softly. Eldras's ears twitched, he turned his gaze and let out a soft growl.
"It's night already?"
He whispered.
"Wait a minute..."
He stood up instantly and turned his gaze upwards. The sunlight had gone, replaced by the pale glow of the moon. All of a sudden, a gust of wind blew in from the west, whipping his hair and garment opposite.
"It's night already... yea, night... I've been trapped in this game for almost a day!"
"And I haven't completed a single quest... This can't be... I have a school tomorrow...
how about my dad?"
He clenched his hand tightly.
"He's coming home today right... Wait, but I'm almost a day in this world that's mean in my world...."
"No..no, what if my mom find out that I'm not in my room anymore..."
A stream of questions seemed to keep flowing non-stop from his head. Everything came one after another, hit him like a ball of compacted thought.
"I have a school tomorrow... Wait, no... What day is TOMORROW!?"
A voice seemed to call to him, but it felt so distant, overshadowed by his turbulent thought. Until, a single voice jerk and bring him back to his senses. —RUFF—Eldras barked awake him.
Sayda then looked at him, dazed. Eldras continued to bark at him but this time more closer as if to scold him because he was too immersed in his own thoughts. He took a deep breath.
"I'm sorry... I was overreacting..."
He said in a whisper.
Eldras stood still, his ears pricked up. Sayda watched him as if he had something to deliver. Sayda seemed to understand and gazed his face upwards, looking at the sky.
"Yea.. you right... This is only a game, why do I need to make a fuss about it..."
"This deceptive illusion of a world cannot get me."
Suddenly, while he was gazing at the night sky, a question struck him. Why couldn't I remember what tomorrow was? For a moment, the question lingered in his mind.
"How could I forget it?"
He whispered.
"I have not yet experienced another full day in this world, and it is impossible for me to forget it."
"No, it's possible that my recent fall from the sky is the reason... if that the case..."
"I will remember it later, I guess."
Deep down, though, he knew something that was different and missing, but he couldn't figure out what it was. He ignored it. Out of the blue, Eldras barked startling him, snapping him out of his thoughts. He then realized Eldras was no longer beside him.
His eyes glanced around searching for Eldras, until his eyes focused on a wolf barking at the forest in front of him, as if it had found something.
"Hey, what are you doing there?"
Suddenly, the wolf ran into the forest, surprising Sayda.
"Heyy a wolf... I mean, Eldras where are you going?"
Not wasting a single second, he immediately ran after Eldras. The night sky darkened until his surroundings were completely black. He ran into the forest, but the darkness made it difficult for him to see.
He stepped on a branch, which broke. He brushed aside the leaves blocking his path. He saw Eldras ahead, but the deeper he went, the further away he got. He continued to run without stopping, brushing aside everything that stood in his way.
The deeper he went, the darker the forest became, swallowing everything in its path. Eldras who had been in front of him, vanished from his sight along with the darkness of the night. Suddenly, a bright light appeared at the front. The light was very bright, as if it illuminated the entire front area.
He stumbled, but managed to steady himself and ran towards it, pushing aside everything in his path until a large leaf blocked his way. He brushed it aside... and...
He froze, speechless.
The surrounding trees emitted light that grows brighter as night falls. The trees have abnormal structure; some curve from the right to the top, while other seem to bent into crescent shape, growing from the bottom up. Every tree is different in terms of size.
Each leaf shone with a golden coating, some were blue tinged with gold, others red, and a few green, all glimmering under the light. The golden leaves, vibrant in colour, lay strewn across the floor, creating a stunning autumnal display.
It looked like a dream, but it was real. Sayda's eyes didn't blink a bit as he was fascinated by a place he had never seen before.
"What place is this?"
He spoke dazed.
"There's no way this is real"
A single leaf detached from its host, fell slowly, swaying in front of Sayda. Before it could reach his hand, a gust of wind blew it away. Suddenly, he heard a barking voice from his left. He immediately turned around and saw that it was Eldras, sitting looking up at a tall tree and barking upwards.
"Eldras?!"
He didn't hesitate; he ran towards it. The leaves on the ground cracked and crumbled instantly when he stepped on them.
"What did you find, Eldras?"
His eyes shot up and landed on the pile of fruit suspended above him.
"Consider it like an apple."
He said.
GROOOOWLL!!
His stomach growling loudly. Suddenly, he remembered something.
"Don't tell me, did you get the apple you gave me earlier here?"
RUFF RUFF!
A crept smile onto his face. He placed his hand on the wolf's head and stroked it.
"Is that so... So, now, I wonder how I supposed to reach the fruit on the tree that is more than four times my height?"
Eldras stepped forward. Sayda watched in wonder as he prepared to act. Suddenly, the wolf kicked the tree, causing it to vibrate and shake from bottom to top. Sayda immediately gaped, looking in disbelief.
"Damn, you strong as hell"
Eldras wagged its tail. —Trk— he instantly looked up, hearing the sound coming from above. An apple fell from the branch. With a quick reflex, Sayda leaped and caught it immediately. His step wavered slightly, but he steadied himself and raised his hand to indicate the apple.
"Aha, look Eldras, I made it... We m..."
Before he could finish his word, the sound of branch cracked came from above. He slowly looked up, and his eyes instantly widened.
"What the..."
Dozens of apples fell simultaneously right on top of him.
"Shit... Bad luck."
All came at once, raining down like a crimson storm.
Thud. Thud. Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud.
In less than three seconds, he was buried in a mountain of apples. In a panic, Eldras barked loudly towards Sayda, who appeared to be buried under a large pile of apples.
Suddenly, a hand emerged from the piles of apples, holding one. Then, a human head appeared. It came out of the same pile.
"Ahh... My head is spinning"
He groaned.
He carried on gnawing on the apple, and soon enough, a transformation came over his face. The sweetness spread throughout his mouth.
"Hahh, feels like heaven."
He kept on eating, over and over again, until there was nothing left of the apple but stem. The wolf's appetite was insatiable; he consumed it all in one fell swoop, leaving no trace of it behind.
He then came out of the bunch of apples and took an apple while his face seemed to be asking something.
"I wonder if this could works."
"Chest 'store' 'apple'"
TOFFF!
The fruit disappeared from his grasp.
"Damn, it's work. I could stockpile enough food to last for days."
"Haha! Eldras threw me an apple so I could stock up faster!"
His wide smile plastered over the face.
"Chest 'store' 'apple'"
TOFF!. TOFF!. TOFF-TOFF-TOFF-TOFF...
****
The beautiful night sky is filled with twinkling stars, illuminating the darkness. There is calm atmosphere, with cold breeze blowing from west to east.
In the middle of nowhere, a cloaked man sits alone in the darkness of the forest on a broken log. A living fire burns nearby, cooking a fish tethered to a stick. Beside him lay a sword, covered by a rag.
His hand seemed to grasp something as he looked down with withered eyes. Slowly, he raised his head to look at the sky. The reflection of the universe appeared in his eyes, which shone like thousands of stars. Like thousands of feeling and words that could not be expressed.
***