Maximus put a hand on his own head, looking straight at Stargazer with a clear worried expression written all over his face as he began to speak.
"I won't be too dramatic about all of this... since i honestly already expected something like this to happen sooner or later."
Stargazer simply smirked, his interest and curiosity towards the young man only growing even more than before.
"I see, so you're the type who stays composed no matter what situation you end up in huh? Always keeping it together, aren't you."
After a moment, Maximus let out a deep long sigh. He tried his best to keep that calm look on his face, but there was a shift inside him now, a strange feeling of being completely lost, since he truly had no idea where exactly he was or how he even got here in the first place.
Bright stars floated gently across the sky, shining in all sorts of different colors. Each one gave off some kind of positive effect or feeling, and there didn't seem to be any downsides or bad things attached to them at all.
This place really felt like some kind of paradise, and he knew he was lucky to end up here, but at the same time it felt like he had abandoned his own friends just by falling down here without any warning. He thought about how he could've just waited back there for Ferha to come and help him get up safely instead of wandering around just out of pure curiosity. He knew what the smarter choice would've been, but now it felt like it was already too late to change anything.
"Goodness me..."
"What are you thinking about now?"
Stargazer gazed at him closely, and Maximus just shook his head slowly.
"Just thinking about... things. It doesn't really concern you anyways. Don't you know this place well though? If you really are some kind of spirit then you should know where to go, and lead me somewhere safe at least. Or maybe even know where the exit actually is."
"Let me give you one warning about that last sentence."
Stargazer held up one finger to show the number one, and Maximus looked at him with confusion.
"What kind of warning?"
"The exit. Even me, a spirit who has lived here for hundreds of years, don't even know what the real true exit actually looks like or where it is hidden. And even if you somehow manage to find it, from what i know it might just be blocked off completely. Plus going after it would really put your whole life in serious danger."
Maximus tensed up a little bit after hearing that.
"So what you're basically saying is..."
"You're going to need my help and guidance all throughout your journey through this moonlight forest. Do i really have to spell everything out for you?"
Maximus shook his head in refusal right away.
"Nope. I'm fine finding out about this world and everything in it on my own terms."
Stargazer let out a soft chuckle, looking even more interested than before.
"That is exactly the answer i was expecting to hear from you."
As time went on, the two of them started to feel much more comfortable around each other, and began to learn a bit more about who they really were. Though honestly, Maximus had way more questions in his mind than actual answers. He kept asking about things that would probably just spoil the whole adventure ahead, but he did it anyway just so he could feel a bit more prepared for whatever comes next.
"Do you really know exactly what is going to happen in the future?"
Stargazer nodded his head simply.
"Yep. I am a spirit that got renewed into this physical form, using this body as a vessel so i can exist here properly. This body could still get hurt or die though, but me myself will remain. Permanently killing a spirit is honestly one of the hardest things ever done or recorded in this whole world's history."
Maximus looked at him with a curious expression, and spoke up again.
"What about other spirits all across this... huge expansive world? I mean... i'm guessing you aren't the only one out there, right? Aren't there others like you somewhere?"
Stargazer laughed casually, and placed a hand gently onto Maximus's shoulder.
"Oh Max, you are absolutely right about that. We are scattered all over the world for very big important reasons. But looking back at history, or even from what i have seen myself in the past... we never really got along with each other very well. We don't even meet up or cross paths all that often either."
"...I see..."
Maximus let out another small sigh after hearing that truth. After that, everything went quiet for a moment, with only the soft twinkling sounds of the little stars floating around filling the air. Then suddenly, Maximus noticed something not too far away. It was a grave, sitting near a large tall tree, surrounded by a whole pile of flowers that glowed softly.
He walked towards it out of pure interest, and called out to Stargazer to ask about it.
"Hey, why is this thing even here? And... who exactly is..."
Written clearly on the grave were the words: 'Isle Quazzardz' 'A Renowed ************* and the light of the world'
Stargazer walked over to the grave Maximus was looking at, and gave it a small respectful bow. After a second he turned back around to face him.
"You don't really need to know about that one. It's just... an old story from way back."
Maximus could tell he shouldn't push Stargazer too hard or go too deep into his past, so he just smiled a little and tried to reassure him.
"Don't worry man. You can tell me about Isle... or whatever you called him, whenever you feel like it."
"..."
They kept walking along the path after that, until suddenly there was a faint soft glow of light shining in the distance. When they got closer, it turned out to be a whole town.
"This will be one of the very first towns i get to visit during my whole journey. That's awesome! Nice!"
Stargazer led Maximus down the correct road leading straight to it, while Maximus looked around everywhere with so much curiosity. He inspected almost everything he could see, like some kind of detective trying to figure out every little detail. Everything he saw within this moonlight forest looked so elegant, like nothing could ever break or ruin it.
"This place is seriously so beautiful..."
"The flowers glowing blue like that..."
"All these little stars floating around..."
"This whole area... it feels like something out of a dream, honestly..."
Stargazer eventually brought Maximus back out of his thoughts and back to reality, because right in front of them stood the actual entrance gates to the place.
"Alright then, we have finally arrived... welcome to Moonlight Town."