Nikolai never thought of himself as a genius. He was careful in his studies, spent long hours rehearsing and enjoyed widening his culture. One could have said he was the Einstein of memory, remembering anything he had tried to understand.

Yet, Nikolai failed to name a single life when his gaze fell upon the crystal hill.

He found himself in the centre of a small glade, standing at the top of a hill inhabited by crystalline marvels. The geode he had awakened alongside was at the summit, dominating the other in height and colour.

On the slope, eight smaller shards sprouted from the earth. If none could compare with the central one, each had a unique aura and shape. Around each of them were sleeping scattered teenagers. Those last were surrounded by patches of pale grass shifting with every wind’s caresses.

Nikolai’s eyes then reached the meadow’s end. A vegetal battlement enclosed the place. Trees stood like towers, and spiked bushes barricaded every path. The natural rampart had kept the geological construct hidden and was now shielding them from whatever was lying in the woods.

Plants were never his expertise, but Nikolai could easily understand he was not in the forest next to his village. The trees, some as large as a car, were covered by mattresses of emerald moss and parasite by plump purple mushrooms. Most of these fungi were as broad as a hand, while some grew twice this size.

A glance was enough to distinguish the nature of the elder sanctum. Never the hand of man had known power in those lands. Nikolai even believed he was the first to witness this primal beauty.

Abandoning his contemplation, he returned to his human companions. They all seemed around his age. The youngest was probably in her fifteenth, while the oldest looked barely twenty.

He couldn’t recognise anyone, unsure if they even came from the same place as him. The only thing linking everyone together was the place and the odd clothes they wore. The boys were dressed in simple white shirts and pants, while the girls wore thick dresses fastened at their waist by a simple belt.

If the supernatural surroundings had initially kept him from thinking about his situation, Nikolai regained his old habit and started analysing. Like well-oiled cogs, his mind assembled every detail and drew a first picture.

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They were in danger.

Of course, his judgement remained foggy, but they were undoubtedly in a place where they shouldn’t have been. Who knew what could hide in these woods? Nikolai already suspected predators, or worse, to be surrounding them.

“What is happening?” he thought aloud, realising how dry his throat was. “This place can’t be real…”

A small smile drew over his lips, and his ashen eyes lit up with passion. His sleeping synapses awoke, ready to handle the situation. Never on Earth had he heard about giant pink crystal or millennial forest left untouched. Only one place could hold such a place: the world of legends found in books and fantasy.

It didn’t make any sense, but Nikolai didn’t care. When every logical option was crossed, only the crazy was left.

“Shit!”

The voice took him by surprise. He looked over his shoulder, his heart almost bursting in his chest. Right beside him, a girl had just woken up. She was average, quite petite, but physically fit. Banal described her well, or so thought Nikolai, before meeting her gaze. Her ink-coloured hair surrounded two blue eyes, which carried the strength of the tide. The blue gems locked on him like raging dogs, piercing right through him.

Anywhere else, he wouldn’t have engaged with the girl. Nonetheless, the situation kept his hand-tied, so he held the death stare.

“You… did you also just wake up?” she asked after a few seconds, her voice filled with suspicion.

Nikolai thanked whoever was watching over him. She had enough wits to ask first and hit later. He answered with a hefty nod, which brought an end to the girl’s fidgeting.

“I came back to me a few minutes ago. It seems you are the second one to wake up.” detailed Nikolai. “However, someone could have ventured into the forest.”

She listened to him and glanced at the woods. Her thin eyebrow lifted a bit, and Nikolai caught her lips to tighten.

“Where the fuck are we? And how many are there?”

“I didn’t count, but something like forty, I’d say. Maybe a bit more.”

The girl tried to make sense of the situation but quickly came to the same conclusion as Nikolai. They were lost in an unknown place without a clue to help them.

She whipped her clammy hand on her dress and offered her right to Nikolai.

“Eïrin Aanenson.” She presented herself.

He took the offered hand and felt her intense, paladin grip, almost brutal. Not exactly what you expect from her girl looking like her.

“My name is Nikolai, Nikolai Marovic.”

“Nice to meet you… I guess.”