It was midday, in the middle of a hot and humid forest, buzzing with insects—nefarious little creatures that crawled up Adrian’s leg as he followed after the carefree Tommy, occasionally swatting them away.
“Is there really no other way? I don’t want to wait out here alone for who knows how long!” Adrian complained.
“It’s our only option, Adri.” Tommy explained, “I don’t want you to get captured along with me. Sure, you’ll be safe, but I don’t want you to suffer unnecessarily.”
“It’s not like spending the night out here in this hot, horrible forest is any better. The mosquitoes are killing me!”
“They technically are, since they’re draining your blood.”
“That’s not helping!”
“Alright, fine! You whiny baby!” Tommy retorted, “I’ll buy you ten cheesecakes as repayment.”
“Cheesecakes aren’t sold in the isles, Tommy.”
“Fine, I’ll bake them, and buy you two bags of candy as well.”
“My point is,” Adrian began, “It’s not just about that. I feel uneasy about this entire ordeal. Plus, I never liked the Midwestern Isles, it’s always the center of any bad thing going around.”
“Yes, but…” Tommy gave up with a sigh, “I have some theories that I want to confirm. I don’t know anything about the orange-haired girl, yet. But, if some rumors I heard are correct, based upon my deductions, then I might finally be able to do something that I’ve longed for.”
“And what is that?”
“I can’t tell you unless we do it.” Tommy looked back, “You understand my reasoning at least, don’t you?”
Adrian hesitated but knew that Tommy wasn’t a happy-go-lucky fool who struts into danger whenever he pleases. He may be a daredevil at times, but a daredevil with limits. And whatever the thing he wanted to confirm was, it was surely of a value greater than the boy could or should understand at the moment. Thus, he gave up and nodded in response.
“Atta boy!” Tommy said, ruffling the boy’s hair. “Now, I think we’re near a good spot. Let’s hurry before night falls.”
A few hundred steps later, the duo found the designated spot. It was a grassy field, a few dozen paces in diameter, surrounded by the trees of the forest and seemed free from mosquitoes and pests for the meantime, and the sounds of the river could be faintly heard from afar. Taking a deep breath, Tommy inhaled the fresh air before settling down and taking a seat on the grass.
“Here we are, this should do it. You can set the tent now.” Tommy said.
Adrian reached for one of his bandolier pockets and fetched a steel ball with a fingerprint mark on it. He pressed his thumb on the fingerprint and threw the ball in front of him. Then, it exploded into a cloud of steam, and there lay a simple tent, fit for two people with blankets and pillows inside.
As the sun was setting beyond the horizon, the two began to collect sticks in an attempt to make a campfire. They gathered some stones, threw the sticks into a circle, and lit a fire by rubbing two pieces of the firewood until it caught ablaze.
The sun had set, the sky went dark with stars glimmering overhead. Adrian admired the view as he sat next to the fire, a few moments before Tommy came back from the river with a bag full of fish. He gutted them, removed the scales and all unwanted parts, and sprinkled some herbs for flavor and texture before impaling them on a stick and slowly roasting them with the campfire.
“What’s with that sad look on your face?” Tommy asked, “You don’t have a tummy ache, do you?”
“You already know,” Adrian explained, sighing as he hugged his legs. “I don’t like this plan. I don’t know what you have in mind, but I don’t want to face pirates, and I don’t want you to leave me alone.”
“But I won’t leave you alone! Think of it as–”
“I can’t think of it as anything!” He argued, “I don’t know what to do without you, I don’t know if someone will sneak up on me late at night… and I don’t want to lose you.”
“Hah! Lose me?” The man laughed, mockingly. “Did you forget who I am? Even if it were a country of pirates, I’m sure no one would make me break a sweat. That aside, you’re afraid to be on your own? What are adventurers, but people who risk their lives in exchange for the thrill of discovery and knowledge?”
“Then I don’t think I want to be one anymore.”
Adrian hugged his legs and averted his gaze, feeling ashamed for what he said. But, the former was smiling reassuringly as he ruffled Adrian’s hair before gently patting his head.
“I know. Sometimes, it doesn’t feel worth it.” He turned to face him, “But that’s not just with adventuring, that’s with life as a whole. No matter what the thing is, there will come a time when it doesn’t feel worth it. Well, not just things, but people as well. At some point, as horrible as it sounds, you will one day question whether knowing or being with a certain person is even worth it. Those times, Adrian, don’t need an iron heart to make the decision, but a tender one to feel it. It’s alright, you can feel scared, you can even cry. But you let your heart make the decision, and as for worrying…that’s a man’s job, and you’re too young to worry too much, let me worry in your stead.”
The young boy nodded, breathing deeply in response. In an attempt to lighten up the mood, Tommy began recounting local folklore of the metaphysical and paranormal, effectively changing Adrian’s mood from melancholic to frightened, garnering a few frustrated shouts from him as the former used his powers to scare the boy every now and then while recounting the stories.
At last, the fish were cooked to perfection, and dinner was served. The two shared the fish and indulged in their half of the share. While munching on the crispy exterior, Tommy began humming a tune, one that rang bells in the boy’s mind as he joined later on and sang the lyrics in unison.
Hurray! Hurray! Hurray!
We Won’t Die Today!
We Will Make It To The Bay,
We Will Make It, All The Way!
A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
Through The Waves We Ride,
Up The Hills We Stride!
The Road is Hard, We Need a Guide!
But That Won’t Do, We Have Some Pride!
Our Feet Are Hurting, We’re Far Behind!
Evil’s Lurking, Run and Hide!
We’re Far Away From Shore,
And Finally Close To Goal!
We’re Nearly There, There is No More
We Yearn For More, It’s Not a Chore!
It’s in Our Hearts, As We Explore
All Adventures, We Adore!
Hurray! Hurray! Hurray!
We Didn’t Die Today!
We Made It All The way To Bay,
We Made It Through, All The Way!|
We Want Some Drinks, As Music Plays
Here We Rest, Another Day!
They sang and ate to their full. Afterward, they sat on a soft patch of grass and stretched their backs as they gazed at the stars above. They lay next to each other, stargazing in tranquil silence, admiring the beauty of the radiating cosmic light of the stars in the darkness of night.
Whenever the duo were in the right place, and the right time, they would admire the night view and the stars above. Long ago, when Adrian was very young, Tommy convinced him that stars were born whenever a person of great influence in the world passed, and their soul would travel far away into the sky, to shine light on the world at night, just as they did in the days of their life.
Of course, the boy grew up and understood lies from truth. But that thought in particular stuck with him, for it was such a comforting one to bear in mind. And even after so long, Adrian still likes to believe the beautiful lie told by Tommy as he stargazes with him.
“Hey, Tommy,” Adrian said, pointing at one of the stars. “Do you see that?”
“What?”
“That star.”
“Do you have any idea how many there are–”
“No, that one. The very bright one.”
“Oh, that one! What about it?”
“If all stars are the souls of great people who died, then why is that one so bright?”
“Obviously, that’s the soul of someone so great and influencing that their star now shines brighter than all others.”
“If all stars in the sky are souls of great people, then what about the moon and the sun?”
“That…well,” He was silenced into a moment of pondering, “Those are the two most brightest in the night sky. The stars influence your imagination, make you feel peace and tranquility, but those two are what lit up your world.”
“So, the sun and moon are also souls of people?”
“I should like to think so.” Tommy chuckled, “The sun is ever so bright, shines light on the whole world, and showers it with its warmth. It gives you clear sight, it shows you the colors of the world. But no matter how bright the sun is, daylight doesn’t last forever. Many people praise this bright burning star in the sky, but the moon is the one there for us in our darkest moments. When the world is pitch black, when the night is nearly blinding, when creatures are crawling around, it’s the moon that shines ever so bright. Sure, it’s only reflecting the light of a setting sun, but it’s the one that rises when the latter sets.”
“Doesn’t the moon show up at day at times?”
“Precisely.” He said, “No matter how bright the sun is, it can only exist during the day. But the moon? It’s not there every night or day, but when it is, it is always there. You don’t care for the moon if it shows up during the day, but we only see its beauty when it stands to protect us at night. It may not shine as bright as the sun, but it gives its very best, and it's the one that glows for us in our darkest times, quite literally. More than that, look at it, isn’t it just beautiful how it glimmers ever so gracefully? Never have I ever seen the moon look plain or not mesmerizing. It casts a gentle light, it hypnotizes your eyes. And even if its light isn’t bright enough for us to see, it’s there to comfort us even when all else fails.”
“I see,” Adrian said, admiring the moon. “You quite like the moon, don’t you?”
“I love it, more than you could imagine.”
“I can’t say that I don’t understand. But it’s not that the sun just shines at day. It just shines ever so brightly that it overshadows every flashing light in the sky. That’s why I love it.”
“Just give it some time, I’m sure you will understand the beauty of the moon when you’re stranded at night with no light.”
“We shall see,” Adrian said, a moment of tranquil silence looming over him. Suddenly, he chuckled and turned to face the former. “If I die one day, what will I be? A star, sun, or moon?”
“You?” Tommy wondered, a warm smile plastered on his face. “The stars, moon, and sun all shine over the world. Have you ever paused to think what the world is?”
“It’s earth, right?”
“Not necessarily, no. The world isn’t particularly a place. Earth is our mother, the ever-giving greatest provider, one that we don’t know its beauty until we stop to think about it for a moment. But the world is entirely different, the world is different to everyone, actually. It can be a village, a house, a book, a painting, a place of work, or a ship. But most often, it’s people. What is Earth without its people, and what is our life without our ‘world’ in it?
The world is what gives our life meaning. It can be as unique as a thought, or as priceless as a life. Our worlds are different, and our lives are different, even if the lights that shine on us are one. You’re the world, Adrian. To many, and I’m sure that one day, you’ll be to most. I know that you already are for me.”
At that moment, Adrian felt his heart skip a beat. He knew Tommy had always cared for him, but to be of this great a value was unimaginable to the boy. At the same time, he remembered his world, and how much it meant to him. Tommy, Charlotte, Isaac, and his village. That was his world, and only now did he realize how much he wanted to see it again.
Alas, it was eight years, and his adventures hadn’t quite reached an end.
“You should stop reading too much poetry, it’s beginning to slip into your speech,” Adrian said.
“Well, I never thought you were such a senseless devil, Adri.” He chuckled, “But, to be honest with you. I know that Helsara is my hometown, where I was born, and where I lived most of my life. But Dreya is my world. I sometimes have dreams of approaching the sea towards the island, but never quite making it there. I would like to go back there, one day.”
“How about we go back after we finish the pirate business?”
“That–” Tommy paused, “Is a great idea! We should, absolutely!”
“So suddenly?!”
“Well, duh! That’s how adventures work!”
“You can’t just decide on a whim, damn it! I’m sick and tired of you doing that!”
The bickering commenced, once again, for minutes. Though he knew that his decision was too early, he resumed his arguments in pleasure, for the growing frustration on the boy's face was ever so hilarious. Ever since he was a child, the amusement and laughter Tommy garnered from infuriating Adrian never dulled nor lessened.
Later into the night, the duo decided to call it a day as they crawled into their tent to catch some much-needed sleep. Only an hour later after closing their eyes, Tommy rose awake. He stretched and yawned as he stepped out of the tent, delighted that it was still dark outside.
“Well then,” He said, stretching his limbs. “Time to move out.”
He dug his nails into the ground and shoveled a fistful of soil with his hands. He began to shape it and shift it, rolling it and flattening it, using his magic until it became a slab of solid rock. On this slab, a constant white dot appeared on the screen—Adrian’s signal—before a pulsating red one appeared—Tommy’s signal.
He nodded in approval, then placed the slab on the ground. Taking a deep breath, he mustered up all energy within him, and a mystic light glimmered from the man’s hands and chest. He began to perform a multitude of gestures as he chanted a spell.
“Let there be no evil to crawl near. Let this place, and who’s in it, be at peace.” And the light flashed brightly for a moment before it faded away.
Tommy gasped, a sharp pain in his chest knocked the smile from his face and the wind from his lungs. A few deep breaths later, he had calmed down and took the slab towards the tent.
His eyes fell upon Adrian, snug and sleeping ever so peacefully. Whenever he slept, he took his glasses off and placed them next to him. Seeing his face without the pair of glasses filled the man’s heart with nostalgia and reminiscence, back to when the boy was still young and didn’t need them. Alas, he decided that it was time to go, thus, he placed the tablet next to his glasses, and gently pat his head before whispering:
“I will take you back home, I swear. Sleep safe.”
He left the tent and made his way deep into the forest, set on finishing this task as quickly as possible so that he may see Dreya once more. However, unbeknownst to him, the task proved to be of greater difficulty than he had ever imagined. And as knowing and careful as he was, he never knew that a man on that pirate ship would be the dreaded nightmare he thought he had gotten rid of.
That nightmare was Midnight.