“I’d like to mention I’m allergic to cabbages.”

We’re five minutes into the jungle and Silverio just told us he’s allergic to cabbages.

“Why are you telling us this?” Atsuko muttered, pushing some giant leaves out of her way. Way to go. Very friendly, isn’t she? Silverio glanced at her and his mood dropped. You could see it on the guy’s face. Just, I dunno, he frowned even harder than normal.

Bandi looked back at us in disappointment. Why they’re looking at me like that as well confuses me because I’m the nicest guy around. I think. Silverio notices the look they give us and frowns even more somehow. It looked like he was about to pass out. Did he inhale a cabbage or something?

“There’s a village near. I can hear music,” he suddenly said, surprisingly calm.

“Me too,” I respond, and I really do. It’s a flute, I think. At least, I’m pretty sure it is. Atsuko rushes past us and out of sight, probably to find said village. And then she screamed.

Bandi, who was closest to where Atsuko had run off, froze. And then I hear them snicker.

I walked over and stood beside them, spotting Atsuko angrily picking up cabbages. A wooden cart stood nearby, complete with an angry vendor yelling at her to hurry up. So, she ran into a cabbage cart? Nice. Silverio stared at the green-leafed spheres with wide eyes. He watched them closely as if he was worried one would jump at him.

“Are you worried one will jump at you?” I tease, grinning at him. His eyes leave the cabbages to look at me, tilting his head. And then he stares at me. I feel my smile falter a bit due to the uncomfortable silence.

“...You’re funny,” he whispered, looking back at the vegetables.

Oh wow.

Atsuko stomped back towards us after she was done, glaring at Bandi as they attempted not to laugh. She looks back at the village, crossing her arms. “You all suck. Let’s go find somewhere to stay and then look for someone who’ll explain all this…”

Bandi sauntered over to the vendor. “Excuse me, good sir. Is there a hotel near here?”

“A what?”

“A hotel…?”

“I have no clue what you’re talking about.”

I raise my voice so they’ll hear me. “An inn!”

The vendor turns to me with a frown. “Ah, yes, the inn. It should be in the town square. Horrid place to have one, I’ll tell you that! The noise must be unbearable, especially with the festival coming to town.” Bandi raises an eyebrow before just shrugging.

“Nerd,” Atsuko whispers to me. Woah. Didn’t see that one coming.

The vendor points in a direction before carting off with his cabbages. Silverio finally exhales.

“I assume that’s the way to the square?” he asks quietly. Atsuko nods sarcastically, rolling her eyes. Silverio frowns once more, looking away. I feel a little bit bad, the guy just wants to go home.

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Bandi sets off towards the town square without prompt, and we all follow them. I glance at Atsuko, who stares into the void as we make our way to the town square. Oookay. I can’t really see Bandi’s face from here so I look at Silverio. He’s staring at Atsuko in fear or admiration, I can’t tell. Is this guy a masochist or something? He suddenly turns to me, silent. It’s like he’s giving me a similar look as the one he was giving Atsuko, though less of the fear. I’m not sure whether to feel uncomfortable or complimented. Woah, he’s just outright making prolonged eye contact. Help.

“It’s the inn!” Atsuko exclaimed, pointing at a wooden building. A big sign with ‘DEKODIA INN’ written on it is plastered on the front. The smaller text reads: If Infected, We Will Report You. Do Not Enter.

“Infected…?” I murmur, stepping back and right into Bandi. They tower over me with a grin.

“Watch where you’re going, pretty boy,” they snicker, pushing me away. I can tell by the way they said it they are most definitely not into me. Shame.

I turn back to the inn to see Atsuko already heading inside. It seems she’s quite impatient. And so, the rest of our little group follows. The inside of the building is cozy and much more inviting than its exterior. Extinguished candles litter the area, awaiting to light the place once the sun sets. I glance at what I can only assume is the reception desk. And there, on the other side, stands a small girl. She has to be about 10. But something’s off. On her cheeks, iridescent scales grow. What the hell…?

The girl’s eyes widen and her mouth is agape. “Woah…you’re…you’re weird.”

“Uhm…” I mutter.

“You must be the Chosen Ones! Mother told me all about you!”

“The what?” Bandi chimed in. Exactly what I was going to say.

The young child claps her hands with a grin. “The gods have chosen you! You must save our world!”

“This is just like a fantasy book…” Silverio pointed out, though it seemed he was speaking to himself.

Scaly face puffed out her cheeks, pouting. “You must save us! This is not a book. It’s real!” She turns to me with a steely gaze. “The sun has chosen you.” The sun? Like the fiery ball of, well, fire? That sun?

“Excuse me?”

She ignores me and looks at the others. “Do you all want to know what you’re meant to do?”

Before I can say something really mean to this little girl, Atsuko exclaimed: “Hell yeah! I wanna get the hell outta here!”

The girl nods in approval. She suddenly motions for us to follow her. This really is like some book. And I don’t like how fast the pace is. But I can’t really do anything about it, so I go with her, and so do the other three. The child opens a door to reveal a…hot tub. The water glows a serene blue, lighting up the room. The girl starts to laugh, smiling mischievously.

“And so, your adventure begins! Gosh, I’ve been bored for soooo long. But hey, this is finally getting exciting!”

“Huh-?” I blurted out. It was all I could say…because what the fuck?

“I should introduce myself! I am Neptune!” she thrilled, and I’m serious, she poofed into a full-grown woman. Her body was covered in scales now, and she wore an immaculate flowing dress. She was clearly a god, through and through. Her eyes were a swirling abyss, like an ocean. Then there was her hair, which was silky smooth and reached her waist. Pearls adorned her head and neck and even provided accenting to her royal blue dress. She wore a grin on her face that reeked of indifference. This woman couldn’t care less what happened to us, I noted, as long as it was entertaining.

“Don’t you lot get it? You’re just part of a little game me and the other gods are playing. I wasn’t supposed to reveal it so early, but I couldn’t contain myself!”

Atsuko suddenly spoke up. “Shut the actual fuck up.”

Neptune looked at her with that same uncaring smile. “Ooh…scary.”

Atsuko narrowed her eyes but stayed silent.

“As I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted…you were each picked by one of the gods. This means you will have abilities tied to us! But I’m sure you’ve already noticed it, otherwise, you wouldn’t be here. So, ready to embark on your new, exciting journey? It’ll be filled with tragedy, excitement, and fear. Heartbreak…and blooming love! I just loooove love!”

“If you don’t mind me asking, who did you pick out of us?” Silverio stipulated, a determined expression on his face. Oh my.

“I chose Bandile.”

I whipped my head around, spotting Bandi leaning against the wall. Their face only revealed disgust. “And you’re a siren, aren’t you?”

Neptune nods, clasping her hands together. “I am indeed a siren! My abilities consist of temptations and seas! I can be gentle like the waves, or violent like the storms!”

“Corny,” Bandi scoffed.

Neptune huffed, crossing her arms. “Oh, hush! I’ll let the rest of you figure yourselves out. I’ll be watching…” The smell of salt filled the air. Like the ocean. The woman fell back, right into the hot tub. And then she was gone. We all stood in stunned silence. I contemplated what to do next, and noticed keys on the floor with a note on them. I picked them up, squinting at the messy cursive writing.

“‘Here are your keys! Find a room…pick wisely. I only have two free rooms; they each fit two people. Gosh, I just love romance,’” I read out, cringing.

“I call dibs with Bandi!” Atsuko declared. Understandable. I slowly turned to Silverio, who stared at me with wide eyes.

“I don’t…want to share a room,” he whispered.

“Stop bein’ a baby!” Atsuko cooed sarcastically. Silverio frowned once more, looking at me again.

“Fine…”