You know when your parents say, there is no way to know where you will be in the future. Well, they would be wrong, when I graduated from high school, I ended up spending four years at university, where I then got offered an office job. Guess where I am now, 8 years later. Yep, that’s right. I’m still sitting at the same desk, with the same title, position and lousy salary. Its been over a decade since I have had time do anything that I wanted to or even have the freedom to afford anything nice. I pretty much get a wage just enough to pay for rent, groceries and the bills. I haven’t had a vacation in four years, and when I did go on vacation, I ended up spending my time recovering from being sick from overworking.
***
It's Friday finally! When I get home, I am going to eat dinner, then go to sleep. I’m exhausted.
“Watch out!” A cry came from behind me.
“Ow! What is wrong with you?” I shouted furiously.
“I am so sorry, I was in a rush. Are you ok?” They replied with a truly sympathetic tone.
“Yeh, I’m fine. But you should really wat— Wow… You’re beautiful.” I said as my mind emptied and was replaced by her astounding aura.
Her golden hair was only comparable to that of the blazing sun, and her blue eyes would drown you like a bottomless ocean. But what is this feeling? My heart, it feels like its imploding with the power of a clenched fist. My body, I can't feel it anymore, what is going on? I feel sick but not feverish, I can’t see but am aware. These blended sensations feel like a tornado ripping me off the ground and into nothingness.
***
Where am I, a field? There is an endless horizon of needle-like grass and a cloudless sky, the same shade as her eyes. Wait, the girl! Where is she? Is she alright? More importantly though, how did I get here? This place looks like a scene straight from a movie, its utterly surreal. Wait what’s a movie?
Hiss
What was that? It sounded like a snake, but with all this grass how am I supposed to spot a snake? And then as if rising from slumber, it rose with the height of a two-story building. Its tongue, the length of a person, vibrated with the force to create a gale of wind. It reclined, ready to lunge forward with an explosion of force. All I could do was stand there in absolute denial as it tore through the air like a bullet. In that split second, a blade the with a physics-defying enormity slashed directly through the serpent’s neck.
“Kid! What is wrong with you?” Shouted the wielder of the sword, dressed in scarcely covering platemail.
“W – What? What was that thing!?” I stuttered.
“That was a Giant Cobra, you’re lucky we were here in time otherwise you would be snake food at best.” He said in confidence.
“How did it get that big!?” I asked in absolute horror.
“That guy, he is probably actually on the smaller side. Wait, are you saying you’ve never seen a Giant Cobra before? It’s one of the most common monsters around the plains.” He explained in confusion. “Where did you come from anyway? Your clothes look really strange.”
“I’m not sure… I can't seem to remember.” I said, as I only remember that girl. “Where am I anyway?”
“Are you serious? You have no idea where you are? Wait… Are you one of them? A lost child?” He asked with a sparkle in his eyes.
Lost child? I’m not a kid, am I?
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
“What do you mean by lost child?” I asked.
“You mean your not one of them? They are children who have been found that have no memory of their past life.” The guy replied with a bewildered expression across his face.
“Maybe I am. I don’t know. But the girl, have you seen her? I saw her not long ago, but we were somewhere else… I think.” I said with a cloud taking the forefront of my mind.
***
My mind wondered as I woke in a bed, the sun leaking through the gaps in a suspended cloth that draped over a window. I peeled the cloth aside and was held captive by the charming infrastructure of a cobblestone pathed town. People were flooding the market stalls, and mules were tugging cargo through the hordes of merchants. In the distance were crop fields, full of wheat and the windmills that accompanied them. There is also an encompassment of mountains that rest on the opposite side of the town.
Knock, Knock.
“So, you’re awake.” The familiar sword wielder stated. “I didn’t get to introduce myself before you passed out yesterday. The name’s Garldrin.”
“Hi, my name’s – my name’s… I don’t know.” I said with a chilling emptiness.
“It's alright, you can stay here until you remember, or at least until you can afford to live on your own. But you will have to work for your keep.” Garldrin said with a grin stretched across his face.
With the door now open, I noticed a mirror hoisted on the wall of the hallway. I squeezed past Garldrin and stood there staring at what seemed like some child’s face. But there was no disputing it. They were my eyes that I was glaring into.
“I can take you to the guild hall tomorrow and get you applied as an adventurer. That way we can identify your name and age on the guild card. And it will also allow you to earn some money for your rent and meals around here.” Garldrin suggested.
“An adventurer’s guild? So, you’re an adventurer then Garldrin.” I asked in awe.
“Yeh, that is why my party and I were out in the plains, we were completing a request from the guild to cull the Giant Cobras. Luckily for you.” He said with a smirk.
***
It was the next morning, Garldrin and I headed out pretty early in order to get the guild hall before the mid-morning rush in the markets. As we arrived at a stone building that had an enduring presence, I noticed a large timber crest above the entrance. It seemed to resemble that of a dragon.
“Oh, that. That is our towns emblem, the emblem of Dragon Lane village.” Garldrin explained. “Every guild hall around the country have their towns emblem to represent each one separately.”
Garldrin’s strength flung the doors of the guild hall open in a flash, with a but a trail of wind in his way. Once inside, the warmth of the enormous fireplace encompassed my body. The interior looked much more inviting than the exterior.
“Hey Tilda, I was wondering if you could sign this kid up for a guild card.” He queried. Then in a much quieter whisper. “I think he might be a lost child.”
“Oh, wow!” The lady at the counter cheered, to immediately regret it. “Sorry…”
“Don’t worry about it” Garldrin said in annoyance.
“Well come around here cutie. I'll take you around the back to get you identified.” She exclaimed in a nearly seductive voice.
“Sure.” I replied scarcely.
***
We had entered a room behind the front desk. The walls of the room were completely covered in timber oak, with a lonely tall round table with a glass ball debuted in the middle of it.
“Just place both your hands on the crystal ball and it will transfer your credentials to this card in the form of ID, statistical capabilities and magic power.” Tilda heeded.
“Wait, what!? Magic? There is such a thing as magic? And it’s possible that I have it?” I shouted in excitement as a smile spread ferociously across my expression.
“Yes of course. Wow, you truly must be a lost child. To not even know of magic.” She said as if I was lacking common sense.
As I walked up to the ball, I gazed into it, I could see myself smiling. However, once I placed my hands on the ball it suddenly began to take on an opaque appearance. Suddenly the ball began oscillating between various colours of the spectrum until finally, the ball cracked from the inside out, leaving just three broken pieces of glass laying on the round table.
“Um… That has never happened before. It must have been faulty. Let me see if it caused any anomalies with your guild card.” She said with a squirrely throat. “WHAT!? That can’t be right.” She shouted in denial.
Identification:
Name: Kaz Simmons
Age: 16
Status: ???
Stats:
Strength: Rank C+
Defence: Rank C
Magic: Rank A+
Magic Def: Rank A
Agility: Rank B
Intelligence: B+
Abilities:
Demon Lord Candidate’s Enchantment:
(Candidate is forced to participate in the Candidacy Trials).
Hex of a Lost Child:
(Pacifism of memories of past lives + increased magic capabilities [x1.5]).