BOOK 1, CHAPTER 17 – Land of Mist

“Who are you?”

Artien gently pulled Little Green into his lap. He eyed the little boy who smiled at him. The boy was clothed simply. His faded, white clothes were worn, but clean. On his feet were woven sandals.

His hair was curly, black, and short. His eyes were a striking sky-blue against his paler skin. All-in-all, the boy was very handsome. With his arms behind his back and relaxed, his posture gave Artien the impression of an old man. This was in odds with his obvious young age.

“I’m the keeper of the ruins. You can call me Kor for short.” The smile never left the boy’s face. “What’s your name?”

“Artien.” His eyes narrowed when the boy gestured to Little Green.

“Hers?”

“Little Green.”

“Well, you’re not much for words, are you? Wait one moment.”

The boy left the room. There was a dragging sound outside. Kor returned, dragging a chair with him. He set the chair across from Artien, sitting in it. He wiggled around until he was comfortable, then rested his hands in his lap.

“I’m sure you have some questions.” Kor said.

“Where exactly am I? This place and mist? What are those ruins?” Artien continued, sounding off the most burning questions. As he asked, he placed a hand over Little Green’s wound.

Kor watched him move, his smile softening. “Your in the Land of Mist. Rightly named so after the never-ending mist around. It’s a valley floor surrounded by three-hundred foot cliffs. The cliffs are smoothly flat. You’ll find it’s impossible to physically climb out of here.”

“We’re stuck here?” Artien felt his worry increase.

“Don’t worry! It’s completely safe here.” Kor laid back, propping his hands behind his head carelessly.

“There’s a flying king beast-“

“It won’t come in the mist.” Kor cut him off. “No beast will.”

“There’s no beasts here?” Artien asked, his tone slightly disbelieving.

“None. Other than your Little Green.” Kor’s gaze went to the hand-covered wound. “You shouldn’t heal others when you yourself haven’t fully healed.” He advised.

“I’ll be fine.” Artien continued channeling mana into Little Green’s wound, hoping to heal her faster.

Kor shrugged. “Suit yourself. Just don’t share your force. Not all beings can accept that. Mana is much more forgiving.”

Artien guarded himself against that simple, harmless smile. “What’s so special about the mist?” He re-directed.

“Ah. That.” Kor laughed softly. “It seems it makes others go mad. I’ve been here so long it’s hard to remember. No.” Kor frowned. “That’s not quite right. I can’t recall.” He sighed, giving up. “There’s been several visitors unlucky to fall within the mist.”

Kor sat up, scratching his head. “When I see them, it’s as if the mist is a miasma. As they breathe it in, they lose themselves. I believe it enters the mind through breathing, driving both human and beast crazy.”

“Not you?”

“Ah, no. Me too. Over time I’ve gotten used to it. It doesn’t affect me anymore.” He jerked his chin at Little Green. “She must have powerful poison of her own. A powerful poison can counteract another, rendering both in-effective. Should one poison be lost, the other would take effect. It would be wise to advise her not to use her poison here.”

“Thank you for your advise.”

“Take it as you will.”

Artien looked out the door, seeing a wall. Hallway? “Is there no one else here?”

“No. Just me, you, and her.” Kor pointed to each of them consecutively.

Kor sat up, leaning forward in his chair. “I have a question for you.” His eyes suddenly burned with curiosity. “What makes you resistant to the mist?”

Artien felt caught unawares. Why was the mist not driving him mad? He inhaled, feeling no changes to the air or his body. It was like the mist wasn’t even there. He shrugged. “I have a superior constitution?"

Kor slapped his knee. “You!” He laughed. “I guess we can leave it at that. Do you have any other questions for me?”

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“If I had any questions left, what about the ruins?”

Kor waved his hand. “Those? People used to live here. Now they don’t. I came after they were long gone.” He jumped up, putting the chair against a wall. “You’re welcome to explore. You’ll find food in nature and water in a stream that runs through the entire valley.”

He paused at the door. “Oh, yes, you can stay here if you like. I’ve got other places I’ve kept up to sleep in. Let me know if you need anything.” He waved and left.

Artien turned his full attention to Little Green. Through their connection he only sensed her sleeping deeply. A sleep one only woke up from after they’ve rested enough. He gently placed her on the bed, then got up.

Outside the room was a short hall. It ended on the right. Three other doors littered the hall before it opened to a larger room on the left. He entered the larger area, finding scattered tables and chairs. A door exited to outside on the right.

“An inn?” He mumbled. “If there’s an inn, there had to have been travelers. If there were travelers, there must be a way out.” Satisfied with his reasoning, he went outside.

Outside he found an entire town. Cobbled streets with posts for lamps lining them wound around the different buildings. This mist overhead filtered the sunlight, dimming everything in a dark gloom. A musty wind blew past, sending a shiver down his spine. The streets were eerily empty.

He shook himself, taking a deep breath. He took note of the inn’s location and explored the town. After wandering for several minutes he found Kor sweeping debris of the porch to a small house. Kor smiled at him and nodded, continuing to sweep. Artien nodded in return, following the main road.

He reached the center of town within minutes. Heading in one direction, he reached the edge of the town in another five minutes. The town was small, housing only thirty or so buildings. As he traveled further away from the inn’s location, the buildings and land became less cared for. He headed back to the inn, his worry for Little Green making him rush.

He found her sound asleep on the bed, same as before. Reassured, he left again. This time he headed away from the town center towards what was the original town entrance. The cobbled street turned into dirt road as he left the town. He followed the dirt road.

He traveled for some time, taking in the visible surroundings. There was grass on all sides. Single trees dotted the ground. The road continued until the grass started to overtake it. From there, he followed the signs of brick wall and rubble. Sometimes he came across a house situated further back from the covered road, indicating he was going in the right direction.

The grass ended abruptly at the edge of a tree line to a dense forest. The trees were old, around a hundred feet tall. There was a path through the forest where someone had cut back the trees for the road. He quietly went through the forest. It darkened under the canopy. The background of the forest ahead of him turned black.

The further he went, the more black the background became. The road bended, going around a small hill. As he rounded it, the blackness became a solid mass. In front of him, as high as he could see, a cliff wall barred his way. At one time or another there had been a path to the road.

“Something amazing must have happened.” He rubbed a hand on the cliff wall, feeling it smooth without roughness.

He followed the cliff wall left, walking out of the forest back into grassland. The grasses started to show signs of ruins. A mass in the distance took shape. As he got closer, the outline of buildings became visible. The cliff walls cut straight through the town, some buildings rubble at it’s base.

He continued exploring, taking to the street nearest the wall. He went through the town, exiting out the other side. He came out into more grassland, once more leaving the town behind. He picked up his speed, rushing alongside the wall. He ran for a good while, but the cliff showed no signs of ending.

A sound of lapping water arrived. The ground began to sink in each step he took. Ahead, a lake came into view. Long grasses edged the lake. The lake itself stretched from the cave wall outwards. It was large enough he couldn’t see the other end through the mist.

A soft wind brushed fine spray of water droplets against him. Low rumbling accompanied. “A waterfall?”

He skirted the edge of the lake. A distance around a little creek continuously fed water out of the lake. He jumped across, deciding to stick to the lake edge. He followed the edge of the lake to the other side, coming again to a cave wall. Further down the way he came upon a forest.

This time he traced the tree line. After a bit of time passed, he came across the creek. He jumped back across. The tree line split where he met with a familiar road. He scowled, stopping.

“This place is entirely closed off.”

If he used the town as the center for ‘north’, then the forest would be at the southeast. The lake was at the southwest. The creek cut across the center from west to east, feeding the forest.

Artien, dejected, headed back to the town. The sky outside darkened. When he arrived at the inn, it was nearly dark. He went to his room, moved Little Green safely to the edge of the bed, and laid down. He closed his eyes, wondering what would become of them.

For the next several days he searched for a way out. He searched the ruins, the forest, and even swam into the lake. He discovered many things on his explorations. One of which was food. There were fruit high in the canopy of the trees, and berries near the lake. The only thing he didn’t find was a way out.

Little Green had yet to wake up. With Kor’s help, he had learned to change the bandage. The wound was scabbed over and still healing. Kor pointed out a few more days of rest was needed before she might wake up. He kept himself busy exploring.

As the days passed, he grew increasingly sure they were stuck. The cliff walls were impossible to climb. They were also somehow impervious to magic and tools. He could not carve steps as a way out, let alone scratch the rock. Giving up, he found a crumbling brick wall and sat on it.

He wracked his brain, trying to think of a way out of the empty valley. No matter how hard he tried, he came up empty. It was at this time that Kor appeared.

“Still trying to think of a way out?” Kor asked, his smile ever-present.

“Yes. It’s just, I can’t find a way or think of one.” Artien rubbed his head, feeling a headache coming.

“What have you tried?”

Artien recounted his experience inside the valley, only making Kor laugh. He scowled. “Why are you laughing?”

“Sorry, sorry.” Kor said, trying to muffle his mirth. “You spent all this time doing worthless things.”

“What do you mean?”

“You can ask me. I’ve done all of that already.” Kor laughed again, grasping his belly. “Hah.” He wiped his eyes.

“It’s been so long since I have laughed well. I’ll help you a little.”

Artien crossed his arms. “What can you do to help me? You’ve been stuck here with no way out.”

Kor sobered up, walking closer. He poked Artien in the chest. “Focus on what you can do. Not what you cannot.” His smile returned, and he walked away.

“Focus on what I can do.” Artien said to himself, beginning to think from a different point of view.

“What I can do… is magic.”