I panted heavily as I stumbled forward clinging to the back of Varis's shirt. "My legs are sooore!" I whimpered as Varis turned around and shoved me off of him.

"We've only been walking for five minutes," Varis said with a sigh. "Stop grabbing me, you baby."

"I'm not a baby!" I flailed my arms.

Curse these weak muscles! What happened to all the energy I had? I’m a kid again aren’t I? Where’s all the unlimited energy children have?

Father rolled his eyes and said from over his shoulder, "Both of you, stop bickering and keep walking."

Behind me, Mother placed a hand on my shoulder and said, "Come, dear, it's not that far." She lightly pushed me forward, and I huffed as we navigated our way up the mountain trail.

The term trial is a bit of an overstatement if I'm being honest. It was more like a narrow, winding path through the dense forest, overgrown with vegetation. Not to mention we're going up the mountain, so I'm constantly fighting the incline with my little legs as Varis and the other tall folk around me strode up with little to no effort. For minutes, this continued as we pushed deeper into the thickening undergrowth. The canopy above became dense to the point that little to no rays of light showed through, save for the occasional god ray that pierced the gaps in the pines.

The forest was dark. Very dark. Aside from my family around me and the occasional idle chatter, I could hear the sounds of critters scurrying through the underbrush and snow. I tightened my cloak around me. I couldn't imagine getting lost in a place like this. It was truly unnerving.

As if sensing my anxiety, I felt Mother's hand on my shoulder. "Don't worry, love; I'm right behind you." She hummed.

"I-I know." I sighed. "It's just dark and cold out here." As we continued to climb, the air was getting chillier and chillier. I should've suspected this and put on some extra layers, but unfortunately, Captain Hindsight isn't here to rescue me.

Mother nodded. "I can't help too much with the cold, but with light." She squeezed my shoulder gently and closed her eyes for a second. "Mother of stars, your heavens are so bright; lend me your guidance on a path of light. Fireflies." Her eyes flashed a ghostly blue light, and she waved her free hand. A strobe of blue light emitted from the forest around us briefly as a dancing orb of lights began to fill the air around our group, illuminating the dark forest.

Varis gasped, Father spun around, and Isa glanced over her shoulder, amazed. "You couldn't have done that earlier, Cailynn?" Father asked with a smile and rolled his eyes before turning back around as the little magical orbs began to levitate forward up the path, lighting our way.

Mother smiled as her eyes returned to their original blue hue, and she smirked as they glistened in the light. "You never asked, love." She glanced down at me. "Is that better, Luna?"

My eyes sparkled with joy at the sight of more magic, and I nodded my head. "You totally have to teach me this!" I said, and Mother giggled.

"Perhaps I will." She winked, and my heart fluttered.

"Really?" I asked as we continued walking.

"I've been thinking about it," she said with a grin on her face. "I did bring my book with me, and I have some extra components. I can maybe try and show you some lesser spells this week." She hummed a tune under her breath, her excitement palpable.

My smile widened. I wonder if this is partly why we came out here. I thought. If Mother wants to show me spells, it'd probably be best to do so away from our home. I giggled and began to scurry on ahead no longer feeling the aches in my feet.

"Varis! Varis! Momma wants to teach me magic!" I said excitedly eager to tell someone.

My brother glanced back over his shoulder and smiled. "Oh? Cool! Can I learn too, Momma?" He asked.

Mother nodded. "If you can keep up, magic is just like schoolwork."

Varis frowned. "Aww, I hate school!" He pouted as we all laughed.

----------------------------------------

"It's about a handful of garos up ahead." Isa called back from over her shoulder after moving ahead to scout the path.

Garos? I thought. I think that's equal to yards or something. If I’m right then god bless. My legs are dying; it's cold, yet I'm still feeling sweaty.

"Hear that, Luna? Just a little more." Mother hummed, and as she manipulated her little orbs of light to orbit around me, seeing this made me smile, and I nodded.

Pressing further, I could now see sunlight ahead. We had been traveling for about an hour on foot, and the sun was about three-quarters of the way across the sky. As we finally broke into this new, grassy, and rocky clearing, I saw we were at the base of a massive cliff face on the side of the mountain.

Yet what stood out about this face was the large fissure that broke down the center of it, leading to a naturally formed cave entrance. A large one at that. I sure as hell hope this isn't a yogi's den. I shuddered. Or worse, a dragon.

"Excellent," Isa said with satisfaction. She spun around to face us and we lined up in front of her. "It's still here."

"What is this?" Father asked.

"It's just a big hole in the wall." Varis huffed, seemingly disappointed. "I was hoping for something cooler—" Mother bopped him on the back of the head.

"Varis, be nice; Madam Soza was excited to bring us here."

Isa chuckled as she glanced at me while I flopped on the stony ground to rest my legs, flattening out my skirt with a sigh. "We're not going in there, are we?" I asked nervously as I pointed at the hole.

Isa looked at me smugly and her feline ears wiggled mischievously. "Well, if you don't want to see the interesting bits inside, then I guess not." She shrugged.

I mulled it over and sighed. "Well, it looks really cool to me. Can we take a short break first, though?"

Isa looked to my mother and father, who both nodded and crossed her arms. "Aye, we can rest for a bit. About fifteen minutes."

Mother, who seemed to be keeping a strong face, visibly relaxed and said, "Thank the gods, my stomach has been killing me."

"Did you bring those sandwiches?" Father asked, and Mother nodded as she reached into her bag and brought out some cloth-wrapped lunches.

My stomach practically cheered as we all gathered around in a small circle. Mother passed around some steak and cheese sandwiches, and for a short while we sat and ate mostly in silence.

While I dined on my fine lunch, however, I felt something tug at me. Yet not in the sense of someone physically touching me, but something inside. It was as if my stomach had slightly lurched forward, like when riding a roller coaster. At first, I thought nothing of it; maybe I was just that hungry. But as I finished my lunch, I felt it again.

"My tummy feels funny," I said out loud, and my mother's head instantly perked up.

"Was it the meat?" Mother asked. "Was it still bloody?" She gulped nervously.

I shook my head. "N-no it was cooked… I feel like it's lurching in me." I glanced up, and my eyes glazed over the cave entrance. That's when it lurched one last time but faded. "Huh, it went away," I said, rubbing my stomach. "Maybe it was nothing, but it started when we were about to eat."

Mother bit her lower lip and said, "Well, if you feel sick, let me know."

I nodded. "Okay." My eyes never left the cave entrance; something felt odd about it now.

Isa seemed to notice my gaze and follow the direction I was looking in. "Something caught your attention, Luna?" She asked me.

"Not in particular," I said, "but I am curious as to what's in there now."

Isa's eyebrow raised, and I could tell she was a bit suspicious now.

As everyone began to finish up their meals and get to their feet, I dusted off my skirt, straightened up, and glanced at my parents, who were both looking at Isa.

"So do you know what's in there?" Father asked.

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

Isa’s eyes twinkled and she nodded. "A little bit. When coming through this side of the country, I stumbled upon here and ventured forth a few hundred feet."

Mother placed a hand on her hip and frowned. "So, are you going to tell us what's in it?"

Isa smirked and placed a claw on her lips. "It wouldn't be a surprise if I told you. Trust me, the place was abandoned the last time I checked."

"And how long ago was that?" I asked her as Isa turned away.

She stopped mid-turn and asked, "How long have I been teaching you?"

This woman hasn't been in here in almost four years; how the hell does she know it's still abandoned? I sighed.

Isa smirked then turned and began to walk towards the cave entrance. One by one we began to follow her up there. As we approached the cave, I stopped briefly as I could hear something like thousands of rustling leaves. Though the sound wasn’t coming from the forest behind me, but up ahead. Within the cave. The sound crescendoed slightly and I realized. It wasn’t leaves. It sounded like static; television static.

"Do you hear that?" I asked my family nervously, my heart began to beat intensely. The steady thumping could be heard alongside the static.

Everyone stopped and glanced at me. My father cocked his head and listened. "All I hear is wind."

"Don't tell me you're clucking out now!" Varis teased, and I shook my head.

"N-No, I'm not… I just… thought I could hear…" How would I describe it? These people don't know what TV static sounds like. "Like rustling leaves. Lots of them."

"It could be just the wind I mentioned." Father said, though his ears were flexing a bit as he tried to listen.

"But I hear it within the cave," I said, pointing at the dark entrance. I was beginning to tremble, the noise seemed to become increasingly louder, and my heart now starting to race.

Isa stepped towards the cave, peered within for a minute, and turned back to us. "I do not hear anything."

Are you fucking kidding me? I thought. It sounds so loud, though. Should I stay out here? Maybe it'll be safe. Maybe going in will just cause trouble—trouble that'll get not just me hurt or killed but maybe these others.

I jolted when I felt my mother place her hand on my shoulder. "If you're scared, Luna, I can stay with you out here."

I glanced up at Mother and gulped, and then I heard—no, I also felt it. In tandem with my beating heart. A steady beep. It sounded along with the static and my heart for a second before falling to silence, only to echo out again. I felt my stomach sink. My mouth dried, and my vision blurred as my trembling became uncontrollable.

"Luna? Luna!" My mother lunged down to grab me as I stumbled back. "My god, Slyran, she's freezing and trembling!" Her voice began to grow distant as my world began to blur.

The sound of static and that incessant beep began to get louder and louder before suddenly.

Everything went dark, and I blacked out.

"So, we meet again… You're too early… So be it. Come by alone at dusk, and I'll have what you need prepared."

"Gyaaah!" I was jolted awake by the sound of my scream as I lurched upward from the bed I laid in. My body was sore and stiff, and my lower back ached as I huffed and drew in deep breaths. My eyes scanned the dark room to see the light of the television displaying nothing but static and emitting white noise.

My eyes widened as I stared at the TV before I jolted upon hearing the sound of the heart monitor behind me. I yelled and gagged as my dry throat ached for water. I fell into a coughing fit. I reached up and yanked the cords and tubes from my body, rolled out of bed, and collapsed onto the cold marble floor.

This can't be. This can't be. This can't be. This can't be.

I clambered to my feet and was immediately taken aback by how tall I was. Glancing down at my hunched-over form, I was met with the sight of an emaciated individual, a man. I reached up with my large, thin hands and felt the scraggly beard on my face before touching my small, rounded ears.

No! No! No!

I frantically looked around the dark room for what seemed like a bathroom and found one on the far end. I limped over to it and opened the door. I flicked on the light switch and flinched as I turned to look in the mirror, and for a second, I thought I saw myself. The little elf girl was staring back, yet when I blinked and opened my eyes, I was shocked to see a scraggly man, probably in his mid-thirties, staring back at himself, his hair unkempt, his beard thick and uneven, and thin all over with no muscle.

No. Why? Why am I back here? Is this some sort of sick joke? Has this all been for naught? Had it all been a dream? A horrible dream?! It can’t be. It felt so real, it felt so long. All of it. All of it was gone. This couldn’t be real. It had to be a joke. A cruel one. How could I return to my old life after all of this time?

Suddenly, the lights in the other room came on. The sound of someone speaking English threw me off guard—a woman's voice calling out, were they a nurse? She's calling out someone's name. A name I didn't recognize, that is until it clicked.

My dead name.

I clasped my hands over my ears. No! I don't want to hear it; I left that name behind!

I shambled my way to the entrance of the bathroom and saw out in the main room a pretty woman in hospital scrubs. A nurse, I think. She was looking at my bed and quickly turned away to head out until she stopped and saw my disheveled self standing in the doorway.

"Mister…" I clenched my eyes and immediately drowned her out with my thoughts. I refuse to hear my old name. I died, and that name went with me. My name is Luna Ashflow now. Luna, Luna, Luna! I screamed in my mind as if it’d make it real again.

"I'm so happy to see you're awake, sir, but you need to go lay down." She said calmly as she approached me.

"No!" I yelled out in the Maurich tongue. "Get away from me!" The woman stopped and hesitated when I panicked.

"Uh, Mister…" I shook my head once more. "You need to come with me back to bed." I saw her reach for a button near the bathroom door, and she pressed it.

I stumbled back into the bathtub, tripped, and fell, thankfully not hitting my head on anything harmful. The woman panicked and quickly rushed over to help me, but I swatted her away with pathetic kicks and cries.

Coming into the bathroom were two other male nurses, large, strong-looking fellows, along with an older woman who looked to be a doctor. "What seems to be the situation here?" The older woman asked.

The first nurse glanced back and said, "Mister…" I clasped my hands over my ears. "Woke up. I'm trying to help him back to bed, but he seems delirious."

I'm not delirious; this is just a dream. A nightmare! I'm having a fucking nightmare! I wanted to scream yet when opening my mouth only pathetic groans escaped my lips.

I kept my hands clasped tightly over my ears and clenched my eyes shut as I curled up in the bathtub. I mumbled to myself repeatedly that this was just a nightmare. Yet when I felt the firm hands of the male nurses dragging me out of the tub, I cried out with abject horror. I tried my best to fight off the men, yet my stick-like limbs were nothing as they eventually put me into a position where I could hardly fight at all as they pulled me out of the room.

As I was dragged from the bathroom, the older doctor approached me from the side, her hand in one pocket. "Calm down, Mister—" She started to say, and I screamed and closed my eyes as something sharp pierced my neck.

And everything went dark, and I fell unconscious.

"Now. Let us meet properly once again."

My eyes flew open, and my back arched as I gasped, drinking in the air as I choked and groaned. I sat up, my hands instantly shooting to my smooth-skinned face and up to my pointed ears before one hand reached down below to confirm. I was once again Luna. A little elven girl.

"Oh, thank God, it really was just a shitty nightmare." I moaned and quivered. It felt so fucking real. I sniffed, wiped my eyes, and glanced around to confirm I was back in mine and Varis's tent. Nearly seven years. It's been nearly seven years, and this was one of the first nightmares I had about my old life. The first month or so, I had nightmares about the gunmen and a couple of other bits. Yet after that, they faded away.

But why now?

I closed my eyes and shuddered. My hands were still trembling as I pulled myself out of my bedroll. Something about that cave triggered something in me. Yet what? What was it? I took another deep breath, regaining what composure I had left. I noticed Mother must've stripped me of my clothes and put me in my pajamas.

Taking the time, I got dressed once more and stepped outside. It was late; the sky was a dark shade of purple and blue, and I could see the moons, Radiance, and Andoria above my head as the sun dipped below the mountains.

My family was around the campfire watching Isa, who was the only one standing, waving her arms around as she seemed to be in the middle of a story.

Great, I'm missing storytime. I thought, and I hesitated.

Part of me was drawn to go and sit with my family yet… My eyes drifted back toward the trail. Something within was drawing me in. That same sensation I had felt earlier. A lurching pull, as if a rope had been tied around my waist. I was being reeled in. As I stood there, I swore I could hear it still. The static, the beep. I need to figure out what it is. I don't know why, but I just feel this compulsion.

"Listen up, children." Isa's voice echoed in my mind: "This is very important. The Heinland Forest is not a safe place for little kids. Legend has it that a Web Way is connected to this forest, which leads to the Fae Wylde. This forest is known for having creatures of trickery roaming it."

The cold iron. I scampered back into my tent and went to my bags. I dug around in them until I found the dress I had worn earlier. Searching through the pockets, I winced as I pulled out the freezing metal rod and stuck it into my pocket. I held it in my grasp but the sensations I felt, were still present.

Should I tell the others—?

No. An abrupt thought of my own interrupted them. I should go alone.

Suddenly, a sharp pain wracked my head, and I winced as I clutched it. "Ow, fuck… what the hell?" I glanced around. I don't get migraines often, but shit, that hurt.

I stood back up, stepped out of my tent again, and turned to the path. One last time, I glanced back at my family. What if they notice me? I thought. Mother and father will get furious.

They won't notice me. I could hear my own thoughts say, I'm sure I'll be just fine going alone. They felt so alien yet, right? They were my own thoughts after all.

Yet it's dangerous, I thought to myself. Surely I should notify the rest of them.

They won't understand. My conscience replied. We got this. Just make your way to the cave.

I hesitated for a second. Perhaps I should tell them–and winced as another ping of pain hit me, and I gritted my teeth and nodded. A quick trip only took about an hour before. Maybe they'll think I'm asleep. I turned away from my family again and made my way towards the trail as I heard them cheer and clap at the end of Isa's story.

As I stepped through the underbrush, a cool chill came down the mountainside. The sound of static and the ever-present heart-like beep grew louder and louder.