. . .
Shadows swallowed her vision, leaving her adrift in endless darkness.
Aletha caught the faint gurgle of bubbling liquid and the distant murmur of a man's voice weaving through the gloom.
"Hope this potion works..."
The warmth surrounding Aletha felt familiar and comforting, unlike before. It was nothing like the decrepit room she had awakened in. Immediately, both Asahi and Aletha's eyes snapped open, confused by the sudden shift from darkness to a comfy room with brewing stands, bookshelves, a fireplace, crates, and so much more. Was this a return to reality, or were they still within a dream?
The room gleamed with fresh order, yet its newfound brightness could not erase the haunting images of the nightmare they had just escaped.
A relentless wave of dizziness crashed over Aletha, leaving her voice trembling with confusion as she spoke.
"What… What just happened? OH!" Struck with immediate realization, Aletha swiftly pulled out The Forbidden Book and pried it open, flipping over the pages anxiously. All she saw was just emptiness.
"No… no. Please! Was that really a dream?! Why am I inside this room?! I thought we were outside already. Everything looks fine now--
Suddenly, her voice was interrupted by her shock, flipping over to the page that she had written in before.
---------------------------
Find out what the ingredients mean.
---------------------------
She gasped in shock as she saw the steps written on the page, distorted and scribbled out.
"Eh? H… How."
The only step that wasn't distorted and scrambled was the first one, which was also accompanied by an arrow pointing to an illustration of what looked like a fountain and a doodle of a bow.
"A bow, and a fountain? H-How can the book illustrate that?! I thought that was a shared dream."
"I guess… it isn't."
For some reason, Aletha's memories were so vivid that she could recall each and every detail, even in the distorted places. A dream was supposed to be forgotten, but somehow, it was as clear as day-- as if it had actually happened.
Aletha murmured, her gaze following a dark-haired man who rushed toward Asahi, a mysterious flask glinting in his grip.
"I c…could have sworn I wrote those steps before. Wait, does that mean that what Asahi said was true?! Was all of that before the dream, actually an illusion?!"
"Here, drink this!" Akwan said as Aletha stared fixedly at his attire. Not a scratch was seen on him. He stood perfectly fine. A teeming sense of deja vu bloomed inside her heart. She quickly raced over to her brother and asked.
"Brother, are you alright?! Do you know what's going on?'
Asahi scratched his head, confused and afraid.
"W...What? I could have sworn..."
Akwan pressed the pink potion to Asahi's lips, letting the strange liquid slide down and work its magic. In moments, Asahi sprang from the bed, energy surging through him as memories flickered to life.
Memories ricocheted through his mind as he took in the tidy room and saw Aletha, Akwan, and Clover safe and unharmed.
(Wasn't this room just trashed a minute ago? Was that only a dream? Or have I not truly woken up yet? What happened to Akwan? He's alive! What's going on?!)
Clover asked.
"Mr. Akwan, can I move Asahi to the fireplace?"
This same scenario had happened before; he was certain of it.
Pushing the cabinets away, Akwan responded with a light smile.
"Of course."
"What? I'll follow too." Said Aletha with a serious and suspicious tone. "I'm afraid he forgot that dream the other night."
Akwan raised an eyebrow, answering with a cold and stern voice.
"What dream?"
. . .
(Time moved onward in this recurring moment.)
"Hey, Master Akwan. One of the visitors has been carrying this book." Her heart hammered, rubbing the solid cover and feeling a radiant aura shine around it. "I believe this is the one you have spoken to me about for months. I... don't understand how they received it, but..."
A strange wrongness prickled at the edges of her awareness.
Despite questioning her thoughts, Aletha followed what had happened prior to the dream, still unsure if she was awake or trapped within another layer of dreaming. As if… all of it was recurring.
"Are you that thief we encountered?" She asked boldly.
"Okay, you win this argument. I AM that thief you have all so chased in that world." He pressed his hand against his chest and bared his teeth. "I have wanted to hide that reveal for so long, but that boy brought it up instantly."
Both the wanderers gasped, their eyes trembling in pure surprise.
"Huh?"
Aletha and Asahi's minds flooded with thoughts as they couldn't feel themselves controlling each other.
(I… could have sworn this happened before.)
"It was night, I swear!"
(What is going on? How is Clover acting like this?!)
Clover chuckled lightly, not because she wanted to embarrass Asahi but to cast light on the situation.
For her, the day unfolded like any other. Despite the book's lurking menace, she brushed aside her worries and guided the group outdoors, eager for a gulp of fresh air.
"Forget all that boy's nonsense. I don't want this problem to ruin all of my days. Besides, today is National Starch Day! It's basically where every shop in the city offers low prices on starch-related goods like bread."
(I… can't move.)
"How come none of these people have any mistakes on their faces? All of their skin looks incredibly smooth and clean, like a baby's. That's soooo weird."
Asahi scratched his head, stood next to Akwan, and examined the bread choices offered on the sleek oak table.
"Don't mind them. You have your own life to worry about."
(I can't smell. I can't do anything.)
"Ugh, why are the words so difficult to read? I can't even see the price!"
Akwan chuckled, hearing carriages pass by behind.
"Ha, yeah... I suppose some of what you were familiar with may have changed completely. Remember, it's been five thousand years since you left. Of course, your world ought to change.
A bead of warm sweat traced down Asahi's cheek as the enormity of those years pressed in on him, the city's gentle heat wrapping around his thoughts.
Panic and betrayal twisted inside him as he realized his mind had lied, insisting only a decade had passed.
By the same token, Akwan still has yet to explain what this "time-dilation" means. In opposition to this, Asahi stepped forward, hearing the bells ring in the distance.
"So. About earlier. You said something about time dilation? What is that about?"
. . .
. . .
. . .
Carriages rolled on, people bustled about, and Akwan scratched his head in thought. After a brief pause, he handed Asahi a starch treat, his words flowing as the world moved steadily onward.
"See, time dilation is…"
Time seemed to slow for Asahi as he glanced at the rooftop, a sense of eerie familiarity creeping in. Was this truly reality, or had the dream simply changed its shape?
(Wait a second, this would be the moment where that arrow would have struck the market. But… for some reason, nothing's happening. I can feel myself again. I don't know what happened before, but maybe that book was right. Could it be that the actions within this sort of "dream-state" affect the reality outside of it? Was that the reasoning behind that archer's disappearance? And if so, would other things we do affect what happened before?)
"Settlers standing in front of the hut, step forward and surrender!"
The siblings' pupils widened in surprise, just as had happened earlier.
"Eh?!"
Akwan felt an ominous aura lingering around and pulled them away, warning.
"I sense the power of a thousand men prying close."
Suddenly, the same loud voice echoed over the empty streets.
"Stop your worries and draw your attention upward! That is in ORDER!"
The wanderers shrank back, eyes fixed on the sunlit streets. A tall silhouette emerged, clutching a glowing purple orb and leveling it at the white-haired siblings. The mysterious woman's hands shimmered with a thick, violet light as she spoke.
"You are under arrest for intruding and invading this city without going through the process."
Aletha blurted in confusion.
"What are you talking about? I thought the city was free for all citizens?"
The distant silhouette crossed her arms.
"Then you have been highly mistaken. Stand still. Do not move another centimeter from your position. That's in order!"
A thunderous rumble rolled across the walls, chains clattering and scraping against metal. As the strange cycle repeated itself, Asahi paused, lost in thought.
(Wait. Instead of that boy we saw earlier, his position was replaced by that of a woman? If that's the case, that would mean that--
Akwan yelled as a purple luminance struck through the air.
"Asahi, Aletha, run!"
Asahi seized Aletha's hand and dashed away with Akwan at their side. They raced through a shadowy, narrow alley, Asahi leaning in to whisper to his sister.
"Okay, I know you won't understand, but I think I know what is happening."
A wave of dread surged through Aletha as she glanced over her shoulder. Twelve knights, not four, thundered after them, weapons gleaming. She recoiled and turned to Asahi, her voice wild with panic.
"Alright, what is it? Hurry up and tell me!"
While they darted across from street to street, averting and avoiding every trace of the knights, Asahi answered with the vision of a familiar brown bow floating in his mind.
"I think whatever we did with that bow may have affected the course and direction of this occurrence. If we can find where we put it, I'm sure that we will find him there."
Aletha's eyes widened in realization.
"Why do we have to find him? Wasn't he our enemy before?!"
"Yes, but for some reason… I feel as if he was…"
Suddenly, just as they could reach the large arch of the gate leading outside of the city, their path was blocked by an archer aiming his bow directly at the siblings.
Their feet skidded to a halt, bodies rigid with fear, knowing that any movement could seal their fate.
The boy who stood before them had cold, emerald eyes and long, dark, braided hair, matching exactly the one they had seen earlier. Aletha flinched and shivered in fear, pleading to the archer as Akwan felt the knights approaching closer.
"Please, don't kill us! We didn't know about the rule! We would have followed--
The archer lowered his bow and shook his head, moving his hand to the left as if he was signaling the siblings to move. He said to them as the arrow on the string slowly got pulled back.
"Move, get out of my way."
Aletha's eyes shrank in shock. "H-Huh?!"
"Just listen to him!"
Asahi immediately took advantage of the situation and pushed Aletha away, not even questioning, sliding over to the side.
"Thank you." Said the emerald-eyed archer as a green luminance shone around the tip of the arrow. "This one is going to hurt those 'knights.' I know what is going on; this isn't reality."
Although the wanderers had no clue what he meant, they remained silent and watched as the archer prepared his bow.
His green eyes darted on the group of armored knights like daggers, focusing his shot.
"I apologize, Drimi and majesty Narcissa. But this must be done, for I know something is wrong with this place."
Bathed in flickering magical light, the archer's fingers tightened on the string, drawing the arrow back with deliberate care. Supernatural energy coiled around the bow, swirling into a fierce green aura.
Then, in a vicious storm, he released the light-consumed arrow.
A luminous trail blazed in the arrow's wake.
The arrow soared from the wall, streaking across eight city blocks before, at last…
(BOOM)
Armored guards were hurled skyward, blades crashing and splintering below as green sparks crackled through the air. Drimi, the dark-haired woman, gasped and spun toward Belial, her voice sharp with disbelief.
"Belial, what are you doing?! You're supposed to capture those criminals, not destroy our own!"
The dark-haired archer shook his head, and his eyes darted over to the glowing golden book attached to Asahi. While he dropped his bow and escorted the siblings away from the city, the emerald-eyed boy shouted back at Drimi from a distance.
"I'm sorry, Drimi, but this is for our future. I don't want to be eternally trapped in this prison, which we call "home!" He looked over to Asahi and Aletha and hollered with a serious tone in his voice. "Strangers, follow me! I know of a safe spot away from this city. Do you still have that book? The Forbidden Book?"
As they darted upward the grass hills, Aletha nodded her head and answered while sweat slid down her face.
"Yes."
A relieved smile came from Belial's sweaty face.
"Good. I will explain everything once we reach the safe area. Whatever you do, do NOT drop that book!"
As they darted away and saw the knights stop, both siblings answered.
"Okay!"