Chapter 2: Wasn't It Just a Beautiful Forest?
Toki and Luna were captured, hanging upside down, bound and carried between the claws of a massive bear and a colossal bird, in the middle of a majestic animal procession heading toward the ruler of the forest.
Toki said in a sarcastic tone, despite the awkward situation:
"Oh… we've been caught."
Luna sneezed lightly and replied without emotion:
"A perfectly set trap… I didn't expect it to be so precise."
The bear growled in their faces. Toki gazed into the distance thoughtfully and said:
"The question now… how do we get out of this animal swarm?"
Both drifted into memories, recalling what had happened two hours earlier.
At that time, they were chasing a giant bird and a bear with the intention of hunting them, unaware that the battle was merely a decoy.
They stopped, expressions full of challenge. Tokki stretched while Luna prepared to spring.
"Let's see who catches first… winner takes all," Toki said, clapping his hands.
Luna tilted her head and smiled, taking a runner's stance:
"Go… let's move."
They clasped hands briefly and shot forward like arrows toward the bear and the bird, dodging roots and rocks, leaping upward.
Suddenly, creatures of all sizes sprang from between the trees:
Parrots and seagulls of unnatural size.
Muscular tigers.
Armored crocodiles emerging from the ground, circling in wait for prey.
A flying squirrel darting between branches at lightning speed.
Toki, thrilled, thought to himself:
"Amazing!!… incredible to see all these creatures."
Now he needed a survival plan. This was completely insane.
Luna looked left and right, thinking:
"The place is crowded with creatures, but it's nothing. We must find a way to bring them down without spilling blood…"
Both laughed as they realized the hunters had become prey themselves. They ran, dodging relentless attacks and scattered obstacles.
Luna said, analyzing while evading the squirrels' claws and scorpion bites, transforming into ash:
"All exits are blocked… no way out."
Toki replied calmly as he leapt onto a striking snake:
"How did they plan all of this?"
He ran along the snake's back toward its head, flexing his shoulders and arms, then… boom.
He struck it with a punch generating an air pressure blast, disrupting their surroundings.
Toki said with seriousness:
"No matter how… the important thing is, what do we do now?"
At that moment, he sensed someone behind this innovative ambush.
Luna, dodging the attacks and turning into a whirlwind of ash, thought cautiously:
"I don't want to hurt them… but if I find another way…"
Suddenly, Toki ambushed the parrot about to attack her from behind while she pondered a solution.
He said loudly, as if reading her mind, gripping the parrot's beak:
"We render them unconscious… without killing."
He grabbed her hand, spun her through the air, then shouted confidently:
"Throw me!"
Luna released a powerful gray ash blast; Toki shot forward like a rocket, his grip charged with hidden aura, sparks flying from his eyes.
Before he could strike, a figure emerged from the trees, standing balanced, with fur resembling a sleek black suit.
He blocked Toki's grip with one hand, aura radiating similarly.
Everyone froze.
His aura was so overwhelming that some animals collapsed, leaves scattering from the sheer force.
It was Caron — the majestic buffalo.
He stood on two legs like a human, with a long peacock-like neck, exuding an aura of mystery and awe.
His long horns gleamed, like weapons of light.
He stood firmly, staring silently at Toki.
Toki kept his calm despite the tension:
"You're behind all this… aren't you?"
Caron's only response was a silent gaze.
Luna tried to approach them.
Caron spoke in a deep, heavy voice:
"Silence…"
Toki felt something restrain him; his mind resisted, but his body obeyed, as if the air itself commanded him to freeze.
Caron slowly turned:
"Bring them… and follow me."
The bear subdued them both, and they lost consciousness, carried alongside a gorilla.
---
Two hours later…
Toki and Luna woke to find themselves hanging upside down, carried by a tree trunk.
Toki, relaxed, spoke in his usual cold tone:
"Oi! … Where are you taking us? We've been lost from the start anyway…"
No one answered. The procession continued in a solemn silence.
Everyone stopped as Caron brushed aside dangling leaves.
A gentle breeze entered, carrying a strange calm from the depths of the forest.
They entered a spacious clearing, grass meticulously cut, with a massive tree trunk in the center, cut in a circle like a throne.
Everyone bowed suddenly.
Toki raised an eyebrow as his restraints were removed, feeling his heart slow—not from fear, but anticipation of something beyond understanding.
Luna whispered cautiously, seeing a shadow move in the green mist:
"Toki… get ready."
Toki adjusted his coat, low-voiced and slightly uneasy:
"I have a strange feeling about this place…"
Caron led the way, with Toki and Luna following, along with the procession.
Caron placed his hand on his chest respectfully:
"We have brought them as you commanded, Your Majesty."
From the mist came a calm, feminine voice radiating power:
"Thank you for your effort, Lord Caron."
The voice then addressed them:
"May I know your names? Please, have a seat."
Toki and Luna sat on the ground after their bonds were undone, while some animals left on Caron's command, who stood beside the trunk.
Luna answered seriously, pointing her hand toward the voice:
"I am Luna, and this is Toki. We came from the maze, and we are lost."
Toki glanced at Luna worriedly and whispered:
"Who are you speaking to?"
Luna responded softly, tilting her head:
"Can't you see her?"
She internally transmitted part of her visual and auditory sense to Tokki.
Tiny ash particles touched his left eye gently.
Toki felt a strange sensation, seeing things he had never seen before, recognizing that what he saw was confusing and vague.
He looked at the forest ruler sitting on the trunk and inferred the situation:
So this is what everyone was seeing, although I can't perceive it clearly… yet her aura fills the entire space.
"Excuse me… but I have a question," he bowed respectfully, his face firm.
The forest ruler, calm and friendly:
"Yes… go ahead, Lord Toki."
Toki, briefly flustered, slowly raised his head and asked seriously:
"Well; then who are you? Where are we? And what do you want from us?"
In his mind, curiosity and worry deepened:
We faced things we never expected and fought hard to free ourselves from those annoying chains. What exactly is happening?
Above them, birds fluttered. The ruler answered in a playful tone:
"My name is Ilona… I am the spirit manifested from the Lost Forest, and you are now within my domain. By the way, this place has its own rules and system. Thus, keep your vigilance.…"
Ilona finished her long speech as her words echoed in their minds.
They exchanged silent glances, as if what they heard was too much to explain to a stranger.
Ilona continued at the same pace, calming the atmosphere:
"I summoned you because I recently sensed an unusual aura, prompting me to send Caron to verify it."
Luna, intrigued, chose her words carefully:
"I think I understand… in other words; it's like a maze with a treasure."
Ilona nodded enthusiastically, clasping her hands together.
Toki gazed at the clear sky, lying on the ground, his expression conflicted.
Luna, analytical and calm, pointed toward the trees:
"So?! What lies beyond the forest?"
A few seconds of silence passed… everyone stayed still, bringing tension back, oddly calm yet ominous.
Ilona stood and turned slightly, gesturing toward something.
She sat on her throne and, in a mysterious tone, said:
"As for outside… you will discover it yourselves. But beware… not everything your eyes see is real."
Amazement spread across Toki and Luna's faces; their emotions tangled between curiosity, interest, and danger, like standing at the edge of a vortex of decisions.
Ilona, inspiringly, pointed her fingers at Luna:
"Miss Luna, I know you are different, unaware of your true identity… but you can adapt as you approach closer. Be honest with yourself."
Luna's expression remained cold, sensing something perplexing, while Toki recalled what someone in the maze had told him. He realized Ilona's spirit could gauge their condition simply by their presence.
Then Ilona addressed Toki, a gust of violent wind carrying leaves:
"Lord Toki, you may find that revenge isn't the solution, and you will learn what lies deeper… Challenges you face are for those with strong will only."
A shiver ran through Toki at the hint; he responded with steadfast features, sweat dripping, smiling wildly while the mysterious aura surrounded him.
"...No matter if you hint at my fate or not, I will decide for myself to the last point… even if I face death alone, I will overcome it gladly."
Caron looked at Toki cautiously:
What a boy… he could be trouble if he strays from my expectations.
Ilona touched her cheek, recalling a promise:
By the way, she said not to reveal everything to me.
Luna turned to Toki proudly, adjusting her hood, shaking her hands, and said to Ilona frankly:
"We need nothing… we can manage on our own."
Ilona clapped, asking in an encouraging tone:
"Good, Miss Luna, and Lord Toki… few understand the determination to take risks like yours. Truly admirable!"
Toki and Luna stood, eyes burning, challenge radiating from them, with faint smiles.
Toki placed his hands in his pockets, walking confidently, the soft grass under his feet making a clear sound.
He said coldly:
"Thank you, spirit of the Lost Forest, Ilona… you have helped a lot, but I…"
He closed his eyes slowly, smiling lightly:
"...will never give up on my goal."
Toki returned to normal sight and hearing, while Luna felt a slight jolt in her head.
Ilona handed them a compass to help find directions and revealed a strange request.
They parted ways, leaving the forest's center, and Ilona looked at them, smiling at Caron with surprise:
"I didn't expect Selina's son to be like this."
She chuckled lightly after finishing her request, curious about what Toki and Luna would do next.
Caron informed Ilona with respect and curiosity:
"Your Majesty… regarding the search for the unusual aura, wasn't it just—"
Ilona replied, staring into the distance:
"My answer to them wasn't entirely correct… but I've never witnessed such restrained pulses before."
---
Elsewhere in the forest…
Yuki floated in the air, approaching an abandoned building, its walls completely burned.
Inside, she pondered what she had seen when encountering Toki and Luna:
That was something… it looked like a gathering of sinister forces inside. Was it some kind of bomb or…?
It was as if she hadn't fully awakened, scanning around the broken gate, the smell of charcoal pervasive.
From her experience, she realized he hadn't used his spiritual pulses… except for that semi-transparent girl.
Entering the building, she found a mysterious key among the debris. Picking it up, she sought answers:
A key? For what purpose?
Its response seemed to work only for her… one of the few capable of imposing existence.
She whispered challengingly, tightening her gloves:
"Quite intriguing…"
Finding no records in the building, she merged with the wind, gliding above the place, smiling confidently:
"Curiosity will kill me if I don't see what happens next."