Otto's eyes opened slowly, as if a heavy veil had been pulled aside to reveal the clarity of a new world. The damp air smelled of wet earth and rotting leaves, while the distant patter of rain composed a somber melody among the branches. Before him appeared the face of a girl: she had chestnut hair that fell in wild, wavy strands down to her waist. Her gray eyes shone like steel under the dim light of the forest, and a small fang peeked from her mouth, giving her a mischievous, almost animalistic air.
She wore plain navy-blue clothes, worn from use and patched with clumsy stitches that spoke of hasty repairs. Her skin was soft and pale, a striking contrast against the harshness of nature. And though she was barely thirteen, she carried Otto in her arms as if holding an unconscious parrot in the middle of a storm was the most natural thing in the world.
—"And what exactly are you?"—she asked with an energetic voice that bounced off the wet stones on the ground. The question, however, was accompanied by a curious, challenging gesture: her fingers played with Otto's feathers as if inspecting a rare find.
The forest, with its endless shadows and the murmur of hidden beasts, seemed to hold its breath. Otto, though slowly regaining his senses, could hardly focus on anything other than the wolf ears sticking out from the girl's head. They were unmistakable, alive, twitching nervously as if they could hear more than the eyes could see.
When no answer came, the girl sighed, spun on her heels, and began walking with him still in her arms. Mud clung to her broken boots, each step echoing with a wet squelch.
—"The rain has eased… but it'll be back, angrier than before!"—she exclaimed, lifting her gaze to the gray sky.
Otto tried to form words, but his body was too weak. She noticed immediately and set him gently on the ground. Around them, the echo of the storm grew, as if the jungle itself was watching. Yet the girl stood tall before him, raised both hands, and with a solemnity that contrasted with the gleam in her eyes, proclaimed:
—"Soul that purifies, soul that defiles… goddess of wisdom, I beg you to lend me your strength!"
The words sounded clumsy, almost like a half-remembered verse. Still, a white glow began to bloom in her hands. The light flickered like a will-o'-the-wisp and reached Otto's body.
—"It worked! Yes, it worked! Ha, ha! I finally did it!"—she shouted, jumping as if she had achieved the impossible.
—"What?!"—exclaimed Otto, eyes wide.
—"Whaaat?!"—squealed the girl in return, just as shocked as he was. Her face changed in an instant: from fear to excitement, and then to overflowing pride. She ran to Otto, bending down sharply. —"Tell me your name, tell me your name! I'm Ellisse!"—she declared, thumping her chest as though announcing a warrior's victory.
—"…My name is Otto…"—he replied in a trembling voice.
—"Incredible! A parrot with a real name! I've never heard of such a thing… well, until now. Ha!"
And at that very moment she tripped over a protruding root and landed face-first in the mud. She quickly got up, laughing at herself, brushing off her soaked clothes with feigned dignity. Otto could only watch in silence: that strange mix of clumsiness and determination unsettled him.
The rain returned with force, beating down the leaves like an unrelenting curtain.
—"Come on, we'd better find shelter,"—said Ellisse, her voice still brimming with energy.
And so they ran to a nearby cave. Dark and damp, with a constant dripping that marked the time, it seemed like an improvised refuge in the midst of chaos. Otto was still trembling, unsure if he had fallen into good hands. Ellisse, meanwhile, sat on a wet rock and began shaking out her soaked boots, splattering mud in all directions.
"Bah, these boots are useless!"—she complained, kicking the ground.—"They promise to keep your feet dry, but they can't even handle puddles!"
Otto, unintentionally, let out a sound that resembled a stifled laugh. She glanced at him sideways, and instead of taking offense, puffed out her chest.
"Hey! At least I managed to save you with my super magic! Even though… well, it still comes out kinda weird." Her wolf ears twitched nervously, as if confessing what her voice would not admit.
The silence of the cave was broken by the echo of dripping water and Ellisse's light laughter as she hummed a made-up tune. Otto, though wary, felt that for the first time since waking in this world, the fear was easing a little.
The calm barely lasted. From the depths of the cave, a purple glow lit up the damp walls. Ellisse hunched over, gritting her teeth. Otto took a step forward, but the girl raised a trembling hand to stop him.
The light went out abruptly, leaving her gasping. Her gray eyes, still gleaming, looked at him with a mix of stubbornness and sadness.
—"I'm sorry, Otto… I worried you. But I have to leave now,"—she murmured, strange sorrow shining in her gray eyes.
The storm still raged outside. Otto watched her go, and something inside him pushed him to shout:
—"Wait! I'll go with you. If I stay here… I won't last long."
She turned, and her smile returned, radiant, as if the shadows could never touch her.
—"Then let's go together! Two adventurers against the world!"
The icy wind lashed, thunder shook the earth, and the mud tried to swallow them with every step. But Ellisse pressed on without hesitation, humming made-up songs and stumbling again and again, as if adversity were nothing more than a game. Otto, not knowing why, found courage in that radiant clumsiness.
And so, amid lightning and darkness, his journey began alongside the gray-eyed girl with wolf ears.
The forest seemed endless. Each tree, thick and twisted, rose like an ancient guardian; their interwoven branches smothered the sky and trapped the moisture as if never to release it. The ground, covered in mud and dead leaves, exhaled an acrid, metallic stench. The rain punished them with a persistence that seemed to have a will of its own, as if the entire world wanted to expel them.
Otto could barely stand against the wind that ruffled his feathers. Ellisse, on the other hand, marched ahead with luminous stubbornness. Stumbles, slips, falls… each step was a small disaster. And still, in the midst of the storm, a nervous laugh escaped her every time she got back up.
—"Come on, Otto! This is like a race! The wind pushes us to make us stronger!"—she shouted, raising her arms as if defying the storm itself.
Otto didn't know if the girl was brave or simply reckless. And yet, there was something contagious in her laughter, something that made the thunder's roar seem less threatening.
Suddenly, a purple flash lit up the gloom. Ellisse doubled over, clutching her chest.
—"Ahhh!"—she screamed, as dark energy escaped her skin, writhing like violent flames.
—"Ellisse!"—Otto tried to reach her, but she raised her palm, trembling, clumsy yet resolute.
—"I-it's fine… I'm fine…"—she muttered, her voice broken by the pain.
The glow slowly faded, leaving only her ragged breathing and the echo of the rain. When she straightened up, her face was pale, but her gray eyes still shone with determination.
—"See? I can keep going… Nothing will stop us!"—she said, flashing a weary smile and giving a thumbs-up.
Otto watched her in silence. He couldn't understand that strange blend of strength and fragility, of clumsiness and courage. But he was beginning to realize that Ellisse was an unstoppable whirlwind.
After two exhausting hours, they finally reached an open plain. Rain lashed the waterlogged grass, and in the distance rose a small walled village, its stone towers faintly lit by torches.
Relief washed over him, but unease soon followed. Shadows crept among the bushes: grotesque, slimy, small, deformed creatures crawling like living puddles. Beyond them loomed semi-human silhouettes, twisted bodies with animal traits: tails, claws, muzzles. They were like Ellisse, but corrupted, feral, with no trace of the humanity that shone in her.
—"W-what are those things?"—whispered Otto, feathers bristling.
—"Horrible!"—Ellisse replied, as casually as someone commenting on the weather.—"But don't worry, just don't look at them too much… and run faster."
—"What kind of strategy is that?!"
—"Mine! Works 40% of the time!"
And without giving him a chance to reply, the girl dashed toward the village, splattering mud everywhere. Otto followed as best he could, while the creatures stalked them from a distance, their eyes glowing with a sickly light.
The tension was broken by an older voice:
—"Well, if it isn't Elli."
The girl froze, eyes wide.
—"Grandma!"—she cried, throwing herself into the arms of an old woman waiting at the village gates. Her wolf ears twitched as she jumped, soaked and covered in mud.
The woman received her with a deep sigh and weary tenderness. Her rough hands stroked the girl's wet hair.
—"Where have you been, child? You nearly broke my heart."
—"I went to the forest for star mushrooms,"—Ellisse answered proudly.
—"And where are they?"
The girl opened her mouth but only stammered nervously.
"Uh… well… there was thunder, monsters, mud, and… this talking parrot!"—she said, pointing at Otto as if he were a trophy.
Otto rolled his eyes.
With a resigned sigh, the old woman rummaged in her bag and pulled out three deep blue mushrooms, speckled with tiny yellow glimmers that shone like faded stars.
—"Here, child. And don't endanger yourself again. I don't want to see you chained ever again,"—she said, handing her the mushrooms.
"Wow…" Otto couldn't help sniffing one. Its scent was strange, a mix of flowers and metal. —"No doubt about it… I'm in another world…"
Almost without thinking, he took a bite. A tingling sensation ran through his senses, followed by a dizzying wave. His vision blurred, his wings went limp.
—"O-Otto! What are you doing? That was for me!"—Ellisse shrieked, shaking him clumsily.
But it was too late. Otto collapsed onto his back, unconscious, as the girl's energetic voice mingled with the grave concern of the old woman.