It was late at night, the darkness swallowed the hills far beyond the horizon. And the same light that Oculus wanted to chase.
"We'll get a horse shall we? Camels are better for maneuvering around the drylands..." Auris said.
"Great Idea... These aren't deserts... They're drylands. So horses would be a better option. We have to traverse from Nuvol to Jozaic..." Oculus said quietly, looking at the light that glimmered in the southeast horizon.
The three brothers tamed their horses and set out into the barren lands between the two neighbouring rival nations. The journey continued... The three were exhausted.
It was nighttime... Almost a day had passed... Nasus fell down and collapsed.
"WHAT HAPPENED!?" Oculus shouted, worried. They looked closely... And it was a venomous snake. It had bit Nasus. It was a lethal dose of venom. Nasus' heartbeat started to faint. "It can't end like this. We have to find a way to revive Nasus. I'll vibrate his heart with my Navitas, enough for him to grab onto consciousness. And since his Navitas is more related to atmospheric gases, he'll do the rest." Auris told confidently. Oculus thought it was a great idea and accepted it. Auris then started vibrating Nasus' heart. Nasus prepared an antidote for the venom through his Navitas.
Nasus had been revived.
They resumed their journey and continued to the southeast. To where the light kept calling. They found a strange town in the middle of the drylands.
Cactus City — A peaceful city... Or was it like a cactus? Covered... by thorns.
The brothers reached the city at midnight. It seemed like a peaceful place. All of the rustics seemed pleased to see newcomers. But the guards weren't pleased. They came running towards the brothers and captured them. "We can't allow newcomers to explore our city without meeting the mayor. And the mayor shall accept you. If he doesn't, then you three are kicked out. Until then, your horses will be confiscated." one of the guards said. The three were quite annoyed but they didn't have a choice because they had to take refuge. The guards took them to a large castle like building. The passive flow of Navitas was felt from a far distance. Oculus saw the movement of Navitas itself. "Something was going on..." He wondered. The guards brought the brothers infront of the mayor.
Lewis Willhelm. He looked like he was pleased to see newcomers. But nothing looked right. Something strange was present in the atmosphere... Something Oculus had expected... But didn't confirm.
Lewis accepted them. He had to check the extent of their Navitas before accepting them. Which Oculus found quite suspicious. The skeptic here was only Oculus. The two others didn't doubt a thing. Maybe those are instincts the oldest sibling would get... Or perhaps the instincts someone without a Magnus Terminus would get... It wasn't clear. He felt a strange sensation in his gut. That something... Wasn't right. But taking the chance, the three lived in a motel room. The room was nice. Everything was hygienic. The younger brothers loved the room... But the boy without limits... Found it suspicious.
Oculus woke up. It was very early. About 3 in the morning. He looked out of the window and saw the fog that swallowed the town roads, and saw the same glimmering light he was chasing. He wanted to see his father again. He wanted to ask questions. He wanted to know why his father wasn't there at the time of his mother's suffering. He thought there may be a reason. Part of him didn't quite understand his father. Part of him refused to know. And the curious part of him was ready at all times. His father was a strange man. Always going on long voyages... Sometimes too late to come back. He kept reminding himself... That his father was a strange man. Someone who he couldn't quite understand.
He didn't find a purpose to the actions his father did back then. Before disappearing into the fog. But one thing he found clear... The strange man who his father was... And the strange light that glimmered from the southeast... Were connected.
His brothers woke up... The three went to the nearest cafeteria and got eachother a snack for the day. And then, they were ready to leave. They walked to where the guards were. And Oculus asked one of them..."You see sir, you've confiscated our horses so we want it back. I suppose we're leaving." The guard looked at Oculus strangely. Like he was babbling gibberish. The guard didn't speak another word and left. "What the hell!? He acts like he went crazy. What do we do, Oculus?" Nasus asked, worried. Oculus knew that his gut was right. All along. He had already thought of a plan. But explaining it to his brothers in a place like this was just immature. He knew that Lewis didn't want the three to leave... For some reason... And Oculus knew it wasn't anything beneficial. Not to them atleast. "Look, Oculus, let's stay here for another day. What could possibly go wrong? We've been riding the damn horses for 3 days... So we need a lot of rest." Auris said. The guards heard it too. Oculus nodded. Nasus thought it was a good idea to get some rest...
In the meantime, they thought of exploring the town a little more. Looking at the nearby shops and seeing the culture of a city in the drylands. The fog was very thick. Thicker than in Nuvol. Cactus city was infact a land 3km higher than sea level. Which Nasus found astonishing. Nasus kept pointing to the horizon, he kept reminding his brothers about how they were "On the clouds". The clouds gathered and blocked the sun... It was going to rain and the brothers had to go to their motel room again. So, they went to the reverse direction. A man was standing there... He was quite strange. "Oh what are you three doing here?" He asked them, creepily... "Oh, it'll rain so we're going back..." Oculus said, avoiding the man. The three headed back to their rooms... And the rain kept on intensifying. The thunder struck loudly and Auris was exhausted, and fell asleep. Nasus wanted to speak about the plan Oculus had in mind... And so... He explained everything. And from the outside... The rain kept getting more extreme.
Will they ever leave Cactus City? Or will the thorns show themselves? Stay tuned for the next chapter!