The rays of sunshine, even heavily restricted by the giant trees looming overhead, were too much for his eyes to bear.
Walking to a gigantic tree next to him, Elyas looked at it with doubt. It looked real. He touched it, the tree bark's uneven texture, the smell of sap coming from it… smell of moist dirt under his feet… It all felt real. Everything did, but he had to believe the contrary.
Elyas looked up, it was early noon. He chose a direction based on the suns and stepped forward, into the cover of the shade and bushes.
Eastward.
…
Birds chirped as shadows danced under the green roof and over the red soil of the Green Sea. A man of average size with black hair was slashing through the few vines in his path.
"It should not be far. Brother Samuel said they detected some activity here...I'm going to call it quits if it's another false alarm!" As Noah complained to pass the time, he suddenly heard another man's voice.
"Where am I?"
Noah jolted to his senses as he frantically looked around.
"Who are you?! show yourself!" he shouted, sweat rolling over his skin. Expecting an attack at any moment he placed his blade near his chest, ready to defend.
"...You're clearly startled, so I'm going to walk in your view with my hands up, alright?" Said the stranger.
"..."
After a long minute of not getting an answer, the stranger asked, "Can I?"
"Sure, but slowly," Noah said, readying himself as leaves rustled and gave way. From the intersection between the foliage, came a brown haired man of average height who wore a brown suit and vest atop a gray shirt.
Despite what the man's clothes tried to show, he was clearly disheveled. Long unkempt stubble, messy hair and eyes that twitched painfully at the smallest ray of light. No visible weapon or even light armour. His posture is firm and ready to quickly respond though… probably a newbie. Noah quickly made a guess.
"My name is Elyas, can I know yours?"
"...I'm Noah." He said, still holding the blade firmly in hand.
Elyas glanced at the silver stiletto for a while before speaking, "Don't you think I could have done something already if I meant harm?"
Noah gave it some thought and…the man had a point.
"You're free to move." Noah said before adding, "No sudden movements. Or I'll shoot." He placed his free hand near his belt and pulled up a part of his shirt, revealing half of a holster. I hope he doesn't notice that it's empty…
He could see Elyas let out a visible sigh of relief. Noah found it strange, but not wanting to waste time, he picked his way and started walking away. Unexpectedly, the stranger asked a question. "Hey, do you mind telling me which way the City of Fog is?"
Noah halted, and then slowly turned.
"The old ruins? They are on the west side of the Green sea. With your current trajectory you'll be heading towards Mistwood, the opposite direction." Noah spoke with certainty as he double checked the direction with the suns.
He watched as the stranger's throat visibly shook. The man's adam apple was moving up and down, trying to ease the man's throat. Elyas tried to speak, but only incoherent mumblings came out. 'This guy is acting weird…' Noah shot him a suspicious look.
Finally, the man managed, "W-what do you mean by old ruins?"
Noah's brows knitted together. He felt like he was finally starting to understand the stranger. "...It was an infamous disaster. One of the biggest in the last century, how do you—" Noah started to talk, but stopped as soon as he saw Elyas' face.
The man had become deathly pale. A visible shiver ran through his body every other second as he tried to open his mouth to speak. With a shaky voice, he managed one word. "Century?"
"Yes, it's been a century since Vernis fell." Noah responded with certainty. As if lost the ability to speak, the man just shook his head before his body began to sway back and forth. Elyas slowly lost balance and fell to the ground, unconscious before he even hit soil.
Noah watched everything, now sure that he understood the man's situation. Poor guy. Must have had family there. But… How is he unaware of the fall? Noah was puzzled, but his mission tugged at him.
He turned his head away from Elyas, heading to the coordinates he was supposed to look into. As he stepped past the unconscious man, a realization hit him. 'It can't be him right? But he did come from the same direction that brother Samuel gave me…Damn it I can't risk failing this time!'
Noah's mind raced as he paced back and forth, trying to find the best course of action. Then he paused, having come up with a simple but effective solution.
I have to take care of this guy till he wakes up. Then I can thoroughly question him. He picked the fainted man by the waist and carried him away deep into the forest.
Eastward
…
Crickets sang a rhythmic tune, creating the music for the dance of the fireflies barely visible through the afterglow of the moons and the campfire. The fog was as thick if not thicker than day, now daring to dive into the depths of the giant forest.
The moons were bright, illuminating the canopy by casting small rainbows into the gloom. It was in vain though, for they would be swallowed by the mists that encircled Noah and Elyas.
Elyas slept near a big hollow log. A worn-out rag as his blanket. Noah's back faced the man as he stirred and added salt to his soup. Then out of nowhere he heard pained moans. As he turned to their source, Noah couldn't help but find the man… familiar.
"Ralf… Mi—Michael! No. No!" Elyas was shouting now, despite what the violent squirming might suggest, he was still asleep. Noah, not wanting to watch the man go through this a second time, decided to do something.
He walked up to the stranger and started to shake his shoulder, "Hey. Hey! HEY! WAKE UP!" After hearing these shouts and being violently shook, Elyas jolted awake, smashing his head into Noah's forehead.
Not minding the pain, he looked around sluggishly. Noah was about to throw profanity at him, but didn't get a chance.
"Why am I here?" Elyas asked.
"That's how you thank me? The Green Sea is full of Figments, you know. You should be thankful I didn't leave you as a snack." Noah said as he got up quickly. His face was calm, but his tone of speech betrayed his anger.
"..." Elyas lay motionless and silent, his back facing the hollow log.
Noah was suspicious of the man. After all, he was sent to look into reports regarding rogue Dreamers in the Green sea. But he was familiar with his situation… There was only pity as he looked at the stranger.
He knelt down In front of Elyas. "Who is Michael?" Noah seized the opportunity to start his questioning. After hearing the name, Elyas' eyes widened for a moment before his expression grew solemn and distant.
Seeing his reaction, Noah tried to offer solace. "I…I understand your situation. But as a member of the Protocol, I need to know who I'm dealing with. Saving a criminal isn't something I want to be known for."
"..." he stayed silent.
Noah's face hardened as he asked, "Look, Elyas was it? I can see that you're clearly distraught. But regardless of your personal matters, I need to make sure you're not the criminal I'm looking for." Thinking about the man's poor state of mind brought back old memories he did not want to remember.
But Elyas didn't answer.
Noah inhaled deeply. "Listen carefully cause I won't ask again. Who are you?" he raised his voice, clearly agitated and now fiddling with his dagger's handle.
Elyas kept silent.
After witnessing his continued refusal to give answers, Noah stood up with a disappointed sigh. He slowly walked away from Elyas as his grip on the dagger grew tighter. Then in an instant he unsheathed it and attacked. His stiletto whistled through the air as both it, and its wielder got closer to their target's neck. Noah's silver dagger cut Elyas' skin and bit into his flesh. But the man did not react. He didn't flinch, not even a single movement to guard his life.
And that was all Noah wanted. He stopped his blade and put it back in its sheath. Leaving a shallow, bloody cut on the captive's neck.
This man is not a criminal…but I can't let him be.
"...I won't let you down." Noah's expression was solemn. He knew what he needed to do. He was in the same situation before. But back then, he had someone to help him.
It was his turn now.