A Journey Across Terra

Record Restoration #2

In dark barren lands in the outskirts of Kazdel was a single light that glowed in the darkness blanketed in moonlight.

"Happy birthday to me~" A lone Pythia boy sat at a campfire as he blew out a single candle. "And to one year on my own." He raised the extinguished candle to the air.

On the campfire laid a few slabs of meat, cooking in the intense heat of the flames below.

He then poked a couple of the slabs of meat, letting out a slight sigh of satisfaction. "That should do it." He then proceeded to pick up the steaks and place them on a makeshift plate made out of wood.

*Snap*

The boy jumped to the sudden sound before turning to look into the direction of the sound.

"Who's there?" He pointed a dagger at a tree in the distance. "Show yourself."

slowly the figure of a young Sarkaz girl walked out from behind the tree. She was obscured by the darkness of the night but as she walked closer to the campfire, her red horns and equally red pointed tail came into view.

"Now, what's a young boy like you singing happy birthday to themselves doing out here?" She didn't seem to be much older than him at all.

"Why does it matter to you?" The boy crossed his arms.

"It doesn't." The Sarkaz shrugged. "Just curious. It's not every day you see some random kid out in the barren lands...And even less so in Kazdel."

"I could say the same." He chuckled. "So where are your parents?"

"well, I could say the same to you. Where are yours?"

"..."

"Don't worry. I won't do anything to you." She took a seat next to the young boy. "Can I have some of that meat?"

After a few seconds of hesitation, he places the plate in between the two. "My parents are...In a better place."

"Hum." The girl crossed her arms. "Guess that makes two."

"You too?" The boy now had a slight smile on his face. He seemed happy to have someone to relate to but then again, he was a little saddened that someone was like him as well.

"So, how long have you been on your own for?" The Sarkaz girl took a bite out of the steak.

"By tomorrow, it will have been one full year." He looked down and began to stroke his tail for comfort. "World's sure a cruel place. Isn't it?"

"It sure is." The Sarkaz girl let out a sigh as she looked up at the starry night. "Beautiful, isn't it?"

"Huh?" He looked up to the sky. "Yeah. I guess it is."

"Polaris." The girl was pointing to the sky. There was one star that glowed brighter than the rest. "The north star to some. The hope in the dark to others."

The Pythia boy tilted his head, waiting for the girl to continue.

She then pointed to another part of the sky. This time it was a group of stars. "Cancer; the crab. Or a disease that rivals even Oripathy in its potency."

"What are you trying to get at?" The boy had a confused look on his face.

The Sarkaz girl paid no mind as she continued to talk. "I see those two things as the duality of the world. Some may have lost their way. But they still have a way out of their darkness; something to look up to. Where the rest are left to rot in the cancerous wastelands of this god forsaken world."

"..." The boy stayed quiet, trying to process the girl's words.

"Hehe, did that catch you off guard?" The girl had a slight smile on her face. "Did my words really have that much of an impact on you?"

"No, I was just thinking about that." The boy sat there.

"You don't have to listen to this young Sarkaz's ramblings. It was just something that I came up with one night. There really isnt anything that deep about it." The Sarkaz girl took another piece of the meat. "Ya know that your food is gonna get cold if you keep staring at the sky."

The boy snapped out of his trance as he grabbed the girl by the wrist. "Hey! Did you take another piece of the meat!?"

"No, why would I do that?" She broke out of his grip and proceeded to lick the juices of the steak off  her fingers.

"Do you know how long it took for me to catch that thing?"

"Haha, don't worry. I wasn't going to eat it all."

"Good." The boy promptly took the plate from between them and put it on his lap.

The Sarkaz girl let out a slight chuckle as she saw this. "Hey, what's your name?"

"It's Yuki. why ask?"

"I like your attitude." She smiled. "The name's W."

Yuki had a confused look on his face. "Like the letter?" Then a mischievous thought came across his mind. "Do people often mispronounce your name as Wuh when they see it written?"

"..." W's face scrunched up as she heard this. "Don't."

It was now Yuki's turn to adopt a teasing smile. "Don't what~?"

"..." W had her arms crossed as she gave him a slight pout.

"Hahaha!" Yuki burst out laughing to W's expression. "Thanks W... I really needed that."

The young Sarkaz girl had an unamused look on her face. "Say, you said that you're travelling the world on your own right?"

"Yeah, I did say that."

"Hum. How's about we travel together for a bit?" W held her hand out to Yuki.

After a brief second of hesitation, Yuki returned the handshake. "I guess that we could travel together for a bit." He gave her a wry smile.

"Pleasure to be working with you!" W gave him a toothy grin.

{ - Adventures Across Terra - }