A Journey Across Terra

23

{ - Adventures Across Terra - }

When I came to, I woke up to not the cold hard pavement but to a soft fluffy sensation. Was it a bed? I don't know. But all I know is that it was the most comfortable thing I had felt in years.

As I opened my eyes, I was greeted by the soft lighting of a rundown bedroom. My hands reached up to the lights as I felt a dull ache run across my whole body.

"Oh? You're finally awake." A girl's voice said.

I jumped at the sudden sound.

"Try not to take it too hard. You were pretty beat up when we found you."

I didn't reply. I just laid there, staring at the girl sitting off to the corner of the room. She was wearing a black and red hoodie, and she was seemingly listening to music from the headphones that laid on her shoulders.

"Where am I?" My hoarse voice rung out throughout the room.

"Don't worry about that. You're in a safe place now."

"...I am?" I was stunned. There was no way that I was in a safe place. That's exactly what 'they' said as well.

"Yes you are." The girl was now standing next to me with an unreadable expression. "The name's Frostleaf. You are?"

My hands clenched slightly. "I..." 

"Don't worry. You take your time."

"Cantabile....You can call me Cantabile."

"Nice to meet you Cantabile." Frostleaf smiled softly. "Can you sit tight for a second?"

"Umm...Okay." She seemed trustworthy...For now at least.

"Alright. I'm gonna get everyone else." Frostleaf hastily made her way out of the room, leaving me alone with my thoughts.

It was only a few minutes before Frostleaf returned with three more people. One was a Sarkaz with red hair, another was what seemed to be a feline with light brown hair and the final was a Pythian boy with black hair that slowly faded into a dull blue at the tips.

"It's good to see that you're finally awake." The Pythian boy said.

"Now time for introductions." Frostleaf announced.

"I'm Vigna. Nice to meet you." The Sarkaz waved.

"I'm Utage! It's good to see that you're going well." The Feline said with a wide smile on her face.

"I'm Coral." The Pythian Boy said with a comforting smile on his face. "I'm glad to see you are recovering well."

This group of people...They seem so nice. Why would they go out to save someone like me? A waste of space in this endless world of faces.

"My name's Cantabile...Thank you for saving my life."

{ - Adventures Across Terra - }

"Aww if you wanna talk about saving your life, then you should thank Coral over here." Utage gave Cantabile a hearty laugh as she slapped Yuki on the back.

"I should?" The Liberi girl had a confused look on her face. "I thought you all saved me?"

Vigna sighed as she stepped into the conversation and began to explain everything. "Yes, we did all save you. But he's the one who found you. He even neutralized the poison that was in you."

"Poison?"

"You were attacked with poison tipped weapons. Correct?" Yuki spoke up as he walked closer towards Cantabile.

This prompted Frostleaf to keep a keen eye on Yuki's actions.

"I got rid of most of the poison. You should feel a slight ache but that's just your body healing. You should be fine."

Cantabile stared at Yuki for a few moments before speaking with a thankful tone. "Thank you... Really."

He gave her a soft smile. "Don't think too much about it Cantabile."

"Is there something that you want me to do in particular in return for saving my life?" She asked as if it was the most logical thing that she could think of.

"Nooo. Why would we ask you to do something for us? We did it because we wanted to. Not because we wanted something out of you." Utage exclaimed.

"Strange..." Was the only thing that Cantabile could say.

"I suppose it is a little strange for some strangers to come and save you." Yuki shrugged. "But that doesn't matter. All you need to know is that these strangers aren't here to hurt you."

"...Okay." Cantabile still had a look of apprehension on her face but decided to follow her gut.

"That's good." Yuki smiled before turning into a serious expression. "Now tell me. What happened? How'd you end up in such bad shape?"

Cantabile stared at Yuki with a blank expression.

"Coral." Vigna pulled Yuki off into the corner. "It's better if we just let her rest for a bit. It must have been a very long few days for her."

"Of course I know. I just wanted to know if we do get some information on what happened to her."

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Frostleaf stated. "Unless you want to take on some Leithanian nobles." The Vulpo pointed to a badge on the Liberi girl's chest.

Cantabile grabbed onto the badge and ripped it clean off her shirt. "I have no relation to those people anymore...I was deemed useless."

"Useless you say?" Yuki locked eyes with her.

"Y-Yes. That's what he said." She retreated further into the bedsheets from Yuki's stare.

"Okay then." Yuki went to writing something in a notebook. "Sorry for scaring you."

"...None taken."

"Just take it easy Cantabile. You all can go have fun. I'll-"

Frostleaf interjected before Yuki could finish his sentence. "I'll watch her. You can go with the others."

Yuki shot her a confused look before understanding what she meant. "Yup. That's what I meant. C'mon. Let's go guys. We've still got that market to look at."

"Oooh yeah. That market you were talking about. I wanna see if it's actually good or if it you're just overreacting." Vigna held a smug look on her face.

Yuki crossed his arms as he took on her challenge. "Oh just you wait until we get there. You'll see why I hyped that place up."

After a few minutes of bantering between the three, they all left the room. The only two people left in the room was Cantabile and Frostleaf.

"Are you feeling anything abnormal?" Frostleaf questioned.

"Why don't you trust him?"

"Who?"

"Coral. You seemed rather standoffish when it came to him."

The Vulpo could only stare at Cantabile with an unreadable expression upon her face. "I don't trust him because he's dangerous."

"Dangerous?" The Liberi tilted her head in confusion.

"I wouldn't be surprised if he was trying to...never mind."

"..." Cantabile's brows furrowed as she looked at Frostleaf's conflicted expression. "Strange..."

{ - Adventures Across Terra - }