The Forbidden

Chapter 2 - Preparations of the encountered

"Are you guys ready?" JR asked his team.

"Why did I have to come?" Nigel said to Ralf, the Dark Familiar frowned.

"Come on. This'll be the first time you guys will be on a journey. To fight monsters and end an incident."

"..." Heath stood there, quiet and not utter a word, next to Lectro.

"This'll be FUN!" Lectro showed great excitement.

"Well..this is a first. I mean, we never EVEN go on journeys like this." Darnel said, holding Ralf's bag.

Zef came to JR, holding his bag as it's filled with his stuff already.

"Is that all the necessities for the journey?" JR asked Zef.

"Yes...that is all, Sire JR."

JR got his bag as he puts it on his back.

"I told you, stop addressing me with 'sire'." JR got a little annoyed by that.

"My apologies again, sire." His importunate mentor added more of JR's annoyance.

"Sigh...anyway, you all set, coz?" He said as Ralf approaches him.

"Yep. I am!" He's filled with energy as he said that.

JR turns to his team, "Are you guys all set?"

"YEAH!" Shouted Inigo and Tyrone

"Yes, we're ready." Kelvin added.

"How about your team?" JR turned back to Ralf.

"Oh, yes. They are all ready. Right guys?"

His mentor, Nigel, nodded.

"Let's go then." JR goes ahead to the exit, with Ralf and the rest following him.

As the two headed out, the Familiars vanished and went inside the cousins, Ruby and Clark were taking a stroll in the woods, Ruby riding on Clark's back, when they happen to pass by the two cousins.

"Oh hey, JR and Ralf." Ruby smiled.

Ruby got down and ran to them, Clark standing up and approached.

"Hey guys." Ralf greeted.

"Where are you guys headed?" Clark asked.

"Oh...we'll be away for a while." JR answered.

"Huh...where to?" Ruby got curious.

"There have been some problems with the Tree lately, magic problems to be exact." JR sighed.

"Oh...well, we'll take care of the castle while you guys are out. Sound fine to you?" Clark offered.

"Since there is no guardian to protect the castle at the moment, then I guess that would be fine." JR accepted.

"Good then." Clark smiled, "Well, have a safe trip guys."

"By the way, do you know where your destination is?" Ruby asked, looks a bit worried.

"Uh...that's the problem." Ralf averted eyes. Before they could say anything, Ralf added "BUT, not to worry. We'll get there....somehow."

"Oh...well, okay. Just be careful out there, guys. Have a safe journey." Ruby and Clark went ahead inside the castle.

"Alright! Let's go and start our journeeey!" Ralf yelled as he ran and flew away from JR.

"Hey! Wait up!" JR did the same.

Catching up on Ralf, he turned to his cousin, flying backwards as his cousin caught up with him.

"Heh. You're too slow" he flew even faster, still flying in reverse.

"We're going on a journey, not on a race." JR sighed in annoyance.

"I know! This is gonna be excitiiing!"

He flew up above the sky, rotating in circles as he falls through the clouds and air gushing to him. Before he could hit the ground, he flew perpendicularly away from the ground. He then flew in reverse once again.

While he couldn't see where he was flying to, he was flying towards a tree and JR noticed this as he warned,

"Watch out!"

"Huh- *THUD*"

Poor Ralf fell on the ground as he hit the tree by his head. He rubbed the spot where it hurts as JR arrived at the scene.

"No more flying in reverse." he scolded him.

"Aaoww....f..fine....okay."

JR helped him get up when they heard a voice.

"Aauh! Oww...."

The cousins looked in directions as to where the sound came from.

"You hear that?" Ralf looked at JR.

"...I think it came from behind." JR pointed from behind the tree, going there first.

He slowly and carefully crept to the back of the tree, what he saw seems to be a 3-foot figure, it somewhat has pointy ears and it doesn't have hair. It looks as though it's not wearing clothes, but a cloth covered his lower body.

"I-is that a...?"

The figure saw JR and eeked. It ran away as fast as it can.

"Uh- Hey!" JR followed.

"No- Cooz!" Ralf soon followed.

The figure doesn't want to be captured and is afraid of the humans, making him run faster and pant.

"Hey! Wait up!"

The figure eeked again and ran even faster, JR couldn't catch up and is starting to feel tired.

At last, he stopped running, panted as Ralf arrived and panted as well.

"C..coz....w-what was that...for?...haah..hah..."

JR panted before answering,

"I...I saw...a hobgoblin..."

"Whu- what? A...hobgoblin?"

"I KNOW IT WHEN I SAW IT. I'm not crazy!" He looked at him frantically.

"Th-there is NO way a hobgoblin can exist in this world."

"B-but I saw one! I'm not kidding!" JR demanded.

"Calm down....how big IS this 'hobgoblin'?"

"...around 3 feet."

"Huh. A 3-footer can outrun us. We should've have flied to catch him."

While Ralf looked at the direction where the hobgoblin ran, JR was wondering,

'Why would there be a hobgoblin in this world? I-is it just me or...?'

After JR thought it over, he sighed

"There's no need for that, now that he's gone. Let's go."

They both went back to the opposite direction, Ralf taking lead.
Ralf went ahead first while JR took a last look behind him, soon following his cousin.

The hobgoblin was hiding behind a tree, looking back to the direction where they left and hid himself again. It talked to himself in his mind,

'T-there are...humans?! I thought this world was just full of monsters and zombies! B-but....humans in this world? I have no idea...'

He trembled and soon calmed himself down.

Chapter2End