Age of Dragons Online

Chapter 14: Quest

Chapter 14

                             Quest

 “I’m hungry,” Aledro complained as the pair walked through the forest, sounding very much like a small child who cannot accept that their wish will not be granted through endless repetition of the same phrase.

 “Yes, I heard the first 37 times,” Nadran wearily replied, irritation trickling into his tone.

 “You were keeping count?” Aledro asked in surprise.

 “No,” was Nadran’s reply.

Aledro let out a small chuckle.  “So,” he said, “How far exactly is this secret base of yours?”

 “I don’t know,” Nadran confessed, yawning.  “It seemed like a shorter distance when I ran to the cliff before I saw you.  Of course, I was also moving faster before.”

            Aledro looked at him for a moment before asking “We’re lost, aren’t we?”

            “No, of course we aren’t,” Nadran hastily responded, though his tone was not very convincing.

            “Really?  Because I think we are going around in circles.”

            Nadran looked around, trying to find something to prove his friend wrong.  “Ah!” he exclaimed.  “There it is!”

            They finally walked into the clearing, letting out sighs of relief.  Aledro quickly ran over to the giant rhino, which, even after Nadran’s meal earlier, didn’t seem much smaller.  While Aledro cooked the meat, Nadran lay back on an area of moss and drifted off to sleep, the sprint to Aledro and furious battle immediately after finally taking their toll on him.

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           Nadran awoke several hours later, stretching out his limbs and sitting up as he worked to restart his brain.  After a few seconds, he remembered what had happened on the previous day - the finding of Aledro, the following events, the problem of his abilities not working.  Then again, he thought, I didn't have any difficulty using it to save Aledro... does that mean that it is... working again?  I should find out...  maybe the time with the rhinoceros was just a fluke?

Nadran's eyes drifted over to Aledro's sleeping form, a peaceful expression adorning his face as his mind floated through the realm of pleasant dreams.  Even though we are trapped in a game with a very real possibility of death, he can still smile like that while he sleeps.  I envy that quality of his, Nadran mused.  His own dreams had been tormented by all of the awful things that happened to him.  Volzan leered at him defeating him easily as he watched others die, Golkav wreaked destruction upon people and structures alike, mercilessly slaughtering everyone near him, and the first town and Kolaria burned, screams echoing across the land.  In the grip of his nightmares, he forgot that Aledro was alive and well, and experienced the pain of losing him over and over again.  He forgot about the dreams when he awoke, only to remember them suddenly a few hours later.  His nightmares reminded him just how little he had accomplished. 

Who have I really saved, our even helped?  The first person I ever met was killed right in front of me before I could even learn his name, the first town I visited was annihilated the day after I arrived, and Aledro and I were the only ones that survived.  The first city I visited was also attacked, and I managed to take down Golkav, but there were still so many that died, and after the battle I was driven out by the very people I was trying to help.  Yes, I saved Aledro, but he was only in that situation because he was looking for me, and I had already failed to protect him in the village, where he only survived by some strange twist of fate.  Who am I to think that I can save others in the first place, anyways? What gives me the right to be the savior, to be so arrogant as to think I am capable of succeeding where others failed?  I know that Volzan is interested in my abilities, but I don't even know how to use it, and I can't even get it to work consistently.