Evanesterrin

Chapter Three

After the voice faded, Naeren continued to look around. Evanesterrin. So this was the paradise world. It certainly seemed like paradise. Naeren watched as a colorful butterfly flew from a flower and landed on her hand. She looked at it as it slowly opened and closed its wings. Butterflies were scarce back home.

Home. This was her home now, Naeren realized. This was the new home for her and everyone else that had passed the test. It was then that Naeren realized that she was completely alone. Apart from the wildlife, Naeren didn't see another living person anywhere. Where were the rest of the people from the room?

With this question burning in her mind, Naeren began to walk toward the forest. She didn't know why, but that seemed to be the best place to start her search for other people.

As she stepped into the forest, Naeren could feel the temperature drop due to the shade of the trees. She continued to walk, and after a few moments of silence, she heard it.

A scream.

She turned and ran in the direction of the sound. She crashed through the underbrush until she saw her. The same blonde girl that had been next to her in the room with the tanks.

"Hey, are you okay?" Naeren asked, approaching the girl. The girl quickly turned and nodded.

"Yeah, I just got startled by a... I think it was some kind of bird," The girl said. "It didn't look like a bird that I have ever seen and it flew toward me out of a bush really suddenly. I'm fine though."

"Okay, it's good you're okay. I haven't found anyone else. Have you?" Naeren asked.

"No. I think we all arrived in different places. I'm Lumina, by the way." The girl said, extending her hand and looking Naeren up and down once.

"I'm Naeren," Naeren shook Lumina's hand.

"According to the map, there is a small dwelling place with huts a bit farther on. Maybe the other people went there," Lumina suggested. Naeren looked at Lumina with a blank look.

"Map?" Naeren asked.

"Yeah. In the bag of stuff they gave us there was a map. Did you not get one?" Lumina replied.

"Oh. I haven't checked," Naeren said, feeling a bit embarrassed. She opened the bag of supplies and began to take the items out one by one, inspecting each as she did.

There were two loaves of bread wrapped in thin paper to keep them clean, a packet of dried meat, and several kinds of dried fruit. In addition to this, there was a water bottle, a coil of rope, and a folded piece of paper. The map. Naeren reached into the bag again and gasped as she withdrew her hand. A small bead of blood dropped to the grass. Naeren reached in more cautiously and pulled out a switchblade.

"Why do we need this?" Naeren asked in confusion. This was the Paradise World. Surely there was no need for such a lethal weapon...

"It's most likely for cooking or hunting. I mean, they provided us with some food, but to survive for long we will have to start finding our own food source."

Of course, Lumina had a much more logical answer. Naeren felt somewhat sheepish that she hadn't thought of the obvious answer. The whole ordeal with the test and all of the White Coats had made her paranoid. Cooking. Hunting. Not murder. Obviously. Yet the presence of the blade still made Naeren uneasy.

"So, shall we go find the huts?" Lumina suggested. Naeren nodded, and after shoving all of her supplies back into her bag, they set off.

As they walked through the forest, the trees got denser. The air was pleasantly cool and smelled fresh and pure. All around them, birds sang, insects flew past on a lazy breeze. Wildflowers carpeted the forest floor and flowering vines twined up the trees, disappearing amidst the tangle of branches. Sunlight filtered through the leaves making a beautiful pattern of dappled light on the ground.

After several minutes of walking in silence with Lumina occasionally checking the map, Naeren and Lumina struck up a conversation and by the time that the small group of huts came into view, the two were friends.

"Hey! Newcomers!" a voice shouted. A group of other people clustered over to greet Naeren and Lumina.

"There is one cabin left over there," A tall boy pointed. "You two can share. I'm Alden, by the way. You can put your stuff inside and then we were thinking of making a bonfire and getting to know everyone."

"I'm Naeren." Naeren shook Alden's hand.

"Lumina."

"Well, nice to meet you!" Alden smiled. Something in his smile made Naeren feel uncomfortable. She couldn't explain it.

Lumina grabbed Naeren's hand and dragged her over to the cabin Alden had pointed out to them. It was a small circular hut made of wood, with branches and large leaves forming a sort of thatch roof for the structure. The walls and door were made of light-colored wood. Their hut was at the edge of the clearing, farthest from the other huts.

Lumina opened the door and rushed inside. Naeren followed and looked around at her new home. The interior of the hut consisted of four small rooms. One side of the hut was divided into three rooms, two tiny bedrooms, and one bathroom. The other half was a living area with a small cooking stove. A cabinet contained a small amount of food rations.

The bathroom was simple. A small shower was sectioned off by a curtain. There was a small sink and a toilet, and a simple mirror hung on the wall. Each bedroom contained a cot with several warm blankets and a thin sheet. Two pillows rested on each cot, and a simple empty dresser stood beside the bed. Each bedroom had a small window that faced out to the forest, and plain cloth curtains could be pulled across them to block out the light.

After exploring the house, Naeren and Lumina each claimed a bedroom. They were about to start unpacking their belongings, but a knock at the door gave them pause.

"I'll get it," Lumina said, rushing to the door as Naeren left her room to see who it was.

"Oh, hi Alden!" Lumina said brightly as she opened the door.

"Hi, I was coming to let you know that we have started the bonfire. We would love to have you join us when you're ready. You can unpack later. We want to get to know everyone," Alden said.

"Sure, are you coming Naeren?" Lumina asked.

"Yes," Naeren said, following Lumina out into the clearing.

A blazing fire cast warmth across the clearing and orange light flickered off the huts and trees. The sun burned orange through the trees as it made it's slow descent across the sky, casting long shadows across the forest.

"Well, congratulations to us!" Alden shouted across the clearing once everyone was gathered together. "We passed! We actually made it to the paradise world!"

Cheers and yells of triumph went up around the clearing. After some of the celebratory noises died down, people began to mingle, introducing themselves to one another.

Naeren and Lumina tended to stay close to each other. They weren't opposed to meeting new people, but they also were okay with just staying together outside of the group.

"Alden sure likes attention, doesn't he?" Naeren muttered to Lumina, gesturing to where Alden was enthusiastically introducing several people to each other. Lumina laughed and nodded.

"We should probably go..." Lumina gave an overdramatic shudder, "socialize."

Naeren and Lumina laughed and reluctantly began to mingle with the other people.

They got caught up in meeting other people, so they hardly noticed how dark it had become until Alden jumped up onto a log and shouted:

"The sun went down! That means it's time to get out whatever food you are going to have for dinner tonight and TELL SCARY STORIES!!!"

Naeren and Lumina exchanged a glance but sat down together to listen as the stories began.