Chapter 5: Chapter Four: Otherworld

Swirls of wind flowed through the Realm-Link, surrounding Valdus in a spiralling gale. What looked like streaks of lightning skimmed past him like thorned whips, barely missing him at every moment. With each streak, booming cracks of thunder rang out. At first it didn’t hurt much, only feeling like weak, momentary stings, but the further he went through the Realm-Link, the stinging gradually became worse and worse. With the increasing pain, it soon began to feel like torture. As this continued, Valdus found it difficult to tell whether he was falling or flying, shouting in fear and confusion as he felt his body being thrown around wildly. His shouting then came to a stop as a sudden shock shot through his chest. A bolt of lightning had struck him directly, and an excruciating burn pierced his chest as the rest of his body constricted. He grunted, trying to clutch his chest in an attempt to ease the pain, feeling his blood pump rapidly – the noise of it surging through his ears as well – and he felt the tips of his teeth almost pierce his gums. Before he could comprehend all that was happening, a blinding light followed soon after, and his vision faded to white.

Momentarily, Valdus’s hearing was blocked out by a sharp, high-pitched ringing. Then, he heard a thud, and what sounded like grass. A strong thwack hit him on the head as he heard the following noises, and immediately felt his consciousness start drifting away. His vision waning, he felt himself slip in-and-out, trying to hang on, and in the midst of that he could hear someone approaching him.

“Poor kid... What kind of... ...could’ve... ...-uch damage? Hey, kid. ...-wake? Kid! Dam-... Better help... ...can’t lea-... ...-ere... Where’d...?”
Valdus could barely make out the words, before everything fell silent.

 

Later that day, Valdus soon returned to his senses, awaking with a pounding headache. His vision slowly faded in, and he found himself lying in a bed, inside what seemed to be a wooden shack. The left half of his vision was tinted purple, before returning to a clearer, untinted view. The walls looked like logs stacked together, while the flooring and roofing were a slightly finer timber. The windows gave a clear view of the outside, but all he could notice was a vast, grassy plain with a few trees sprawled across it. It was a strangely welcoming place, even though he had no idea where he was. He held his head and tried to get up, but the same shock from the lightning in the Realm-Link shot through his chest. Valdus shouted out in pain and fell back down. Immediately afterward, a man with black hair and a few scars across his face rushed into the room and over to Valdus. He seemed visibly concerned. He was wearing pieces of scratched-up armour and a large greatsword strapped onto his back.

“Kid, you’re awake! How? The wounds you had should’ve been impossible to survive. I don’t even think this armour of mine would’ve stopped whatever caused it, and only moments ago your pulse just stopped!”
The man exclaimed,
“Despite that...you were still breathing...!”

Valdus tried to speak, unable to muster up any words at all. He only then noticed bandages drenched in blood, bundled in a basket beside the bed he rested upon. A small, burning sensation grew where the wound on his would be. He froze in shock from seeing the amount of blood, only now understanding the astonishment the man had been displaying. Aside from that, he also noticed his clothing was different, and a grey shirt and a black jacket sat beside him. Instead of his casual indoor clothes, he was wearing black buckled boots and black cropped trousers.

That much blood and I’m still alive? Did I cheat death or something...?
Valdus couldn’t believe it either.
And, since when was I wearing this stuff...?

“Do you remember anything? You were unconscious outside. I rarely see anyone out here... Not only that, you had a sword sitting beside you. Aren’t you a bit too young to be out adventuring? A kid like you should be in your hometown instead of wandering around the Cardinal Plains. These are dangerous times, and you could have been killed. For all I know, you already were!”
The man continued,
“Even then, here you are, sitting up...alive...”

The man held a hand over his face as he tried to think it over, muttering a few things to himself. Valdus could overhear him speaking of dragons and some other creatures that could’ve caused his wounds, but the man only shook his head each time he suggested something to himself.

“W-where am I, anyway...?”
Valdus asked,
“And what do you mean by a sword? I...never had a sword with me...”

“Huh? L-let’s just go through one thing at a time... So, you’re...not from around here...? What village are you from? Or, city? I’m sure we could find a way to get you back there if you managed to find yourself way out here...”
The man responded,
“...though, the safety of heading back would be a problem, too...”

Valdus shook his head. More of the recent events flooded his mind once again, revitalising his memory.

The Realm-Link. That dragon... This place is a completely different world to the one I’ve always lived in...
Valdus continued to contemplate.

From the start of it all, until now – he finally remembered – but Valdus didn’t know how he could explain it to the man well enough. Though, after apparently coming back to life, Valdus felt the man would believe him, even if the truth sounded like a child’s dream.

“I-... You’re probably not going to believe me when I say this, but as far-fetched as it sounds, I’m not from this realm. I was dragged into a portal, and... I guess that’s where my wounds come from.”
Valdus spoke, hoping the man would believe him.

“Not...from this realm, you say...? I’ve heard such tales of other realms, but I’ve never thought of them to be true... I guess...you could be living proof of such a thing, then. I myself have wondered what the portals would be like, but seeing how grave your wounds are, I think I’d best pass on that idea. For now, at least...”
The man then brought over a chair and sat down, giving Valdus a small smile.
“No point in thinking you’re a liar, I’ll trust your word. So, kid, what’s your name?”

“Valdus... Valdus Aetherius. My father gave me the name, but I can only faintly remember who he was... My mother always told me stories about the times before he suddenly vanished, but she’s-... My mother’s...back in the realm I came from, and...”
Valdus’s voice wavered,
“...she was killed...right before I came to this realm.”

The man noticed Valdus’s mixed expression, and gently placed a hand on his shoulder. Valdus gasped, returning to his senses as a single tear ran down his face.

“Valdus... I’m...sorry about your mother.”
The man spoke softly.

“I-... Thanks... I was lost in thought.”
Valdus responded.

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The man sighed, then spoke again,
“You...seem like you’ll be all right on that matter, but just let me know if you need to talk, all right? By the way, the name’s Ace. Ace Sparrow. You’re in a realm called Eldoria. The Elders in the village I used to live in always called it that. This world’s been in a...mess – of some sorts – so I was worried when I saw you out there, unconscious... Just be glad you’re safe, please.”

“E-Eldoria...? Th-this...is Eldoria?”
Valdus muttered to himself, rubbing his eyes,
That’s what the scratches meant?

“Hey, woah now. Don’t go worrying about a new thing so soon. First off, yes, this is Eldoria. You’re going to be all right, so just rest easy for a moment, okay?”
Ace tried to help Valdus calm down.
Strange kid... He’s not from here, but it’s as if he’s heard of this realm before.

Valdus sighed and nodded. Ace talking to him had helped out just a little.

“Say, what’s your realm called?”
Ace then asked.

“The term ‘realm’ wouldn’t really be used... I forgot the name of the galaxy, but we were on a planet called ‘Earth’.”
Valdus responded.

“Planet? Galaxy?”
Ace suddenly seemed bewildered.

Valdus now shared the same expression, almost shocked to realise that the concept of outer space wasn’t apparent in Eldoria. He shook off that discussion and gave a small chuckle. He then shuddered from another shock in his chest, letting out a grunt as he winced in pain. The pain felt unbearable, yet he managed to endure it, lying down and clutching his chest, close to where the wound was. Ace stood up from where he sat and called out, claiming that Valdus was still severely injured. He then asked Valdus to sit tight and try to withstand the pain for a little longer until someone arrived. His vision was gradually fading again, his body still enveloped by waves of pain. From his blurred vision he saw a woman with scarlet red hair, and another man wearing dark, cerulean plated armour rushing over to him. He couldn’t quite make out their key appearances before blacking out again.

 

As Valdus returned to his senses a second time he immediately noticed the two other people sitting by Ace. Ace sighed in relief, while a smile lit up on the woman’s face. The other man’s expression remained serious.

“Thank goodness you’re all right. I can’t imagine how painful that wound must have been.”
The woman spoke,
“My name is Scarlet. I’ve been tending to you since Ace and Lucile here found you.”

Valdus then quickly noticed he no longer was patched up. The blood was cleaned off as well. He then looked back at the other three in the room. Scarlet was wearing a white dress and had a floral hair pin. Lucile had brown hair and blue eyes, and his armour had red, gold and silver linings. A gold and black insignia, with a gem socketed into the centre of it, was adorned at the left of his chest. He also held a large spear over his back that had a twisted blade, gold markings across the handle, and a single red feather situated at the hilt of the blade. Valdus noticed a small, blood red claw marking on the left of Lucile’s neck, as well.

Geez...how decked out does one need to be in this world?
Valdus pondered.

“Well now, probably best to fully introduce ourselves. Lucile and I are like brothers, but not by blood. Scarlet and I, on the other hand, are-”
Ace spoke up.

Scarlet suddenly interrupted,
“-married.”

She then giggled. Ace looked surprised for a moment, then sighed and smiled to himself, while Lucile put on a slight smirk.

“I haven’t even gotten to say anything yet, and we’re forgetting someone else.”
Lucile spoke up,
“Come on out, Cedric.”

A green aura then glowed from Lucile’s right shoulder, forming into what was a small dragon. It had lime green scales, grey horns, and cerulean green eyes. Two fangs jutted outward from its upper jaw, and its claws were sharp and slightly curled. The membranes of its wings were grey as well.

“Yo. The name’s Cedric!”
The dragon grinned.

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