"There are a few trees, but plenty of rolling hills give it the impression that earthen waves roll across the plains. At the other end, there is a cliff. Looking down, you get dizzy, and vertigo shoots through your whole body.
At the bottom, you can see the waves crashing against the rock, spraying foam everywhere. But if you stretch your gaze, you can see the ocean moving in its almost melodic rhythm of wind and waves.
First, you can see it turn from black to green in the early dawn, startling cerulean blue when the sun climbs high and then a deeper gold than any treasury when the sun begins to dip down."
...
That's how the wanderers see Pladtioa. 'A thriving wonderland with pure soil and natural earth.'
The wanderers, Sadiki, and the others walk along the path, heading back towards the village.
Belial desperately tries his best to cope with the death of Akwan, hoping in his heart that he wasn't slain but teleported like The Princess and Telos.
But, like other things, sometimes it is best to ignore the weights pushing you down.
Among the tranquil pathway, Sadiki questions the wanderers as their hair blows to the side.
"So, what did you two feel when you "interacted" with your statues?"
The wanderers can't explain what they felt when they 'interacted' with the statues; all they can respond about is.
"Powerful."
It was the energy they had never felt before, a feeling of pure restoration and absolute power. Could it be that even with the point unveiled, there still is a power beyond their thoughts?
They can't find the answer nor question it. Just as they reach the entrance to the village, Drimi charges headfirst towards Asahi. He confusingly screams while feeling his head pound gradually over and over.
"Gah!"
Aletha can't help but leak a slight high-pitched giggle. She swiftly covers her mouth while stepping back from them.
Drimi hardly chuckles and slaps her hand on the back of his head. Her glimmering amethyst eyes squint at him, with her long dark hair fluctuating side to side. The height of Drimi, tower Asahi, with her light metal armor pressing against his chest. Asahi brutally pushes Drimi away from him while frustratingly yelling.
"What are you doing?!"
Drimi laughingly chuckles and mocks Asahi while opening and closing her hands with her deep voice.
"What are you doing?— you know exactly what I'm doing. Samantha couldn't stop worrying about you! I had to kick her out of the building so that I could relax. Anyways, whatcha' been up to? It's almost evening, and the villagers are worried, especially Asahi's lovebird, Clover. Oh, and where is that tiny golden-haired boy? He made a mess over his seat!"
All of them reply while looking down at the floor.
"Gone."
Drimi questionably mutters.
"Huh?"
Aletha steps in and repeatedly jumps on the floor. She furiously yet sadly screams at the shocked Drimi while the villagers stare at them from a distance.
"He's gone, He's gone, He's gone! He just disappeared into ashes and—
Drimi pushes Aletha and pinches her two cheeks.
"What do you two mean he's gone? Was he standing healthy hours ago? Is he hiding? Or conducting those strange experiments?"
Asahi faintly mutters while twinkling his thumbs.
"He… vanished into thin air."
Drimi's purple eyes broaden in pure fear. She slowly backs away and shakes her head, knowing exactly what he meant by 'vanishing.' Drimi startles and takes deep breaths, trying to relax. She clenches her fists in a fit of rage, and the tips of her dark hair blend into the darkest black.
"Y-Y-You mean… The Princess s-slaughtered him? How…?"
She angrily slams her fists against the ground, with a tear flying down from her cheek.
"HOW DID WE LOSE HIM?! I KNEW he was powerful, but I never thought—
The wanderers, Sadiki, and Belial all fall silent.
"Do you two understand the significance of Akwan?! He was the main reason why Belial, Samantha, and I are still together. He creates to assist us with our deepest problems and tries his best to understand humanity. I can't believe, just as he was so close to reaching to act on emotion, he relentlessly gets slaughtered from the overpowered Princess of The Ending. I can't believe you!"
She takes a deep breath and hears the birds chirp over the vast plain. Drimi sniffs and crosses her arms, tilts her body towards the village, and walks away from them while directly and seriously shouting.
"Come on! Just forget what happened to him. We have a bigger deal to hold."
Aletha faintly mutters.
"So, finding the crops wasn't enough?"
Drimi sighs and answers with a natural tone in her voice.
"…yes. Now come on. Just forget what happened to him. If anything, his book could still be out there. And now, Akwan's weapon will be only a glittering memory flashing in the darkness to us."
Asahi and Aletha questionably grunts.
"Huh?"
Drimi deeply sighs and feels her head pound.
"We will… act like his death never happened, or his very existence in that matter. We don't want to terrify the villagers now, or else we may never see the glow of our weapons anymore. Just act like you did this morning, even if it is false on the inside. You can't go anywhere if weight is holding you down."
The wanderers nod their heads and faintly respond while biting their lips.
"R-Right…"
Sadiki and Belial tremblingly reply while staring at the drifting white clouds.
"Understood."
All of them slowly walk along the pathway, following the wooden signs pointing towards the locations and staring at the flowing streams. Milmoor never felt this quiet up until now.
Wearing only a fake smile, the wanderers have no choice but to acknowledge Akwan's death as a warning from The Princess. But they just can't forget that shocked look on The Princess' face.
It's as if she knows both of them but couldn't reach the wanderers in time. It's only a blurry memory to them now.
The only thing soothing their fear is the faint waves crashing against the cliffs and the swirling breeze blowing against the small trees. The blazing yellow dew from the luminescent sphere slowly blends to a gentle orange mist, preparing for the arrival of evening.
Nothing but the soothing sounds of the landscape and wildlife of Pladtioa are heard from the entire group.
The silence is too intriguing, but it's all they can do to cope with Akwan's death.
The bumpy clouds block the blistering sun, with nothing left of happiness and its rays beaming against the glittering ocean.
At the highest elevation of Pladtioa, they never thought such a beauty could exist in their homeworld. But to no surprise, Gincad will always be beautiful, even if it's at its brutal, blazing destruction.
The true essence running through the Soil of Gincad is called 'Fantasy,' enriched by the Dreams from The Perpetual Cosmic Storm and the remnants of Aiyana's soul; Gincad is a Fantasy World, a living dream… with a magical variety of landscapes for all Dust and Blood Creatures to live in.
But much like Fantasies comes the deepest Nightmares.
As said by Akwan, 'without darkness, there IS no true meaning to existence.' And without balance, reality will never be sustainable.
However, there can be infinite Fantasies, for the element has bloomed from the deepest roots of the mind out to the stems of imagination and dreams from a vast diversity of living creatures. But in this ideal Fantasy, everything may seem similar but remain different.
Sometimes I even question if I have a Fantasy, too.
*
The villagers cheer and jump, seeing the wanderers and the rest of the group returning to the village. Crops are piled up in the small harvesting areas, enough to feed the entire town massive portions for three meals a day.
Clover leans her back against the walls and squints at Asahi, questioning what took him so long to arrive. She swiftly stomps her foot against the cobblestone floor and pouts while trying to turn her head away from him.
It seems as if she was waiting for this moment the entire day. As Asahi approaches Clover, she hastily shouts at him.
"Hmph, what took you so long?"
Asahi grits his teeth furiously and stomps his foot against the dry dirt. He vaguely replies while the villagers curiously stare.
"We were busy."
Clover responds rudely while pushing her silk green hair.
"Busy with what?!"
Asahi raises his voice and stretches his legs.
"It's none of your business!"
Aletha nudges Asahi's shoulder and roughly whispers while the villagers glare.
"Stop being rude, Asahi!"
Shortly after, the sound of a cheerful, feminine voice resounds from the crowd,
"Hey, over here!"
They hear irritated shouts coming from the mass of people. Her height towers all of their heads, with her long platinum hair brushing against each of the villager's shoulders. Her hot pink eyes glare deeply towards the wanderers, with the sight of crystal clear tears of joy glittering underneath the bright dusk sun.
"Asahi, Aletha, you're okay!"
Drimi harshly pats Samantha's back and faintly grins while holding her mask on her left hand, desperately hiding her most profound sadness of the loss on Akwan.
"Of course, these dunderheads are alright. Didn't you see what that vanilla boy did in the forest?"
Samantha nods and scratches her head.
"Y-Yeah… erm, we are all so happy to see you! Speaking of, where did Sadiki trot off to?"
The wanderers slowly tilt their heads around them.
"H-Huh?!"
Belial casually steps into the crowd, peers his dull emerald eyes out to the village, and slides his hands in his pockets. As the wind blows over his long dark braided hair, Belial responds.
"Sadiki told me he had to return to the city to check on Brich."
"Oh, is that so?" Samantha said as she fixed her hair.
The wanderers nod their heads while staring into the villagers' brown eyes. The dim amber streetlights shine over the cobblestone roads, with the hazy rural atmosphere lingering within half the village's streets.
Watermills spill water out to the stream next to a small light oak building, rolling like a massive wheel and shifting its sturdy wooden gears. They see farmers harvesting a few of their crops while others plant seeds. Clover crosses her arms and bends over to Asahi.
"So, sweetie, The villagers want to tell you—
"Clover, don't call me that…"
She grits her teeth, takes a deep breath, and quietly responds in an aggravated tone.
"Okay, Asahi. Anyways, the villagers—
A tall brown-haired man covered in dirt steps in front of Asahi and interrupts Clover...
"There is a blockage within the tips of the Water Well."
Another short messy blonde-haired little girl approaches and gently informs.
"I know that you found our missing crops, but we need water to live. I'm sowwy…"
An old elder lady interrupts the little girl and pushes her to the side. As she grips her cane, she straightens her back and offers while trying to speak fluently.
"If you can find a way to make the blockage leave, we will reward you one million Gincoins from the bank. What? Did you look surprised? Oh, we had millions of Gincoins underneath the safety of the church. It is imprinted with black ink saying 'to The Wanderers, only! The rest will be for the village.' So, we agreed to listen to the sign's request and kindly ask you to do one more deed for us."
Drimi's eyes broaden while the wanderers smile in relief.
"So you're saying that we can gain respect and recognition from you?"
The older woman quietly hackles and slowly grins.
"Not ONLY me, dearie. The entire village… will lend our respect towards all of you, truly."
The wanderers hastily back up in shock.
"Eh?!"
Both of them never knew this offer would be granted to them, nor did they ever think that past beings would give them one million of their currency. Taking advantage of the offer, the wanderers eagerly charge through the crowd and race through the village's roads, following their Map leading them towards the Well.
Drimi and the others scream at the wanderers; while the entire group hurriedly chases them through the village, Drimi and the others scream at them.
"Stop!" Belial said while breathing heavily.
"I can't catch up any longer!" Samantha shouted while sweat slid down her face.
"WHEN I CATCH UP TO YOU TWO, I WILL—
A man shouts while Drimi pushes him to a wall. She clenches her fists, cuts her words, and angrily screams while strongly going through the scattered crops and tossing boxes in the air.
Aletha yells to Asahi while her white hair tangles around a wooden post.
"Hey! W-Wait for me!"
Asahi stops just as he is about to reach the well and sprints towards Aletha. He kindly unknots Aletha's long snowy hair. The others catch up to them. But just as the others scream at them, Asahi and Aletha continue dashing towards the Well. Their hearts thump rapidly, with sweat sliding down their face, feeling exhaustion run through their limbs. Asahi and Aletha playfully giggle while sprinting away from them, making the chase seem like a game.
But as they slowly arrive at the Well, they see a massive green fat goblin monster resting against the top of the Well, with forty other villagers shouting at it. Asahi mutters while letting go of Aletha's hands.
"So this is what they mean by 'blockage,' huh?"