While the people of the village were on their way home, Rada found herself in a strange place. It seemed like a dream, but at the same time real.
What his eyes saw was an infinite space, covered in white as far as the eye could reach, there was nothing else, just an infinite void followed by a frightening silence.
Surprised at the sight of what lay ahead of him, he began to walk unaware of where he was going, there were no signs or paths, just nothingness.
"Phew! Now where the hell did I end up...?" he huffed.
He felt stressed by all these continuous events out of any logical conception. He was accustomed to a simple life, almost empty at his discretion, but he never gave to see it, so that those who were close to him could not be so saddened.
An incomplete being, that's how he described himself.
He didn't live like the rest of the people around him, somehow he felt he was missing something, but he had no way of knowing what it was. There are questions that people take a lifetime to ask and never find an answer to. He was full of these questions, compared to his peers, who thought about living in the present as best they could, rather than getting caught up in existential dilemmas.
Rada had no idea how much time passed in that infinite space, nor what had happened to him, was he dead? Or was he dreaming?
After some time of brooding, he shook his head of all useless thoughts, took a long breath and lay down. He spread his arms and legs, pointed his eyes upwards to admire that boundless white sky.
At a certain point, however, he felt something in his hand again, it was emanating again the strong glow of the first time.
This time, however, it did not simply stop glowing.
The symbol in his hand rose high into the sky, the four rings of which it was composed began to spin and expand.
Rada gasped at the scene.
He remained on the ground to observe what was happening, he had never witnessed something like this and had no idea what it was.
The four rings friction between them created sparks that fell down like rain. Upon reaching the ground, these sparks continued to move in his direction stopping a few feet away and then began to swirl around him.
"What does this mean...?" he wondered.
For some reason he was unable to move, he didn't know if it was due to amazement or some other reason though, so he just stood there observing the spectacle before him.
Each spark that fell to the ground was going to join the others continuing to spin.
This went on for a long time, until all around him was a carpet full of a myriad of colored lights.
Suddenly the four rings in the sky resounded.
The lights on the ground resonated with the rings as well; it was like a concert between heaven and earth.
Shortly after, the whole space seemed to vibrate, there, Rada witnessed something he would never forget in his life.
The space around him was changing, the boundless white was being replaced by bright and vivid colors. But it didn't end there, paying closer attention he could see that not only the space was taking color, but it was also coming to life.
He could suddenly move again, so he pulled himself up, far away from him he saw long green expanses, rivers shining in the light, trees full of life and vigor, even further away mountains with snowy peaks. Looking up he saw small clouds wandering alone, even higher, a boundless blue sky with a shining sun in the center.
After completing this work, the four rings stopped turning, slowly returning to his hand.
"What is all this supposed to represent...?" he didn't know what to think.
He walked for some time in that dreamy scenery, sat under a tree to enjoy the shade of the branches, closed his eyes and enjoyed the rustle of the wind that gently caressed his face, falling asleep without even realizing it.
After some time, he opened his eyes again and realized that he was no longer in the landscape of before, he was lying in the bed of a room. The room was spacious, uncluttered, with the rays of sunlight filtering through the curtain in front of him, the air was clean, it felt really good to be there.
Kiba was on top of him, as usual.
"Was it really all a dream? But it all felt so real..."
He stroked the puppy's soft ears, puzzled at the sight he had just witnessed.
In the meantime, someone entered the room.
"Hey! You finally woke up!" it was Cody,.
"Yo!" Rada greeted Cody in his own way.
"Yo?" the little boy asked with a strange face.
"Um, nothing nothing, how long did I sleep for?"
"You slept for two days," replied Cody.
"Two days?"
He was surprised to learn that he slept for two full days in a row.
But he didn't dwell on it much and continued to ask, "Where are we? Your sister?"
"We're at my house, you were brought here by my father's men, my sister..."
Cody paused for a few seconds before continuing.
"Is she okay?" asked Rada worriedly.
"Yes he's fine, but he's grounded..." replied Cody, sounding downcast.
"Grounded for what?" asked the other with an inquisitive expression.
"Before I met you, my sister and I had gone hunting, in our village hunting is not allowed without the permission of the clan leader. But especially those young in age are not allowed to hunt alone just to avoid such situations..." Cody continued to explain the events that had happened.
"As a result all those who break that rule are punished with imprisonment."
"I see that's why you're so down on yourself."
Rada nodded slightly at the young boy's explanation.
"Yeah, even though I knew it wouldn't end well, I didn't do anything to stop my sister, I'm just as responsible as she is, but my father decided to punish only her..." the little boy's eyes reddened, he was almost crying.
"It's okay Cody, let me talk to your father, maybe I can convince him to be lenient with your sister."
Rada began to move slowly to try and get up, but she felt she was still weak. She let the puppy slide off her chest and pulled herself up with a grimace of pain.
"Easy big brother, you're still weak, the Elder said it will be a while before you can fully heal" Cody hurried to hold him up.
"The Elder???" asked the boy.
"Yes, he was the one who took care of your wounds" replied the little boy smiling.
"I owe him my life then, come on help me take me to meet your father" replied the other.
However he couldn't help but wonder where the hell he happened to be to have an Elder there!
"Are you sure?" asked Cody worriedly.
Every now and then, the little boy cast a glance towards the puppy sleeping blissfully on the bed, his adorable white coat was irresistible to the touch.
"Yeah come on!"
Rada reached out her hand to Cody's shoulder to support herself.
The two of them headed towards the courtyard, while Rada looked around in the meantime.
The house was really big, it looked like an old-style palace, there were various weapons hanging on the walls, but nothing remotely modern.
Axes, swords, even two halberds crossed towards each other, it seemed to be in an armory. Suddenly he stopped with his gaze lost in the void.
"Big brother what's wrong are you not well???"
Cody was startled at the sudden stop.
After a few seconds of silence, Rada touched his stomach and said:
"I'm starving!"
"Huh?"
Cody remained wide-eyed for a few moments before bursting out laughing.
"Let's go to the kitchen then!"