They waded into the water. Cool currents brushed against his ankles. The rain picked up, making it very difficult to see. The furthest he could see was the end of his elephant leaf. It reminded him of the time he'd visited Florida during a summer rainstorm. His family had gotten completely stuck in traffic. They couldn't move from their spot because the dense rain made it almost impossible to drive through until it passed by.
"How much longer?" Agnis asked from underneath her leaf umbrella. She felt uncomfortable being in the middle of the creek. "Zero, we are going to need to get to higher ground very soon." She slightly shook with worry. The currents steadily rose to her knees, making it more difficult to walk towards their destination. With every step she took, splashes of water wet the bottom of her blue dress.
"It's getting a bit too high for comfort, Zero," she said with worry. She did not want to drown anytime soon.
"We're almost there. Just a bit more and we should come across an opening for us to ascend." Zero wiped the water off his hands. He could already see the enormous tree he was aiming for, though it looked blurry through the thick rain.
"No time, we need to get out," Zeraph said in a hurry as he looked behind him. Large, wet, muddy rocks were sliding from the cliffs and splashing into the water. A large plop created a small wave which raced towards them.
"Waves incoming!" Zeraph shouted as he trudged sluggishly through the water. "We need to get out of here fast! The creeks connected to this river are bringing in too much water!"
Zero nodded. He understood their predicament if they didn't get out very soon. It was either drown, float, or get to land. Waves upon waves battered against them as Zero trudged through the water towards the land. By the time they got out, the water had reached up to their hips.
"Keep up with me," said Zero as he begun to run. For Zeraph and Agnis his pace was more equivalent to a power walk. Every ten steps Zero took, they took five.
"Don't worry. That's not going to be a problem," said Zeraph. Agnis chuckled. She power walked next to Zero.
"Um…Zero. I'm sorry, but I think I caused the rain. I didn't know there were such heavy rain clouds in the vicinity. Usually it just drizzles." Agnis nervously rubbed her hands against the elephant leaf's stem.
"What? You caused this?" Zero slowed down his pace, stunned.
"I have this skill called rain dance, and it calls up nearby clouds for it to rain. I can't control when it starts or stops. I just attract them in one place. It's not a skill I can do very often. It can upset the balance of the land's ecosystem. Also if there are no clouds in the vicinity it doesn't work." Agnis twirled her fingers around her snow white hair, feeling embarrassed.
"That's a pretty neat skill…great for farming," remarked Zeraph, surprised. "It would be helpful during the dry season. Have you thought of using it to make a profit?"
Agnis stared at Zeraph, appalled, as if he said something offensive.
"What? Did I say something wrong?" Zeraph looked confused. He didn't understand how he could have offended her. "It's a logical way to bring profit. This is what people would usually do just to survive when they have no money. Don't you know how many countries would pay for such a service?"
"He's right," agreed Zero as he nodded. "It wouldn't be bad to use it to bring profit when you're broke, especially when you are in need of a meal. It's like the ultimate scam for profit."
Agnis glared at Zero as if she could bore a hole in his clothes. Zero stepped back worriedly.
"It's a sacred dance that I learned from the monks of Infinity," said Agnis, annoyed. "I am completely against the idea of perverting the sacred dance for such selfish motives. Ruining such sacred dance is sacrilege," she said in pure outrage.
"Okay then, so when did you use it?" Zero asked.
"It was while I was fighting. I have a legit reason. Just hear me out," Agnis quickly explained. Zero couldn't believe there was a reason behind using it in a fight. Rain dancing in a fight was a bit of an odd combination. Wasn't what she was doing for personal gain already? He thought as he was confused with her logic.
"The rain dance is good to use in a multiple attack scenario, especially when surrounded on all sides," Agnis answered confidently. She folded her arms as if that logic made perfect sense. Both Zeraph and Zero looked at each other, stupefied.
At that moment they both thought the same: I don't get it. They nodded in unison in agreement as if they understood what the other was thinking.
"If you say so," replied Zero. After that both of them didn't continued on with the subject.
Near the end of their journey, Zero saw the cliff opening they were looking for. It wasn't a large or noticeable opening. It was a simple path that led straight up towards the cliff, almost completely hidden by the shadows of protective pine trees.
He saw that there were rocks for them to jump from one to another. The rest of the way up, that they needed to climb up by grabbing on to the protruding roots of the tree. There were also large roots that embedded themselves into the rock, making them easy to grasp. It was a perfect merge of stone and tree roots, a masterpiece of nature.
Both Agnis and Zeraph stopped and stared. They were surprised that such a place existed.
"This way. We are at the roots of the tree. See over there." Zero pointed towards the opening, where a giant root stood arching over the rocks, giving it shade.
A bit further, the giant oak tree was literally sitting on top of the edge of the cliff leaning out. The sheer size of the oak tree was equivalent to an ancient redwood tree in California. Surrounding it were evergreens that dwarfed in comparison. They were the size of an ant compared to the oak tree. It was a sight to behold.
Agnis's mouth was hanging open in surprise.
"Yeah, wait until you get near it." Zero chuckled with understanding. He enjoyed the scenic nature of Growth. Already he looked forward to the vast adventures that the world was going to give him and the new places he would find. The rain was starting to let up.
Small brown seeds twirled and floated down around them. Zero smiled. A leaf landed on his head, and he brushed it aside. Agnis giggled, grabbed a couple of them out of the air, and put them in her bag. Zeraph on the other hand found them a nuisance and sliced any that came too close to him.
"We won't need these umbrellas from here on out. The trees will give us decent cover. Be careful not to slip," Zero said.
Grabbing onto a giant root that was protruding out of the rock, Zero pulled himself up. He began to scale up the cliff. One after another, they scaled up. It was a long laborious journey up towards their destination. Fitting his hand in between rocks, pulled himself up on the wet terrain, and a couple of times his hands slipped from the wet rain water.
A couple times, Agnis slipped on the wet mud, ruining her torn dress. She didn't scream or curse. She seemed not to care.
"I can't wait until I get a hot shower at the inn," she grumbled under her breath.
"If only she hadn't used that skill," mumbled Zeraph annoyed. He did not want to be here. "I got ragged and chased by dogs, tracked through mud and water and it is possible more to come. Why the hell did the creator of Growth create such a wretched skill?" His voice increased in volume as he slammed his hands into the muddy cliff. "I am going to so kill the creator of that skill and delete it. It's all because of that wretched skill that I'm in this predicament."
"What did you say?" demanded Agnis as she only heard a couple of words.
"Nothing. I was just thinking how beautiful you are." Zeraph lowered his voice and tried to brush her aside. He didn't expect her to hear him.
"Yeah right, what were you saying?" She goaded him for more information.
"Just some things here and there," said Zeraph quickly. He turned away from her in a hurry as he climbed ahead. Agnis tried to follow after him, but her foot slipped. She caught herself. Zeraph didn't notice, and continued forward.
With heaving breaths, Zero arrived to the top first. With one last struggle, he pulled himself up. His arms felt like jello. A hand appeared in front of him. He looked up and noticed it was Tino. Zero yanked himself up as he breathed a sigh of relief. It was finally over.
"Who are you?" said Tino in surprise. He hadn't expected to see a young boy climbing up on the side of the cliff.
"It's me, the little fox dog that rescued you in the Mansion. I told you to meet me here at this tree."
Tino's eyes softened, and he smiled. "Oh, pup! Welcome back. We were worried that you wouldn't make it. We heard hellhounds and thought they got you." Tino laughed joyfully as he pounded Zero's back. Each smack intensified his already existing pain.
"Nah. I got out just fine." Zero tried to wipe away the mud on his clothes and face, but all it did was make it worse. Tino glanced behind him and saw Zeraph helping Agnis up. Her foot slipped on a slippery rock, but he caught her from falling backwards.
"Thanks." Her eyes widened in fright. Her hands desperately reached out to grab onto Zeraph's hand. She quickly pulled herself into his arms, but then she blushed and moved away. "Who's that?" Tino pointed towards Zeraph and Agnis.
"That's Agnis and Zeraph. My friends."
Zeraph turned around, surprised. Agnis smiled happily at Zero's words. From behind Tino, Clay walked towards them. He stopped in front of Zero and tugged on his shirt. His eyes glanced curiously up towards Zero.
"Where's Pat?" Clay strained his neck behind Zero to see if Pat was there, but there was no one. "Is he still down there?" Clay tilted his head to the side as he waited longer. Zero could not say anything and instead delicately pulled out a locket. His heart tugged from sadness as he gently handed it to Tino. He knew that it was best to give it to the people who were close to Pat.
"I think this will be best left to you." Zero patted Tino's hands. Tino's eyes darkened as he understood. He grasped the small locket with both his hands as if it was something very precious. He stood staring up into the sky. Rain water slid down his face and covered his streams of tears. A soft whimper escaped from his lips as he bowed his head. Sorrow overwhelmed him as his shoulders slouched with weight.
"Thank you," Tino whispered. "He was a brave and honorable man." He wiped away the streaming water with his hands. "Clay. Come here," he called out.
Clay solemnly walked up to Tino. He was heartbroken in not seeing Pat anywhere. Tino squatted down and looked into Clay's eyes.
"I'm sorry, Clay, but Pat went on a special journey ahead of us. He will not be coming back anymore," said Tino as he gently ruffled Clay's hair.
"On a journey?" Clay seemed unconvinced. "Will we be seeing him anytime soon?" Clay's eyes brightened at the thought of meeting him again.
"No Clay. He has things he must do. He will not coming back anymore," said Tino with sadness. His hands rested upon Tino's shoulders as he tried his best to explain it to him without breaking Clay's spirit. Crestfallen, Clay fumbled with his words.
"One day. You will meet him. Don't be sad, okay?" Tino lifted Clay's chin. He gave him a warm hug and held him tightly. With light tussle of his hair, Tino let go with a sad smile.
Zero turned away at the scene. His heart clenched at the thought of his failure.
If I didn't dally… Zero's thoughts trailed off to the moment where he'd stayed too long in the library.
"Wow. These NPCs have quite a range of emotions," Zeraph interjected, breaking the silence. Agnis elbowed him hard in the stomach and glared.
"What?" Zeraph said.
"Shhh," said Agnis, peeved. She motioned towards him to be quiet.
Tino got up and turned towards Zero.
"Thank you." Tino smiled warmly as he grabbed onto Zero's hand. "Pat truly saved our souls in that hell hole. He gave us faith that we would one day be saved; without him reminding us to keep living we would have all become completely broken, especially Clay." Tino hands tightened at the thought of the past. "Pat has personally watched over and kept Clay calm throughout the horrors of the night. He would tell stories for Clay to listen to, when the fat man did horrendous things to the people being experimented on. He would tell Clay to watch him and listen to his voice through the gut-wrenching screams."
Tino's voice increased in volume from rage. "There were a couple of times, the fat man would tell Pat to tell the story louder, while he was dissecting his patients. He would then tell the patients to listen to the story, while he kept them alive. It would sometimes go on for days."
Just as quickly as he got angry, Tino's eyes and voice softened with care as he continued to explain. "Pat was actually the one that kept everyone sane. He gave us all hope. Many prisoners that passed through were filled with laughter from his funny jokes. He was a good man and you brought back a piece of him that we can put to rest. I can't thank you enough."
Zero's words were stuck in his throat as he nodded. His hands tightened around Tino's hands for a brief moment before Tino let go. Tino went over to talk with everyone while Clay followed closely behind. It was difficult to hear their conversation. They softly whispered amongst themselves; Eli broke into heavy tears and Brook stood speechless.
Zero turned his attention towards Zeraph and Agnis.
"Agnis, what was that for?" Zeraph demanded as he rubbed his stomach. "That actually hurt."
"You said the wrong thing at the wrong time." Agnis pouted. She folded her arms with annoyance.
"What? It's true. They are data," said Zeraph, appalled. He saw nothing wrong with it.
"Well this data can hinder us from progressing. Try not to piss them off. They act and react like real people," said Agnis. "It's best to treat them close to a real person. That's how advanced this game is."
"Really?" Zeraph was astonished. "That's new. I suspected that the game company had done a lot of research, testing, and data collection, but to this extent is quite surprising."
From behind, Tino interrupted their conversation.
"Lead the way," Tino said with a grin as his eyes glowed with purpose. He was excited to go meet his brother once again.
Zero nodded, and they all began their journey back towards Tino's Pet Shop. He knew it was going to take half a day to get back. He observed everyone's condition. Tino, Clay, Eli, and Brook looked a bit tired, but quite spirited. Agnis was a bit winded, but it didn't bother her as much. Zeraph was Zeraph. There were neither flaws nor any sign of exhaustion.
On the other hand, Zero himself felt a bit winded and tired. He couldn't wait to rest from this strenuous adventure. His sister did say that his laziness would get the better of him one day.
The cold rain was making him miserable. Already his skin had goosebumps.
"Mind over matter. Mind over matter," he wheezed as his teeth chattered. He rubbed his shuddering body and tightly held his arms close to his body to keep warmth.
Awooooooooooooooooooooo~
A pack of hellhounds howled in the distance piercing the night.