The children of the clouds drifted from the west to the east. The west is where the sea should be. But now, water is only dust and sand. Rare, to the point of having to scavenge the mud soil or squeeze out the moss and spikes that are still growing left.
Lu, along with two of her friends, Koch and Marth, is scavenging the remains of civilization. Several times they grabbed the rusty can, checked the contents, then snored, before finally throwing the can far away. Meanwhile, the scorching fireball has been relentlessly waging war since afternoon a few minutes ago.
"We're back?" asked Koch. The young man's face was already squeamish, not to mention the sweat that was clustered and occasionally plunged on both temples. His blonde hair was already visibly on fire now.
"Another hour what?" said Marth. The woman with short red hair stood up after she sat down and straightened her legs for a moment. Her amber eyes were like a ball of fire cursing from above the sky—just like the sun. Her forehead was pursed because of the glare of the sun. "An hour, huh?" she repeated.
Koch snored. He turned to look at Lu who was scavenging the wreckage of the scavenger's tub. "She looked excited, huh?" he said, pointing at the black-haired girl.
"It's been a month since she found the camp and we taught her to scavenge trash here," Marth said.
"She's scavenging trash ... or looking for her friend in a garbage heap?" Koch held back a laugh.
Marth pursed, then plunged the young man's back with her fist. Although she is a girl, her strength cannot be underestimated. It was evident as Koch thrust loudly while writhing and grimacing in pain. He almost cursed Marth before finally realizing something.
His eagle eyes couldn't lie. Koch hurriedly pulled his two comrades to hide behind the junk mountains around there. Marth looked up at the sky. Two Naag tails seemed to be spinning up there as if looking for something.
Koch squeaked. He knew very well about Naag, the mutational beast that looked like a flying lizard. He turned to look at Lu. The girl's brown eyes focused on looking at the two tail beasts flying over them.
"You know them?" whispered Koch.
Lu shook her head. "But, I've seen it," she replied sounding muttering.
"Naag." Marth shrugged. "The mutation result is because it said, scientists want to resurrect the extinct dragons of ancient times. But, the proceeds are instead used to colonize the lower classes like us."
Koch shook his head. "The world is coming to an end," he said. "We are colonized by our creation."
"Come on, hurry up!" Marth nudged the blonde young man's arm.
The three of them settled, walking through the cracks of the garbage mountain. The smell of rust and rot erupts from all directions, damaging the sense of smell. However, they did not stop the pace and continued forward until they finally entered the forest where tall trees could disguise their existence.
"What were we looking for?" grumbled Marth as she made an opening for them to walk. "Treasure?"
"Clean water, maybe," said Lu who has since been silent.
Koch stopped stepping. He snored, turned around, and directly stared fiercely at the black-haired girl walking behind him. His hand pointed directly in front of Lu's face.
"We're looking for something it says belongs to that stupid friend of yours!" he said half-bluffingly. The birds that had been hiding now flew over the wide leaves there.
Lu looked straight at Koch. It seems, the young man is irritated by her. She let out a long breath.
"Hey-hey, I have." Marth walked back. Her hands patted Koch on the shoulder for a moment. "Come on, hurry up! Soon it was getting dark. I don't want to meet Naag or Uma here."
Marth's remarks have some truth. The night is the time for the Naag to land and rest, as well as a good time for Uma to hunt for prey. If the Naag is the dreaded airborne, then Uma is the lord of the forest. The shape is similar to a panther, but the body size can even be as tall as a coconut tree if it is an adult. It's the result of a mutation as well, it seems.
The three again walked through the woods, returning to the camp. The veil of the place was indeed invisible from the outside, making it easier for them and others to hide. The camp has an area of no less than half a ball field. Small, with a dome-shaped transparent mesh sheath that protects it from outside threats.
***
Koch and Marth never remember when they arrived at the place. Moreover, Lu, who had only been lost there for a month and was lucky to quickly find the camp and was able to establish a relationship with Koch and Marth.
Koch doesn't remember who he was before, nor Marth. However, when they understood about life in that place, both of them seemed to feel that they had traced the same life. Koch and Marth are like being pulled back to the era when they once lived there.
The same goes for Lu. She had only been in the strange place for a month, but she was quick enough to adapt. Only half of her memory was lost and she still remembered who she was before getting lost there. However, she could not talk about this to anyone, especially to the camp people, most of whom were native residents of the area.
Yes, that's right. Lu, Koch, and Marth; are not natives of that world. They were just three of the many people who accidentally broke into a ticking spiral portal that suddenly appeared nearby. Out of nowhere, the portal attracted many people and dispelled their memory, then lost in the Earth-like world of the dystopia era in the future.
Koch only remembered if he opened the door of his study and landed directly in the unfamiliar place. As for Marth, she fell out of bed while asleep and when she woke up she was already there. It's different with Lu. This matter only she and her friend knew.
When it comes to names, those who are lost in this world would be better off hiding their real names or they would be completely unfamiliar and might never be able to return to their home world again. Like, Lu, Koch, and Marth. Those three are not their real names.
***
Eos. That's what people there call it. The world is divided into several regions with its own system of government. Lu, Koch, and Marth; live in a region called Etheria.
Etheria is divided into three areas, the E1 area which is a dense forest, E2 which contains garbage mountains, and E3 which is only empty land but full of traps. Anyone will not be able to come back alive if they have entered the E3 region.
The three of them themselves still find it difficult to remember the names there even though there is one strange thing that is still a question for the three until now. They could directly speak the language of the inhabitants of Eos without even learning once. It was great, although it was a bit strange.
Sometimes, Marth and Koch gossip about the strange things they find there, such as rare-shaped animals, and how Eos technology is more advanced than the technology in their world. Every once in a while, Lu sees two of her friends arguing about the Eos people's adaptation to their environment. Some things look the same as in their world. However, there are also different ones.
It got to the point where all three questioned the matter of 'going back'.
How do they return to their world?
And Lu himself, is still thinking about the fate of her friend. How is that friend now? Is it still alive or has it perished?
"Nel, I know that you're still alive," the black-haired girl muttered, looking at the night sky. "So, hang on for me."
***