Dune and Nely floated down the river in their makeshift boat, Dune lay exhausted, breathing heavily. His mind raced with questions. What happened? How am I here? I don't even have Zeten... did they make a mistake?
His thoughts drifted to the mysterious object Aurore had given him. Was that the key to this place? Is that why Matiane killed me? He thought I was one of the Zeten.
A chuckle escaped Dune's lips, drawing Nely's attention. "What are you laughing at, shorty?" she asked, curious.
Feeling a bit embarrassed, Dune pulled down his shirt to reveal part of his chest. Nely's eyes widened in surprise. "You're not a Zeten? How is that possible? Is that why you were so slow?" She laughed, the sound light and teasing.
"Hey, come on. I'm not that slow," Dune protested. "I'm faster than the average person."
"Sure, sure," Nely chuckled.
"By the way, that's a cool ability. How does it work?"
Nely looked at him. "Oh, the boat? Well, this is my own ability, but I sometimes use my orange Zeten and green Neba to enhance it. I can create things from Neba. It's pretty useful. And no, creating food or water will be useless, so we need to get what we need in the forest."
Dune's curiosity was piqued. "So, you can just make anything from your Neba?"
"It's not as easy as it sounds," Nely explained. "The more complex the shape, the harder it gets. So, I usually only shape things I'm familiar with. Also, it consumes Neba, so it's not easy to maintain complex shapes for long."
Dune nodded, understanding. Nely then looked at him with curiosity. "What about you, Shorty? Do you have any unique abilities?"
Dune looked at her and then said with a grin, "I'm smart."
Nely was disappointed. "How's that a unique ability? That's not even an ability. Everyone is smart."
Dune kept smiling. "Sure, sure," he replied.
Dune fell asleep from exhaustion. When he woke up, it was almost night; the sun was going down, casting the world in dark orange hues with dark blue water below them.
He was surprised to find a blanket with little cute bears drawn on it, probably made by Nely. He looked ahead and saw Nely cooking fish. Next to her was a fishing pole, which she had likely crafted with her Neba. Dune's eyes widened.
"Hey, are you using your Neba to catch fish?" he exclaimed.
Nely was surprised. "Oh, you woke up... and yeah? What's wrong?"
Dune put a hand on his head. "I don't know, like, have you thought about the fact that this might attract some big and scary creature to our boat?"
Nely paused, considering his words. "I hadn't really thought about that. But what else are we supposed to do? We need to eat."
Dune sighed. He was hungry too. Nely nodded, giving him a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, I'll be careful. Now, how about some dinner?" She handed him a freshly cooked fish, and Dune's worries momentarily faded as he took a bite, savoring the warm meal.
As they ate, the boat suddenly jolted, causing their fish to jump off the plate.
"What was that?" Dune exclaimed, his eyes widening as he peered over the edge of the boat.
They both quickly stood up, scanning the water below. Dune covered his face in disappointment. "I told you, your Neba would attract danger. How can you be this stupid?"
"Shut up,.. it's just a big fish… who knows maybe it's friendly" Nely retorted, glaring at him.
Below them, a giant snake like monster lurked, its red glowing eyes piercing through the water. It was ten times larger than their boat, a terrifying presence. Nely stared at it, her face pale with fear. "I can't shoot fire in the water, and It's just looking at us… what should we do?"
"How should I know?" Dune snapped back.
"Didn't you say you were smart, Shorty? Do something!" Nely's voice trembled.
Suddenly, the creature moved with high speed, attacking them. Its giant mouth opened wide, ready to swallow them whole.
"Deactivate the boat!" Dune screamed at Nely.
Without hesitating, Nely deactivated the boat, and they both plunged into the water. "Let's swim in separate directions! Go fast!" Dune shouted.
Nely used her green Neba to enhance herself, slicing through the water like a torpedo. Dune, without any enhancement, swam as fast as he could, his muscles straining.
"Which one will it chase?" he thought, panic rising in his chest.
And obviously the monster chose the slower prey, Dune. "Of course, it's me. That's just great," he muttered, his heart pounding.
The creature closed in on Dune, its giant mouth opening wide to swallow him. Just as it was about to consume him, another monster, much larger than the first, emerged from the depths. It bit into the first monster's stomach, tearing it apart. The water around Dune turned crimson with blood.
"What the hell?" Dune gasped, feeling the water burn his skin. "What is this blood?" Desperation filled his mind. "Damn it, I need to swim somewhere else…"
But the pain overwhelmed him, and he lost consciousness, sinking deeper into the water.
Dune awoke on the boat, Nely hovering over him, her hands pressed to his chest as she ate fish. He felt a warm sensation, she was healing his burns.
"Shorty, you're alive. I'm so happy," Nely said, relief flooding her voice.
"I can't believe your stupid plan worked. How did you know there was another monster?" Nely asked, looking down at him excitedly.
"I didn't know," Dune admitted, letting out a deep sigh. "And what's with the blanket?"
Nely choked on her fish, looking away embarrassed. "It was mine... before I got here. You see, I had a rich family who protected and raised me even though I was Zeten. Well, that was the case until... this happened and I died." She smiled, but there was a hint of sadness in her eyes.
Dune didn't know what to say; he was puzzled. "Sorry," he said softly.
Nely looked at him, confused. "Why are you apologizing?"
Dune didn't answer immediately. Instead, he looked down. "My brother also has the Zeten mark, and my mom did her best to defend him. Sadly, my father didn't have the same feelings towards Ned.
He hated him. So, when our city got attacked by creatures and a masked man in red clothes, he abandoned us. But at least he took my mom and sisters. Luckily, I know a few Zetens here. I'm sure Ned and the others are here too. If we find them, surviving here will be much easier."
Nely listened intently, her expression softening. A comfortable silence settled between them, broken only by the sounds of the night. Dune looked at Nely again, noticing the way her hair framed her face, the soft curve of her lips. There was something about her presence that made him feel safe.
Dune broke the silence, "How does it feel to have Zeten?"
Nely sighed, her expression growing more serious. "You hear voices and whispers almost every day, especially when you use your powers. They tell you so many things, it's hard to make out what they're saying. Sometimes it's so bad... some just give up and go crazy, turning into really scary monsters."
Dune nodded, understanding the weight of her words. Of course, he knew this... his brother Ned is also going through the same pain every day.
They spent three more days on the river. They had no choice but to drink the water from the river. For Nely, it was not that problematic; she could use her Neba or Zeten to heal herself quickly.
Dune, however, looked worse, tired and lifeless. On the fourth night, both of them were asleep in the boat, the fatigue of their journey finally overcoming them.