The cave tasted of smoke.
Fang opened his eyes, and bitter dryness scratched the back of his throat.
He pushed himself upright, lungs strained.
The forest was burning.
"What the hell?"
He rushed to the cave entrance, only for his eyes to widen.
Outside, the forest was a disaster of flickering orange and deep shadows, flames jumping between the trees. Smoke pillars shot upward, staining the sky with black fumes. Panic set in, and he gripped his fists in fear.
"How the fuck did this happen? Is there a volcano here or something?"
A wildfire? A deliberate attack? Or was it some monster?
Either way, he had to figure out how far it had spread and whether it was heading for the cave.
Fang spun around and stomped back inside, throwing his cloak over his shoulder and grabbing his knife. If the fire was moving this way, he needed to be ready to move.
Smoke was already awake, so it took him a moment to hop to Fang's side.
Fang swore under his breath as he scooped up the remaining wrapped meat and stuffed it into a makeshift bag.
Sweat beaded on his forehead, and his chest tightened as he glanced at Smoke, who was twitching his nose and trembling, clearly sensing the danger.
"Stay close," Fang barked. The rabbit hopped to his side, not needing to be told twice.
A sudden crash sounded outside, with wood splintering and a wall of flames falling on the ground nearby.
Fang whipped around toward the entrance of the cave, his knife at the ready, when a figure wobbled into view, hunched over and bleeding.
The small figure collapsed just outside the cave's entrance, coughing so hard it sounded like his lungs were on the edge of ripping apart.
Fang hesitated, eyes flickering between the fires and the small man.
Another blast of heat hit him, and he could see the singed hair and burned patches on the man's clothes. One look at his mangled shoulder, red and oozing, and he was ready to puke.
"Oh, this day is just getting better." He muttered, glancing at the blaze creeping closer. Readying himself, he moved forward, grabbing him by the uninjured arm and dragging him into the cave. Once inside, Fang let him drop to the ground, and for a moment, the only sound was the mysterious man's ragged breathing.
Fang knelt and looked to see if he was still alive. The burn marks spread across his shoulder and down his side, and it seemed like a serious burn.
Fang scanned the cave for anything useful, his thoughts a chaotic mess.
"Damn it... Why am I doing this?" He said loudly, rummaging through his leather makeshift backpack.
His eyes landed on a cluster of broad, waxy leaves he'd gathered earlier.
'They are full of water, maybe it will help?'
Deciding they were good enough to bandage with, he tore strips from his shirt, feeling already heated enough from the fire for him not to feel the cold of the air outside, and started bandaging the worst of the wounds, making sure to layer the leaves several times over the wounds.
"Stupid bastard... nearly got roasted, what are you, a steak?!"
He didn't know why he was helping, but something about leaving the dwarf to die didn't sit right with him.
'Well, it is still a very good opportunity to have someone to ask some questions.'
The dwarf shifted, mumbling and rambling before falling silent again. Fang just shook his head, finishing the makeshift bandage and putting his torn shirt back on.
"Such a weird day, first time meeting someone else here, and I might be the last he meets."
Fang chuckled internally and cast his gaze towards the entrance of the cave.
The smell of ash was soon put out by the sounds of rain.
"That fire, I have never seen anything like that, even the fire in my previous life was nothing compared to this. What can cause such a fire?"
Outside, the fire raged on, but it seemed to be drifting away from the cave's entrance. Fang took a deep breath, trying to clear his head.
'I need to cut some of the trees nearby when this is over, so if this happens again, I will have a clearing near the cave.
Those trees can block the entrance of the cave if they fall.'
Fang laid the man against the cave wall, and went to sleep in his hole in the ground, safe from the heat waves.
"Smoke, keep an eye on that man. If he wakes up, alert me."
The rabbit's silhouette nodded its head, and it sat near the extinguished fire pit.
The flames slowly subsided outside the cave, but Fang couldn't care less.
'I just need some sleep. Is this Asu trying to mess with me or something?'
Little did he know that the one who set the fire was in the cave with him.
-------
Smoke nudged Fang's cheek, thumping his paw against Fang's nose for good measure. Fang was now awake, immediately reaching for his knife before spotting the rabbit's anxious stare.
"What's your problem?" he grumbled, but Smoke shot a glance at the dwarf, who was sitting up against the cave wall, eyes bleary and confused.
Fang tensed, shifting to his feet and keeping his knife low but ready. The dwarf coughed, his whole body trembling from pain and exhaustion. His gaze darted around the cave, panic flickering in his eyes before landing on Fang.
"You're awake," Fang said flatly, voice rough from sleep. "Who the hell are you, and... what are you?" Fang said.
He looked at the man who was barely the height of his chest.
He had a hood that covered his head, but his facial features were exposed once the dwarf looked up at Fang.
His eyes were a deep brown, and his chin was adorned with braided red hair.
His hair was deep red, and his full beard was surprisingly unburnt.
The dwarf didn't respond right away, just panted heavily, wincing as the movement pulled at his bandaged wounds. Fang wasn't feeling particularly patient, but he stayed where he was, not wanting to spook the guy into doing something stupid.
"Answer me," Fang pressed. "What's your name?"
"Boy..." The dwarf coughed, his bandages threatening to tear.
"I am Isgram, and your tone is rude. Didn't your god teach you to be... Nice... To your elders?"
Fang paled when the out of breath dwarf mentioned his god, as if knowing that he was a chosen one.
Fang clenched his fist over the knife even harder, wary of the hidden knowledge that is so easily known by this stranger.
"Who are you and what are you doing here? How do you know me?"
"You're not the only one with a god on his side, though mine is different.
Where are we?"
Fang didn't drop his guard. "A cave in one of the elven forests, but only I use this place.
Which god do you worship? And why would you walk through this fire? You're lucky you're not burnt to a crisp."
The dwarf's lips twisted into a grimace as he fought to hold back another fit of coughing. His hands, bloodied and bandaged, trembled as he reached up to touch his shoulder. Despite the pain, his eyes remained sharp, sizing up Fang with a careful, almost amused glance.
"Walked through the fire?" Isgram rasped, voice rough like gravel. "I didn't walk through it, boy. I created it." His lips curled into a strained smirk. "Fire is an easier death than the one waiting for me in eldranor, especially with elves on my tail."
"Elves?" Fang muttered, stepping back a little
Isgram's defiant gaze met his.
"You think you're alone here? Think again, the elves are watching you closely. The only reason you're still alive is that I have some business with you," he coughed again, cradling his side as he sat up straighter.
Fang stiffened at the words. "Business?"
The dwarf nodded, though his movement was slow. "Aye. You and I are strangers, yet I was waiting to meet you before you even got here."
Fang's stomach churned with a growing unease.
'Was this dwarf another chosen one? Someone sent by the gods? If so, which god then?'
"What the hell do you mean by that?" Fang demanded, his patience wearing thin.
Isgram ignored the question, his gaze flickering to the cave's entrance, where the smoke had begun to clear. The fire still raged outside, but it was losing some of its intensity.
"Why did you help me, Fang?" Isgram asked suddenly, his voice softer now, tinged with something like curiosity. "You could've left me to burn, yet you didn't. You took a risk, and it's the only reason I'm still here."
Fang's eyes flicked from the dwarf to the entrance. He knew the answer, of course.
He helped him because...
Because leaving him to die didn't sit right with him. That's all.
"I thought it should be a good way to get some answers, and besides. A rotting corpse smells really bad."
The dwarf gave a weak smile, and spoke slowly.
"Maybe we need to start with the world we're in and what is expecting you, my fellow magisto."