Darkness
A complete blinding darkness covered every corner of the world, eating at anyone who dared to enter it, whether it was intentional or not.
There was nothing to accompany it, just the quiet, deafening silence hung against its shattered, spiky walls.
A hostile interference caused the ceiling to crack, opening the path to the sun, the freedom it had searched for in this horrible world.
It took the form of a creature with four limbs that protruded from each side, a torso that held the head as if it were about to fall off, and wide-open eyes, staring back into the darkness.
However, the darkness didn't want to chase after the light; it simply raised its arms lazily and took everything that was given to it.
The trees, the animals, and the boy whose limp body got sucked inside the darkness without a sound.
And it was gone.
The silence disappeared.
The body was gone.
Only the light that exploded throughout the world remained unfazed by its sight.
...
- Gasp
Beads of sweat rolled down his shaky face that shot up alongside his body. A sharp, deep breath made its way inside his lungs as he looked around with unnecessary panic.
What happened?!! My head... ah!
His hands reached for his aching head that still throbbed with pain every second, his hands froze mid air, his eyes widened upon noticing that something had happened to his hands, or rather... his entire body.
What...?
He asked himself quietly as he looked at his hands, which were now disturbingly cleaner than a few moments ago. All of his shallow scars that covered his body had disappeared, the dirt that was stuck to his nails had been cleaned, and his hands were now those of a child, a child who never had to work for himself.
Looking at his hands, he noticed that his surroundings were completely different, no... they were similar.
He looked down at the bed in which he lay, the blanket that covered his body had the same patterns as the one that stayed back in the village, and the one he regretted he didn't take with him. With a puzzled look on his face, he pulled the blanket away to see the rest of his body.
Pajamas were on his body, neat and warm, just like he remembered. Warm sunlight covered his body, falling through the tinted glass window that still hung in the wall like before. A desk was right under the glass square, its surface was filled with all kinds of books that he had already finished reading, and a chair accompanied it, standing right next to it with one tilted leg that he refused to get fixed.
He brought a hand to the back of his head, feeling his long hair that was now tied in a little man-bun.
What the hell is happening?
Standing up from the bed slowly, he looked at his desk, which was filled with books, all of them placed in three clean rows.
In one step, he stood above it, his hands throwing the books aside like they were nothing but a waste of space. His back, his belt, and even the torn armor were gone now. His chest, which carried not a sign of bruises, was now rising with panic until he stopped himself, his hands freezing in mid air before whispering.
"Where is it?"
He tried to look for it again, grasping onto the edges of his desk that shook loudly across the hut.
Even the empty air was his target as he pulled on it without touching anything.
Where is it...
Where is it...
WHERE IS IT...!
- BANG!
He slammed his fist into the desk with such force that a small dent formed around it. His legs went numb all of a sudden, his body falling onto the chair that leaned to one side alongside him.
"It's gone." His voice trembled as he finally admitted it.
The book that was given to him by his master was nowhere to be found. Brushing his eyes a few times, he finally looked through the window just to be blinded by how bright it was outside. The sun was warm, even hot, compared to the usually chilly climate.
His body was filled with energy, and yet he didn't want to move from his chair.
It was as if something inside him was taken away, something he couldn't explain with his now soft lips.
A long sigh escaped his lips, with one eye that peeked from under his hands, he looked at the door that was usually used as a sign in front of the house, now stood back where it was, with no signs of being used.
Where am I even at?
His clothes were now gone, his body was healed, and his book... had disappeared, alongside the bag which held all of his food supplies.
He didn't understand what had happened; he only remembered hitting his head on the ceiling and the wind pushing strongly against his body.
Even the man who lived in the forest couldn't have done something like this; he knew that nothing in the west was as clean as the inside of his current house.
Glancing down at the scattered books, he picked one on a whim and read its title out loud.
"The Great Hero of the West."
Wait... is that?
The cover of the book was similar to someone he remembered, someone he didn't want to remember, and someone he wished he had seen again. A sword was held in her hands, piercing through the letters in a cool-looking manner.
Just as he grasped the resemblance, a loud knock came from outside his house.
He hid the book instantly, sliding it under the bed with a nimble throw, his head snapped towards where the knocking sound was, the door.
- Knock, Knock!
It echoed through the house, making Zephyr remember the sound of someone who always came to greet him in the morning, someone who was long gone.
Another wave of knocking came, quickly followed by someone's annoyed remark.
"Ugh! Wake up, you dummy! Do you think I will be fooled by your pathetic acting skills?"
The voice, although muffled, washed over Zephyr with a surprising wave of energy that he had not needed before; his feet moved faster than his hands, immediately running to the door and pulling on the handle with speed that almost hit his own nose.
The warmth of the sun filled every inch of his body; his eyes didn't even close under the bright flash.
"I heard you insid- Oh!"
She stopped yelling at his face, her eyes widened briefly after seeing that Zephyr wore nothing but his pajamas.
He stood in place as if time froze over and over. She didn't say anything more, studying Zephyr with a strange gaze before whistling under her nose.
"Wheew~ Look at you! Did you train while I was away?"
Zephyr couldn't take it anymore; his body trembled under her gaze before falling to his knees.
"Whoa!" She stepped back, giving him a weirdly comforting look.
Only the dripping of his tears against the hard oak floor was heard around them.