Yet again he found himself sitting atop the beach of the island, this time with a small campfire crackling in between him and the now dark stretch of sea.
The flames licked at the skewerd pieces of meat, fat hissing as it dripped into the fire, sending up a sharp smokey scent that mixed with the heavy salt of the ocean.
Another smell of seaweed and damp sand clung to the air, thick and unavoidable, carried by the cold night breeze that slipped through the holes of his clothes and brushed gently against his skin.
Except this time, he was no longer alone. Sitting on the other side of the embers, was the dark haired boy whose eyes were a strange, lightless dull green.
Occasionally he would throw half hesitant glances at him, and in those short moments he could still feel his anger, as well as his confusion.
Either way, they had not spoken to eachother again since that incident.
Azdin, or so that was what he was apparently called, had only felt constant unease since then . Both at their current situation, as well his past self.
'What have I done?'
He had killed people. Not just one or two, but maybe countless.. innumerable.
'What kind of a person was I?'
Was he a bloodthirsty murderer? A dastardly criminal that killed anyone who got in his way?
Just remembering the brief sense of joy he felt when he killed that cub.. it put him on edge. Would he feel the same way if he killed a human?
He had no memories of that time, but he was sure of it now. He was a horrible person.
'How could I forget something like that? What kind of sick bastard would enjoy something as vile as that?'
Although he already had the answer to that.
Before his thoughts could sink further into that rabbit hole though, a loud but low deep rumble seemed to shake the air between them.
They looked at eachother, both embarrassed for just but a moment.
"I think it's ready now."
**
Azdin lifted the skewer with slight worry, before looking back at the boy on the otherside. He just shot him another weird glance before biting down on his own without hesitation, and so he followed ensuite.
With a single bite, he pulled the meat cleanly from the stick and chewed slowly, it's juicy and tender taste slowly filling up his mouth. As he continued to eat away at it though, all he could think about was the Azure Cub he had slain.
It was its flesh that he was eating now, after all. He was starting to feel a little guilty, but there was no way around it now.
The other boy on the other hand, seemed perfectly fine and confident. It was he who had created this meal, as well the fire that they now sat around, so such arrogance was not without merit.
It wasn't seasoned, so it did taste quite odd.. but it was edible and would fill their stomachs for the rest of the night, and there was even plenty of left overs too. On a deserted island, that was all that mattered right now.
Finishing the last bites of his skewer, he threw the stick into the flames and watched it slowly blacken and turn to ashes.
Hesitating a little, he asked,
"Can you tell me a bit about how we got here.. and a little about my self, please."
Throwing his own skewer into the fire, the boys eyes locked on with his own.
He saw this coming, they would have to speak about it sooner or later.
"I don't know alot about your perspective, you were in that place long before me, and you didn't like telling stories about it."
Azdin, let out a short, wasteful breath.
'Stories.'
He repeated. The word sharp around it's edges.
"That's a generous way of putting it."
There was another pause, long and uncomfortable. But the boy resumed, his voice sounding a tad bit more bitter than before.
"I don't like gossiping about it either. Some things just aren't meant to be passed around. A warning from one man always stems from the failure of another, and I don't want to end up as that failure."
Silence followed, thick and uneasy.
"Since you've forgetten though," the boy said quietly.
"I'll remind you. My name is Hugo, and I used to live in the centre realm. Right now it is currently the 230th year of the 3rd Epoch, the Age of Heroes."
He hesitated, then added with a faint bitter edge.
"Although you probably don't know what half of what I said meant just now.."
Azdin didn't respond. He only watched him, confused and expectent. Hugo continued,
"I used to live in a village. Had a family, friends.. it was small, and only a handful of awakened were around to protect us from the occasional nightmare creature.. but we were happy."
His hands clenched, and the already bitter look on his face seemed to grow even more fearsome.
"Atleast we were until those bastards came."
Letting out a heavy exhale he gazed up towards the night rich with stars. The brilliant sight quickly calmed him down.
"They introduced themselves as wandering travelers. Every single one of them wore hoods, faces hidden behind plain masks. Anyone could tell that they were suspicious, and up to no good."
He let out a sharp breath.
"But they hid behind religion. Called it sacred attire. Said it was tradition."
"You let them stay?" Azdin asked slowly.
"The adults should've chased them out."
Hugo snapped.
"But they didn't. They were annoyingly welcoming. The moment those people started lending assistance in nightmare creature subjugations, the entire village became completely hooked onto the thought of more people protecting them. Times are still perilous, after all."
His gaze then shifted, moving on to the now dying camp fire.
"Then one night—after they'd finally gained everyone's trust. That's when they revealed their true colours."
He then said, his voice flat and low now.
"The awakened were taken out first. They died before they even realized what was happening. The powerless adults grabbed their children and could only attempt to flee."
His jaw tightened.
"It didn't matter. They didn't get very far until they were dragged back. Nobody could make it to the nearby kingdom in time to call for help."
His jaw tightened.
"They separated us into two groups, although I couldn't tell you what the difference was. It seemed completely random."
Then there was a long pause. Finally breaking through the bitterness, a solemn look appeared on his face.
"After that, I blacked out. I don't know what happened, but the next time I awoke, my vision was completely sealed, my arms and legs were bound."
Just then, his breathing grew uneven.
"I struggled and screamed, but they shut me up quickly."
He swallowed,
"Eventually,"
Hugo finished, voice low and hollow,
"We arrived in that hell."