An order? A demand? Or a plea?
The words were there, and the request was unmistakable. Behind Aiden's eyes was a mind that was troubled with all sorts of questions. Questions with no answer in sight.
But he knew one thing for sure. This was someone else's work. Someone knew about him and left a message in the casket next to him. However, it was another topic whether this person was alive or dead, far or near, and the like…Still, there had to be some sort of clue, and perhaps, that was the cloak itself.
The rags that he wore had become a hundred times valuable in just a few seconds. Now, he was certain that Mr Find Me had an answer to most, if not all of his questions.
But, at the moment, he couldn't be bothered to start searching. After all, where would he even begin? In an unknown land?
Aiden sought to know about his environment and so went on a venture. One that took quite a while. Occasionally, he glanced back at the planet that hovered beyond the sky as he travelled upon the soil. He couldn't shake off the astonishment that befell him each time he saw it.
If that is Earth, then where am I?
Of course, his familiarity with Earth—a planet he had only just woken up to was a thing that could be questioned. But just like the other matters weighing down on him, he had decided to lay it off for now as 'secondary'.
'A newborn animal would never question these things' he thought. It would only accept it and live without issue. Since his situation could be likened to that of a newborn animal, as he could see, speak, talk, and walk as they could, he found this analogy as a solid backbone to work with.
Ultimately, as he did not know what he was doing, he could only resort to gathering as much information as possible. 'It's better than being left in the dark' he thought.
The more he ventured, the more things unravelled before his eyes. He had made sure to note the location of the coffin, just in case there was something he had missed earlier or if there was any need for it. However, he couldn't completely trust his sense of direction—not in a foreign land. Or perhaps a foreign world.
Aiden realised that there was a fog that had veiled his previous scope. Beyond it were things he had obviously missed in his earlier sighting. A strange wind blew, and the fog was lifted slightly as if inviting him to continue. When he did, he began to see foreign things.
A blue cylindrical, translucent tube sprouted from a mild depression ahead, the metallic glint at its top catching Aiden's eyes in one glance. Curious, he approached it, stopping just a few inches away for a keen observation.
The stench appalled him. Several maggots wriggled all over the inner and outer surface of the tube, and they feasted on the grotesque content of the object: Rotten meat. Its partially liquefied form allowed it to seep through the cracks spread over the tube, where swarms of giant juicy maggots would gather.
"Ugh!"
Aiden made sure to pinch his nose before grabbing the very end of the tube—where there were no maggots. He was disgusted, but gaining information was more important.
The heavily rusted metal parts were in an irreparable condition. It was so bad that he couldn't even make out the full, definite structure in its best state. When Aiden managed to pull out the tube, he realised that there were other things beneath it. Buried deeper in the sand were other components—disconnected and deteriorated.
Shall I keep one piece?
It would never hurt to. Anything remotely close to his coffin could be significant in one way or the other. Aiden was sure to sort out the "finest" among the waste, stuffing it in a small, makeshift compartment he created by knotting the edge of his cloth.
...
It wasn't long before his eyes fell on the next jaw-dropper.
The first thing that struck his mind was this:
That's a rather artistic pose
The blackened 'artwork' lay on the ground ahead of him, with its head raised and its hand stretched. It had a pleading expression on its face, contorted into a countenance that screamed horror. However, making out any details like its gender was impossible, as its body was nothing but a gross hodgepodge of charred flesh and fine, grey ash.
Someone was burnt to death here
Aiden drew closer, and just like the last time, he inspected it. Unfortunately, unlike the tube, there wasn't much to see, and it didn't take long for him to move forward.
But Aiden was slightly worried.
Shall I be cautious? It seems this death was recent
He had drawn his assumptions from how strong the scent was. It was a nauseating smell—like burnt fat and pork roast, but also like burning hair and leather.
Still, it was quite pointless—whatever it was that he tried to do. He was still as clueless as ever, and it was probably impossible to try avoiding an unknown, potential threat. Immediately, Aiden gave up on the idea, concluding that he would use the relatively sharp metal piece he had to fend off any harm that came his way—if possible.
Aiden saw a tree. A barren tree.
First, it was one tree, then several trees, with not one leaf hanging off their branches. Rather, every branch was wounded together, unnaturally, in their abundance, creating a dense, thicket overhead. It was a bizarre sighting, considering how precise each twist and turn was—as if intentionally orchestrated by man. The ginormous trunks were even more uncanny, as they all had barks with the semblance of humanoid faces.
Terrified, humanoid faces.
A forest loomed ahead, its end shrouded by the cluster of trees. The nightly dark seemed more prevalent here due to the large shade of the first tree that overwhelmed his figure.
Aiden's befuddlements were only beginning.
There were even more charred corpses here, positioned behind the trees. If just a single thing could be considered bothersome, it was the unanimous pose they all had.
Every one of them peeked from behind the tree, facing his direction. They were perfectly still, but their appearance could nearly make him hallucinate slight movement.
I can count about 20 of them…I don't know if I should continue in this direction
The blank stares made him feel uneasy. Although slightly.
At that moment, Aiden sensed a presence.
It was an instinctive feeling—something he wasn't accustomed to but felt prompted to follow. Aiden's gaze darted to the left of the forest, where he heard a slight whimper.
Without wasting time, he crouched slightly and instantly loosened the knot he had made. His eyes did not drift from the marked position, even whilst he obtained his 'very dangerous weapon'.
It couldn't be a fluke at this point. Aiden couldn't tell whether it was just paranoia, fear, or instinct, but he felt something…different behind one of those trees—specifically the one he fixed his eyes on. It was a Presence.
Someone is there
And suddenly, the 'mannequins' no longer felt like a threat. Only this 'person' did. Whoever it was, he or she, or it was definitely taking his or her or its time. He continued to stare for several minutes, but Mr Unknown refused to come out into the open.
However this person had already given away their position. And this person still did.
Aiden saw cloth—patterned cloth fluttering slightly behind the tree, dancing under the influence of the now subtle wind. Instantly, he guessed that the stranger was human after all. But he couldn't be too sure.
Nevertheless, it took too long. And he got irritated.
"I can see your clothes," he declared, hoping the listener could understand him. "Come out."
He was ready to face whatever it was. Aiden did not feel fear even once, strangely enough. And it seemed like he had no reason to.
The person did not say a word in response but simply peeked out slightly, sneaking a glance at Aiden, who stared back at her.
She was of a small stature—having the semblance of an eight-year-old, with large innocent eyes that seemed to trap the entire world in a transparent, crystal-clear film. She had jet-black hair, just like Aiden, that cascaded down her sides, reaching even her waist. Her legs were small, and her movements were nimble. Her face was the characteristic childish circle, and her countenance embodied naivety in its truest, purest state.
However, Aiden couldn't look away from the red scales that formed an inverted triangular patch on both sides of her cheeks.
It was strange. Very strange. But still….
Guess it's just a kid after all..
Aiden didn't know what to say. To think that he had gotten alarmed by a child.
He briefly estimated her age by her size and appearance, but that act only got him to wonder how old he was himself.
"...."
"...."
The duo stared at each other in silence for a while, before the little one finally mustered the boldness to say something.
She sounded just as she looked like she would. Soft, and soothing. And much incongruous with the unsettling atmosphere all around them.
"Are you…" asked the girl, "a bad person?"