NORUNE VILLAGE
Toan was clearly not ready for these challenges, but his overwhelming need and desire to see his people and his culture again encouraged him. He looked around the village and finally realized that the village chief's house was still intact. How remarkable, he thought, the Dark Genie must have fired a dozen bolts at them. But then again maybe the Fairy King had something to do with the fact that the chief's house was still alright. Perhaps it started as that Atla? To get started on his journey Toan ran up the wooden stairs to the chief's house, it was the same as ever, not a hint of decay was on his house, the house was modeled on the chief's submarine ship; in fact the chief used his submarine to create the house. The house looked like it literally crashed into the land just like before…Toan opened the iron door, the house looked as it did before last night, the chief sat on his chair looking at the ground, Toan approached him and the chief's eyes glittered, he yelled in joy
"Toan you are alive!" The chief had a yellow snow cap and a full grey beard. And he constantly had a pipe in his mouth. "Seems like we're the only ones in the village that survived." Toan was about to tell him about the "Atla" but he had no idea how to explain it. "We never dreamt such a horrible thing could happen…Can you believe this, Toan? What am I supposed to do now?" Toan never knew that his village chief complained like this, he thought of him as strong and rational. Toan nodded his head to the ground in disappointment that his own chief could be so helpless. The village chief's eyes glittered again "Maybe we could get help from our village guardian, Dran!" Now Toan knew he was out of luck with this guy, nobody not even children believed the village guardian existed. Dran had allegedly been seen a few hundred years ago. If anything he was the village's mascot. But Toan was about to believe in anything especially after that "Fairy King" encounter. "Toan, I have a favor to ask. Go to the Divine Beast Cave and see if you can find him!" The Divine Beast Cave? Nobody went in there, unless they had a death wish. "Here this is the Cave key." Toan really had no idea, but if he could find Atla in the Divine Beast Cave, it was one more step to recovering Norune Village. "Here, Toan I got some things you may need if you're going to survive in there, good luck."
The conversation between them was brief, a little too brief. The chief wanted Toan to find Dran, the village's guardian that has never shown his face to anyone today. And besides, if Dran had been seen a hundred years ago, he'd surely be dead. Toan left the Village chief's house and looked in his bag; the chief had given him a loaf of bread and some medicine. Although these items would help, there was nothing in the bag that could possibly defend him from whatever he may encounter in the Divine Beast Cave. Toan ventured through the empty lot that was his village, it was very surreal to see nothing at all in his beloved town. Toan kicked the dirt in below him, he walked towards where his houses use to stand and looked at the grass, nothing there…except a shiny object in the middle of where his house once stood.
It was a small dagger! Toan remembered he concealed this weapon under his bed; long ago his father gave him this dagger. It was supposed to mean he was man of the house, the dagger, the weapon, was a symbol of manhood, even though he was only 3 at the time his father gave him this…Why was it here? Nothing else was…But then again why was the Mayor's house still there? Toan touched the end of the blade; it was sharper than he first anticipated. Toan ran to the entrance to the Divine Beast Cave. He had always wanted to enter this cave, but never had he ever believed would it happen. Everyone around him in town kept themselves a far distance from the cave, with the exception to the macho brothers that of course loved fighting anything that appeared outside the cave. Toan pulled out the key, the cave door, opened, the sound of rocks sliding against each other filled his ears, and it wasn't an attractive sound. Toan took a long deep breath and shut his eyes, what was he getting himself into? He thought as he took his first step towards the entrance to the "Divine Beast Cave". Although Toan was brave he often doubted his own abilities. Toan took a few more steps, eyes still closed; suddenly the door behind him slowly closed by them self. Toan's eyes darted open and turned around. Why me? Thought Toan. Toan looked at the walls, torches ablaze lit the way, Toan brain said NO, but his heart cried YES. Could Toan actually pull this off? Toan shook his head violently and on his impulses he ran down the stairs screaming, it gave him false courage, he was going to save Norune Village, no matter what he thought.
DIVINE BEAST CAVE
Toan descended down the stairs to the first floor of the cave, he was surprised to see none other then the Fairy King.
"This is for real this time Toan, first conquer this wretched cave and find Dran's Lair that is your first goal." What the hell now the Fairy King was talking about Dran, Toan doubted the Fairy King's wisdom. "The spheres Atla, where I protected and sealed the fragments of the world, if you see an Atla do not hesitate to touch it. You can absorb the contents of an Atla into Atlamillia by touching it. Once you return to the surface, you will be able to reassemble the fragments of the world. Toan show me your real abilities and conquer this cave." Finally he disappeared with the flash of light once again. Toan would have had a mental break down earlier but now this was getting too crazy even for that. In the distance Toan could hear the screech of a bat; he pulled out his dagger readied for anything he may have to battle. He was afraid, but he had to stay strong, for the entire world was counting on him.
There were torches everywhere illuminating the halls as if someone had been here before, more likely an entire brigade of people traveled here. He easily slashed down the bat, but a couple more bats came after him, not being aware, Toan was bitten by the bat on his shoulder. Toan yelled and took out the other bat. Toan felt sick, he felt his health deteriorating rapidly. Toan pulled his medicine drink from his bag, and applied it to the bite marls and drank a swig of the medicine, it helped him instantly. Toan learned to keep his distance from the bats, they were venomous. Walking alone the halls he encountered his first Atla. Toan was eager to uncover it. Before he could think of how the Atla felt it opened abruptly and light came from it and quickly entered his Atlamillia. A glance of what it was appeared in his mind. An image of a lamp…Toan was furious and yelled in the caves to himself. If this was the idea of a joke, it was in bad taste. He wanted to recover the world to the way it was and the Fairy King actually though saving the lamps was a big deal? Toan pressed further hoping he's never see a lamp again in his life. Toan came across two more Atlas and opened them; he ignored what they were and decided he'd see them once he left the cave. After another bat encounter Toan came across something he never thought possible a walking skeleton wielding a shield and sword surely if something like this existed than the Fairy King must be right. The duel with the skeleton soldier was easier than Toan expected, just a few slashes of his dagger brought him down maybe because the skeleton forgot how to use his shield. After a few battles with the beasts of the cave, an object fell from one of the skeletons, a crest of some sort, Toan picked it up, and it resembled a demon head, except the head had a green jewel in the middle of it. Toan came across a door that wasn't the one he had cam in, and in middle of the door, it had an indignation where it looked like the crest Toan had just picked up. And sure enough when Toan fitted it in there the door arose. Toan wanted to see what exactly he could do with his found Atla.
