I'm having a lot of fun writing this story, I just hope its fun for you to read it.

I now present Nexus: Part 2

Disclaimer: I own nothing.


When Asural opened his eyes, he found himself lying on a clump of grass between some trees. On closer inspection he realized that he was in a strange forest that appeared to be in the early stages of fall. The leaves were colored many shades, ranging from greenish yellow to bright red.

After his amazement disappeared, he realized he was alone.

He jumped up and rushed over to the largest tree and sat at its base. He took a moment to collect his thoughts and began to wonder how he got there.

After a minute Asural realized that he was holding the white crystal that he had found right before losing consciousness. But the crystal seemed a little different, light reflected and danced across its surface, almost as if light was leaking out of the crystal.

Suddenly the light in the forest dimmed and all was silenced. A ball of light floated out of the darkness and approached Asural. He stood quickly and pocketed the crystal, hiding it from the light's view. He reached for his sword, but it wasn't there. He lifted his hands up to his face, and balled them into fists.

Then the light spoke to him, "Come now, there is no need for alarm. Sit down."

Asural sat slowly, all the while watching the light suspiciously.

Then the ball of light said, "I have long searched for you, Asural, and I have finally found you." The ball of light faded and a silhouette was left in its place.

Asural could not tell if it was male or female. Only that it was somehow familiar and that it could be trusted.

The newcomer remained standing, and said, "We are short on time, so I will be brief. I need your help. I cannot go into detail here, but I will tell you this: amonst the king's troops there is a group of people who threaten the existence of all Alagaesia. They must be stopped."

"How can I help? I can't do much of anything. You should ask my brother Tial. He is very skilled in magic, he could help you more than I can."

"Tial... No. You have the potential to do what others can only dream of. I will explain everything when I come to get you in 3 days." The stranger then turned to leave.

"Wait, who are you?" Asural asked quickly.

"That is something that will have to wait until we meet again."

And with that, the silhouette stepped toward him, placed a hand on his forehead and everything went black.

-

Asural opened his eyes and caught himself as he fell. He was sitting back on the stump at the edge of the clearing where he had been before. Snow was gently falling and all was quiet.

"What was that about?" Asural asked himself quietly, a little unnerved about what had just happened.

He turned and saw Polon and Ralph walking toward him carrying their catches.

"What took you? I've been sitting here for an hour and a half!" Exclaimed Asural.

"I'd say we got here right on time, maybe even a half hour early," replied Polon looking up at the sun.

"Well let's get back to camp already," said Asural glancing around. He wanted to get out of this forest as quickly as possible, disturbed by what had happened. The sooner I'm away from this place, the better, thought Tial.

When they arrived back at camp it was already dark.

Asural dropped his gear off in his tent and hurried over to the fire to warm his hands. Tial soon sat next to him and asked, "How was the hunt?"

"We got more than usual, but you should take a look at this."

They both stood and Asural drew out the white crystal. "While I was waiting for Polon and Ralph a strange dragon flew overhead. Then I found this crystal on the ground. It caught my attention so I brought it back to show you."

Tial's eyes suddenly widened, "That is very strange indeed."

He reached for the crystal but just as he was about to touch it, all of the fires in the camp blazed and there was a loud bang. Tial was suddenly thrown backward into the darkness of the night.

Everyone in the camp jumped up at the sudden disturbance and started running around gathering their weapons, fearing an ambush. And then there was another loud bang, except this time from an explosion.

Asural suddenly felt drained, his mind went blank and he knew no more.

-

When he awoke, Asural sat up and gazed around misty eyed.

There was nothing within 50 meters of him. It was if everything had been wiped off the face of the earth. It was the same place where they had camped the night before, but all that was left was dirt.

He got up uneasily and shuffled about, looking around as if he would see something. But there was nothing within 50 meters of where he had been lying.

A tree stood at the edge of the circle. It had a large chunk missing from it that ran in line with the circle and all the way up into the branches.

Asural left the barren circle and started walking toward Ceunon, hoping he could get there before he starved or was frozen to death. He could not hunt or protect himself because his bow and sword had been caught in the blast.

He had been walking for 2 days straight when he collapsed from exhaustion.

He lay there for a while when he heard a whisper on the wind.

Asural sat up and instantly a diagram appeared on the ground and a dazzling light shone around him. Five cloaked figures appeared as well and stood around him in a circle.

In unison, they raised their right hand toward him and Asural was held in place, unable to move or speak.

The five spoke in a single clear voice, "We have come for you Asural. The king wishes to speak with you. You cannot use magic of any kind, do not resist."

The air shimmered as the five began to chant under their breaths. As they chanted the light flared up, blinding Asural. He shut his eyes tight as the light spread and blotted everything out.

Asural did not know how long he sat there, but there was suddenly a violent shudder underneath his feet. The light went out and he was released. Asural collapsed in the darkness.

When he came to, there was a fire burning near him. Asural sat up and noticed a person sitting next to the fire.

She had long black hair that nearly reached the ground and she was extremely pale, as if she had not seen the sun in some time.

"It would have been much easier to find you if you hadn't been caught by them, but I guess it can't be helped. My name is Jae."


By the way, the camp was only spread 20 meters at the most from the point of the explosion. So they were all caught in the blast. Thanks for reading.

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