~Chapter 2: The New World~
Shunack wandered into the city, looking around as people stopped and looked at him.
"He's not from around here..."
"Think he's from Ragna?"
"I've never seen him before in my life..."
As the people muttered to each other, Shunack was urged by Yolda and Hajan to not take much notice of the suspicious mumbles. It was difficult, but he managed to tune them out as he walked with the two elders. Eventually the whispers were no longer noticed by the young man as he focused more on the city around him. It didn't seem like a particularly safe or pleasant place to live.
Yolda eventually led Shunack to her main quarters. "Have a seat," she offered him as she sat at her desk.
Shunack looked to his left and right, then behind him, before concluding that there was no seat. Slowly and awkwardly, Shunack sat himself down on the floor.
"Now then," Yolda began. "What kind of time did you come from? Do you have any idea how long ago you went to sleep?"
"I don't know how long I was asleep for," answered Shunack. "Do you know?"
"I'm afraid all records from your time were destroyed," Yolda admitted.
"Oh," Shunack sighed, looking down. To think that the time he came from had been completely forgotten about...
"What was it like?" Yolda asked him, causing Shunack to look up. Shunack was silent, trying to think of a way to describe the past to the new generation. But then he could only remember his past...
...
"Shunack!"
The young man turned around to face a woman with chocolate brown hair, her honey coloured eyes fixed upon him with an evident twinkle of happiness.
Shunack smiled warmly as the young woman approached him. "I never thought I'd catch you hanging out in a place like this," she admitted. "It's a lovely day today though, wouldn't you agree?"
"That's why I'm outside having some fresh air," Shunack responded, gesturing to the surrounding area which was a park covered with grass and cherry blossom trees.
The woman giggled softly before continuing to speak. "Shouldn't you be working?"
"It's my day off," Shunack answered simply.
Playfully, the woman punched his shoulder. "You should have called me! We could have gone to the tea garden or something!" she scolded, even though she was clearly laughing.
"I thought you wanted to spend time with your friends," Shunack said honestly.
"Yeah, I was actually waiting for them in town," the woman explained. "But they haven't showed up yet. So I came here to get some fresh air and then I found you."
"You should go back into town if that's where you said you'd meet them," Shunack stated blatantly.
"It's fine, I did tell them that I might wander off before they get there," the woman assured. "So I told them to message me if I wasn't there, telling me to "GET MY BUTT OVER THERE", you know?" She let out a slight chuckle at her own joke, which Shunack rolled his eyes at, despite smiling slightly. The woman then grasped Shunack's wrist, causing him to look confused. "Why don't you come and hang out with us?" she offered.
"What?" Shunack could only say in response, not prepared for the offer.
"You haven't spoken to the girls in a while! They'd love to see you again!" the young female chirped.
"I think it's best if I just let you have a "girls only" day..." Shunack stated, deliberately refusing to go.
"Oh, come on, it's not like they're gonna bite your head off!" the woman laughed, running through the park and heading back to the town. Shunack frowned as he was dragged along. The last time he spent time with the group just resulted in the same old girly questions and conversations.
"So, how's the relationship going?"
"How long have you been together?"
"Do you plan on having kids some day?"
"Why don't you take her out for a fancy dinner some day?"
"Hey, you should let us do your hair one day!"
"You should spend more time with your girlfriend!"
Oh, what horrors awaited him this time?
...
"Shunack?"
Shunack looked up quickly, not realising how long he had been sat in silence for. He saw that Yolda was still sat where she was, wearing a face of concern.
"I can understand if you don't want to talk about it," she sympathised with him. Shunack remained silent, looking back down at the floor. It was only now that he had realised that everything he had once loved had been lost. Forgotten. And it was all because of him.
"If you ever wish to spend time alone, you will have my permission at all times," Yolda assured him. "But you must not venture into the Forest or the city of Ragna. Understood?"
"Understood," Shunack responded quietly, not taking his eyes off the floor. Yolda was well aware that he was emotionally traumatized right now, so she decided to stand up.
"I'll leave you in peace for a while," she said. "Feel free to explore the city. Perhaps you could acquaint yourself with some of the citizens and our way of life."
"I'll do my best," Shunack replied honestly, his voice barely audible. Yolda glanced at him briefly before nodding to him and leaving the room, last telling him that she would check on him later.
For a few minutes Shunack simply sat there, staring at the floor. His face expressed various emotions, consisting of sorrow, confusion and anger. Finally he decided to settle himself down, rising up to his feet. Sitting there in grief was only going to make him feel worse, so he concluded that exploring the city at his own pace would take his mind off things.
Shunack stepped outside, looking aroung warily. Despite Yolda's reassuring words, he still felt quite out of place. After all, he was three hundred years older than everyone else in the city.
Some children ran past, laughing happily. In all honesty Shunack was concerned for their safety, considering that this city was quite high up. However, he saw just how agile they were, realising that humanity had changed and had evolved to live in these kinds of conditions.
Shunack walked for a little longer before entering a cafe. It was full of rowdy men all laughing and shouting. In his mind Shunack told himself that humans clearly hadn't evolved that much in the space of three hundred years.
"Can I help you, sir?" asked a young waitress, softly spoken. Shunack hesitated to respond for a moment, not wanting to come across as similar to the other men.
"Um..." he began awkwardly. He could hear the rude and disgraceful jeers of some of the men to this waitress and the other waitresses, disgusted. That's when he had an idea. "You know, it seems awfully crowded in here. Is there anything I could do to help out?"
"Huh?" the waitress gasped. It wasn't every day someone came in and asked to help out, though it had happened every now and then.
Shunack smiled to make himself look less intimidating. "You don't have to worry about paying me or returning the favour."
"I... I guess you could take peoples' orders," the waitress stuttered. "I-It'd be pretty helpful right now..."
"I'm glad to be of assistance," Shunack responded, still with his kind smile. He walked off and got to work.
...
Hours later, Shunack was sat by one of the tables, worn out. Thankfully the cafe was now quiet with only a small number of people eating and drinking.
The same waitress he had spoken to came over with a glass of water, placing it down on the table in front of him shyly. Shunack looked up at her, raising an eyebrow.
"Y-You said that you didn't need to be paid back..." she started to explain shyly. "B-But I thought you should at least have something so... I decided to give you some water..."
"...Thank you," Shunack thanked, staring at the glass of water intensely. The waitress noticed his stare, concerned.
"Are you alright?" she asked him. Shunack looked up at her, snapping out of his daze.
"I'm fine," he replied, sipping the water briefly. The waitress stared at him for a moment with a curious expression before sitting in front of him.
"My name's Nori," the waitress introduced, smiling sweetly.
Surprised that she had actually introduced herself, Shunack smiled back at her, proud that he had succeeded in acquainting himself with someone. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Nori," he responded. "My name is Shunack."
"Shunack? That's an interesting name," Nori stated her opinion, mainly to herself. "So, Shunack, are you new here?"
This question made Shunack realise that Nori must have been speaking with the other waitresses and possibly some of the customers earlier on, with each person confirming that they had never seen him before. "Well... I suppose you could say that," Shunack answered slowly. "It's a long story."
"Could you tell me some other time?" Nori requested. Again Shunack was surprised, but he chuckled.
"Of course," he promised her, sipping his water once again.
...
Thud. Thud. Thud.
"The man is dangerous!" cried Berui.
"He wants to destroy the Forest!" added Zerui.
Yolda stood before the Druids calmly. "I can assure you that Shunack will cause you no harm," she told them confidently.
"He comes from the past!" Berui's whisper echoed.
"He seeks to bring his past back to life!" Zerui extended.
"You must sacrifice that man to the Forest!" Berui announced.
"I will do no such thing," Yolda clarified, narrowing her eyes. "Perhaps now Shunack may be in a state of confusion, but he will soon come to realise that humanity and the Forest can live in harmony."
"He is dangerous!" Berui repeated.
"His awakening has disturbed the Forest!" Zerui wailed.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
Annoyed, Yolda continued to defend Shunack. "If you give him time to adjust to our way of life then he may prove himself to be quite a remarkable young man with much potential," she explained. "He could discover more cities which have been buried and provide more people with homes. After all, with him being from the past he should have a decent level of knowledge as to where certain cities are located."
Thud. Thud. Thud.
"His only goal is to destroy the Forest!"
"He can never abandon his past!"
"The man must be disposed of at all costs!"
"He cannot live in this world! He must go with the rest of his past!"
"Listen to me when I say this!" Yolda commanded. "Shunack will not cause you any harm as long as he remains under my supervision in Neutral City. That is something I can promise you. However, should he turn his back on Neutral City, then you are free to deal with him as you please. But I can assure you that there is little chance of him turning his back on us."
"You believe that the man can move on from his past?" Berui asked her.
"Yes," Yolda answered with confidence.
~End of Chapter~