Chapter 2 A Strange World:
Soren groaned as he opened his eyes to see the sunny sky and trees. He grunted as he sat up, rubbing his head.
"Ugh! My head…Are you girls okay?" he asked the girls.
No response. Soren blinked and looked around to see that the girls were nowhere in sight.
"Sash, Anne, Marcy? Where are you?" he asked, standing up.
Looking at his surroundings, Soren could see that he was in some kind of forest.
'I can't see much from down here,' he said in his head.
Soren looked at the trees above him. Looks like he's going tree climbing. Soren grabbed his bag and started to climb up the nearest tree. Landing on top of a branch, Soren looked at the entirely new world in front of him. He saw a few giant insects flying through the sky.
'Giant insects?! Where in the hell am I?!' Soren exclaimed in his head.
Deciding he should look around, Soren jumped from the tree branch and landed on his feet. He started to walk through the forest, pushing a few vines out of the way. Soren pulled his phone out.
'No service so I guess calling the girls or anyone for help is out of the question,' he sighed in his head.
A growl was heard behind him and Soren froze. He turned around to see a pair of red eyes looking at him from the shadows of a bush.
'Okay, Waybright…just step back, nice and slow'
Soren took small steps backward while keeping his eyes trained in front of him. A snap went out through the empty air, making Soren flinch. The creature let out a roar and jumped out of the bush showing it was a giant beetle!
"FUCK!" Soren shouted.
He turned and hightailed it out of there as the creature chased him. Soren jumped over some fallen trees as he ran for his life. Soren grunted as he tripped over a root and rolled down a hill. He landed on his chest, knocking the wind out of him. Soren groaned in pain as he stood up. He looked over his body. His clothes were torn and his hands were covered in dirt and bruises. Soren looked around for something he could protect himself with. Eventually, Soren found a log and grabbed it. A roar was heard and Soren turned to see the beetle jumping at him. He fell back and rolled out of the way as the beast landed where he once stood. Soren landed on his feet and held the log up.
"Come and get some you ugly freak of nature!" he shouted.
The beetle screeched at him and snapped its pincers at him. Soren moved to the left to avoid getting pinched. He swung the log, aiming to knock it out. Unfortunately, the beetle grabbed the log between its pincers and threw Soren away. Soren landed on his back. The beetle leaped at him again. The beetle landed on top of him and Soren let out a scream of pain when the pincers pierced his sides. He moved to try and kick it off but was unable to. The beetle was about to finish him off when a cloaked figure suddenly jumped down from the trees and landed on its back. The figure stabbed a spear into its shell. The beetle screeched and tried to knock the figure off. The figure jumped off and landed between Soren and the beetle. They watched as the beetle scurried off. Looking up at the figure, Soren could see that the figure was wearing a black armored vest, a sheath strapped to his back holding a machete, a dark brown cloak and black jeans. The figure turned to him to show that he was wearing a half blue, half white tribal mask on their face. They also had brown hair that stuck up from the mask. Soren tries to get up but the wound on his side makes it impossible to move. He touched his side and felt blood soaking through his hoodie. His vision blurred and Soren fell to the ground.
A few hours later:
Soren groaned as he opened his eyes. When he saw the roof of a tent above him, Soren's eyes widened and he jolted upwards. A stinging pain went through his side. The blonde boy winced and touched his torso, feeling hardened bandages around his upper body.
'What in the?' he thought to himself.
He looked around to see shelves filled with rubbing alcohol, bandages and other medical supplies. Where was he?
"You're awake!" a voice said.
Soren jumped and turned to see a humanoid lizard- like creature standing beside him. From the looks of it he could be a year or two older than himself. The creature had light green skin with yellow spots, spiked up brown hair and light brown eyes. He was wearing the same clothes that the person who saved him wore. Soren groaned and rubbed his head.
"I think I lost a lot of blood because there's a giant lizard talking to me," he grumbled.
The creature glared at him slightly.
"Hey, I ain't no lizard! I'm an axolotl," he said.
Soren raised an eyebrow.
"Is there a difference?" he asked.
The creature huffed.
"Of course there is! Axolotls are closer to salamanders, we don't have scales and we can breathe underwater," he said.
Soren rubbed his head.
"Yeah, okay. Do you have any idea where I am?" he asked.
Before the creature could answer, another one entered the tent. This one was a bit taller than the other one and looked to be around 3 or 4 years older. He had dark green skin with black spots, curly brown hair and dark brown eyes. He was wearing a pale blue tunic, a chainmail shirt underneath and baggy brown jeans.
"Xavier, Dad wants to talk to our guest here," He said.
The axolotl now known as Xavier nodded and handed Soren a white tank top. He put it on and followed the two axolotls out of the tent. The blonde boy looked around as they walked. It was a small village filled with axolotls and salamanders who were doing their own thing. They arrived at a tent that was located on the far left side of the village. Walking inside, Soren saw two other axolotls. The one that was standing had olive skin, curly dark brown hair and green eyes. He was wearing some kind of gold and red armor and he had a sword strapped to his waist. Sitting down was an elderly axolotl. He had black skin, pale yellow spots, graying brown hair and gray green eyes. He was wearing a white robe with blue designs and he also had a sword strapped to his waist.
"Take a seat," the axolotl standing said.
Soren sat down in a chair as Xavier and the other axolotl stood beside the older axolotls.
"What is your name, young one?" the elder asked.
"My name is Soren Waybright," Soren said.
The elder nodded.
"Pleased to meet you. My name is José Ramirez. I'm the leader of this little village. This is my son Lukas and his two boys, Alexander and Xavier. If it's alright with you, I'd like to ask you some questions," José said.
Soren nodded.
"Where are you from and how did you come to our world?" he asked.
"I'm from a city called Los Angeles and I came here because of a music box that transported me and my friends," Soren said.
Music Box? Xander and Xavier exchanged looks. Jose nodded.
"I see. And where are these friends of yours?" he asked.
Soren shrugged.
"I don't know. One minute I'm with them and the next I'm waking up in a forest," he said.
Jose nodded. Xander raised his hand.
"But where is this "Music Box" you're talking about?" he asked.
"I don't have it with me. One of my friends most likely has it," He said.
Jose nodded.
"Well, Soren, I gue-" he began before getting cut off by the room shaking.
Soren yelped and fell back.
"Is there an earthquake?!" he exclaimed.
The tent's flap opened as another axolotl in the same armor as Lukas ran in.
"Chief, we're under attack!" he said.
Lukas nodded as Xander and Xavier grabbed their swords and ran out of the tent. Soren decided to follow so he could see what was going on. Once he stepped out, Soren saw a giant spider attacking the village! Soren's eyes went wide as the warriors in the village were knocked away and more tried to join the fight. Soren stood there frozen, scared out of his mind. What was he supposed to do?
"Help!" a small voice shouted, breaking Soren out of his stupor.
The blonde boy turned to see two salamander kids about to get crushed by the spider. Not even thinking, Soren raced forward with a surprising burst of speed. He bent his legs and jumped into the air, cracking the stone below him. Soren clenched his fist and pulled his left arm back. Unbeknownst to him, glowing red veins crawled up his arm and stopped at his neck. Soren gritted his teeth.
"AHHHH!" he shouted, his eyes flashing red.
Soren swung his arm and struck the spider, sending it flying into a tree and knocking it out. Everyone in the village was left in shock and awe.
"Did you see that?!"
"He just knocked it down with one punch!"
All around the villagers began to commentabout how a kid was able to knock down a giant spider. Soren landed on the ground as Xander and Xavier ran to him.
"Dude, how did you do that?!" Xavier exclaimed.
Soren blinked and looked at his arm. His knuckles were bruised and his arm was a purplish black color.
"I-" he began.
'How did I do that?' he said in his head.
A wave of exhaustion ran through his body and Soren fell forward. The two brothers hurried to catch him before he could hit the ground. Lukas was watching from afar. Who is this kid?
Hours later:
After being unconscious for a while and finally waking up, Soren was told that he will be living with Lukas and his family until they could find a way to get him home. Right now, Soren was in the boys' room with a sleeping bag between the two beds . As Soren was changing into a pair of pajamas, a black tank top and some red shorts, a knock was heard.
"Come in," he said.
The door opened to show Lukas.
"I wanted to set some ground rules before you get settled. Firstly, you're not living here for free, just like the boys and everyone else in the village, you'll be helping out with chores. Secondly, when we go out of the village, keep your hood up and stick close to either me or the boys. You don't know this world and there are people who can and will try to hurt you since they're not used to outsiders. And thirdly, don't cause any trouble, got it?" Lukas asked.
Soren nodded.
"Thanks," he said.
Lukas nodded as Xander and Xavier walked into the room and laid down in bed.
"Night you three," he said, closing the door.
"Night, Dad," Xander and Xavier said.
Soren laid down on his sleeping bag. He sighed as he looked at the ceiling.
'I hope you girls are okay, wherever you are,' he said in his head.
Soren turned over and fell asleep.