Hello! Hope you guys are still with me, I know this is a lot. But the journey starts this chapter! Let me know what you thought about the last chapter! Or this chapter. Or anything really. I love all reviews! You should send me some! And now, on with the show!
Chapter 2 – Lost
There were birds chirping when Shylo opened his eyes. The light burned his retinas, adjusting to the brightness. When they did, all he saw was a sea of green. Leaves spread out as far as Shylo was able to see. He sat up from the hard ground and groaned as his back cracked from being still. He had been there a long time apparently, from all the leaves that had covered his body. He took a look around and all he saw were trees, no paths, no streams, just tall trees. Shylo could feel a panic attack coming on, as the earlier events flooded back into his mind. Then it hit him. Where was Link? They had been together before that mask filled their world with darkness.
He called out for Link, but there was no response. Standing up, he pulled out his phone to see it was cracked, broken beyond repair as the battery had been split in two. He swore and threw the phone into the forest. He paced and tried to slow his breathing, trying to remember all the survival tips he had learned from various books he had read. First and foremost, if you're lost in the woods and you are not able to see the actual direction of the sun, look for moss. Moss would grow on the northern side of things, that was easy. He looked around the trees, trying to find some kind of mossy growth. If Shylo could find some, and begin walking in one direction, he would eventually find someone or some kind of civilization, right? Upon finding some on a medium sized boulder, he began walking north. He wished he had brought his jacket to the grove, as sharp sticks and branches whipped his arms as he moved past them, making tiny stinging cuts. He tripped over a rock he hadn't seen and fell face first into the damp earth, groaning as he moved to his back to catch his breath.
He was able to see up through the canopy from here. The sun was high in the sky, so it must have been around midday. Shylo laid there for a moment, feeling tears coming to his eyes. He was scared, and lost, and most importantly, alone. And it was quiet. Far too quiet for him. It was nerve-racking, and all he felt was the heavy air around him, when he finally let his tears loose. It felt good to let out his feelings, almost soothing the panic in his heart. He wiped away his tears, feeling the wetness on his fingers. He starred at them, suddenly parched. He needed to find a source of water. The last thing he needed was to become dehydrated. He stood up and began walking north again, determined to make it out of the forest.
After three hours of walking, Shylo began to doubt that he was making any headway. He sat down by a tree's trunk and tried to figure out how things got to where they are now. Was it his fault that the demons had been let out? When he touched the sword, everything went wrong, and now, the Demon Lord had separated him and his classmates. Why had the sword burned him and carved a weird pattern on his hand? Why was all this happening? Why couldn't he find any source of water when he was so thirsty? And what on Farore's green earth was that beeping sound?
Wait…beeping sound? Shylo stood up and looked around. Maybe it was Link? Or another one of his classmates? Hell, he'd be happy to find even Ghirahim right now. And maybe there were by a stream! Shylo began running towards the sound, a smile on his face. He was saved, or so he thought. The beeping noises grew closer and closer together, picking up pitch at a frightening pace, until a long, loud whine echoed throughout the forest. Shylo covered his ears in pain and almost immediately, the sound stopped.
Shylo looked around for the source of the beeping, but all he found was a small stream of water to his left. He let out a small happy cry and ran to the bank of the stream, using his hands to bring the cool liquid to his dry lips. Shylo's throat was instantly relieved as he drank. He splashed some water on his face for good measure then sat down by the bank, thinking of his next move. Then, the beeping sound popped up in his thoughts; what exactly was that and where was it coming from? He heard it first when he started to desperately look for water. If that were the case, was the sound coming from his head? But how could that be? Was it magic? Was he magic? Or was the forest helping him? If any one of these were the answers, could he find other things?
Shylo thought about a dandelion and how he wished to find one, and the beeping sound instantly sounded in his head. He let out a yelp and jumped up to his feet. He saw the dandelion towards the base of a dead tree, softly flowing in the tiny breeze. He turned his head one way and the beeping sounds grew farther apart. Turning back to the flower, the frequency picked up to that harsh whining. He grimaced in pain, the dandelion leaving his thoughts and the beeping ceased.
Shylo smiled slowly at his new discovery. It was like a radar had embedded itself in his head! He didn't care where it came from, he could find that out later. If he could locate items with this radar type energy, could he also find people? He concentrated and thought of Link, but no beeping sound came this time. He tried others, Midna, Malon, his grandmother, but his head was silent. He groaned in frustration and kicked the dirt. So, he could only find objects, not people. It wasn't as convenient as he had hoped but it was still convenient, nonetheless. He thought of something that maybe his friends could be carrying. Phones: nothing. Backpacks: nothing. Midna's earrings: nothing. He let out a loud frustrated scream to get his anger out. Why was this happening? Why did he have to touch that stupid sword and have his life turned upside down?
A faint beeping came to his mind and Shylo stopped screaming, realization dawning on his face. The sword! He could locate the sword! He turned his head and closed his eyes, trying to determine where the sword could be, waiting for the beeping to become louder. Finally, it did and Shylo opened his eyes and started running in that direction. As he ran, a thought occurred to him. The floating mask had separated them, what if the sword was miles away, or all the way across the country? Shylo shook the thoughts out his head. He couldn't afford to think like that right now. He had to have hope! He pushed his legs to keep running.
After some odd hours of running and jogging, the sun had begun to set, and the forest looked exactly the same as where Shylo had first opened his eyes. The normal cry of a wolfos was heard, signaling the end of daylight approaching. As much as Shylo loved the night, he didn't want to be caught dead in the middle of a pack of wolfos. He had traveled far enough today, possibly more than a few miles. He decided it was time to rest, looking up at the branches of the trees, trying to find a bundle of branches he could sleep in comfortably. Spotting a tree that looked as though a small nook had been made by the way to branches curved, he climbed up and settled himself in, rubbing his sore legs. He leaned back and closed his eyes, trying to get some sleep in this unfamiliar place wasn't easy for him. The sound of wolfos running around below him, sniffing for the unknown being in their midst, didn't help matters either.
Shylo couldn't get to sleep. He was uncomfortable, frustrated, and scared. Was his grandmother okay? Did anyone else even know what was going on, what had happened at the Sacred Grove? And why was he now a walking item detector? The night sky held no answers for him as he starred at the crescent moon hanging in the sky. He held his hand out and compared the mark with the giant rock in the sky. He thought it was funny that a burn mark from a sword handle could leave a mark shaped like the moon, but with the events from earlier that day, Shylo wasn't going to question a small burn right now.
The wolfos down on the ground finally gave up looking for Shylo. With a howl, they took off down the way he had come before. Shylo let out a sigh and forced his eyes closed. Willing for sleep to overtake him, and eventually it did. He had barely slept at all and when the beams of the morning sun grazed his eyes, he groaned. Shylo had never been a morning person but sleeping in a tree had been hell on his body. He climbed down from the makeshift bed and stretched his muscles, bones cracking in a painful but wonderful fashion. He stretched his legs and thought of the sword while doing so, intent on starting his journey again.
The morning and early afternoon went without any problems, a few scratches from some branches that had a vendetta against him for some reason, and mud down the front of his clothes from when he tripped and fell. But he knew that he was making progress, the beeping was getting louder. Another few hours of running and the trees started to grow farther and farther apart. The forest edge was in sight and Shylo let out a cry of happiness. He burst into the pure sunlight, basking in its warmth, catching his breath, and looking at his surroundings.
He was in an empty field, but he could see a city far in the distance, probably another half day walk, a couple hours if he could keep running. He squinted to see if he could spot any landmarks, and by the looks of it, a tall pointed statue with the Triforce insignia sitting on top was the only one he could see. But that statue…that was the symbol of the Capital. The realization dawned on Shylo. He had landed in Faron Woods, halfway across the country from his home, and the largest forest in the country of Hyrule. It was a miracle that Shylo had made it out of there at all. The forest spanned for hundreds of miles, with small towns scattered throughout its dense trees. He needed to think rationally, he couldn't start to panic again.
His first task, he knew, was to go to the authorities, explain what happened, and hopefully they wouldn't think he was crazy. Then he needed to get to a phone and call his grandmother, let her know he was safe and trying to find a way home. His mind set, and his breathing under control, Shylo began to run in the direction of the Capital, as fast as his legs would carry him.
It didn't seem to be that far away from Shylo's perspective, but the random hills did tire his legs out. He was another mile away before he noticed the sun was setting. He swore to himself and pushed to run faster, his legs screaming for a break. If he were to stop in the middle of this field, the wolfos would find him. He kept running and running, and once the light of day was gone, he heard the howls, and they were close. Fear washed over Shylo as he realized what was about to happen. It was a run for his life.
He heard the padded feet of the wolfos before he saw the lights of the town flicker on in the distance. He wasn't going to make it. But he was going to do his best to either outrun or fight off the wolfos, than die doing nothing. But, as his misfortune would have it, he tripped over a large stick and fell face first in the grass, doing one roll before he stopped. He tasted blood, surely from a busted lip, but he pushed it from his mind, and stood up quickly. Before he could start running again, the wolfos surrounded him. Shylo could see the hungry look in their yellow eyes, and the drool dropping from their sharp teeth. Shylo grabbed the stick that he tripped on, and held it close, ready to bash any wolfos that got close to him. Growling, the wolfos began to circle their prey, biding their time and waiting for Shylo to make a move. After all, the hunt is only fun if they run.
One wolfos got impatient and ran at Shylo head on. Shylo swung the stick at the creature, making contact with its head and a sickening crunch resounded. The wolfos dropped to the ground, dead at Shylo's feet. The growling from the remaining wolfos grew louder and angrier. Shylo did a quick head count, five more by the looks of it. He knew his odds of survival were small, but if he played it smart, he could win. Two more wolfos lunged for him, mouth open and an intent to kill. Shylo dodged the first one and hit the second one in the back, dead center, and heard another crunch. Were the situation different, he knew he would have vomited at the sound of bones breaking, but with the adrenaline coursing through his veins and his empty stomach, he had nothing to lose.
Shylo let out a feral scream towards to wolfos, trying to scare them, however, it only seemed to make them even more aggressive. The wolfos that had run at Shylo before, turned and headed for him again, swiping at his legs and making him fall to his knees. Another wolfos jumped at Shylo, but he rolled out of the way just in time, but one more jumped on top of him and used its paws to hold him down by his chest. The wolfos' hot, putrid breath stung Shylo's nostrils and he brought the stick to eye level, blocking the bite the wolfos had intended for his face. Shylo grunted as he pushed back at the creatures' strength, praying for some kind of a miracle. No miracle came as another wolfos snapped its jaws on Shylo's foot, making him cry out in pain. He kicked upward and into the wolfos' mouth, making another crack sound he had heard already, and then the weight of the dead wolfos fell onto his legs, not allowing him to move. The wolfos on top of Shylo grew more aggressive as the bites on the stick started to chip the wood away. Shylo's eyes widened and he began to panic. He threw the whole force of his body to the side, trapping the wolfos underneath him instead. His legs only turned underneath the dead wolfos, still holding him in place.
The wolfos started swiping at Shylo and trying to chew through his stick, but Shylo kept pushing it down in the wolfos mouth. The creature was becoming desperate and began whimpering as the pressure in its mouth became too much. Shylo felt a pang of sympathy for it, as it was just trying to survive, but so was he. Finally, with a cry, Shylo pushed down with all his might and snapped the jaws of the wolfos, the animal finally going limp. Shylo turned back and pushed the other dead wolfos off him and stood up quickly and looked to the remaining wolfos. They stared at him, not moving as they waited for what would happen next. Shylo let out another scream at them, which made them back up and run to the forest.
Shylo let out a cheer a fell to his knees in happiness. He had just survived a wild animal attack! Against wolfos of all things! With only a minor bite injury, he considered himself lucky. No major damage and no limp, just a throbbing pain. Shylo stood back up and ran towards the Capital once again.
This one is a bit of a shorter chapter, but I thought it would be the best place to stop. Please send me your reviews, critiques, or anything else you see fit. Also! I am looking for a beta reader if anyone would be interested. Please shoot me a PM! Thanks, and see you next time!