The wind had died down. Only the gentle roll of the waves broke the silence.
Three strangers stood there - man, elf, and bird.
We were talking about what we could remember, and I told them about the encounter with the mysterious woman.
One breath of peace, just before the questions began.
"So," said Jheremey, smoothing his feathers, "none of us knows how we got here."
His tone was a strange mix of curiosity and dramatic fear.
"That sounds... problematic. But also fascinating!"
"Fascinating?" I repeated. "We're lost, stripped of our memories, and almost died."
"Exactly!" he exclaimed with enthusiasm. "The perfect start to a breakthrough!"
He spread his wings wide, as if about to give a lecture. "We find ourselves in an unknown location, possibly with unknown flora, fauna, and-"
"Quiet," interrupted Lucardio sharply. "You're making too much noise. Anything could still be out here."
Jheremey sniffed. "Always so tense, you elves. Is that genetic, or just a personality defect?"
Lucardio's expression hardened.
(Yikes. Those two are not going to be friends.)
I stepped between them. "Okay, okay. Maybe we should focus on something practical. We need to find out where we are, what lives here, and if there's water or food."
Lucardio nodded slowly, relieved by the change of topic.
"First, we search the beach. There may be more survivors - or supplies from the ship that brought you here."
"'You?'" I asked. "As if you didn't wash up too?"
He paused. His gaze drifted toward the horizon. "I... don't remember being shipwrecked. I woke up among the trees."
Silence followed. The only sounds were the waves lapping and a distant gull's cry.
Then Jheremey broke the tension with an abrupt question:
"Tell me about the woman who saved you, Noric."
I turned to him in surprise.
"Come on. Beautiful? Mysterious? Evil?"
I frowned. "I couldn't see her face..."
"Sigh..."
Jheremey rolled his eyes. "It's always the face that's missing. Always."
(He becomes a completely different person when women are involved.)
Lucardio stood up, his shadow falling over us.
"Enough. We're wasting time. We'll follow the shore, make camp tonight, and head into the forest tomorrow. Understood?"
His tone made it clear it wasn't a question.
I nodded. "Sounds good."
Jheremey raised his eyebrows - or what passed for them.
"And what if I don't find that clear?"
Lucardio shot him an icy look.
"Then you follow anyway. Or you die."
A pause.
Then Jheremey smacked his wing against his hip like a bored professor.
"Fine, fine. I'll follow. But if I die, I'm writing your name in my will."
(His sense of humor really doesn't fit this situation...)
We started walking.
The sand was hot, the sky bright blue, and our shadows stretched long across the coast.
Lucardio led the way, sharp and alert.
Jheremey walked behind him, loudly complaining about "sand in his feathers" and "the lack of tea."
I took up the rear, tired but attentive.
After about twenty minutes, Lucardio suddenly stopped.
"Footprints."
We knelt down. In the sand were human prints - not washed away.
Next to them lay something glinting in the sun: a thin strand of red hair.
"Ah!" said Lucardio, a hint of excitement in his voice for the first time. "Someone else is alive."
A few meters ahead, near the waterline, a man sat cross-legged.
His back straight, hands resting on his knees, as if meditating.
The sand around him was dark... red.
"Come closer," said the man without looking up. His voice was heavy - tired, but commanding. "I already see you."
Lucardio froze. "Stay behind me."
But my curiosity was stronger than my sense.
I stepped forward.
(Why are they so tense? Is it fear? Or do they know something I don't?)
My feet sank into the sand.
The closer I got, the colder the air became.
As if even the sun itself had stopped to hold its breath.