Before the team could walk any further, however, Foxichick noticed that they had wandered into a large, open plain, apparantly at the outskirts of Beastland - most likely near the border of it and Fightingland, where they had intended to make their next stop before walking the final stretch on their way to their destination. Hoping to find her way back on track before admitting to her teammates that they were lost, Foxichick decided to ask a random passerby for directions before continuing.
Without letting the other Lavaring Team members notice, Foxichick quickly tapped on a strange-looking, humanoid Creation’s shoulder, one who happened to be passing by. Since the other group members were chatting about and resting up anyways, she figured it wasn’t going to be too big of a problem. She was glad to see her fellow teammates getting along - especially MCgamer, Candaru, and X, who had previously been arguing nonstop over frivolous and stupid things. Foxichick decided that now was as good a time as any to get some help.
“Um… excuse me, sir? My name is Foxichick. I was wondering if you could offer me some directions?”
The Creation turned and looked at Foxichick. He was a human-like character, one who seemed to be weary from travel (something Foxichick knew quite a bit about). His hair was black with a white highlight, and he wore a long yellow scarf along with green shoes that seemed custom-made (Foxichick had never seen anything quite like them before). His shirt was magenta with purple stripes (or possibly the other way around, Foxichick couldn’t tell. In his hand, he appeared to be holding a stone of some sort, and above his head there were several more objects levitating in the air - presumably more stones, although Foxichick couldn’t tell.
“Oh. Hey!” said the Creation. His voice sounded weary but not devoid of emotion - Foxichick could tell from experience that this Creation was searching for something.
“Do you know how to get back on the path that leads to Fightingland? I was hoping that my companions and I could get back on our way… judging by this area’s geography, we’re probably on the edge of Beastland, so that means Fightingland is close. Still… I was hoping I could get some more specific directions on which way to go…” Foxchick explained. “Without my companions knowing that I got lost, of course.” Foxichick laughed at her joke.
The Creation holding the runestone smiled. “You’ll want to go South, and then very slightly East. If you go south directly, you’ll just end up running into more mountains… and I’m trusting that you’ve been through quite a few recently? Based on your ragged appearance, of course…”
Foxichick was dumbfounded. “Y-Yes, I have been in the mountains of Horrorland recently… I’m on a quest to retrieve something of value that belongs to one of my teammates. We’re on our way to Cyberland, but I figured that it would be wise to rest in Fightingland for the time being. It might even be fun!” she suggested humorously.
The Mysterious Creation laughed. “You travel with companions? I’m… a little envious of you, actually. I’ve been wandering ImagiNation for a while now, searching for a purpose of some kind. I always wondered how it would feel to travel with others like me, searching for a purpose too. However, for right now, I’d prefer to work alone… but not forever, just until I get somewhere. In any case, best of luck to you, Foxichick.”
The Creation turned to leave. Before Foxichick could ask him his name, he turned around one more time to face her, almost as if he was reading her mind.
“My name is Neco.”
“Nice to meet you, Neco!” said Foxichick, waving to him from a distance as he began to walk away. “I’ll see you around. I hope you find what you’re looking for.”
…
Although it was named in a manner that would suggest an emphasis on combat and warfare, Fightingland actually had very little of either in it. Each Land merely served to represent a genre, or genres, and Fightingland was no exception. However, the genres it was meant to represent were more vague in comparison to other lands, even for Fightinglanders - in accordance with its name, Fightingland did represent the genre of Action, but moreso than senseless violence, it served as a tribute to legends and tales of old. It was even home to a plethora of mythological creatures, cryptids, and other strange creatures not found anywhere else. The atmosphere of Fightingland also brought about feelings of a strange, distant past where powerful and mystical Creations may once have reigned supreme - such was the beauty and majesty of “The Land of Endless Wonder”.
As Fightingland was a place where heritage and history were celebated, it was only natural that Martial Arts (and Arts in general!) were celebrated there as well, in accordance with its name. Many old Masters of several trades and diciplines passed on their knowledge and skills to apprenctices, hoping to continue their legacies, and maintain the value of practices that otherwise may have been forgotten. As a result, the diligence and training often held in Fightingland with high regard sometimes reminded many of old Feudal Asian cultures, in contrast to Fantasyland’s atmosphere of Feudal or Mideval European culture. These places, however, did not always carry all of the attributes of Continents from the Realm of the Creators, and the elements they were known for, such as diligence and respect, were not always found there. Many Creations were not even actively aware of the Realm of the Creators’ many locations - it was mere scientific fact that the Creators had a hand in the existence of ImagiNation and its people. ImagiNation’s populace did not worship the Creators, but they knew very little about them.
Following Neco’s advice, Foxichick regrouped with her team and eventually made their way to their destination. Fanwizard, the brave Dragon Warrior of the Lavaring Team, was happy. He had returned to Fightingland, his birthplace and the place at which he was trained in the Martial Arts by Master Morshu, the wise Sensei who had given Fanwizard tutelage after his father had mysteriously dissapeared. With his newfound allies and friends by his side, Fanwizard felt nearly invincible.
As the six members of the Lavaring Team continued their journey, Fanwizard and Foxichick could not help but notice that Candaru, LavaringX, and MCgamer (who had previously bickered almost incessantly) were more friendly with each other after the encounter with EDO. Being the oldest and most experienced of the group of heroes, they knew how teenagers often thought and acted. Candaru, X, and MCgamer (although most notably Candaru and X) seemed to have taken a leaf out of Sonuke and Cat-Me's book - instead of fighting, they acted as though they had known each other their whole lives. This made Fanwizard very happy - he was glad that the group no longer had the previous tension that seemed to be held between them.
The team continued to walk down the ancient Fightingland path, before Fanwizard noticed several lights in the distance.
"It appears we have walked close to a town, or a village! Perhaps we could take a short stop?" Fanwizard asked.
"Sure, why not!" said Foxichick. "I'm sure we could all use a break."
Fanwizard wondered if he would be able to see his family on this visit. The group was nowhere near his family's house, but ever since his father had mysteriously disappeared, Fanwizard had held his mother and brother in the highest regard and wanted to make sure that they were OK. Fanwizard had taken up tutelage under Master Morshu to help find and rescue his father (and had joined Foxichick's team, in part, to gain help with his quest). Although Fanwizard sought to save his father from whatever terrible fate had befallen him, he also cared deeply for his mother and younger brother, Dalgor (whom he had nicknamed Long-Long) Although it was unlikely he would be able to see them on this visit, Fanwizard still hoped they were alive and well.
"A town, huh? Sounds like a nice place to rest." MCgamer suggested.
"Well I guess it's settled! We'll head to the village and take a short break, sound good?"
After all of the Lavaring Team members agreed with Foxichick's suggestion, the team headed to into town. Before long, however, Fanwizard encountered a strange, robotic-looking Creation wielding a large axe, leaning against a wall. The strange Creation approached Fanwizard, who noticed that this Creation's armor had a silvery-bluish tint, like ice. The mysterious Creation was standing beside a building, and as the other Lavaring Team members headed off to explore the town, Fanwizard hoped that the mysterious figure would have some answers if he was to be asked.
"Ahem… excuse me, my good sir, but do you have any idea where we are in Fightingland, and if there are any places in this town at which my allies and I may rest?"
While speaking to the robot-like Creation, Fanwizard couldn't help but notice that the robot was somewhat out-of-place in Fightingland. Although Fanwizard knew he had no right to judge - Creations could live in any land they wanted, as the Lands system was a guideline and not a rule - it was still interesting to note. Still, Fanwizard also knew it wouldn't be right to think about it too heavily - he was a friend to all Creations, so any peculiarities among them meant very little to him so long as said Creations were good at heart.
"Yo, dude… what's Chillin'?" asked the ax-wielding Creation in response.
"I was wondering if you knew any places that my friends and I could stay for the night?" Fanwizard asked courteously.
"Yeah, dude, there are plenty of places you could rest up at. Who are you, anyways?"
"My name is Fanwizard. I was wondering if you knew of a place to stay for the night, and if you knew a way of safe passage to Cyberland."
"You're headed to Cyberland, dude? I'm guessing you heard the rumors then, huh?"
Fanwizard was confused. "What rumors?" He asked, his curiosity piqued.
"There's supposed to be this event they're setting up for... I don't know all the details, but it sounds like they're waiting for someone to come home. I hear there's this USB drive involved... something about somebody's memories. It sounds interesting."
Fanwizard was stunned. That does sound interesting, he thought. There was only one thing to do. He thanked the Ax-Wielding Creation for his time, and decided that the others needed to hear about this right away.
As Fanwizard said goodbye, the Ax-Wielding Creation introduced himself.
"My name's Chillax, by the way."
"I'm Fanwizard", said Fanwizard, as he went off to find the others.
***
Meanwhile, LavaringX sat next to Candaru in front of a beautiful lake; or, at least, did the closest thing he could to sitting with his body. It was dusk, and the sun had almost set, although some small lanterns were lit and were flowing downstream as part of some sort of celebration. Frogs hopped from lilypad to lilypad, as fireflies began to come out of hiding and prepared for their evening ritual. Candaru and LavaringX both sat awkwardly until LavaringX finally broke the silence.
"Hey, Candaru? I'm really sorry."
Candaru was stunned. Had she heard him properly?
"I'm sorry I'm such a jerk sometimes. I wish I was a better.... well, whatever I am. But I noticed you'
re irritated with my behavior and I wanted to apologize. I don't want to be a jerk. I want to be a good person to everybody."
"It's okay, no biggie." said Candaru, somewhat indifferently, as she turned away.
"If I could do things differently, I would. From now on, I'm not gonna be so... well... you know..."
There was a longer silence before X finally spoke again.
"I want you to know... you and all the others... you all mean a lot to me. I don't want anything bad to happen to you. I want you to know... I'll do my best to protect you! My friends mean everything to me. I won't let you down!" Said X, more excitedly than before.
Candaru turned towards X again, shocked. She didn't realize that X was capable of these kinds of feelings, and her respect for him began to rise. Candaru and X sat wordlessly for a long time, watching the final traces of light dissapear from the evening air. Finally, the sun had completely set, and the fireflies were finally out and about, performing their dazzling light show for all to see. In the darkness, Candaru finally found the courage to speak her mind, and let X know how she felt, too.
"It's OK, X. I'm going to do my best to protect you, too."
...