The Endless Forest

Finally realizing his mistake, Felix dashed after the kobold. I gotta stop him!

“Uzreg!” He yelled out, coming to a stop before one of the dens. “Leave the eggs and come out! You can’t take them!”

Felix took a few steps to block the entrance, keeping an eye on Uzreg the entire time. Inside, he could see the kobold stuffing several small fist size eggs into his clothes.

“Master! Please… Kobold need eggs, kobold need more–”

He cut the kobold off, “I know! But… But you can’t just take them like this!” Lowering his voice he continued, “They need to be kept in here for safety…”

Uzreg whipped around to face him, he could see tears forming under the eyes of the old kobold. “Uzreg plead with Master. Uzreg– No, kobold need more Masters. Kobold weak and stupid without…”

Huh? “What do you mean by that?” Felix took a couple more steps, trying to get closer.

“Kobold serve Masters, Masters give safety…”

Kneeling, Felix got eye to eye with the kobold. “Do… Do Masters treat kobolds like slave–”

“No!” Uzreg immediately snapped. “Kobold and Master exist to-geth-er…”

Interesting, perhaps it's not so much of a master-slave relationship as I feared… Wait, how do I know– You know what, I don’t want to know. He took a deep breath, thinking about how to handle this.

“Uzreg, what about me? You say I’m your Master, is that still true?”

The kobold seemed to ponder the question for a moment before finally answering. “Yes.”

“Then, can I ask something of you? If you want more–” He cleared his throat. “–Masters, then I will ask you to put those eggs back. If you do, I promise, starting tomorrow we will work together to get you more Masters.” He quickly added, “Otherwise Master will be sad.”

This is a longshot, but it will at least buy me a little time–

“Master promise?” Uzreg asked, sounding upset.

This is working a little too well… “I do, if I don’t hold up my promise, then I am not worthy of being your Master.”

Hearing that, the old kobold leapt onto him, causing him to fall over. “No! Master must stay Master! Uzreg trust Master! Master please! No leave!”

“T-then… Put the eggs back!” He managed to get out in between breaths.

Uzreg hopped off of him, giving him a chance to sit up and watch.

“Well done–” Aluin started to say, but Felix cut him off.

“Thanks…”

“No, I mean well done in creating more work for yourself. Those kobolds are going to expect a miracle…”

He frowned, “A miracle?”

The elf let out a soft and barely audible chuckle. “Yes, hatching dragon eggs isn’t easy, even for dragons. It takes time, sometimes it's a few days, sometimes it's years… I’ve even heard of one taking decades. And that’s with parents to watch over them and keep them safe.”

“How come none of these have hatched?” Felix asked, as Uzreg finished replacing the eggs. He couldn’t help but note that these ones almost had a faint glint of orange and red mixed with black.

“Because they are in hibernation. In other words, they won’t hatch unless they are in the right conditions. These dens are currently set to make sure those conditions don’t happen, and the eggs can stay like this near indefinitely.”

Felix frowned. “Current cond–”

“Master, Uzreg done.” The kobold said, interrupting him.

“Good job, please return back to your camp. I promise we’ll work together tomorrow.” He replied.

Uzreg gave him a quick bow and darted past him.

Felix let out a sigh, and stood up. “Now, what do you mean by current conditions?” He turned to face the elf.

“Well, there are enchantments placed onto each one of these dens.” He gestured for Felix to come to him.

“Enchantments?” Felix asked, walking up to the elf.

“Indeed, look here.” Aluin pointed to the side of the entrance.

Curious, Felix bent down and squinted. However, it was unnecessary. As he focused on it, several runes lit up. Oddly enough, he couldn’t read them but he knew what they did. Such a strange feeling…

Aluin continued on with his lesson. “The eggs are split into their respective clutches, I know the queen documented them. Unfortunately, I don’t know where she stored her notes, she never told me.

“Anyways, the dens are kept out of range of their respective environments. Simply touching these runes should be enough to change the climates.”

“I see…” The amount of magic that's in this place, it's incredible.

Aluin nodded his approval and looked up to the ‘sky.’ “Hmm, it’s already getting dark… We should go back, I’m sure Eri has finished preparing dinner.”

Felix winced upon hearing Eri's name. I don’t think I’m quite ready to deal with that… However, it didn’t seem like he was given a choice as Aluin already started making his way out of the hatchery.

That doesn’t mean I can’t take my time however… He wasn’t done exploring the place, and so, as he began to follow, he kept his pace slow.

He took note of a few things he missed initially, like the small motes of light that floated several feet over his head. He watched them flicker, as if they were candles. Bringing his view back to the walls, and more specifically, the murals, he saw something that looked strange.

Hah, as if this place isn’t strange enough… Still, he noted that off near one of the corners, was a doorway that led to– Nowhere?

Portal… That was the world that came to him.

A portal to where? He didn't have a clue, but he made yet another mental note to ask about it later. He moved on and peeked into a few of the other dens. Each clutch he saw looked unique, though they did have some interesting similarities. For example, they almost all appeared to have some black mixed into them.

The other colors varied widely, from deep reds to light blues, from green to gold. He saw enough variation that he was almost certain that they were completely random. Though, perhaps it's based on the parents?

Sadly, despite his best efforts, he found himself standing before the doors. Looking out into the kobold camp in the distance, he could just make out a frenzy of activity. Yep, I’m definitely going to regret this…

He sighed internally, and closed the doors. He felt the instant sensation of mana locking them. Turning back around, he picked up the pace to catch up with Aluin. The elf, for his part, glanced back every now and again, but did not slow down…

Eventually, they made their way back inside the manor and found Eri had already gotten their meals ready. She was standing at the table looking rather annoyed but said nothing as they entered.

All three of them sat down and Aluin apologized for them taking too long. Felix did the only thing he could, and stared at the bowl of stew in front of him. He wanted to avoid any more uncomfortable moments with the elven woman.

After Aluin apologized he began to eat, signaling to Felix and Eri both to also start working on their food.

Dinner progressed painfully slow. No one spoke, and no one wanted to. It was tense but Felix kept his head low, emptying bowl after bowl. He could feel the occasional stare coming from Eri, but nothing ever came of it.

Actually, what is going on? He was staring at his fourth helping. The food was good, but he was starting to wonder if this was normal. He glanced at Aluin who was only now getting a second bowl, he wasn’t sure about Eri but he thought she was still working on her first.

He felt a low growl, forcing him to continue eating. Something is definitely weird… He caught Eri staring at him again, she quickly looked away.

At least she isn’t sneering at me this time. Unsure how to break the silence, or if he even wanted to, Felix just went back to finishing his food.

In the end, he had six helpings and now he was definitely sure, this wasn’t normal. Both Aluin and Eri stopped at their second, but by then the pot had been almost finished. Once again, he felt guilty.

Before he could even open his mouth, Aluin stood up and finally broke the silence for them.

“Thank you for cooking Eri, as always, it was delicious. Would you be a dear and clean up? I have a couple of small things I need to discuss with Felix, then we shall leave.”

Eri nodded and got to work.

Felix quickly added his thanks only to look up in confusion at the elf. “Leave? You aren’t staying?”

Aluin smiled. “Afraid not, we have business to tend to in the morning. It will be easier if we return home tonight.”

“It’s already dark out though, wouldn’t it be safer…” He trailed off as the elf let out a light chuckle.

“Teleportation,” the elf responded. “We’ll be home in an instant.”

“Oh…” Huh, interesting…

Aluin cleared his throat. “Now, I did have a few final words for you.”

“Okay?” Felix still hadn’t shaken the awkwardness from himself.

“First, we will be back in three days. I’ll ask you to not attempt any magic until then.”

“I can do that…”

“Good, next is to be careful of the forest. The surrounding area is completely safe, but if you must travel deep into it, take some kobolds with you to be your guide. I’m sure Uzreg would agree with me on this.”

Felix nodded, “I don’t see any reason why I would need to go far, but I will heed your warning.”

“You never know,” Aluin said, shrugging. “Oh, speaking of the forest… I should warn you about the spirits– Little floating balls of light. They aren’t dangerous, in fact, they are generally a good sign. Still, I want to warn you so you aren’t surprised by them.”

He gave the elf a curious look. “Spirits?”

“Yes, you can ask the kobolds about them. They could actually tell you more about them than I could.”

“The kobolds?” He asked, a little surprised.

“The spirits are of dragons… It’s a long story, and one I don’t think I could do justice.”

He raised an eyebrow at that. Fascinating… I wonder if it's tied to why they are so desperate for eggs…

He was starting to wonder just how normal this all was. I just don’t know, but I get the feeling this is all very unique.

Eri stepped back into the room, snapping him out of his thoughts. “I’ve finished the dishes, Master.” Her tone was low and held no emotion.

“Ah! Good, then we can depart.” Aluin gave a respectful nod to Felix. “No need to see us out, we will be gone in the blink of an eye.”

“Oh, well then… Good night.” Felix stammered out.

“Good night Felix, we’ll be back in three days.”

Before he could be given the chance to respond, he felt a pulse of mana and suddenly found the room empty.

For the first time today, Felix found himself alone. He stood there suddenly unsure what to do. I could, uh, go check on the kobolds– He shook his head. No, bad idea…

He took a deep breath and stared down at the dark brown wooden table. Going to bed is an option…but I’m strangely not tired. Maybe I could check out the rest of the manor? I have yet to see most of it.

He let his breath out and left the dining room, heading to the room directly opposite of it, the drawing room.

Slowly, he entered and immediately took note of the decorations. A few red and gold tapestries lined the walls alongside several windows facing the far side. Colorful plants were in vases, neatly placed to accent the room.

There were several sets of chairs and couches, aligned at angles and facing out towards the windows. A similar rug, that he had seen in the sitting room, laid underneath them. There was no fireplace in this room, but something told him one was not needed.

Perhaps the one in the other room is just for decoration? That sounds strange, but Aluin also said it was all enchanted… Actually, why is the manor so sparsely decorated compared to the hatchery? I should have asked him when I had the chance…

He sighed, but decided to move back into the hallway. He looked to see if there were any other rooms downstairs; there was the kitchen, which while he had been through, he hadn’t truly explored. Honestly, though, he wasn’t entirely interested in it at the moment.

There is the library… Hmm, maybe I’ll save that for last. I think I might end up getting stuck there. With that decided, he was left with only one option. The second floor it is then.

He quickly made his way to the stairs, and glanced up, hoping to get a sneak peak. Unfortunately, there wasn't much besides another hallway from what he could tell. Undeterred, he began his climb up.

Making it to the top, the first thing he noticed was, besides a landing, the stairs angled and continued up to a third floor. Curious, he went up but frowned when he found they led to a locked door.

I’m definitely going to ask about that…

He went back to the second floor and observed the hallway. There was a singular door in the middle of the wall on the kitchen side. He started there, and found this door unlocked. He opened and peaked inside.

The room was cramped; with four bunk beds, a small table, two plain wooden chairs, and a small dresser. Besides the neatly folded linens, the air was dusty. Clearly, it hadn’t seen much use.

Servants quarters, was what he was told.

I guess the Queen– Fea had originally planned on having servants here, if I had to guess the kobolds. I wonder why she changed her mind… Again, he decided he would ask Aluin about it.

Closing the door, he turned back to face down the hall. There were four other doors, two on each side. He chose the closest one on his right.

Opening it, he found what was clearly meant to be a guest bedroom. A large bed sat towards the fall wall in the center, two windows surrounded it. Nearby was a decent size dresser, and a mirror.

He turned his gaze to the right and found another door. Again, curiosity got the better of him and he made his way to it. Opening, he found a…

Washroom.

This little room felt foreign to him, yet whoever, or whatever, that was giving him knowledge, told him what everything in this room was.

Sink… Toilet… Bathtub–

“Oh, that sounds nice,” he muttered to himself. “But not right now.”

He slowly closed the door and exited the room, making his way to the other side of the hall. Opening that room, he found… Another guest bedroom. He closed it, as it looked almost identical to the first one.

Crossing over to the second door on the right, he peaked in and frowned. It was completely empty, and, again, the air tasted of dust.

Seeing no reason to go in, he turned to face the last remaining door. So this is the Master's…chamber. He took another deep breath as he remembered the journal.

That’s right, it's in the nightstand… Now he was truly feeling nervous. Should he enter, or should he give up? He knew the journal was sealed with magic. He knew it held things about his past. But he still felt indecisive, as if entering this room would be the point of no return.

Closing his eyes, he tried to shove the thoughts away. It wasn’t working, his hands felt sweaty and he could feel himself trembling.

I can’t do it… I’m– “Scared.”

It was in his moment of weakness that he felt a presence from somewhere deep inside him. He could feel someone reaching out and carefully taking his hand into theirs. It felt soft and smooth, a hint of perfume wafted through his nose.

Their fingers intertwined with his, and for a single moment, he felt a calming sensation flood his mind.

He let out a gasp, as their hands parted. Opening his eyes, he found his hand on the door knob and tears running down his cheek. He swung the door open.

Felix couldn’t describe it, the room was nothing too special to look at, but there was a familiarity to it that caused him to drop to his knees.

“Why…” He tried to stifle his tears. “Why can’t I remember you?” He took a sharp breath. “I’m so sorry…”

He cried into his arms.

We are…

He lifted his head up in surprise, he had heard it… He had heard her voice. It was faint, but he quickly closed his eyes and tried to listen.

We are… Together… For–

No! Stay with me! It was fading fast.

–ever…

It was gone, her voice disappearing back into the void that were his memories.

For several minutes Felix sat there in silence, too emotionally stunned to think. However, eventually, he found his mind slowly working again.

Her words… We’re together forever. She’s in me…somewhere.

He paused for a moment, slowly realizing what he wanted. I want to– No, I will bring her back. I will find a way.

Standing up, he wiped the tears from his face and straightened his clothes. His eyes flickered first to the bed that laid against the opposite wall, then to the nightstand next to it.

With his head clear, he could feel the mana flowing from it. Ignoring the rest of the room, he walked, with slow and precise steps, to it.

Opening the nightstand, he found Fea’s journal. It was bound with brown leather and green cloth. It looked worn from heavy use and time, a reddish-brown stain marked one of the corners.

However, none of that caught his eye. No, it was the inscription that was written onto it that did.

For Felix, my love.