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Chapter Eight: Better Days in Weird Ways

“Well, that was fun wasn’t it?” Koza said, referring to the blockade of ARK soldiers they had demolished on the bridge.

“Hehe… I thought so,” Tera commented. The sun was high in the sky at this time of day, making it hotter than usual. Koza absolutely hated hot weather, and wasn’t doing so well. The fact that he still hadn’t healed 100% didn’t make things any better. He was having some difficulty walking, but he managed nonetheless. Tera kept a close eye on him just in case.

“Was it this hot over at the bridge?” Koza asked, wiping his forehead.

“Honestly, I didn’t really notice. I was having too much fun beating the tar out of the ARK soldiers,” she replied. Koza sighed and said,

“First time I’d be happy to see a few trees around. I could use the shade, but of course they’re nowhere to be found. Always around when you don’t need them, and when you do they disappear.”

The heat was really getting to Koza. He had to stop and kneel down to rest. Tera stopped as well and sat down next to him.

“You ok?” she asked worriedly. Panting slightly, he nodded. Tera suggested that they rest for a minute. Koza insisted that he was fine, and it was smarter to keep going, as there may be another town near. Tera reluctantly agreed, and the both stood up and kept going.

They went on until nightfall. The weather cooled off when the sun went down. Koza felt better almost immediately.

“Ah… much better…” he said. “Lets keep going on. No sense wasting time around here.”

“What’s the big rush?” Tera asked.

“Just think we could cover more ground at night when it’s cooler,” he explained.

“Good point… Onward to who knows where!” Tera said cheerfully. On and on they walked, all through the night. The farther they went, they noticed that the temperature seemed to keep dropping and dropping. By the time the sun barely started to come up, it must’ve been at least 30 degrees out. Koza and Tera could both see their breath as they walked.

“Alright, that’s more like it!” Koza exclaimed. Tera seemed confused.


“Wait… I thought it was supposed to get warmer the closer it came to sunrise? Why is it getting colder?”

“I have no idea. Not that I’m complaining.” Koza said.

“Ok, lets stop for a minute. I bought a map back in Aurum Town before we left. Maybe we can figure out where we are. The weather might have to do with the area we’re in,”
Tera suggested.

“Worth a shot,” Koza said. Both of them stopped for a minute, and Tera pulled out the map. Taking a few minutes to realize that she had been holding it upside down the whole time, they found Aurum Town on it. Following the path that was drawn, they found that they were on a lone road called Route 13, which apparently lead to a place called “Winter Ridge.”

“I like the sound of this place,” Koza said after reading the map. “Sounds nice and cold. This should be fun.”

“Awesome! I love the cold!” Tera said excitedly. “Ice and snow all the way!”

“Well now, that was unexpected. Most people can’t stand the cold,” Koza said.

“You kidding?” Tera answered. “I can’t get enough of it!”

“You and me both,” Koza said.

As they were talking, something started to happen around them. Grey-white clouds started to form overhead, slightly darkening the area. Tera and Koza looked up at the sudden decrease in light. Both of them then had a small snowflake land on their foreheads, which made it melt on impact. A soft snowfall started soon after.

“Its snowing!” Tera shouted happily. The stillness of the early morning caused her voice to echo. Koza stared up at the snow as it gently coated the surrounding area in a thin, white sheet.

“Well what do you know?” he said softly. It had been a while since Koza had actually seen fresh snow falling like this. It was truly a beautiful sight to behold. Tera put the map away, and they walked on through the soft snowfall. The sun had just barely started to come over the horizon. The sunlight refracted off every individual falling snowflake, creating millions of small, swirling lights dance around the two travelers. While walking, Tera’s hand accidentally bumped into Koza’s. She blushed and expected him to pull his hand away, but he didn’t. Curious, she moved her hand closer to his on purpose this time to see what would happen. Koza looked over, smiled, and grabbed her hand gently, causing her to blush even more. However, neither of them pulled their hands away. They ended up holding hands the rest of the way towards the next town, smiling.




Next Chapter: The Demon in the Snow