Arthur's Point of View

Unknown Location

For the third time since my forced travel to this godforsaken place, I woke with a start. Shuffling around and observing my surroundings helped little. From the looks of things, everything had changed again. I appeared to be in some manner of small cave or burrow. Not sure how I got here, but there was an entrance only a few feet away.

Walking out and stumbling left me feeling bitter. Sighing in frustration at my slow recovery, I felt my energy had been returning ever so slowly. After fighting with Tor only a few days ago and then coming here, my body was being put through its paces.

Using the cave entrance for support, I looked up to see a large stone bear face. The golem from before had adjusted its body to create shelter for me. It was a surreal feeling. This world was certainly different, and it kept throwing curveballs at me for sure, but before I passed out, I could've sworn I heard it speak.

However, upon backing away and looking at the impressive sight, I saw a waterfall where I caught a glimpse of my reflection. "What… The fuck…"

Moving closer towards the smooth falling water, I saw my left eye now matched my right eye. "Is something wrong?" A voice called out.

Jerking my head up, I saw the golem bear thing looking down at me. "So, I wasn't hallucinating you being able to speak." My mumble just got a titled head from the golem that was much to life like for a mere amalgamation of things. "Gesturing to my eyes, I replied. "My left eye is now the same as my right." I informed the golem.

It didn't seem to understand why that was unusual. "Aren't they supposed to match?"

"Technically speaking, yes, but my eyes are far from normal." Rubbing my face in an exhausted manner, I looked back into the waterfall flowing from the golem's body. "I mean… Just look at them."

"I admit that I don't pay close attention to one's eyes. Especially one who appears to be human." The golem stated. "More and more of you have been moving through the forest as of late." Noticing my look, the stone, tree, trunk, bush bear continued. "You okay? You seem confused."

"That's putting it mildly." Gesturing to the golem, I walked in front of it as I examined more closely. "So, I'm a little new at all of this, but can all golems talk, or are you just unique?"

Lifting its head as if struck, it looked down at me, almost offended. "I am no golem! I am a creature of the old world! Born and reborn in cycle after cycle."

Crossing my arms in a stumped manner, I just leaned forward slightly as I looked up at it. "Does that mean you're thousands of years old?"

The golem huffed in an annoyed manner. "I've just been reborn. It was a quick process. An Ancient Demon made of fire descended upon this forest not long ago and killed my mother. She knew dark creatures had been moving throughout the forest���s domain as of late. So, she began the cycle once more to create me."

I had no idea what the fuck this creature was talking about. "So, you were just born?"

"A few weeks ago, yes. Unfortunately, my mother was right, and she was set upon by the demons. She did her best to fight them off, but she created me to live on and did her best to give me time to run away."

"Then those demons from before were hunting you…" The 'old world' creature nodded. "I see."

"While I was running, I felt the presence of another old one." Gesturing to me with a wooden paw, it continued. "That's when I ran into you. I was hoping for aid, but you were more injured than I was. I've been on the run for days."

My arms fell to my side. "I'm sorry about your mother and thanks… For saving me."

The stone bear nodded and laid on its belly. "I should say the same. Thank you for saving me as well."

"You got a name?" I inquired as I looked about the forest.

"Normally, I would inherit my mother's name as I would slowly be reborn. That is no longer possible, so I am without a name."

"That won't do. Pick a name if you wish."

Shaking her head, she replied. "It's not that simple. I do not know any names. Not all of my mother's knowledge had carried over to me. It was supposed to be several months before the reincarnation was complete." Then she sighed as she looked off into the tree line. "Replacing her would never have been easy, but she did her best to give me a powerful body." It was like this world finally had another language cause I understood none of that.

Sighing, I spoke. "Okay. How about I give you a name?"

The creature paused for a moment. "Receiving a name from another creature of the Old World would be fine."

"I'm not from the Old World." I replied.

"You smell of our kind, and your presence is one that is similar to my mother and myself. If you're not from the Old World, what are you?"

I shrugged. "That is the question I've been trying to answer for the last few weeks." Shaking my head, I gestured to the giant bear once more. "So, knowing that I am not one of your kind, will you still be willing to accept a name from me?"

Pondering for a moment, the creature nodded. "I allow this. As the one who helped destroy those demons and save my life, receiving a name from you is more than acceptable."

"Now, hear me out… What do you think of the name Bear?"

Bear looked less than impressed. "Your naming sense leaves much to be desired. I'm aware of my resemblance to the creature you speak of, but I am not a simple bear."

"So, no?" Bear shook her head. "Fair enough." Thinking about other names that would fit, I smirked as I looked up at her again. "What about Kandma?"

"Kandma…" Bear repeated. "Kandma. I like it. This name is acceptable. From this day forth, my name will be known as Kandma!"

Never tell her what it means. "Perfect!"

"What is my savior's name?" Kandma inquired.

"Before I answer that, can you tell me if others can understand you? Are you able to talk to just anybody?"

"I've never heard of Human, Elf, or Dragon who could understand our kind. Perhaps a Druid, but it'd be very rare even among them. Most of my memories from my mother show me that most races leave us alone. Although, given our size, I can hardly blame them."

"Mmh. I see. If that's the case, then my name is Arthur. At least, it's the name I go by in Lestrania."

Kandma nodded slowly. "So, you're a Lestranian. Seems many people are flocking to that nation as of late. Certainly, the first time that so many races have come together as one. I give it a few years before it collapses."

Now I was thoroughly confused. "A few years? Has something happened as of late that I have not been informed of?"

Giving me a confused look in return, Kandma spoke. "Not that I am aware of?" She replied in an unsure manner.

Sighing, I nodded. "Alright. Well, do you know where we are? I kind of got transported here by a fucking Elf."

"Elven magic is unreliable most of the time. At least, that's what my mother remembered about it." Then she looked around. "I am also unsure of where we are. I've not left this forest in the three weeks I've been apart of this world."

"Well, there is no sense in staying here. Do you eat?" Kandma nodded, and I gestured for her to follow me. "Then let's go get some grub. I'm starving." As we walked through the forest, a few thoughts plagued my mind. "Before, you mentioned an Ancient Demon attacked your mother. What is it?"

"As the name implies, it is a Demon that has lived throughout the ages. While most are incredibly powerful, their power also varies from Demon to Demon. They're old, and in their time in this world, they gain the power to destroy anything and everything."

They sound like they're possibly what Tor is, but I wasn't positive. He was certainly powerful, but an Ancient Demon doesn't sound like it would go out of its way for their Queen. Plus, this one was made of fire, which differed greatly from Tor. Maybe they weren't similar Demons at all. I still didn't know enough about this world and its races to come to a conclusion.

While walking through the forest, we stumbled upon a stream, where Kandma drank it almost entirely dry until some more trickled down from the source. She informed me that she lived mostly on water and could also live on meat and vegetables. With the creek emptying and refilling, fish were easy to nab.

As we ate and drank, Kandma spoke up as she looked at me. "Why were you so surprised about your eyes?"

"If you have your mother's memories about Humans and Elves, surely you can understand why my eyes would be considered abnormal." Taking a bite out of one of the fish, I continued. "There also other things on my mind that concern me greatly."

Like the fact that I now looked very similar to that depiction in the Book of Prophecy. "I see. Being somewhere new is frightening to many creatures. Even myself."

Looking around, I nodded in agreement as I held my fish over a fire. "Being lost doesn't help." Taking another bite after pulling my fish off the fire, I continued. "We need to get out of this forest and figure out where we are." Kandma looked concerned about that. "Don't worry. No one is going to hurt you with me around."

"I feel so much better already." Was her snippy reply.

Rolling my eyes, I explained. "Look, I was weak from being portaled via Elf magic since it continued to drain me for some strange reason. My strength is returning as we speak." Then I glanced over her wounds. "What about you? I see all manner of knicks and chunks missing from your body. Will you be okay?"

"It will repair itself over time. Nothing I can do too much about for the moment. Much like most living creatures, our wounds take time to heal." Then she blew air at me through her nose, and my hair fluttered about. "Although, you heal faster than any creature I've ever seen. With your wounds, I thought you were a goner."

"Disappointed?"

"Mildly." Kandma answered, amused.

Rolling my eyes once more, I replied with a smirk and a scoff. "I'll keep that in mind."

We were quiet as the two of us thought about our different and similar situations. There were a lot of unknowns right now, and me being unfamiliar with everything was starting to piss me off in multiple ways. Not to mention my left eye was now as abnormal as my right, so keeping a wrapping over it no longer mattered.

"Can I ask you a question?" Kandma inquired as we started to move through the forest once more.

Really wanted to tell her she just did, but it wasn't the time or place for dad humor. "Go for it."

"You said you're not one of our kind, but you certainly aren't a normal human either. You also stated you were trying to figure out what you were as well. I've been thinking about it constantly since we met, and I am no closer to understanding your words." She stated and then looked down at me. "Is it because I am still young?"

"No. This isn't one of those times. Look," I started and began explaining things to the best of my abilities.

I told her many things. Including how I wasn't from this world. Why did I share this information with her? Mostly because she couldn't tell anyone else. A Druid might be able to understand here, but Druids were far and few between from my understanding of things. Plus, I felt like she deserved it. Kandma, whether meaning to or not, saved my life.

In turn, she told me that she would eventually be the same size as her recently deceased mother, who was almost the size of a mountain. It was hard to imagine something that size moving around much, and it became abundantly clear why they would reincarnate every so often. I was also slightly more concerned about a demon attacking a creature that size.

"Finally!" I groaned as we exited the edge of the forest.

Kandma huffed in response. "That forest was my home. I am not at all thrilled that we had to leave. We could've stayed."

"Let me think…" I paused and looked back at the forest. "Stay in the demon-infested forest with an Ancient Fire Demon running about somewhere," I began and then turned back around. "Or leave the forest and figure out where we are."

"Says the man that claims he could easily take care of the demons in question." She sassed back.

"Regular demons without my sword, yes. An Ancient Demon? Maybe. Not sure, to be honest. Haven't met one yet, to be sure." Then I shrugged. "Besides, what's the worst we could run into out in the open?" I asked the giant stone bear.

At that moment, the wind picked up, and from nowhere, a cloak hit me in the face. "Being hit by random things is a good start." Kandma pointed out.

Removing the cloak from my face, I glared playfully up at her. "Isn't it?" I asked back rhetorically and then examined the cloak. "You've gotta be kidding me." My dull tone got Kandma to lean down next to me and examine the cloak with me. "This is a Ghoul's cloak. They wear these to cover their facial features with magic or some shit. I haven't seen Elves or anyone else use them, so maybe it's Demon magic?" I offered.

Sniffing the cloak, Kandma replied. "It smells of magic, to be sure."

Quirking a brow at that, I looked at her. "You can smell magic?"

She nodded. "It's a very basic sense for us, but that's not all I smell." Kandma told me as she gestured to the cloak with her snout, and I flipped over the cloak to reveal bloodstains on the fabric. "Blood is also present. In fact, I smell it in the air." She sniffed the wind as it passed by and snorted. "A lot of it."

"You think the Ghoul is injured?"

"That's not Demon blood." She answered. "There is a difference in smells."

"So, a Ghoul is killing people. Got it." Looking down at myself and my mangled shirt, I removed it and put the bloodied cloak on. "What do you think?" I asked as I flipped the hood up and ignored the likely innocent blood that decorated my new cloak.