Chapter 2: Lean On Me.

As Naraja had felt his senses come back to him one by one. Toes, knees, stomach, arms, and then he had started to feel his eyes open and as Naraja opened them he noticed a black-crimson like orb that had floated a metre above him reflecting his face clearly in the shape of the black-crimson spherical. 

Naraja: “Huh, the hell. I know this wasn’t here last time and what the hell is up with my eyes….the pupil is weird as hell.”

Naraja knew deep down inside himself even if he had forgotten about who he was and only knew the name given to him with nothing else to go off on. Either way he knew that a person's eye or at least the pupil was not supposed to have the infinity symbol in it. Naraja examined his eye a little bit more and then heard---

???: “Would you like to keep going?”

Naraja: “UWAAAAAAAAH!!!”

Naraja had jolted out of his stone makeshift bed from the sudden voice that had developed from the black orb and then as he fell to the floor and fumbled around to recollect himself to see and hear what he heard was correct. He caught a glimpse of what he thought to himself to be a body sprawled out on the ground with a gaping hole in the center of its chest.

Naraja: “Is that...me?”

As Naraja said that he heard the orb say “Would you like to keep going” behind his back and as he heard that he whipped his head back towards the stoney makeshift bed and then back at the body that laid out on the ground in complete stillness with no life. No breath to hear nor be heard from the husk of a shell. Naraja had started to begin pondering or remembering on the thought that he just died to a mysterious black figure that had given his name when he didn’t even know who he was nor why he was here and then he remembered the blood and pain from that feeling. As Naraja felt this he had begun to feel a turmoil of emotions to the point of his stomach churning of sickness that he wanted to throw it all up, but couldn’t. He couldn't even begin to explain, but not only that, but because of his actions he was unable to protect and save anyone from those horrific deaths that they had to experience. Sadness.

That was the only word that Naraja could sum up with for his turmoil of emotions in that moment. 

???: “Would you like to keep going?”

After hearing that Naraja immediately recollected himself and started to inhale and then exhale and then had started to get up from the ground one foot and then his second foot. As he stood up to find the courage with his heart/soul he had to confirm something first that had lingered within Naraja. As he made his way back to where the black orb was, the black orb had begun to float towards his direction as well and as they finally came face to face, Naraja tilted his head to the right and just began to exasperate a deep sigh. 

Naraja: “Okaaay, I guess I’ll go first: Where the hell am I, you weird ass black orb?” “Why are my eyes like this?” “And why do I feel a little uneven in the way I stand?”

As Naraja demanded for his abundant amount of curious questions to be answered they unfortunately ended up getting ignored because the black orb had begun to float towards the cave entrance acting as if it didn’t hear a word Naraja had said at all. After Naraja had just witnessed the black orb ignore him he immediately called after it with an angrily “Hey!!”, but it kept on its floating travels towards the entrance as if something was attracting it...leading it, but Naraja didn’t put any more thought into it. He just shaked his head and started to walk back to where the rest of the people he had failed to protect from their untimely deaths...from that mysterious black figure that had inflicted immense pain on him as well. Naraja couldn’t let that thing get away the next time that he sees it. He swore it.

As Naraja glanced around at the rest of the people that had previously died he had started to wonder if what had happened was a dream or not, because that pain and all of those sensations were just too real. That was the reality that was starting to creep inside of Naraja’s heart and as it crept into his heart he had started to begin to feel a whirlwind of emotions beginning to surge inside of him. Even Naraja couldn’t comprehend what he was feeling, so all he could do was *sigh* and rubbed the back of his neck and continued to glance around the room.

Naraja: “Now, how do I wake these guys up?” 

As Naraja said that he heard a loud snore come from out of nowhere that had startled him out to the point he almost jumped out of his skin n’ boots, but he instead squeaked like a little mouse from the loud and un-anonymous roaring snore that just echoed around the forestry cave a moment ago. Naraja glanced around to unravel the mystery of whoever could perform a snore that loud should not be possible. As the snore started to calm down off in the distance, Naraja was able to identify the person that was capable of that horrendous snore just by closing in on it by walking over one foot in front of the other effortlessly and then he saw a lady whose features that were unknown to him, but yet, he still felt a strong sense of familiarity. A familiarity of mothership one might say. As Naraja sat his eyes upon her. This lady looked to be around 45 years old, but that didn’t stop Naraja from complimenting her features as her golden-brown velvet-y hair laid flat-out on the stone-work bed frame. As Naraja  glanced around the rest of the area and took the rest of the people into account in the back of his mind he also felt different senses of familiarity come from them. He could feel the sense of a father, a little sister, a brother, a comrade, a sense of a friend..or two, a companion and then as he looked over at the last person he noticed the last person to be a girl. A singular girl, who for some reason made Naraja breath freeze and halt in place. As he took in her features he noticed her silky-smooth brown hair sprawled out on the bed and blissfully relaxing features that would enchant and trap anyone, just like Naraja. As he stood enraptured by this mysterious girl's looks he shook his head left to right and then walked over towards her. As he inspected her further he couldn’t grasp this sense of familiarity with her yet. There was something there that not even Naraja could put into words. This sense that Naraja felt that shouldn’t exist, but he had to swallow and accept the reality of this peculiar sense regardless of whether or not he knew it in order to figure out where he was and how to get out of here. But another feeling arose inside of him that felt entirely different, it felt of something sinister lurking in the unknown of his emptiness. A sense of self-aversion had started to swell up inside of Naraja to the point he had to slap both of cheekbones to put some reality back into himself. He has felt this sense before. If he had to put his finger on this feeling it would have to be before he ended up dying at the hands of that vile and disgusting black mysterious figure. That was another mysterious identity Naraja had yet to uncover as well, but until then...

Naraja: “Hey! Orb! How do I wake these people up?!”

As Naraja called out at the orb that was still floating a metre above the ground at the cave's main tree-wooded and stoney entrance. The orb remained silent as it was unintentionally/intentionally ignoring Naraja’s call towards it. The orb continued to float and float without saying a word until…

???: “Would you like to keep going?”

Naraja furrowed his brows in irritation at the response from the orb that continued to float as if something was pulling it along with an invisible thread. As soon as the orb finished saying those words the middle at the top of the tree-cave had begun to open, forming into that of a hole that was beginning to let outdoor light illuminate on the inside of the tree-cave. Naraja couldn’t believe what his eyes were seeing, it looked like something that would be read straight out of a fantasy story or a fantasy movie that had passion, love, beauty, and work behind its creation as it formed itself into a viewing of light to illuminate the darkness that once shrouded the tree-cave. Naraja couldn’t believe it….

???: “Ummmmmm, would you mind please letting go of my hand there sir…”

As Naraja heard these words articulate through his ears and into his mind he shot his head back from the spectacular view of the tree into the eyes of deep warm golden-auburn brown irises. Naraja perked up once he looked into those eyes and saw and felt everything he had felt previously and felt presently were washed away immediately. He felt a sense of clarity wash away his mental struggle that he was just feeling a minute earlier, he felt a sense of purpose from looking into those eyes…but Naraja still couldn’t fully grasp this feeling yet. This feeling of love.. He could feel it for this girl that laid in front of him looking up at him with her face contorted full of questions and concerns on it. He could also feel it for the others as well as they were beginning to awake themselves from their slumbers on top of their stoney makeshift beds. But...but, yet Naraja couldn’t find nor feel that sense of love for himself. As he pondered over this thought he began to notice that his hand that was supposed to be by his side was indeed wrapped around the girl's hand as if it already knew where it needed to go or as if Naraja’s consciousness on his feelings of love had subconsciously led his hand into hers. Whatever the case was Naraja immediately felt his body temperature begin to rise and his heart beat beginning to pick up speed once the reality of everything had started to dawn on Naraja.

Naraja: “I-I’m sorry!!”

As soon as Naraja said that he plucked his hand back away from hers, not because of any acts of evil she did against him. No. The only reason Naraja had pulled his hand away from her so callously and vigorously was because of his newfound senses of feelings. Especially, the sense of love. This specific feeling was all too new and all too much for Naraja to handle even if it was just a simple gesture of holding hands. Even if it was simply just out of the sense of love his subconscious had for this girl. It. Was. Still. All. Too. Weird...

Nai: “Hi, my name is Nai. What’s your name?” 

   

   

    End of Episode 2: Lean On Me.