The Lands of Ralosia & Ranuulo- Short Story Collection

Ichino Tundra Chapter 5- Why waste time?

~Chapter 5- Why waste time?~

There was no sign of any way out, and the cold was beginning to affect the boys. Cook was unaffected by the cold but was afraid for different reasons. Starvation and dehydration mainly. Cook procured a flame to help keep the boys warm, figuring that his best chance of escaping was with their help.

Aero was thankful that he had Hopper wait outside of the cave, otherwise, he'd be trapped in here with him, or worse. But, he was scared too. Scared that he may not get out. That he wouldn't see his family or friends again. That he wouldn't see Oopa again.

If he did make it back, Aero still wasn't sure what he'd do. But, he wasn't alone. As strange as an idea it was, maybe Cook or the Masked Boy could help him. It couldn't hurt, could it?

The Masked One was running his hand along the periphery of the cave, looking for a weak point, "I have to get out," He muttered, "Too many are counting on me."

Aero figured he might as well ask, "Mind if I ask you a question?"

"Depends."

"It's about a girl."

The Masked Boy glanced at Aero, "I mean, I'll listen."

"Alright, there's a girl from the village I'm staying at and we've been seeing each other for a while. Before I came here, her dad suggested we get married, and I'm not sure what I should do."

"You're a little young to get married, aren't you?" Cook pointed out.

"That's what I thought! But I should make up my mind by the time I get back."

The Masked One groaned as he patted down part of a wall, "You Ralosians are so fickle."

"You're Ralosian too."

"I don't see it that way. Where I'm from, any day could be your last. You couldn't afford to waste time. But in the Lands of Ralosia, people will waste years of their lives making up their minds, as if they're going to live forever."

Cook puffed out his chest, "Don't get married. Why would you settle for a single woman?"

Aero didn't like the idea of being with many girls. He knew Oopa wouldn't like that either.

"I think there are two simple questions you should ask yourself," The Masked One asked, "Do you like this girl?"

"Yeah."

"Do you see that changing?"

"No."

"Then what's your problem? The answer is obvious," The Masked boy said, "We could die in here. Why waste time?"

When he said it like that, it seemed obvious to Aero, "Thanks!"

The Masked One nodded.

There was still no clear sign of a way out. The walls seemed solid, and the risk of a cave-in dissuaded them from breaking their way out. But they had to do something soon or risk freezing.

A high-pitched noise reverberated through the cave and the three stopped.

"What is that?" Cook whipped his head around.

Aero listened carefully as the noise came again, "Hopper!"

He listened closely, trying to find the focal point of the high-pitched bark, following the noise before finding a corner of the cave. Aero increased the size of his focus light and noticed cracks in the wall which the sound came through, "I can hear my dog through here. This wall must be thinner than the rest."