Shifters

A Baffling Return

An eerie stillness filtered through the battlefield as clouds of dust, still yet to settle from the previous skirmish, hung lazily in the air as the group made their return to safety. Although they only witnessed the remnants of the skeletal army littering the parched earth, several instances of dried, blood spatters made it evident that their side also suffered heavy losses. Still maintaining his distance from his peers in order to avoid further questioning, the boy remained in a constant state of tension as he struggled to figure out how he was supposed to relay everything he'd learned to them. Part of him wished he could delegate the responsibility of breaking the news to someone else, however, despite his unwillingness, he knew that no one else would be able to explain what had transpired aside from himself. As he continued to make his way across the field, a warm breeze blew over the land, disrupting the silent, eerie atmosphere as it went. 

Before he could enjoy the welcomed change, a flurry of footsteps came from behind, slightly startling him as they approached with haste. Quickly whirling around to face the newcomer, Josh relaxed a bit as he spotted Patricia's flushed face staring at him with concern. 

"Is everything okay?" Patricia asked, wheezing as she halted at his side. 

"Not really no," Josh replied, staring as the girl fought to catch her breath. 

"I wish I could say I understand what you're going through," Patricia replied, listening to Josh as he explained his predicament, "However, aside from Joana and the limited time I had around you, I've not exactly had contact with anyone else beyond the Library."

Face darkening at the mention of Joana, Josh, who clearly wanted to avoid her as a topic, decided to change the conversation as he continued, "It must have been really lonely being there all by yourself."

"You've no idea," Patricia replied, staring at the ground as she walked alongside him, "Most times I can bear it by reading, however, there are times where even I am not capable of handling the loneliness. Honestly, it can be crippling being alone for that long."

Realizing his error in resurfacing such a delicate matter, Josh placed an arm over Patricia's shoulder, slightly startling the girl. 

"I can't claim to know what that's like-" he said, stopping short as a strange feeling tugged at his heart as he spoke. 

'Can I really say that?' he questioned mentally, as the feeling persisted.

Although he was surrounded by others since his awakening, his lack of memories had constantly made him feel uncomfortable around them whether they were friend or foe. In his own way, he too had felt a certain sense of dread since his awakening which resulted in a feeling similar to what Patricia was going through currently. 

"Perhaps I do know how you feel," Josh muttered, causing the girl to switch her gaze over to him, "I don't even know who I am. For all I know, you and everyone here could be allies or maybe you're past enemies of mine. I have no real way of knowing and so far, every single promising avenue that I've explored has been unable to uncover much," Josh said hurriedly as though afraid someone would attempt to hinder him from speaking, "In that aspect, I truly am alone, despite whoever's around me!"

As he relayed his true feelings to Patricia, a wave of energy flowed from his ring into Patricia sending a surge of emotions through the girl. Experiencing a never before drowning sense of dread, Patricia struggled to hold back involuntary tears as the feeling filled her completely. 

"Josh," she said, faltering as tears now fell freely from her eyes.

"I'm sorry," the boy replied, letting go of her as he noticed her discomfort, "Looks like I overshared a bit."