Nostalgia.

This was the first thing that came to mind after seeing the wide streets of the city. Although I could not say for sure how long I was in that abyss, I was confident that it was not a short one at all. In fact, part of himself wanted from the bottom that things had not changed at all.

However, Arlhen understood that his desire was as distant as the stars. There were many structures that he did not remember, from broader houses to businesses that seemed to have sprung up out of nowhere.

Only that little moment was enough to understand that he did not stay inside that strange place for so little, the reality before his eyes seemed to slap him every time he went deeper into the city. This made his footsteps become faster as he moved forward, fearing to arrive even a second later at his home. But, his steps began to become slower and slower the closer he came to what he once called home. Finally he stopped once he was in front of what was once the restaurant of his memories, and then ...

He remained static as if it were a statue.

-What is this? Arlhen could not help but stammer as he looked at something completely different from what was in his memory. No matter how many times you have simulated this possible event inside your mind, when it was time to face the truth with your own eyes, different emotions shook your heart.

He stood motionless before that store of musical instruments, waiting for something to happen. He was not sure what, but it was as if even in such a situation he clung to a nonexistent hope. Of course, after staying there long enough for the sun to begin to hide, nothing happened.

Just then, when the last vestige of the day began at dusk, the door that separated it from the store was opened from within. At that moment, a small trace of expectation shines in Arlhen's eyes.

But it disappeared as quickly as it arrived.

- Boy, have you been standing outside my store for a while now, are you going to buy something? If it is not so then it is better that you go, I am about to close. -An old man who seemed to be entering the sixties was the one who answered.

-I'm sorry. I-it's just that I ... I-I did not mean it, I was just a little distracted. -The person in question seemed not to take importance to the words of Arlhen, turning around to return to his tasks. However, the moment he seemed to withdraw, Arlhen's voice rang again. I waited! E-wait. You could tell me how long ago he works here.

-This is a quite popular place in the city, do you tell me that you still do not know my store? The man seemed a little uncomfortable at the boy's question. But as soon as he saw the desperate expression in Arlhen's eyes, he let out a deep sigh and resigned himself to answering. I've settled here for a few years, do not ask me how many exactly I'm too old to remember, but I think it should be about five maybe ... N-boy, what's wrong with you? Hey, what's wrong with you!

«C-five years?»

-Ah? N-no ... n-it's nothing. I-I'm fine ... I'm fine. I-I just want you to tell me something else. C-Do you know the people who sold you this place? Although Arlhen looked like he was about to lose his mind at any moment, he still struggled to ask the question that interested him most.

-I think you mean the old owners, right? I'm sorry, but when I first arrived here this place was already vacant, the only thing I did was negotiate with the mansion's officials ... Well, if that's all you need to know then this old man will go to sleep, My age is difficult to stay with energy for so long. You should also go to your house to rest, boy, you do not seem quite right.

«They were not here?»

Once the old man disappeared from Arlhen's line of sight, the latter began to walk with wobbly steps to the other extreme. When he reached a small free alley of people, his body lost strength as he leaned his back against the wall and slid down.

"Five years. Five years. Five years. Five years. Five years. Five years. Five years. Five years. Five years. Five years. Five years. Five years. Five years. Five years. Five years. Five years "

Arlhen hugged his knees while his eyes showed no trace of life, it was as if nothing caught his attention. A multitude of thoughts invaded his mind, a flood of questions flooded in his head, but right now none of that mattered. The only thing he craved now more than answers was ...

Escape from reality.

...

The warmth of the light filtered through a gap between Arlhen's arms and hit his face, this caused the young man to release a small whimper of displeasure. However, that did not prevent him from waking up over time.

After enough time passed, the young Bareare returned to his state of lucidity while inspecting his surroundings. Of course, he was not surprised when he realized that he was in the same alley last night.

«So this nightmare is real»

When Arlhen managed to stand up, he realized that an intense feeling of hunger began to bother him. Only then did he remember that he had not eaten anything since he left the river on that occasion, in fact, if he thought about it more thoroughly he might notice that he had not really eaten anything since he fell into the abyss.

-I have to look for something. Without thinking twice, he went to one of the nearest markets. Although many things had changed, that did not mean that the city had undergone a drastic transformation.

The places of wide concentration would take whole decades to change, this was especially true for the central square, the mansion and the great centers of commerce. So even after several years, Arlhen still found a way to reach his destination through his memories.

The first thing he did once recognized the commercial streets was to head towards the center, once there he went to the different food businesses and volunteered in exchange for a dish. Of course, because of its ragged appearance and dubious provenance it was rejected everywhere.

-Go off once, lazy. We do not work here so that people like you make fun of us. If you want to eat something then get yourself a job like normal people and do not come to pity.

-Hey, do not you think you're being very tough? He is only a boy. Not all of us were born with the same possibilities, what is a plate of food?

-Don't say idiocies! The owner has been very clear with his policies, we can not break them just for a vagabond. Pay attention to me, I have experience with this type of people, they seek to hurt others so they can take advantage of others.

-How can you say that? You can not see that ...

The discussion among the workers did not seem to end, so Arlhen changed his mind and asked to borrow something to write and a marker. After that, he started writing some words on the sheet and sat cross-legged on the side of the street.

It works in exchange for a plate of food.

For Arlhen's bad luck, although he had several skills in the field of study and martial arts-in addition to some cooking techniques taught by his family-none of these was useful in this situation. His simple appearance discarded two of his aforementioned abilities, while the little interest in the fighting arts made it almost impossible for anyone to be interested in the latter.

People kept walking around and completely ignoring the boy, this stayed the same for at least several hours. Each time the young Bareare felt that the hunger became more unbearable, it was not something of little importance, after all the time that he was without eating he was really beginning to faint.

During that time, the idea of ​​stealing came up in his head several times. However, Arlhen kept repeating to himself that he would not do something like that until he was on the verge of collapse, because he still clung to the possibility of someone offering him a hand.

Just then, in the midst of the boy's ramblings, a commotion with several cries came a few meters away. When Arlhen gathered the few remaining forces to focus his vision, he could see how the silhouette of a man fleeing from the guards approached his position.

- Get the thief! It is taking money from sales this month. A merchant began to scream in despair as he pursued the perpetrator.

Once he got the full picture of the situation, Arlhen got up as fast as he could and threw a blow at the thief who passed by him. What happened next was that the man's body shot out to the side of the road, then proceeded to crash into a crowd that was walking by.

A second later, a small tinkling bag fell into the young man's hand. This was the same bag that the thief had in his possession, but due to the force of the impact with which he was hit, the object escaped from his hands.

-E-this ... Incredible! G-Thanks, boy, how did you do that? -The merchant put an expression of happiness to see how the thief had been defeated. However, the features on his face did not take long to change. What are you doing?

-I'm going to take a couple of coins, there's no problem, right? Arlhen showed five silver coins before returning the bag to its owner.

-C-of course not. - Under normal circumstances the merchant would have bothered. However, the person in front of him had saved much of his earnings, how could he get angry? It was a great relief that he had not lost his money.

Although at first the pedestrians had a heroic impression by the boy's actions, which he showed then removed any trace of respect that could have him, from his point of view Arlhen was only an exploiter. Even so, although Arlhen was stabbed by dozens of looks full of contempt, he kept walking with his head held high and without showing a bit of embarrassment, this was because he knew that in his situation the kindness would not feed him.

When he arrived in front of the store where the workers refused to help him earlier, they remained static for a moment before reacting. Until recently the oldest of them was insulting the boy without stopping, but now he had just seen him tear down a man of his constitution in the blink of an eye. How could he not be scared? His forehead was already covered with sweat and his face was adorned with a silly smile.

-D-distinguished young man, e-how can I help you? Stuttered the once arrogant man showing a respect that would make one doubt if the same person was really. This was true, if he had known that the ragged young man was someone whose strength reached such a degree, he would not have dared to despise him even if he had seven lives.

-This. Give me all the food you can buy with this. Arlhen showed the five silver coins in his hand before releasing them onto the table. His condition was not exactly good, although he should be quite animated because now he could fill his stomach, worry about his parents' fate still tormented him. It is not as if he had forgotten it, only that the hunger he felt made him prioritize some things over others, but now that he had already managed to solve that problem, the multiple questions about the welfare of his parents began to invade him again.

The workers had a look of amazement when they noticed the desperation with which the young man consumed the food. This was the first time they had seen someone so eager to eat, even the vagabonds who frequented instead showed the same desperation to feed. It was also due to this that the employees could not avoid looking at each other with a small trace of pity. How long was it without eating?

After enough time, the young Barearae withdrew from the market while wandering in his thoughts looking for a place to start. During his time in the small restaurant, he was asking about what happened in recent years. To his bad luck, there was no mention that he could link with his parents. However, there was something that attracted Arlhen's attention, something he clearly remembered since he had lived it in his own flesh.

If one were to ask people about the most mentioned events, the first thing that would come to mind would be about the ferocious massacre that occurred in one of the entrances to the city. This was one of the most terrible events that struck the tranquility of Athame, but that undoubtedly remained fresh in the memory of all.

«This reminds me ... Thea, what happened to you? Are you still here? ... What am I thinking? First, I need to know where my parents are. But, where can I start? »