Dungeon in Distraught

Kolby sat on the snow-covered rock outside of his Alaskan home. Silently anticipating where the wind would take him next, reminiscing on the past month. Reflecting on what he believed to have been lost, an amalgamation containing both positive and negative emotions seeped through his being. Young, brave and stubborn–Kolby lived up to be his father’s son. His new profound friend, Hope, only stirred these qualities that laid within him even more flamboyantly. Being rather young he was bound to make many more mistakes, much to his dismay. Nonetheless, in time shall he unveil the tale of the struggles of unlocking hidden treasures that lay dormant. Waiting patiently to be discovered, in the Dungeon of distraught the yarn folds silently.

Without fail, whenever in a foul mood Kolby retreated back to his childhood home, just off the outskirts of the forest. Where peace of mind comes naturally, Kolby has always had the perception of a slight hot-head. A grin slightly crept upon his frosty appearance, glancing back at the small, ancient building. Looking back, when he was a younger lad; playing in the yard with eight of his siblings, they were never afraid to be callous with the boy. Kolby has always had some sort of durableness to him. Admirable, but in the eyes of others it was anticipated as destructive. Heartbreakingly, in time, he would find himself alone in situations where others would be cheerful, social and accepting. It was as if he was consuming poison, declining that it would affect him, only to watch the toxicity slowly affect every fiber of his body–until he was no longer.

His shaggy brown hair and puppy-like green eyes, slightly tinted hazel–made Kolby all the more alluring. As his presence matured, his wardrobe consisted of dark clothing, with hopes of durable and efficient seclusion. 'One with the shadows,' as he might’ve referred. His siblings adored his rather weird and quirky personality, for he was the youngest of them all, the baby. His fingers brushed against the snow-covered grass, feeling the ground beneath him. Distant memories of his siblings began to pour into his mind, raining in on him as a constant reminder that he would never again be able to relive those precious moments.

Years before, a war broke into the area. Devastating the land towards the city and contaminating the resources that aided the villagers. It was a revolution, an uprising that started many years before but had only caused chaos when the peacekeepers failed in keeping the peace. Corruption consumed the land, wreaking havoc upon the rich, poor, and the helpless. Nuclear bombs had killed off most of the population, harming the ecosystem and most of the animals within the nation as well. Kolby was unaware of his siblings' whereabouts. They were separated during the madness and when the bombs went off; he’d seen his mother and father–who’d always been his blanket of protection–fall victim to the explosions that dropped from the warships above.

“Kolby-” a soft voice called out. He instantly softened at the sound. His ears lowered, his animal-instinct like features were indisputably one of the most distinctive qualities about him. Glancing back a couple hundred yards to the never ending forest, a feminine figure unmasked from the band of trees. Moments after, a gentle, feeble smile inches upon the familiar face, as she calls out to her cherished friend. In the distance, sounds of aircraft piqued his unnatural hearing, remembering that the world he once knew was no longer. Turning his heel and scampering off towards the forest, he never looked back.

With a melancholic-charm, Kolby darted with haste deep into what he would refer to as his new home. Hesitantly transitioning into his animal phase, he called out to his dear companion. Where she gladly joined as he scurried to their post, violently holding on to his fur like a good-luck charm–afraid that if she was to let go she would plummet back to the old life she was desperately trying to run from.

“Hope, why would you leave, knowing your condition?” He barked, trying his hardest to let his tone go undetected. “For someone with a head as big as yours, your brain must not be up to par, you know,” He teased, dodging the trees with swiftness. Notwithstanding his rather strong impulsiveness, he wasn’t the best at holding his temper, nor concealing his emotions.

“You’d been gone a while after our last talk. And I knew where you’d be, so I came because I was worried,” She coughed out, her emphasis soft yet willful. Her long stormy-grey silver hair contrasted against his dark coat, metallic and magnetic. She’d felt a glimpse of regret overcome her for a moment-the aftereffects screaming various strain on her body.

Any longer and she would have collapsed. Much to Kolby’s displeasure, would have undoubtedly edged the two closer to the brink of insanity. He worried for her as much as she for him, undeniable that they were somehow unknowingly in sync.

“Worry about yourself,” He spat coldly, frustration consuming him. If he had had a couple of more moments, a final goodbye could have been uttered from the boy; only to realize that there was not a person to say farewell to. For now it was only an empty shell, vacant and cold. Regretting his frosty, bitter tone–he attempted to chat about another subject, “How did you manage to come this far anyways? Knowing you, your clumsy ass wouldn’t have even been able to get at least half a mile from our base.” He scoffed, remarking towards the girl again that Hope was in no shape to help herself.

With Kolby’s new profound curiosity, immense irritation began to flood her being. She did not take kindly to being underestimated, teased nor belittled in any form. “Was that supposed to be funny? You know you really have a way with words.” A cloud of antagonization internally sailing above the two as she blew a white strand of hair over her face. “I’ll have you know, it’s not easy trudging through these forests–the air is thick, smells like dirt and don’t even get me started on the morning fog. This terrain is unknown and quite hazardous.” A chuckle erupted from Kolby’s mouth, a sprinkle of anger triggering the remarkable female.

“Unknown to you,” he muttered softly. “Beats the dungeon,” he stated overtly. All expression leaving her face, he continued, “I didn’t tell you to come looking out to see where I am. With your condition, I wouldn’t have expected you to make it that far just because you were worried.” Kolby stated plainly, shifting back into his human state and uncovering himself behind a thick tree.

She sat on a fallen tree trunk, looking down at her hands and the scars from her pursuit of attempting to follow after her hectic friend. As water rushed softly by a nearby river, the birds sang sweet melodies in the trees above. Hope reminisced on her emotional scars from her deepest memories of the dungeon. She glanced upwards towards the boy with a wistful expression before looking back down to fiddle with her fingers. Distant screams from the past, yet so presently alarming it made the hairs on her body stand up. He was right, Kolby was always right–making it even more unbearable.

“You know, when you saved me I was overwhelmingly joyful I would finally taste freedom,” She began, her gaze fixated on her fingers as she twirled a small piece of metal in between her fingers. “But weirdly, sometimes it feels as if I’ve never left. Even though I’m right here, on nature’s floor–it feels as if my arms are shackled to those chains without me even being there.” Her voice cracked, faint memories of all that she’d endured rushing one by one.

“Do you hear that?” Kolby questioned, diverting her attention. Hope raised an eyebrow, as he curiously walked around their camping spot. He began to lay his pile of leaves, gathering the ones fallen from the trees that towered over them. “Listen to the birds, they’re trying to tell you something.”

Kolby adored nature; for having been surrounded by it all his life, he became one with the ecosphere. Hunting the smaller animals, to avoid nature’s unfortunate fate of starvation–he befriended the other predator-like animals in the area. Finding knowledge in all that surrounds him; he wouldn’t expect her to grow accustomed to her new life with swiftness. Nursing a total stranger back to health wasn’t one of his specialties.

In fact, he had endured just enough stress to revive memories of his former life before the war started. With enough radiation to kill an entire country, ocean life at the threshold of diminishing, Kolby was developing methods to restore what had been lost. Alongside nature’s upper hand, the animals that managed to survive the adversity began to develop and build a stronger ecosystem. So that the new species would not be affected by the harmful rays of that of human existence and could go on living their lives peacefully. Needless to say, inside of Kolby’s heart something began to grow. He could not fathom nor recognize what it was, or what it might be. For in the moment all he knew was Hope and his environment.

“My father was the one who sentenced me to the dungeon. It was over an argument I’d had with one of my siblings,” Hope began. “One month turned into two, two months turned into two years in the blink of an eye. It was like an endless loop, no button to pause for a break. I probably relieved myself in my same clothes from it all more times than I could count. When I look back, I keep wondering what could we have argued over that was so important to keep me there so long–”

Kolby stared at her from the comfort of his make-shift bed of soft leaves, sitting up from his position. “Hey, look where you are now.” He spoke. “That’s behind you now, you’re safe. I can promise you that. You won’t be chained up like that ever again. I wouldn’t allow it.” The dungeon was underground–and where they were, there were barely enough people that would summon a situation in similarity to begin with. He meant the words he spoke, with as much sincerity as he could grasp.

She fiddled with the piece of metal once more, anxious and mentally unsettled, it brought her a glimpse of peace. She’d received it on the night after she had escaped. In her hand lay the key that’d set her free that night. Hope let out a sigh of relief, before nearing closer to her newfound protector. A small chuckle softly left her lips, before leaning on his chest for comfort. Unknowingly, she was the very key that would uncover the lock within Kolby’s heart, for it was framed to be beautiful, guarded and untouched.

He froze under Hope’s warm and gentle touch, before smiling and closing his eyes in rest. Laying down against the bark of the tree, he held Hope close to him to keep from shivering from mother nature’s cold winter breeze. She held the key tightly, vowing to never lose it for the reminder of her freedom was as refreshing as the water from the river that rushed next to them. The sun slowly began to set, the birds chirping coming to a halt, before distant howls could be heard in the distance. Snores erupted from Kolby’s mouth, sound asleep, Hope rested the key on his chest before combing a strand of Kolby’s dark brown hair behind his ear. Freedom was sweeter than she’d remembered.