The Middle Section

"Mr. Bryne sir!" The gaudy old man whose name was Alex hurdled towards Rhys, "Mr. Bryne sir! It's Emi, Emilia, Emilia Perdensen! She's dead! She's died! She's gone!" Rhys turned sharply at the trill voice as it came, the old man was up and about, calling the attention of everybody in the village as they ran closer to get a better view of the situation.

"She was lying on the ground with her face pale as a… as a Fantasma! A Fantasma, you hear me?!" The crowd thickened with the rumour.

"We all hear you, you old coot," A kid from the approaching crowd shouted in glee, "We all hear you!" The gaudy old man shouted something inaudible as everyone continued to question the situation, mumbling rising through the air as Rhys walked forward. It seemed like he was carrying some tool that pushed people away from him as everyone stepped aside for him.

"C'mon shout some more!" The crowd urged, asking for more details.

"What happened to Emilia?" Rhys asked the shivering old man. He wasn't cold, but his arms shook as he described the sight he saw when he ran into the room. His hands shook and his eyes were insane as he explained the freshness of her dead body, the way how the other two girls were handling her, and the shock on their faces when he came.

"They were sitting there, 'round Emi, and were trying to lift her! This little girl came and called me just in time to see them trying to lift the body. Lucas came with me, but I left to get find you sir before he left. Not sure where he is now though," Whispers of doubt rose as people started to question both the old man and members of Strawberry Pudding. They were outlanders, people who came from the other side of the field.

"Emilia is probably not dead," Rhys reasoned, "She's probably just fainted or something similar. I'll go check." Otto was still situated at the back with Ater and Ade, the two were sifting through old swords and some broken orbs. William and Klaus had long agreed to wander around the area, not straying too far, with Adrian and Hiro poking around the fields out far. Rhys had accompanied Otto, but with his sudden disappearance Otto, Ater, and Ade were left alone.

"Misters, the swords are all useless," The blacksmith said for the umpteenth time, "They're things I make in my spare time, and lately I haven't the spare time. They're old, covered in grime, and will crack the second it hits against a rock." Ater shook his head and kept figuratively sniffing around the swords, picking one up, weighing it, and putting it back down. Otto was standing around, messing with one of the more badly made models.

"What in the world are you looking for Ater?" Otto asked as Ade uselessly scrambled around the weapons. His tiny height made it nearly impossible for him to reach the bin, so he opted to grab the weapons that fell. Ater was, much to Otto's chagrin, taller by just half of a head, and watching Ade try to reach the bin, while Ater had to bend sometimes was an awkward sight. Sometimes Ade would shove a rusty sword into Ater's hand and Ater would drop it, prompting a small squeak from the other as he drew back in shock at the sudden clang of metal.

"A sword, obviously," Ater snarked at him, "I'm looking for a very particular sword. Left it here last time I came around with that… thing." He was referring to his previous owner before he ditched her. His previous owner that he later came to dislike immensely with her attitude towards his help.

"She was weird. Really fucking weird."

"You talk like you're talking about some estrange family member," Otto remarked.

"I am except cut off the family part," Ater picked up a thin sword that the blacksmith immediately scowled at, "What? It's the sword I was looking for." The blacksmith didn't say anything as he charged Ater with about ten Rode Kameliers, saying that a sword of that calibre would be dead in less than a minute. Ater ignored him as Ade gently took it from him before it dropped to the ground with a clang.

"Das ist schwer*," Ade mumbled as he gave up on picking it up before Ater bent down to grab it, "Warum ist es so schwer*?" Ater ignored the question before he turned to Otto to ask for money, not even bothering to talk, just a small motion. Otto sighed before he rummaged around his inventory for the ten Rode Kameliers. They weren't planning on buying much and Ater said that Hiro didn't mind while Ade barely understood the concept or even the situation.

"Why would you spend ten flowers on a rusty old black sword?" Otto asked as he poked the blackened side, "Do you even know how to use a sword?" Ater nodded before he handed it over to Otto, forcing him to put it into his inventory.

"And you're making me carry it now." Ater shrugged and walked ahead of Otto, who was struggling to put it into his inventory.

"Move luggage," Ade followed Ater tightly as he looked back on Otto, "... Are you still using your skill?" Otto nodded.

"Yeah, why?" Otto asked, eyes flicking over everyone in the crowd, "It's pretty useful."

"Try stopping it," Ater said before walking away at a faster pace, "If you keep it on too much, there might be adverse effects!"

The crowd was thickening with the issue that Rhys had to leave for, his straight back gone in the crowd. William and Klaus were still not back, and Adrian and Hiro were just around the bend – but Ater, Otto, and Ade couldn't see that. They walked forward into the crowd, not sure where they were going, but still eager to head that way.

…

"Mei-wan," Elizabeth started, "When do you think someone will come back?" Mei-wan shrugged, she wasn't sure when. It had been an indiscernible time since Lucas and the gaudy old man, Alex, had left. Emilia was still on the ground, frozen in her shock. Hai-rong had long decided to take a nap, saying that if the lady was sleeping, she could too. They hadn't slept in a long time and it was the late afternoon. The sun was setting and they didn't know what was taking so long.

"Should we check what's going on?" Mei-wan replied, "Or should we stay, it's not like there's a clock anywhere." Without clocks, time seemed to go even slower than before as the minutes turned to hours and seconds and back to minutes without them knowing. They had considered making a sundial, but they weren't sure which direction was north, south, east, or west. They didn't know anything and they never bothered to ask, too wrapped up in the process of just finding something to eat, which they still hadn't found.

"Do you think we'll be able to buy some food?" Elizabeth asked, "I'm practically starving." Their stomachs rumbled in accordance to the fact that they hadn't eaten anything in at least a day. They weren't sure how it was that they weren't dying of hunger, but somehow, they just never realized it until it was mentioned. It could have had something to do with their new status, but they weren't sure.

"I think so," Hai-rong said groggily as she woke up slowly, "They won't let us starve to death." Hai-rong had begun to wake up as she sifted through the fake blanket that she made with two warmer sweaters. She didn't sleep for more than an hour, but it felt like a century had passed when she woke up. The sun was setting, with yellow beams passing through the window.

"We should find Otto or somebody," Hai-rong looked around the shop. There wasn't anything that could help them lift Emilia.

Just on cue, Otto, Ater, and Ade peeked into the room that the three were in, "William and Klaus are still looking for something, Adrian and Hiro… Whatever it is they're doing I have no idea," Otto updated everyone on the rest of the group's status, "William found something like a food stall, we're planning to head over there." Otto looked down at Emilia, who was still passed out.

"What happened to her?"

"I told her about the Langsam and she fainted," Hai-rong answered before Ater could laugh. His laugh was creepy, dainty in a strange way, but also disturbing in its cold tone and shrill manner. Sometimes he would bark, sometimes he would softly laugh, sometimes a blend of both. It was disturbing but no more disturbing than the huge, heavy lady with shocked-white skin and a frozen position.

"People aren't as knowledgeable here as they are in Mormio, so it'd normal for them to feel very shocked when they find themselves near something like a… lazy slime," Rhys appeared at the door, waving. Otto turned to look at him before nodding in understanding. There was a silent agreement between the both of them as they exchanged glances.

"How close was the Langsam?" For once, Rhys's voice seemed more concerned than just the normal teasing.

"It was in Sigtak lake," Mei-wan replied, "Lucas seemed to know about it." Rhys made a soft 'oh' sound before he rubbed his chin as if he was in deep thought. Otto went into the room, alongside Ade, who was just as unnaturally quiet as before. Ater swung around by the door, preferring to stare at everyone outside. The village seemed livelier as the day passed, some lights made the area look more hospitable than before and the citizens didn't seem as worried about them as before.

"Signak lake is a bit too close for me to feel comfortable," Rhys said, "I'll head over to check on it. Just stay here, I'm sure that Lucas will give you some form of food. They have surprisingly good alcohol here." Rhys murmured the last part as he contemplated the last time, he had some of Murret Stilhed's illegally brewed alcohol.

"Yeah, sure," Elizabeth said, "Just don't die on us. These people will kill us if you die." Rhys laughed before shaking his head. He put on his coat again and walked out of the room, leaving the rest by Emilia, who was long forgotten. It wasn't even more than a couple of minutes when William and Klaus arrived after. They had gotten into an argument over something small and were bickering the entire way back.

"There's no way that they would lock us up in cupboards, seal the doors, and starve us," William threw up his arms in frustration, "The dude barely even said anything except about how kids are punished by being sent to the cellar." Klaus scowled his signature scowl before he crossed his arms and muttered something too low for anyone, except William, to hear.

"No way in hell did he imply anything. Have you seen the people around here? We just met a lady who didn't know where her own home was!" William glared at Klaus, "It's not possible for them to just... let us for no reason whatsoever. Otto has a bloodstain on his shirt!"

"It is possible and that doesn't mean anything," Klaus rasped out, "She could've been pretending to try to get us to trust the town more. It's like a… Geheimplan, a secret plan. They could be trying to poison us too." William made a sound of anguish.

"Do not tell me you weren't thinking of the same thing, Lindbe-."

"My name is Will," William interrupted, "Please call me Will. William has too many syllables and Lindberg is the name of a glasses company."

"So, you've finally admitted it," Klaus said dryly, "My dad had a pair of Lindberg glasses."

"That's not the point!" William pulled at his already short hair in frustration, "The point is these people are suspicious, and you're just being a creep."

"The point," Klaus dragged his accent over the words, "Is that these people do not like us and want to be rid of us. There is no other point, no other ending to this conundrum. It cannot be helped and it will not be helped."

"The point," Ater mimicked, "Is that we've been standing here watching you two bicker for the last minute or so." William's eyes flicked over to Otto's amused face before he huffed and left Klaus' side to join Hai-rong in folding up the remaining shirts that were tossed around. Emilia was still on the ground frozen, with no one able to lift her.

"What do we do about Emilia?" Ater asked, "We can't just leave her here for all to see. That'd be stupid." Emilia was a growing concern as she stayed still.

"She could have hypertension, but then she should see a doctor," Mei-wan said, "It could be pretty serious if she's not waking up."

"Maybe she has some Sileoenian disease that's causing her to not wake up," Otto offered uselessly, "Or someone offered her something and now she's not waking up. Shock or whatever."

"Or she's just really really really scared," William said as a joke, "When she wakes up, don't you think that she's going to have the shock of her life. An entire day passes without her noticing." Elizabeth nodded fiercely.

"Kind of like us," She said quietly, unlike her, "We came here and two days have passed and none of us notices until the sun has set. There are no clocks and we don't even know that we're hungry. We're just floating through time."