The Game Arena - A Sci- Fi Fanfiction

II - Chapter 4 - Coming Home At Last - II

"He's coming around, guys...." A warm voice whispered, slightly muffled. ".....slowly waking up." 

Cracking his eyes open, Kyo suddenly started to cough and choke out water that had gotten stuck inside his throat. His head throbbed, spinning around dizzyingly. What happened? Where am I? The hot sandy shore kept him grounded, the humid night air bringing him back to reality. There were hushed whispers, soft voices too faint to make out. But as Kyo attempted to sit up, he felt several hands on his back and shoulder, keeping him steady. Rubbing his eyes and calming himself again, Kyo could recognize familiar faces, his friends staring back at him in relief. Some had red puffy eyes, others had looked teary. 

Just as he was about to speak, Ren had been the first to pull Kyo into a tight hug. The small boy blushed and blew a fuse, struggling to speak properly but also too confused to understand what's going on. Regardless, Kyo just hugged back, glad to be alive and see that everyone was alright in the end. 

From the corner of his eye, Kyo spotted Ver talking with another man with short brown hair and had quite a tall, slender figure. Pulling away from Ren's hug, he slowly approached the stranger, catching his attention. 

"Ah, you're awake, I was worried you wouldn't come to for at least the next few days." He spoke, calm and relaxing to Kyo's ears, reminding him of coffee and old books. "But thankfully, it didn't take long for me to find you sinking underwater, unconscious." 

"Wait, were you the one that saved me from drowning?" Kyo inquired in disbelief. "But the ship was also sinking, does that mean-?" 

"Oh in case you have no idea who this is," Ver chipped in, patting the other man's shoulder fondly. "His name is Suha, one of the guys that we managed to save from the Arena. With his water elemental abilities, Suha was able to save you guys and protect the ship from sinking at the same time, what with him transforming into a Merman and everything." 

"Nah, you don't have to tell them everything." Suha replied, nudging Ver playfully. "I just did what I had to do. They would have been in grave danger if it wasn't for you letting me know in advance about your trip, Ver, thanks for that." 

"Wah, so it was Ver that thought of everything beforehand? What a reliable person!" Kotoka beamed, both hands on her hips. "And let's not forget that Kyo was one brave guy as well, he literally faced the storm head on like it was no big deal, what a chad!" 

"Get off me!" Kyo hissed, trying to pull Aster and Ren away, seeing how the two of them were clinging onto him like sobbing, emotional koalas. "Y-yeah, I didn't really do much honestly, I just....needed to protect you guys, that's all." 

"Kyo! You were amazing out there!" Ren wailed, looking all snotty and teary. "I was so proud of you, you saved us all! I'M SO HAPPY!" 

"KYO, I OWE YOU MY LIFE!" Aster cried. "WHAT A COOL GUY, SERIOUSLY!" 

"KNOCK IT OFF!" Kyo snapped, his face so intensely red it made Suha start to worry he was getting a fever. 

"By the way, now that our ship got wrecked, what do we do now?" Aia brought up, pointing at the wooden debris nearby, by the shoreline. "We're gonna have no other way to find the Hall Of Revival anymore." 

"Not necessarily!" Samuel beamed as he came up to the group, with Lukas at his side carrying two bags. "I think we are already here in the uncharted island of Aurora. All there's left to do is to find the cave that should have an opening which we would need to swim into." 

"Huh, I hope it isn't going to be far from shore." Aster muttered tiredly. "I'm starting to get sick and tired of swimming already. " 

"Come with us Suha, there's no reason for you to start a fire and spend the night alone here." Ver kindly offered, "Besides, it's dark out and the island might get chilly later on."