Klyran understood Midryl’s words then. If he stoped, he would loose this advantage in speed that he gained during the fall.

He knew that Ranya was pursuing him. But it didn’t mean that she would catch up. From the corner of his eyes, he saw other Greenyards, who jumped after him. They didn’t stop and continued running, just like him.

'This is actually fun' the Ryan grinned and put even more force in his legs.

Klyran used branches and trunks to move rapidly through the forest. He also made sure to not make any predictable steps to be able to avoid the arrows that he occasionally had to dodge. They were always aimed at his clothes, meant to pin him down. Finally, he saw a clearing up ahead. Many of the villagers were gathered there. They were cheering on the group that was rapidly approaching. He dodged a few more arrows and finally jumped into the clearing. The moment he did, people surrounded him. They all congratulated him and patted his back.

'It actually ended really fast' the serpent exhaled loudly, his body finally relaxing. Despite having run for some time now, it didn't seem more than a few minutes to him.

Then, Ranya came out of the forest and had a certain smile on her face, one that said that she was proud of the Ryan. There were a few more people in the field who passed the test and were now happily chatting with their relatives and friends. Together with the others, they waited until dawn, when the last participants made their way. Despite the delay, they all received an equal greeting for their results.

“I see that many managed to pass the test this year” Midryl then shouted and jumped down from a tree.

“Congratulations to everyone” He said with a nod of his head, “As per our tradition, we will have a celebration back in the village.”

After another small congratulation speech, everyone went back to their homes. Decorations were being set up around the trees and the houses. In the centre of the village, a few tables were set up and many were bringing setting food on it. Some people were preparing their instruments to entertain their friends and relatives.

When it finally got dark. The Greenyards lit up lanterns and hung them all over the village. Then, the songs begun. The people grabbed a partner and begun dancing. Klyran has never before seen anything like it. There were no celebrations back where he came from. After hearing this, Ranya grabbed his hand and led him to the others. She set the two of them at the edge and started positioning Klyran’s body and hands, telling him what to do.

'Dancing huh?' his eyes fell on the other Greenyards, who were all moving smoothly around the some were even spinning their partners.

The Ryan, while listening to the instructions, was also closely looking at those dancing around them. He then tried to copy their movement. He begun circling around Ranya and interlocked their hands. When the others turned, the serpent lagged for a second or two and then would follow the movement. Nobody commented on his lack of skill and a few girls even stood in line to dance with him.

After getting tired, the black-haired young man went away and took a seat on the grass, observing the dance. Then, suddenly, two masked individuals appeared in the centre. It caused many on the dance floor to laugh in excitement. The two Greenayrds in the middle were dressed differently and were wearing masks. One was white, while another one black. There were also a few more people around the edge who put on a mask, different from those two, and begun mingling with the others.

“It’s a traditional dance” Midryl said as he sat down near Klyran.

“The black masks represents Death, while the white one is Life” Ranya added as she approached the two of them.

“Those wearing black coats and simple masks are meant to represent the Dead. A reminder of how they are always with us. They are not supposed to interact with others who are wearing plain clothes and only with each other. We are also supposed to completely ignore them.”

Then, to Klyran’s surprise, the Greenyards representing the dead begun acting heretic. They would try to make others laugh, or even scare them.

“They say that sometimes the Dead calls you to them” Ranya commented seeing what was happening, “Urges you to follow them.”

“And if you do... If you react to their actions then you die and are supposed to put on a black coat and a simple mask as well and joint them” Midryl then said.

“In the morning… We will count how many of us are “Dead” and how many of us are “Alive”. If there will be more dead Greenyards than the living, then it will mean that we will not hunt this winter”, Ranya explained.

“Why?” Klyran then asked, but only received a shrug in reply.

It’s a tradition, he was told. And even if he received any other explanation, it wouldn’t matter. His eyes were burning with both excitement and, at the same time, were reflecting the fire from the lanterns. There were so many new memories that he made in the short time that he was in this world. He frankly thought that strangely, in those months, he felt more alive than he did in all his 75 years of living in his own world.

The party continued for the whole night. At some point, some people begun leaving. They were mostly those who had young children, or were too old to stay awake the whole night. For every five people who left, one of the “Dead” Greenyards would take off their black cloak and plain mask and re-join the “Living”.

Klyran did his best to ignore them, not wishing to join the “Dead”. He watched the strange dance that took place between Life and Death. Their movements and twists.

That is how the whole night was spend and when it got closer to dawn, everyone was clearly fatigued. Zevram, who stood aside during the whole ceremony clapped his hand and announced that it was time for the count when the sun begun to peek over the horizon. He begun counting the numbers, when a knife was thrown at one of the Greenyards.

It startled everyone for a moment. Then, five people rushed at the nearest Greenyard and attacked him. Luckily, he managed to dodge, despite being sluggish from fatigue. Their attackers quickly retreated and without thinking, some Greenyards rushed after them.

“What the…?” Midryl silently swore under his breath.

“I assume this was not part of the festival?” Klyran said and looked at him.

“No” Zevram them said and approached them.

The apostle quickly scanned the surroundings and rapidly told everyone who was wearing their cape to set them under the table, while those who were still alive to put a rock atop of it. His voice was urgent, Zevram wanted to deal with the attackers, but at the same time, he didn’t want to miss the count. Quickly, everyone did as instructed, understanding the reason. Even Klyran quickly grabbed a rock from under his feet and set it on the table near Ranya and Midryl.

Once everyone did that, they ran back to their houses and grabbed their weapons. Just in time to catch those who ran into the forest returning. They were injured and shouted about many enemies surrounding them in the forest. It made everyone tense. The Greenyards split. Those more experienced stood guard at the edge of their village, while those who fought less battles stood more in the centre. The children and elders were quickly taken to Zevram’s house for protection.

When the door was shut and the spells activated, weapons begun raining from the forest. Daggers and knifes were thrown in order to inflict as much damage as possible. The Greenyards would skilfully dodges and shoot an arrow back into the forest. Then, the men started emerging. The forest warriors would use arrows on their enemies and when those got too close, would either use their bow to deflect a weapon, or their fists to hit them. They dodged and fought back to the best of their abilities, but everyone was tired. Even Klyran, who didn’t need much sleep felt fatigued.

They fought for a bit over an hour. Whenever a Greenyard would get injured, someone would quickly jump to defend them, while someone else would drag them away. It was a companionship that many of them gained only after experiencing multiple fights. Those who would often go out together would group and cover each other’s backs. Whenever possible, they used Wind magic. And just when the warriors were getting too tired to fight and were slowly being pushed back, a thick branch suddenly swung from the village. A few Yakards came out of the forest and begun helping them. They would swing their branches at the intruders and rescue any injured Greenyard they found.

When the fight finally begun taking a turn for the better, a loud explosion rang out. It was shortly followed by a few more. Luckily, there were few Greenyards and Yakards around it, and those who were caught in the explosion quickly jumped into the water. It gave their invaders a chance to retreat. Being too tired to follow, the Greenyards simply begun damage control and head count. They swore that they would follow and find those men, take revenge for daring to attack their forest, but that could wait. That was how Aldryn found them and it wasn’t until later that night, when the headcount was finished, did the Greenyards noticed that everyone was present spare for their guest, Klyran.

Meanwhile, the Ryan lay unconscious on the backs of one of the men. He did his best during the fight, and even managed to take down a few of those men. Then, one of them threw the explosive right at hit. It hit his chest and exploded right in his face. While the flames did no damage, spare for melting down his human skin, the ringing noise and powerful force that threw him into a building knocked him out. The men quickly grabbed him and ran, not even sparing a moment to watch his human skin cover his body again, which anyone else would find fascinating.