Chapter 28: Reunion
"ARTHUR!" Luke's voice rang through Arthur's empty mind as Luke launched to his feet and exploded towards him, stopping just before his face. Both of them were looking at each other with wide eyes, almost trying to make sure the other was real.
Arthur looked up and down, inspecting the friend before him. Luke still wore the academy uniform, though it was now marred with many holes where it looked like wounds had been healing on the skin beneath. His hair was a disheveled mess, and he was covered in dirt and dried blood—evidence of his own battles in this unforgiving place.
Arthur still wasn't sure if he was seeing things—if this was another trick of the roses or his sleep-deprived mind playing cruel jokes. Instinctively, as if to make sure Luke was real, he reached out with one trembling hand and rested it on his shoulder. The fabric felt solid beneath his fingers, warm with life.
Upon landing his hand on Luke's clothes, Arthur was able to confirm the person in front of him was indeed real and not some phantom conjured by this realm's twisted magic. As if they both confirmed this at the same time, tears began to well up in Luke's eyes as Arthur pulled him into a fierce hug. They stayed locked in that embrace for a long moment, the simple human connection a balm to the loneliness that had been eating away at them both.
Finally, Arthur pushed him off and gave him one more scrutinizing look, his mind still struggling to accept this miracle. "I-I thought you were..." Arthur's voice cracked with emotion. "I mean, h-how are you—" He was at a loss for words, the questions tumbling over each other in his exhausted mind.
'How is this possible? I mean, what are even the chances we get sent here together? They have to be slim to none and yet... here he is.'
Arthur was beginning to look queasy as the adrenaline of the discovery began to fade, the full weight of his days-long ordeal crashing back upon him. He pressed his palm against his forehead, feeling the world swim around him.
"I need to sit down," he muttered. Arthur slowly brought himself to the ground by the wall of the temple, where the ground was mercifully rid of the whispering roses. Instead, a small radius of bare stone surrounded the temple, like a sanctuary from the field's influence.
Luke sat next to him, their shoulders touching, another reassurance that this encounter was real. "I-I can't believe you're here," Luke started, his voice still tinged with wonder. "I mean, how? When?"