Two Sided: The Aching Past (TS Book 3)

Chapter 9

I opened my eyes I saw nothing but black. I couldn't hear anything, feel anything, nothing. I held my hands in front of my face, and they seemed slightly transparent, but still the usual fire-orange. It was like when I first died. I blinked, and the world flashed into view. It was calm, unlike when I was killed. My home civilization, Silevlia, seemed more advanced, almost as if I travelled forward in time. I looked around, and saw no hybrids whatsoever. It was only humans.

Great.. they've taken control of Silevlia. Nice job, younger me. Couldn't even protect your home, family, and friends.

I was still confused as to how I was floating, trying to make sense of the world around me, when a purply-indigo spirit swirled around me. She had two tentacle-like antennae on the top of her head, the two fading into white. She introduced herself fairly quickly, naming herself Petrona. I asked cautiously,

"W- where am I?"

"You're in the afterlife, kid. Blaze, right?"

"Uh, yeah, actually."

"So were you caught and killed by the humans too? I remember hearing the name Lewis.."

That name immediately unleashed a wave of hatred within me. All of my memories then flooded back into my mind. The good, the bad, the sad, the scary, the enlightening. The thing I remembered and seemed the most distant from was.. my parents. She obviously noticed, and continued,

"He killed me too. How were you killed?"

I started getting suspicious, as she was weirdly obsessing over my death, as if she was trying to hit something. She wanted to set me off for some reason, wanted to know everything about my death for some reason, and she wanted something from me. She asked how I was killed, where, when, why, who killed me, who was there, who witnessed, and she seemed very hyper.

"Why are you so adamant about my death.. it's not that much different compared to everyone else's."

"Oh, but it is. Over the years, I've talked to hundreds upon hundreds of hybrids."

She seemed to emphasize how many hybrids she's met, but in a tone that tried to seem condescending. It made me feel uncomfortable, like she was superior to me. I then remembered that time existed, and asked,

"Wait a second. What year is it?"

"From the last calendar I checked, 1920."

I was speechless. Seven-hundred and six years had passed. I had no idea. I kept falling asleep and waking up at random intervals and experiencing random things through time. I didn't expect it to be hundreds of years, but I don't think anyone would.

"What's a calendar?"

"Right, you've been asleep for the past seven-hundred and six years. It's a thing humans use to keep track of what day it is."

I thought, letting an annoyed expression stretch across my face. I pressed my finger tips against my temples, angrily exhaling. I criticized,

"Can't they just use their brain for once and do it themselves."

Petrona shrugged. She then taunted,

"You know all hybrids are.. extinct?"

"Wait, not a single one made it? But, I thought Vercon and Cinder ran away in time."

Petrona only stared at me, letting the news sink in. Sticky, black tears welled up in my eyes as I regretted not spending as much time with everyone as I should've. It's been seven-hundred some years. Would my parents and friends still remember me, or would they just see me as the reason they're all dead. I could've saved them all, but my stupid healing ability wouldn't work.