A Phantom 《FAIRYTAIL X READER》

4: Death's Phantom

The vast highlands of brown sand rolled out to as far as the eye can see, with the occasional sandy hills and pits that made it nearly impossible to trudge through. The viscous sand kicked up with each daunting and heavy step, and would sometimes stick to the bottom of her shoes like mud. But, it would crumble when her feet left the sand to take another step.

The lonely moon stayed in the centre of the dark sky, right above her. No matter how far she would move, or for how many hours passed, it would remain in place. The dim light provided seems to come from the very moon itself and not from the work of a distant sun. Still, the path she had walked on became clear many times before, and in the present whenever she needed it. The path cuts through the large sandy jills,hills, and many stone pillars that seem to stretch into the night sky.

The hollow roar of the pillars rocking back and forth used to drown her soul in the rough waters of fear. But now, the hollow roars that would send shivers down her spine provided desperately heeded comfort. The rocking pillars would sometimes block the moonlight from reaching her, but never drown out the light entirely. The seemingly porous rock pillar always managed to let the light trickle through like water.

The cool breeze rushed through the large pillars and sandy hills with a brute force, but the sand was not bothered. The rocking of the pillars remained consistent no matter if there was wind or not.

The path of faded footsteps dipped down to the bottom of the hill she scaled. Though the faded footsteps and crevices were inconsistent with the spacing. Not to mention, there were larger pits and smaller ones as though someone had tumbled down the hill instead of walking down. This time, she dug her feet into the viscous brown sand, and kicked up the sand as she pulled the other leg over the other quickly. She left the ground with ease, and struck a landing at the bottom of the hill.

The moonlight repositioned itself smoothly; it made a distinct whirring sound, like aged machinery being put into use after a decade of being stationary. Individual light rays struck the half-buried statues, and lit up their features that differentiate them from the rest. But the majority of the light settled upon the two statues that have not been touched by the brown sand. And it was the only two statues that glowed majestically like gods beneath the light.

The statues circled a plot of lighter colored sand that is seemingly glowing. It guided her to the circle of lighter sand, and to the light that trickled through the sand.

And she kicked at it. Her lips stretched into a smile and she twirled on her heel. Her dark hoodie slipped off the top of her head, and she reeled her foot back once more. This time, her foot came down with more strength, and kicked away a pile of sand.

She laughed and sweeped away the sand from the side out of the borders. Her eyes squinted when the dust kicked up in her face, and it tingles when she squeezed her eyes shut. With another rough kick, her knees buckled, and her hands met the stone and its rune carvings. Her lips trembled, and her brows knitted together as the constrained smile stretched further. The dry lump in her throat was swallowed, and she inhaled a quick breath.

"I didn't mean to, I swear I didn't," She mumbled.

The moonlight consumed the stone platform,and the blue runes glowed brighter.

"I let my anger get the best of me and I understand that was wrong of me, but I didn't mean to lash out like that— I didn't mean to harm him that way,"

The light flickered like a dying flashlight, and sometimes was snuffed out entirely.

She choked back a gasp and curled her fingers into the crevices of the stone platform she is kneeled on. Her body trembled, and she gritted her teeth with each choked gasp and whimper.