The Journey to My Heart [Updates Every Thursday!!]

Chapter Four ~Zaria

This was not the beginning I had in mind.

That night, I knew I would die. I knew that there was no other option and that the only way out was death. All I had to do was expect it, and then everything would go back to normal. And when I closed my eyes I said my goodbyes. When Crista closed the door behind her and I was left in silence I made peace with my fate. Death was coming swiftly and there was nothing I could do to stop it.

I remember lying in bed, my back aching where the slave mark branded my skin. The pain was bearable though. And the more I lay there, the more it started to not hurt anymore.

And in all of this chaos, I faintly recalled John telling me this would happen.

When we were in Flesherg... fighting every day for our lives... the only thing that kept us going was knowing that even if we did die, it would be peaceful. Because that's what your spirit does. Even when you walk through the darkest allies, your spirit is there as a comfort.

This feeling of peace. Final peace even through all the pain. I knew I was close to the end.

And how foolish I must have been to not realize that everyone else's marks were fake. They weren't sick. Not like I was. That slave mark would only give me a couple of hours? A couple of days if I was lucky.

Mr. Griffin was confident that I would win. He said to walk out victorious.

I was far past victorious even before I walked into his shack in Senwain. Eden... she's just too powerful. Mr. Griffin's shack proves that. She burned down half the town of Senwain, the far edge of the village a decayed museum of destruction.

That's what Eden does. She destroys.

The second the thought leaves my mind my head feels as though it might explode. Tons of pressure force its way to my bones.

"Zaria," a faint voice whispers. I can barely hear it, but the low tone is enough for me to understand.

I reach for the crystal around my neck. Lifting my arm from my side feels like lifting a ton of bricks. I squint my eyes and the pressure in my head becomes even stronger. Just a bit more, I think to myself.

And that's when I feel it. A cool gem held between my fingertips. Although, something isn't right.

I feel it almost melt in my hands as I hold onto it. But... that can't be.

I force myself to open my eyes. It's a fight. My body against my mind. But somehow by some miracle, I'm able to peek through my eyelids to a white blinding light.

No! Did I die? Is this truly it? If I am... why do I feel like myself? I feel normal. Well... not normal, but I don't feel dead.

Keeping my eyes closed I reach for my crystal necklace again and raise it to my lips.

"What is happening?" I ask more to myself than to Tyrian.

The necklace. It came from the crystal cave. It is a symbol and tool for the magic I carry through my veins. And since my acquaintance with Tyrian, we've used it as a certain communication device.

"Zaria!" he exclaims, more lively this time. There is silence. The one that is filled with a million unspoken words. I reply his voice in my mind. I can't be dead. Not yet.

"That means it worked. The cave. It revived you. It actually worked."

I don't know which word it was that sparked my memory, but suddenly it all comes back. I was dead, yes. But it wasn't because of the slave mark.