The Illuminators

2. The Orphan Child and the Enigmatic Artist

The air was thick with smoke, the acrid scent of burning wood stinging Chie-ri's nostrils as she stumbled through the debris-strewn streets. The flames had consumed everything in their path, leaving only charred remnants of what once was. Tears streamed down her dirt-streaked cheeks as she searched desperately for any sign of life amidst the devastation.

Chie-ri was a child of the streets, born into a life of hardship and struggle. Her mother, a once-beautiful dancer fallen on hard times, had struggled to provide for her daughter, resorting to desperate measures to put food on the table. But now, with the flames of destruction licking at their heels, even the meagre shelter they called home had been reduced to ash.

Several days after she wandered aimlessly through the wreckage, Chie-ri's stomach growled with hunger, a constant reminder of the harsh realities of her existence. She clutched a tattered piece of fabric to her chest, the only memento she had left of her mother, the only family she had as she never knew who her father was. She realised that she never really loved her mother, as she was cruel to her, but yet, she was the only one she ever had.

Exhausted and disoriented, Chie-ri stumbled upon a narrow alleyway, the crumbling walls offering little protection from the elements. With a weary sigh, she sank to the ground, her small frame trembling with exhaustion and despair. How did it come to this? she wondered, her mind reeling with the enormity of her loss.

The night was cold, the biting wind cutting through Chie-ri's threadbare clothing as she stumbled through the deserted streets. The city lay shrouded in darkness, the only sound the distant howl of the wind as it whipped through the crumbling buildings. Chie-ri hugged her arms around herself, seeking refuge from the biting cold as she searched desperately for a place to rest.

As she wandered aimlessly through the labyrinthine streets, Chie-ri's steps eventually led her to the outskirts of the city, where a sprawling cemetery loomed on the horizon. The moon cast an eerie glow over the gravestones, illuminating the silent landscape with an ethereal light. With nowhere else to turn, Chie-ri made her way towards the cemetery, seeking shelter from the elements within its hallowed grounds.This cemetery is infamous, the residents of that town fear this ground, as they said that ghosts, mad man, and supernatural beings live there. But the day turns colder, and Chie-ri needs a shelter, and she doesn't care if she will meet ghosts there, she will die if she stays on the road.

------------

The figure lay motionless on the roof of the ancient tomb, the cold stone beneath her back offering scant comfort against the weight of her thoughts. Her gaze drifted upward, tracing the patterns of stars scattered across the night sky. Briefly, she glanced at her hands, stained with the crimson evidence of her recent endeavours. The putrid scent of decaying flesh mingled with the metallic stench of blood, a grim reminder of the horrors she had faced. A heavy sigh escaped her lips as she pondered the seeming futility of it all.

"Does any of this truly matter?" she murmured to herself, her voice barely a whisper in the silence of the night. "Will I ever find my way back home? Is there even a chance for me to reclaim the semblance of an ordinary life?"

Despair clouded her eyes, their once vibrant hue now dulled by the weight of her burdens. She was weary of carrying the weight of being a Sacred Painter upon her shoulders. The ache of loneliness gnawed at her soul, mingling with a deep longing for family, for love, for the warmth of human connection. Yet, beneath the surface of her yearning lay a vein of fear, the fear of vulnerability, of inflicting and enduring pain. Each night brought with it intense nightmares, leaving her restless and drained, her mind haunted by visions she could not escape.

Amidst the swirling maelstrom of emotions, a nagging worry gnawed at the edges of her consciousness – the fear that one day she might lose her grip on reality, succumbing to the darkness that lurked within her. The thought sent a shiver down her spine, a stark reminder of the fragile balance she struggled to maintain each day.