Rebirth: From Nothing

Chapter 17: Octavia Reborn

Octavia POV:

It has been about 2 years since Cass lost his family. When that happened, I was in so much pain. They were the family I never had.

My family is one that I've long separated from, and I have not intentions of going back. They sent assassins after me. They kidnapped the woman who cares for me. They almost killed Julius and Cass. I don't remember anything about them, I have no desire to either.

Once Marcus, Claudia, and Julius died, all I had left was Cass and Theophania. When Cass was brought back by Livius' soldiers, he was unconscious. This continued for weeks, I had no clue if he was ever going to wake up. I cried non-stop, Theophania and Brennos let me. I tried casting the healing magic Claudia taught me on him so many times, but it never worked.

I thought for sure he was never going to wake up. It was awful, he was my best friend, and even if I never fell in love with him, he was the person I was going to be with forever. We were never going to be apart.

So, when he woke up, I was ecstatic. In this dismal situation where everything was lost, one single thing returned to me. I latched on to this hope with every fiber of my being. When he awoke, he was depressed, so depressed he couldn't even move. Aside from when he stumbled into the yard.

I cared for him for the next few weeks to the best of my abilities. I was hurting, but I knew that he must have been hurting much more than me. So, I set everything aside to care for him. I worked hard at making meals the same way they used to be, I paid attention to everything he did, and I tried to cheer him up whenever I had the chance to.

Then one day he snuck out of the estate. I was worried but decided to just wait for him. When he returned, the look in his eyes changed. He was no longer empty but filled with something. I wondered what it was that changed this? Did someone help him where I couldn't?

Then he started training again. I didn't understand this behavior. It wasn't normal training either, he was pushing his body to the brink. All I could do was support him and help him recover.

Then he spoke to Brennos, and I heard him say that he was going to get revenge. That he was training so hard just so he could kill one man. The hatred in his voice was terrifying. I was scared to get close to him. But whenever I did, he ignored me.

'You are a distraction.' He would say to me, but I would practice magic with him anyways. He was never mean to me, pretty rude at times. That didn't really affect me too much, I can get over a little rudeness.

Then he canceled the engagement. This shocked and confused me. I never really bothered to consider a future where that happened. But it did, and I was fine with that in the end. I never really cared about marriage, I just wanted to stay by his side. I thought of him as family, just like I thought of Marcus, Claudia, and Julius. The difference between him and them was that I thought the two of us would end up as something more someday.

He had also started doing dangerous monster hunts. He had been hunting monsters for a while, but this was the first time he was injured. It was bad too, if I didn't heal him there could have been permanent damage.

Every time he left for a monster hunt; I was filled with worry. I was worried that this time he might not come back. That this time I would be left alone. He always came back though.

When Aquila came, I was skeptical of her. Everything I thought about her turned out true. She is a manipulative evil woman. She holds no real regard for his life, only using him to achieve a goal. She pushes him too hard, leading him to fight an opponent that could have killed him. When I tried to get Cass to realize this, he just brushed me off.