Light streaming through the curtains; the wind blowing gently past the window. The moon was slowly rising to its peak; soft silent breathing sounded across the room. Slowly, Itsuki opened her eyes as the darkness greeted her; she slowly sat up and stretched her arms, before she pulled the duvet away, then swung her legs to the side. Looking about, she yawned as she tried to recall where she was.
"Oh, right," she mumbled as she slipped into her flip flops and got up, then paced towards the door that connected to the adjoining room; light greeted her eyes that made her raise a hand to prevent the light from blinding her, then lowered it as her eyes attuned itself to her surroundings. She took a step forward and was greeted by a warm smile from her dear friend, who was sitting on the bed with a book in her hand.
"Evening, Itsuki," Thesalia greeted her with a smile.
"What? It's evening?" Itsuki yawned in reply as she went over to her and plopped down next to her, "How are you? Feel anything?"
"Nothing really," Thesalia shook her head as she returned her eyes to the book, "I feel fine, surprisingly, even though I just gave birth a few days ago."
"Have you been resting?" Itsuki questioned, "I hope you're not moving about just after popping out three kids."
"Yeah, I've been in bed all day," Thesalia replied, "I don't want to incur your wrath after all."
"Well, I would have strapped you to this bed even if Athena gets angry at me," Itsuki giggled in response as Thesalia merely frowned at her that further turned her giggle into a laugh, "How are the little ones?"
"Sleeping soundly," Thesalia smiled at the thought of her children, "You can look at them in the other room if you want."
"You're not worried something might happen to them?" Itsuki asked as she got up and walked over to the other door that led to the nursery, "With the tremors happening all around, I'm quite worried you didn't put them in the same room as you."
"I am worried," Thesalia replied with a near frown, "But I need the light to read and I didn't want to disturb their sleep, so I had to move them," she explained, "Besides, they're just a room away, so I can run there without worry."
"Don't run," Itsuki looked over her shoulder and furrowed her brow as though threatening her, which only made Thesalia giggle and nod. Turning the knob, Itsuki quietly opened the door and poked her head through the crack just to sneak a peek at her nieces and nephew; a smile crept on her lips as she saw them sleeping soundly with a nightlight in shape of a beagle's face – one she assumed Athena chose – on the wall, a few feet away from their cribs. A warm sensation filled her heart at the sight of them, which she knew was her maternal instinct – something that almost every woman had.
Slowly, she closed the door and quietly let go of the knob before she turned around to face Thesalia, who seemed to have fallen asleep sitting against the headboard. Rolling her eyes, Itsuki merely sighed and gave a small smile, then walked over to her friend; she knew well that she had this habit of leaving herself so defenceless because Athena had been with her almost every day for the past three years. In all honesty, she does not blame her since she would have done the same should Jesslyn and her be living together.
"You'll catch a cold like that, Michie," Itsuki whispered as she carefully sat next to Thesalia and carefully removed the book in her hands before she helped the sleeping master of the house into a proper sleeping position; she pulled the duvet over her shoulders and smiled at her before she put the book away. "Sleep tight, my dear."
Walking away, Itsuki made her way to the main door and left the room with as little noise as possible; the lights turned to dim automatically as she quietly exited the room. Stretching her arms up, she looked at the hallway and thought of what to do; she has been in the mansion for more than three days since Thesalia's delivery and had been busy during the process. Now that the phase for resting is upon her patient, she does not know what to do in the place for she hardly knew where what was; she often found herself lost in the maze of a mansion Thesalia had that she had to ask the house keepers for directions.
"Maybe I'd go find something to eat," she mumbled as she turned right and began pacing that way. Her mind drifted from place to place – from her studies in college, to work, to some Non-Mortal business, and to her family – but ultimately, it often landed on Jesslyn in between those thoughts; she missed her indefinitely and could not wait for time to pass by faster just until it was time for Christmas break, so she could spend time with her.
Seeing Thesalia's children, it made her happy that even the Non-Mortal culture had a way of birthing kids without the need of a partner; in human science, it would be by means of sperm donation, but for the NoMs, the chant was real. She still could not understand the logic or the science of it all, but was happy for Thesalia nonetheless; she could not be any prouder to be an aunt to one of her closest and dearest friends. Although, she had to admit, she was ten years too early to be an aunt, especially at the crisp age of nineteen.
Sighing at the thought, she found herself at the main staircase and descended to ground level; she tried to find the kitchen and successfully did, then managed to make herself something to eat. Some of the house help raised a brow at her for preparing her own food because it was their job to prepare the meals and give them anything they asked for; but Itsuki respectfully declined their kindness and asked them to let her do it because she wanted to practise her own cooking.
"You're cooking is admirable as it is," one of the house help, Laura, spoke as she sat next to the young teen, "You'd be a good cook someday."
"Cook?" another one of the house help, Horace, Itsuki recalled him, "She'll make an excellent wife already."
Itsuki blushed at his complement, "I hope you're right, Horace."
Horace chuckled, "Well, they do say the best way to a man's heart is through his stomach."
"Oh, you qualify in that category, Horace; there's no doubt in it," Laura snickered as Horace frowned at her, "But really, Miss Kitamura, you would make a fine wife for Master Faraday."
Itsuki smiled as she thought of what Laura had said before she exhaled, "Yeah."
Horace poked Laura's cheek, "Laura, she already said we don't have to call her Master," he reminded her, "You know that she doesn't want us to treat her any different," he continued as Laura mumbled a soft 'oh' as though she remembered, "She's too kind to us just like the rest of our masters; almost all of them don't want to be formally called."
Itsuki giggled, "Yeah, that's Jeslyn for you," she chirped, "She doesn't like being pampered," she recalled as she smiled at them, "She rather be the one to pamper you more than anything, but will of course respect you if you don't want to."
Horace shivered as though he remembered, "You don't have to remind me," he shook his head, "She even made nicknames for each of us just to prove that she won't treat us any different; one evening she even cooked dinner for all of us without us knowing!"
As Horace ran his mouth about that day, Itsuki could not help but feel a little bit lonely; there was an emptiness in her chest that almost felt so light that she could float. It has been a long while since the two of them last spoke and she has wondered how she was, and if she was taking care of herself; there would be times where she worried that she was badly hurt and that she would have to scold her for being her reckless self. The thought alone made her smile as her mind flashbacked to moments when she had to continuously patch her up because she had to train some new recruits; those were the days both of them were always together.
Now, they were torn by her desire to finish her studies as much as Jesslyn had to run off and be herself – selfless and caring for everyone. Why do you have to be so... she thought as she finished her meal and went to wash it, leaving the two house help to their own conversation; quietly, she excused herself as the duo resumed their conversation. She did not wish to impede too much on them. Walking about, she tried to clear her thoughts of Jesslyn and tried to look for Athena, hoping that she may have something for her to do.
"I wonder where she is," Itsuki mumbled as she took a right at the end of the hallway and found herself in the eastern stairwell, "If I recall correctly," she mumbled to herself as she ascended the steps, "She was in that room from before."
Ascending to the third floor, Itsuki tried to retrace her steps to the room and after a few turns, she finally found the room. Standing in front of it, she tried to listen to the conversation inside, but could hear nothing come from the other end; she knocked on the door, hoping that Athena would answer. One, two, three – thrice she knocked against the wooden door, but there was no answer.
Maybe she's not here anymore, she thought as she put a hand on the door knob and slowly twisted it open; she pushed the door gently and saw nothing but darkness within. There was an echo inside her chest as slowly opened the door even wider as though there was something wrong with the room; she could not understand the anxiety she felt from the room, but merely swallowed her spit.
Light eventually entered the dark room as the door was almost a quarter open; she still could not see anything, but the carpeted floor. She wondered if they were there from the lack of response, but wanted to make sure that they were not there or if they merely fell asleep and could not hear them past their slumber. She knew well enough that Athena had high hearing and Cecilia would have greeted her, unless of course they were not there or if they were asleep. Her heartbeat drummed against her ears as anxiety rose further as the door was finally half way open; she still could not quite understand why her heart was pounding as though telling her something. What it was, she could only guess.
There was something in this darkness that seemed to be telling her something – something that she believed would set her uneasy heartbeat at rest; she swallowed her spit once again as she took a deep breath and peered through the darkness, but did not seem to find anything. Curious, she tried to squint her eyes past the blackness, but could find nothing; her heartbeat continued to drum as though to encourage her to walk inside, which she intended to do as curiosity had gotten the best of her.
"Miss Kitamura!" a voice called out to her just as she placed one foot through the room, "Hailey Shepard is here and is gravely hurt, but she doesn't appear to be recovering! Please come quick!"
Eyes widened, she pulled herself back and closed the door, then rushed on over to the servant; she followed her through the corridor, but the anxiety for that room remained. She looked over her shoulder as she got farther away from the room; there was something in the back of her mind that told her to go into the room, but her heart felt like it was telling her not to. It made her wonder why there was such apprehension in her chest, but did not have the time to think; there was something that needed her attention right now.
What is in that room?
Pacing down the stairs, Itsuki ran with the house help to a room where she saw Hailey lain down on the bed with her throat slit; it took her a second to process everything – from her pale as white skin, to the hollowness in her eyes, and to what was needed to be done. Approaching her, she took a much closer inspection and immediately took the pillowcase off one of the pillows then immediately wrapped it around her bleeding neck.
"I need bandages and something to close this with," she instructed those around her; the house help nodded and went to get what she needed. Itsuki turned to the young man she was with and asked; "What happened to her?"
"Slit at the throat by a spear and was pushed off a cliff," the young man replied.
"I have the bandages!"
"Hurry," Itsuki pressed on as she slowly lifted Hailey's head, "Remove the cover and wrap it around her neck," she instructed, "It will at least catch her blood and her body would close the wound on its own."
For a few minutes, Itsuki tried to make sure that the bleeding would cease and finally cleaned her properly; she noticed the wound was not closing any faster than it should, which led her to resort to closing it manually before covering it gently with a bandage. The house help aided her with everything she needed and cleaned up after; Hailey was finally stable as Itsuki hoped the wound on her neck slowly heal faster despite her stitching it by hand. This was not the first time she had seen a wound close abnormally for a NoM, especially not after Athena's encounter with the clan's red and blue-edged swords.
"Thank you for your help," Itsuki told the house help as they all nodded and left the room, leaving Itsuki and the young brunette in room, "I never caught your name," she spoke to him, "I take it you brought her here?"
The young, well-built man with blue eyes nodded, "I guess you can say that."
"I'm Itsuki," she held her hand out for him, "Kitamura Itsuki."
The brunette took it and shook it briefly before he replied, "Deckard Orion."
"Pleasure," Itsuki smiled as she motioned for him to sit down, "So, tell me how did you get here?"
Deckard looked at Hailey, "The two of us were caught by our enemies," he explained, "Both of us were taken hostages and were left to die," he continued as Itsuki listened carefully, a little curious as to why and how this happened, especially when Hailey just left the place two days ago, "But we managed to survive and escape."
"That's a little insane," Itsuki exhaled and examined him, "Are you hurt anywhere?"
Deckard shook his head and smiled, "I'm more or less unscathed," he explained as he looked at the sleeping faerie on the bed, "But she took most of the harm."
"If you don't mind my asking," Itsuki cleared her throat as he turned to face her, "What happened to the two of you that has left her nearly lifeless?"
Deckard lowered his gaze for a moment as he took a deep breath and exhaled before he looked at her straight in the eyes, then began his story; Itsuki noted the seriousness in his eyes as much as the forlorn look in them that was laced with penitence, concern, but above all, there was a hint of self-reproach in those blue eyes of his. Why he bore the look of a man full of burden is a mystery to her, but from the story he unfolded before her, she could only try to understand.
Standing up, Itsuki approached Hailey's bed and examined her body; from the way Deckard explained that they walked through another realm and got here using the door that had them falling into the rose garden, it could only mean that she may have suffered some internal damage. How could she have not noticed that Hailey was depleted of her spiritual energy? It was fairly obvious from the pale – nearly blue – colour of her skin and from the way she breathed so slowly as though trying to catch up with her own heartbeat.
"How long have both of you been at the other side?" Itsuki queried as she looked for any visible signs of internal damage on Hailey's skin.
Deckard shook his head, "More than twenty-four hours in this realm," he counted, "Possibly about a day and a half long at the other side, but I can't say for sure."
"It doesn't look like she has any internal damage," Itsuki exhaled in relief, then turned to face him, "Are you sure, you don't want me to examine you?"
Deckard nodded, "Yes, I'm fine."
"Were there others there with you?" Itsuki prodded, a little curious.
Deckard nodded again, "Yes, there was Art and Alexis, then Katherine."
"Katherine? Alexis?" Itsuki raised a brow with slightly widened eyes, "Then where are they?"
Deckard frowned as he lowered his gaze, "Still in the other side," he explained as he looked past her and at Hailey, "We have to get them back from the other side, especially from the hands of our captors."
"Then why aren't you going now?" Itsuki nearly exclaimed.
Deckard shook his head, "I can't go there," he explained as he pointed at Hailey with his eyes, "Not without her."
"It will take her awhile to recover," Itsuki frowned, "At most it would take her a day from the way she was recovering so slowly."
Deckard frowned and nearly raised his voice, "We can't afford that."
"Well, you don't have a choice," Itsuki sighed as she looked at Hailey, "There's something wrong with her and she needs a lot of rest just to recover possibly five percent of her spiritual energy," she turned to him and noticed the frown on his lips, "Hey," she whispered and caught his attention, "Can I ask you something?"
Deckard nodded as he met her gaze, "Sure."
"If Katherine is at the other side, then Jesslyn must be with her, right?"
For a moment, they stared at each other as Itsuki waited for an answer; she stared at Deckard, who seemed to be contemplating mentally from the way his lips seemed to be shivering slightly as though holding back something. It intrigued her, but at the same time, it worried her about the answer she would get from him; she watched him look away for a moment, then look back at her, then exhaled out loud before he opened his mouth to speak.
"Jesslyn is d-"
Before Deckard could even finish, the door creaked opened behind them, which made both of them turn and face the door; all eyes were on the door, where the master of the house stood and looked at them, almost as surprised as they are. Thesalia entered the room and walked straight to Hailey's bedside then observed her; she opened her palm to cast a chant for her whilst the duo watched her do her work.
"I was told she has returned," Thesalia spoke just as she finished her chant that brought the colour back into Hailey's pale skin, "I was worried that she was harmed and here I find her barely recovering from her assault."
Itsuki nodded, "Yeah, I was wondering why her body wasn't recovering like it should."
"This one is special," Thesalia whispered with a small smile on her lips, "She has a lot of gifts she doesn't know she has."
You don't say.
"Thank you Itsuki for doing all you can," Thesalia smiled at the physician, who merely nodded, before she turned to the young man beside her, "I take it you brought her here?"
Deckard nodded, "Yes, through the door at the castle."
"The same way she landed here a few days ago," Thesalia mumbled, "Is it alright with you if I ask you to tell me everything that happened?"
Nodding, Deckard began to speak as Itsuki examined him; there was something about him that she could not quite understand – an anomaly that even she could sense from the way his body spoke. What concerned her more was the answer he was about to give him, but dismissed it for now; she did not wish to worry too much over Jesslyn since she had faith that she was far from mortal danger.
Quietly, she walked out of the room to give the two some privacy; she did not wish to overstep her boundaries. Hailey was in a good condition and she could just check on her later; Thesalia also helped with the process of her recovery, so she expects that the young faerie will be awake in no time. Sighing, she walked down the corridor and tried to drown her thoughts with something other than Jesslyn's well-being.
However, try as she might, she could not seem to banish the thought of her lover in her mind; her heart ached at the thought of her being hurt and she could not fathom her being in the same situation as Hailey was. There was a small prick in her heart at the thought of a heavily injured Jesslyn that made her shake her head of these ill thoughts; she knew Jesslyn's capabilities and had faith that she would always come out on top like Athena.
I'm sure she's fine, she thought as she found herself in front of the eastern stairwell once again. She looked up at the stairs and involuntarily had her hand clasping her chest as she felt her heartbeat echo against her ears; there was something about that room that bothered her and she could not understand why it was. A part of her wanted to go back and check the room, but another part of her wanted to leave it alone, unsure what horrors she might find there.
Taking a deep breath, Itsuki turned around and began pacing away; with each step she could hear her heartbeat echo even louder against her ears. At the tenth step, she looked over her shoulder as anxiety built up in her chest that made her body slowly turn around and walk the other way; ascending the steps, she could feel her heartbeat palpitate faster in anxiety as she got on the third floor and slowly made her way to the room.
With each step she took closer, her mind conjured questions on what might lie in the other side of that door: will there even be light? Will there be answers? Will Athena be there? Or, even Cecilia? What is it that's making my heart pound? Will there be a spirit at the other side that would devour my soul?
Eventually, her feet had finally led her back to the door and stood just a foot away from it; her heartbeat was drumming out loud that her thoughts were almost being drowned out. Calm down, she took a deep breath and placed her hand on the door knob, then slowly and gently, twisted the door open; just as before, the darkness greeted her, which made her place a hand on the wall to her right, cupping to the light switch. Her fingers found it, but when she flicked it on, there was no light; a frown came upon her lips as sighed.
"Great, no lights," Itsuki mumbled as she swung the door to a full, then saw a glimpse of the curtain; as she recalled they were also closed when she went into this room the other day when Athena and Cecilia were having their secret conversation here. About what, she can only imagine; possibly about the prophecy Deckard just told her.
Reaching out to the curtains, she pulled them apart and allowed the moonlight to enter the room, making it a little brighter than before. Exhaling, she smiled at the full moon above her as she marvelled at its beauty; it made her reminiscence of the time Jesslyn took her out on a date under the moonlight and ever since then, it had become her best date from the other dates they had. Sighing dreamily, she stared at the moon as the memories from that night came rushing back to her.
A calm night breeze was blowing; the soft grass underneath the sheets. The moonlight was over them as much as the stars were out to play; the smell of the forest all around them. There was a soft echo of their heartbeats that almost sounded like music to her ears; there was a calm breathing almost crossing paths as they took slow breaths together. Above all those were Jesslyn's green eyes looking straight at her; it was the best thing she saw that blissful evening and best thing she heard were the words she mouthed to her that under the blessing of the full moon.
Will you marry me?
Sighing out loud, Itsuki smiled to herself as she turned to leave; the feeling in her chest had evaporated just at the thought of her best memory. Turning around, she paced on towards the door as she briefly looked around the room; there was nothing interesting inside it. As she was about to reach the door, a glint from one corner of the room caught her attention; her steps stopped as she slowly made her way towards this and saw it on top of the bed.
It made her tilt her head as she wondered what it was that made such a spark. Closer and closer, a figure was slowly forming through the darkness that slowly banished the smile on her lips; with each step she took her heart slowly sank as she thought her eyes were playing tricks on her. As her feet stopped at the side of the bed, she reached out to touch the glint, but instead felt a cold hand greet her; surprised, she retracted her arm and gasped for a moment, then turned to lamp on the side drawer.
Turning on the light, her eyes widened almost immediately as her body froze at the sight of what was in front of her; her heartbeat raced uncontrollably as her mind emptied – devoid of reason and logic. Slowly, she reached out to the face she knew so well and wished that this was merely an illusion, but as her fingers grazed her pale, thinned out skin, tears escaped her eyes as her as he lips trembled at her lifeless body.
"Jess...?" her quivering lips spoke as tears streamed endlessly from her eyes as she fell to her knees, unable to fathom the truth that was in front of her; her heart palpitated uncontrollably as though asking her to leave, but her mind did not want her to. Grief had ridden the edges of her mind as she placed a hand over Jesslyn's cold, skeleton-like hand, where her ring had been placed on her finger.
Sobbing out loud, Itsuki felt as though her heart had been stabbed a hundred times, then eventually pulled out of her chest; there was an excruciatingly painful prick in her heart – a needle as big as her fist was slowly pushing itself through her chest. Her breathing hitched as tears flowed out of her endlessly as much as her sobs got louder by the second; she could not show her pain any further as her other hand clasped her chest as though hoping to ease her pained heart.
"Jess, I," she tried to speak through her sobs as she managed to get up and cupped her face with her hand, "I'm sorry I was harsh on you," she apologised in almost a whimper, "I'm sorry I feel spoiled when I'm with you," she sobbed as she tried to smile past her trembling lips, trying hard not to recall all the memories they had together, "I'm sorry that I didn't join you at the institution like you wanted me to," she tried to pass off a chuckle, but her heart only broke further, "I know you wanted us to be together, but I selfishly wanted to be a doctor first."
Itsuki's tears dripped onto Jesslyn's pale, dry, skinny cheeks that were once full of life; the young physician traced her face as though trying to remember them the way they should be, but her heart was pleading her to stop hurting herself further, telling her that this will not do her anything but harm. Cupping her cheeks once more, she planted a soft kiss on her forehead as she tried not to sob even louder from the pain her heart was feeling.
"I love you," Itsuki whispered as she planted as kiss on Jesslyn's lips, "Please come back to me."
Hearing her wailing, Hailey stood at the entrance of the door as she could not find the courage to come closer; she did not expect her to find Jesslyn's body so soon – just a few days after Itsuki told her how much the young master assassin meant to her. Regret filled the young faerie's chest as she clenched it from the pain she was feeling; it may not be as heavy as what was Itsuki feeling, but even so, Jesslyn was also important to her as much as everyone else was.
"Itsuki," Hailey managed a whisper, "I'm sorry."
Itsuki did not turn around, "So, it was your fault, huh?"
"She was trying to save and I-"
"I don't want to hear your excuses!" Itsuki roared furiously at her as she turned to face her with a deep glower on her face. The look on her face sent a deep prick inside Hailey's already beaten heart that made her unable to steer her gaze away from the grieving doctor; she can feel the anger she had for her – a deep loathing that could transcend even time itself. She could not bear to look away from Itsuki as guilt filled her heart faster than an open faucet. "Get out! Get out of here!"
Dejected, Hailey hung her head as she tried not to cry as well; slowly, she turned around walked away from the door with her eyes on the floor. Guilt rode the corners of her heart as her hand clutched her chest from the pain it was under; mustering enough strength, she tried not to cry for she believed that she was unworthy of this sadness. Locking her jaw, she sealed her lips from crying out her frustration, at her inability to do something right; first it was the gate, now it was this.
What more does she have to do for everything to go downhill for good?
"Are you alright?" a familiar voice called out to her, "You could do with some ice cream, I say."
Raising her lowered gaze, Hailey saw Thesalia looking at her with concerned eyes and a smile that showed empathy; unable to contain her sadness, Hailey sprinted towards the mistress of the house and wrapped her arms around her, then buried her face in her chest to cry silently. Thesalia merely hugged her and comforted her pained heart, aware that she was close to losing herself; she does not know what she was feeling, but she could sense an insurmountable guilt coming from the young faerie in front of her.
"Hush, dear child," Thesalia comforted in a whisper as she rubbed Hailey's back, "Everything will be alright."
Doubtful, Hailey did not listen to her words and merely kept sobbing, until she could no longer shed another tear. She pulled back and tried to calm herself down just as Thesalia whipped out her handkerchief, and then offered it to the tear-stained faerie; Hailey took it and wiped her face dry, but her eyes were pale red from bawling her eyes out for but a moment. Thesalia offered a smile as she cupped the young teen's cheek, then gently rubbed it with her thumb; she can feel how much the young faerie's emotions were in disarray – something that any faerie should not have, given that the elements would respond to it.
"Have you calmed down?" Thesalia asked softly.
Hailey nodded, "I have, thank you."
"I know how you feel, Hailey," Thesalia spoke gently as she looked her with amber eyes full of concern, "But, don't let emotion get in the way of what you should do," she tried to explain, "It's hard to accept loss, especially when it's someone you hold so dear," she continued as she looked away for a moment as though she knew the feeling, and she did, "But have faith, dear child. You may yet save her, should you close the gate."
Hailey tilted her head with a raised brow, "What are you saying?"
"You are the key," Thesalia reminded her, "A key to a door that leads to the spirit realm and this realm," she explained, "You can cross paths to the other without flaw at any moment you wish and at the same time," she smiled, "You can bring something from there back here."
Hailey raised a brow, "I already know that I can bring people there and back. So, what are you trying to say?"
"I'm not saying anything," Thesalia replied as she retracted her hand, "But right now, our world is about to crumble," she continued as she opened her palm to chant, "And right now, you have to go back and close that gate," she explained as Hailey's clothes cleansed itself from the stain of her own blood as much as the dirt around her body, "I'm sorry to ask this of you just after you recovered from your wound."
Hailey shook her head, "No, I understand my responsibilities," she assured her as she looked over her shoulder and briefly flashed a small frown, "Please look after Itsuki."
"I pray this is your last voyage," Thesalia spoke as Hailey turned to her, curious at her words, "And when we meet again, it is for a much joyous occasion rather than all this gloom."
"There you are!" Both eyes turned to the voice behind them, Hailey's eyes widened at the sight of him, "We left the room for one second and you were gone," he frowned as he caught his breath, "You're really troublesome, Hailey."
Hailey approached him and cupped both his cheeks, "You're alive?" she exhaled as she wrapped her arms around him and pulled him into a hug, which surprised the young brunette, then made him cough himself out of this awkward situation, "How did you survive?"
"Now isn't the time for questions," Deckard cleared his throat as he looked at her in the eyes, "The gate is open," he explained as Hailey nodded, "We need to close it."
"Allow me to give you a lift," Thesalia spoke as the duo turned to her, "Once you get to the gate, do what you can to close it," she instructed whilst holding her palm out for a chant as they nodded, "If you would be so kind as to tell Athena something for me."
Hailey nodded, "Anything."
"Tell her to be careful."
With that, the duo was engulfed in a bright light and the next second, they found themselves in front of a familiar place; Hailey recognised it immediately from the layout of the room and even beyond the darkness. Deckard held his head, dizzy from their sudden teleportation; he bent over as though he was about to regurgitate whatever it was he last ate, but swallowed it and stood up.
Hailey sensed his discomfort and asked; "Are you alright?"
"Yep," Deckard replied instantly, "Let's just get on with our plan."
Looking at him, she examined him for a moment and noticed how different he felt to her, as if he was someone other than the person that irked her the first time she laid eyes on him; there was something about him that she found rather peculiar, but did not prod. Nodding, Hailey paced towards the door, then asked herself why they were warped there, when she thought that they would have been teleported to the other side.
"Why did she bring us here?" she mumbled as she opened the door and found the place devoid of slumbering people as much as she could not feel a single presence around them other than hers and Deckard's. Stepping into the hallways, she looked at both ways before she proceeded to the elevator, "This is really unusual."
"Maybe," Deckard shrugged as the elevator chimed and they entered it, "You think, the mistress sent us to the wrong place?"
"I think so too," Hailey thought as the elevator stopped at the first level, "But I think she teleported us to the nearest portal to the other side."
"You think?" Deckard questioned with a raised brow as he followed her out the establishment and into an open plaza, "Where is this portal you reckon?"
"That," Hailey sighed as she followed the path, "I don't really know," she answered as she thought of answer to his question; as she walked towards the direction of the school, her step halted as she recalled the first time she met Katherine – at how they were warped to a different place. At this realisation, her feet began to run as Deckard called out to her from behind as she merely shouted; "I know where another portal is!"
"You do?" Deckard questioned as she caught up to the young faerie, who ran as fast as the wind; it almost made the young man unable to follow her, but tried to cope with the fatigue his legs were drawing and forced himself to catch up to her.
Through the forest path, the two of them ran the stone pavement that led to another building in the far distance; as they got closer they could faintly hear a few cries of pain which made them wonder what it was, but did not stop to think. Instead, they resumed their run as they saw the buildings get closer and closer to them; half way through their run, something quick flew past them like a flash of thunder that made both of them stop.
Hailey listened to the wind's voice as she tried to find this being, unsure what it was, but had an inkling of what it might be; she stepped back a little closer to Deckard as both of them tried to catch their breath whilst their eyes scoured the trees for this thing. As their eyes panned the trees, a figure leapt from the trees and shadowed over them; in a flash, Hailey summoned a spirit to her aid under the guise of the earth to protect them.
"Renegades!" Hailey shouted as Deckard gritted his teeth. The golem threw a rock at it to prevent it from pouncing on the two that allowed Hailey to grab Deckard by the wrist and pull him forward, away from the black spirit. She commanded her golem to buy them enough time as Deckard looked over his shoulder, afraid that the inevitable had already occurred.
Deckard turned to Hailey and said; "If one of them is here, then it could only mean one thing."
"I know," Hailey nearly whispered as they got closer to the gym building, but before they got closer, there was a wave of dark spirits in front of them; all of them were coming out of the gym as much as they were headed into it, "The gate; it must be in the gym!"
Deckard exclaimed, "What?!" then pulled his wrist that stopped Hailey, "How can something so big be in there?"
His question drew blanks in her head as she thought of the same thing: how could a chasm as wide as the continent be crammed into one location? Surely there was an answer to such a mystery, but now was not the time to find it; they have one objective and that was to go to the other side, save the others, then close the gate to possibly save the world. It was a rescue mission more than anything; not just their friends, but everyone else.
With that in mind, Hailey continued to pace towards the gym as renegade spirits noticed them, which made her call out a few more spirits that were willing to fight by her side; she summoned the will of the air, the earth, the water, and above all, the fiercest of all the elements, fire. All four at her side, the wind blasted their foes away as the earth pummelled those on the ground; the water shielded them from any foul spirits that could come any closer, but the fire spirit did not do anything but stay near Hailey.
Deckard was astounded by her prowess, but was somehow worried that she might tire herself out, especially just after rising from the brink of death not too long ago; he admires her endurance, courage, but above all, he admired her determination. There was a fire of bright purple in her irises that told him that she was not going to stop until she has done what she had intended to do – to rescue everyone.
Sticking close to her, Deckard watched as spirits from every direction tried to get to them, but anyone who dared walked into the water's spherical, ice shield was turned to ashes by the fire elemental that seemed to be the embodiment of Hailey's rage. There was a calm presence about it, but when an enemy appears it seems to control its emotions and eventually unleash a fury never before seen by any human; this was the first time he has seen such a creature powerful enough to turn something into ash just by being near it.
She has always been this amazing, he thought as they got nearer to the gym, but as they did, more and more of the spirits came at them, slowing them further. Deckard looked at Hailey, who seemed to be shivering as she tried to take a step forward, which made the young man catch her just as he saw her knees buckled; just in time, he was able to catch her, but as Hailey faltered, her wind golem was vanquished.
"Hey, hey, hey," Deckard repeated in a soft voice as he lightly slapped her cheek several times, "Don't force yourself, if you can't control them all at once, Hailey."
Hailey shook her head as she tried to stand up, "No, I'm alright."
"No, you're not," Deckard almost scoffed, "You just recovered a while ago," he reasoned as he watched her stiffen her body, but he could tell that she was trying so hard just to stand as much as breathe, "Just release the other spirits; we can manage with just the water."
Hailey gritted her teeth at the pain, "It won't be enough; we need all of them to make it to the gym," she replied as she tried to summon back a wind spirit, but her body was under too much pressure from the others that the spirit would not manifest, "Damn it."
"I told you not to push yourself," Deckard raised his voice slightly but in a reasonable tone, "We'll have to make do with just one," Deckard replied as Hailey turned to him with eyes that bore a questions, but her mouth was busy breathing to ask, "Trust me."
Placing her trust in him, Hailey sighed mentally whilst she dismissed the earthen golem and the fire golem, who seemed reluctant to leave, but respected her command; they were left barren with just the water golem that increased the radius of her shield. Relieved, Hailey tried to manage this last golem carefully as the foul spirits surrounded them and pounded on the shield; with each punch they did to the shield, Hailey could feel a few pin pricks against her skin.
Slowly but surely, they pushed their way through the horde of renegade spirits that assaulted her shield heavily, causing scratches all over her ice shield that almost looked as though it would crack any second from the amount of dents their scythes have made. Burdened by the incremental loss of her focus, Hailey's breathing hastened as she tried hard to ignore her bodily pain; she believed that it was not as heavy as what Itsuki was feeling. Not after the loss of Jesslyn.
I can bear this much, Hailey thought as she continued holding her head high as the gym grew closer and closer to them. As they got closer, a tremendous earthquake made her lose her balance that had Deckard sprinting to steady her; she did not bother to thank him as she steadied herself despite the trembling earth. Forcing herself to walk through the tremors, her eyes slowly lifted to the sky as she saw a huge ball of azure fire hurling towards them rapidly.
"Get down!" Deckard screamed as he braced for impact just as the ball made impact with Hailey's shield. The intense power and speed of the ball pierced cracks along the ice sphere that had Hailey fall into gravity as she tried hard to focus for the shield to remain intact; the flames from the ball seared the souls around it from the sheer force of the impact alone.
The heat from its core immolated the foul spirits near Hailey and Deckard; just watching their enemies' burn almost frightened them at who could have conjured such a powerful flame that seared that amount of spirits in a matter of seconds. The fire golem Hailey summoned had the same effect, but this was beyond its own league; Deckard could only feel his bones quiver at the thought of the being who could have made such a blaze – it would probably be somebody as equally powerful as Thesalia.
Amazing... Deckard thought as they watched the ball of fire scatter into the air, dispersing the heat. Once the blaze was over, he felt relieved that they may make it to the gym faster now; just as his relief washed over him, it was torn down as the ice shield around them crumbled. His eyes darted to Hailey, who was falling face first into the ground; it made the young man sprint and catch her before she could even hit the ground. He turned her over and noticed that her eyes had shut as much as her breathing was slightly ragged whilst her body perspired incredulously, which told him that she could have passed out from exhaustion.
"Hailey, hang in there!" Deckard exclaimed as he began running towards the gym with the blue haired teen in his arms. About a few feet from the blast, the horde of renegades suddenly burst out from the trees that surrounded them even from the sky; it made him halt in step as he breathed out of his mouth, a little too fatigued than what he ought to be. "You guys are relentless, huh?"
I don't have any weapons, he thought as he slowly spun around to look at them with gritted teeth that matched the glower in his blue eyes. He tried to look for an exit in the circle that trapped him in place, but could not see a single opening; in his arms, the young blue-haired faerie squinted her eyes first before she opened them. Vision in a slight blur, Hailey could sense trepidation from the person carrying him, but at same time, there was irk in him; from who or what, she can only guess.
"Deckard," Hailey whispered as she looked around and saw the blurred blackness around her; she may not figure out what it was the surrounded them, but she knew it from the overwhelming sense of hunger, who they were. She held her head for a moment as she felt a light, passive throb in the back of her head as she whispered; "I can make us another shield, just keep still."
Deckard shook his head, "No, Hailey," he sighed before he gave a small smile for her, "You've done all you can," he spoke softly as Hailey sensed his sadness, "But now, you're too exhausted to help yourself."
"I'm not giving up," she whispered in response as she tried to breathe normally.
Deckard nearly chuckled, "I didn't say you should," he sighed as he looked around him as the wings of his enemies flapped in the sky that made him grin, "But, I guess," he exhaled as he looked down at Hailey with the saddest of eyes, "I am tired of all this."
Bewildered by his words, Hailey was about to ask what he meant, but before she could even do so, she felt him toss her up into the air with such force, she did not expect he had, and the second she felt the wind, there were screeches beneath her; the renegades have pounced on Deckard from each direction as Hailey watched him get covered by the lot. She could not find him in her restrained and blurred vision as she could only muster enough strength to reach out to him; as she reached the end of her ascent from Deckard's throw, the renegades over her, started to fly around her as though looking for the most opportune moment to catch and kill her.
Looking above, Hailey could see them swooping down to get her, but all of sudden, they started to shun from her as though they were blinded by an impeccable light. The spirits that were circling around them suddenly flew away as Hailey slowly turned her head around, at the light that seemed to be coming from the ground; the renegades were blinded as much as she was, but as she descended a beast familiar to her suddenly flew up from the blinding light and caught her just in time.
"Deckard?" she questioned as the beast of immense size caught her and flew away from the renegades on their tails, but not after spewing a ball of fire at them to prevent them from catching up so quickly. Touching the great beast's hide, Hailey felt some emotions that she did not recognize until now, that it was not of someone who merely claims he was human. She gasped silently as the beast placed her on its nape, then growled internally as though to ask if she was fine; to which, she replied; "What is going on here?"
"Didn't I tell you, I want nothing to do with you?"
A familiar voice sounded in her ears that made her eyes widen, then slowly turned her head around and found a familiar face, standing there on the dragon's back with a glower on his wrinkled face. There was a slight confusion on the blue-haired teen's face as the figure slowly worked over to her with nearly a glower in his deep, dark blue eyes.
"You screwed up big time, kid, thanks a lot," he scoffed as he crossed his arms, "But you're lucky there may still be a way to end all this for good."
"How?" Hailey asked almost instantly as she looked at him with hope; she did not know how to close the gate again, aware that in a previous life that she may done it so. The words he let go nearly sounded like music to her ears, but was a little afraid of the answer; Zander never once mentioned how the gate was closed from the start, but she could tell that there were prices to pay. Freedom was not as cheap, nor was safety of an entire race.
Staring at him, she waited for an answer as she saw his brows twitch as though unsure whether to tell her or not; he looked at her intently as though looking past her shell of a mortal's form, looking at her will to do what it is to stop this madness. Through her dark amber eyes, he could see the determination set in those irises of hers that reminded him much of a certain someone, which made him sigh.
"Are you sure you're ready for this?"
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A/N: I feel bad for Itsuki, I really do. However, I can't undo what has already been done. Jesslyn's journey has ended; she has done a lot for others when they have done so little for her. So, cheers to Faraday.
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