In the endless march of time, nothing could last longer than an eternity yet he opened the portal with his own impurity. Chased by death he should have lasted no longer than a century yet becoming one with it, such was his chivalry.
"Burn her with Rafael. She was a kind soul but there's no place for her in this world." spoke the man as he rose with Layla's head in his hand.
"Lord Varek! What about those two in the cellar?" said Kilmer.
"Let them be. They are no threats. Besides, with what he has seen just now will stay forever with him. I want to see how far he can go with this affliction. As for that woman behind him. Kill her." said Varek with a smile on his face.
"Yes my lord!"
As Varek was about to leave the house, his cloak was pulled back by something behind him. He turned back and saw a little boy, his hands gripped tight on the fabric, the expressionless face and a mirage in his eyes.
"Why did you do it? Why did you kill my mother? She did nothing wrong! She was a good mom. She took care of me and my father. Why? WHY DID YOU KILL HER?"
Varek sat down and gently patting on Caden's head he spoke, "Because I wanted to."
Caden's feelings went numb. He fell to his knees. He could hear his heartbeat, he wanted to cry but no tears came, there was nothing he could do. His heart beat kept increasing, his hands gripped his chest, nails digging deep, blood spilling with every pulse.
"Do it child. The murderer of thy own mother stands before thee yet thy soul cowers unto a candle trembling before the breath of storm. I will bestow onto thee a fraction of mine prowess and unveil thy worthiness to accept mine legacy." a voice echoed in Caden's head.
Suddenly, Caden stopped moving. Like a statue he sat motionless, his hands hanging, his head falling down, his back arched and his breath frozen.
Varek gently pushed him but Caden did not move. He was motionless like a dead body yet, his body was as stiff as a rock.
"What happened to him, Kilmer?"
"I don't know lord!"
"Sighs! Good grief. This country does have weird people. I want to go back to Aehteria once we are done here alright? I am tired of Nightsreach." said Varek.
"Kilmer, take that woman's body and Rafael, we will toss them into the fire. Though I am keeping her head for my collection."
As both of them were about to leave, a deep and powerful voice stopped them.
"Wait. Give my mother back."
Varek and Kilmer stopped and as they slowly turned their backs they saw a sight none could ever forget.
"No, no it can't be. Why? Why are you here?" Varek's voice cracked. He felt true fear. His legs were trembling and he fell to the ground. Layla's head rolled over to Caden's feet and as he looked it its eyes, Caden lost it.
One step. Two step and whoosh. Caden was gone. Varek and Kilmer frantically looked around, trying to find him. Suddenly, as Varek's eyesight fell onto Kilmer's he saw that Kilmer was not moving. As he tried to raise his hand and touch him, Kilmer fell to the ground, dead.
"Huh! No blood?…. No wounds? Just dead? How? How is that possible?" Varek was lost in thought.
In a trice, a white light blinded Varek's eyes and as he gradually opened them, he saw that everything around him had changed. He was in a different realm. Everything around him was black and dark as if he was floating in a void. A voice reverberated in Varek's ears.
"Oh ash-covered light! How far has thee fallen? How long one must be deceitful to themselves? To lie is a great sin, but to lie to ourselves is a blasphemy. Relieve it. Relieve thyself from the grief you hold so dear for it is not thy weapon but only infirmity."
"Here."
A stark blue blade appears in front of Varek.
"Wield this blade and use it to unshackle thyself from thy sins. Avail oneself off of these chains and be liberated once more, ash-covered light!"
Believing the words, Varek brought his hands forward and took the blade in his hand. He guided it towards his throat and sliced it. As he did it, the white light appeared and everything became blinding once again.
"Caden. Caden wake up." said Celestine frantically shaking Caden's shoulders.
Caden gradually opened his eyes. At first he saw a figure standing in front of him, then he saw two and then one more. There were three people standing before him and as he opened his eyes he saw that it was Thorian, Celestine and Layla.
Caden stood up and embraced Layla as a child starved of warmth like roots entwining earth after a long drought.
Layla gently pushed Caden away and sat down to look into his eyes, but as Caden looked, he saw that Layla had no face. It was just blank.
No eyes,
no mouth,
no nose,
no soul,
nothing.
A cold dread filled him, and his scream shattered the silence. The blinding lights returned.
He jolted upright, his breath ragged, chest heaved. The world around him was silent. The cries of people was gone.
He looked around in a frenzy and saw Varek and Kilmer lying on the ground, cold. Dead. Caden's legs trembled as he tried to rise. The weight of despair pulling him down. With a grunt, he crawled towards Celestine to wake her up but unfortunately, her stillness was all that greeted him. Her breath, shallow and distant, a reminder of an omniscient presence on him. Loneliness.
He was alone. In a villages, once full of life, now lay silent. Its ruins smouldering in the aftermath of flames. His legs were weak, his body devoid of strength. Yet it was not the physical exhaustion which haunted him, it was the overwhelming absence of any presence, of humans, of loved ones. Everything was just dead silent.
As the quiet night set in, everything in the world went silent once more;
Yet peace was the last thing, a child burnt in fire could implore.
In this vicious cycle of life and death,
To believe in oneself is the most powerful faith.
For the gods whose life is yet to be determined
The lives of mortals are the only ones burdened.