His sword pointed at my face. He had the same look from when he first met me. That look that he had when he killed those bandits on the way to Ryther. Was he waiting for an opportunity? The Princess that was his best friend was now the very thing he hated in this life.
Lira Crimson dies once more.
He sheathed it back. "You didn't flinch." He looked offended.
"You didn't kill me." I stated the obvious.
"Why would I? I don't hate you, Lira Crimson. Those bandits didn't have good intentions. Their daggers were covered in lethal poison."
So they weren't good people after all.
"I'm sorry." I shifted awkwardly.
"I should apologize as well. I got used to a massacre that I went back to becoming an outlaw." He sighed.
I sit on the edge of my bed.
"How did you become an outlaw?"
"Well, when I came back, reborn, I was alone for some months, obviously. Until a group of outlaws found me and adopted me. For years, I didn't know they were under the command of The Hollow King. I didn't know that they killed. They raised me as a prince, until I saw the bloodshed that they have created when I was 7." He joined me on the bed. "Then I suddenly became one of them. Not following The Hollow King, but them instead. Doing everything they said, hurting people that didn't deserve to get hurt. The Hollow King eventually stopped commanding them. However, they didn't stop. They were ruthless, and they stopped at nothing and did anything."
I didn't know what to say.
What was I supposed to say?
"I'm sorry." That was the only thing I could think of.
"It's not your fault."
"You died cause of me all those years ago, to be reborn and adopted by outlaws. How is it not my fault?"
"Well, neither of us knew we were going to die." He shrugged.
It was some silence, then I realized this was the first time I had a proper conversation with him. Maybe I should stop thinking that he would kill me.
"Well, I'll leave you to get some rest." He got up from the bed. "Wear your cloak tomorrow." He said before leaving.
But why?
Why do I have to wear the stupid cloak all the time?
Oh.
So that was why.
When Sera said my sword was in the middle of Ryther, she quite literally meant it.
It was in the middle of Ryther in the Central Town on a ivory pedestal. The hilt of the sword was gold with a red gemstone in the middle of it. The blade of the sword was at least 3 feet long.
On the pedestal there was something written.
'SWORD OF LIRA CRIMSON. CAN ONLY BE LIFTED BY HER. SHE SHALL BE REBORN.'
Person after person, people tried to lift the sword. They all failed.
I didn't think that it'd be that heavy.... right? Was it some type of magic that Sera used?
Also...
WHY DOES EVERYONE THINK THAT THEY'RE LIRA CRIMSON? LIKE THEY DON'T EVEN LOOK LIKE ME!
I looked at Kairos and he shrugged.
"What's the plan?" I asked.
"Walk up to the pedestal, take the sword, and run."
Shouldn't be too hard, right?
I walked up to the pedestal, took the sword, and lifted it up.
Everyone was staring. A crowd started forming and closing in on me, asking questions, some tried to remove the hood.
Kairos grabbed my hand and pulled me out of the crowd, and we ran so fast that we could race a cheetah.
In the middle of running, a loud ringing noise was coming from inside my brain. The farther we ran, the louder it got.
Loud. Too loud.
Make it stop.
Why won't it stop?
MAKE IT STOP!
WHY WON'T IT STOP?
I wanted to scream. I can't scream.
WHY CAN'T I SCREAM?
Make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop, make it stop,
MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOP, MAKE IT STOP!
It didn't.
It was getting louder each second.
I wanted to cry and scream, yet I was unable to do anything. I could only think. I couldn't do anything.
I let go of Kairos' hand. I stopped and put my hands over my ears.
Eventually, it did stop. Was Kairos waiting for me?
I looked up.
Where was Kairos?
Where.... was Ryther?
It was only black around me. Surrounding me. Only pitch black.
"Lira..." An eerie voice coming from all directions. It wasn't The Hollow King. It was a woman's voice.
"Lira..." The voice got louder.
My hands started trembling. My heart raced and I started sweating. I turned and turned to find out where the voice was coming from.
"Lira..." Louder again, more distorted.
My breathing started to feel heavy.
I wanted to run, I couldn't. My legs were screwed in place. I tried to lift them, something as pulling it down.
"LIRA..." The voice even more distorted.
"Who i-is it?" I called out.
No reply.
Nothing.
Just silence.
I felt the wind gushing past me.
Wind?
In a place like this?
"Turn back." The voice was normal again.
"What?"
"Turn. Back. Do not fight again."
"Who are you?"
"TURN BACK, TURN BACK, TURN BACK, TURN BACK, TURN BACK, TURN BACK, TURN BACK, TURN BACK, TURN BACK, TURN BACK, TURN BACK, TURN BACK, TURN BACK, TURN BACK, TURN BACK, TURN BACK, TURN BACK, TURN BACK, TURN BACK, TURN BACK, TURN BACK, TURN BACK, TURN BACK, TURN BACK, TURN BACK, TURN BACK!" The voice was louder with each word, and turned even more distorted.
I covered my ears with my hands, but it didn't work.
"LIRA!"
I looked up.
Back in Ryther, in the motel room.
Kairos sitting on a chair next to the bed I was laying on, the sword leaning against a wall.
What just happened?