(The Day He Stopped Waiting)
I didn't know what Dominus said to him.
Victor never told me.
Not that day.
Not later.
Not ever.
But I know this much—
Whatever it was…
It stayed with him.
We weren't called inside.
Only Victor was.
Dominus had been weakening for days.
Not suddenly.
Not violently.
Just… fading.
Like something that had already decided it was done.
We stood outside.
Liora didn't speak.
I didn't either.
There wasn't anything to say.
The door remained closed.
Time passed.
I don't remember how long.
Then it opened.
Victor stepped out.
He didn't rush.
Didn't hesitate.
Didn't look at either of us.
He just walked past.
"Victor—" I started.
He didn't stop.
Not because he ignored me.
Not because he was angry.
He just…
Didn't turn.
That was the first moment.
I didn't understand it then.
But I remember it now.
Someone behind us lowered their head.
Another stepped back silently.
No one said anything.
No one needed to.
Liora's hand tightened slightly at her side.
And just like that—
We knew.
No announcement.
No words.
Just the absence of something that had always been there.
The funeral was quiet.
Not solemn.
Not ceremonial.
Just… still.
No one cried loudly.
No one spoke above a whisper.
Even the air felt like it had slowed.
Victor stood at the front.
Straight.
Unmoving.
He didn't bow his head.
Didn't close his eyes.
Didn't fold his hands.
He just stood.
Watching.
And for the first time…
Something felt wrong.
It wasn't grief.
Not the kind I understood.
It was something else.
Something… heavier.
That's when I noticed it.
The sword.
Hanging at his side.
I don't remember when it started appearing like that.
Not in fragments.
Not mid-battle.
Just…
There.
A curved blade.
Edges faintly red.
Silent.
Still.
Not glowing.
Not active.
But not separate either.
It didn't feel like a weapon.
It felt like it belonged to him.
Like it had always been there.
And I had just… failed to see it.
"I don't remember when that happened," I thought.
"When it stopped being something he used…"
"And became something he carried."
I wanted to say something.
Anything.
But I didn't move.
Because I didn't know what to say to someone who wasn't standing in the same place anymore.
Liora stood a little behind me.
She didn't call his name.
Didn't step forward.
She just watched him.
Not confused.
Not surprised.
Like she already understood something I didn't.
The ceremony ended without anyone marking it.
People began to leave.
One by one.
Quietly.
No final words.
No closing speech.
Just… dispersal.
Victor didn't move.
Not at first.
Then—
He turned.
No hesitation.
No pause.
And started walking.
I thought he might stop.
Thought he might say something.
Thought he might look back.
He didn't.
The sword shifted slightly at his side as he moved.
Not heavy.
Not light.
Just… there.
I watched him go.
For a moment—
I thought about calling out again.
But something held me back.
Not fear.
Not doubt.
Just the quiet understanding…
That it wouldn't reach him.
He didn't say he would carry everything.
He didn't make a promise.
He didn't change in front of us.
He just…
Stopped waiting.
And started walking forward—
Alone.