[By ink unbound and parchment's breath, I call the shapes from silent death: Skill Unlocked.]
「Amethyst Reverie」
[Amethyst Reverie has been awakened to stage I, 'Summoning Orders.']
[ The crystallization has been fulfilled, —Orders— have been passed. ]
「 Origami Rite 」
She thrust the grimoire into the air, screaming.
[ "Awaken, Rite!" ]
The frantic flipping of the pages came to an abrupt halt. Then one of the pages tore and began folding in on itself, taking the form and shape of a bird.
Then another page tore. And another. Each one twisted into form, wings and edges sharpening as they came alive.
[ "Shape of thoughts, with living eyes!" ]
The origami flew fast toward Iriel, attacking her. Iriel's eyes watched in awe, observing with an open mouth.
She watched as the origami lunged at her face.
She didn't dodge. As if she wanted to see what they could do. What they were capable of.
A few drops of blood dripped onto the ground. Followed by a mouthful.
The origami's sharp paper wings were stained with crimson red.
Emerald stood still, her grimoire hovering above her hands.
Iriel staggered back, her heels bumping into a few dead bodies scattered across the ground. She instinctively covered her face to stop the bleeding.
Her eyes widened, still in shock. Then her opened mouth curved upward into a grin.
"…Amazing…amazing! Amazing!"
"This is utterly amazing!"
Her grin dropped drastically. "That grimoire of yours…"
The origami returned and struck, this time from behind. They split apart midair, attacking again from every direction like a flock of crows converging on their prey.
Iriel let out an ugly scream as her body staggered, barely keeping balance on her high talons. "Aurghh!"
Emerald's expression remained solemn as she took a few steps forward.
"We've considered you like ours. You were like a family to us—to everyone in the
"An inspiration to Zah."
"…A comrade to our group: Clara, Will, and Sam."
Her breath shook.
"… And a friend to me."
"Why?"
"Why would you do this?"
"Why?"
"Why would… you burn and slaughter our men?"
Emerald's voice grew ragged, her throat burning. A lump forming inside her throat.
"The troops we had been training, the men we taught, the same men we laughed with, hung out with, drank with, and talked real with. The same men we built trust with, friendship—companionship… we made plans with in the future.
… we heard each other's dreams and what we would all do after rescuing Mei."
She swallowed. Holding back her tears, but a few slid down either way.
"E-En…" She bit her lips. "En…"
Out of breath, she inhaled sharply, then whispered, "Enzo…"
Meanwhile, Iriel sank to the ground as the origamis fluttered above the smoke-filled grey sky. The crackling of the fire lingered still.
"Enzo… would never see tomorrow again."
"Enzo… would never dream again. Enzo… would never hear us. He would never see us again."
"Enzo… will never get to see the coast with us. Enzo… would never see the end of all this. He would never… see the wall collapse."
"Enzo would never be able to marry Stella."
Emerald stopped at Iriel's feet. She stared in the distance, her eyes dark.
"You have taken their dreams. How would you like to repay it?"
Iriel's eyes widened, blood tracing the sharp cuts carved into her face by the origami. But her face remained motionless, lost in the haze of old memories.
Then she smiled, revealing teeth slick with blood.
"I have taken their dreams?" She pointed at her chest. "There's no such thing as a dream on this side of the world!"
Her teeth clicked as she laughed. "They're all delusional! Matter of fact, I helped them reach their dreams. Those guys were nothing but soulless puppets and tools for us to use in order to move forward. They don't have the right to dream."
Iriel lifted herself upright.
She stood a head above Emerald, her gaze lowered, then flicked Emerald's forehead with her finger.
"Dreams are for people who live on the other side of the world."
Emerald beckoned. "You're wrong, Iriel. Those words don't sound like you. Has someone whispered them to you?"
She snickered. "We've been friends for quite some time now. You must feel closer to words, huh?"
"You… also had a dream. Would you call yourself delusional?"
Iriel looked down, not saying a word. Then Emerald interrupted again. "It was Raily."
"You betrayed us because of Raily."
[...]
"Were you waiting for me here? To maybe persuade me into betraying Madam?"
Iriel's body tensed. "I—"
"Stop." Emerald turned her face away. "I don't want to understand your reasons; I don't even feel like hearing you out."
"Tell me, did you at least acknowledge me and the others as friends?
Were any of the times we spent together… Were they genuine?"
Silence filled the surroundings.
Emerald stared at Iriel, but she no longer wanted to sense her energy. She didn't want to know how Iriel was feeling or what emotion—expression—she had on. She completely shut down Iriel's presence. Her familiar aura soon turned cold, strange, and distant.
Emerald's body could no longer identify her energy as [IRIEL].
The origami descended in a violent burst.
Then—in a glimpse, the origamis caught on flame. Their wings ignited as fire crawled across their paper bodies.
Iriel lunged forward at Emerald, her sharp nails acting as claws. She went for her throat while Emerald's back was turned.
Just then—
Just before Iriel landed a blow, papers burst upward from the book, flying into the sky.
The papers were stitched and moulded into a single, massive origami bird. Almost resembling a dragon.
The dragon roared, his breath releasing fire.
Iriel immediately backed away, dashing backwards as the dragon leapt at her. Its edges were so sharp they sliced open the ground.
Emerald stayed at the back; her figure was blurred in the smoke, the fire's heat making it waver and distort.
From Iriel's perspective, she could no longer piece together how Emerald truly looked. It had been so long since she had taken a closer look at Emerald's face.
But all she remembered was Emerald's younger self. Her cheeks were big and soft, always red. The children at Miss < Fortune's House used to make fun of her, stretching her cheeks and betting how far they could pull them.
Emerald never liked it, and it was Iriel who always stepped in and chased the children away.
Emerald always carried snacks inside her pocket.
Emerald and Iriel had different tastes when it came to food and snacks. Emerald loved everything sweet: cotton candy, lollipops, sprinkly donuts, and chocolate bars. You name it. Meanwhile, Iriel loved everything that was sour and bitter: stormberry crumble, lemons and lemon whirls, and salty and sour starfruits.
So to resolve the problem, Emerald would sneak sweet candies into one pocket and sour, bitter ones into the other.
Iriel and Emerald only became friends and started spending time together mainly because Iriel disliked lousy kids and trouble. She preferred silence.
Emerald was the perfect girl from Iriel's perspective. She was always alone and often carried an old book, reading beneath the willow tree high on the cliff, away from everyone.
And mainly because Iriel was curious about her and her condition.
"How does a blind person read a book?" Iriel questioned, her small fingers curling around the old book before snatching it from Emerald's hands.
Emerald let out a faint scream, disturbed by her sudden presence.
"Wh—what?" Emerald trembled.
Iriel examined the cover, then the pages. "Are you not blind? I heard from the Maidens that you were 'blind.' I'm curious.
You're always perched down; even in class all you do is read this old grandpa book!"
Emerald lowered her hands. "I can read it using my fingers… braille?"
"Ahh, yeah. That must be exhausting, no?" Iriel flipped through the pages. "I don't see any braille. The paper is blank."
Emerald's cheeks flushed red. "That's because… It's magical."
She pointed. "The book is magical. It is written by my favourite author."
Iriel raised an eyebrow. "Written?"
Emerald quickly grabbed the book from Iriel and placed it on the grass. "The name of the author is [Ei]. She's a wonderful person."
Iriel shoved her head in, staring at the dots carved in braille. "Ei?"
Emerald nodded. "My father gave me her books. But I heard she stopped writing for now. She's on something called 'hiatus.' It's when authors decide to take a break."
Iriel's eyes lingered on Emerald.
Emerald's body was tiny, her arms as thin as strands of noodles. Her hair was poofy. Iriel really liked the colour of her hair.
"Emerald," she muttered to herself.