[Content Warning]
This chapter contains depictions of self-harm and suicide. Reader discretion is advised. If you or someone you know is struggling, please reach out to local mental health services.
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The rusty blade cut through my flesh and the only thing I could think of were severed threads.
I had always thought it would be like gliding through butter. But it was like slicing open a ball of wool.
As the deep red liquid emerged from the wound, I only felt my heart becoming lighter and lighter. And the steady throbbing that grew louder and louder.
Never in my life had I felt so alive.
»Fuck. Ranell. What the shit...«
Before I could answer, he rushed toward me and grabbed a piece of cloth, which he immediately pressed onto the gaping wound in my stomach.
I barely felt the pressure he exerted anymore. But I saw him. The icy breath. Death.
Not much longer and he would be here.
»You should go, Ayne,« I whispered and wiped my hand across the sea of freckles on his face, only to make them disappear with my blood.
Formerly, I had spent hours gazing into the dark depths of his eyes and longing for him to finally see me.
And now he saw me. His deer-brown eyes were so wide with horror, I could see my broken self in them.
His heat burned on my increasingly cold body and it became harder for me to keep my eyes open.
»Come on, Ranell... we can make it. Stay with me. Please...«.
His voice trembled like aspen leaves in a stormy wind. But I could hardly hear him anymore.
Yet I saw his figure clearly. The dark red eyes. The pale skin. The ebony-black hair.
Like something out of a legend, I thought inevitably.
»I had not expected you. At least not now«.
His voice bored into my temples like a nail and I winced involuntarily.
Hardly had I opened my lips when my strength left me and the room turned black.
Finally.
I have fought for so long. But now it was over. Peace. I only wanted peace.
»Peace?« he mocked, and his disgusting forked tongue slid over his lips.
What was so reprehensible about the thought?
Without me, Ayne would finally be able to go. The Bonded were calling for him. As was the capital with its mighty citadel.
His dream was calling for him. He was destined to accomplish great things.
And not to take care of a cripple. I was only holding him back.
»Youbelievethelivesofhumanswouldbebetterwithoutyou?«.
Of course!
Ayne has what it takes to become a Bonded. He is strong. Brave. Intelligent.
Everything I would have liked to be.
»Your naivety makes me incredibly angry. I am at a loss for words,« he uttered. His body dissipated and only the black mist remained.
»Butsobeit,« it boomed in my ears again.
In the midst of the darkness, the glowing red eyes appeared and they seemed to observe me like strange stars.
I just wanted to go.
But the mist of darkness cleared and I saw the golden curly hair of Ayne.
His face was sunken and he reminded me of a dying flower.
»What is this?« I screamed. But only the echo of my voice resonated in the nothingness.
My gaze wandered back to Ayne as my heart stopped.
NO! DON'T!
Ayne held the same rusty blade in his hand as I had done.
»AYNE! STOP« I roared until my chest threatened to explode.
But my body was like paralyzed and I could only watch as Ayne drove the blade into his throat.
The sting in my heart made me fall to my knees. My gaze was transfixed on the scene before me.
Only the soft gurgling of Ayne echoed through the darkness.
That was never my plan... »WHY?«.
»This is the consequence of your actions. You stupid child«
No. Never. That could not possibly be true. Ayne would not do that. He wanted to become a Bonded. Be the best in the academy. Leave the hunger behind.
Why?
The hot tears flooded my face like a dry valley and my breath hitched.
I had never wanted it this way.
»Please. Bring him back. He must not die... please!«. I pleaded with all my strength, but the image of Ayne vanished and only the red eyes stared at me again.
»One last chance. Please...«.
»Very well, you stupid child. But everything has its price«.
His words echoed warningly in the darkness and I stared ahead.
I would give everything to save Ayne. Everything.
Only for a moment did I close my eyes, but when they opened again, I was surrounded by white walls of marble.
The midday sun on the glaring white robbed me of my sight and the glowing sand burned under my naked feet.
Wait. Sand?
My heart stopped. I had not felt my feet in decades. Let alone seen sand.
Before I could process what had happened, the force of the impact grabbed me and hurled me to the ground.
Only now did I notice the chaos around me. The horrified faces of children, adults, and elderly people.
And the monsters around us.
»By the fucking gods, Yrâ. Are you suicidal?«, screamed the person who had just knocked me over.
Like a warning, the question shot through my body. But I had no time.
The girl just stared at me in shock and helped me up before she was torn away by one of the wingless beasts.
Shit. What is happening here?
My skin felt as if thousands of needles were jabbing into it and at the last moment I saw the azure blue eyes at the edge of my sight.
Without hesitating I rolled aside and barely escaped the razor-sharp claws of the beast.
FUCK.
As fast as my legs allowed me, I ran to the grate at the edge of the arena.
But the beast had found its target and was not ready to give up.
In the moment my hand touched the grate, I felt the claws of the monster bore into my side and hurl me away.
The impact robbed me of my air and the sound of broken ribs echoed in my ears.
The pain paralyzed me. My body let me down.
Again.
I did not want to die. Not as long as I didn't know what had happened to Ayne.
Full of pain, I pushed myself off the sandy ground.
Too late.
The monster's maw was only an arm's length away.
Damn it.
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[The Legend of Dyra]
Born with cursed eyes, the son of a nobleman lived in the shadows of Thanatt until his family met a tragic end. Sent by the gods to accompany the dead on their journey, he is still searching for the murderers of his family.