Raine wasn’t a ‘kid’ person. He would go as far as to say that he hated kids.

But even his heart was pierced by the terrified child peering at him.

“I didn’t- I didn’t realise there was somebody here,” Raine stammered.

The little girl said nothing, her face still frozen in fear. Her bottom lip quivered dangerously, and her eyes were blown wide. Tears welled up in her bright blue eyes, forming a glistening pool that threatened to overflow onto her cheeks.

Shit, what do we do?!

Calm the poor thing down, obviously.

“I didn’t mean to disturb your sleep,” Raine said gently, gesturing towards the pajamas that the girl wore. “The lights were off, so I thought nobody was here.”

He took a step towards her. In response, the young girl took an infinitesimal step backwards with shaky legs.

Raine winced. Not his best idea.

Raine backtracked several steps to give the little girl some space, accidentally tripping over the rug in the process. Good. Hopefully, his clumsiness made him seem less threatening. To be honest, he wasn’t very threatening to begin with — but he supposed a home intruder would be scary regardless of who he was.

“I’m not here to hurt you,” he said in the softest tone manageable. “I came here because of the storm. It was too cold and wet outside.”

He was immensely glad that they had decided to change clothes before leaving the Order of Truth. Comforting someone was a lot easier when you weren’t covered head to toe in blood. But the girl’s intent gaze reminded him of the several bruises decorating Nikorai’s face. No matter how much water he used to wash their face, the bruises wouldn’t be going anywhere soon.

“I’m Raine,” he said, pointing to himself. “It’s nice to meet you.”

The girl looked at him suspiciously with squinted eyes. She moved her mouth slowly, forming quiet words that Raine had to strain to hear.

“Like…” she pointed out the window to the storm raging outside. “That rain?”

Yikes. Poor time to be named Raine.

“Uh, Raine with an e. But that’s not important,” he laughed awkwardly, the harsh sound contrasting starkly with the girl’s soft voice. “Where are your parents? I need to speak to them.”

Her lips turned downwards. “Daddy isn’t home yet.”

“So it’s just you?” Raine asked in concern.

He frowned. Leaving a girl — who looked barely 6 — unsupervised was hardly a responsible thing to do. Especially when she couldn’t even reach the door locking mechanism. Her father must’ve forgotten to lock it on his way out.

“It’s okay. Daddy comes home after I sleep. He works near here. It doesn’t take him long to get home.”

He worked close by? But...

“Do you know where your dad works?” Raine asked, his heart pounding.

Oblivious, the girl replied, “Down the mountain. But before Kilorn Forest. He goes inside this huge building.”

She didn’t know any better, but her words acted like a switch.

Bottled-up emotions suddenly burst out, the thin mental barrier shattering into pieces in a violent explosion. Emotions warred in his mind, each fighting to be noticed and felt. Anger, fear, shame, despair: all of them tore through him like sharp blades. The most powerful emotion was guilt. Guilt for condemning somebody who he didn’t know.

He killed her dad, and now he was taking advantage of his absence to live in their home. And the martyr’s daughter would slowly starve to death, all while waiting for a father that would never come home.

If Raine hadn’t fallen for an obvious trap, the Order of Truth wouldn’t have captured them. If he hadn’t been fucking born, maybe the prophecy wouldn’t be such a nuisance to everybody.

It was his fault.

It was always his fault.

The familiarity of the situation brought back unwanted memories.

He was back in high school, surrounded by hate-filled glares. He was the young boy staring at the school bathroom mirror, eyes red from crying over something that was his own fault.

He was a fucking failure of a person. Somebody who used up valuable time, effort and resources — just to squander it all because of his stupidity and inability to function properly. The definition of wasted space, wasted breath, wasted opportunity. Everything that was his should’ve been somebody else’s.

The prophecy was an opportunity to give himself a purpose, to prove that he deserved to live. To finally be rid of the lingering doubt in his mind.

And within weeks, he had already used the opportunity to make somebody else’s life hell. He did it to Nikolay, too. Raine stole his rightful vessel, just to be a useless piece of shit. No matter what, he would continue to drag down everybody who had the unfortunate chance of meeting him.

It felt like he was drowning. Being choked. Squeezed painfully from the inside. No matter how hard or fast his breathing was, it was never enough. Erratic breaths turned into urgent gasps for air. Thoughts dissolved from coherent sentences into raw fear.

Raine. You’re spiralling again.

Nikolay’s voice sounded muffled and distant, like he was speaking from another room. Raine didn’t even notice it at first. Even when he did, he couldn’t muster the energy to reply.

Breathe slowly.

There was a sensation of a warm blanket being wrapped around him -- or the comforting weight of another person embracing him. Raine tried to focus his attention on the reassuring feeling.

Inhale.

Raine obliged, his breath hitching halfway.

Exhale.

Raine followed obediently. He felt so pathetic, needing instructions to breathe.

Do you remember that night when you were meditating? Follow the breathing pattern I taught you.

Inhale.

1, 2, 3, 4, 5.

Exhale.

When his breathing was stable enough, Nikolay gradually withdrew from Raine’s presence. Raine withheld a whimper when the warm feeling subsided, fighting the selfish urge to drag Nikolay back.

I can sort this situation out if you’d like, Nikolay said, gently nudging him in suggestion. Have some time to recuperate.

There was an undercurrent of pity in Nikolay’s voice. God, Raine hated how weak he felt. He was being comforted by Nikolay, of all people.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

Nonetheless, he pulled himself away from the vessel. Sorry.

As Raine slunk back to the comfort of his corner inside Nikorai, he felt more like a child than the actual kid in front of them.

Don’t be, Nikolay said as he took Raine’s place.

Throughout Raine’s panic attack, Nikorai had frozen still in place. This would have worried anybody, except for the girl in front of them, who apparently was exceptionally patient. She was still looking up at Nikorai with a curious expression.

Nikolay bent down to the girl’s height to give her a gentle smile. It was uncharacteristically tender, one that shocked Raine.

“I need to stay here until the storm stops. Is that okay with you?” Nikolay asked quietly, imitating Raine’s accent.

Your... Your American accent is shit, Raine sniffled, a choked laugh coming from his throat.

I think suddenly switching accents will make her even more alarmed, Nikolay said good-naturedly. You’ll have to teach me how to sound like an arsehole later.

I don’t know, you’ve got the ‘asshole’ part down pretty well.

Instead of being offended, Nikolay simply laughed. Welcome back.

The girl thought hard about her answer to Nikolay’s question. “I think so? You can ask Daddy when he gets home.”

Nikolay internally winced. ‘Daddy’ was probably not returning as quickly as she might believe. The least that they could do was help this poor girl.

“Do you go to school?” Nikolay asked tentatively.

“Yeah,” she replied, pouting. “I have to go to Veritas.”

“Do you know the name of your school?”

“Laintlor Bay State School.”

A plan began to formulate in Nikolay’s mind. Once they reached Veritas, he could ask the school to send somebody to fetch the girl. It was unlikely that she would come with Nikolay and Raine, for several obvious reasons. A trusted schoolteacher might be their best bet.

The only problem was whether they would get there in time. Supplies only lasted for so long, after all.

“One last question. Can you tell me your name?”

“Eireia.”

“Alright, Eireia. Mind if I have a look at your fridge? I’m feeling a little hungry.”

He needed to make sure that there was enough food to last at least two weeks. Veritas wasn’t particularly far from here, but it was always better to be prepared for the worst.

Eireia nodded, her eyes naturally landing on the kitchen opposite the living room.

Nikolay walked towards the fridge, a tall metal rectangle that looked more like a defence mechanism than a storage container. He cautiously tugged at one of the handles, expecting a trap to spring from inside. Fortunately, the door simply opened with a tame whirring sound.

Hmm. Lots of frozen stuff here, Nikolay tutted. I suppose it is quite a trek to get fresh food up on this mountain.

Raine proposed, We have fruit and vegetables in the bag that we were gifted. God knows why that person gave us those when we clearly don’t have a way to keep them cold.

They had the presence of mind to only send over a few, at least, Nikolay mused. But you’re correct. Eireia will get more use out of the green produce than we will.

While Nikorai stared blankly at the fridge’s contents during Nikolay and Raine’s mental exchange, Eireia curiously watched from behind them. A loud yawn emanated from her, much louder than expected from a girl with such a small stature. Nikolay looked over his shoulder in surprise.

“You can go back to bed if you’re tired. I promise I won’t eat all of your food,” Nikolay said with a playful twinkle in his eye. “I’ll leave some for you.”

The girl crossed her arms and pouted, her initial apprehension long forgotten. “I’m not tired.”

A small chuckle escaped Nikolay’s lips as he closed the fridge door. “Come on, time to go to bed. Up the stairs we go.”

Nikolay ushered Eireia back towards the staircase, following her to a small room decorated with an abundance of glittery stickers. If the decorations weren’t enough to testify to her ownership of the room, there was a large hanging sign on the door that read ‘Eireia’s Room’. It was written in neat font, most likely a present from her father... shit.

Nikolay shooed away the unwelcome thoughts as soon as they appeared, not wanting to trigger Raine. It seemed to work, because Raine didn’t show any outward reaction.

Eireia tumbled into the mess of blankets and toys atop her bed. “Goodnight, Raine.”

Nikolay smiled at Eireia’s face poking out from amongst her toy pile. “Goodnight.”

He closed the door behind him with a soft click, then immediately headed towards Rascal in the stable adjacent to the house. To their surprise, Rascal was already dozing off, despite the storm raging outside. Their bags were still attached to her saddle, resting on the ground.

Nikolay quickly gathered all the necessary items and left as soon as possible. The storm clattered louder against the stable’s thin walls, and he didn’t want to rouse Rascal from her beauty sleep.

Inside the kitchen, the appliances were functionally identical to those seen in a cabin anywhere else. After rifling through almost every cabinet and drawer in sight, Nikolay found the proper utensils to cook with.

I’ll prepare some meals in advance. Most of this food is inedible unless cooked, and I doubt Eireia would be able to operate the stovetop, anyway.

It was oddly relaxing to watch Nikolay cook. The rhythmic sound of the knife hitting the cutting board echoed throughout the otherwise silent room.

Every motion by Nikolay was performed to machine-like precision: under his guidance, the knife cut everything into perfect slices of even width. Raine was too afraid to speak or move, lest he interrupt Nikolay’s concentration.

However, a small nagging feeling was determined to keep Raine from slipping too deeply into the clutches of repose. He bit his lip in worry, contemplating how to approach the topic.

Hey, Nikolay.

Nikolay paused, the knife hovering a few centimetres away from the meat in front of him. What is it?

Ah, to hell with it. Nikolay didn’t seem like the type to appreciate flowery language.

I’m sorry for saying what I said earlier. Back at the Order of Truth’s headquarters.

Mmm, Nikolay grunted noncommittally.

Raine frowned, all traces of nervousness vanished. ’Mmm’? That’s it?

I suppose I should thank you... for not taking Guthasar’s deal.

The tone of Nikolay’s voice wasn’t wholly bashful, but it carried an air of uncertainty, as if Nikolay was unsure of his sentence. The words sounded clumsy, unpractised — like Nikolay had never thanked anyone before. It most likely wasn’t far from the truth, given Nikolay’s stoic nature.

Is that an apology? Raine clarified, an eyebrow raised.

An uncharacteristic pulse of embarrassment came from Nikolay. I... If you want it to be.

Ignoring the strong urge to tease Nikolay about his sudden bashfulness, Raine responded, Thank you. It means a lot.

And it did. Call him a pessimist, but Raine wasn’t expecting an apology, let alone from Nikolay.

As expected, Nikolay didn’t respond and busied himself with chopping the vegetables. Probably in an attempt to hide his embarrassment, knowing him.

--

The next morning began as usual for Raine and Nikolay. Raine woke up at a reasonable time, just to find that Nikolay had already woken up at least an hour earlier and already completed a mountain load of tasks.

For example, he woke up to Nikolay standing in front of the home telephone.

What did I miss? Raine yawned, stretching in their mindscape. Hopefully all the boring stuff.

I just phoned Eireia’s school. Someone will be arriving soon. They have a helicopter.

A helicopter?! Isn’t the school government-funded?

Veritas must have a particularly wealthy government, then. I’ve already completed everything we need to do here; we should leave before Eireia wakes up.

Leaving the house was just as easy as entering it — finding the key for the door lock was much harder. With some insightful thinking on Nikolay’s part, they found a spare key hidden underneath a flowerpot near the door. They weren’t sure who else would be up this mountain, but it was a small gesture to stop the same misunderstanding that they had fallen into. Besides, anyone who cared enough could break and enter through the window.

Rascal lifted her head when they approached, neighing in lieu of a greeting. Nikolay fed Rascal a treat from their bags before allowing Raine to switch back for their upcoming journey.

Raine went to untie Rascal’s lead, only to be met with a bare post.

“You really are a rascal, huh?” Raine sighed as he picked up the chewed rope from the ground. “My bad. I’ll leave you to your own devices next time.”

Rascal didn’t seem too offended by the lead situation, though, and stayed still long enough for Raine to hop into her saddle. Raine took one last look at the house before nudging Rascal into a gallop.

He hoped that Eireia would be okay, despite everything.

They weren’t far from the nearest of the few mountain peaks. It only took an hour before the top of the peak came into view, along with a strange structure built atop it.

The structure looked similar to the sacrificial temple where they had attempted to give a blood offering. However, it was in a completely different state than the other abandoned and derelict building. Standing proudly in the morning rays of the awakening sun, this temple was a far cry from the desecrated shell of the previous shrine. It took all of Raine’s effort not to gape in wonder.

He wasn’t sure when it happened.

A fog descended over his mind. It acted like a veil, clouding his thoughts and replacing it with the dull urge to move forwards. Towards the strange temple-like structure.

He hazily submitted to the overwhelming impulse; any other opinions long forgotten. Beyond any reason, he started moving towards the temple. It began as a walk, but quickly devolved into a full out run.

Raine?! Raine! Can you hear me?

Nikolay’s urgent calls went unheard — or Raine simply couldn’t answer him. Nikolay tried to take over the vessel, to no avail. Raine was still in control, in the sense that his consciousness was still tied to the vessel. It was him who was moving their limbs, but something had seized his mind to put him into this trance-like state.

When Nikolay attempted to muscle Raine out of the way, a deeply unpleasant feeling seeped into his being, like something horrible was about to happen because of his interference. The insidious sensation grew exponentially as he continued to push at Raine, eventually mounting too high for Nikolay to carry on. Reluctantly, Nikolay retreated from the strange barrier after being given no other option. As much as he hated it, there was nothing to do but wait for the magic to relinquish control over Raine.

Despite not possessing a physical body, Nikolay’s chest tightened in anticipation.

Raine... please be safe.