A breeze blew across the forest, bringing the harsh cold with it. Nightfall had finally come as the stars blanketed the entire night sky. Its giant moon, Falria, was nowhere to be found, giving the entire realm to the stars. The canvas of space was a sight to behold if one were to look above. Lucy could only stare at Seth as her body reflexively recoiled.
...What? The soldier within echoed.
W-why... why does he have that? Her pupils trembled as she eyed the bow and its wielder. Her breath was beginning to grow out of control despite her best efforts to remain calm. No experience nor technique could prepare her as reality had become frighteningly cold. Even Emma was speechless.
"Lucy?" Seth asked, his eyes relaxed slightly at her relatively unharmed state as he approached. The young maiden felt her heart drop when Seth reached for her. "are you ok-"
Lucy violently slapped his hands away. The young man's eyes widened in shock. The refusal alone felt like a ballista bolt running through his spine, but the petrified and distrustful gaze she threw felt as if the entire walls of Kalria came crashing down on him.
"L-Lucy?" Seth hesitated, his voice betraying confusion and hurt as Lucy inched further away. "I-is something wrong? Why-"
"N-not a step closer," Lucy growled as her eyes glinted dangerously. The red hair froze, disbelief rich in his eyes as Lucy curled her fingers into fists. "J-just where did you-"
It's him... Emma growled as Lucy recoiled.
"...no that is not his," Lucy whispered a second longer.
That is-
"-is not his! It can't be his. This has to be a mistake." Lucy shook her head in denial when Seth replied.
"Lucy, calm down." The young man reasoned, dragging the two back into caution. "T-tell me what is the problem, we can-"
"Why do you have that bow?" Lucy sneered fearfully and disdainfully at the weapon that once heralded her death.
What are you doing? We can take him down now! He-
No... no this is wrong; it can't be him. He-
"W-what do you mean?" It was not the reply she wanted to her as Lucy's eyes trembled even further. "I don't understand-"
"Where did you get it? Did you have someone to procure it o-or was it stolen?" Lucy cuts off, causing even more confusion and now, frustration to the young man at the blatant accusation in her tone. "W-well?" Lucy urges, her breathing slowly grows shallower.
"I didn't steal it." Seth firmly responds. "I made it on my own."
...W-what?
...He said it... he confesses to it.
Seth fought off the urge to sigh as he continued. "That doesn't matter for now. Lucy, I need you to calm down and..." The young man trailed off when he saw the utter distraught consumed her entire being. Before he could ask, a confused whisper came from her.
"W-why?" She weakly answered. "J-just why do you have it? W-why- kalva damn it all!" Anger and fear roared into a terrible blaze. The urge to scream, the desire to run intermingled into a chaotic typhoon from within, but nothing, nothing burned as much as betrayal does.
Her world blurred as tears stung her eyes. The very act of breathing was agonizing as every gasp felt like burning promethium seeping through her lungs. Her throat felt dry, and her lips trembled as she tried to bury it all.
She tried to do what she had been doing for years ever since she became a soldier. She utilized every exercise and training that had been drilled into her skull, but it was not working. She could not bury it. Not this time.
Get up! He is going to kill us! He-
No! He would not do it! He is not him!
You deluded wretch! He-
"Lucy, please! Just tell me what is wrong, we can-"
"W-was it all a-a lie?" Her voice threatening to break. Her entire chest felt like it was caving in. She bit her lip so hard that blood slowly trickled down. "D-does everything a-amount to nothing after all?" she pauses as the world held its breath. "D-did you even love me?" Seth's mouth fell open as his eyes trembled. "Were all those words just a-"
"No!" Seth finally snapped. His voice boomed with anger and fear as it snapped Lucy back from her descent, jumping slightly in surprise. "It w-was not a lie! Don't you dare throw finish that thought, I will not have it!" Seth shouted as Lucy glared back.
"Then why do you have it?! Why do you have that accursed wretch!" Lucy snarled, pointing disdainfully at his bow.
It's because he is him! He is the archer! Why can't you accept that??
Because it is a lie! It is nothing but a poor-
"It is my bow!" Lucy's eyes widened as her frame trembled. Emma reflexively glared as she let out a harsh whisper.
He admits it. The bastard admits it already! Why can't you see that? He has always been at that bastard side! He... A horrifying pause brought the two into a terrifying possibility. A terrible understanding that none wanted to admit... but they had to. H-he's with them... we've been tricked, he sold us...
"I forged it with my own hands, why do you-"
HE SOLD US OUT TO HIM!
"No! That is a lie! A lie!" Lucy finally cried out in dismay as she covered her ears. Whatever that was Seth was going to say, it died in an instant as he rushed to her side.
"Lucy!" Seth was now beginning to panic as Lucy continued to cry. "Just tell me what is wrong, I don't understand-"
"It is not yours!" Lucy roared- no, it sounded more like a plea as she sobbed painfully deep. "It can't be yours! It can't be! I refuse to believe it! It's not yours, it's not yours, it's not yours!" She cried underneath the cold world. Nothing in this world matters now for the young lady, but to have those truths be destroyed by lies.
It was the only lie she so desperately wanted to believe. Forget her family, forget her wealth, her honor, her dignity, pride, beauty, or even her life. All it mattered was for that truth to be a lie. If she can have it, then it will be enough. She can forgive him for this cruel lie after some time has passed. She could do it, all she needed was for him to deny it all.
Get up! We have to fight our way out to-
No! I will not fight him! I refuse! It is all a lie! It has to be!
...I'm going to die...We're going to die... Emma whispered in despair. ...You are going to throw our life away for him??
I...I-I...I can't-
"T-the bow is gone! S-see? I-it's not here." Lucy blinked, looking up to see an unarmed Seth, raising his arms high for her to see. "I-it's not here. It is not here Lucy, so please, talk to me."
S-see? H-he is not g-going to h-harm me. Lucy slowly uncovered her ears as she eyed Seth. Her eyes were full of distrust, but a tinge of relief was present in her eyes Seth relaxed slightly.
"Talk to me, please. Tell me something, anything. I need to understand why you are like this, so that I can change... please?" Seth implored as Lucy hesitatingly nodded back.
Don't.
H-he is not going to kill us! D-don't you see? He can be trust-
You are mad.
...Mad? I-I... I am mad? Silence came before Lucy snapped. Of course I am mad! I have been mad since our house abandoned us! I have been mad the day that bastard betrayed us! I was mad when we were forced to fend for ourselves in the front! I was mad when I watched everyone die at the hands of that bastard! I was mad when that blade pierced our heart! I AM MAD THE DAY WE WOKE UP IN THIS WRETCHED WORLD EMMA! I AM MAD!
...
I-I...I am so mad and sick of this life. I hate it. Why do we have to kill so many to take what should have been ours! I- no, we have lost everything and everyone, Emma. I-
"My love..." Seth gently caresses her cheek. Despite the revolting scar, he gently strokes her cheek, almost as if he was holding a precious gem that would shatter at the slightest mistake. "...please... talk to me..." he whispered, traces of tears marring his calm face.
I... I... I don't want to lose him... I can't lose him...
...He will betray you too.
Kalva damn it all! He is not him! Why do you keep insisting that, you miserable wretch!
You blind-
He fed everyone when I had nothing to give. He sheltered me when we lost the orphanage. He protected us when we were hunted down! He gave me what that bastard could not! Tell me, Emma, what did that bastard ever do for us that could even be compared to my Seth?!
...
Well?
...
I'm waiting.
...
You can't even think of a single thing, can you?
...
...If you cannot even answer that, who are you to call me blind? No, Emma, you chose to be blind. Not me. Lucy felt Emma flinched, but she was not done yet. When we were given a second chance in this miserable hell, I did not give up. I searched and endured when you lay broken in the hands of that bastard.
I did not-
No! You'll be quiet because I am not done. Yes, you protected us when all I could do was to deny that bastard abandoned us. Yes, you fought and killed when I could do nothing but beg for help. And yes, you have suffered more than I did in those damnable days... but I have kept it.
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I may have been a coward, but I held on to our dream when you threw it away for survival. I kept that ember burning when all you could think of was escape and hiding in those dark woods. I kept walking and walking with a bag of acid in my stomach until I found that bread... until I met sister Emma and everyone... until I met him.
The two gazes at the young man as he patiently waits. His emerald eyes warily wander from time to time, ready to pounce the moment danger appears. "You don't have to be afraid... I'm here... I'm right here." He whispered softly as he gently rubs her back. It was a simple gesture, yet it brought the warmth they so desperately craved.
I will not fight him. I won't. Lucy firmly declared as Emma trembled.
...You...y-you... you don't understand. You don't understand a damn thing!
Then make me.
Y-you... you c-can't love him. You can't. H-he will betray you-
Seth would not-
HE WILL ABANDON YOU LIKE KIER DID! The raw agony within her voice made Lucy flinch, but more importantly, was his name. H-he... he will abandon you l-like he did.
S-Seth would never-
Just look at where we are now. He played us like a fool. Your Seth won't be any different. Lucy flinched once more at the name. His name burned like a heated iron, except there was no relief- only a reminder of what he had done.
I can't... I can't love someone like him anymore. I just can't... I don't want to be abandoned again... I don't want to endure it all over again. Emma strangled the words out of her mouth with great difficulty. The soldier could not bear to keep the voices down.
The confrontation had brought so many memories. It brought so much joy and, inevitably, pain to her life. She could not bear to experience it all over again. She could not protect her this time. She- Emma recoiled when she felt her approach.
The soldier quickly retreated as Lucy gently whispered.
He is not... he is not Kier. The two flinched, echoes of betrayal burned the two, but Lucy pushed on. H-he is not like him.
You... A faint glare was her only response.
Please, just give him a chance. I-it could not be him. F-for all we know, his bow was stolen by that archer.
Emma quietly stared back at the young lady, who wore her face. So hopeful, so trusting. And yet... Emma did want to believe. To find the dream that had been stolen from them. A family.
...And if it is him? Lucy flinched as she paled considerably.
H-he's not him... The young lady replied, a tinge of hesitation in her voice. ...It can't be him. Lucy quickly pushed onward before the thoughts consumed her.
"I-I..." Lucy weakly muttered, her throat felt dry. A brief hesitation was formed before Lucy finally mustered the courage and continued. "...I've already died." The air fell into a deafening silence as Seth visibly tried to swallow but failed. There was a lump in his throat as he let out a strangled reply.
"W-what?" the young man replied. The sheer confusion and horror in his voice made Lucy flinched, but she continued.
"I... I've died already S-Seth. This... this is my second life." Lucy replied weakly as Seth paled even further before he quickly shook his head in denial.
"D-don't... Lucy don't say those words. T-that-"
"B-but it's the truth. I-"
"Don't! Just don't!" The young man did not hesitate for a second as he quickly enveloped her in a hug, catching the two in surprise. "Y-you're alive, ok? You are with me, and you are alive. D-don't... don't talk like that..." Seth weakly ended as Lucy swallowed. She wanted to enjoy his warmth for a second longer, but she needed to continue. They needed to continue.
"It's the truth gobs." Lucy gave a weak smile as Seth paled as if he were a corpse. "W-why I am l-like this, w-why I act like this... was all because of my... m-my p-p-past." Lucy could not hold her smile any longer, it was too much.
The crushing weight of her failures and the betrayal was just too much. Each second spent in those times felt like salt smearing across an open wound to her soul. It burns to remember, but she held on, she has to hold on for him.
"O-or at least, t-that's how it should h-have been. I-I should b-be dead when t-that arrow struck m-me. H-he was a c-champion t-that uses a relic b-bow, like..." Lucy paused, eyes trembling with fear now as she... as she looked back at him. She did not say it, but she might as well have as Seth recoiled visibly.
As the pieces fell into place, Seth could only look back, horrified at the mere implicature. "N-no t-that- no I c-couldn't... I c-couldn't have...." His breathing was thrown into disarray. The mere thought, even the mere suggestion of it, was so revolting that Seth looked as if he was going to vomit. He might have if Lucy hadn't moved to help him.
Her small, rough yet gentle touch was frighteningly fragile. Seth could feel the slight vibration her hands made as her chest heaved dangerously fast. "G-gobs..." Her voice was so painfully weak as their eyes met.
"Y-you're... y-you're not h-him r-right?" She hated it. The fact that she doubted him, that she had to say it. It broke her heart to pieces as she watched Seth look back as if he was struck. But she needed to know.
"No. I w-would never hurt you, how can you s-say that?" His voice was raw, edging dangerously to lash out. Lucy had never felt so relieved and disgusted at herself. She needed more, just a little more.
"S-someone must have stolen your bow t-then!" Hope flared for a moment before doubt crept in. "R-right?" Lucy reflexively withdrew her hand slightly. The mere gesture was barely noticeable, yet it bite far harsher than steel.
"I...I am not him." Seth sneered disdainfully at his other self. "I-I don't know i-if you are lying to me o-or not." Lucy tried her best to bury her cries as disbelief crept in his voice. "But I would never hurt you. Never." Seth ended firmly as he stared directly into her eyes.
Confusion, anger, disgust, pain, but most relieving of them all, assurance, was present in his sweet emerald eyes. Lucy would have loved nothing more but to cry and fall into his arms once more. To apologize for all the cruel accusations she had thrown at him and for the comfort in his warm embrace gave... she just... she just needed one more proof. Just one more.
"T-then... c-could you s-show me y-your... solar shard?" Seth froze as Lucy waited with trembling, yet hopeful, eyes.
"W-what for?" The slight tremble in his voice made her blood run cold.
"I-I just... I just n-need to confirm it o-once and for all. D-don't worry! I-I remember the archer's shard well, i-it has a s-strange curved t-tip t-that only his p-power could make. T-the chances of y-you sharing it are non-existent... s-so... m-may I?" I-I'm just seeing things. Seth wouldn't have anything to hide. He-
Seth instinctively took another step back. "I-I... I am not him." The young man insisted, but the doubt within Lucy's eyes flared to a terrible degree.
"T-then show m-me." Lucy wavered slightly as Seth took another step back. With every step he took felt like daggers plunging into her chest. Though, Lucy wished in that instant that they were, rather than... than him retreating.
"L-Lucy I-"
"Show me." Her voice went as hard as bedrock, stiff and utterly non-negotiable. Seth took another step back.
...Lucy
Be quiet! S-Seth can prove it! He can prove it! He just-
"W-wait," His hesitant tone brought dismay to the disbelieving girl. Lucy took an involuntary step forward, though it was more akin to reflex. The man, her light, her warmth... was getting farther and farther away. "This is-"
"Show me!" She screamed, panic and dismay infecting her voice as Seth flinched. "S-show me the shard, damn you!" Lucy felt her sanity beginning to buckle once more, taking another step towards Seth.
"It's not me! I didn't d-do it!" Seth cried out in innocence as Lucy paled.
Lucy-
No! I-it's- just wait! Just wait, damn you! I can prove it! Seth can prove it! J-just give him some time-
Lucy... his eyes...
Her gaze followed, and she wished she had never listened to Emma. "N-no t-this... this can't be." Lucy stumbled a step closer as Seth froze. "Y-you can't be... y-you..." Lucy stood still, her eyes widening in dismay before a scream escaped her mouth, lashing out like a wounded animal.
"Stop!" Seth shouted in distress as Lucy began to break down. "L-Lucy please stop this, I-"
"Show me, damn you! Show it to me!" Lucy begged as she relentlessly hit Seth's chest. Her wails echoed across the woods as she continued to hit.
Damn it, Lucy! He already-
"No! It can't be you! It just can't!" She cried out in denial as her nails dug deep into Seth's skin, but the young man didn't retaliate. He only stared back in mute terror.
"It can't be you! It... i-it... it's just can't..." Her strikes grew weaker as she sobbed in between hits.
"L-Lucy I-I-"
"P-please... p-please tell me it wasn't you... please." She begged, finally stopping dead in her tracks. Her eyes watering in denial and despair. "I-it's not you, r-right?" Lucy tried to smile. The young man could not bear to look her in the eyes, for the broken smile would have brought him low.
"No, it wasn't." He firmly replied, his gaze cast downward. "I would never hurt you. You have to believe me, Lucy, I-"
"T-then show it to me." Silence was his response.
A derisive chuckle escapes her lips. "A-are you hiding it from me, then?" Seth flinched, but Lucy did not see it. "W-why are you so afraid? C-could your shard be curved then?" Nothing. Not a single word escaped his tongue. The distant reality she did not want to face, now stood before her.
"W-why aren't you saying anything?" Yet even still, she denies it. "S-Seth y-you... why aren't you saying anything?" Her voice quivered so weakly before it snapped. "S-say something, damn you! Deny it!" She snarled aggressively, but Seth remained silent. Almost as if... as if he was admitting it.
N-no... no no no...
"Deny it, damn you! Deny it!" Lucy cried, her trembling hands desperately trying to pull Seth's clothes in frustration and terror. "For God's sake Seth, just deny it!" The young man's shoulder trembled as Lucy's cries grew stronger. "O-oh God's... p-please n-no... U-Urum h-have mercy. P-please have m-mercy." Hopeless and desperate, Lucy weakly prays.
It was the only thing she knew what to do to receive an answer she so desperately wanted to hear. An answer that the world cannot give her. And if the world cannot give it to her... maybe a goddess can?
"I-I will w-work my b-best from now on. I-I will attend to y-your m-mass, s-spare no coin f-for the needed, b-but please... p-please h-have mercy. P-please." Lucy prayed- nay, she begged for a kind answer to come. An answer she craves to be a sweet, beautiful lie. Alas, Seth shattered even this thinly veiled hope in an instant when he finally answered her request.
When she saw it, when she felt it, Lucy wanted to go back. To forget everything that she had asked of him. To forget such a useless confrontation that she insisted, all to relieve her paranoia. But now she has her answer, and it was an answer she did not want to accept.
In his hand, a solar shard hovered just above the skin. It has a slight curve on its tip and glows in a soft amber light. A color every aristocrat covet, was nothing more but a cruel dagger planted in her back, eyes full of hysteria and betrayal.
B-but... but why? It was the only thing Lucy wanted to know. I-I t-thought I could-
-trust him? Silence enveloped both worlds, trying to recover from the devastating ordeal to little effect. Have you forgotten what we've learned? What that life taught us?
N-no... n-no...no...
Lucy struggled to form her words as she constantly opens and closes her mouth. When she finally gathered her words, it broke not only her heart, but Seth as well. "Y-you said... you said you wouldn't hurt me." Lucy whimpered as she took a step back.
"Lucy," Seth called out, reaching for her heart that he unknowingly skewered a lifetime ago. "I-it is not me. W-whatever nightmare that is hunting y-you, I-"
"I-I trusted you." Three words sealed his mouth tight as Lucy continues to weep. "H-how... how could you do this to me? I... I-I... I even gave my love to you. I-I- I d-don't u-understand. I-I-" A warped scream escaped from her lips as she pulled her hair.
"Lucy!" Seth shouted in dismay as he rushed to her aid. "Don't-"
"Get away from me!" she violently snapped, forcing Seth at an arm's length away.
"Lucy, I-"
"Don't you say my name! Don't you dare say it!" It should have brought joy into her heart, to watch her murderer's face crumble into despair and pain, yet it brought nothing but lead into her heart.
N-no please don't be sad, I-
-hate you! Damn you Seth! Damn you and your-
-love. P-please l-love me. D-don't hate me, I-
Hate and love collided against one another, her sanity deteriorating even further. She could not believe it. Lucy simply could not accept the reality in front of her, even if it stood glaring in front of her.
Lucy?
H-he- I-I- no no no... T-this isn't happening. This isn't h-happening. T-this- i-it- I-I-I- he...hehehe...heheHEHEHEHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA-
Lucy...
And so, she did what she always had done in those dark days.
CAN YOU BELIEVE THIS EMMA? IT TURNS OUT SETH CAN JEST AS WELL! HAHAHA!
Lucy...
I HAVE TO GIVE IT TO HIM! HE ALMOST TRICKED ME HAHAHA!
Lucy...
BUT I'LL HAVE TO GIVE HIM A GOOD NUDGE AFTER THIS! IT IS A BAD JOKE AFTER-
LUCY!... please... stop this...
W-what? What are you talking about Emma? Seth is-
Lucy... don't do this please...
W-what? What do you mean? I-
Lucy, please... you have to accept it... it is him...
...No... No you are lying to me again!
...
You are lying! Seth didn't do it! Seth didn't... didn't... h-he... no... no, oh God please no. Y-you are lying to me right??
...
Emma, please tell me you are lying...
...
Emma please!
...
...No... n-no no no, U-Urum's l-light, n-no... i-it can't be... i-it c-can't b-b-be.
Lucy I... I'm so sorry...
...aaaaaaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!
She ran away. With it, her sanity finally shattered as she retreated deep within the recesses of her mind.