It had been quite some time since Diane had traveled completely alone.
The lack of voices made her feel strange, and she occasionally turned around to check if the two had magically found a way to join her. It’s funny how quickly people fall prey to habit. The loneliness also gave her time to think about her position. She was easy prey, she knew that, so for the first time in her life she completely threw herself in the hands of destiny. If there was an enemy waiting ahead, there was nothing she could do about it. Defenseless, she let the barren monotony divert her thoughts to tiredness. The land of the unfortunate never failed to amaze her with its ruins. The sun shone brightly still, making her long to turn around. Then she felt it. The whisper of her kin. She was getting closer. In her lungs, Diane felt the breathing of her ancient mother, the woman who left her with the burden she never wanted, who cursed her into hiding and manipulating. The princess was a different person prior to her 'elevation', though that time was too long past to remember. When she was sweet and caring, loving, and true, that was when her illusions were most cruelly broken. Diane was the one who had to fight, save, and die in the end, for no one can live past their purpose.
Before her now stood the big lumpy tree the Demon had mentioned before. Two paths spread before her, identical in their trickiness. She closed her eyes and turned left, just as Rose had told her. If it had been all a lie, she would have made sure to fall prey to it. Though she kept moving, the scenery remained the same. She was sure it was part of their defense: not a few would fall victim to such strange surroundings. A forest, similar to the one she had left behind, appeared before her. Diane drew out her sword and started cutting her way through it. She sped up her pace, anxiety finally messing with her psyche. She was glad she did so after she got rid of that slice of withered branches. A huge cave appeared in front of her. Its entrance was closed by a massive, gold door with ancient symbols on it. It looked surreal, completely standing out from its surroundings.
"This is it," Diane thought out loud.
Her emotions were all over the place. Fear, doubt, excitement, all mixed together. Her future was so close to her, but she didn't want to know it. She was certain that, whatever was kept inside, would ruin her life beyond repair. But she was The Dove, the one who had to be sacrificed for the people to see color. Such an unfair, yet inevitable life she had been leading; it was time for it to end.
"You better not get scared, Diane Hunster," she said out loud once again as she pushed open the door leading to the final doom. If only she had known it wasn't her own.
There is a thin line between bravery and madness, a line Diane was never hesitant to cross. They say every rumor contains a little bit of truth. If you take your time to think about it, you will find yourself trapped in the gaps of space and time; and if you are obstinate enough, you will discover the depressing truth. We are all creatures of fear and doubt. Like parasites we feed off the confidence of others, not knowing they are as confused as us.
Diane had never felt so inferior before. The chilling air welcomed her, and the hideously large stones covered in pure gold and diamonds made her feel as far below the great Clara Heal as she was supposed to. How was she to live up to such high expectations when she wasn't allowed to ever be herself? She felt nauseous. Her head was hurting, and her vision was blurred. As she walked forward, leaving the grandiose entrance behind, the massive hallway-like space grew narrower, until she was barely able to pass through. The sharp rocks pushed against her body, the air growing thinner and fustier. The passage then spread into a circular room, similar to the entrance of Nowhere. The floor was covered in marble, with bits of gold occasionally mixed with the tiles. The walls were covered in gold as well, making the small space blinding. Before her were three identical emerald doors. Over them, in letters made of diamond, spread a Latin saying:
Aegroto dum anima est, spes est.
She marched over the precious stones, wondering how such an edifice survived the ticking of time and the greasy hands of those who surrounded it. So much was out of place, her most of all. She wanted to get out and breathe the fresh air, to never return to the place filled with deceit. It was all those memories that she tried to get rid of, to mask with tired sighes and secret chills that now came back to strangle her in the golden thomb.
Why am I here? I want to go home. I am scared.
Loud steps interrupted her thoughts. She turned around, suddenly facing George Brown.
"You?! What are you—" she was interrupted by his hand covering her mouth.
He looked at her for a moment, kneeling next to her in complete silence. An ominous feeling spread with his breathing. Thousands of different possibilities and outcomes filled Diane's consciousness. There was something very wrong. They were alone. The air was warm, and she could feel his presence in her every pore. Like time had stopped, not frozen, melted, but still and peaceful.
"They're onto us," he whispered. "We need to leave."
"Where are the others?" she muttered in a low tone. Diane gripped her fingers to stop them from shaking.
"What others?" George asked bewilderedly. "We came here alone. Don't you remember?"
He slowly brought his hand to her cheek. Caressing her dirtied flesh, he smiled.
She returned it.
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"Let's go, before they find us," George said.
"Where to? I need The Will!"
"What will?" he laughed. "Diane, what are you talking about?" He seemed concerned. "You must have hurt your head when you fell. Come along now! Before your father catches us."
Diane blinked, as if awoken from a deep, deep slumber. She was sitting on the soft grass by the river. There were trees, happy, spring trees, all around her. She was wearing her long dress in light purple, the slightly sheer one that George liked best. There were birds and bees and flowers and squishy clouds.
“Where are we?” she let out.
George came back and knelt next to her again. “Diane, are you alright? You seem strange.”
“No, just… I… just…” She put her hands on her head. She felt throbbing everywhere. “I had a weird dream.”
George caressed her heair; his fingers felt as soft as she remembered. “What dream?”
Diane narrowed her eyebrows and looked to the side. “I… I can’t remember.”
“Then it was nothing important.”
“No,” Diane jumped in, “it was very important!”
“Why?”
“What?”
“What was so important about it?” His voice was stange. It was much softer and quieter than she remembered. And more forceful.
“The future of the world was at stake.”
“Did it have anything to do with you?”
“What?”
“I mean, what do you get for saving the world?”
On the other side of the river a meadow endlessly spread underneath the sunlight. She looked down at her dress, the purple silk caressing her skin. It was all so right, so warm, and so impossible.
“Do I need to get anything in return?”
“Of course you do. Why else would you go through all that trouble?”
For a moment, it felt real. For a moment, she wanted to believe it was real. It took a moment to make sure it was not.
Her sword was now in her hand. “I get to feel at peace.” It took a moment to remove his head from his body.
She felt a weird motion. She was back in the mesmerizing room. Only this time she was alone. And, strangely, not as emty as she was before. Then a whisper filled her ears. So enchanting and sweet, it longed for her to find it. Diane quickly opened the door to her right and walked into yet another hallway. It looked exactly like the rest of the cave, so blinding and rich. As the whisper grew louder, she could almost distinguish the words it repeated. She recognized them immediately, their plea drilling holes in her head.
Find me, my heiress.
The winged monster with a hidden message written on its sword flashed before her mind. A gush of old, forgotten memories enwrapped her. She ran down the hallway as hastily as she could, ignoring the ever worsening condition of the walls and the floor. The riches were gone; the tight space was now covered only in dust, dirt, and mold. Diane's footsteps echoed as the hallway became darker. She could feel no fear, for her mind was occupied by a strange fever she had never before experienced. At some point, despite the scarce lighting, she could make out a wooden door. It was heavy, with a metal knob and the Crystalian crest in the middle. She pushed it open, unlocking the sacred place untouched for centuries. In there, awaited her destiny. The room in front of her was small, with no source of air. Covered by thousand-year-old dust, a golden letter lay on the smallest table in the world. Diane left her footprints on the gray floor as she made her way towards it. Cobwebs blurred her vision, but she had no time to remove the ones that got on her face. The Will was smaller than she had expected; it made Diane angry to think that so little had to be said about her future. She hastily opened the red seal and drowned herself in ancient letters. Except there was no future in it, only the past. It was all too wrong to admit, so she, with shaky hands, went through each syllable countless times. But yes, she suddenly realized, she had heard it all before. From the Judge.
"Yes, I remember," she whispered, crying like she never had in her life. Her heart was torn a bit by every word, her hope faded with the sound of the rusty paper hitting the ground.
With this letter I write, I bind myself to a contract.
The hope we feel in such times only comes to disappoint us; Diane thought that, somehow, her tears would soften the ink and change the words she wished she had never remembered.
In my own failure, I recognize, not my own incompetence, but the cruelty of the finiteness of a being. Thus, I bind myself to serve You, my one and only ruler, my one and only truth, until the end of time. I will weave treads as precious as the rising sun, as blinding as the full moon, to lead my heiress towards a goal I had insufficient time to reach. She will become this world’s sun and its one and only moon. She will lead these souls to a world filled, not with undefeatable misery, but with the bliss I had always dreamt of. She will become the second me.
Everything changed. There was no air, only dust, and forgotten memories. A closed space and a princess with one too many hopes. Could the world be changed by ideals that lasted only one lifetime? How very ridiculous that sounded.
In return, I, Queen Clara of Crystalia, ask to live not only through the blood of my heiress but through a new race of people more powerful than any, more determined than myself. They, the ones bearing my red eyes, my golden hair, and my powers to heal and bind to the core of this world, will serve her in her endeavors and help her save this world that now seems so irredeemable. The one condition remains: the six people, our six people, the ones bearing our powers, must meet as equals for the future I weave to come to life. Once they do, I will make sure they stop at nothing.
For the last time,
Clara Heal, the first queen of Crystalia
P.S. My dear heiress, you who are now reading this, you will save the world for me.
I will make you my weapon.
I will make you the savior.
Savior.
Savior.
Savior.
“No more, please,” Diane let out.
She didn’t sit in that room for long. She folded the letter too many times before pushing it into her pocket to be forgotten. She went back the same way, only slower. She noticed every cobweb, piece of mold, and drop of water. She, now more than ever, wished never to walk out of that grave.
You can do that, can’t you?