Happy Saturday! I'm heading off to hang out with family all day so this post is going to be short, sweet, and to the point. He's an exerpt from book 2.
My breath was short and my blood cold. Bodies were strewn around me and my hands were stained with their life force. The lifeless faces of these people scared me. They were my friends. I watched them die over and over again and my heart felt as though it were being ripped out. I could feel it. I could feel it beginning again.
Ryoko ran towards me in fear. She looked behind her as if she was looking for whatever was chasing her in the blackness of nothing that surrounded us. I felt my heart clench when she screamed in pain and fell to the ground. Nothing had attacked her. Nothing came out of the darkness but she was bleeding out and dead nonetheless.
Rylan was next. He made it farther than Ryoko but not by much. I looked down at him as he crashed to the ground in front of my feet. His body lay unnaturally and his face was hidden under him like every time before. I looked up in anticipation of Zane, Argus and Blaze. They were always next. The sequence of their deaths never changed.
The boys ran past me, but as they did, they too were killed by an unknown assailant. Blood splattered over my chest and the taste of blood seeped over my tongue. I could feel new blood drip off my hands. It was as if I was the one who was killing them. It was as if I was to blame but I hadn't moved. I hadn't thought of ever killing them.
Then they started to run past me. Hundreds of people ran in terror. I recognized some people and others I did not. But they all met the same fate in the end. It didn't matter if they made it past me or not, they all died and, each time they did, I could feel the blood weigh me down.
Then suddenly, something changed. In the crowd of people a new face appeared. I blinked and figured when I opened my eyes he'd be gone but when they opened again he was still there. He looked around frantically as if he were looking for something, or someone.
Then I heard his voice. "Eira! Eira! Eira, where are you?"
"Raikidan…" I whispered. I wasn't sure if I should call out to him any louder. I didn't want him to end up like the others.
"Eira, where are you?" he called again. "Please, say something!"
I stepped forward slightly, unable to move very far due to the bodies scattered everywhere. "Raikidan!"
He looked directly at me. He was too far away from me to read his expression but he didn't waste any time running over to me. As he came closer I noticed the blood on him. It was everywhere. What was going on? I blinked slowly as he crashed into me and held me in his arms. His breath came slow and deep from his running.
"Eira…" he mumbled as he rested his face in my hair. "I thought I'd never find you."
I was too confused to respond. I didn't understand what was going on. Over and over these events played. Over and over the same people died. But Raikidan never showed up at any point until now. I felt him start to pull away and I wanted to fight to keep him close. I didn't want to lose him like I had the others.
"Raikidan—" The pain I felt in my abdomen stopped me. I choked as blood rushed up my throat. "Rai…kidan…why?"
He chuckled but his voice was different now. I pulled away and was faced with the man I hated so much.
"Who is this Raikidan, my dear?" the dark haired man asked.
"Z–Zarda…" I managed
He smirked at me. "Did you really think you could escape me? Did you think you wouldn't screw up again?"
I tried to pull away from him but the pain in my abdomen worsened. I cringed and looked down. I couldn't believe the sight before me. Zarda's hand was speared into me as if it were a sharp blade.
Zarda snickered. "The apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Your heart will betray you."
He pulled his arm free and walked away. I fell to the ground and bled out. His words replayed in my mind over and over.
"You're heart will betray you."
I had heard it once before. I had been warned with these words before. I couldn't be true. I was alone. A lone heart can't be betrayed.
Strong hands pressed on my back and Raikidan's worried voice echoed through my ears. "Eira? Eira!"
He shook me each time he spoke my name but I was far too gone to respond.
"Eira!"