Chapter 8: Visions gone bad
[Prelude to Chaos Arc]
(Prologue)
Red Rose Kingdom
Saya's Room
Darkness.
She was surrounded by darkness. She was all alone in the vast fields of darkness. Somehow, this seems vaguely familiar to her. Like she's been here before when she was still a child.
"Ya...."
She looked around for that voice that seemed to shake her awake from her dream.
"Aya..."
"Saya! Wake up!"
Saya was jolted awake by that booming voice and instantly turned towards her side where the sound came from.
"H-huh? Where am I?" she asked whilst rubbing her eyes. Instantly, flashes of memories came crashing on her that instantly made her panic. What exactly happened to her?
"Where am I? Where's Rose Reaper?" Saya asked. She looked around and adjusted her eyes to the light. She saw Haji heave out a sigh of relief and Urika holding a green rose, a sign she was using her powers to heal her.
"Saya, we're back home. Back in Red Rose Kingdom." Haji replied her, looking at her with relief in his eyes due to her waking up/
"What do you mean? What about the mission?" Saya's brows furrowed in worry. What exactly happened when they were still in Xhorina? Were their parents disappointed in them now?
Haji gripped Saya's shoulders tightly but not so tight and looked straight into her eyes, noticing the crease in between her brows. it was a clear sign of sadness and self-deprecation.
"Don't you dare think they are disappointed in you. they will never be." He said with conviction and with a serious face.
Saya looked down in embarrassment, realizing Haji could sense her emotions. "I'm sorry. But why are we back though?" she asked instead.
"It's because Rose Reaper's whereabouts is completely unknown. And besides, we all need some rest." Haji replied and gave Saya a glass of luke- warm water which she drank greedily.
Saya sighed a sigh of relief at that. It would seem that they would have to go back to the academy, then.
"What exactly happened?" Saya asked Urika this time.
"You passed out in Sellirinna. Then we came from the Fire Kingdom and got home. Actually, the Fire King and Queen knew that the Ice rulers were acting strange, suddenly stirring up conflicts and disputes. So we then figured that one of the rulers was Rose Reaper. And guess what? We were right!" Urika replied with enthusiasm. Saya just gently laughed at her, finding it cute.
"And for that, thanks." Saya slightly bowed her head. It would seem that Rose Reaper as slier than they thought she would be.
"Anyways, I should probably get going back to my own Kingdom. Gotta take care of my own things in there." Urika said suddenly, in a hurry to leave that Saya didn't have enough time to say farewell properly.
Saya sighed as a hand suddenly reached out and patted her head. She smiled and closed her eyes at Haji's warm gesture. She really needed that.
"Saya, you should rest a bit. I know you are still worn out. I will wake you when it is time to eat or if something happens." Haji said as he gently tucked her in back to the soft and warm bed underneath her.
Saya smiled and said her thanks. She was really lucky to have him as her knight.
Hundred miles of grass surrounded Sumire, the very same field in her dreams.
She looked around if someone else was here with her but alas, there was no one. What was the reason she kept dreaming about this empty place? What did this all mean?
Suddenly, the scene changed around her. This time, battle cries echoed throughout the fields that stained the lush green grassed with blood and agonized bodies of the dead. Sumire looked in horror at the scene before her. She looked up and saw a blood curling scene that made her insides turn and her blood run cold.
There, standing before her, was Rose Reaper. She was staring at Sumire, seemingly able to see through her soul. Rose Reaper smiled and the words that she said would forever be engraved into Sumire's heart and soul.
"Lésäien kuròsh indesé de destraia"
"Princess! Wake up!" Sumire was jolted awake by the once booming voice of her knight. Her once purple hair that floated midair came falling back down in waves that cascaded along her shoulders.
"Wah? What happened?" She asked in panic and confusion. She wondered to herself why her long hair was suddenly a mess around her.
Sumire's knight, Shimozoku looked at her in worry. His brows furrowed and posture stiff. "You were tossing and turning in your bed the instant I got in as well as your hair floating around you as if you were submerged in water. I was worried as to what's happening to you that's why I woke you up." he reasoned with a relieved sigh. He already knew Sumire had much more frequent visions these days but this time, it was different.
Sumire didn't know the reason why but she's sensing her dreams were connected to something incredibly dark and dangerous.
"What was the vision about this time?" Shimozoku asked once more.
Sumire looked at him in seriousness, goosebumps slowly rising up her entire body as she prepared herself to say the translation of the words in her vision.
"I- I think the end is near."
After Haji woke Saya up for lunch, Saya immediately ate and afterwards felt the need to take a stroll through the gardens of the Red Rose Palace.
Haji was somewhere taking care of the things that needed to be taken care of, so she was alone this time. She looked around her and saw the roses in full bloom. Their soft and elegant smell wafting through her nose. Like a gentle caress. Suddenly a certain bud caught her eye.
Saya went towards a nearby rose bush and slowly neared a poor red rose. It was still a bud and yet it was already beginning to wither. She gently touched it with her fingers and immediately, reacting to her touch, the bud came alive and a healthy and beautiful flower bloomed and in the center shone a bright and pure diamond.
Saya smiled. The roses in the Red Rose Kingdom were definitely different from any ordinary rose. Aside that she could control them, they were also extremely beautiful and extremely valuable. Every bud has a single diamond which was called the Angel diamond because of its pure and blinding color. And it is considered rare because only a direct descendant of the red rose's power can make one bloom such as herself.
She sighed and decided to go back and probably finish some paperwork. She was sure she also had to write reports regarding what happened back in Sellirinna. But she was suddenly stopped in her tracks when a familiar and welcoming smiling face greeted her.
Her eyes widened at the figure that stood a few feet away. The woman's fiery red hair glistened in the sunlight, her ruby red eyes and those eerily similar features smiled at her as she drew near.
The instant that person stood only a few feet away from her did the person smile and speak.
"I'm home. Sister."