In a desolate forest....
Two figures magically appeared out of nowhere.
They smashed down to the muddy ground as the rain trickled down their already wet clothes. They were Kaiden and Victoria who just escaped from the pangs of death.
The two were silent for a while.
Neither of the two spoke to one another nor did they try to speak.
There was an eerie silence that invisibly created a gap between the two.
Kaiden stood up and raised his head to meet the droplets of the rain as he closed his eyes.
His mind was in chaos as he wondered, 'I saw Koma and the other's death... Everything was exactly as I saw it...'
'The long-haired man and his three-eyed crow... Koma and Erca's sacrifice... Even their words were the same as in my vision.... Despite knowing all of that, I had no power to change it... I was so useless... No, I'm so useless and weak that it disgusts me...' He bit his lower lip as tears started rolling from his face.
'Damn it!' He covered his eyes with his right hand as he blamed himself for being pathetic.
Victoria knelt on the ground as she looked into her hands which had just forfeited two lives tonight.
But more than that, the faces of Hawks, Koma, Erca and the others were constantly flashing in her mind.
The pain in her heart had already reached the point where she could only feel a numbing sensation.
Her body did not tremble as she observed the rain drops gather at the center of her palms or leak from the gaps of her hands.
All she felt was the sense of loss.
That could have never been more evident as a painful memory started to resurface in her mind.
It was a memory that she tried so hard to forget.
...
She was in a grass field. There were broken pieces of wood and metal around her.
From afar, she could see a silhouette of a giant ship that had just crashed on the ground as flames arose from the inside.
'This was ten years ago...'
She was being carried by someone and currently moved at an amazing speed.
But, strangely the cold wind did not bother her as a warm feeling embraced her entire being.
Close to her, it was the image of a handsome young man that had the same features as her. Brunette hair but shorter. Amber brown eyes yet sharper.
The man was tall and stout as he carried a sword on his right hand and little Victoria on his left.
The man was injured and bloodied while leaving an obvious trail of blood on his tracks. Five arrow wounds, two sword scars and one spear stab could be seen on his back.
Despite all of this, he did not falter nor did his speed slow down. He also made sure that the girl he was carrying wouldn't see those wounds nor the blood trail as he carried her.
"Big brother, where are we going?" The four year old Victoria asked.
The man thought for a bit and smiled, "Hm.... Didn't Lil' Ria say that she wants to see the three pretty moons become fully white? Big bro, is taking you to a place where lil' Ria can see the three moons clearly!"
"Really?" Little Victoria's baby eyes sparkled hearing that.
"Hahaha, of course! Don't you trust, big bro? Big bro doesn't make promises he can't keep." The man smiled ear to ear. It was as if he did not have any injuries in the first place.
"Yeey! Big bro really is the best!" Victoria cheered happily.
"But where are uncle and the other? Are we not going take them with us?" Victoria innocently asked.
"..." The man did not reply for a while as he revealed a bitter expression.
But, he was still able to answer, "They... are all slightly tired so they're sleeping and won't wake up for some time."
"Ohhh, I wanted to see the moons become full with them... But mom said it's bad to wake people up if they're sleeping well..." Victoria pouted.
She did not seem to notice the underlying meaning in his elder brother's words.
Despite trying to resist, tears still flowed from his eyes as he replied, "You're right... It's bad to disturb those who are sleeping."
"Aya! Big bro Nick, do you have an 'owie'? Where does it hurt?" Victoria frowned and said concernedly.
She tried to wipe his tears with her tiny hands.
"Oh, this? There's just something in my eyes. How could Nicholas Cross cry? I am the next head of the clan after all." Nicholas denied as he wiped his tears.
Suddenly, little Victoria kissed Nicholas on the cheeks.
Then, the little girl smiled sweetly, "Mom said that kissing would make an 'owie' go away."
Nicholas smiled as he replied, "Thanks, lil sis. The pain is gone now."
'This...' Suddenly, his face changed as he looked back.
Then, he faced Victoria with the same bright smile he had on, "Lil sis, why don't we play hide and seek before we go to the 'special place'?"
"Whaaat? Hmph, fine! But if you can't find me after the timer glass is up, you'll give me your dessert tomorrow!" Victoria demanded.
"Haha, you'll have my desserts for as long as you want! But you have to make sure, I don't find you. Though that seems impossible." Nicholas smirked.
He looked as though he already won.
"We'll see about that! I'm starting the timer! Start counting and you're not allowed to peek, got it?" Victoria seriously said as she got two small hourglass-like objects that had the label of ten-minute glass on it and flipped it.
She gave one to Nicholas and kept one for herself. Then, ran away to look for a hiding place.
"You better hide in some place I can't find you. Don't look back or reveal yourself no matter what happens, okay?" Nicholas loudly teased.
"You'll never find me!" Victoria angrily retorted.
She ran for the first two minutes and chose a random rock with a hole in it to hide.
She snuck into it and did her best to not make any sound.
But quickly, after she hid, consecutive explosions were heard. The explosions caused Victoria to slowly be bugged by her curiosity, "What's happening outside?"
She could faintly hear the sound of metals clashing, the ground cracking and the trees uprooting.
Her curiosity was getting the best of her when she suddenly thought, 'Oh, Big bro must be the one who is causing all that mess! He must be thinking of getting me to reveal myself and then, make fun of me after!'
Victoria arrived at a naive conclusion and shut off her senses, 'That must be it! I won't be tricked! Hehe, he thought he could tease me again, huh? Well, Ria is not that dumb!"
" I'll just have to close my eyes and cover my ears so I don't hear whatever noise he's making!'
Unknowingly, she fell asleep.
But after some time, she felt that she was being carried. However, she was slowly being moved as though she was in a crib.
Then, she woke up after a while. She rubbed her still sleepy eyes and she saw that she was on a wide and spacious plateau where there was no obstruction in their views.
The plateau had an outstanding elevation that made it seem closer to the skies.
"Waaah, it's so pretty!" Victoria saw the three full moons beautifully hanging in the sky.
The three moons varied in both size and color. The largest moon was colored white and it was at least three times bigger than the moon on Earth.
The smallest was half the size of the moon and had a light yellow color while the second biggest was just as big as the moon but had the color of sky blue.
The three looked bizarre yet beautiful under the cover of the pristine night sky. It looked like something straight out of a painting. What's more is that sitting on the plateau provided no hindrance to the sight so Victoria could see horizon to horizon.
In joy, she jumped and merrily shouted, "This must be the special place that Big bro Nick was talking about! Whahahaha, it feels so good up here!"
"Oh, right, where is Big bro?" Victoria wondered where her elder brother was but it did not take long before she managed to find her brother.
She saw her brother leaning sideways on a boulder not far from her.
But, the joy in her face was soon robbed from her when she witnessed the state her brother was in. In tears, she came running to him, "No... NO!!"
Nicholas had already lost his right arm. His back was covered with more than a dozen arrows. A sword was stuck on his right shoulder. He had a glaring diagonal scar on his chest and other similar wounds all over his body.
"Big... bro...?" Victoria was a little lost when she stood in front of her brother. She did not know what she should say.
But her sight could see a trail of blood that led to the forest. No, it would be more appropriate to say that it was a trail of blood that came from the forest
The forest that they came from was now partially bold. The trees that were supposed to be there were gone.
There were also five straight cuts near the bald spot of the forest!
All of which were facing five different directions, spanning a few miles!
But if all of them had something in common, it was that they originated near a boulder with a tiny hole that could fit a child in it.
But, Victoria did not know what it meant when she saw that scene back then.
But now, she knew, 'Big bro Nick... protected me to the very end...'
Hearing her voice, Nicholas feebly opened his eyes and like always he smiled. "You're finally awake, lil' sis. I had a hard time finding you... *blergh*"
Nicholas puked some blood and groaned as he tried to cover his mouth. His muscles spasmed which caused him to fall but Victoria was able to catch him.
. The little girl cried bullets as she saw her brother's state.
The shocking scene caused the little girl to not speak properly and stutter on her words, "Wha.. what... ha-happened... N-no... W-who..."
Nicholas still maintained his smile and touched her doll-like face, "So, how was the view? Did... you like it? Hehe, I told you... I don't make promises that I can't keep...."
Even at this juncture, he was averting the topic of who caused the wounds.
"I... I... Big... big... bro..." The four-year old girl cried heavily and tried to wipe her tears that were flowing like a river with her tiny hands.
"Lil' sis, can big bro... ask you a favor?" Nicholas said weakly.
"Mhm!" The little sister could only nod with all her might as she listened to what might be the very last request that Nicholas would ask of her.
"Can you sing the lullaby mom always sings for us... for big bro? I'm getting a bit sleepy." Nicholas spoke in a frail voice.
"But your wounds…"
"Please, Ria." Nicholas said in the most gentle voice possible with loving eyes as he smiled as bright as the day.
"Okay... *sniffle*..." Victoria did her best to sing with a stable voice.
She might not know what to say as her mind was in shambles but the lullaby from their mother that they would always hear before sleep ever since they were born was something she could sing even with her eyes closed.
Then, she sang as melodious as their mother would be:
" Close your eyes, little treasure, the peaceful night is here 🎵...
Close your eyes, little treasure, this lullaby you'll hear🎵...
Close your eyes, little treasure, there is no need to fear 🎵...
Close your eyes, little treasure, walk into your dreams🎵…"
"I wish I could have seen mom… and dad for one last time…" Those were his brother's last words.
Her brothers rested on her lap with a satisfied smile on her face while she cried till morning.
She continued to weep until her father and mother saw her, crying while hugging her dead brother's body.
Her parents were devastated. As they witnessed, their daughter was crying as their bloodied and deceased son lay peacefully on her lap.
"NICHOLAS! VICTORIA!"
Her brother single handedly killed all of the assassins and protected Victoria until his dying breath.
"This can't be…" Her mother grieved and collapsed on the spot. Tears flowed as she fell unconscious. Her husband caught her and nestled her in her arms.
"You did well, son.." Her father was proud of his son's valor as he wept in pain.
He crouched down and touched Victoria's cheek. "Are you okay, dear?"
"D-dad! B-big bro, he… Waaaaah!" Victoria continued to cry.
Her dad's palm flickered in light as he gently said, "You can now rest, dear."
Victoria felt drowsy and fell asleep immediately after. She was picked up by her dad as well.
The man who lost his son, had a stern and serious look as he quickly found the battlefield his son fought in. "Those Dark Magnate bastards! This blood debt shall be paid a hundred fold!"
It was from that day onward that Victoria became more quiet and shy than she was before. It was also from that point on, that her parents treasured her and would always assign powerful guards to protect her.
...
Victoria could not take it anymore as she shouted what she had always hid in her heart, "It was just like then... Big bro Nick... Big bro Koma... Big sis Erca... I was always the one who gets protected... Everyone I care for is always taken from me... I should have been the one who died! Why did I even have to be born in this world?!"
Kaiden heard her and felt very guilty. He was going to speak up when that familiar pain visited him once again!
In his vision, he saw Yumi with Hawks walking behind her looking like a half-dead corpse...
The scene changed, Victoria was emitting a divine aura that he had no previous recollection of. She held her twin swords and attacked....
Then the scene changed again, a pure white lightning flashed right in front of his eyes and hit Victoria, leaving not even an ash of the girl she loved...
"What?!" Kaiden froze as he could not process all of his visions at once. He looked at Victoria with fear of losing her, apparent in his eyes.