"Dark..."
"So dark...."
Away from all the torture and pain, Lia found herself surrounded by total darkness. Hoping to find her answers she walked deeper and deeper into the darkness.
She didn't knew where she was, nor where she was going.
Everything was engulfed in pitch black. As if the whole world was painted in black with neither a beginning nor an end. The only thing about this world was that in here she was all alone.
She kept walking aimlessly through the darkness.
With each step she gave up a bit of her courage, hope and most of all her will to live. Lost, scared and confused she took shelter in this darkness, determined to leave behind the mortal world forever.
Her strength gradually stripped away, leaving her completely exhausted. She dropped to the ground as a wave of sorrow washed over her entire being. Tears broke all barriers, displaying her pain and sorrow in a way that she herself could not.
Finally, Lia was at her limit....
She no longer had the will to search for her answers ....
She no longer wanted to live under constant threat and uncertainty.....
She no longer had the strength to withstand betrayal and hatred...
She no longer had the will to live....
She was ready to give up.....
She stayed there unmoving ; waiting for the darkness to consume her.
Darkness was like a pit of quick sand, swallowing anyone and anything that stepped into its realm.
But every time the darkness attempted to swallow Lia, it's authority was challenged by an unyielding force that sheilded her from it's cunning schemes.
Time kept ticking by.....
Exhaustion began to take its toll on Lia. Her consciousness began to fade away. Life was being sucked out of her like slipping sand.
But, Lia never once resisted. All she wanted now was to end her miserable life. Hence, she paitently waited and waited until...
" Dahlia... "
The dark realm was a void zone, something that was beyond the scope of time. Thus, it was impossible for Lia to keep track of it. She had no idea about for how long she stayed in that place nor how much time had passed. All she cared about was her death. Not so sadly though, a gentle whisper smashed all her plans.
Just when the last strand of Lia's consciousness was about to fade away, a gentle voice echoed like a soft whisper in the endless abyss. But due to her extreme exhaustion and fast fading consciousness Lia failed to notice the voice.
" Come Dahlia..."
Seeing Lia's lack of reaction the voice whispered again. It was a soft and beautiful voice filled with compassion and love. It was a voice of a woman.
When Lia heard the gentle whisper, it instantly injected her body with much needed energy. Her consciousness returned as well.
" Come to me Dahlia.... Come to me.... " The voice requested.
' Dahlia!! Who's Dahlia?? ' At first Lia was doubtful whether she heard it correctly or not. She looked around to find the source of the voice unfortunately nothing except darkness reached her line of sight.
Fear in her eyes and curiosity in her heart lingered side by side.
" Who....who are you???....Who is Dahlia???" she asked with some hesitation.
Her questions faded in darkness but the voice remained persistent.
" Come to me, My love... " Another voice whispered. This time it was a male was voice and just like the female version. It was also filled with love but in place of compassion there was a sense of protectiveness.
" Don't give up, My love... Please don't give up just yet. " The male voice echoed again.
Lia felt an immeasurable sense of being protected and cared. Her doubts started to subdue. She regained some of her resolve.
" Where are you??? Where can I find you?? " she asked hoping for a reply.
" Right here, Sweetheart... " To her surprise the whisper did reply and not just in voice but also in form. No sooner than the whispering voice faded, a tiny glimmer of light like a twinkling star appeared admist the pitch darkness. With her renewed determination Lia rose to her tired feet and began to walk towards that light. In her heart she believed that the tiny light was the way out of this dark abyss.
Slowly and steadily she began to feel confident again. With each step the light grew brighter and brighter. Lia was happy to see this as to her it meant she was on the right track.
As she walked towards the twinkling light, Lia heard the whispers cheering her on. To her surprise, she recognized their voices!!
Memories flooded back to her....
Memories which were the only source of her happiness in those difficult and painful times.
Lia began to shed off her self doubts and fears. Surrounded by darkness her only aim now was to reach up to the light like a bird's eye.
A long treacherous journey began....
Each time Lia took a step forward she felt that someone was pulling her ten steps backward. But that didn't waver her determination, especially when her loved ones were on the other side.
Eventually she reached her destination where she stood face-to-face with the source of light.
" Who is Dahlia??? " she asked again.
At her question , the tiny source of light transformed itself into a huge explosion of light. Lia lost her balance as she felt tremors raising from the core of the abyss. But the light remained unfettered at the threatening calls of the darkness. It rose like a majestic sword tearing away the darkness ready to engulf it whole.
The blade of the sword expanded itself in height. Beautiful white patterns began to form on both sides of the blade. In no time, what originated as tiny source of light transmogrified into beautiful large doors slowly opening themselves like wide open arms ready to welcome Lia on the other side.
The glistening white doors were a sharp contrast to the pitch darkness of the abyss leaving Lia in awe. As the doors slowly opened, a glaring white light engulfed her. She was instantly transported from extreme darkness into a world with extreme brightness ; into a world where she was not alone. Before her stood two most familiar figures . A couple Lia knew from her early childhood.
Meeting them again made all her sufferings and hardships worth it. Tears of joy streamed down like an endless waters fall. A smile so bright formed on her face that was enough to put the sun to shame. Lia couldn't remember the last time she felt so happy ; so excited.
" Dahlia, you finally made it through...." The lady welcomed Lia with open arms just like how she used to back then. Only this time Lia was hesitant towards them.
All her excitement and happiness vanished an instant, replacing them were confusion and a possible heartbreak.
" Who is Dahlia, Auntie Lutfa?? " she forced herself to ask even though she was already expecting the worst in her heart. She didn't mean to offend the couple though. It's just that she couldn't handle another heartbreak, notfrom them atleast. Still, the couple managed to beat her to it.
Not only were they not offended but they also had a look of understanding in their eyes.
" You are Dahlia, Lia. You are Dahlia : The Nymph of Infinity. " The lady named Lutfa replied as she hugged Lia with her motherly love.