Note: [This chapter is irrelevant to the story. You may choose to skip it and move onto the next chapter, if there is.]
[Some parts are added to the previous chapter because it got cut off before.]
[WARNING: This chapter depicts violence and contains gruesome scenes that may cause discomfort to the readers. Proceed with caution.]
***
The young man felt lost, and all he could hear was the rapid pounding of his heart. He didn't even know if it was because of the adrenalin rush, from shock or fear. It was getting harder for him to breathe.
'Stay warm and breathe…' a hushed whisper stopped the turmoil on his mind.
Marco pursed his lips. He stayed still for a few minutes before heaving a heavy sigh.
'Fuck! What the hell just happened?'
Marco took a few steps away from the edge of the cliff, taking the lady in his arms with him. After making sure that it's safe enough, he let go of his hold from the girl.
He distanced himself to calm down and process everything.
'I saved her, right? She's probably dead drowning now if I hadn't pulled her,' he reasoned to himself to get rid of his arising guilt.
Marco's thoughts were interrupted when a fragrance tingled his nose. It was bitter yet captivating enough to make people drunk in a few sniffs.
'It smells like wine,' the young man thought, rubbing his nose with his index finger.
When Marco raised his head, his eyes were met by the hazel eyes of the girl that's reflecting the red-orange hue of the sunset sky. His bluish-gray irises quivered.
The lad tensed up at the uncomfortable eye contact. His mind went blank, and he stiffened like a statue.
He can see how her eyebrows furrow a little, her long eyelashes fluttering as she blinks. Her eyes were hazy and empty.
The sudden eye contact caught him off guard. Marco subconsciously took a step backward, but he couldn't keep his footing and fell onto the rough stone ground with his lower back. He had both his arms for support on reflex.
"Damn," Marco silently hissed from the pain in his right arm. It was scrapped and bleeding a little.
Marco felt like staring at those eyes would devour him and send him to the abyss of oblivion. He knew that he should look away, but he couldn't.
"Does it hurt? Are you alright?" the girl asked.
Her voice was soft, and it sounded like a lulling melody that ushers one to an eternal slumber.
Marco stayed silent. He couldn't utter a response or make an audible sound: his throat felt tight.
'My gut feeling tells me that there's something wrong. But what and where is it?' he pondered to himself.
The lady stared down at him with her soulless eyes, atrociously red with the dusk sky's hue. She held out her hand to the anxious young man on the ground.
"Can you stand?" she asked with a voice that goes with the wind.
Marco was anxious. He doesn't know what to do other than stare at her offered hand. It was pale as if it was devoid of blood and seems so fragile.
He did not dare take her hand. He was trying to keep his trembling hand to himself. His eyes found their way back to the girl's blank face, and he once again held his breath when their eyes met. He felt lost looking at her vermillion eyes like he was sinking in a deep ocean.
The lady tilted her head to the side, which made her hair swirl, and her eyes were unblinking as she gazed at him.
Marco was taken aback by her gesture. His heart skipped a beat before it began pounding once again. His heartbeat was abnormally increasing more than ever. It's pounding rapidly, and he's having a hard time catching up.
For the second time, he couldn't breathe.
The young lad wondered how a girl, much smaller than him, could make his heart race like crazy.
'Fear can make your heart pound.'
Marco subconsciously clenched his jaw. He tightly gripped his hand on the ground, almost plucking out the grass that got caught.
The girl's eyes bore at him for a few more minutes before she broke their eye contact, moving to stare at the crashing sea. Marco let out a sigh of relief when she's a few steps away from him.
'We finally got a decent distance.'
He got to his feet not long after taking some time to breathe. He maintained a decent distance from the girl. His eyes darted at the back of the lady, baffled with something he couldn't decipher.
Marco was confused with himself. 'I don't know what the hell's happening with me and why I'm being weird right now.'
The atmosphere around the cliff was getting colder by the passing second.
Their maintained silence was broken with the girl's ethereal voice. While still looking at the vast ocean, she asked, "Why did you save me?"
Marco was taken aback by that. He couldn't find it from his own so he stared at the cloudy night sky.
He sighed and found the courage to speak, "I don't know. I just acted on impulse. Maybe because I don't want to see somebody die before my own eyes."
Marco shifted his gaze to the girl. He thoughtlessly blurted what's running on his mind, "Why do you want to die?"
"Why do you think I do?" the girl serenely asked back as she turned towards him.
"So you don't?" Marco was confused. He had been able to put down his uneasiness at rest. "Then why did you look as if you want to fall off the cliff?"
"Hmm…" she hummed. "How do you say so?"
"Uh, you know?" Marco awkwardly scratched his nape. "You were standing right at the edge of the cliff with your arms embracing the wind as if you're ready to dive on the crashing waves below. And… you were smiling amidst all that…"
"Aren't you supposed to uh… jump and kill yourself?"
Marco grimaced at himself, 'What a nice way to phrase that, Marcus.'
"I'm sorry. That was an insensitive question to ask. You don't have to answer it if you don't feel like it."
"I don't," was the calm response of the girl.
Marco tilted his head; he was confused. 'You don't what? Is that an answer to my question, or you don't mind it?'
Deciding that it was an awkward topic, he forcedly coughed and changed the subject. "What's your name? By the way, I'm Marcus Ainsley."
The girl stared at the evanescent glint of light on the ocean then the gloomy clouds blanketed the sky again. Aside from the sound of waves, silence loomed over the cliff before the girl answered at last.
"People call me by Ayesha."
"Ayesha… That's a pretty name," Marco whispered, equaling her hush voice. "Alive. It means life."
"My sole existence is Life itself," the girl stated in a tranquil tone with solemnity.
Ayesha's aura was chilly yet ethereal. It makes anyone near her feel the need of giving respect and be compliant with everything she says. Her presence alone can make one kneel and beg for mercy.
Marco was shaken by her intricate statement. He believes that there's an underlying meaning behind her words. He was curious, and it left him in wonder.
"The time has come."
The young man snapped out of his trance and threw a confused glance at the girl's back figure. Her white dress and light locks of hair swirl with the wind. Her gaze was fixed on the horizon where the sun was setting, almost vanishing completely.
He could feel her unusual uneasiness. Ever since the lady in white first spoke, her voice and tone were serene, but now it was stern, and the content was foreboding.
Marco also stared at the crashing sea before roaming his eyes on his surroundings, finally noticing that it's getting darker. He shivered when the cold wind blew. He fished his phone and checked for the time, which reads as 5:48 pm.
'Oh, shit! It's already evening.'
"You need to go," Ayesha commanded. She turned to face Marco before motioning her hand towards the dark forest before heading to the place. "Follow me."
Marco was utterly confused with her behavior. He doesn't know what's happening.
"Hey, wait!" Marco hurriedly followed the girl. He entered the forest before he finally caught up with the girl. He immediately grabbed her hand.
Ayesha stopped and glanced at the hand holding her forearm. Marco noticed her stare and hastily took back his hand.
"I'm sorry."
Marco could still feel the lingering touch of contact with the girl on his now chilly palm.
The young lad's attention shifted from his slightly shivering hand to the pale-colored arms of the lady in white.
'Why are your arms so cold? Why are you freezing cold?' Marco wanted to ask but held his voice.
It feels far colder than the autumn breeze brought by the ocean waves.
'Is she going through hypothermia? Should I give her my jacket?'
Marco shook his head to get rid of his thoughts. He went straight to the point, "I need to ask for directions."
"How did you get here?" Ayesha asked.
"I followed you."
Ayesha hummed and nodded. "I'll show you out of the forest." She resumed walking, and Marco silently followed suit.
Marco observed his surroundings while narrowing his eyes but still could barely see a thing around him. The dense forest was tenebrous, and the cloudy night didn't help to lit up the environs.
He could feel that someone or something was staring intently at him. He raised his guard on instinct, ready for anything to come.
The marks on the tree barks seemed glowing like a predator's eyes watching its prey lingering on its territory.
The young man felt uneasy, so he focused his sight on the person in front of him. He was rendered mesmerized by the scene before him.
Within the darkness of the forest, there was a young lady seemingly glowing. It was enchanting how her light-brown hair sways with the wind along with her unstained white dress. Different colored fireflies were flying around her, which made the scene more spectacular. Although her eyes reflected the colors of the fireflies, they still remained lifeless with her expressionless face.
'Maybe she's really a fairy or any magical entity,' Marco thought.
"Go back to where you come from," Ayesha monotonously said.
Marco snapped out of his enchantment and gazed around his surroundings. He found that there were numerous fireflies now in the forest, illuminating it with their little lights. A few were swirling around him, and he noticed that they were bigger than the average fireflies, and their lights were dimmer but had a wide scope.
He followed a specific firefly with his eyes, and he was stunned when what he saw was a hitodama or soul fire. Marco removed his gaze from the little glowing creature, roamed his eyes, and saw that every light was a soul fire and not fireflies.
Marco was astounded by what he was seeing. He blinked rapidly to get rid of it, and when he focused his eyes again, the face of the girl greeted him. Her empty yet glowing eyes bore their stare on his.
The young man was petrified by the sight that welcomed him.
He froze on the spot.
Although the sight was beautiful, it was more frightening.
"Leave this place."
The girl stepped aside to open the view of the tall bushes. They have reached the gate of the forest.
The leaves rustled as Marco passed through the bushes. He was greeted by the asphalt road as soon as he stepped outside. It was the same place where he came.
"Leave at once and go back to the place where you came from," Ayesha said. She didn't step out of the forest, but she remained at the border of the entrance.
"I don't really have anywhere else to go. Could you tell me which way was the heart of the town?" Marco desperately asked.
Ayesha silently stared at him for a moment before she turned around and started walking back inside the forest.
"Whatever path you take will always lead you to the heart of the town."
The frosty autumn breeze blew and made the leaves dance with the wind. A few dead leaves were swirling in the air. After a moment, the passage to the forest has closed.