Just as General Adams had ordered, we left the S.Y.N. headquarters first thing in the morning when the sun had just barely peeked over the horizon. And towards that horizon is where we embarked on our long journey to the Eternal Forest. Jeremy led the way, proudly riding his black stallion, and Morgan, Niall, and I followed in a horizontal row of three, each mounted on the chestnut horses we had ridden the day before. After leaving the general boundaries of the S.Y.N.'s property, the road from there on out was almost entirely flat. A vast, grassy field of green and yellow blended magnificently with the cloudless blue sky. There was a cool, gentle breeze blowing, causing the grass on the field to wave like an ocean of glistening green waters. It was almost as captivating as the scenery we saw on the road to the S.Y.N..
"Seeing a place as beautiful as this makes me afraid of what we're going to see ahead," Morgan said thoughtfully, after we were about one hour into our trip.
"What do you mean by that?"
"It's not going to stay like this is it," he sighed. "The scenery, I mean. It's going to change, isn't it?"
"You bet it will," Jeremy answered. "And quite suddenly, too. One second, it could seem like the field of grass is endless, the next, the sky will grow dark, and the ground will transform into the back of a rocky, ragged mountain. So I advise you to-"
"It's already changed."
The three of us turned our heads swiftly to Niall, who was too busy staring at his horse's mane to notice. He was right, though. It had changed. The ground was just as Jeremy had described. And even as I glanced at the road behind us, the grassy field had vanished without a trace, making it seem as though we had been traveling on this mountainous path for miles. I blinked rapidly and shook my head, partially expecting the image to vanish, but it didn't.
"That's just weird..."
I shivered, feeling as though someone tall were breathing down my back. But when I turned around, I was greeted instead with a rather unpleasant sight that made my stomach somersault. Everything was pitch black, save a few scrawny trees with black leaves and peeling bark that reeked like year-old garbage. I quickly brought my arm up to my face and covered my mouth and nose to avoid breathing it in.
"What~...what is this?" I coughed.
"Natalya is the demon of corrupted divinity," said Niall. "After the incident with that stone of hers, all innocence and heavenly divineness within her faded, and she became corrupt. Hence the name, 'demon of corrupted divinity.' The forest was afraid and uncertain when Natalya arrived, so it died out."
"Lovely story," Morgan shuttered. "You know what, maybe coming here wasn't such a good idea after all..."
"If you're afraid, then by all means, turn back," snapped Jeremy, shooting an irritated glance at my friend. "It was your idea to come along in the first place. And remember what I told you, kid. I'm not taking responsibility if you get hurt."
Morgan waved his hand in Jeremy's direction, forcing a laugh as if to convince him of something. "Pfft, who's scared? I'm not scared..."
I tugged at the reins of my horse, and it trotted over to walk beside Morgan's. "Hey, don't worry. I got two body guards." I jabbed a thumb back at Niall and then at Jeremy, who was a few yards ahead. "We'll be fine. We'll always be fine. I promise."
My somewhat reassuring words seemed to calm Morgan down, and a smile was soon on his face. "You're right," he nodded. "I shouldn't have anything to worry about."
"Hey, twinkle-toes and twinkle-toes's friend. Stay alert. Eyes on the road."
My head jerked sideways, and I soon discovered that we were at the entrance of the dark forest. The horses slowed their pace considerably, seeming to suggest they were frightened to go any further. A flock of crows screeched and took flight from up high on a tree. The uneven ground beneath our feet rose and fell as our horses continued down the path that was almost too difficult to see. Up ahead, all I could make out was a thick cloud of darkness that seemed to block the way. But to my astonishment, as we journeyed deeper into the forest, it gradually began to become lighter, until the black cloud disappeared entirely. At that point we had reached a clearing, and a thin ray of light poured into the forest through a bunch of trees that hung over us like a dome.
There was a rose—in the midst of the clearing, a large rose acted as a bed for the woman seated atop it. Her long, shimmering white hair wrapped around her like chains confining her to the forest. I could faintly hear her whispering something to herself, and with each breath she took, a peddle from the rose turned from red to black, then slowly drifted to the ground.
"Is that-" I began, turning my head to Niall.
"That's her," he replied. "That's Natalya."
As soon as Niall uttered her name, the mysterious woman ceased her whispering, and the forest fell completely silent. I felt my heart drop like a rock in my chest as I heard her speak once again, this time with a much louder and direct voice.
"Have you come to slay me, Shadow Keeper?"
I shot a frantic look at Jeremy, who gestured for me to give a reply. Curse him for putting me on the spot.
"I, uh, n-no! I would never."
"But that's why you came here, isn't it?" She said. "You wanted to kill me before I awoke."
"That's not true," Niall insisted. "We only wanted to speak to you."
Natalya was quiet after this. As brief as Niall's message had been, she looked convinced of our intentions. Slowly, she placed her feet over the side of the rose and stood up. I noticed now that she was dressed rather casually, at least for an ex-angel—solid color shirt, black leather jacket, blue jeans. Around her wrists were bracelets lined with spikes, almost like what you'd see on your typical biker. Even her ice-cold stare reminded me of various bullies I'd encountered in school.
"You have come far," she said, approaching us by taking small steps. "I will listen to what you have to say. What is it you want?"
"It's about your stone," Niall told her, carefully dismounting his horse. The rest of us did the same, though I don't think you could've called Morgan's method 'careful'.
"What about my stone?"
"We want you to destroy it."
"I can't," Natalya said coldly. "If that were possible then I would have done it long ago...after the Peloponnesian War subsided-"
"A young boy now wields the stone. It's not safe. You must find a way."
Natalya's head tilted, and her expression was now painted over with a thick layer of confusion. "A young boy found my stone? But how is that possible?"
"He goes by the name Ezekiel," Jeremy informed her. "Short guy. Brown hair. Knows a lot about you."
"Ezekiel, you say?" The ex-angel narrowed her eyes questioningly at Jeremy. "That name sounds strangely familiar."
After silence had once again settled, I thought that Natalya was possibly dwelling on what the cyborg has told her, but in just a few seconds, she seemed to forget all about our purpose for being here. Reaching a hand behind her, Natalya dug into one of her pockets and took out an old-looking piece of parchment that was rolled up like a scroll. She then placed her hand firmly on Niall's shoulder and looked him sternly in the eye.
"Niall, I have a request for you, and you must listen, for it is vitally important."
"Excuse me?!" Jeremy exclaimed, glaring daggers at the woman for having pushed our previous conversation to the back of her mind. "I believe we came here first to tell you something, missy. You are to listen to us."
Is all that emphasis necessary?
Natalya didn't appear even the slightest bit amused. "Need I remind you who can snap your neck with a single twist of the hand," she replied darkly.
"Need I remind you who has a mechanical neck."
I turned to Jeremy with a surprised look on my face. "You have a mechanical neck?"
"No, but we're getting off subject."
"Jeremy, just let her speak, alright?" Niall asked calmly, but I noticed a hint of annoyance in his tone. "Please, go on, Natalya."
Natalya craned her neck and soon returned her gaze to Niall, instantly relaxing her tense muscles. She cleared her throat and brought the scroll up to her face, then unraveled it slowly. "I've been meaning to give this to Reiha, but you'll have to do." She handed it over to the demon, who began reading it with speedy eyes.
A few minutes later, I watched as Niall's shoulders, eyelids, and mouth drooped in a depressed manner, and he said, "I'm sorry, but I don't understand."
"Neither do I," I blurted, narrowing my eyes at the two. "Can someone tell me what's going on?"
"Yeah." Morgan nodded, attempting to back me up. "Someone tell him what's going on."
"Someone tell brat #2 to shut his pie hole." Jeremy took two large steps over to Niall and snatched the parchment out of his hands, then finished skimming it in just a few seconds. "Ah. I see. Well, a shame Reiha's dead. I bet she'd have wanted to know about this."
Natalya froze. Her jaw dropped slightly, and she gazed blankly at Jeremy, as if trying to comprehend his nonchalant words. "So it was her..." Her heavy head lifted slowly, eyes placing a sympathetic touch on Niall. "Niall, I am so sorry. I can't imagine how you feel."
Niall made my heart ache again. He smiled, perfectly hiding his pain behind the sound of his cheerful voice. "It's alright," he claimed without second thought. "I know she cared about me, and that's all that really mattered in the end. I still miss her, though. But please, don't feel sorry. I'm quite alright."
Quite alright my backside... This lie...how long is he going to keep it up?
"Very well," Natalya sighed deeply. "If you insist, then I will believe you. Now about that scroll, do you understand what it is I'm asking you to do?"
"I understand, but..." Niall paused, and his half-open eyes flooded with sorrow. "...why do I have to tell her?"
"Because no one else will. And in return, I will seek down this Ezekiel boy and try to destroy the stone."
Jeremy placed his hand supportively on Niall's shoulder, and whispered, "We got your back, Niall. Me and the brats. Don't worry, okay?"
After a few moments of silence, Niall released a quiet breath of air. "Thank you, Jeremy. That makes me feel a bit better."
Morgan and I slowly turned our heads to each other and tilted them simultaneously, as if screaming, 'what the heck is going on?' Unable to think of anything logical to say next, I whispered, "So are we going on another road trip, or what?"
"As a matter of fact, yes," said Jeremy.
"Ooh, where are we going?" Morgan asked eagerly.
"Aobasani."
"A what?"
"Aobasani," he said again. "It's a large city afar off from here. That's all I really know about it, actually, other than the fact it's really crowded. There's a girl who lives there named Lucy Brooks. Reiha was Lucy's guardian. That's as far as I'm going. You'll figure out the rest when we get there."
"How are we getting there?"
"It would probably confuse the citizens if they saw four strangers come into town riding horses," Jeremy said. He let out a heavy sigh of exasperation. "There should be a train station about ten miles due north that can take us to Aobasani, but we can't just leave the horses there..." He placed his hand on his chin and hummed thoughtfully. "Ugh, this is going to be harder than I thought..."
"These horses belong to the S.Y.N., am I correct in saying so?"
Jeremy nodded at Natalya's question.
"If that is the case, then allow me to return them for you."
"Really? You'd do that for us? Well, thanks, but are you sure you can handle all four of them?"
"I assure you that I can handle a few domesticated beasts on my own. I am a demonized angel. If they try to run away, I'll kill them."
"Try not to, please, Natalya," Jeremy said with a laugh. "Whenever you're ready, you can take them. We'll be headed in the opposite direction, so I guess this is goodbye for now."
Hearing that their conversation was over, I turned my attention from them and glanced at Niall, who I could've sworn was about to burst into tears.
Lucy Brooks, I thought. Reiha was her guardian, huh?
I couldn't imagine what that would have been like. Reiha must have left her, just as Niall did to Jean. I wondered if she had a specific reason for that, too.
Morgan's high-pitched, impatient voice broke my train of thought. "On the way to the train station, can we stop for food? I'm starving."
Jeremy's eyelids drooped, and he began to hum to himself again, this time rather bitterly. "I almost forgot humans had to eat. You're not hungry, are you, Hanako?" He asked me. "...y'know, 'cuz you're not entirely human."
"Actually, yes," I replied with a scowl. "Food sounds good right now."
"Then it's settled!" Jeremy threw his arm around Niall's neck and gave the demon a tight squeeze. "Come on, Niall. Put a smile on your face, and let's all go have some quality fun time before we do with the heartbreaks, okay?"
To my surprise, Niall nodded slowly.
"I wish you all good luck on your journey," said Natalya, beginning to gather the reins of the horses. "I shall keep my end of the bargain."
"Thank you, Natalya, and I wish you luck as well."