Her eyes were wet as the creature, no, Ophelia gazed with uncertainty. Claudian smiled through her tears. "I found you…I finally found you…"
She started to reach for her but she flinched back in hurt when Ophelia bristled.
"...I didn't…mean to scare…you…But it's been so long…" More tears tumbled out of the leaking well. "I...couldn't help it, I am sorry…"
Rubbing her tears away she gazed at Ophelia with a determined expression. "It's alright now. Everything will be alright now. We will go back to Chronosits together and get Chronos to get a look at you. It's alright. You will be alright, Ophelia, I am taking you home. We will go home together."
Desperation turned to strategy as Claudina issued a command, her voice carrying a weight of both grief and hope. "Capture her! Subdue her, but don't harm her!" she barked out, a order that masked a deeper yearning to save her friend from the darkness that had consumed her.
The paladins surged forward, driven by Claudina's directive, yet Ophelia's might proved insurmountable. Moving lightning quickly she evaded their grasp. They took out nets and tranquilizer darts but they all glided off her snakeskin like silk. Capturing with bare hands proved to be fatal as she would tear off the limbs from the sockets.
Their efforts were met with fierce resistance. Ophelia fought with a ferocity that belied her former allegiance, her eyes ablaze with a volatile energy. The commander himself bore the scars of their encounter, losing an eye in the brutal confrontation.
Chaos ensued and soon the capture and retrieval battle turned into a brutal struggle for survival
Despite the odds, Claudina pressed on, her will unwavering as she sought to bridge the chasm between them.
In the midst of the clash, Claudina's voice rose above the din, her words a plea for reason amidst the chaos. "Ophelia, please, it's me—Claudina! You remembered it before you can remember it again!" she implored, her voice carrying the echoes of a friendship long cherished. But Ophelia's response was a snarl of defiance, her attack relentless and unyielding.
Leaping from shoulder to shoulder Ophelia dove straight at her, taking her down. But Claudina caught her and tried to hold her down. It was in futile as Ophelia kept on biting and clawing with such intensity blood started to ripple out of her skin.
'Damn that stings!! No, I need to help her first!...' trying her best to move her hands and face away without hurting her Claudina tried to move away.
Unfortunately the place they were in was a steep slope that rolled downhill. And with Claudina moving to the side, her footing was misplaced and it caused them both to tumble down.
Instantly Claudina wrapped her hands around Ophelia's head lest she got hurt all the while Ophelia was still biting and clawing at her skin, wishing to tear it apart yet something at the back of her regressed mind seemed to be stopping her.
At the bottom of the slope was a stony ditch. Claudina noticed it through the dirt and wet grass and pressed closer to her. When they flew into the ditch she made sure to switch their position so she got the burnt of the damage.
The commander's heart raced, torn between concern for his comrades and awe at the unfolding spectacle. When he saw them in the ditch he rushed down as fast as he could. If the Saintess died now…No he shouldn't be thinking about these things. It's highly unlikely she of all people would die so easily.
As he came closer a brilliant light erupted from the abyss, casting an ethereal glow upon the scene.
This glow…was the Celestial Heaven's light?…But why?...
With bated breath, he moved toward the light, his heart pounding in his chest.
As the brilliance receded, a pale hand gripped on the dead grass.
Pulling up the form that emerged from the abyss was Claudina, battered and bruised, her presence both a testament to her resilience and a reminder of the toll the battle had taken. His gaze followed her, his eyes widening in astonishment as he peered into the abyss and saw the lifeless form of the Great Evil.
However Claudina was unnaturally quiet. Her pupils blow wide and unblinking.
Siegfried briefly wondered if she was possessed by the Evil.
The image of her dropping her sword and calling out to the Great Evil with such adoration and sadness…he pondered if both of them have some history together...
"Saintess…"
By then the paladins who were slightly injured ran down. Noticing the quite atmosphere one of them peeked behind the commander's shoulder.
The Evil was dead. Dead and cold. Peace as last.
The cheers of his fellow paladins erupted, a chorus of triumph that resonated through the air.
They had not only defeated a King grade demon but also the Great Evil.
But Claudina's response was starkly different. Her voice, sharp and laced with a bitterness born of frustration, pierced through the jubilation. "Useless! Each and every one of you!" Her words hung heavy in the air, casting a shadow over their hard-won victory.
But was it really their victory to celebrate if the battle was won by someone else for them?
"I don't want to hear a peep out of your mouth, you milksops! Leaching off of the glory brought by Saints…you bunch of helminth are more useless then the helminth itself!"
Bristling with anger she trudged up when a paladin spoke up. "...Then who's going to heal us?"
The venomous look that she shot at them was enough for the group of paladins to falter back when the one who spoke fell down in a heap.
She scoffed, then she turned to the silent commander. "...Commander Siegfried…consider yourself lucky that we are allies. Else this sort of insolence would have you and your pathetic, incompetent army…killed."
She strode through the wreckage, her sword gripped tightly in her hand, blood and grime staining its once-pristine blade. The paladins watched her, torn between reverence for her strength and confusion at her disquieting demeanor. As they began their journey back, the weight of their triumph was a sharp contrast to the lingering unease that seemed to cling to Claudina's every step.
As she walked the fire died down into blistering embers. Her body shook with each motion. She couldn't breathe properly. Her vision mismatched the colors in front. Stumbling over her step like a drunk she fell down bruising her knees. But she didn't care.
The pain just numbed her body.
It was like she was in peat bog. She tried to swim only to sink further and further.
She couldn't move. She was stuck in time. She felt both hot and cold. She felt everything and nothing at the same time. She couldn't breathe, she couldn't see…
…Everything had been a blur…
…and when she woke up her hands were wrapped around the insolent paladin's neck. Who couldn't even let her mourn in solitude with his tactless question.
Siegfried had pulled her away and she didn't put up a fight. Glancing around she saw the crumbled town square…with more injured and bleeding paladins strewn like pebbles.
With how the paladin coughed Claudina realized she was the cause but it didn't matter anymore.
Nothing did. Not her status. Not her talent. Not her legacy.
Nothing.
Ophelia was gone…
…and she was alone…
….forever…
…till the end of time...
Cluaidna woke up, head throbbing and body unnaturally limp.
"Claudina, how are you feeling? Ah, there's no need to sit up, stay down…"
Chronos came closer and sat down next to her. He gently petted her head. "Tell me lass, what happened?"
Claudina was silent for a while, refusing to meet his eyes. "...Chronos, I found the person I was looking for all these years…"
He smiled gently. "I told you didn't I? You will meet them. I had a feeling you would. You have been working so hard after all. The stars are always kind to those who work hard-"
"THEY ARE NOT KIND!!" she screamed, shoulders trembling. "...The stars are…not kind…they are not…" she whispered. Wet droplets fell on her clenched fists.
Chronos took her hand in his. "Lass, stop crying. Tell me what happened."
She squeezed Chronos' hands. "...She…she's gone now…" she sniffed.
He understood what she meant.
"...I looked for her everywhere…" she slowly spoke in between sobs. "...I got the most important clue and looked all over again but when we met…she, she…" she couldn't continue on.
"...My friend, Ophelia, turned out to be the Great Evil..."
Chronos simply looked down but his hands were ever gentle, encouraging her to speak.
"...That clue I talked about, I got it from someone in the past. It said she was the great Evil."
"From then on I looked everywhere for her, the recent sightings to the oldest but I couldn't find a trace until that day…" her lips trembled and she choked back her tears.
"I couldn't recognize her at first but when I did, I didn't laid as much as a single scratch on her. Even though she attacked me. I let her since in my mind I took too long of a time to find her. So I deserved to be hit."
"But then, then…when we fell down in the ditch…." She started to cry again.
He brought her closer. "Did you hurt her?..."
She pushed him away. "...No. Something killed her. When we fell in that ditch a light shone from above and the next moment I knew she…" She hung her head limply as more salty tears fell.
Chronos knew what it was. The heavenly glow of…this was unusual for THEM.
THEY were usually quite so acting out like this...
He needed to talk about it to the other Gods.
Though he dare not say it.
No, he could not say what killed Ophelia in the end was the Celestial Heavens. She was too unstable right now. Her reaction at the thought of the Celestial Heavens intervening can go in many ways.
With all of them ending badly for her.
She needed to rest first. She was in position to speak right now.
He was aware of how much love she had for her friend. The desperation of finding her and the hope she clung on to was what made her human.
"Rest Claudina. The ordeal you have dealt with…" he signed and shook his head. "You can rest as much as you want today and I will make sure no one comes around here either.…"
Chronos started to leave when he felt a grip on his robes. "Claudina?"
"...Chronos…I…is there…" He sat back down and took her hand. "Lass, what is wrong?"
She looked up and tears gathered under her eyelashes. "Chronos is, is there any way you can reverse time?"
Chronos dropped her hand like it was a hot stone. "Claudina…"
"I-I know it's a strange request but! It's possible, right?!" There was desperation in her words.
"..."
"Chronos, please say something! You can, can't you?!" He rubbed his temples.
"Claudina, I won't be doing such a thing."
"Why?!" She pulled at his robes. "I have never once asked you of anything! Just this one thing is all I am asking!"
"Claudina you don't understand…"
She was bawling loudly by now. "Please, Chronos, I am begging you…I will do anything you say but just turn time back! Just to that day only!...I can fix it! I can save her! I know I can!"
Sobs wracked her voice and she coughed loudly, eyes stinging but her grip only tightened. She tugged at his robes and looked up panting. "Please Chronos, please…I was this close and I lost her!"
Chronos gazed at her in pity. He removed her hands from his robes and Claudina smiled hopefully but her heart broke again the next second.
"No Claudina. No matter how much you beg, I won't reverse time."
"WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?!?"
Chronos stood up and started to leave. In a fit of rage Claudina threw pillows and anything nearby at his retreating figure.
"IF YOU ARE A GOD YOU SHOULD LISTEN TO YOUR DEVOTEES PRAYERS!!!"
"Hate me all you want…"
"ALL YOU DO IS HIDE FROM THE WORLD LIKE A DAMN COWARD!!!!"
"...But whatever I do is always with your best in mind."
When she's better and able to speak, he will tell her.
….but the nagging voice at the back of his head kept chanting she won't ever forgive him.
No matter what he did.
For in her eyes, he was now the same as Ophelia's tormentors.