Chapter 6 - Her Name
The future lies unknown to every living being, and that is to say, if one is powerless against time and fate, none can ever escape it. Henceforth, a curiosity about one's destiny is always a question in one's mind.
Hypnos, Thanatos, and Nemesis all realized how their future could end with a simple snap of a finger, or at least, a blast of fire. With only a glimpse of the ending of one's life, maturity rises bit by bit in the minds of humans. Even children are no exception to this.
The slight moment of relief when they set foot outside of the enslavement and bore witness to the freedom they so desired. The sunlight that was dancing without care on their skins, has masked away the unfair reality that is begging to be opened.
Nothing was set in stone after each of the steps were taken to escape from the slave settlement. It's as obvious as it can be when it comes to children, but to Hypnos, Thanatos, and Nemesis, they weren't simply children.
To be numbed against their fate; to be hopeless without a person's guidance; to be frightened by a glance of death, and to be shaken by a beastly monster. Altogether, the consequences of their mindless selves led them to a shortened time.
If not for the child, would there ever be Hypnos, Thanatos, and Nemesis existing within this cruel world? The question has quite a transparent yet pathetic answer, carving deep into the depth of the three children's hearts.
As young and youthful as they may be, they aren't foolish enough to be unaware of their faulty behavior. While they understand the dire circumstances they were put in, they cannot fathom that a child close to their age has the mindset of a mature adult. It's as if her cleverness excels overall.
"I made up my mind," Hypnos says.
At the same time, when the silence of the night itself is as peaceful as it can be, it allows Hypnos' words to echo throughout the trees, and those words alone were loud enough to resonate into Nemesis' and Thanatos' ears.
"I will follow her."
Yet, Hypnos continues without allowing his voice to die down as an echo. At that moment, his words resounded piercingly to the ears of Thanatos and Nemesis. It's adequate to say they were expecting Hypnos to erase the silence between them after escaping from the Chimera's clutches.
"I, too, shall follow her as well. I'm not going anywhere without her." Thanatos spoke with his earnest truth.
"Me too!" The once quiet Nemesis had finally voiced her resolute words.
Unbeknownst to them, the quietude had cast aside the soothing ambiance, plaguing the children with the sight of an injured girl as the silence guided them to a maze of despair.
In a moment of peace, questions always come to fill the quietness of one's mind, and the children are afflicted with the thoughts of their incompetence.
From the children's viewpoint, what they saw was…
The burnt clothes of the child, the bruises feasting on her pale skin, the messiness of her hair, the scratches on her fragile barefoot, and her filthy palms in her effort to throw rocks…
"She looks horrible.." Nemesis tears up at the sight of her wounded friend. "I wish we could do something.. to help her.. at the very least.."
The heartbroken face of Nemesis draws Thanatos and Hypnos in with the similarities between how they felt towards the child. From the joy of a new name to the despondence towards the child's poor condition…
"Hey.." Thanatos says before setting his gaze upon Hypnos.
"Right… We'll have to protect her no matter what.." Hypnos speaks with a firm glance at the child.
"Then… Then I'll protect you two..!" Nemesis unexpectedly spoke.
"What?"
The astonishment one would feel when Nemesis declared that statement was sufficient, enough to take both Hypnos and Thanatos by surprise. Not a second to spare for these two to catch up with Nemesis' words, Nemesis came forward to explain her reasons loud and clear to these astounded boys.
"If you're protecting her.. who will protect you two..?"
"Nemesis, you're right," Thanatos spoke a lie with his fullest intentions to protect Nemesis' life as it's always been for him.
'You didn't want to hurt her feelings like always, Thanatos.' Hypnos mused with a genuine smile.
In Hypnos' thought, it is obvious why Thanatos dares to lie to someone he cares deeply about. Even when Nemesis is frail to the point where she can't manage to protect anyone on her own yet…
While brushing aside goodwill is never a reasonable move, lying is a graver sin. Despite that, it's best to lie for the good of others in the eyes of Thanatos.
'As long as it's a small harmless lie, it will be okay. Hopefully, I'll never have to tell a big lie to Nemesis. Never.' Thanatos looks at Nemesis with a satisfied grin.
—Swooooshh~
Whilst the dead of night was embracing the determined children, they leaned their defenseless backs against the tree trunk as the leaves scattered about from a slight breeze.
At the end of the day, some honest children had survived the dread of a monster. Thus, when the touch of nature's trees graced them with the comfort of their backs, they have already fallen into a slumberous rest.
—-------
—Whoosh…
In the blink of an eye, the nighttime flowed by like the surging tide to set the summerly daytime in motion. As the sun dawned sunlight upon nature and terrain, it soon reached the sleeping children.
Before long, the three children who had awakened from their well-rested slumber felt the touch of sunlight and the rustling leaves to be a sign of an excellent morning.
Since it's far different compared to the rusty roof and shabby floor of the settlement they once lived in, they were put in a daze from this unfamiliar perspective.
After all this time, when they have been burning nature into ashes to grace them with a chance to survive the Chimera, how could mother nature be so forgiving by greeting their dawn with fluttering leaves?
Never have they ever had their viewpoints covered by the morning sun and flora of mother nature! It was the beginning of a newfound life with a bountiful amount of discoveries to uncover!
"It's breathtaking—" Hypnos utters.
"Hm.."
If there's something that can never be forgotten, then it's most certainly the child's voice that has commanded everyone with the opportunity of a new beginning.
"She's awake!" Thanatos spoke.
"How do you feel?" Concerned, Hypnos asks.
"I'm… fine." The child struggles to speak.
When Nemesis, Thanatos and Hypnos heard the firm voice to be as frail as a glass, it was harrowing to their very cores. Even so, the moment everyone's point of view was on the child, they didn't wish to show her how pitiful she looked.
Because they aren't the ones who should pity the nameless child. It's more likely to say the pitiful thoughts should be directed to them instead.
If truth be told, despondency chases after the three children when a new future makes way for them to cross. As ineptitude pursues them from the very start of their journey, ignorance trails their every step without any delay.
Without notice of the children's ponders, the young child is now faced with a new challenge. In her struggle to comprehend foreign memories, a remembrance of a boy hits her.
A glimpse of a boy during the Chimera incident was something that left a mark on her memories. Rather, it gives credence to the unknown recollection that is resurfacing in the child's mind.
'No way..' The child thought. 'Did I give them those names..'
'Because.. I know them?'
How shaken can one be to have one's mind jumbled up like an unfinished puzzle? Yet, once the puzzle started to be full of surprises, the child finally came to a realization and a conclusion to her memories.
'This.. is the world..'
'Inside.. of a novel..'
Without lending time for the revelation to settle inside her, the young child felt the need to drop a bewildering and bone-chilling truth for herself.
'It's.. my favorite novel from my past life.'
The frightened eyes tremble in a craze whilst the nameless child is unable to take in these unfamiliar memories. And not a chance to allow her to organize her thoughts, the affliction of questions rising from the depth startled the child greatly.
What is this phenomenon? How is it possible for her to remember? When did it all begin? Which 'her' is truly her? Is this merely a dream to toy with her very being? Or could it all be a nightma—
"Hey! Hey!!"
"..!?!"
"What got you looking all pale for?"
At Thanatos' voice, the nameless child perceived Hypnos' hands grabbing hold of her arms and was shaking her with the notion of helping regain her composure once more.
"I.." The child mumbles. "It's.."
"Are you really okay? You can rest more if you want." Causing disquiet in Hypnos, he spoke in a distressed tone.
"No.. No, I'm honestly fine."
"Well, if you say so.. But don't stress yourself too much. You need all the rest you can get after everything that has happened."
"Yeah, I will…"
In no time, the atmosphere suddenly takes a turn towards quietude where no one utters a word after witnessing the dreadful child and her trembling voice.
"Your.. Your name! Please tell us!"
All of a sudden, Nemesis brings forth a way to soothe the ambience, and not just that, she's motivatedly hoping to strengthen her friendship with the child.
Moreover, it was a question of a much needed answer for Hypnos, Thanatos and Nemesis.
"A.. name?" The child relaxes.
"Yes!" Nemesis confirms.
At Nemesis' request, the child is left stunned by another unrelated thought. Even so, it was something her friend had asked of her.
'A name..?'
If the young child were to succumb to her foreign memories, at least she would hope for her name or her identity within this world to be known to Hypnos, Thanatos and Nemesis, as they deserve a chance to call her by her name.
But…
'I.. have nothing to call myself.'
Surrounded by uncertainty, the nameless child finally shifts her conflicted gaze on the three children. Immediately after, a notice to everyone's eyes that were thrilled to know her name outshined her worries away in a flash.
Speaking of eyes, the child swiftly recalls the reason behind her memories reappearing before her. The boy who acted as a trigger to her unknown memories, was someone of a one-sided familiarity to the young child.
His hair was as dark as a shadow, yet that wasn't what caught the child's eyes.
Like a pure sapphire cut into perfection, the resemblance of an ocean within his irides alongside the transparency of the sky, it was what captivated the entirety of the child's concentration.
'That boy..' The child remembers. 'And his name..'
'The person who stood by his side within a certain myth, should be..'
"Persephone." The child mutters.
"What was that?" Nemesis overheard the child's voice. "Persephone?"
"Persephone? Amazing… How did you come up with such a great name?!" Thanatos speaks.
"Eh?" The child was caught off guard.
"It got a nice ring to it too." Hypnos smiles with relief at finally knowing his savior's name.
"Hm??" The child was confused.
"When the Chimera appeared… You saved us with your quick thinking.." Nemesis says.
"It's thanks to you that we're alive right now, Persephone." Hypnos spoke with a soft tone.
Unbeknownst to them, the child is battling against something only she knows of. A memory of a foreign place, culture, language, knowledge and so forth.
Everything is new and strange to the child, and yet, she has no choice but to trust this certain memory of hers. Even if she denies its existence, it will not solve anything within herself.
That's why her acceptance of these memories is the final conclusion made by her decision. Not only that, it serves as a gratitude towards these memories that she is able to bring salvation to everyone around her.
Because…
If it hadn't been for this unprecedented knowledge of a Chimera, the child would have faced an unknown creature and the extinction of a being like her. That wasn't all.
The unforeseen phenomena such as the torrent of water, the rain of lightning and the cascade of deathlike arrows were of recognition in her memories.
However, it remains true that the child wishes not to use another's name. In her own ways, Persephone is a name of great value and virtue. In other words, it does not seem right to identify herself, 'an unworthy child', as 'Persephone'.
In the end, the young child can't use this name lightly. She knows it well, yet despite that…
"Thank you, Persephone. We owe you our lives. And to be honest with you, we swore to follow you to the end." Hypnos spoke truthfully.
"So knowing your name is a huge blessing to us! You wouldn't want us to live our lives in guilt without a single knowledge of our savior's name, would you?" Thanatos joins in.
"But now we know! S-So… Thank you so much, Persephone." Nemesis unexpectedly spoke after the rest.
"..."
The silence as an unintentional response to these three children was the child's speechlessness. At a loss for words from their speeches, the child is on the verge of tears before a drop of a tear resonates an obscure emotion she was feeling at that very moment.
"Hehe.." The child giggles with joyful tears in her eyes.
"Yes, my name is Persephone."
As the sound of her contentment echoes within the vast trees of this forest, Hypnos, Thanatos and Nemesis find her giggle to be her way of accepting their gratitude. Even the grin on her face is proof of her satisfaction with them.
In a way, they needed to laugh. Laughter to ease them of the tension, and to be left as a mark inside their memories, like a trace to look fondly on and remind them of their firm bonds.
"Hehe." Nemesis pauses with a marvelous idea. "How about we.. promise to stay close to one another?"
"Oh! It's only right for Persephone to join in with our promise, right? We wouldn't want her to feel left out." Thanatos chuckles.
At the mention of a promise, Hypnos and Persephone look at each other before smiling together and nodding in agreement. To their surprise, Persephone reaches out her pinky finger to the rest of them, baffling them for a second before realizing what she was trying to do.
The promise of interlocking the vows within one's own pinky finger to where they are forever reminded of it, and the consequences of shattering the connection is far graver than death itself..
From these children's perspectives, once they swear to this vow, they'll live their entire life with the firm grasp of this promise.
"Hypnos, Thanatos and Nemesis.. Please take care of me from now on." The child speaks from her heart.
Once a notice of her words and the sincere tone in her voice, three of these children's faces had been engraved with quite the blissful grins, together with a response to match the warm-hearted speech of Persephone.
"Gladly. Take care of us too!"
And with their voices resounding throughout the forest, it sets a mark on their destinies, beckoning newer possibilities with an unbreakable bond.
It was a destiny that was carved for them and a future they had chosen from the very beginning of their youth with Persephone as their center…
—-------
In the span of two decades, time flew by like droplets of rain from the dreary clouds in the transparent sky. While the sky remains the same despite the changing of time, it serves as a good background for a tea party hosted in an elegantly refined garden.
Within this unfathomable garden, it only takes a glimpse for people to see the difference in humans. As ranks were placed on these people since birth, noblemen and women were now standing in a close approximation to commoners.
Even though there are some nobles of distaste towards commoners, they are unmatched against the hostess' goodwill to make a decision for equality. Not a scowl or a grumble, they settled down in favor of the hostess.
"An accessible tea party made for everyone to enter. Lady Kore is truly a kind maiden!"
"Naturally so. Lady Kore has always been like this. It is in her nature to be this warm-hearted to anyone."
"I agree as well. No one can hold a candle to Lady Kore."
A noblewoman's conversation with her friends is being presented, yet none of it has a mere mention of an insult to this 'Kore' person. Be that as it may, it seems to have prompted another conversation from a different group of ladies.
"Honestly, it makes me wonder why Lady Kore has to host this type of tea party, and to allow mere commoners to enter."
"Shh! Do not speak a word of it."
"Hm? Why must I force myself to accept Lady Kore's ways? I'm not in favor of a tea party where I have to stand close to commoners."
"I do agree with you, but you must hear about this. There's a commoner who has been winning quite a lot."
"Nobles who are participating in these simple chess matches hosted by Lady Kore, are being outshined by a commoner? How can that be?"
"It's true. That commoner seems to be getting ahead of herself just by a few easy matches."
"Surely you jest. Do you not find it strange for a mere commoner to not be defeated by well-taught nobles?"
"To be fair.. With the truce agreement's condition between the infamous Underworld, Monarch and the Olympus Empire's Emperor, there's a slim chance of them taking a liking to this commoner's talent for chess."
"Ho.."
"What are your thoughts on this commoner?"
"It appears we have to see that commoner for ourselves to understand her foul tricks before she inevitably wins. What might her name be?"
"From what I heard, the commoner's name should be Caissa Thea Skaki."