Trees were falling as the flames grew larger and larger around him. His eyes opened slowly to discover how the fire began to devour the forest he was currently living in into ashes. The thickening smoke seemed to block his vision little by little.
His hand rise up, wiping away some of the smoke that was blocking his sight only. To find a very familiar figure lying on the ground covered in blood not far from him.
Though he feels limp all over his body, he start to get up. Enduring all the pain from the wounds on his body just to force himself to approach the unconscious woman. Once he got close to the woman, he find out that her condition is quite terrible enough to make him shaking in fear.
"Mom..." He called out softly, his voice uncontrollably shaky. He feels suffocate, as if someone choked him in the neck, preventing him to breathe. Seeing the state of her mother, he can't hold back his tears. There are wounds everywhere, her legs were broken, one hand was missing, even her chest was fatally injured with a cross wound, and her stomach was completely open.
Unable to see that horrible condition of the person be loves kost any longer, he immediately falls down beside the corpse. "Mom..." He calling back her name back softly, reaching out her remaining hand and starting to sobs. The warmth he once felt while holding that hand seemed to vanish, delivering a suffocating chill.
Today, they were supposed to sit together at the dining table while exchanging gifts to celebrate his 15th birthday. However, he did not expect that the biggest gift he would received tonight was the death of his entire adopted family.
"Mom... I'm sorry... I'm sorry, Mom..." Guilt washed over him. They should not have celebrated his birthday or exchange gifts or even enjoying the night and tells him how happy they were to meet him.
They should have...
No, it's even better if he never existed in this world from the beginning.
If only they had not raised him to be their last son, perhaps...
Just maybe...
Maybe...
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" He screamed. Shedding the tears that had been collected on his eye. The tears don't stop, it almost like waterfalls, wetting his cheeks and falling over to her mother's lifeless body in his arms. "MOM! MOM! MOM!" His hands tremblingly caressed her mother's cheeks.
"FORGIVE ME, MOM! FORGIVE ME! FORGIVE ME! PLEASE, COME BACK MOM. COME BACK! COME BACK! MOM, PLEASE COME BACK TO LIFE! I BEG YOU... PLEASE ... "
"... Please don't leave me... Mom. " He hugged her mother tightly. Crying over the corpse that could no longer return the hug. He hated himself. All this was because of him. His mother was dead. His sister was dead. His adopted family is dead. All because of him.
Shouldn't he be the one dying right now? He would gladly give up his life it that means all of his family wok't facing awful death like this and leaving him alone as the only one survived.
He raised up his face, staring at his mother's face which had now closed both eyes completely. "I'm sorry... I... I shouldn't have ever stepped in myself in your family, mother. I'm sorry... I'm sorry, mother... I'm really sorry ..."
- SINGGG
The sound of bushes being cut entered his ear. The danger alarm in his head ringing. He instantly turned around only to find a kick slamming into his face and pushing his body against a large tree until it fell.
His breath caught in his throat from the surprise attack. "YOU-" Just as he was about to move to counter the attack, his eyes widened when hen find a familiar figure appearing with a bloodied sword.
However, his attention wasn't not on his face. Rather, it was on the black bracelet bearing his adoptive family's crest that he was holding in his hand.
"Chale... You?"
Chale was his father's older brother who was chosen to be the next leader of the Moon Clan. How could the bracelet that should have been his older sister's belongings be with him?
Don't tell me...
The Moon Clan's messenger in question was Chale. The older brother he loved and cherished?
"Kale."
"It turns out you're still alive, huh?"
His blood boiled. Especially when Chale's eyes looked at him coldly without even the slightest guilt. It made him immediately grab the nearest sword and run toward Chale to attack him. Kale's movement was easy to read, so Chale easily dodge them off.
Kale did not give up, he attacked him again brutally, his eye full of rage. However, Chale received it all and countered casually. The sword speed that Kale produced seemed like a mere toy in front of Chale, it made him even more emotional. He swings his sword fiercely until he raised his sword with screams and unleashed the combined spiritual power he possessed to slice Chale open.
If in the last minute Chale didn't realized it was no ordinary attack and decided to jump back, he's sure he will have fatal injury by now. "CHALE, YOU WILL DIE IN MY HANDS! I WILL NEVER LET THE MURDERER OF MY FAMILY GO LIKE THAT!" He ran straight towards Chale, attacking more brutally. Making Chale decided to act serious against him.
And it didn't take long until he finally pushed Kale back and see him breathing heavily. Chale shook off the blood on his sword. "Give up, Kale. You're not capable enough to kill me."
Kale was angry. He quickly got up and fell down. His body weakened, he lost almost all of his strength. All of his wounds were worse, plus he had spent some time earlier dueling with his older brother who was very skilled in swords.
Kale became very frustrated in silent.
He saw no possibility of winning.
Chale walked over to where Kale was dying near the fallen tree.
"What's wrong, brother?" His footsteps stopped when Kale spoke. "Why did you comply with Father's request to kill me?"
"I just wanted to live a quiet life here, away from all the sickening politics in our family. I have no interest in becoming a successor. So, why did you come here?"
Although he was full of rage towards Chale, he was very confused. Did his brother come here because he thought he was interested in becoming the Clan's successor and usurping his position?
He find it funny. Becoming the successor of the Clan? What a stupid dream. A child like him dared to dream as high as the sky when the cruel reality hit him hard and tells him, that he was nothing more than a cursed child who was the Moon Clan leader's sin with the Sun Clan's best daughter? No, it's totally impossible unbelievable.
Kale had never had a dream in his life. The only reason he decided to stay alive was because of Chale. He was a good brother, accepted him wholeheartedly, and took care of him like a parent would do to their own child.
He was smart, mature, strong, and talented. In his eyes, Chale was the perfect genius. And the fact that was his big brother is always amaze him. Kale admired everything about Chale. He who had no dreams only wanted Chale to be happy until the end. He didn't hate him when Kale was banished by Chale's mother for making Chale weak.
Chale was the big brother he loved and cherished more than himself. "I idolize big brother so much. I worship your name like a human worships a god." Kale raised his face. He looked into Chale's eyes who looked at him coldly.
"I have never asked anything from anyone, from the gods, from father, from mother, or even from you, brother. My life has never been somewhat precious since birth. I had no purpose after being banished by the Moon Clan, my only purpose back then was to see my brother every day even if it was only from afar."
"Now, after Father finally banished me. I found my new purpose, I want to live longer with my new family. They have no connection to our Clan, they've secluded themselves here and stayed away from all our family politics." Kale didn't realize it that time, his tears were starting to fall again. He felt like he had been stabbed by a thousand swords. Tighter than before. It hurt him so much.
"They have did nothing wrong with our family, brother. So, why did you have to kill them?" Kale looked down. He could not stop his tears.
"Is it because of me? Is it because I've become part of this family?"
"Can't I be happy? Can't I be loved eventhough it's just this much?" Kale raised his face. He looked at his brother Chale who did not react in any way.
"Brother Chale... Don't I deserve to be happy in your eyes?"
- SING
Kale fell to the side when the small dagger Chale took out from inside his jacket managed to pierce his heart quickly. Seeing that his job was done, Chale immediately turned around to leave.
But...
- SING
Another dagger pierced his heart from behind. It was Kale's doing with his last strength. Without any chance to process anything. Chale fell to the ground. He was instantly dead.
In his current dying state, Kale stared at the flames that were devouring every tree nearby. He closed his eyes. The sound of the fire getting closer and slowly sending heat down his back and legs proved that the fire was currently burning him slowly.
Just because he had the blood of the Sun Clan, his death was slightly delayed due to the holy spiritual in his body. But it just that. He's not immortal after all.
The heat of the fire burning his body constantly, accompanied by the slowing of his heartbeat, made Kale's mind wander back in time. Recalling all the memories of his childhood in the back warehouse, when the young version of himself knew nothing about his birth as the curse and disgrace of the main Clan.
That was all until he met Chale. He was kind. Friendly. Willing to accept him without any ill feeling. Kale was always feels lucky to meet him. He was no longer bullied, no longer scolded, and all the nightmares were gone when Chale came and held his little hand. Walking in the warm light at night, while listening to Chale's soft singing voice, Kale realized how perfect his life was.
Kale adored him the most. He loved him. Chale was everything. He was his world.
But now all of that lovely moments has been destroyed. Kale now hates him the most. He no longer adored Chale. He was not his world anymore. After Chale destroyed his world now, Kale eliminated Chale's name from his life.
Chale was a true nightmare.
He destroyed the world that gave him love and affection. Everything he never felt in Chale's home, he felt in his new home. A new sister, a new mom, a new dad, and other family members who loved him.
Kale learned many things. He learns what love and affection are really like. Kale found his true world, his sweet dreams. Kale loves them all, more than he used to loves Chale.
However, it had all been reduced to ashes. Burned away by the fire on the night of his birth date. At the hands of the brother he once loved and adored with all his heart.
Kale lost everything.
His world, his love, his God, and himself.
Kale hated everything about Chale and everything about himself.
The day of Kale's birth was now the biggest regret of his entire life that no one could ever heal.
Kale think about those regretful moments until bis last breath.
With very hot flames that burns him to ashes within the forest, Kale slowly close his eyes.
The cracks sounds of fire filled the night, accompanied the silent.
Kale was dead, full of regrets.
...
...
...
Or, that's how it should be.
Kale opened his eyes slowly, making the minimal light outside the alley shyly show him all of its light. Kale immediately looked around in confusion and found himself trapped in a large trash can. The master immediately freed himself from the place that trapped him earlier and almost fell when his feet reached the ground. Kale looked unsteady for a moment, he was dizzy.
Only a few minutes later, he felt his chest and hurriedly rubbed it only to find he had no wound on the left chest. He supposed to have a deep wound there caused by his brother dagger, right? But there's nothing. The wound is gone. All of his wound to be exact.
This is strange.
"I died, right? How come I'm back to life?" Kale turned his head to the side where his eyes found that there was a large road that seemed to have a lot of sunlight on it. That made him curious and decided to go outside, to find himself in a strange place.
The sun was scorching hot, making Kale's hand go up to block his eyes. He frowned, this weather unnecessarily hot. His gaze looked around with a strange feeling, many people were passing by, there were animals, there were carts, and there were food and drinks.
'Where am I?' Kale thought to himself. He seemed to hear something, immediately searching for the whereabouts of that small sound to find in the distance that several boulders seemed to be floating in the shape of a giant rectangle.
"What is that?"
Kale immediately touched his chest, searching for the spiritual that never seemed to exist in his chest. Where is he? Didn't humans seem to have spiritual powers? He couldn't not even sense his holy and cursed spirit.
This was dangerous.
What a strange world. The spiritual power disappeared. He returned to breathe without any injuries. One thing crossed his mind at this moment:
"Who brought me here?"