The Unbidden: A New World (1) (Short Parts)

Part 29

Vel'Nysa's face could only be described a dumbfounded. Even if I were limited to enchantment type spells, I felt as though my power exceeded that of those around me, which gave me a sense of security.

Once another hour or two passed, I decided to call it a day. Vel'Nysa thanked me for showing her something new as usual, and I proceeded back toward the inn.

Over the past couple months, Thea and I grew somewhat distant. I wasn't entirely sure if it was my fault, but I felt responsible for it regardless. I was usually out training for most of the day every day, giving myself a day out of every week to relax.

Whenever I'd get back, I was almost always so tired that I would pass out immediately upon returning. On the one day off, I looked forward to seeing Her and wanted to talk to more about my old universe; She was never in the room while I was on my rest day though. Part of me felt as though I did something, but another part knew She was just doing whatever divine thing She willed.

Occasionally when we saw one another, the two of us would joke about something trivial, but the distance that grew between us made me a little lonely. I made the resolve to learn more about what she was doing when I had the opportunity.

On the other hand, my relationship with Jayde continued to improve. The training gave us common ground to talk about different things. It was essentially the gate that opened to allow us to learn more about each other.

"What was life like for you when you were younger?" she asked one day after we returned from the bathhouse.

My eyes drifted toward the ceiling in thought.

"My mother died when I was young. I think I was maybe four."

"What happened?"

"I was told she died of cancer."

"But that's not what it was, was it?"

The emotion on my face must've been obvious.

"No. I did research into it after I turned eighteen just to see if that wasn't true. I simply wanted to visit her grave as my father never spoke about her besides telling me how she died."

An itching sensation rolled down the side of my face as the edges of my vision blurred slightly.

"Turned out she killed herself."

"Was it due to your father?"

I shook my head.

"No. At least, I don't think so. She had been suffering from this thing called PTSD, which can prevent someone from doing even the most basic things without a lot of effort."

Jayde furrowed her brows, not completely following. That was fine, though.

"It's like a disease, but something that you can only get from trauma. The medical reports I read said that the cause likely came about from decades of abuse from those around her. My father was apparently her knight in shining armor, so to speak."

I wasn't sure why I was feeling so emotional. She died way before I could truly remember. So why?

"Unfortunately, all those years of trauma caught up to her and she simply couldn't handle it anymore. She hung herself in the living room only to be found hours later by my father after returning home from work."

Her story was one of many, I knew as much. Despite the desensitizing most people in my universe felt toward that kind of thing – what with how it popped up in the news and the like – it still hit you like a car when confronted with it firsthand.

I was certain the tears weren't so much for me as they were for my father. It was impossible for me to imagine what went through his mind to find her blued face and limp body suspended in the air like that.

Jayde simply sat and listened.

"I think it was at that point when my father turned to drugs. He couldn't cope with her death, and probably blamed himself like any normal person. He lost jobs left and right and was unable to support the both of us. That's why I left home when I was sixteen."

I took a deep breath before continuing.

"That was basically my life up until coming here," I wiped the tears away with a soft chuckle, smiling.

She placed a hand on my shoulder. The two of us sat there silently for a while until she broke the silence.

"My childhood wasn't very good, either. I don't want to compare it to yours, but I think we both kind of got the short straw of the bunch."

"What happened to you?" I asked, shifting focus off me.

"I was – no, am – the daughter of a noble family. You may or may not have heard of the name 'Kegger'."

"I have," I remembered back to the letter her parents sent me.

"Well, my father is the owner of an alcohol production organization. One of the biggest in the area. He tried marrying me off several times the moment I turned ten. While I wasn't of appropriate marrying age yet, he was setting up the marriages regardless."

She took her hand off my shoulder and leaned back on the bed and looked into the distance. One could almost see the memories swirling about in her eyes.