The Vigilant Yaksha

Chapter 24

She felt nothing.

Empty.

Cold.

Wet.

Black.

Darkness.

It was quiet.

Just a vast and empty plane of nothingness.

A subtle feeling on the side of her face caused her to flinch, her eyes fluttering open weakly, unable to focus on her surroundings as she attempted to blink away the distracting blobs of colors.

"Vena?"

Her heart ached at the sound, confusion now flooding her mind as her shaky eyes focused ever so slightly, now resting on the worried amber orbs that were right in front of her.

Am I dreaming..? Is this heaven..?

"Hey, stay with me."

".....X-Xiao?" The girl questioned tiredly, feeling as if she was mear seconds from death as she watched his eyes brighten ever so slightly at the call of his name.

"Heyyy~" He cooed softly, attempting to comfort the weak girl as he dropped his hand from her face, stepping away slightly.

"Stay here and don't move, alright? And whatever you do, keep your eyes open. Don't fall asleep on me." Xiao ordered, only managing to get a small hum from the sickly girl in response as he stood to his feet.

Vena now noticed she was leaned up against a nearby tree in a field, the rain still coming down decently hard as the feeling began to return in her limbs, reminding her of all her open and still bleeding wounds as she gazed around the area.

The bodies.

The people she'd killed defending herself.

She knew that Xiao had seen them, and a panic began to stir in her chest at that realization.

What would he think of her now? Knowing she'd taken human life simply just in an attempt to save her own skin?

The girl grit her teeth together in pain, her wounds all now screaming violently at her as her body slowly came back to life after nearly being suffocated to death.

How had Xiao found her?

Without another word, the Vigilant Yaksha turned away to face the group of approaching Futui, their leader now nowhere in sight as they came up to a stop in front of Xiao.

Reaching down to his belt, he smoothly unclasped his mask, bringing his hand up to his face as he put the mask on, his body now emanating a black and green aura.

I never wanted you to see this, Vena.

In a flash, Xiao had begun fighting, dashing about the field of Futui with ease, bodies falling to the ground lifeless in smooth flashes of black and green as Xiao danced around with his jade spear.

Plunging into the ground, multiple green spears came up from the earth, piercing through members of the Futui with ease, adding more bodies onto the pile and Vena simply watched in quiet horror.

Is this the power they spoke of? The power that pains him every time he uses it? The true power of a Yaksha?

How could Xiao make something as horrifying and depressing as death somehow still look so... beautiful?

Vena simply watched, unable to tear her eyes away, knowing the act of taking human life couldn't possibly be easy for him, but he was doing it with such grace and skill that it was impossible to look away.

He made quick work of the lot, the fighting only lasting probably around 15 minutes before the man slowly approached her again, this time covered in blood, his breathing ragged as his dark green hair covered his eyes.

Unsure of what to say, Vena just simply gazed on at him in curiosity, still amazed at the true level of his strength, now understanding why some people fear him.

Her eyes flicked down to rest on his spear, now practically painted in blood as he shoved the tip of it down into the dirt infront of the girl's feet, collapsing to his knees as he weakly held onto the hilt of his spear for support.

"Xiao!" Vena struggled to her hands and feet, practically dragging her body just the little foot towards him, resting her hands on his shoulders as he growled in pain.

"You need to go." His voice came out low, his head hung down towards the ground still as his body shook softly in pain.

"What?"

"Run. Run away as fast as you can."

The girl froze, her dream quickly coming back to the surface of her mind.

Without a second thought, she softly shook her head, ignoring her fears.

"I won't leave you."

Vena remembered the stories of how using his power not only put him in great pain, but it also threatened to consume him every single time.

Xiao raised his head, trying to find a way to stress how serious the situation was to her, feeling himself slipping away- until his eyes met those sky blue orbs again.

A few tears had fallen from his eyes and down his cheeks due to the immense pain, and Xiao could see as Vena's eyes grazed across them that it pained her too.

Just as he opened his mouth to protest again, the girl's warm hands cupped his face, one on each of his cheeks, causing him to flinch ever so slightly, his gaze locked on hers with wide eyes.

"You aren't alone." The purple haired girl smiled weakly at him, her own tears now falling at the sight of him in pain as a feeling of overwhelming warmth and calm washed over him at her touch.

What is this..?

"I'm here for you, Xiao."

The darkness began to slip away. He hadn't noticed it at first, but it became more apparent when she touched him.

Vena clutched onto the fabric of his shirt, resting her forehead up against his chest as she cried.

"I'm so sorry- this is all my fault-" She muttered between sobs, now blaming herself for the pain Xiao was enduring.

"It was you." Xiao breathed out, far too low for Vena to hear as she continued crying out her apologies into his chest.

"What Rex Lapis said.... he meant you."

One day, you will meet someone who will ease your suffering.