Realm of Noah

Chapter 19

25th November 2019

SHAY

Renee's Realm has been my refuge for the past few days.

It was the perfect place. Not only was it protected by the Shield but also the whole world had forgotten about its existence. With Renee severed and Noah imprisoned, no one would bother to search for me here.

Especially him.

I couldn't bring myself to even utter his name aloud. The very thought of him terrified me, his calm way of spitting out the most wounding words and shattering my heart into smithereens.

The boy that naive little Shay had loved.

I let out a sob. The pain of losing him had been horrible, but the pain of his betrayal destroyed the very core of me, leaving me to question who I was if it hadn't been for him.

I'd become a bully, only so that he wouldn't be bullied.

I'd become a rebel, only because he'd been one.

I'd founded the Astrascends, all because he'd told me to.

And now, I was half Enlightened, only because he'd lost his powers to me.

My tiny sob had now morphed into a stream of tears, turning the radiant sunset into blurs of orange and gold. Even the magic of the surroundings hadn't eased my heart, and I continued to weep into the silence, like the sun that bled red through the amber sky.

"Shay?"

I shook violently upon hearing the voice.

It wasn't him, the one I'd dreaded. No, this voice was sweet, exactly like the warm hugs she gave.

"Violet?" I called out. It definitely sounded like my favourite LOLtube member.

"Yes, it's me." Her voice flooded with relief. "Shay, where have you been? We're worried sick about you!"

"Wait, do you know how to talk telepathically?" I asked her, still finding it absurd that a human like her had progressed this fast.

"Well, it wasn't on my to-do list," Violet replied sarcastically. "But, you went missing and Mike threw tantrums, so I had to take desperate measures."

"Desperate measures, I see," I mocked her.

"Oh, don't act so high and mighty on me," Violet retorted. "Kyle is so impressed that I got to the seventh realm and talk telepathically within two days."

"To be honest, it is impressive," I stated.

"Thanks, Shay," I heard her say, and I could almost imagine her wide grin. "But where are you?"

"Why does it matter?" I wailed. "I'm going to spend the rest of my life in solitude, just like I've wanted it."

There was a pause.

"Was it Isaac?" Violet prodded. "Did he hurt you?"

I stayed silent, secretly glad at how perceptive Violet was.

"Shay?! Are you even there?" Violet called out.

"Yeah," I replied softly. "It was him."

It took a while for her to reply.

"We're here for you," Her voice flowed with affection. "All of us, even bratty Mike and all the Astrascends. You don't have to hide from us, okay? As long as we live, we'll protect you from Isaac if it's the last thing we do."