A World With/Out Home

Chapter 10: Results and Tribulations. (Part 2)

Step by step they left the Garden and headed towards the Hero's Guard. Kyle looked back to the home behind him. Maila would be telling the children what happened and then they'd go with their day. Now he knew them better he knew how much each of them carried the pain inside. To let it show was admitting defeat, to fear the fate that had been handed down to them. He remembered Tai's earnest nature. The boy didn't want much and did his chores with a smile even when he had to go train with the Guard. That boy was now gone.

His thoughts still a mess, Kyle didn't realise they had arrived till they did. Behind the gate where the Hero trained, down a rarely used passage a medical centre was built inside the mountain. The sole patient was the Hero, and currently Lillia. Her body laid in a sealed glass chamber that pulsed with mana so thick that even Kyle could feel it. Her purple hair was sprawled against the bedding and although there were no visible injuries a look of terrible pain plagued her expression.

Among the few in the room Reina stood over her. She saluted the Captain, "Her condition stabilized once we brought her inside. It was good that we left immediately. Any longer and there might have been permanent damage."

The Captain breathed relieved, "And the time for recovery?"

"Unknown Sir."

"I see," he let out a tired breath.

Kyle walked forward slowly and looked at Lillia from above, "Why?" His fists tightened against his sides. "After all we went through I thought- I thought things would be better."

"Things were better Kyle," Bethial stood beside him. "It was only thanks to Lillia that we made it out with the few casualties we did. You've read the reports. A Primarch means death. Very few Heroes were able to defeat one and live and Lillia has entered among those."

"But Tai... he still didn't make it."

"The last battle we were all caught off guard. Everything before the Primarch's appearance went perfectly to plan. With Lillia's new strength we had complete control of the battlefield. Even when the Primarch appeared Lillia was the one who held it back. She was amazing and gave us the opportunity to take care of the other demons. As for what happened to Tai," he turned to single young women standing defeated not far away. "She can tell you more."

It took a moment for Kyle to recognise her. She was the member of the Hero's Guard that he had seen Tai with on several occasions.

She saluted, "Hero's Guard Sub-Knight Rin. I-I was with Tai when the event happened." There was no small amount of guilt in her expression. "When the Primarch and Type S demons appeared we were one of the squads closest to the outer perimeter. A single Type S managed to break free and as protocol we went after it. We should have called for reinforcements first but... there was a nearby farm and we wanted to save them." Her body tensed remembering what came next. "The five of us had never fought a Type S before but we didn't think it would be much different. We saved the people living at the farm but Carsten and Hilda died for it. I would have as well but Tai saved me... he-he pushed me out of the way and-." Frustrated tears built in her eyes and fell as she tried to wipe them away, "I should have died but instead he-." She knelt to the ground on both knees, "I'm sorry! I-we didn't know how important he was. All of us just wanted to help and yet- Tai he..., Carsten and Hilda as well. I'm so sorry I couldn't protect you."

Kyle didn't know how to react. He knew that Tai wanted to keep his position a secret as much as he could. When they talked in the Garden he would say how nice the people in the Guard were, that they treated him like anyone else, that even outside the Garden he had a place where he belonged.

"Please stand up," before Kyle realised he had bent over and taken the young women's hand. "Tai wouldn't have wanted you to be like this. He knew what he was doing and if he chose to save your life then I'm sure he's happy that he succeeded."