❇ 𝔗𝔦𝔩𝔩 ℑ𝔱 𝔈𝔫𝔡𝔰 ❇

Chapter 17 - Artemis

Artemis POV:

I found it.

I really did.

The fifth piece of the Prophecy was here in my hands.

My shaking hands.

The smooth, gold metal was cold in my sweaty palm and I gripped onto it tightly, regardless of the sharp edge. I had to convince myself it was real.

Because all the frustrating months of not being able to find it had made me lose a sense of reality in a way. Sometimes, experiencing the emptiness without something is worse then the loss itself. And I had that experience firsthand.

I hope your proud of me Mal. We only have one more piece left to find and it'll all be over. We really will have been together till it ends. Just let me finish this task for us and we can be together again.

With the Prophecy piece clutched in my hand, I ambled forward - trying to find my way home. Home. Is that what I called it now? An unfamiliar place that held no meaning to me?

Sure, I was staying in it for a couple of weeks but it would never be special. Not like it had been before anyways. The person who had made it special was gone now. Her voice only a breath catching on the wind and disappearing forever. Her former presence a hurtful reminder of how life was so cruel sometimes.

I shook my head, a vain attempt to get rid of these unwanted thoughts. They wouldn't leave. They were the things that haunted me as much as my shadow followed me.

I stared down at it now. Its funny because a shadow is kind of like an insight into the person you are. Because sometimes looks do determine what your like. You can tell a lot just by someone's body language and their small habits.

But the truth is...

You wouldn't be able to tell what I've endured just through my shadow. All the pain is washed away by a dark mask just covering the ugly truth, hiding it away. A lie to shield the suffering underneath.

Most of these days, it just seemed like I was endlessly walking.

And I was. Just trying to escape from all my problems, I guess.

But I couldn't give up hope now - not with this motivation. Suddenly, even the sky didn't look as dark as it was before and the paths started to look more familiar as I went on. One piece. One piece separating me from the ultimate victory of this once impossible battle. Maybe luck finally was on my side and I hoped it would stay a while.

All my tiredness seemed to wash away and I roamed ahead with my head held high. Soon enough, I found the small clearing which led to the path of the cabin and I started running towards the door. The familiar feel of the smooth metal felt like heaven as I opened it and stepped inside.

It felt like years before I finally returned here.

A sigh of relief escaped my chapped lips and I felt like collapsing on the floor. I slipped my bag off my shoulder and threw it somewhere in the room. I didn't care about that right now.

Flopping down onto my bed felt like heaven and I took into account how we mostly take things for granted. Even the small stuff like being warm or having someone to talk to. It's sad how you don't notice something unless you don't have it anymore.

But right now, as I laid down staring at the ceiling, I couldn't help but remember everything. All the events in my life leading upto now. Every choice that had shaped my future.

Each tick of the clock reverberated around my head like a drum.

Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.

This was by far the worst part of this whole ordeal. Just waiting in agony for a sign. A sign that would tell me where to go or what to do next.

And 9 times out of 10, that sign would never come. So, I would just go out of this safe haven and throw myself into the arms of danger, praying I would come back alive.

Because I wasn't just surviving for myself, I was also surviving for the weight of the lost souls who burdened my shoulders.

The girl I had been surviving for before was gone but I still had to bring her and all the innocent people back. As much as I hated to admit it, I was their only hope.

And that thought scared me more than anything else. Because I've never had to take responsibility for anyone except myself before.

Sure, I did take care of my younger sister sometimes but this was so different.

If someone else was in my place, I bet they would've already managed to locate all the pieces and fix everything. Someone like Mallory would've figured it out.

I sighed deeply, rubbing my temples slightly as I could feel a headache coming on. The hardness of the bed didn't comfort me as much I wanted it to but it was much better than sleeping on dry leaves. I still had scratches on my back from sleeping on the ground.

Turning over on my side, I tried to fall asleep. The key word here was tried. Everytime I started to doze off; somethimg would wake me up again. Like an important thought at the back of my mind that I couldn't seem to remember.

Groaning in annoyance, I finally gave in and opened my eyes. However, what I saw made all the tiredness leave my body and sit up so abruptly, my head spinned.

This couldn't be real. It couldn't. It couldn't.

I tried to blink the image out of my eyes but it was crystal clear once I opened them again.

This meant I was crazy, right? Because only crazy people see what I see, right? Right? Only crazy people...

And I'm not crazy, right?

... Right?

My head throbbed like someone had punched it and I held it with both hands whilst looking at the familiar figure in front of me.

"Mallory...?"