A KINGDOM OF DEAD HEARTS [COMPLETED]

CHAPTER 36: PREPARE FOR WAR

Airin swallowed a chunk of saliva, wet her throat, and nodded in understanding. "That is a ... workable ... hope," she said. The whole thing just turned in her head now. Did Xander just admit that she was special for him? Airin huffed, tried to keep her focus. No, not time to be emotional now. Her universe was at stake! Her kids!

Xander nodded awkwardly. He turned his head to the side, did not wish to maintain eye contact with her.

"That ... that hope of yours. Keep it, Xander, don't let your heart forget it ..." she spoke in a slow, sure tone. It was at that moment that she saw a tiny speck of light, something glowed on the palm of her right hand. She brought it closer to inspect it, and she saw the seed of sequoia, the one Mom put on her hand in her dream, the one melted into her. She strained her eyes to see. It was the seed indeed.

The seed. The dead forest here in Xander's mind. She understood.

"Listen, this seed ... is your hope ... of me. Of what we can have together when we survive this whole disaster. I will throw this in this forest. We have to let it grow, you have to let it grow!" she stared at Xander while pointing to the seed. "Xander, will you try? To keep hope alive?" she found his gaze and he shook, and a nod came after it.

Airin took a deep breath, turned to face the dark forest, and flung the seed as hard as she could. The seed looked like a tiny speck of light flying meters ahead of them, and fell on the ground, right into a puddle of dark water.

The whole forest now shook like there was an earthquake. Airin planted her feet solid on the ground. She would not fall. She had to survive whatever this was.

Xander shut his eyes tight and groaned. "All my childhood memories, my father, my mother, Rovan, the assassination of my parents ... the fire that burned my home ... all ... all came back!" he tried speaking, but he shook too hard to speak clearly.

"Xander! Look at me! Look at me!" she stepped closer to him and cupped his face within her palms. Xander struggled to open his eyes, and she saw tears flowing on his cheek. "Too painful, Airin ... I cannot ..." he half-sobbed. "It is all my fault. My fault. I killed my parents! I killed them! Rovan, this kingdom, lost their beloveds because of me! They are all victims of my stupidity!" he screamed. Then his eyes widened and stared at Airin with almost a crazed look. "I am the son of Ares!"

Airin did not let go. "I don't care who your father is!" she screamed back. "How about this then ... I won't tell you again that it was not your fault! I will tell you this: Fight back, Xander, and keep your hope as your final atonement! One more atonement and save Halgard!" she tightened her grab of his face.

"One hope ... to stay alive ... for Halgard ..." he whispered. His eyes shone like what Airin had just told him was something he had never realized before. A sort of eureka moment for his mind.

"One more time. To hope is your final atonement. You have atoned enough," she gently patted his cheek.

"And you ... you ... are my hope too ..." he grew calmer. "For you and for Halgard ..." he nodded.

The whole forest shook harder, and loud thudding sound was heard when the still-standing dead trees started falling down. From the puddle where the seed fell just now, the water splashed like a fountain.

Nauseating smell of dead forest changed to fresh, just-after-the-spring rain smell of the forest.

Suddenly, a tree shot up from the puddle of water where the seed fell. It was a massive, majestic sequoia. The leaves were vibrant, the rough bark were fresh reddish-brown color, the whole tree stood so tall Airin could barely see the top. Then other trees sprung up all over the forest – not all sequoia, there were oak, beech, birch, mahogany, and many other splendid trees of all sizes. There sprouted also some shrubs of flowers and green grass that covered the dead soil. The whole forest now looked like a forest in the peak of spring. Alive. Fresh. Full of hope and growth.