Rewrite The Star

CHAPTER 39 : CONSEQUENCES

CHAPTER 39 : CONSEQUENCES

“Creed! Please respond!” Atlas shouted, desperation seeping into his voice as he tried to revive the demon. His magic had no effect. Creed’s body grew colder with every passing second, and Atlas felt a knot of confusion twist tighter in his chest. He hated demons—so why was he trying so hard to save one?
Sitting beside Creed, Atlas stared at the lifeless form before him. His hands hovered over Creed’s body, unsure whether to continue trying or let fate take its course. “Should I help him?” he thought. “This is a perfect opportunity to kill him. A demon. Should I finish him off?”

Meanwhile, in another realm, Creed found himself in a vast, empty space. “Where am I?” he wondered aloud, scanning the endless void. As he wandered, an orb of light appeared, hovering several feet away. A voice emanated from it.

“You’re going to die, Creed.”

“What? How? I’m a demon. I can’t die,” Creed retorted, disbelief in his voice.

“Do you remember the headache you had earlier?” the orb asked.

“Yeah, so what?” Creed replied, growing impatient.

“The heavenly curse has been activated in your body,” the orb explained.

“The what?” Creed frowned, confusion deepening.

“The curse from your last battle with a heavenly angel. It’s called Cronusified,” the orb clarified.

“I don’t remember any curse,” Creed shot back, growing more irritated.

“That’s because your memory was wiped. I don’t know exactly how the curse works, but it has started to affect you. The memory loss is just the beginning.”

Creed clenched his fists, frustrated. “What kind of nonsense is this? I don’t feel like my memory is gone.”

The orb floated closer. “You may not remember, but you’re dying. However, there is a way to save you.”

“How?” Creed demanded, though something about the orb felt... off. He began sensing its strange aura, raising his suspicion. “Are you one of heaven’s messengers?”

“I’m neither,” the orb responded cryptically. “Before I help you, I’ll need your assistance. But for now, let’s focus on reviving you. The boy outside is a healer, isn’t he?”

Creed paused, startled. “Yes... he is,” he replied cautiously.

“He doesn’t know how to heal demons, does he?” the orb continued. “In fact, I sense that he has an aura of hatred for demons. But for some reason, he doesn’t want to kill you.”

Creed’s eyes widened in disbelief. “Why doesn’t he kill me? This is the perfect chance!”

“I don’t know,” the orb said. “Perhaps you should ask him when you wake up. I’ll teach you how to guide him in reviving you, but for now, I’ll use my power to bring you back.”

With that, the orb descended onto Creed’s head, flooding the space around him with light.

Back in the real world, Creed’s eyes fluttered open to the unexpected sensation of Atlas’s lips pressed against his. Creed blinked, confused but quickly processing the situation. Atlas had tears rolling down his face, and his cheeks were flushed as if he had poured every ounce of magic he had into the effort.
Creed reached up and gently touched Atlas’s head. Atlas, startled by the contact, jerked back and stared at Creed.

“Stupid! Why didn’t you respond earlier?” Atlas snapped, his voice a mix of frustration and relief.

“I...” Creed tried to speak but was still dazed.

“On God, I should’ve just killed you,” Atlas muttered angrily, turning his face away.

“But why didn’t you?” Creed asked, still trying to understand why Atlas had gone to such lengths to save him.

“Never mind. Ignore what I said,” Atlas mumbled, his face growing redder with embarrassment.

Creed grinned, amused by Atlas’s sudden awkwardness. “Why did you kiss me? Is this one of those love stories where a kiss revives the dead?” he teased.

“Just die already!” Atlas snapped, his embarrassment flaring even more.

“I thought you were dying because you collapsed out of nowhere,” Atlas explained, looking at Creed more seriously. “Your body turned cold, and I couldn’t heal you. I remembered what you said before, about how demons can regain power through… intimate means.”

Creed raised an eyebrow. “Oh, so you were trying to sexually assault me? Is that how you justify yourself?”

“Shut up! I was just trying to help!” Atlas shot back, flustered. “I thought maybe a kiss would work to revive you, okay?”

Creed chuckled, his usual smirk returning. “A hooman trying to revive me? That’s rare. Really rare. Quite interesting for this one to do all that just to revive me.”

Atlas rolled his eyes, still burning with embarrassment. Creed leaned back, his grin softer now. “Thanks for reviving me, hooman.”

Atlas, caught off guard by Creed’s sincere gratitude, felt a small smile tug at his lips. “This is the first time I’ve seen him smile,” he thought, briefly admiring how different Creed looked when he wasn’t mocking him.

Their eyes locked for a moment, and Atlas finally replied, “You’re welcome,” his voice tinged with unexpected warmth.