The Boy Savior - Ekko x Reader | DISCONTINUED

Season 2 - Chapter 14

"May you walk with me...?" the man asked and you looked back at Neo and Rei for help. Your brother glared at him with the most distrustful gaze but Rei only shrugged, seeming just as helpless as you... 

You had the wild guess that he was the Herald himself - he seemed different from the others who you had passed by earlier. He was also peaceful but in a sentient way... You had zero trust in him but you were curious as well - an old flaw of yours...

In the end, you sighed and swallowed nervously.

"Okay," you turned back towards the Herald, unable to shake off the uneasy feeling that his closeness caused you. He smiled at you with a tired, but welcoming smile as he gestured for you to go with him and you did so, fighting the urge to run away instead...

His voice was kind and peaceful and yet the aura he emitted reminded you of the same entity you faced when you tried to heal the tree. The contrast certainly confused you, and the nervous grip on your stomach was getting stronger and stronger as you accompanied him.

"It is Viktor," he introduced himself suddenly, walking next to you with a slight limp and you glanced up at him. His genial manner surprised you.

"Well, you already know my name, so..." you shrugged in response, and for that he nodded with a weak half-smile on his lips, slowly leading you among the houses of the commune.

Everywhere you looked, passively content faces greeted you as the people were going by with their days. Yet every smile, every pair of eyes made you sadder and sadder for a reason you couldn't explain. You felt like, even though you were looking into the eyes of living, breathing, individual persons, you glanced into an empty, and cold void instead...

"You were born with the Arcane flowing inside you," the Herald suddenly said wondering and you furrowed your brows. You never heard that word before and it surprised you how he knew about your powers without you ever telling him about them.

"What is arcane?" you asked, unsure...

"It is a form of magic - a powerful and ancient force that some people would even call dangerous; difficult to control properly at the very least," he explained and you were finally able to fully direct your attention to him, ignoring the weird feeling inside your guts for a few seconds at least. It was the first time in your life someone finally provided some explanation about your powers and it made you curious.

"You managed to build a remarkable connection to it," he paused to look at you, searching your face for a second before continuing. "I searched for years to find my connection to it and I admit that I had to sacrifice a few things on the way," he said as he gestured towards his body and your eyes followed his hands. His flesh was morphed into a perfect alloy of something you'd never seen before, making his limbs look both organic and artificial at the same time.

And still, his steps were uneven and he needed his staff for walking...

"I lost my... connection a while ago..." you mumbled under your nose.

"I know," he said simply and you didn't know why but the certain, knowing way he said that caught your attention. Your gaze jumped to search his face, but his features remained as calm as before, making you unable to read what was on his mind.

"I have met you already," he said and you furrowed your brows. In your life so far, you haven't met a lot of people, and those you did,  you never really forgot. You took a better look at his face - the silvery, yet at the same time, golden eyes, thin face, and lips, that always seemed slightly pressed - and you were sure you had never seen him before.