Tales of the Travellers

5

Daylight found its way to the world, it shone its twilight early morning rays on a wander Charms as she walked down the dirt road out of a town. She didn't know what was beyond it, or what was waiting, all she knew was she wanted to get as far away from it as possible.

But she didn't know where she wanted to go...

She looked at the candlestick in her hand, what once brought the idea of money and a new life now made her hands burn from touching it.

She glared at the image of herself it reflected and dropped as it as she walked, leaving it behind in the dried dirt.

The necklace and the bracelet was all she had to spoil herself with now.

But she didn't know where she was, one day grew into two and she just found herself wandering. She wandered until she was in front of a pond. She kneeled down to it and stared at herself in the reflection. Her eyes couldn't adjust to it properly as she watched her image change from one illusion to another.

"What am I doing...?" Charms breathed as she swiped away the water. "What's the point in any of this!?" She kicked at a reed and threw a rock into the water before ultimately crying as she leaned over and hugging her shoulders and pressed her head into the water as she cried.

Cameron, the only person she ever loved or felt love from, was gone, forever. She almost killed someone because she felt greedy, she almost went through with it simply because she was angry. She knew she needed to be more graceful with her feelings but she just didn't care anymore. She just wanted him back.

She opened her eyes and felt the cool water against her dry being.

Charms took a spur of the moment action and allowed herself to be submerged in the water. She followed the slimy sand at the bottom of the pond until she found herself in the middle, and rolled onto her back to look through the water. The sun shone through it, making a majestic crystal shimmer.

Her lungs started burning, asking for air, but she remained at the bottom of the pond, her eyes always open. She watched as jellyfish blobbed from her mouth to go to the surface and out of the water altogether, leaving her behind. She didn't mind, she didn't care anymore.

Her vison became further blurry, not from the water, but from her mind objecting to what she was doing and betraying her sight. She was finally content in what she was doing, and happy to know she'd finally not be alone again.

Something suddenly began throbbing, something beyond merely her heart or her mind trying to persuade her to breathe, it felt like something was attempting to rip out of her chest.

She winced at the sudden feeling and stared down at her being, while she could hardly see, worms of black was coming from her skin and from under her clothes. They made a desperate attempt to swim to the top, only a few making it while other seemed to drown.

Charms didn't understand what was happening, but she felt lighter, lighter then she had ever felt. She felt something crawl out of her mouth, another worm of black attempting to swim to the surface, only to shrivel up and sink again. They started to dissolve in the water, leaving a disgusting taint in the water.

Good... Was her last full thought at the sight of the fragmented Shades dying.

She closed her eyes so she would have to notice when she goes blind. Her body was burning, aching for her to get air, but she refused and stayed where she was, lying on the ground of a pond.

Until something reached down, grabbed her by the chest of her tunic to lift her only to wrap two arms around her to pull her from the water altogether. She was too weak to fight against this person or explain how she didn't want to be saved.