Heroes of Dreamland Rewritten, Book 1: Stars Amidst Lightning

Chapter 43

Chapter 43:

And now, months later, as I write a record of the quest against the Monstrous Lightning? Well...

The trip back to the castle passed without event, other than the fact that we were all three soaked and quite thoroughly chilled by the time we reached our final destination. The King and Escargoon seemed back to their normal selves, and when I informed them that Sakura had fallen, they actually began rejoicing at the fact that the 'creepy talking Waddle Dee' would not be returning. I have always tried to prevent myself from ever feeling outright hatred toward the ridiculous king and his cruel-hearted advisor, but that was certainly one of the times I found it most difficult to avoid hating either of them.

After that, Kirby and Bandanna Dee both headed to the kitchen to find some hot soup, but I locked myself in my training room and spent the next several hours deep in meditation, bound and determined to force myself to have a heart of stone once and for all.

I always knew that caring for others would only end in pain, but foolishly, I allowed myself to do so anyway. Now, I was resolved to never allow myself to do so, ever again.

As time has passed, Kirby and Bandanna Dee have all but returned to their normal selves. Occasionally, one of them will mention Sakura or somehow be reminded of her and will grow sad for a short while, but those occurrences have become rarer and rarer as time has passed. In the meantime, I have avoided them— and really everybody— as much as possible while I strive to regain the cold, distant demeanor that once came so easily to me. Over the past two months, I have succeeded more and more in building back up all the walls that I allowed to be torn down during the year preceding the quest against the monster.

As for the 'Profiles' book, I can now no longer even open it without being met with a raging 'corruption' alarm. Once, I did press past it long enough to open my file and see that it has grown much, much longer than it was before. That was all I was able to see before the room began to sway and I was forced to slam the book shut. It is now in the place it has always belonged, a secret room hidden within my library, sealed up with all of the other wicked artifacts I have been unlucky enough to stumble across over the years, where no evil being will ever be able to get ahold of them and use them for mischief.

As for myself... In a sense, it makes me proud to be able to say that in the time since the final battle, I have shed not a single tear over the loss of the Kirby Dee. And yet, at the same time, simply admitting that fact fills me with guilt. No one at the castle other than Kirby, Bandanna, and myself even cares about her death, and no one outside of the castle ever even knew she existed. She is an unknown hero who, by all appearances, is hardly even being mourned, despite the great service she did to the entire planet.

Whenever I let myself think about the whole mess too hard, I start to grow ashamed. In the aftermath of Sakura's death, I never even took the time to give her remains the final salute a fallen soldier deserves. And worse... while she was dying... I offered no sort of comfort or reassurance. I should have said something, anything... I should have agreed that she had fulfilled her purpose of weakening the Lightning, or something... But fool that I am, I just stood there, angry at her for taking my place when it should have been me that died that day.

Worst of all, my reasons for wishing to take her place were not altogether altruistic. Part of me is jealous that she took what should have been 'my' heroic warrior's death... and that disgusts me at myself more than anything else, that I could entertain a thought like that for even an instant.

One thing is certain, whatever Sakura, the Kirby Dee, True Wielder of the Cherry Star Sword was, she deserved far better than what life doled out to her. She should have had many more years to spend exploring the world around her, reading the books in the library, and experiencing all our planet had to offer. She said that night in White Wafers that if she had to die, it would be without regrets, but still... She spent her childhood as a slave, and then, the one year that she wasn't a slave, she was made (by necessity) to spend in training and questing for Dreamland's safety and sake.