Klein(SAO)x Reader

Chapter Twelve

I immediately break down in tears, staring at the floor through narrowed, moist eyes.

"N-no! He's not! He would never die from the lowly likes of you!" I scream, lifting my chin defiantly. "He wouldn't! Never!"

"Mmhmm. Hate to break it to ya, sweetheart, but, he's dead." He grins wickedly, stepping closer to me. "And you know what his dying words were?"

"They weren't his dying words! Get out of my life! Leave us alone!" I swing my body around, my goal to snap the chains. To my surprise, one of the shackles lets out a small creak, and the screws detach from the metal plate, the chains clanging to the stone floor. My hand falling with the extra weight, he staggers back when I whirl my arm towards him, the manacles curving to meet him. But he steps out of the way in time, drawing the cleaver from his side.

"Yeesh! That was close." I hear him mutter, and victory rages through the sorrow, which makes the resentment burn brighter than ever. I swing it again, this time my foot breaking loose, leaving me dangling by an arm and a leg. This time I catch him square in the chest, knocking him back a good five feet, and into the bars. Grinning to myself, I find that I'm unable to control my body, and I watch as I break free from both chains still holding me, and I drop down, snickering uncontrollably. I step towards the man, who is on the ground, groaning, and I smile wider when his health drops below half way. Drawing my sword, I drag it along the floor, strolling to the man. I'm half begging myself to stop when I finally realize I'd snapped. There's no going back, now. Klein's dead, and I'm alone here. Poking the man in the chest, I push it through, and he immediately disappears, his health bar plummeting to zero. I stand there for a while, trying to take in what I had just done, but drop to my knees instead of advancing through the door. 

"K-Klein. Why?" I sniffle, drawing my sleeve under my nose. "Why'd you have to go and die? Now, there's no turning back. I'm alone," Once these words are out, I break down again, masking my eyes with my hands. "Why?" After staying there for what seems like an hour, I stand up, scuffling out the door.

"Hey! She's escaping!" I hear the men in front of me yell. I continue dragging myself down the corridor, and when they get into reach, I lift my head, and dart around them, taking each one down with two blows. Watching their bodies float to obscurity, I continue my sleep-like stagger through the station, swiping my sword at whoever passed with a sword unsheathed. Stumbling out into the daylight, I glance on my shoulder, where Nova perches after diving down in a circle. Stroking her scales that shimmer in the light, I journey into the woods, to the clearing where Klein had been slaughtered mercilessly. Closing my eyes when I reach the clearing, I take a deep breath in, walking to the center where the memorial still stands. I move over to where I had last seen Klein, examining the hedges. Tears well in my eyes again, but I wipe them away with a hand.

"G-goodbye, Klein. I'm so sorry I couldn't help you." I pause, picking a bunch of red flowers up that were developing in a spot under the shrine, and I place them gently in the grass. 

"What d'ya mean, 'goodbye?'"

The tears swap from despair and depression immediately when I hear an achingly familiar voice behind me, and I whirl around, laughing when I see Klein standing there, smiling his usual grin.

"K-Klein!" I cry, springing into his arms. "I'm so, so sorry!" I wrap my arms around him, sobbing the new tears of joy into his chest. Nova, who appears out of the canopy of trees, loops around us, squealing happily. 

"Sorry for what? I'm the one who let my guard down." He chuckles, hugging me back. 

"I-I thought you were dead," I whisper, "I'm so glad you're not!"

"I'm glad I'm not dead too. I was really close to dying, but the weirdest thing happened before they could kill me: there was this weird noise that started ringing, and all the men staggered back. I took that as an opportunity to hide in these bushes. They weren't smart enough to figure out where I had gone, so they walked away. I'm sorry I couldn't get to you before you escaped. I was really low on health, and I knew I couldn't take on a whole guild of those guys." Klein squeezes my shoulders reassuringly, and I smile.