Thanatos's Curse

Five: The Fall of Anwei; Part Two

The monster laughed a cry of satisfaction, and charged towards Kaida with a hellish grin. She only stood there, ignoring the flying dust that burned her eyes. She stared at the bodies of her half buried parents and grandmother, shocked and confused.

Suddenly, just as she turned her back, she flew into the broken wall as the monster lashed a leg at her. She fell to the ground, groaning from the painful impact. As she turned her aching head, she saw the lifeless eyes of her dead father staring straight at her. She jumped back with a shrill scream, covering her mouth to muffle her cries. But as she raised her head, the monster was right before her, its beady yellow eyes glowering at her.

With shaking hands, Kaida held her dual swords. She couldn't think, couldn't move. She felt so lightheaded. But as she saw the dead, cold bodies of her family, she was filled with anger once again. It was all this monster's fault. It was the monsters who killed her parents, who were invading their village.

But she failed to protect them. She couldn't even save her own family.

Just as she was about to prepare a slash of fireblades at the monster, she was suddenly lifted off into the air by a scaled tail. She gasped, struggling out of the strange thing's grip. But as she looked up, she saw the majestic face of a dragon, its red scales seeming to shimmer even in the dark clouds of the sky. It lifted its tail and placed her on its back, as if to tell her, Stop and retreat.

"Tatsuya?" Her eyes lit up, surprised and yet disappointed that he had come out of the blue to take her. She wanted to kill, to slay the monster that caused the death of her family.

As she turned her head, the monster stared right through her. It whispered hauntingly to the air, its words echoing and repeating over and over again, until at last it disappeared into nothingness as they flew higher into the sky.

"We will meet again...Kaida."

She quickly turned away and placed her dual swords back into their sheaths. She could feel her heart beating rapidly, like a thumping drum.

As they made their way up over the village, she couldn't help but glance at her family for the last time. A part of her wanted to stay; to give them a proper funeral. That was the least she could do for them. Instead, they would be rotting in the dirt and debris, their spirits unable to rest.

The only way to bring justice to her deceased family was to take vengeance for them. With closed eyes, she swore revenge to the monster that killed her family, to the demons that wrecked havoc on her village. It sparked a newfound power within her, and with it she would use to fuel her anger towards the demons she despised so greatly.

Tatsuya flew closer to the ground, towards the Takahashi household. There, she saw Yukio. Izumi was at his side, a knife in her shaking hand.

Kaida quickly jumped off to the ground and ran to them. Her breathing became more frequent, her heart beating to the fast rhythm of her feet. She bit her lip to ward off the tears pricking at her eyes. She wouldn't admit it, but she was glad to see him, to see her brother whole in their destroyed home, full of rampant demons.

"Yukio!" Kaida panted, grabbing for his hand.

"K-Kaida?" Yukio stared at his sister. She was pale, her complexion the color of someone who would be stricken with terror. His head snapped back at Izumi, who suddenly fell to the ground without a word.

Blood stained the silks of her flowing robe rapidly, the blade she held in her hand penetrating her abdomen. Yukio fell to her side, unable to comprehend anything. She was dead before he could even lay a hand on her. He just sat there, with wide eyes. Blood trickled from her small lips. He gently pushed lone strands of hair from her porcelain skin, silently but lovingly.

Suddenly, the whites of her eyes fell red, and she woke again. Only this time, she was corrupt. Her once sweet and soft voice was cracked and low. He stumbled back in terror before she slashed a hand full of sharp nails at his face.

"...No. No." He screamed angrily. He was struck with defeat.

Kaida quickly grabbed him by the arm, and the two siblings ran before they could catch any of the other monsters' attention. They climbed onto Tatsuya hurriedly, and they flew into the air again, leaving the destroyed village; their home.

They flew over Anwei and over the Forest of Giant Trees. There, they stopped for a moment to collect their things before leaving. It would take time though, before they could fully collect their sanity.

Tatsuya landed on the damp grass in silence, waiting patiently for them to finish. They slid to the ground without a word. Kaida could only sit there, like a broken doll. She couldn't even stand. She was weak, like the little girl she used to be. Was she any different?

Yukio walked off and took both their belongings, throwing the bags over his shoulder. "Come on, let's go." Before he could say another word, his eyes landed to the head of the demon that Kaida beheaded earlier, in an effort to save him. His brows narrowed, and he kicked the beheaded thing with a running start. It flew into the trees loudly. He grunted and moved on, panting from sheer anger.

Kaida's eyes widened. "What do you think you're doing! You could attract the attention of more monsters." she bit her lip to contain her own anger, climbing back onto the dragon again. Yukio climbed and sat behind her stiffly, placing the bags between the them. As she gazed back at Yukio, she could see dark circles under his eyes, the blood of Izumi still stained onto his hands.

"It doesn't matter anymore, Kaida. Nothing matters." He buried himself in his bloodied palms.

Her eyes softened. She understood how Yukio felt. To feel loss, to grieve. She would never forget the way her father's dead eyes peered into her, the final words he spoke before the wall collapsed. Yet, they were the first he said to her in what felt like centuries. It made her shudder.

She could never see Grandmother again, and she would never see neither of her parents again, at least not in the physical world.

For now, she would not think of anything. She wanted to feel nothing. She just wanted to be a blank space, without feeling, with nothing. That was the only way to move forward.

She would bottle it up in her jar of guilt.

The dragon flew high into the air once again. Rain drizzled from the dark clouds looming over them. They flew lower than usual, in case of the lightening that would accompany the water.

"We'll have to find some shelter before it starts pouring again." Yukio murmured, loud enough for Kaida to hear. She simply nodded.

"I have a feeling Tatsuya knows where he's taking us." Kaida sighed heavily. She was tired. Yet, she couldn't close her eyes in fear that she would see the wretched face of that monster again. "Did any villagers manage to escape?"

"Yeah, a few large groups." Yukio replied briefly.

"I hope they're safe." Kaida stammered. Both of them knew they were not safe, not with those monsters lurking around the lands. "Where are they headed off to?"

"The nearest village, that's not ambushed by monsters."

"Maybe, we should help them. Help ward off those things."

"Kaida, no." He paused. "We're done for today. They can handle themselves. We can't be responsible for people's deaths. Today, everyone died in vain. We couldn't protect them. Today, we accomplished nothing."

She flinched at his words. "....I'm sure Izumi wouldn't want to see you like that."

His head snapped back up. "Don't talk about Izumi, okay?" He lowered his head again. "I'm not okay." His voice cracked. He let himself fall into the depths of sorrow. She could hear faint sniffles, tears falling from wet eyes. She stared into the air, desperately trying to fight the oncoming tears again.

They could do nothing but cry. That was it.