The Last Beacon

XLVIII

It was evident that neither Decius or Laurenz was expecting Sascha to attack.

Sascha knew that Decius was stunned by her actions. She was well aware that if he was expecting it, he would have fought back and prevented her from striking him. However, he was frozen, his mouth agape.

The Soul Blade was deep within his chest, buried up to the hilt. For a few moments, he stood there, motionless and silent.

Sascha took a step back, waiting for a reaction from him.

After a few seconds of teetering back and forth, Decius dropped to his knees, letting out a pained gasp. He almost seemed to be absent in his own body, numbly staring and unable to move, eyes glazing over.

However, that was when the screaming started.

The sound was raw and deafening, his face curled in pure agony. It was obvious he was trying to muffle his screams by gritting his teeth, but it was barely working. Between bellows, he was grunting and gasping, clearly trying to push through the pain.

I wasn't sure if that would actually work, Sascha thought to herself, I expected him to have no soul, but by the way he's reacting to the blade, it's obvious that it's tearing away his soul. He was right, it must be excruciating. At least he won't be a problem for me anymore.

Laurenz rushed over, crouching down next to Decius, putting a hand on his shoulder to support him. He cursed, shaking his head as he took in the sight of Decius crumpled in pain. He then looked up at Sascha, a hurt look in his eyes.

"How could you do this, Sascha?" Laurenz cried out. "What have you done? He lowered the knife. He would only have used it if absolutely necessary as a last resort. He wanted to show you his trust and to help you by laying it down." His words tumbled out into a whisper as devastation stole his voice.

"Oh, and you expect me to trust him? I never know whether he's telling the truth or not. You told me yourself, he's a liar, and now you expect me to believe him? I don't know what's real anymore!" She snapped.

Laurenz stood up and stared her down, eyes ablaze with both disbelief and anger. "How could you say that? The Sascha that I know would not hesitate to help someone in trouble. I know you think this power is taking over, but that's not an excuse. The power doesn't define who you are, because you're so much more than that. Why are you letting it control you?"

"Who are you to tell me what I feel and who I am? You don't know what this feels like! You don't know me at all, so stop trying to tell me what I should do!" Sascha shouted, fury burning inside her chest.

"For God's sake, Sascha! This may be your prophecy, but not everything is about you! Decius is dying. Your brother is dying, and you have the audacity to stand there and not bother to try and help him! Just because we're following your prophecy doesn't give you the right to walk all over everyone else! Damn it, if you can't pull your head in, nobody can help you. If you don't want to help yourself, then everything is lost!" Laurenz bellowed, clearly sick of her attitude and actions.

Sascha was slightly surprised at Laurenz's words. She hadn't expected him to get angry, nor did she expect him to stand up for himself. For a moment, she didn't know what to say. She knew very well that his words carried truth, but she didn't know how to admit it. Sascha was well aware of what she had been doing was wrong, but the truth was, she was afraid. Afraid of admitting that she was wrong, and afraid of being honest with herself. Afraid of who she was destined to be. She didn't know if she would like what she saw if she were to confront herself.

Is this the fight with myself from the prophecy? Is this never-ending conflict within myself that the fates intended? I just want it to be over, I don't want to be pulled by the two parts of myself anymore. I'm tearing myself apart, and I have no idea how to stop it. I don't know what to do. Why can't someone just tell me how to do these things, so I don't have to suffer anymore?