THE PRICE OF WAR [Taka x Reader]

XXX. Ash Rain

It had all been in vain. Your biggest fear had come true. Duymir and Kyria's death was nothing compared to the bleak image that lay before you. A forest that had once been green and flowery, full of life and singing streams, now lay dead before you all. The majestic old trees, with strong branches and bright leaves filtering the faint sunlight, were now pointy thorns nailed to a floor of ash and death. The air was dust and the sound of the animals a stony silence. There was nothing left. The branches were still smoking and the bark was melting in your hands. You were too late. You had lost someone again. This time, your beloved forest had been the victim. And if the forest was in that state, you couldn't imagine how Hayltel would be. You hauled your horse and it began to gallop through the forest.

"Yumiko!"

The pain had blinded and deafened you. You had to get home. You had to hug Erymid and Mayor Guldyn again. You thought of Uryn, Ineyd and the children. You thought of all the moments you had lived in that village, in your home. It had been the only thing you knew for many years. And if the war had taken even that from you, you had nothing left to fight for.

The forest ended, but the landscape was still gray. There was no grass, no bushes, no stones, no dirt. Just ash. Even the river water seemed to have lost color, and the sky began to subtly mourn the loss of Hayltel. You crossed the wall and entered inside the hamlet followed by your companions. The soldiers couldn't contain themselves, much less you and Yrion. That couldn't be Hayltel. No one could imagine a place as bleak as that. Debris was everywhere. The streets were barely distinguishable from each other. You got off your horse, but you weren't even able to take two steps. You knelt on the ground while Yrion hugged you and shared your pain. You wanted to die. You never thought that someone could want something like that, but at that moment it was everything you wanted. Suddenly Yrion pulled away and ran forward. He started calling all the houses that were left standing, shouting to see if anyone could hear him. He called everyone he knew, but no one answered his heartbreaking screams. To your surprise, the soldiers joined him and started making noise and looking for someone in the rubble. You wiped your tears away from your shock and decided to go to your house and look for Erymid. You walked through the rubble until you finally reached your street. You didn't even know how you could have recognized it in so much misery. The houses were practically in ruins, like black wooden skeletons. You looked at what used to be the pharmacy. It had a large window from which you could see a large collection of jars filled with ointments and medicines of all kinds. Now everything was a jumble of crystals scattered on the floor.

"Sister...?"

You immediately turned around. A young man was several meters away holding a pile of firewood. You recognized him immediately.
"Uryn..."
The two of you started crying as you hugged each other with joy. Yrion arrived a few seconds later and ran towards you as soon as he recognized his little cousin. Uryn screamed with joy at the sight of him. He soon told you everything that had happened in the village. Dryon's troop had wiped out everything. He told you how Erymid and Mayor Guldyn rescued as many people as they could and took them to the grove where the two lived, avoiding the soldiers and the flames and jumping the wall risking their own lives. The soldiers approached upon hearing your conversation and were glad to see a living inhabitant. Uryn grabbed your arm.

"Come with me, I will take you to Mayor Guldyn!" he said.

You all left the village and headed in the opposite direction of the forest. In the distance, a group of people emerged from a woodland and ran towards you. You recognized Ineyd and several children among them. There were a hundred people in all. Among them, Mayor Guldyn.
"It's a miracle ..." he cried when she saw you and Yrion.
You took a look around you, but found no sign of Erymid. You looked at Mayor Guldyn with the intention of asking him, but it wasn't necessary. His gaze spoke for itself, breaking your already cracked heart into thousands of pieces. It was impossible.

"She promised me she would come back..." he whispered to you as he cried bitterly and hugged you.

That was the last straw. You didn't even have the strength to hug him. You just let your tears soak into your face uncontrollably, kneeling on the floor and staring blankly. It was the end. You had lost everything. Taka approached with the intention of stabilizing you. He knelt down next to you and hugged you while crying. But you were very far from there.
"Where?" you managed to pronounce after a long time.
Guldyn approached you.
"In the garden" he replied.
You got up little by little and turned around in the direction of the village. Nobody said anything. They just left you alone. Your friends looked at each other and decided that maybe it was best to accompany you. A soldier followed them, and another one until they all formed an improvised funeral march to Erymid's grave.

As Guldyn had said, there was a grave in the ruins of your old house. You crossed the threshold of your portal and approached it silently. It was a small mound topped with a kind of jumble of dry branches and a flat stone with the name of Erymid written in black chalk. There was also a necklace hanging from the branches. You knelt in front of it and with a devastating scream, you expelled all the anger you had inside. Yrion and Mayor Guldyn were standing behind you, wiping away tears. Suddenly, after some minutes, Yusuke-senzo approached and knelt down next to you. He smiled when he saw the necklace hanging and ducked his head, hiding his pain.
"I..." you sobbed when you saw him and saw that the necklace was his "The last time I saw her... The last look she gave wasn't to me, but to you"
Yusuke-senzo looked at you in surprise.
"There I understood that she loved you..." you smiled as Guldyn nodded.
After several seconds, he smiled and after saying a prayer, he sat up and put his hand on your shoulder without taking his eyes off the grave. Finally, Guldyn approached and whispered to you:

"I think it is time for you to know the truth..."