"Dear baby, forever be with me."
Eirin opened her eyes, but the oppressive blackness was impenetrable. An eerie silence closed in around her, but through it, a melody drifted—a lullaby she heard before, laced with recollections of her grandmother's embrace.
Then, a gentle shimmer began at the edges of her vision, spreading outward. The oppressive darkness dissolved, replaced by a soft, diffused light. Green grass unfurled beneath her bare feet, cool and damp against her skin. The air shifted, growing fresh and clean, carrying the scent of dew and sun.
A beautiful woman sat on the ground in front of Eirin, singing the familiar lullaby. The strands of her golden-blonde hair sparkled under the sunlight. Eirin felt a shock when her eyes, which were pools of the deepest emerald, met hers.
Eirin's breath hitched, her world narrowing to just this woman, who was so beautiful it stole her words and she could not move from where she stood.
Despite never having seen her face before, a strange, deep sense of warmth bloomed in Eirin's chest as the woman's smile reached her eyes, touching something forgotten within Eirin.
As the woman continued humming, the vibrant landscape began to ripple. The greeneries dissolved, the sun bled from the sky, and the crisp air faded. A blinding, sterile white enveloped everything, washing away all detail until the world became a vast, featureless expanse, a blank canvas stretching infinitely in every direction.
Eirin's brow furrowed. Only the woman remained unchanged. She tried to strike a conversation, but the woman acted as if she could hear nothing. The teenage girl tried again, waving a hand, calling out, but the woman's emerald eyes, though fixed on Eirin, held no recognition, no flicker of understanding.
It was as if Eirin were no better than a ghost, unheard, unseen.
"The time when I will not be by your side shall come. But remember, I love you so dearly."
The words the woman spoke stirred something in Eirin's heart, a heavy ache she didn't understand. It was as if the woman held such longing for someone she truly missed. She held onto her chest as she kept trying to converse with the woman, but the woman only started humming again.
It was odd.
Eirin's eyes widened, a sudden glint of disbelief causing her to blink. In the space where moments before had been empty white, a small child now rested her head on the woman's lap, as if she had simply appeared out of nowhere.
'What is going on?' Eirin backed away.
"You will grow up into a lovable young lady, my love," the woman said, caressing the young girl's head.
The young girl giggled, but then stopped and suddenly stood up. The young girl's luminous amber eyes, twin embers in her pale face, fixed on Eirin.
"Who are you?"
Eirin recoiled, a shiver tracing her spine. Those eyes held an unnerving depth, a knowledge that seemed to pierce straight through her defenses, leaving her feeling utterly exposed.
The instant the young girl took a step, the white background began to writhe. It curdled, twisting into a sickly, muddy brown, like paint dissolving in water. Cracks formed across the endless floor, growing wider, deeper, grumbling as they spread.
Eirin stumbled backward, staring at the fissures devouring the emptiness. When she dared to look up again, the woman and the child were gone, swallowed by the creeping decay. Eirin was alone as the very ground beneath her feat began to crumbling, giving way to nothingness.
The teenage girl ran, desperate, but the solidness beneath her feet vanished in chunks, plunging her into an endless, terrifying fall.
"Master! Are you awake now?"
Eirin gasped, her lungs burning, each breath a painful rub. Tears streamed down her face, blurring the small, worried face of her pixie. It felt as if she had drowned and been dragged back to the surface, gasping for life.
Then the cool wind, carrying the faint scent of pine, registered. She looked up, above her, the moon hung like a pearl in the night sky, its light bathing the familiar silhouette of the village chief's house.
She was out.
A wave of dizzying relief washed over her, and she closed her eyes letting the gentle breeze caress her face. However, the peace was shattered by a sharp, acrid scent—something was burning. Her eyes snapped open, drawn to the forest ahead.
Smoke was coming from the forest, and it was peculiar. The odor of burning wood caused Eirin to cover her nose.
"How did I get out?"
The pixie shrugged as she didn't know either. "I do not know how; all I know is that master was overflowing with mana, and I came out to calm it down," Feya sighed. "If I wasn't quick enough, master, you would be—" the pixie hesitated as she stared at her fidgeting hands.
Eirin comforted the pixie, then a pang ripped through her head, forcing a grimace onto her face and making her lean against the damp ground.
The image of Shade Cromwell, the fiery presence from her chaotic memories, felt distant, like a fragment of a fading dream.
Eirin knew she needed to go back to where Scarlett was, but in the back of her head, something kept telling her to walk towards the forest.
"Feya."
"Yes, master?"
Eirin stood up and smiled. "Would you help me find someone?"
"Yes, master!"
Feya guided Eirin and helped her control the wind to prevent the teenage girl from inhaling too much smoke.
"Shade Cromwell!"
Eirin continued to call Shade's name, her voice growing hoarser with each repetition, but only the crackle of distant flames answered. She sauntered deeper into the forest, a knot of unease tightening in her stomach with every unanswered shout.
A blazing flame almost swept Eirin away if not for Feya's protective barrier. "That was a close one," the pixie heaved a sigh.
Eirin wheezed, her chest burning, her heart hammering against her ribs like a trapped bird. Feya, too, seemed to struggle, her tiny wings beating frantically, her voice strained.
"I apologize, master," she panted, "it's because master cannot control her magic fully that I cannot control mine in this realm either. If this keeps up, I cannot protect you any longer. You must escape this forest immediately."
Before Eirin could even respond, Feya vanished in a shimmering pop, like a soap bubble bursting. The sudden absence of the wind barrier sent a wave of blistering heat over Eirin, and the surround flames surged.
"Shade Cromwell!"
Eirin yelled the young man's name, and as she kept moving forward in the hellish hot terrain, she reached the center of the forest where almost all the trees were burned into ashes, with nothing but flames.
In the middle of them was Shade Cromwell kneeling on the ground with his head down.
A raw, guttural scream tore from Shade Cromwell, a sound that stopped Eirin cold. The air gleamed, the very atmosphere sizzling with heat, and sweat instantly slicked Eirin's skin. Yet, the flames, though roaring just feet away, didn't burn.
They felt… peculiar, almost comforting, like a sudden, intense warmth after being out in the biting cold. A strange unnerving immunity.
"Are you planning to burn the whole forest down?"
Shade's head snapped up at Eirin's voice. His eyes, twin pools of bloody, infernal red, bore into her. Black, tendril-like marks pulsed along his neck, creeping relentlessly up to his left cheek, like veins filled with ink.
A new, sickening stench, that of burning flesh, assaulted Eirin's nostrils, making her stomach churn. Her eyes widened in horror upon seeing Shade's arm which was not just blackened, but actively charring. The skin blistering and peeling back from the bone.
"H-Hey! I don't think you're controlling your powers well—your arm is burning!"
Eirin rushed to the young man's aid, but Shade screamed, fueling the flames through his voice. Despite that, Eirin did not feel any pain. All she could see was Shade's burning flesh. Her bruises were nothing compared to what the young man was going through.
The crackling sound of the flames filled Eirin's ears as she kept trying to approach Shade, despite the young man refusing to listen to her. Eirin took another step forward.
"Stay away from me! I'm a monster."
Flames formed in front of Eirin, separating her and cutting her path towards Shade. When she looked at the man, she noticed how tears streamed from Shade's crimson red eyes as he stared at Eirin.
"Stay away…"
Suddenly, Eirin saw nothing but the raw pain in Shade's eyes. His cries laced with torment, weren't just shouts of anger; they were desperate pleas, begging for someone to pluck him from the fiery hell he was trapped in.
"Can you not hear me? Have you gone deaf!? I said go away!"
Shade's words, sharp as shattered glass, cut through the inferno, yet Eirin barely registered them. The agony in his eyes, the suffering etched on his face, was something she could not ignore.
Eirin moved forward, she bravely walked through, the flames parting before her, a strange, silent acceptance of her presence. The heat which should have consumed her, felt almost like a guiding hand.
"Stop! I'm a monster."
Eirin did not stop until she was standing in front of him. The man who had been tormenting her, and making her life even harsher than it already was. She stared at him and knelt down, leveling with him.
Shade immediately covered his eyes, as if afraid that if he looked at the girl, he would lose all sanity he has left.