Nothing happened this morning. Yes, nothing. It was simply…
I turn unnaturally, the rope digging into my wrists.
Aid. Yes, aid. I was panicking and he helped me. Yes, that's right. No way would a stranger—
Bite my lip that way.
I cover my eyes with my arm. I won't remember it. Yes, I won't—
"What has you so restless, young one?"
I cringe. His voice is like soft silk whispering in my ears. I glare into the darkness—
But there's no one there.
Where? Here? Not here.
I whip my head as far as it can go; peering into the depths of black enveloping me.
"…The roof suits my needs just fine."
My eyes widen. Up there? How could he—
"Are you sound?"
His whisper's too close to my ears—
A cultivator? Yes. Of course. I should've known.
"You won't even speak to your savior?"
"More like my kidnapper, you evil—!" But something heavy chokes my throat and I'm coughing and hacking in silence; my chest so horribly burning.
"I simply thought you'd want a chance to retaliate." I stiffen, wiping the saliva from my lips.
"If you don't wish it so, I can always let you go."
If he releases me, will I still be living? I clench my jaw. He won't let me leave. Not that easily. There must be something he wants from me.
He laughs lightly. "You think me strange…" His voice darkens. "Is it not my right to do with you as I please?" I turn my face away, scoffing.
"If I wish it so, what can be done about it?"
The air's abnormally thick—!
I breathe shallowly; my tongue strangely heavy as I speak.
"I—don't know what it is you want! I'm nothing. I'm no one. I haven't done anything! Won't you—?!"
"Hmmm? You don't know what it is I want…can't you feel it?" The windowsill gently creaks; the fog creeping in.
"I see. It was only me. Haha!" His voice hardens. "No matter. In time, all of this will end."
What is he talking about—?
A cold wind blows. "I simply wish to remind you. Your poison, it's not been fully cured."
The rope binding my wrists slowly falls away.
My eyes widen. Who is this man? I rub the roughened skin; the blood all but dry. What else can he do?
His inner power. His aura…his energy…it's something else entirely…
"You'll relapse shortly. If you don't want to die, you will do well to follow me," he says. "My man is searching for the herb you need. I will give it to you."
The air stills. My heart, it's pounding loudly even as he speaks.
They did that to me. How could they do that to me? I—we saved them. And yet they betrayed me!
"…"
"You don't wish my help?" I can hear it, his disdain. "But you'll surely die in agony, my dear. Living…its such a pain…"
I shake my head violently.
"No?"
"No, I'll go. I don't—" I grit my teeth. "I don't want to die. There's something I must do! I can't die. Not yet!"
I'm breathing raggedly, staring at the window. Will he hear it? Will he know? My frantic heart—my shaking hands—!
My pain! My anger! My rage…
I lift my face, feeling the mist. Why does tragedy strike so often in my life? Why…?
But the air turns colder still. "I, too, will obliterate my foes before I die..."
I close my eyes. And lean against the headboard. Who is he trying to kill? And just what kind of power is he cultivating?
But I can feel his eyes upon me. Watching me. Judging me. Am I worthless in his eyes?
My jaw tightens. No, I—
Have nothing to prove. Not to him. Not to them. No longer should I hide…
Those bastards won't find me anyway. I killed them. I killed them all in that place. All of them have died…
I'm sure they all died.
A small smile creeps. I hide it behind my hand.
Yes. It's not I who has to hide.
The world won't know of their existence. I will make it so—
Only if I survive.
"What should I call you, young one?" He chuckles. "Dear suits me just fine."
I grimace. He's not much older than me! Five years…six!
Immortals are hardly seen within this earthly realm. And he can't possibly be one. Not him. His power, it's completely—
What's the word?
Unstable. Unholy. Unrefined.
"Ethan. It's Ethan." I say, hesitantly fingering my lips. My full name isn't for the likes of him.
Certainly, it's not a name I'll ever be using again.
"Ethan. Ethan. Hmm…" A breath of fresh air. And he laughs. "Alright, Ethan. You may call me…Kian."
I roll my eyes. Who hasn't had a friend, brother, neighbor, father with that name? Kian, the ancient one. Kian, the immortal sage…Kian, Kian, Kian…
But I breathe in the scent of eucalyptus and mint; dragging my body heavily towards the window.
"Kian." I say, opening the latch wider. The breeze hits me full in the face and I wince from the cold. "You…won't ask what happened?"
"Must I be told in order to know?"
I lean back against the sill, turning my head. "…And you?"
"Hmmm?"
"You aren't a simple traveler."
He laughs. I shiver. What a sly man—
"Where were you heading?"
"…" I rub my swollen wrists. "Everyone's heading somewhere."
"Hmmm? Such a simple question and you avoided it so neatly."
I hesitate. And sigh. "I was leaving. But I don't know where I should…go."
"Is this a plea for help, my dear, young Ethan?"
My head thunks twice against the frame. "…What are you doing here?"
"Ahhh, yes. Well. I suppose you could say I was looking for a piece of me that's been missing for a long, long time." Bitterness. Sourness. A heavy, dark rage.
The breeze that's finally dying. The air that's slowly, gradually stagnating—
I grip the sill. And purse my lips. It's better to keep silent. He—
Won't tell me anyway.
I, too, won't tell him of my pain.
"…found it…"
I tilt my head. "What?"
"It's in my grasp. And it won't escape from me again. Yes, no matter what form…" His voice lightens. "Sleep. We'll be leaving in the morning."
In the morning…in the morning…Just who will I be following in the morning?
I twine the bedsheets between my legs, both hot, then cold in the darkness. Will these memories ever leave me?
Even if I escaped, the agony remains. Perhaps it's better this way—
A thud against the door. I spring to my feet, readying myself to run. To flee! The sounds of fighting in front of me—