The time draws near

Serah Iracia Obscurum

First princess of the kingdom of Obscurum in the realm of Iracundia.

That was who I was in front of the caelestians, a quiet child that followed the orders of the council. I was a scourge of the realms, a being that was never supposed to exist. I was a sin of my parents or so I was told. Inside of me lived a being of nothingness. She controlled death at her fingertips. She was my dark side. The side I never showed.

I used to stay in Iracundia, the realm of darkness. The demons rule this realm, my father is known as the king of demons. I was told when I was younger that my mother died after giving birth to me. I was raised by my step mother, the queen. But she always made sure that I was told that I was a useless child. In front of caelestians, my parents made it look that I was loved but behind closed doors, it was a whole different story. All my life, I had to train in the arts of assassination.

What better way to use a child of darkness than to protect the crown prince. That's right... I became the personal body guard for my brother at the age of 10.

When I was thirteen I ran away from Iracundia. For five years I kept myself hidden. I knew they would send someone to look for me. I was their kingdom's deadliest weapon after all, a deadly weapon that could go against the other realms. But my realms number one enemy was Avarice, the realm of light, the angel's territory.

Light against darkness… Darkness against light

It's weird to think that I had the strongest eternal essence of all the realms. Our realm controlled the darkness, fire and earth. Whereas Avarice controlled the light, wind and water. Both of the realms were complete opposites, which made them the perfect enemies.

The remaining three realms kept to themselves. They got along with the rest of the realms but there was always good and evil lurking. Oh right... I'm getting of the topic again... the reason I ran away was because I was tired of how they treated me. A caelestian could only take so much until they burst.

It's like a bottle of soda. You keep shaking it till the gas bubbles up and without even realizing it. You open it and the gas will spill everywhere. It's like a person's feelings. You can only take so much until you can't anymore and so for the last two moons of my life. I've been residing here on Terrae.

The human realm

I am twenty years old this year. This year would be seven years that I had escaped from there. It almost feels like a dream that I could wake up from any time, even though I am living in the human world. I have to always be on alert, always watching my back, making sure that I don't run into any caelestians.

The humans that reside in this realm are very kind. In order to live here I had to create a human shell. I had to lock my dark side inside of me. This made me a complete human. But once in a while I could feel the essence of myself leaking out. I could feel her anger rotting inside of me just waiting to be released.

I gazed at my reflection. Dull grey eyes gazed back at me. Droplets of water from my hair dropped to the tiles. Steam had flooded the room from the shower that I had. Making the mirror foggy but not to the point where I couldn't see myself.

The person staring back at me is a totally different person. Her hair the color of light and her eyes the color of darkness. I twirl a strand of my hair. The person in the mirror is my true caelestian form. I sometimes think that maybe one day when I look back into the mirror. I will see a completely different person. Someone who is brave, that is confident, that she will be happy with a smile on her face.

I guess that day would never come. Even the little happiness that I gained from being here is slowly fading away. Everything was perfect. No one knew I was here. I sigh deeply as I stepped out of the bathroom and quickly put on a hoodie and a pair of jeans. I then dried my hair and left it opened. I walked out of my room and headed downstairs and out the door. I've lived alone here. The best thing about where I stay is that it's near the ocean. Ever since I came here I've learned so much about this world.

"Serah?" I halted in my footsteps and glanced at the people in front of me. The people I call my friends. Having what I read in books, I used that to my advantage to stay hidden, blending in the shadows. After some time, I slowly grew accustomed to my new life here. They helped me, without asking for anything in return. I owe them a lot. They never asked about my past either. They treated me like family.

"Hellooo? Serah, you there? Come back to earth!" I covered my ears and looked at Devan with a scowl. He was grinning and started poking at my cheek. Devan was two years older than me. He was the comedian of the group. He had light chestnut brown hair with greenest eyes I have never seen. It reminded me of a spring has the grass shined brightly in the sunlight here on Terrae. He kept on poking my cheeks and when he least expected it. I playfully tried to bite his finger. He screamed at what I did and ran to hide behind his sister.

"Claire help me, she wants to eat me." He grabbed her shoulders hiding behind her.

"Cut it out. You're twenty three now, act your age." Claire snapped at him as she pushed him in front of her.

"There, you can have him Serah, he's all yours." Claire giggled and went and stood next to her boyfriend Ryan. Devan gasped loudly and dramatically placed his hand above his heart and pretended to cry.

"Why?! Don't you love me anymore?" He looked at her then back to me.

Claire was Devan's twin sister. They looked almost identical except for the fact that Claire appeared has a princess. She appeared has a respectable young lady except for the fact that around us… she was a tomboy. Claire and Ryan had been dating long before they had met me, for five years I think.

Ryan was the quite one from the four of us. He appeared like he always had something in his mind. Somehow at times he reminded me of my brother Scythe from back home. I sometimes was wary around him cause they resembled each other but a person like Ryan… he wasn't a bad person…

But if he really was Scythe, I'm not sure of what I would do…

I crossed my arms over my chest, amused by Devan. It's funny how life can turn out. From one moment it can be a complete disaster, a tragedy. Then for only a moment, it can be happiness. But for me, my time is limited on earth. So I make the most of it, living as if it's my last.

"Guys lets go, I'm hungry." Ryan groaned, trying to reason with Claire, who was arguing with Devan, just staring at them, made me laugh. That's when all heads turned to me. They were quite for a moment and then they also joined in the laughter, I smiled, my first smile for the day.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go get some food. I'm starving" I said as I slowly walked by them.

"Yes, let's go!" Ryan yells, grabbing Claire's hand, dragging her to their house, leaving Devan and I behind. I yelped as I felt cold hands lift me up from the ground.

"Devan!!" I wrapped my hands around his neck as he carried me.

"Put me down right now" I yelled at him. But he didn't seem to budge. He began to sprint. I had to hold onto him so I wouldn't fall, even though I knew he wouldn't let me get hurt. I sometimes think to myself as to why I still stay here, when I should be thinking of a way so 'they' won't find me again.

These three people are my best friends, my family here on Terrae. This world has no magically essence. I am powerless here but my darkness, even though she is sealed inside of me, she always finds a way to break free.

"Serah? You can let go now, but if you want to hold onto me, it's completely fine."

I looked up at Devan as I realized that we had made it to his and Claire's house. I glared at him and he finally let me down and I walked inside straight to the living room.

For the first five years, I trained myself with many arts of fighting in the other realms and after I learned how to harness my darkness, I came to Terrae and remained as a normal human. But it seemed that destiny had other ideas for me in the human realm.

A few hours had gone by as I bid them goodbye. I stepped out the door of Claire's home. I was met with dark skies. It was evening already. I decided to take the longer route home by taking a walk by the ocean. I enter the deserted beach, and took my shoes off. I step on the sand, making my way towards the water. My eyes drift to the sea.

As I listen to the waves as they crash against the shore like a lullaby as the wind blows away. The sand under my feet, soft, as the water washes over. This little moment, this little gesture... made many memories resurface... Memories of my past... memories that I wanted to forget. Memories that brought only pain. That left everlasting scars behind.

I close my eyes, trying my best to bury the past. I inhale sharply. I looked at the sand and found a few rocks. I set aside my shoes and with all my strength. I threw rocks into the oceans. I was now down to the last rock. I clutched it tightly and then I threw it. I watched as it bounced on the water. Making ripples appear.

But it didn't appease the anger that was slowly bubbling up inside of me. My anger was now becoming more and more evident as every memory flashed back in my mind. Every painful memory was like a stab to my heart. Each stab felt like a million rocks hurling on me.

The pain in my chest was so unbearable that black spots formed in my vision. My legs felt like jelly as I collapsed on the sand. I tried to calm my racing heart. As I lay there on the sand, a sob escaped me, thereafter, the tears flowed freely.

My mind was a jumbled mess, as the pain took over my whole body. But why? Why did this happen? Is it a sign that soon I will become the thing that I hate most? I was even angrier with myself now. I promised myself I wouldn't cry when this moment comes. I knew I wouldn't stay in this world forever.

But I never knew it would come this soon. The seal inside of me is breaking. Come on Serah, pull yourself together. I know I'm stronger than this. I sigh and tried to wipe all my tears away, but it wouldn't stop flowing. I could never deny the fate that was approaching.

I slowly stood up, trying to get my balance back. I stared at the dark skies. It wouldn't be long now before they arrive. The time has come for me to leave this life I have here and to return to my old and miserable life.

All that's left for me to do is to prepare for the fate that's about to come. And I hope that you prepare for the journey ahead. Because my story isn't a sad one... it's a real one. It's a story about a girl who fought through a storm she thought would never end.

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