Dream

Elisabeth has been behind my altered memory for the past two days. The reason I forgot all about my past experiences and interactions is because of her magic—I'm sure of it. Even right now, I can only remember my purpose for being here. But why would she do this instead of attacking me? Emihiko said she loves me, but I find that hard to believe. Did she do this to recruit me into her organisation? She knew I would never join her willingly, so she used magic to manipulate me. Yeah, that can only be the most logical reason for her not attacking… Wait. How did I even recover my memories? Does her ability have a limit? No, I doubt that. If she could manipulate my memories, she can't be someone normal. "Then can she…"

"She? Who are you talking about?"

"E-Elisabeth? No, I… It's just another memory fragment I can't seem to grasp. It's nothing important." She stares at me intensely. Shoot. I accidentally let my thoughts slip. If she can manipulate memories, does she have a mind-reading ability? If so, then this is bad.

"Is that so?"

I nod my head.

"Ok, if you say so." She walks to the door. "If you have anything on your mind…"

"You will be the first one I speak to," I say, interrupting her mid-sentence. She smiles and takes her leave. I sigh in relief. It seems she can't read my mind. Then maybe it's just a mind manipulation ability. "All this thinking is giving me a headache. Maybe I should just rest…" Wait? Rest. That's it. Whenever I remember something, I always have a dream. I remember being in a field of grass. The wind is blowing gently. And I remember this girl. A girl with blue eyes and golden hair. A beautiful girl with pale, almost ghost-like skin. She always appears wearing a red dress and teases me in my dreams. If I remember correctly, her name was… Err… What was it again? I think for a few minutes. Did she even say her name?

"It's no use wracking my brain trying to figure things out. I guess falling asleep is my only option."

I rest my head on my pillow. It's nice. Warm. Nostalgic.

"He…"

"…"

"Hey…"

"…"

"Are you ignoring me?"

"…"

"You're the one that wanted to see me so bad. And now you ignore me. Fine. If that's how you want to be, then I won't speak to you."

"…"

"…"

"…"

"Ok, ok. I get it. You want answers, don't you? Fine, ask any question. I won't beat around the bush."

"Do you want me to speak that badly?" I ask her.

She blushes and headbutts me.

"Ouch!!" she screams.

"Of course, it will hurt. I'm a dragon after all."

"You meanie… I won't tell you anything…" she says crying.

"What are you, a five-year-old? You're the one that headbutted me."

"Humph…" She jerks her head to the side. Her long hair tickles my face and I laugh. "So, you're laughing now? If you want answers, then I want an apology."

She really is a five-year-old. Or at least she acts like one.

"Ok," I say as I get up from her lap. "I'm sorry."

Tears fill her eyes, and she screams, "I forgive you!!" and hugs me.

"Yes, yes. Now for my answers."

"Ok… What do you want to know? I'll answer any one question you have."

"One? I thought you would answer…"

"Any question. Not questions."

"You're one conniving five-year-old, you know?"

"I know," she says smugly, "That's why I was your first love…" She quickly covers her mouth, then smiles "Oops…"

"First love? What do you…?" I mimic her and cover my mouth. "That was close," I say, sighing in relief.

"It seems such a trick won't work on you," she says, smiling.

If I asked what she meant, then I would have wasted the only question that I could have asked her. Although I am curious about her provocation, it would not help me in my current predicament. "You truly are conniving," I say.

"So are you," she says in return. "So, what do you want to know?"

I need to be careful. If I only have one question I can ask her at this moment, then I need to think about it.

"I would rush if I were you," she says.

Rush? Oh, right. Our time together is limited by how long I am asleep. And there's no telling if I will ever see her again.

"I could… never see you again after this…" I mumble.

"It seems you know what you want to ask me."

"Yes. I thought hard about this. I don't remember anything from before entering the Holy City. This could be because of Elisabeth. I want to know what her magic is. I want to remember all the memories that I forgot. I want to know why I called out to Louisa. I want to know everything. However, if I ask you to tell me everything, we could run out of time, and I might not see you again. Therefore, there is only one thing I want to know at this moment…"

"And that is?"

"Your name. I want to know your name."

Surprise masks her face. Then she bursts out in a fit of laughter. "That's what you want to know!? You know, there are more important things I can tell you—most of them you mentioned. However," she says, wiping the tears from her eyes, "what you want to know is my name. Are you sure?"

"Yes."

She stares into my eyes, "Fine. If you want to know my name that badly, I'll tell you. My name is Elisabeth. Elisabeth Faith."

"What!? Elisabeth… Faith. The same as…"

Wait… Could it be? No, that's impossible. Unless…

"It seems you figured it out. And just in time. You're waking up. Our connection is fading…"

"Thank you, Elisabeth."

"Be… careful… Ha… ru… ki…"

I will.

I open my eyes and stand up. Although I said I'll be careful, this won't be easy at all. Elisabeth is the leader of the Illuminati for a reason. And if my assumption is right, it will be even more difficult. Now, the question stands. How do I solve this?

*************************

"You called sir?"

"Louisa, I have a predicament."

"A predicament? You? What could be troubling the all-powerful you, Sir?"

"Haruki Ryu."

"Haruki? And how is he a predicament?"

"Haruki Ryu is a mystery. And I hate mysteries."

"Why do you hate mysteries?"

"Louisa, there are three necessities in a war. The first is an army. Second is tactics. And finally, information. To win a war these three attributes are needed. If even one of them is missing, you are fighting an unsure battle. A mysterious entity means a lack of information. A lack of information means an unsure battle. And an unsure battle could lead to me losing. And you know, I hate losing."

"You put a lot of thought into this."

"I might be powerful; however, I am not conceited. I tasted the soil once before."

"Elisabeth Faith?"

"That woman… She was such a small, innocent girl; however, no person has ever been as twisted as her. Even now, my body shakes when I think back on that day. The excitement. The horror. Ah, what I would give to return to those times, to experience the cold-blooded Elisabeth one last time. However… that was some centuries ago. And unfortunately, she is now a mere shell of her former genocidal self. She's become boring with her old age, and honestly, not worth my time. That is why I called you here. Louisa, I have a mission for you."

"A mission?"

"Yes. Elisabeth must have already received my present by now. It's time for each piece to fall in place. Rejoice, Louisa, for this is a very special mission that will allow you to see your precious Haruki one final time…"