A Withered Realm

Arcturus had recalled an instance in his school days where he and his friends had been contemplating the afterlife. He had remembered William was watching a documentary about the Forest of Passing Souls and that was when the topic was brought up; Arcturus never told his friends that he had went there when he was twelve as he didn't want to be bombarded with questions and he especially did not want to remember what had transpired afterwards with the soldiers and the mayor.

He did remember how they all had different outlooks on the afterlife. William was someone who didn't believe in such a thing, as he was a pureblooded Laminan who had no sense of spirituality. Landon would only believe in it if he saw it in person. Daffodil believed in it; though, he had a feeling she only said that to get his attention.

For him, he had believed the afterlife to be a rather serene place. If passing souls had to go to a place to rest, it would've been peaceful because all of the emotions they felt were probably purged the moment they left their physical bodies.

Yet, he was standing in a very gloomy and ominous area. Murky dark clouds loomed over the area. There weren't any signs of green in the vicinity. Everything was brown, withered and lifeless. It was as if he had stepped into a place other than the Spirit Realm. When he turned around, he saw a giant withered tree and wondered if he was in his own Realm of Desires.

I'm supposed to be dead. Why am I here and not in the Spirit Realm? That's where all passing souls have gone, right?

Arcturus was aware he was dead. It was impossible for him to survive from drowning in freezing emerald waters. He hated it, though. He absolutely hated the fact that he died. He had so many things he wanted to do and now, he couldn't do them anymore. A sense of frustration came to him as he had remembered the first time he died. He had a feeling Kori had been involved with reviving him back then, but if his contract was reversed, who would be the one to revive him now?

Suddenly, he felt a hand holding his. He turned around to see Nova with a worried expression. It was as if he had been searching for him frantically as his hair looked disheveled; he regretted not giving him that hair clip from the shop in the Outskirts earlier.

Nova's visage slowly contorted. His face puckered as his eyebrows furrowed and scrunched and his lips started quivering. Such an emotional expression would usually make someone look ugly, but Nova still looked beautiful with it. Arcturus noticed tears starting to form from the corners of his eyes as the grip on his hand tightened. He couldn't help but to be worried. Seeing such a distraught look from Nova made him feel guilty, as if he made a grave mistake despite not doing anything. 

"What's wrong?"

"I'm so glad it worked." Nova's voice had always been soft in tone, but Arcturus could hear how high in pitch it became.

He raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"You're dead, but the reason you're still in your Realm of Desires and not in the Spirit Realm is because I have inserted a bit of Souhait's blood into your wound. It is keeping you on the cusp between life and death."

It only took Arcturus milliseconds to realize his current situation. "I'm still alive, then?" Good fortune was truly on his side.

Nova quickly wiped his tears and his expression changed into a calm and serious one. "Arcturus Mercury, do you want to live?" He spoke with his usual soft tone and looked at him straight in the eye.

"Yes, of course!" He'd gladly take any opportunity to stay alive, no matter how risky it would be.

Nova slowly removed his hand from his. "Then, I'll add a fourth condition to your contract: to prevent yourself from dying ever again, you must make a promise to stay with us until the end of eternity."

"The end of eternity…?"

"That's a condition I made when I formed a contract with Souhait five centuries ago. If I want to live longer than anyone else, I must do so until the end of eternity. It's a somber and lonely path, but if you'll be with me, my days will be brighter." He extended out his right hand.

Arcturus knew Nova was suggesting to become like him–an immortal. Was he eager to trade his mortality just so he could go on with his ambitions? Was it selfish of him to choose a path where his loved ones would wither and die and he wouldn't?

Yes.

He would gladly give up his mortality if it meant moving forward forever. He would be sad if his family and friends would die, but that was the price he'd have to pay. He knew he couldn't obtain both, so he would choose what benefited him the most: immortality.

If he were to become immortal, he would be able to keep all the promises he had made and not burden those he made it with. He promised Ariel he'd be back for her birthday–just not the upcoming one. He promised he'd stay by Nova's side. He promised Hilbert that he'd work with him to create an invention beneficial for him. There were many more promises he wanted to make with the people he cared about and living would be the only way to achieve them all. So what if that was considered selfish or self-centered? This was his decision and only a fool would pass up on this extraordinary chance.

This was his resolve.

He was about to take his hand into Nova's, but paused when he saw a green portal manifesting behind Nova. Tendril-like substances popped out from it and started wrapping itself around Nova, surprising him.

"Nova!" Arcturus yelled as he rushed towards him when he was being pulled in. He ran through the portal. The entrance was so bright that he had to cover his eyes.

Once it dimmed out, he slowly lowered his arms and opened his eyes to find himself in an emerald green-tinted world. People were walking around aimlessly and lifelessly. He couldn't find Nova anywhere, and it made him frantic. He wondered just what that portal could be and what purpose it had to abduct Nova.

What is this place…? It's so eerie…

He felt someone tapping his shoulder. It startled him that he jumped a bit and quickly turned around to see a woman greeting him with a smile, an expression much different from the lifeless people walking about. He couldn't get a good grasp of what race she was due to the green filter, but he noticed she looked familiar. Her hair was styled in a wavy bob and her skin seemed to be a dark shade.

"Are you Arcturus Mercury?"

"Who are you?"

She bowed before giving out her name. "I am Mebsuta Leonis and welcome to the Realm of Despair."