Protect Him.

Ariel was sitting on her bed, Callum across from her. They were talking, reminiscing about the events that transpired. They seemed quite relaxed, a sense of calm emanating between them.

"How the hell did Cyrus survive that...?" Callum rubbed the back of his head and shook his head. "His entire neck was almost mush; HE SHOULD HAVE BEEN DEAD."

"There's something about him we don't know, from what I know, he died before this as well in a battle years ago." Ariel knew this because she witnessed it herself. She looked at Callum and smiled sweetly, bringing him into an embrace.

"Ariel, I want to protect him at all costs... "

She frowned and pressed her head against the pillow.

"It's going to happen whether we like it or not, it is destiny and this time I can't do anything to help. If his body cannot contain aether or keep it restrained he will stay in this cycle of losing control and dying over and over again." Tears swelled in her eyes.

Callum wasn't used to seeing this vulnerable side of his Ariel and it hurt him terribly, to the point of making his heart bleed with emotion. He put his palm against her cheek, wiping away the tears with his thumb.

"Cyrus will be okay." Ariel murmured, looking into his eyes and giving a feeble smile.

"He will not die. No one will die under my watch." Callum smiled reassuringly.

Remi and Ego stared out into the depths of the forest. Everything was still silent and unmoving, a slight chill in the air, their breath coming in soft clouds.

"Well, I had my ass handed to me. This sucks." Ego pouted and threw himself to the ground, resting his body against the rough grass beneath. "How did you let it get to that Sora, enough holding back! LOOK AT WHAT HAPPENED TO CYRUS."

Ego furrowed his eyebrows as he punched the earth beneath him. "HE KNOWS WHO I AM NOW."

Ego sighed.

"You need to do exactly what Reagan told you to do and that is to protect Cyrus... Sora..." Her voice trailed off and the tears began streaming down her face uncontrollably, Ego watched as they flowed freely.

"If the aether in his body continues to remain uncontrolled, it's only a matter of time before Cyrus completely loses himself."

"WE ALL KNOW THIS!" Ego smacked his hands to his sides in anger, his breathing getting faster and louder. Remi was lost within the whirlpool of sadness, drowning in the depths of despair; there was no escape from it. She didn't want to say that, she never meant to. He was getting so angry that he was tearing up, it burned at the back of his throat.

"I promise from here on out, to never let him lose control again so as long as I live." he vowed quietly. Remi's hands grasped onto his shoulder. Ego gritted his teeth. He wiped her tears, and they fell silently onto the dirt below him.

"Just rest for the night Sora, Cyrus will be okay I hope." He walked back and headed back into the mansion to catch some sleep himself.

Callum laid on the bed, a troubled look etched upon his face, his features twisting in annoyance. He thought about Cyrus, Ariel, and how the fight ended up getting more violent by the day.

—-

As the sun crept up over the horizon, it cast a red glow across the sky, creating a beautiful pink shade. As the dawn broke through, the light began shining down on the tent. Birds began chirping merrily.

Ariel was sitting outside, wrapped in a blanket staring off into space when she heard footsteps approaching from behind and a familiar voice whispering softly.

"Hey, are you alright?"

Ariel felt a gentle touch brush across her cheeks, gently caressing them, she looked back into the distance, keeping her expression neutral. "What about last night scared you?"

"There is something inside of me that is refusing my death Ariel, what scares me most is not death itself, but the feeling of death. That will always stay inside me." I didn't have much else to say. But then I did think about Callum and Ariel.

"Cyrus... If you could wish for one thing in the world, what would you wish for? You only live once... I need to hear you say it."

"...."

"Come on... Say it!" she whispered.

"To have lived a normal life. I never asked to be born with this power, these responsibilities imposed on me to do good when I don't know what good is." I growled and gritted my teeth in frustration, feeling rage at my predicament.

In my previous life, I had been isolated since I was a kid. Every aspect of my life was the definition of hell and I fought tooth and nail to get to where I was just for all of it to crumble down which has now lead me to this moment.

There is so much darkness inside me, and there is so much anger, frustration and despair. Yet despite being weak and insignificant, I choose to carry forward as long as my arms still have the strength to move.

Before we could continue the conversation, Ego signalled everyone to wake up as we were about to leave the campsite. It seemed like no one slept very well.

"Okay everybody, you've had all of last night to enjoy yourselves, let's get ready to go," said a dreary voice, sounding tired and rough.

We still had a bit of time before we could see the Xuidian Kingdom, however there was something that was more pressing to me. Sora Katayama, IS EGO. This discovery leads me into a series of questions I wanted to ask and now that he knows that I know he doesn't know what to do about it. The goal is to make sure that no more incidents happen like yesterday where I died.

"Everybody mount your horses, let's begin!"

Everyone nodded their heads and got up, I felt tired already even though we have started not a while back, then we left the place.