Chapter 94: A Calm Before the Storm

In the master bedroom of the old cottage, an hourglass pendant rested atop an elegantly-designed wooden stool, basking in radiance from the beautifully-made window pane.

In fact, everything in the master bedroom was masterfully designed, as if, fashioned by a crazed perfectionist.

The intricacy of the designs, the tones of the various colors and the grace of each art. They were simply sublime.

And yet, their beauty simply could not match up to the heavenly design of the hourglass pendant.

Empty Dial.

A trinket born from the blissful dream of a lonely damsel, encasing a bout of time that never progressed nor regressed.

Time that stood still.

GLINT.

The clear glass of the pendant shimmered sharply in the sunlight but the liquid in it, never reflected that glint.

It simply moved in an endless fall and rise, both ascending and descending from the two cones, seamlessly.

It seemed like the oddly tranquil process would never end, until the hourglass suddenly rose from the table.

CLINK.

The chain attached to the pendant lightly struck against each other as the hourglass left behind its shadow.

It remained suspended above the table for several seconds, the liquid in it murmuring in a low tone before it suddenly turned into a melodious voice,

"Oooh...oh..."

"I'm back home..."

...

The soft glow of morning light seeped through a large window pane, casting pale golden streaks across a wooden floor. Dust particles floated lazily in the air, caught in the delicate dance of sunlight filtering into the room.

A faint chill lingered, a quiet remnant of the night.

At the center of the floor, drawn onto the aged wood, was a large magic circle—its intricate etchings forming an elaborate pattern of interwoven symbols and runes. Despite its arcane nature, it looked almost forgotten, blending seamlessly with the worn floorboards as though it had always been there.

The rest of the room was plain.

A small pile of scattered books lay on the floor, and a rose rested atop them.

The books in the scattered pile, were all old and worn, thick and hardcovered. Each were of different colors, and had varying names but they all pertained to the same subject – Magic Theory.

The rose in question, was a pristine white, its petals slightly curled at the edges. Whether it had been freshly picked or had long since begun to wither was unclear, but its presence was striking.

Not too far from the pile, were two youths sprawled across the ground; a fair-skinned girl and a tan-skinned boy.

The girl's breath was soft and steady, her body curled slightly as though reluctant to wake. The pale light kissed her features, tracing the curve of her cheek, the flutter of her dark lashes.

She seemed peaceful, contrasting with the other boy in the room.

Unlike the girl, the boy's breaths were ragged and uneven, his body tightly curled as if he were in a nightmare. His eyes showed signs of excessive sobbing and the sunlight seemed unable to dispel the creeping shadow around him.

He was disturbed, deeply.

STIR...

Slowly, the girl's eyes cracked open.

For a moment, she remained still, her gaze drifting toward the ceiling, her mind caught between sleep and wakefulness. Then, as the cool air brushed against her skin, reality settled in.

She blinked, shifting slightly before sitting up.

Her gaze wandered first to the magic circle at her feet, then to the pile of books and rose before finally settling on the figure of the other boy.

She stared at him for a long moment, her thoughts unreadable.

Soon her expression grew worrisome before she slowly crawled over to him.

"Dave...", she nudged him slightly, causing him to stir slightly.

CREAK...

Dave's eyes fluttered slowly, a hint of melancholy present within them. He turned to her and let out a small smile, "Vicki..."

She smiled softly, "You look like crap..."

He chuckled, "I guess..."

SHIFF!

Dave sat up, resting his arms on his knees. He used one to rub his face before turning to Vicki.

Vicki stared at him for a while before saying, "Dave...are you okay?"

Dave looked at her for a moment, before looking down with a bitter smile.

"No, I'm not, Vicki...", he trailed off before adding, "You know that...certainly so don't ask such a stupid question."

Vicki was taken aback by Dave's sudden tone of voice; she frowned and opened her mouth, wanting to retort.

When Dave suddenly snapped, his expression darkened; his face hardened as he bit his lip, "Don't act like you don't know what am talking about!"

"Dave...I-"

"You left me behind! You left me to die!"

Vicki was taken aback, her expression turning to one of bewilderment, before it finally settled and she looked down.

"Because of you, I died! I fucking died! And when I came back… I had to claw my way through hell just to survive!"

Tears were already gathering at Vicki's eyes, threatening to spill forth.

"I went through hell! And when I finally reach here, I realize that you've been living lavishly?! You've been living in peace while I suffered every day?! What kind of bullshit is that?!"

He screamed; his anger palpable.

Vicki's head was low, her expression pained. She wanted to cry but was doing everything to hold herself back.

"But..."

Dave's voice suddenly took a weak tone.

"I did all that...too..."

"Huh?", Vicki raised her head to view Dave's shaken form.

"I betrayed someone too...", Dave's voice cracked as he continued to speak, "Someone who had saved me while I was at my lowest...someone I had come to care deeply about...I betrayed her...I caused her death..."

Vicki stared at Dave, her face one of slight confusion and sorrow.

Dave raised his head up, staring straight at Vicki, "You know Vicki, when I first came here, I hated you...I wanted to harm you, to let you feel the same pain that I felt out there...but...I just couldn't...no-"

He paused, his voice suddenly turning hollow, "I realized that I was hating the wrong person. I realized that the one responsible for all this… was Untethered."

Vicki's breath hitched. Her eyes widened as a chill ran through her spine.

A long silence settled between them, before Dave continued.

"I'm not strong, Vicki. I'm not brave, either. I'm weak and cowardly...", he paused before raising his head to meet Vicki's gaze, "But at the very least, I want to become strong enough to protect myself and those I care about."

His gaze turned downwards, towards the magic circle beneath, his hand brushing over it.

Vicki stared at him for a moment, before smiling, "I... I made that same promise to myself as well...I made a promise to become strong enough to save you and our classmates."

Dave looked up at her, his hand momentarily stopping, before he laughed,

"HAHAHAHA...alright...alright, then let's grow stronger together."

The shadow that had once shrouded Vicki's heart was suddenly dispelled as she broke into a bout of cheery laughter.

As for Dave, the gloomy darkness that nested around him vanished, replaced by shiny radiance.

Vicki, with a beaming smile on her face, raised her finger towards Dave and whispered,

"Pinky promise?"

Dave turned to her and smiled, "Pinky promise."

He raised his own finger, to lock with hers, to seal their promise when suddenly...

SWOOSH!!

A powerful gust of wind slammed into the cottage, knocking Dave and Vicki off balance.

"EEP!!"

Vicki yelped as she was sent flying towards the door of the plain room while Dave rolled in a different direction.

For a moment, a frightened expression made its way to Dave's face, his thoughts were racing and his heart rate skyrocketed. He mumbled under his breath, "P-please...no... not aga-huh?"

Dave suddenly raised his head, his gaze reaching out the window and grasping the source of the sudden dread.

"W-what is that?!", Vicki exclaimed, her tone startled.

Dave's expression was pale; his eyes reflecting a pillar of darkness that stretched endlessly into the sky and devoured all light.

"A-ah...", Vicki's voice got stuck in her throat, her eyes fixed right at the center of the pillar, where a figure floated.

A figure loomed within the abyssal pillar; its form consumed by writhing shadows. A twisted crown of thorns sat upon its head, caging a mess of flowing white hair.

"I-it's him..."

Dave muttered, his expression turning to one of bewilderment. He shakily got up to his feet and stared out the window pane.

Vicki turned to him, her expression one of confusion, "W-who?"

"...The man from my nightmare...", Dave trailed off before swallowing,

"...the Thorn-Crowned Dancer."