Sands stretches towards the endless horizons. Bodies strewn like hills and rivers that flowed blood. Alice stood on top of the mountain of corpses with hands reaching out to her. At the bottom of the hill there was a Revenant climbing the mountain. Possessing the eternal hawk on his eyes. Body that was wrapped in worn armor, and a cloak that signified the Talon King, the snake of woes, and the dove of thorns almost blurred.
Deadman…when will you stop? Ah, do you even know what you are? You are a revenant, you walk the world of the living, not knowing that you have already been killed. When did your heart turn into this?”
Deadman pulled on his collar. Rope markings were scarred on his collar. He was missing three of his fingers. His burning eyes of red staring at Alice. Alice watched silently as this Deadman climbs the mountain. Once he arrived in the mountain, she easily kicked him off the mountain.
Rest again, Deadman.
******
Alice opened her eyes as those words were spoken. She was greeted with a familiar ceiling. The ceiling that she had been seeing for days. She looked around her room. A double-bed with silk sheets, a drawer and wardrobe on her right, and a round table that allowed her to watch the scenery. It was a house located on top of a hill. She had arrived in the town of Agni three weeks ago and bought this particular town. In those four weeks she cleaned the rest of the countryside and worked as if possessed. When most of the bandits that were marauding the countryside were dealt with. Alice found their wealth helpful due to the new companion she had took in.
The door was opened. A little figure wearing a handmaid’s clothing paced with a little tray on her hand. She stopped not far from the door, her eyes were darting at the bottles of dwarven wine, who could even allow someone like her to get drunk. It was an intoxicating feeling that she had not felt. She had given up drinking wine when she realized that she could not get drunk. Not this time however, the dwarven wine that came from some forge where an ancient resides had perfectly intoxicated.
“Sister!” scolded the little girl, hands on her hips. “You’re a big sister! You keep crying and you don’t stop drinking!”
Alice lazily placed her chin on a pillow. Her body felt like it weighted tons. There were bags on her eyes, and the whites of her hair had grown whiter than a moon’s pale light. My shoulders are heavy, my body is heavy, and I cannot find a reason to get up in the morning…what is this point?
“Sister!” the little girl demanded Alice’s attention. She was growing red with cheeks pouted. “Gee! Why are you like this, Sister? I thought you were a reliable sister, but I was wrong! You are a big baby!”
Alice traveled her gaze on the little handmaid. “Nia…I am…not feeling well.”
She raised her chin up while folding her arms. “Of course not! If you drink this many then you won’t feel good! Ma and pa told me that drinking too much turns your stomach from inside and out!”
“That doesn’t happen!”
“No!” Nia demanded again. “You will get up now!”
Nia brazenly pulled on the sheets she wrapped herself like a cocoon. The poor little girl was struggling to get her off the bed. Alice didn’t want to make it difficult for her so she let herself be rolled out of her bed. She lay flat on her back and stared at the ceiling with half-open eyes. Nia’s face come into view with her cheeks pouter than ever.
“Please at least eat something!”
“I don’t really need to eat.”
“No!” Nia planted her foot down. “You will eat with Nia on the table! Come on!”
Nia grabbed hold of Alice’s wrist, pulling her out of her room. Alice obeyed with her shoulders drooping. She paced to the table where she saw her breakfast of bread and eggs. It smelled wonderful enough for Alice to eat. Nia stared at her expectantly, her large eyes waiting.
“It’s good,” Alice said.
Nia’s brows met. “That’s what you always say, Sister.”
“I do?” Alice raised her head. She thought of the breakfast and she did find it tasteful enough.
“Yes! Sister! I know that you got the money, but please live better than this!”
“Nia, you have changed in within a few weeks. I thought you’d stay quiet and shy!”
“Not when Sister acts like this!” She began to worry. “Is there something wrong with you, Sister?”
Alice smiled helplessly. Her heart sunk at the way Nia looked at her. Pathetic. How can she let someone like her worry? She forced a smile on her face. “I am fine.”
Nia glared. Her round eyes seemingly piercing into her soul. “You aren’t fine!”
“But I am,” Alice tried to protest. However, Nia wouldn’t hear it.
It took Nia a few minutes before she calmed. With Nia calmed Alice crawled back to her bed with her blanket wrapped around her head.
“The voices…they are louder today,” she said to herself. She covered her ears while sigil on her eyes showed her the illusions and the screams. The outside world was blocked by the noise it created. All she heard were the screams and the anger directed at her. However, what she could not bear was the voice of those who she had taken in as sons and daughters. A vision of her on the side of their bed, her hands holding them, and them smiling at Alice that it would be okay. That they were always be with her. How many times have she heard that line repeated? She couldn’t count. She placed her hands on her head. She looked tiredly at the blank space with little light on her eyes. Her shoulders ached and her eyes were blurry as she felt droplets of liquid slide down her neck. The screams became louder. She was sure that she knew how it ignore them, but yet she was unable to do that. She could not run away from them like she used to.
Thanks for the chapter