Chapter POV: Josephine Benelli
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The dark sky rumbled with thunder as flashes of lightning lit up the heavens. I felt cold and damp as the rain soaked my body.
I didn't feel the slightest agitation, even though there was a huge hole in my chest where my heart should be.
Maybe it had sothing to do with the man who held so tenderly. His eyes full of sorrow as tears stread down his face.
He kept crying as he embraced . This man was my beloved. My only one, and yet fate demanded that I be slain by his hands.
I couldn't hear his words, but I knew of his kindness, and every ti he looked at , he repeated the sa words. "Please forgive , Vela." I wanted to smile, but instead I closed my eyes and breathed my last.
A loud and annoying noise suddenly broke out of my trance. It was the alarm I had set for my short rest. I quickly turned it off and cald my mind.
"That scene again. Who was that man and who is Vela?" I asked annoyed.
In a small garden on the outskirts of Siena, I swung my rapier and danced around a wooden target. My martial art focused more on speed and balance, so footwork dictated everything. Whenever I felt anxious, fencing was where I found peace.
Unfortunately, ever since I returned from Hellsgate, I kept dreaming of that one scene. I played the role of a dying woman and had to watch a man mourn my death. It made no sense, it had nothing to do with , but I couldn't get it out of my mind.
Fencing required concentration and a serene state, fortunately the anxiety disappeared as I danced with my sword. I practiced for about an hour before resting. As I took a drink of water, a familiar face entered the garden.
"Jo, I told you to stop overworking yourself. You have been at it for over five hours now. Myron will be arriving soon. We will leave when he does, I cannot have you tired by then."
My dear sister, the one stalwart ally in my life, complained as she brought a chicken liver crostini with salsa verde toscana for a sauce. As strict as she was, I knew how much Jasmine loved . The food she brought was a gesture that reinforced that.
"Grazie Jas! But chicken liver again? Couldn't you have used anything else?" I asked as I started to eat.
"Stop being so picky with your food Jo. Wash up and get ready for the move. We need to be ready to depart... You seem out of focus, is sothing bothering you?"
There were no secrets between Jas and . Throughout my childhood, I barely saw my parents. They would show up once in a while to ask about my progress in academics, martial arts, and etiquette.
During those dark days, the only people who made feel loved were my sister Jasmine and my nanny Margaret.
Despite her stoic exterior, my sister was incredibly passionate and motherly to . Even when I was barely noticed by anyone, she was the only one to notice when I got distraught.
Happy to have Jasmine by my side, I leaned against my sister and rested my head on her shoulder. The image of the crying man made my heart so miserable. The sadness in his voice felt like my heart was being torn apart. I had to tell soone.
"Jas, I keep seeing a vision, a dream, I am not sure what it is. In the dream I was a woman nad Vela and my lover was crying as he apologized. I never saw anything else, but the emotion it contained made feel so horrible."
I knew my sister would never judge , but how did any of this make sense? Unaware of my inner turmoil, Jasmine brushed my hair and even wiped so of the sauce off my lips with a napkin.
"Did that man look like John?" she asked .
Her words made think of the face I kept seeing. He kind of looked like darling, but he didn't. He was wearing armor I had not seen before.
"He kind of did. Why do you ask?" I asked out of curiosity.
Jasmine sighed before answering, "Because I also saw sothing similar, I was an Egyptian archer while John fought by my side. Our enemies were undead monsters.
Huh? Jas started seeing dreams too? But why were they so different from mine?
"Then these visions have sothing to do with darling? Did you manage to learn sothing from yours? Is that why you started being so clingy to him? Co on, spit out the toad!" My voice was full of excitent.
I wanted to be with John as his wife, but I could not choose between Jasmine and him. If Jas wanted darling, I would let her be the main wife and I would be mistress.
After all, most reapers had concubines or mistresses for bearing Descendants.
"C-Clingy? I don't think I was clinging. Ehem. And that is another matter, I will tell you when the ti cos."
Kyah! My sister was the cutest when she was embarrassed. Her stoic personality usually cracked when she was flustered.
The sight of her panicking to regain her composure was the best. Of course, she had no hair on her tongue, so she ca across as rude a lot of the ti.
"Oh? You even went beyond Bella and called him your husband. I don't think you could cling more even if you turned into a koala. Haha. Don't worry, sister, if it's for you, I'm fine with becoming his mistress," I declared resolutely.
Only a man like darling was worthy of my sister. From his unyielding spirit to his dominating personality. For us Formless, having soone like him was like a beacon in the darkness.
I tried to ignore it as I grew up, but I learned that my suffering was intentional. The horrible cruelty of my parents and the inhumane training were all part of creating stronger {Fates}.
It was sothing I could understand, but sothing I would never do to my own children. So when we were discovered to be Formless, our worlds shattered. Disowned and treated worse than garbage, my sister and I were abandoned. It was as if our suffering was worth nothing.
'Vaffanculo a tutti! Fuck you all!' I cursed inwardly in anger.
In the month we were allowed to prepare, Jas and I starved, stole, and were almost raped several tis. And yet, despite our sacrifices, we nearly died in the first few hours of enlistnt.
Had I never t John Smith, I would have just accepted my fate and died that night. But against all odds, he said sothing I will never forget as long as I live.
'You are free to co and go as you please. But if you stand with us, your enemies will be my enemies. Unlike others, I have nothing against the Formless. What I said was no joke. I will beco the strongest Revenant. And I shall be the one who closes Hellsgate.
If you are scared, hide. But if you wish to end this nightmare, I welco you.'
Imdiately after he spoke, I felt a hundred butterflies in my stomach. For people who had nothing to believe in, such a promise was worth more than gold.
But even if I wanted to have him, I would gladly give him up for my sister, as she deserved all the happiness in the world.
'If you want to know, co with . It is not a sin to be Formless. If this entire world believes that we have no right to exist, then all we have to do is climb to the summit and trample over it.
Even if the darling was as good as bread, it had to be backed up by action. {Rewind} was useful, but it was not enough to convince . But I soon got my proof, watching John fight until he bled and almost died.
No matter how hard the fight, his smile never faded and his eyes never lost their fire.
"What the hell are you talking about, Jo? We are going to be his wives together! If he doesn't take you, I'll beat him until he does. He will take both of us or I will castrate him! You deserve as much love as I do. The three of us will live together forever, I will accept nothing less!" Jasmine declared fervently.
My sister's words woke from my brief reverie. Hearing her conviction reminded of her love for .
Darling was lucky to have not one but two Italians ready to fulfill his every desire. I took my sister's hands in mine and embraced her. No more words were needed between us.
"Okay! Then we have to think about how to seduce darling! The competition is fierce! Bella and Liv are already in the lead!"
Just then Jas' phone rang and she answered it. I quietly listened to her side of the conversation as I finished my crostini.
"Hello? Myron...okay...we will be there. Okay, thank you. See you then. Jo, we are moving. Our fake identities have arrived."
I nodded my head and quickly took a bath while Jas packed our things. Myron was a human who used to work for us.
He was always friendly, so my sister and I asked him for a favor. Of course, we could only do this because we had money to pay for his services.
Jas and I quickly took our bicycles and rode to our destination. It was a gloomy restaurant in the middle of nowhere. We walked in and found an old man sitting in the corner with a long envelope on the table.
"Myron. Thank you for helping us. Give your account and I will send the paynt." At tis like this, my sister naturally took the lead. My job was to bring down anyone who might wish us harm.
"Think nothing of it, Da Denel. I was only trying to return the favor to your father," Myron replied.
Sothing was wrong...as I strained my ears with {Listen} I heard the rustling of heavy footsteps all around the building. This son of a bitch, he sold us out. I imdiately grabbed Jas's right arm. It was our code that there was imminent danger.
Just then, several n burst into the restaurant from all four sides. All of them covered in a layer of soul. A few reapers hidden in the shadows also ca at us with knives and claws. Using Jas as a fulcrum, I kicked them all out of the way as I moved in a circle.
"AFTER THEM! HIS MAJESTY DEMANDS IT!"
Jas frowned as he rebuked our supposed friend. "Does the honor of a knight an so little to you, Myron?" Jas placed her hand on my waist as we shouted at the sa ti.
"{REWIND}!"x2
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