...She's gone.
Like the wind, she drifted to sowhere far beyond after leaving with those words.
aning:
I'm being observed.
Or, put in another manner:
[Watch yourself, sweet Alora.]
Giggling at mother's typical deanour, I resud the walk through the park.
I originally planned on returning to my bedroom. But mother's appearance after that random prodding in the dark, in hopes of receiving a response from her, tells sothing crucial.
I don't have to return for now, I can roam around if I want to.
I should explore the information I received—the secrets rooted within this Domain of Light;
And my nightmares-
The horrifying voices-
The utter terrors beheld within them-
...
...What was I thinking again?
I blanked out for a mont.
...Oh.
The information I received about the terrors of this Domain of Light.
I have to try and find my way into the depths of this Domain of that being; of our father.
The Canaries, they said...
Shaking my head, I montarily dashed these thoughts to the corner of my mind.
There's no need to think too hard at this very mont when I have such little information available.
Walking down the paved path, I listened to the tweeting birds whilst enjoying the pleasures of both senses, sight and sll. Maintaining this route, I eventually stumbled upon a different route.
A dirt path that cut toward a different direction.
Toward the direction from which I could pick up the scent of tal.
The training grounds.
Curious, I switched directions and stepped onto the side path. Wading through the unmaintained side path, I vowed to take the main route the next ti around. Moving aside the overgrown trees and flowers without crushing them was annoying.
I could practically imagine the sight of clanging tals and sweating n and won.
A curiosity arose inside of .
I've never, not in this life or the past, picked up a weapon or trained for combat; this might be surprisingly useful...
Sure, the fact that mother has approved of it ans it won't be that useful, but usefulness can't be judged so easily once you consider the fact that I have zero experience.
Anything is better than nothing.
Not to ntion:
Information, I might get sothing out of the people there.
I almost cackled at myself when that thought rushed through my brain; if I wanted information, I should have stayed with Es.
Moving my mask aside for a mont, I rubbed my face.
But I can't stay with her.
Then, pulling my hands off my face, I slapped it-
Crack.
-and misaligned my hastily glued, shattered jaw.
Wincing, I gently rubbed it while focusing on my innards. I drew my attention to the flow of Curses within and directed it to my head; my makeshift stitches aren't strong enough to handle that much pressure.
They can handle so, but after constant usage—talking, chewing, and swallowing...
I have to pay more attention to it.
With that in mind, I took a mont on this worn-down path to restructure everything that had been ruined during the ritual.
...My vocal cords have deteriorated since then.
...My legs aren't in shape to do anything more than a simple walk, I can't run.
...My arms shouldn't hold objects heavier than a plate; if I do, I might cause irreversible damage.
...And my organs are being squeezed by the pressure of my broken ribs.
Taking a seat;
Let's deal with this first.
...
"...Just shut up already."
-----
"Hap!"
Tiny muscles intertwined beneath her baby flesh.
"Hap!"
Her feet lay apart at an abnormal distance, imbalanced yet oddly orderly.
"Hap!"
Dragging the force from her feet into her waist, then through her abdon, arms, and finally exploding through her petite fists:
"HAP!!!"
Sweat dripped from her face as her trembling fingers released the ironbark sword—a wooden training sword designed precisely for her small body. As she relaxed, a loosely dressed man in a white shirt and dark training pants tossed a towel onto her face.
"Clean up."
Heaving dense, heavy breaths, the girl thumped her chest with her tired left hand. "Commander!" Her voice was high-pitched and clarky, befitting the child.
"Stop with that and clean up already." Roughing his ssy red hair up, he tossed his towel over his neck and rubbed the sweat off.
"Commander!"
She drew a groan from him before following the order.
Using the towel, she ran it through her ponytail. Her crimson hair shone lustrously with the sweat as she patted her face off with shut eyes, those deeply embedded gem-cut ruby eyes winced from the odd sensation of the towel digging into her eyelids.
Once dry, she folded the towel and placed it beside her on the dirt—the training ground would automatically pick it up and return it to the side of the field to be cleansed.
"Feeling better, Hilda?" The man walked up to her and ruffled her hair.
Her face lted into a smile as she nodded, "Yes, Papa!" Her fingers tapped each other as she asked, with the smile still on her face:
"But, Papa, can I-"
Sighing, her dad cracked a smile and said, "Yes, yes, yes... Go ahead, just don't tell Mommy on ."
"Yes!"
Cheering, Hilda rushed at her father's abdon, wrapped herself around it in a hug, then latched off again. She didn't even give him a chance to appreciate the hug as she ran off out of the training grounds.
Chuckling, the Commander gradually rubbed his face.
His smile slowly died off.
Then.
He turned around.
He faced the rest of his knights, the bastards scattered around the massive field, and:
"Get the fuck up you lazy fucks! Ti to train! The last one here has to clean the latrines for the next month!"
The Commander of the Sanctified Knights returned.
---
"Hmm~ Hmm~"
Sweet humming danced from Hilda. She skipped and hopped along the outskirts of the training grounds, between bushes, flowers and drooping trees.
Spinning in circles as she absorbed the fresh sll of flora and fauna...
Crack.
Her joyful dance ca to a halt.
Tilting her head, she looked in the direction of the sound.
'It's the place Papa said not to go...'
A run-down dirt path led to the depths of the forest.
Ba-dump.
Her heart beat from the excitent, and a sense of adventure boisterously overtook all rational thought as she twisted her head side-to-side. She had to make sure no one was watching first!
Lowering her posture, Hilda scurried across the flat gap between the training grounds and the sidepath.
Shifting like a thief beside a tree on the side path, she placed her hand on her chest and:
"Phew..."
Released a sigh of relief.
'Safe!'
Then, her head popped out of the corner of the tree. It swivelled left and right, 'All clear.' Darting out of cover, Hilda shot into the abandoned side path.
Once behind the cover of the ssy side path, she wiped the non-existent sweat from her forehead, giggled with her hand over her mouth, and resud her adventure down this route.
Keeping her steps light, she cautiously moved aside the ss of trees and shrubbery.
Crack.
"Eek!"
Smack!
She slapped her mouth shut after letting out that embarrassing cry. Darting her eyes left and right, she confird her safety and released the seal.
Hilda was getting closer to the source.
...After a minute of slithering down the abandoned route-
Crack!
-she ca to a stop.
Kneeling behind a bush, and covered in dust, petals and more, Hilda drew upon her courage.
'I can do it!'
She clenched her fist, prepared herself to stand up with all her strength-!
Paused her breath-!
Then shrank back down.
'I can't do it!'
Hilda's fingers wrapped around her face, 'Ughhh~!' Her heart pounded with anticipation and a mixture of fear.
'I can do it!'
Again, she reignited her courage!
...And fizzled back into her shell.
'I can't do it!'
Clenching her recently trained fists, she pounded at her head in frustration, a noise that, if she was paying attention to it, she'd realise was loud enough for anyone nearby to hear.
But she wasn't paying attention.
And, again:
'I can do it!'
She shot up!
...And...
Didn't fizzle down!
'I did it!'
Her arms shot into the air with jubilation, Hilda's feet hopped and bounced on the spot as her little grin grew with each hop.
Then.
She moved her eyes to the thing that had been cracking.
The thing that had led her to take this dangerous adventure through the monsters-under-her-bed-filled forest.
Her face stiffened in a manner unusual to find in a child.
Ruby-red eyes gazed at the source of the noise.
She saw the person within the ss.
She saw the white, frilly shirt.
The dark pants.
...The blooming golden hair swaying in the wind.
And the unmasked face—pale white eyes blanketed in popped blood vessels darting in all directions as incomprehensible mumblings were spat out of the creature.
Hilda faltered backwards, and her feet-
Crack.
-they paused mid-air as she heard the cracking noise again.
'Inside?'
The noises;
'From inside her?'
Hilda's raised foot retracted back to its original position. And, instead of retreating, she raised it forward this ti around.
Towards the girl who was even smaller than her.
Why, you may ask?
Why walk towards this suspicious girl?
This weird girl?
This thing?
This abnormal creature?
...Because within Hilda's heart, all she felt at that mont was:
'Is she okay?'
Worry.
-----
"U, Um! Excuse !"
A high-pitched voice shattered my concentration.
My eyes regained their clarity and shot towards the source of the noise; crimson?
Bathed in a holy crimson colour, dressed in a plain training uniform that had been resized to fit her, was a girl. A girl who seed to be quite a bit older than .
Her eyes were looking directly at .
At my lips, my face, my-
My mask?
-I flinched and slapped my face with my hand under her bewildered eyes;
I'm not wearing my mask. I took it off and forgot to put it back on.
...A feeling like that of the abyss swarming my innards wrapped about ; she saw this vile thing.
I...
I...
I opened my lips.
And with an empty voice;
With a near-pleading voice;
I begged:
"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."
Did I beg?
Or did I simply apologise?
...If I'm apologising...
What am I apologising for?
...
Oh.
The terror.
The horror of seeing this thing.
A child must not see it.
I am the Perfect Cursed Doll.
I am Curses.
I am Cursed.
...She must not see.
...But.
She saw.
My mouth stuttered;
My mouth repeated:
"Sorry. Sorry. Sorry. Sorry. Sorry..."
...
Like a broken little thing.
...
No, who am I kidding?
...
I am a little broken thing.
My smile deepened.
While all that ca out:
"Sorry."
Were more apologies.
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