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The hunter had cornered him, now, and he was weakened. Micolash was beginning to panic, internally, despite his smile everyone had shamed him of before. He would try, frantic to get the hunter away from him. It seemed so fun, to play cat and mouse with this new hunter, running throughout the labyrinth. Until he realized his life was actually in danger. It all happened so quickly, a usage of his power, before being struck in the chest with a blade, causing his balance to falter and him toppling to the floor. He thought this was about to be it.
He was surprised to open his eyes, and to not see the hunter. Nor the library. Nor anything he recognized
Micolash was faced to a completely white sky. It was odd.. was this some sort of Heaven? Hell? Purgatory? He wasn’t sure, but he realized he was laying in water, and quickly got himself up. It was.. well, he couldn’t decipher it. It was not cold here, but not hot either. Nor room temperature. It seemed as though there was.. nothing, yet everything. He looked around, it was so empty aside from the endless water and clear sky.
Last he remembered, Micolash tasted death, and for once, he was afraid. Afraid to wake up from the dream, to lay where he once was. How long had it been, since he entered the nightmare? He didn’t count, he didn’t originally care. In the beginning, he was far too upset to focus on something like that. Once he got used to it, though, he didn’t mind to count anyways. He didn’t think he’d exactly leave anytime soon.
Did he leave? Or, was this another part of the nightmare? While grateful to be saved, Micolash hadn’t done anything to bring himself here, not that he knew of. There must be reason that he were brought here. He began to walk, moving across the lake. It was quiet, peaceful, and Micolash began to dislike it. While he enjoyed the silence, it was too quiet, and his mind couldn’t be silenced with his questions and thoughts on everything. He felt too aware of himself, lack of the distraction making him only able to hear the blood in his ears, and the slight sloshing of the water. It was underwhelming and overwhelming all at once.
Micolash walked, for quite a long time. He wasn’t sure if he were walking in circles, as it seemed just be the same everywhere he went. He’d speak to himself, out loud, as to keep him somewhat sane. The area was thick of fog, but there hadn’t seemed to be anything close by, anyways. This felt almost oddly taunting.
It wasn’t until, in the distance, he could see a vague large shape through the clouded air. He immediately began to quicken his pace, to catch up to the big shadow. It was something, something to hopefully answer his questions. Once he could see better, Micolashs face dropped. A mixture of horror, of shock, of anger.
It was Rom, that damned spider. The girl from Byrgenwerth, the one picked from the Great Ones to carry out some kind of importance, to become akin to the Great Ones, his only real friend. The only one who understood, the only one who didn’t find him creepy, who respected him. The one who betrayed him, all the same.
Rom had turned, her massive bug-like body making the water fly around, making the loudest noise he had heard since entering this area. It was facing him, now. He faced her, and neither said a word. It was not like she could.
Did she do this? Had she sent him here, knowing of his situation? If she knew.. surely, she had knew everything. Knowing how many countless hours he spent there, feeling as if he were going insane, frantic, alone. It knew. It put him through all of that, and watched, uncaring. This is what Micolash could gather, anyway, and it did not help his rage towards the girl.
Rom had only continued to stare at Micolash, unmoving. She couldn’t do very much, as much as she wish she could. Part of her didn’t want to, as she could feel the radiating emotions from Micolash, and knew it was best to keep away from him. She expected him to leave, run away, to get away from her and wallow elsewhere. But instead, he was heading towards her. She did nothing to stall him.
Once within hearing distance, it could hear his rantings. His horrible thoughts and words, all stabbing to her directly.
“You.. you did this to me, all of this! Trapping me, away from everyone, locking me away to rot. You should be the one rotting, you disgraceful being.”
It hurt, but she took it, all of it. It never meant for things to turn out the way that they did, but she had no choice, and he didn’t know. It can’t even tell him. In a way, Rom feels as though she is to blame. Micolash continued to advance, his hands moving around in gestures and pointing to her as he spoke, voice rough.
“After everything, everything, and you not only become a Great One, but also leave me? Deceive me, and send me away once you’ve gotten the power to do so? It should have been me, me! No one understood the Great Ones like I, all the work I put into my research, all the effort and time I spent.. and you took it all away from me!”
Rom could see him, much clearer now. It had never seen this before, this raw emotional outburst from him. Especially never towards her. Micolash had been crying, now, something Rom only saw once when they knew eachother, and he refused to face her despite the fact it already knew and saw. He made it clear, he hated to show these things around people, and it respected that. She left him alone when he asked, and stayed nearby when he wanted it too, though he would not allow any physical comfort. Rom understood, though, as it was overwhelming for him in these moments. She still, even all these years later now, remembered everything of it.
Micolash was now in front of her, as she was thinking. Pure hatred was within his look to her, and Rom physically flinched, it’s head tilting downward a little.
“..After everything.. we were friends. We were friends, Rom!”
A tap, a touch of sort. Rom focused to him, realizing he was attempting to punch it. It did.. nothing, to Rom, physically. But emotionally, the idea that he was doing this in attempts of hurting her, it felt gut wrenching. She could only stand there, looking to him and taking the punches as he cried out.
“It was supposed to be me! You took everything from me! You took away my lifes work, my dream! My only friend! All you have done is take, and take, and TAKE.”
Rom made a noise, of sort. It was a sort of choked up, gurgled squeal. It made Micolash snap out of it for a second, looking toward her. He would stare into her eyes, the many lot of them. It made his rage hesitate, and turn to sorrow. A numb, yet stinging pain within his chest as his anger turned to utter sadness. He hated it.
“You don’t even understand me, do you? You don’t even understand, how much you have hurt me. How much.. agony I have been put through, ever since that day you told me..” Micolash covered his mouth with his hand, attempts to silence a sob.
“By Kos, how much I must have hurt you, too.”
Micolash turned away, as he did, to hide his tearful expression. Rom couldn’t stand it, she forced herself to move, Micolash staying still despite the noise. She managed to get herself into a position where she could curl around Micolash, catching him off guard. The touch, at first, unwelcomed, and he tried to move away. What was this? Sudden gaining of human consciousness, and pity for him? Pity for his utter pathetic jealousy that caused him a breakdown? Pity for his admitting of missing his only friend?
But she made another sound, a smaller, softer squeal, curling further to him. Rom knew him. Rom knew him too well, and it was as if it knew what he was thinking, and tried to reassure him in some way, any way she could. He stopped his struggling, arms that were once pushing Rom away, now holding onto it for dear life. As if when he were to let go, she would disappear permanently.
“..Rom.. how I have missed you, all of this time..”
Rom bumped him, slightly, as some form of response. In a way, Micolash could tell that she too, missed him.
”..You never wanted any of this, did you?.. I remember, I had watched you suffer.. I tried, I tried to make it seem so much better, and of course it did get there but.. perhaps, not to you.”
The longer, less gurgled noise from her seemed to have been some kind of confirmation. It was true. Rom hated this, originally. It never wanted this to be her life, nor did it want to hurt Micolash by this, nor did she wish to have to trap Micolash away to keep others and himself safe. Rom was forced to accept that there was nothing that she could change, and that its duties mattered more than her interal guilt and regret. Rom forced herself to carry on, living with its newfound responsibilities.
Micolash was quiet, for a bit. They had sat there, holding eachother in silence. It was comfortable, it was something they had done before, though rare. It was moments like this, that Rom knew were special, and something to always remember. Something to take to heart. For Rom knew, this is something Micolash would only allow for her to have from him.
”..I’m sorry, my friend. I..”
He wanted to say more, but Micolash could not admit much further. He knew, in the end, his jealousy were not Roms fault. Rom forgave him, despite the lack of a verbal, proper apology.. Rom knew, there were more to these things than just words.
“..I wish now, that you had not ascended.. I wish we never ended up here.”
Rom made some sort of noise, to that. What sounded vaguely of a sniffle. Micolashs voice was soft, near whispering. It was the most vulnerable he had allowed himself to be with someone, and both had wish it was not while they were trapped within the realm Rom were made to stay within.
They once again, stayed silent together. It was nice, despite everything, to know that neither truly hated eachother. Rom felt a bit better, now that Micolash seemed to have understood, curling ever so slightly more to him, she was actually warm, something he could actually feel unlike the rest of the place around them.
Micolashs mind drifted, to everything that had happened within these hours. Rom had suffered, just like him, though for other reasons. She was also alone, possibly in equal amounts of agony. At least he could do things, write, read, move. Rom was stuck with spiders and its thoughts. Micolash had gotten an idea, one he didn’t like, but felt he knew was possibly the right thing to do. It took him a bit to decide, if this was truly a good idea. Perhaps, it’s something that Rom would want in the end. At least, she would not be alone during it, either. It’s either Micolash, or the hunter. Micolash decided it was best he carried this out.
He turned, to fully hold onto Rom and hugging her head. Her eyes that were touched closing, as to not be poked. He held her, beginning to sob once again.
“..I’m sorry, Rom. I’m sorry.”
Suddenly, Rom had felt an excruciating pain within its head, recoiling and wailing out in a pained screech. Micolash had unleashed Augur of Ebrietas, directly into its body. It was agonizing. She tried to teleport away, confused and stunted by this sudden attack from its friend. Micolash continued to sob, gripping her head and continuing to stab her with the power he possessed.
It was slower than he would have liked, Rom now succombing to its death. She laid there, unable to use any more of her ability. She made a pained screech once again, strained. Micolash was now choking from his cries, though still silent. He did not want him crying to be the last image she sees, he tried to give a small smile, but he knew it wouldn’t help ease this situation, for either of them.
”..I want you to be free. I’m sorry. This is the only way, my friend. I’m sorry.”
One final blow, and her body had stopped moving. She disappeared, the only traces left behind being the petals from those odd plants within her backside. Micolash fell to the water, silently sobbing to himself, uttering apologies. Micolash regretted this to be so soon. But he had no longer wished for his friend to suffer this life she didn’t choose, and apart of it, he didn’t want to see what he could’ve been. Wherever Rom ends up now, he hopes she is happier there.
For now, Micolash is now stuck, within the Moonside lake, and now, Micolash was once again, alone.