Arcane

Sunaro

Sunaro-

    Her words stung me, I only wanted to help her. I turned away as per her request but I knew that she was on the verge of crying.

      Before leaving I turned to look at Mizu one more time, "I'll kill him one day" but I swore I heard her say, "Not if I beat you to it." as I closed the door behind me.

                                                                                             ∼•∼

     Even though I knew I needed to sleep, I couldn't help but think about what was happening to Mizu. I hated that I was powerless to stop it. While sitting on the floor in my bedroom, I couldn't keep myself from worrying. I wore trunks and a tank top yet I was still sweating. This situation was stressful and the droids warning me of my sleep patterns were not helping. I was starting to get frustrated and ripped out the droid's control panel.

     It fell to the floor and I knew I would have to request another one. Mizu is strong, I know, but I wondered if I would be able to stand another night holding her while she cried in my arms. Another night of her heart breaking piece by piece. When she cried and called herself things she could never be. Not in my eyes.

    In the halls on the second floor where generals and workers were housed I wandered around aimlessly; this floor was almost devoid of droids. Despite not knowing where I wanted to go, I eventually found myself outside of Mizu's room. I crouched in front of the door leading to Mizu's room.

     The door was open and the room empty. She was still with the king. No matter how many times she told me it was okay for me to go into her room I knew she had been violated too many times and I never wanted to violate her in any way, even if she said it was ok. I could smell her scent from outside the room. She smelled of sea salt and sugar. Probably from all the biscuits and sweets she consumes.

      Mizu is the kindest person I have ever met. From the moment I laid eyes on her I knew that she was one of the good ones. I was proved right when she had befriended Akane. In the palace Mizu could have chosen anyone, but she chose the one who didn't have connections and needed love. I thought it strange that she would even think to befriend someone who was tainted at the time.

       From the moment they can understand, all the clans taught the children that the people with mutated ki were tainted and that they were cursed with unnatural power from unholy gods. I believed this with all my heart and hated the tainted, my view of them was changed when I met Akane. Akane just seemed like a child who needed help but was never given it and stumbled through life mindlessly. She eventually got stuck here with the job no one ever wanted and she was condemned to so much punishment and pain I was surprised she could still put on a smile for me and Mizu.

     I had guessed that Mizu was the motherly type from the start and I was right. Mizu and I had gotten close and because of that I had gotten close to Akane too. Akane was the type to never ask for help even though she desperately needed it. One day I finally understood the way Mizu felt towards Akane because she had walked into the dinning hall with clothes splattered with fresh blood and it covered her hair and face. She still walked into the room with a smile and waved to us like nothing had happened.

     I had later learned that she was forced to execute a young girl for being a tainted one. I had seen Mizu rush forward to Akane and hold her in her arms. Mizu let the girl cry in her arms and wiped away her tears. She didn't care that her beautiful dress was now splotched with blood and that they both smelled of it too.

     When I had seen that sight I felt a tug of responsibility for Akane and a kind of love towards the girl I couldn't explain with words.

      Akane had fallen to the floor sobbing. She was still a child at the time and the things she had done had weighed heavy on her. Mizu had given me a look. Her glittering blue eyes had landed on me and they pleaded for help. So I helped. I went over to the pair on the floor and picked Akane up from the floor. She was so small in my arms, she was only sixteen and it was the first time she had let her guard down in front of me. It was the first year she had worked for the king as his executioner.