Reminisce | Tower of God

Chapter 1

( A/N : For my new readers, when you inevitably see the name ‘Aria’ in this chapter and so forth, please know that I'm not referring to the blonde Aria you may know from the Webtoon. I'm referring to my OC from my previous story, which I started writing before Aria from the Webtoon was introduced. )

Elyse ran down the narrow path. She ran after her brother’s figure which shrank with the growing distance between them. Her breathing was ragged and she felt ready to collapse at any second. 

It seemed that no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t escape the clutches of the exhaustion embedded deep within her. It wasn’t simply a physical thing. It wasn’t simply that she’d barely ever gotten the chance to stretch out her legs, to move around the confined space of the cave and strengthen her abnormally weak body. Rather, there was just something … wrong within her, something that made it so very hard to move around on her own. It was like a disease. But she refused to be left behind.

She pushed onwards, panting hard by the time she saw two familiar people up ahead, on the ground by the looks of it. Even before she dropped to her knees by their side, she could hear her brother’s desperate yelling.

Rachel had met Elyse’s gaze for a moment before the blonde turned her attention back on her brother. “I’m going up the tower,” the girl explained to the both of them. “I’m sick of living in this dark world. I’m sorry, Bam … I’m sorry, Elyse.”

There was not an ounce of regret in her friend’s yellow eyes. Elyse knew that, but also knew that it was a detail the boy beside her would no doubt miss. He would instantly find whatever excuse he could to justify his only friend’s actions, to find a reason to continue believing in the one who practically raised him as well as her.

“Take care of your sister for me, Bam,” Rachel added. “And forget about me, both of you. Let me be born again.”

There was a flash of light, and then a set of massive doors appeared beneath, opening with a loud creaking sound. For some odd reason, it felt like a distantly familiar sight. Deep in her thoughts and confusion, she barely heard Bam’s screaming as the light engulfed her friend, then her brother, leaving only her. With the pair gone, the doors began to close, and something tugging at her subconscious began to fade.

She shook her head. ‘I’ll follow you anywhere, brother … I owe you that much.’

Finally, it was her turn to step into the light, to enter the tower that she’d somehow felt connected to before even hearing of it from Rachel. And she knew the guilt and the desire to remain with her brother was not the only thing that drove her to reopen the doors to the tower. Instead, it was an inexplicable feeling within her that told her that she was that much closer to getting the answers she always wanted.

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Elyse awoke with a purple light shining from above her head. As she sat up, dusting off her red and black checkered skirt and dark leggings, her gaze trailed over the intricate murals covering the walls. It was clear they told some sort of story, one that she could not yet understand.

When she got to her feet at last, her attention was piqued with the notice of the boy beside her. Her brother. She let out a breath of relief, stepping closer to him. In return, he reached to grab for her hand, clearly grateful to not be alone, but had only been able to brush his fingers against hers before an unknown voice made the both of them jump.

“My, my~ It’s been a while since there’s been visitors like you two here. Welcome to the tower, young man and … oh? I suppose … welcome back, young lady.” Elyse eyed the strange man who reminded her of some sort of … rabbit. Though, rather than his appearance, it was his words that confused her the most. Why was he welcoming her back?  “My name is Headon. I’m the guardian of the first floor of the tower. What about you two?”