Hugo stood speechless. Was it really true what they were saying? Who even was the lifekeeper? Was it some prophecy for one who was destined to defeat The Gravemaster or something? Hugo, after a moment of hesitation, took the sheath from Samma and attached it to his waist, replacing the Katana within it.
"S-Samma... I don't understand..." Hugo said. Samma chuckled, then signaled for all the spirits and ghosts in the graveyard to stand up once more.
"I know, I know." She said, smiling at Hugo. "Yet you still won, all on your own." Samma gestured for Hugo to look behind him, and there he saw the ghost of a tall man with a thick beard and a rough-looking exterior. And right next to him, there was a girl that looked somehow familiar to Hugo. At first, Hugo had no idea who these two people were.
"Hello there again, Hugo." The man said, and instantly, Hugo recognized that voice.
"Heya again!" The girl said happily, and instantly Hugo recognized her voice too.
"Wait a moment..." Hugo began, "You two, aren't you-"
"Your companions on the surface fight?" The man finished. "Look at that, you still remember us from the looks of it." The man seemed like he couldn't help but smile at this. "Glad that you remember us, Hugo."
"Yep yep! To be honest, I was reeaaal scared of you when I first heard about you at school, but after getting to see you in action, you're actually a super cool guy! I'm glad that you are the lifekeeper!" The girl said excitedly.
"Wait a moment, what do you mean you heard about me in-" As Hugo began to speak, it suddenly hit him why this girl looked somewhat familiar as he remembered that one day when he'd entered school and found a girl murdered with that strange knife in her pocket. This was that very same girl, and now it all made sense why she was killed by The Gravemaster; it wanted to harvest her soul essence to gain more power against Hugo. "Y-you're... you're that girl from school that was murdered!?"
"Corrrrect!" The girl said, clapping her hands. Her bubbly personality was starting to ebb into Hugo, he couldn't help but feel happy just watching her.
"Hugo... we heard what The Gravemaster told you, how he tried to trick you into joining him..." The man said dismally. "I'm sorry that we were unable to assist you further in the fight, but allow me to explain. Once The Gravemaster took you down here, as he was back in his own domain, we were forced back to our shackled graves, and back to our suffering that The Gravemaster inflicts upon the souls he claims. We were powerless to overcome him, and we could do nothing in order to assist you."
"But... how were you able to come out to my reality in the first place then?" Hugo asked.
"Because of her." The man said, pointing at Samma. "She came and freed me, telling me that you needed help in your fight. When I departed from you temporarily, I came back to her to tell her that you needed more help, and lucky for me, Samma was then able to free her." The man said, gesturing towards the girl. "I was confused when she first called me out and told me that you needed assistance. I thought, 'now why would she request a swordsman like me to assist you in hand to hand combat? That was, until I saw you had received... that." The man pointed towards Hugo's Katana. Hugo reached his hand over and drew the beautiful blade, holding it in front of him as all the ghosts and spirits started muttering oh's and ah's at the katana.
"I see, but... That just leads to another question... What is this sword? And how did I, or more, why did I receive this sword?" Hugo asked, looking around.
"That sword is the legendary sword known as the Timeless Katana." One of the reality spirits behind Samma spoke up as he stepped forward. Hugo turned around to see someone who looked somewhat like him at the moment, with a hooded cloak on, but the spirit's face was somewhat less visible. "It is a blade created by the elder spirits and made of soul essence so pure that rather than the owner being chosen by those who would present the sword, the sword would choose its own master. When the elder spirits created that sword, they intended for it to be passed down through generations until the reality spirits- no, until the blade would present itself to someone worthy enough, and strong enough, to wield it."
YOU ARE READING
The Forgotten
Mystery / ThrillerHugo, a boy in his third year of college, led a fairly normal life for an introvert for all his life until one night, his life took a more "Supernatural" turn. Now, he must delve further and further into the mysteries of life, reality, time, and spa...
