Modern Reaper

Welcome Back From The Dead, My Hero

I heard the soft sound of beeping before I smelled the medical alcohol. I shifted uncomfortably and felt a staggering pain in my right leg. I blindly touched it and winced in pain. Slowly opening my eyes, I was surprised to find myself on a clean bed inside the infirmary with Akita looking over me. I was confused as to who the petite small Asian girl was at first, but as soon as I recognized her I sighed a breath of relief. I was alive. Either that, or me and Akita were both dead.

"Where's Linc?" I croaked, the crook of my elbow covering my eyes from the light that suddenly flooded my vision. I felt Akita's hand in mine and I looked up at her to see a distressed expression mounted onto her face.

"Linc... she... she died."

Everything stopped in that moment. My breathing, my train of thought.

Linc was dead? I failed?

Why was I still alive? Why?

Why?!

Akita saw my expression darken and she took my tense face into her two small hands. "Wait, let me finish. You died too. But here you are. Linc came back to life a minute before you did. Now we're just waiting for her to wake up, if she'll ever."

I sat up and karate chopped Akita on her head. She reached up to grab the top of her head annoyed. "Ow!" She whined. "What was that for?"

"Lead with that first next time you idiot! You made me worry!"

"Well you still should be!" Akita quickly retorted, her Japanese accent slipping on the L's of the word 'still' and turning it into 'Stiru'. She cleared her throat, coughing into a fist before looking back up at me with stern eyes, slowing down her words. "We don't know if she'll wake up. It's a bit too early to celebrate." My thoughts went back to the vines that had be intertwined throughout her body and my eyes widened.

"Let me see her." I wheezed, stepping up and off of my bed only to tumble down the moment I applied pressure to my right calf. Akita barely managed to sit me back up unto the hospital bed and I shook my head disoriented.

"Don't be foolish, you can't even wal-"

"That doesn't matter to me." I barely managed to say without going into a fit of coughing. I felt weak.

How long have I been soul diving for...?

Akita shook her head as Zeyphr moved the curtains surrounding the bed to enter.

"Is there a problem?" He asked concerned. He had a purple dress shirt on this time along with a large silver watch. He had changed his clothes. Why? On the corner of his mouth I saw blood and I averted my eyes.

Before I soul dived I heard a loud bang and an incredible roar. That wouldn't have been Zeyphr...

Right?

"I'm not budging on this Hero." Akita said sourly. "I'm not letting you see Nikai in this state."

"Nikai." I repeated. It was as if the name alone brought an overflow of memories that weren't mine. Memories that were her's. And they all had a sense of pain embedded deep within them. I needed to know if I saved her from it. From her pain.

From her past.

"You are not to leave this room until the wound on your leg is healed." Zeyphr stated, moving aside the curtains for Akita to pass through.

"Wait!" I cried out, startling them both. They turned back at me confused and I grabbed the folds of my jeans that had been ripped to treat my leg. "You... you both have been together for years, right?" They looked at each other and back at me. "Then you understand the importance of trust. The bonds that ties the both of you together are reinforced by your feelings of trust in each other."

"You're wrong." Zeyphr said softly, his steely blue eyes covered by his long white eyelashes when Akita's hand found his. "It's not just trust. It's love."

"Love?" I repeated surprisied. "But Linc-"

"Most likely told you that so you would be able to give her power as a Dragon, without having you being tied to her emotionally." Akita remarked. "He did the same to me."

"She told me that we needed trust in each other to survive. To grow." I said, my hands trembling. I clenched my of fist and looked up at them, an ignited determination born within my eyes. "If it's love, then it's even more reason for you both to let me go to her. You both wouldn't like to be held apart the moment you wake up from a horrible nightmare. You'd want comfort. And right now, I want to be there for Linc when she wakes up, if she ever does." Akita watched my unsure and made a defeated sigh. Zeyphr walked over to me, picking up my body. "Hey, what are you-"

"You can't walk, right?" He said as he carried me. I felt uncomfortable but nodded. He turned to face Akita and she moved the curtain.

"Follow me." She said. Zeyphr followed her figure out of the hidden infirmary and back up the stairs. This time, we walked in the opposite direction of the library and made a left, unveiling a hallway of rooms. Akita walked to the last room that was parallel to no other and opened the door using a key that was around her neck. Slowly unlocking it, she opened the door a large room. In it's center was a bed covered in veils and Zeyphr quietly walked through the door with me in his arms.

The closer he walked to the bed, the louder the soft beeping noise could be heard. Akita walked ahead and moved the veils aside to unveil Linc, bandaged and motionless. Her pale body was wrapped in bandages from her neck down but besides that I assumed she was naked underneath the hospital sheets.

Zeyphr laid me down next to her and my heart continued to shatter. The beep was still on, but whether that meant she was still stuck inside or simply unconscious made me go insane. I grabbed her hand and Akita placed a hand on my shoulder.

"Don't try it Hero. I'm not saying this to keep you apart, but to keep you alive. Your mind was under serious assault while you were in her mind. Whether you realize it or not, if you dive into Nikai's mind it may finish you off."

I gulped at Akita's words and looked back at Linc. The idea that I would never see her rare smiles, her common frowns, the way her tail mischievously moved whenever she was content or the beautiful melody of a laugh tore me apart. Finally, I felt overwhelmed and grabbed her shoulders.

"Linc." I cried, my tears wetting her ears. Akita and Zeyphr stepped back and I saw them hold each others hand. "Linc... don't do this to me. Don't leave me. I... I... I hated you at first. You came into my life and everything changed. The last time my life changed was when my sister Danny died. I was scared. I was lied to. I was alone. But you changed me. Before I knew it, I was happier. I looked forward to seeing you everyday. Whenever I think about you my heart gets heavy and I just don't know what to do. I'm sorry for saying all the cruel things I've said to you this past month. I didn't mean them! So Linc, please... don't leave me here. Don't die..."

I felt cold hands wrap themselves around my back and Akita gasp. "You idiot." Linc whispered. I moved back to look at her and she smiled at me teary eyed before pulling me in to kiss my forehead. "I'm a Dragon. There's no way I'd stay dead from something as trivial as this." Her hug tightened and my tears fell on her as we bumped foreheads. "After all, I have you to save me... my Hero."