Live, Alena (Luctus Academy)

Chapter 14

"Does your father know about this?"  I couldn't move. You again, Rene. It was you again. Suddenly, a memory of that night I heard them talking went vivid. Ang sikip sa dibdib.

"Come on, stop acting already and lead me the way to the palace. The poor stupid queen is dead. She was too easy to handle." the monster's laugh filled the woods, kasabay ng mga nagwawalang kulog at kidlat.

He didn't talk. My heart was filled with hatred and anger... and disappointment. I regretted doubting him. I thought it would be easy for me to accept his betrayal but I was wrong. Because I expected. I hated to admit this but I expected. I hoped.

I gasped for air. My chest tightened when the thunder faded and the forest fell into silence again. I watched how the monster went back to my soldier's shape and walked towards Mozart who was just standing there. His body was unreadable again. His eyes were fixed on my fake body. He must be happy to see me dead.

"She was too weak for a queen. No wonder a bastard killed the member who caused the epidemic for her. She couldn't even fight on her own—" and that signaled me to attack. I was on my way to kill them both when I saw how Mozart suddenly stabbed the monster. He was mad... and mourning looking at my clone. He was readable again.

I felt how the monster's heartbeat went slow but before it could stop, I teleported and appeared behind him. "HEAL!" I shouted. The monster was quick to get to his own shape but I was quicker enough to envelop him with branches of manchineel tree. I grabbed one of the blades of Mozart scattered on the floor. His tattoo was underneath his skin but couldn't escape my sense of sight. I stabbed the part of his chest where the tattoo was hiding as I casted a raging demon's fire on the blade.

The forest that was filled with his laugh a while ago was now filled with his begging squeals. Galit na galit ako. Gigil na gigil. I wasn't content to see him die like that so I exerted a number of sharp manchineel branches and casted another raging fire on all of it as I motioned it towards his heart.

The monster faded into ashes. Napaluhod ako sa sahig habang kusang naglalabasan ang mga luhang ang tagal ko nang pinipigilan.

I screamed on top of my lungs. The silent woods was now devoured by my ballistic miserable bawls. My beloved trees, the plants, the flowers, everything I loved was surrounding me but I couldn't help but destroy all of it. The large trees were falling one by one while the plants were dying.

I felt Mozart's hand held my shoulder but I slapped it away. "Don't touch me!" I shouted between my cry.

I saw how angry he was. I saw how adamant he was to protect me. I saw how bad he wanted to kill that bastard as he stared at my dead body. I saw how he mourned for me. I saw it all.

But the fact that my enemy's soldiers knew him, the fact that the monster asked him for the way to my palace, the fact the he is my enemy's son... it hurt.

It hurts like hell. It makes me mad.

I knew it from the very beginning. That I should hate him. That he was my enemy. I knew it all to myself. I expected this to happen but why was I still disappointed?

"Listen to me." he said as he motioned me to face him.  His voice was pleading and he was trying to hold me but all I did was slap him away. This was the first time that he became so transparent and I hated it.

But I hated myself more because I wanted to listen. It pained me to see the look in his eyes. Lalo lang akong naiiyak. Lalo akong nanlulumo kaya mas pinili kong pumikit.

"I was that rose you were pertaining to, wasn't I? I was that stupid rose, right? The deceitful one? The rose that was loved by many despite the danger I might've caused?"