Alma 135 Depature

Gross neglect. Nothing else could best describe how the current situation had developed.

The world was on a trajectory toward ruin because Reed had forsaken his responsibilities. Reed mistakenly thought that by not doing anything, by removing himself out of the world's affairs, he would have spared it another disaster, but...

In reality, he had created another one. Doing nothing was a choice in itself, too.

And within every choice, existed a consequence. Thus, the blame fell upon Reed.

Had Reed listened to him even once, it could have all taken care of much earlier, back when the infection had been relatively minor. It would have only required a minor amount of effort on his part and the problem could have been resolved with a week's time.

But now, the future appeared uncertain for Mulia. The symptoms that they had told Reed were soon to manifest.

He now understood why the earthquake had happened. It was because of him.

"...At first, I thought he blamed me for their deaths because I had not been fast enough, strong enough to save them. Blamed me for not having used my power to save them, when I had the opportunity to have done so.

That was what I'd thought he meant. I had stupidly forsaken my responsibility to use the power I'd been given for its intended purpose. Thought only of myself, even before you."

Reed took a deep breath and said, "But I was wrong. There's so much at stake that I can no longer keep running away. Make no mistake, though. I still abhor this... cursed destiny and the power it has granted me, but that I can't use that as an excuse to hide away anymore.

If I cannot do what I have been entrusted to do, then the sun will never rise for us again. Neither will it rise for them, either. And that is something I cannot tolerate.

I will... not claim to be enlightened. To be some sort of... super-man who can just drop everything for the whole world; dedicate myself to an ideal that I know I will never be able to reach..."

It was getting harder for him to get the words out, but Reed pressed on despite his fears. A small spark of courage within Reed would not let him run away.

He promised to Lu'um that he would be Honest, that they not share secrets, for they were seeds of doubt and mistrust. Even so, it was a very, very difficult thing to do...

"Even now, I don't feel like I'll ever be capable of doing that. I'm no great hero of myth, nor will I ever aspire to be one. There's no point in trying to be something I'm not.

...I'm going to be myself. And for me, that means protecting the world so the people I care about can rest easy. I'll take care of this world on my own terms."

There was something about him that she couldn't figure out. What had happened to him in the span of the hour that he'd suddenly disappeared? It was as if someone completely different had returned wearing his skin.

It was his eyes. They'd become like gems with how they shined now. She'd gotten completely lost within them like a fool. There was a strange, invisible glow around him that made her feel... strange.

To put it simply, she felt jittery. Butterflies tumbled around in her stomach as she fidgeted around somewhat nervously. It felt like her heart was about to blow a gasket, given how hard it seemed to be thumping in her ears.

"....But that's enough of me for tonight. I'm sure that you've heard enough of my prattling," said Reed.

"H-Huh? O-Oh, right! Don't worry about me, I'll be fine!" said Lu'um.

Reed scratched his head and said, "Uh, okay? Well, I'm glad you're fine. You also did a pretty great job of protecting the town from what I saw, too."

Thanks to Lu'um's efforts, the city sustained a minimal amount of damage overall. Some people sustained minor injuries, but not a single person had died at the end of the day.

That was a cause for celebration, as far as Reed was concerned. His fuck up didn't kill anyone this time, which was more than he could've asked for. Of course, there were other, more pressing issues that'd come along with the disaster today.

For one, Reed and Lu'um had undoubtedly blown their cover. Perhaps not completely, but there was no denying it anymore.

The people of Cem-Elle now knew that there were Chosen in their town today. Were the intruders who'd damaged their town one of them, or had they been passerby? Where had they gone after the thunderstorm mysteriously vanished? What had been their purpose in coming to a backwoods place like Cem-Elle?

A flurry of questions were now on the tongues of the townspeople, who'd been deeply traumatized by the event.

They hadn't blown their cover yet, but a single mistake all it'd take to ruin it now. Reed was positively sure that it wouldn't be long before Chosen arrived in the town to inspect the place and search for clues.

Shit...! And this is right on the heels of that clean-up job Lu'um did on that island a couple of weeks ago. This only going to make things harder for us, goddammit!

A young couple from Cem-Elle visited Mardiemus a month ago and around the same time, an important place to the South had been destroyed by some unknown Chosen...

And now, a month later, a sudden disturbance occurred right around when the couple returned back to Cem-Elle, a town in the middle of nowhere?

Reed groaned and said, "I don't think we're going to be able to stick around here for long, Sweetcheeks. Maybe tonight, at best. But after that, it'll be too risky.

We're gonna have to leave as quickly as possible. In fact, we might as well start packing now."

Lu'um looked at Reed with a forlorn expression and sighed.

"I was about to tell you the exact same thing too, dear. It seems we're both of the same mind."

Reed bitterly stared at the bakery and said, "We'll take what we need and close up the bakery. I'm really sorry about this. It's my fault. Hopefully, we'll be able to come back here one day under better circumstances..."

"No... it's okay. I knew that one day, it'd end. I'm just a little sad that the day's finally arrived..."

It was time to leave. They couldn't stay anymore, even if they wanted to.

Before they left though, they paid one last visit to Hartford's house.

Reed smiled when he saw that it was still standing. Completely intact aside from a couple of strewn roses that'd been blown off their bushes. From the look of it, the house had faired pretty well. Even their windows had survived intact.

It looks like they were pretty lucky, huh. No, perhaps it was a hidden blessing for all the good they've done. That'd make more sense.

When Reed knocked on their door, he heard a muffled, "Coming!" on the other side.

Old Man Hartford opened the door with a confused expression and said, "Sonny? It's almost ten o'clock! What are you doing here, eh? Come to finally deliver me the good news?!"

Reed laughed from the bottom of his heart. The old man never seemed to change, no matter what life threw at him. It seemed as if he hadn't even cared about the fact that there'd been an incredibly dangerous fight not too long ago.

What a fearless old man... I swear, it's like he's got a spine made of steel or something...

"No, Gramps, it ain't about! Look, Lu'um and I are... gonna go on an adventure, you see. We've gotten tired of the slow life, and after hearing about all of your incredible exploits, we've decided to journey around the world a bit.

You know, to properly live out our youth. Best to not waste our years out on the pasture yet, right?"

Old Man Hartford stroked his and said, "That's a pretty smart decision there, sonny. I was hoping you'd finally realize that there's more to life than the simple pleasures. Well, make sure to call us whenever you feel like it, you hear! Don't be strangers, alright?!"

Missus Hartford walked over to the front of the house when she realized that Reed and Lu'um had come to visit and said, "Oh? What a surprise?! Are the two you okay?! That hubbub outside was quite the spectacle, don't you think? What have the two you of come here for, sweeties?"

Chapter end

Report