(Flashback) Whispered Words (Alice)

[Blythe]

1 Summer, 505 AV

It was a rather warm summer night. The moon was high in the sky, a slim silver crescent, smiling down upon all of Mura. Blythe looked up at it, flashing a radiant smile, although, she doubted it was anywhere near as radiant as the one the sky seemed to be giving her. The stars were many, and sparkling like little tiny candles.

A cool summer breeze swept in the subtle scent of the sea, the sound of the crashing waves, which Blythe could scarcely make out beneath night's dark blanket. She was walking slowly, along the shoreline. Breathing in the scent of the sea, tasting the salt of it on her lips.

As she walked, Blythe kicked up little clods of cold, wet sand behind her, surely leaving little dents in the areas which she had recently stepped, as opposed to visible footmarks, but that would be just before the sea swept them away into its dark depths. But Blythe didn't dwell long on that fact, she was too busy admiring the stars, how beautiful the night was, how praceful it seemed, and how so very alive she felt.

Blythe felt so very very awake, so very happy, and she knew, somewhere inside, she knew, that she wasn't about to go home anytime soon.

As the breeze swept over her once more, Blythe inhaled the deep scent of salt and sea. She closed her eyes, allowing the smell to wash over her, and her senses, allowing her feet to seep into the dark sand at her feet, to move into the small cracks between her larger toes, and her toenails.

Blythe opened her eyes, and looked up at the sky. The stars were still sparkling, deciding that she wanted a better look, and for her body to rest, Blythe walked up the beach a few paces, and then some, so that she was standing on cool, dry sand, that clung to her feet, now that they had been wet by the sea. But Blythe didn't mind, she could always wash it off later.

Blythe sat down, her legs stretched down in front of her, her arms behind her, supporting her stance, as she peered up at the sky, trying to discern shapes and constellations, something her sister Mist had told her about, and obsessed over in her early years, but unlike her sister, Blythe wasn't interested in such things. She simply liked admiring them, although, at this stage of her life, a part of her, however small, did regret not listening a bit more to her sister, because she would have liked to be able to point to a section of the stars today, or one day in the future, and say, "that one is so and so constellation."

Oh well, she thought, as she brushed the thought off with a subtle shake of her shoulders. No need to dwell on such things she thought, as she looked up at the night sky for a long long time, the occasional firefly lighting up and then disappearing, and then appearing again farther along on the beach. She smiled, she remembered how her and her sisters used to love catching them in jars, and watching them light up, before her mother would scold them, saying that they kept them from their families, and that they should let them go. Reluctantly, Briar would always be the one to open the jar and set them free into the night.

Blythe smiled, closed her eyes, what a pleasant memory, one of the few she chose to remember from her earlier years.

Blythe leaned back, she was now lying in the sand, her blonde hair proving to be a poor cushion from the cold and hard sand that snaked its way between her strands. She'd have to wash it she thought, after she finished enjoying this.

Blythe looked up at the sky again, her hands resting on her chest, her back flat against the ground, the sound of the waves crashing, and the occasional cricket filling her ears. She was simply intoxicated by it all. Blissful, smiling, radiantly up at the sky, swatting playfully on occasion at a passing firefly, before falling away into a deep slumber, falling away from reality and into the dream realm, into a very beautiful dream.

In her dream, Blythe was sitting in a field of wheat. The wheat was a biege-gold color, and was swaying softly in the wind, giving a sort of ripple effect. It danced back and forth, and towered over her sitting form, which simply sat and smiled sweetly up at it.

It was strange to say, that the wheat entranced her, made her feel strangely at peace, as she sat there, watching a pale blue butterfly flutter overhead, as it chose to take wing, as opposed to allowing its fragile form to rest. It's so sad how nothing seems to allow itself to rest, Blythe thought, as she stared at the butterfly, which soon fluttered out of view, before returning to staring at the wheat, allowing it to hypnotize her once more.

And as she sat, and allowed this to happen, Blythe was certain that she had heard a woman's voice, "who's there?" she called, as she stood up, looking wildly around her, her hands weaving in-between wheat stalks, they felt flimsy to the touch, and like straw. But Blythe didn't see anyone, "hello?" she said again, still looking around, wondering if the voice she had heard was simply part of her imagination, but hoping that it wasn't, for the voice was intoxicating in a way, and rather alluring. Sweet like honey, a woman's voice, and as melodious as the most gifted of song birds.

OOCHey Alice, for the purposes of this thread, just assume that anything Blythe says in her dream, she says out loud. She can talk in her sleep...

[Alice]

Just one night after the Watchtower had flared from green to yellow, a little girl decided to take a walk outside. In fact, she could be seen roaming the wilderness of Konti Isle quite often, around the outskirts of Mura. It seemed that her mother didn’t care where she was or what she did, for the girl could often be seen talking to different people. She was the kind of person everyone had already seen once or twice on the street, but nobody could add a name to. A real person she certainly was, but an individual as elusive as the light summer breeze.

That night, she decided to go on a different route, one she didn’t use often. For some unknown reason – unknown to others, that is – she avoided water. Never did she come near Silver Lake or take a walk at the coast. Perhaps she didn’t like water as much. Or her family possessed underwater rooms, so she had no need for swimming in the ocean. However, she was walking in the sand now for a particular purpose: following another Konti. She knew her name, where she lived and had even heard about that incident some time ago. In Mura, which was a close-knit community like a village on the countryside, open secrets, rumors and gossip were common. People liked chatting about their neighbors. Konti probably did even more, given their love for epic tales.

Following Blythe wasn’t hard, since the other Konti moved pretty carelessly and without paying attention to her surroundings. The girl moved with greater care, trying not to make any noise in the darkness. Still, she had the time and will to playfully step into Blythe’s footprints in the sand just before they were erased by the tides.

When Blythe stopped, so did the girl, but still the older one didn’t appear suspicious. Exhaling softly, the nameless girl stepped back and found shelter in the high grass, where the sand was replaced by earth and a small hill formed. In the shadow the girl continued observing the Konti sitting in the sand. As soon as she lied down and her chest started rising and sinking evenly, she abandoned her hiding place to approach the sleeping figure.

Meanwhile, Blythe had arrived at her dream location, a field of ripe wheat under the summer sun. The pale golden wheat heads, just a little lighter on Konti Isle than everywhere else, were swaying in a light breeze, forming strange patterns if looked at from above, and waves upon waves from where Blythe sat. It truly was a peaceful image. And adding to the serenity and harmony was a distant voice. First it was nothing more but a whisper, swaying back and forth with the wheat. However, it wasn’t simply a voice. When listening to it, Blythe would find that it sounded like any Konti voice, but at the same time it sounded like all Konti voices. It seemed to be more than a simple voice ...

When Blythe rose and spoke up, the voice paused for a while. Only when the Konti stopped speaking and focused on listening, she’d hear it again, and nearer this time. As her head turned into various directions, she discovered that the voice was clearest to her left.

It didn’t simply utter words anymore; instead it had dissolved into a slow, sweet melody, a little song. Blythe could understand words and phrases every now and then. “Let me watch you, let me guide you, let me care for you, my child ...”

[Blythe]

Blythe looked around uneasily through the field of wheat. No matter how quickly her eyes darted from left to right, and from up to down, she couldn't see anyone. Yet, if she tried hard enough, and took the time to listen, there was certainly a voice that whispered to her through the wheat. A voice that appeared to have no source.

Growing more and more anxious, and slightly distraught, Blythe's palms began to sweat and felt both cold, and clammy, her eyelids began to feel heavy, and sticky with sweat, and her heart was starting to pound in her chest like a drum. "Who's there?" Blythe called one last time, as she whipped her head around, flipping her short blonde hair, and turning to face what lay to her left as opposed to the right. Still, Blythe couldn't see anyone or hear anything, except for the distant echo of her own voice, being carried farther and farther into the distance by the soft whistling wind that existed in her dream world.

Then suddenly, a new wave of soft, melodious words reached Blythe's ears, they sounded almost like a song, “let me watch you, let me guide you, let me care for you, my child ...”

Blythe's lavender-colored eyes grew wide, and she looked up at the sky, the voice seemed to be coming from up there. "Hello?" Blythe whispered, as she looked up, hoping to discover the person she was conversing with; but finding nothing.

Blythe was saddened by this, a single tear falling down the side of her face, she was starting to feel a little crazy, talking to someone or something she couldn't see. Talking to something that she didn't know, not knowing if it was even real. Perhaps she was imagining it all? Perhaps it was all some sort of trick that her mind was playing on her. A delusion? A hallucination?

Blythe covered her ears with her hands, tilting her head down, and looking at her feet. "Laaalalalalaalalalala not listening!" she cried as she shut her eyes so tightly it furrowed her brow, and formed tiny creases and wrinkles along her pale-skinned face.

Yet, as Blythe tried to shut the melodious voice out of her mind, with all of her might, she couldn't help but be drawn back to it, at least, in thought. What had she meant by "my child?" Blythe wondered, knowing that the voice wasn't her mother's... knowing that no one could ever care for her or love her, or guide her like her mother and her family, which left her with the thought: is my life a lie? Is my mother not my mother? Is this mysterious VOICE the voice of the one who created me?

[Alice]

The voice didn't seem to react to Blythe's actions at all. When she called out, it didn't answer. It simply sang and sang and sang, coming from the same direction. The tone was kept low. The melody wandered up and down in soft variation and harmony. Obviously that person in her dream stayed in the same place. They either didn't care for Blythe or waited for her to make the first step and approach them.

Even when Blythe pretended not to listen, the voice continued. It rose and fell like the waves the wind cut into the sea of grass. Everything was in soft motion. Blythe almost felt like the unmoving center, the eye of a subtle storm. But why would she be the only constant aspect of her dream? The other constant factor was the voice's location. If she paid more attention to it, Blythe would find it strangely familiar, although she was sure she hadn't heard it before in her entire life. There was a quality that sounded distinctly Kontinese, apart from the language of course. Blythe and the other person were the essence of her dream. No matter how long she tried to ignore it, she couldn't make it shut up or disappear.

As Blythe tried to figure out who the hidden owner of the voice was, the melody changed. It was a subtle change, yet the song's character completely changed. The overall theme remained soothing and peaceful, but an underlying tone of danger and doubt was woven into it. Between words that told about a child that must be cared for, an innocent being and young life, the voice vibrated with an unknown threat. The song and the dream world wasn't made of harmony and peace anymore.

The warning was directed towards Blythe.

“Child, innocent dove, let's stay together”, the voice sang. “For danger lurks out in the night of the unknown lands, and danger lurks in the heart you pretend to know.” Blythe could understand more words now, although there were still parts sung with an entirely foreign spelling. Perhaps it was another language, perhaps an ancient form of a language she knew. After all, the feeling of familiarity was still present, and even grew stronger with every word she understood.

It seemed like the voice was calling out to her, with words and tone.

[Blythe]

"Who are you and who are you asking me to look after?" Blythe called up and into the sky, as she ran in the direction the voice was coming from. Her arms were swinging back and forth with each step, each time her right foot moved forward, her right hand was propelled forward. Each time her left foot moved forward, her left hand swung forward too. Her hands were balled into tiny fists, and her heart was pounding in her tiny rib cage as her eyes glanced wildly around her, up at the sky, still searching for something other than the voice. Something far more tangible.

Blythe's eyes were wide and her throat felt dry. As though she had worked it too hard of late, and was starting to close up on her, to give up. Her chest felt strangely tight, and she found that she was having a more and more difficult time breathing. Her breath was becoming more and more shallow, closer together, but harder to take in, harder to expel, and it never seemed like it was enough. Pretty soon, Blythe feared that she would be breathless, that, or she would simply collapse face-first into the field of swaying beige wheat that surrounded her.

Blythe started to slow down, willing her body to begin to relax, and to breathe. She still, however, continued to glance wildly around her and to shout, "What... what are you saying? Why are you warning me? What are you warning me about? Why can't you just speak openly? Less cryptically, and tell me what it is that troubles you directly? If something dangerous is lurking in Mura, I should like to know, that way, hopefully it may be stopped, or at least, avoided."

Blythe came to a dead halt. She couldn't run anymore, her legs having grown stiff, her body nearly breathless. And although her heart was just beginning to calm down, it wasn't enough to counter the fact that she was rather out of shape, and simply could not go on anymore. There would be no more chasing the mysterious and highly elusive voice. If the voice wanted to make itself known, if it truly wanted to speak to her, the voice would have to come to Blythe.

[Alice]

Moderator Plot Notes

The wheat crops parted for her, although their whispering followed Blythe wherever she went. As if a shadow silently walked behind her, the noise emerged when she moved and decreased when she stood still. Of course, the wind was still blowing, but in dreams nature didn’t always play to the rules the dreamer was used to. Blythe ran and ran and ran through the field, here and there like a rabbit trying to escape the raptor above its head. Did she try to escape the voice by outrunning it?

No, it continued singing in a language Blythe didn’t understand. The exotic melody caused her to feel slightly delirious, adding to her shortness of breath. Even for her questions, quite loud and ungainly they were by the way, it didn’t provide any answers.

And just when Blythe stopped, the wind came from behind her, blew strands of hair into her face and parted the sea of wheat in front of her. Hints of blue and shimmering scales were visible. Just for a moment, she caught a glimpse of the mysterious singer, until the wheat moved back into place and the breeze was gone. Silence covered her ears like water. Then the whoosh of the wind filled the field again. Was Zulrav playing with her, aiding the voice and its owner sitting between the wheat crops?

Then the voice spoke, in a lilting tone, but not quite singing anymore. “You can save us, Blythe.” Nothing more, nothing less was revealed. The owner of the voice, probably a Konti judging from the blue and white of their appearance, was patient enough. The danger didn’t concern them. But Blythe was connected to Mura, and thus she would care about the fate of her sisters. That was the crucial point. Of course, the voice was filled with hope and an opportunity, enough for Blythe to believe that she could really do something. She could help if she only tried hard enough.

And the wind continued to sing in the wheat and play with Blythe’s hair, tug at her clothes.

[Blythe]

"Save you from what?" Blythe called, unable to mask the alarm she felt in her voice. It was wavering slightly at the ends, and growing quieter and quieter as she neared the end of her sentences. "Who is trying to hurt you?" Blythe added, "or do you need to be saved from yourselves?" she asked, not knowing why she was asking, although, for some reason, it seemed relevant to the situation she had found herself in.

"How are you hurting yourself?" Blythe asked. "How are they hurting you? And what can I do to stop it? To help?" Blythe cried as she clutched her head in her hands and shut her eyes tightly. Her face was scrunched, her brow furrowed, and she were holding it as though she had a headache. The voice seemed to be growing louder and louder. At first it seemed to be just a whisper, and then shouts. But ever since she had started listening, the voice seemed to grow more and more pained. More frantic, and louder, and louder. It was as though the voice were deriving strength from the fact that Blythe was listening. Answering.

"You can help us," it called. "You can save us. All you have to do..." The voice always trailed off when it was about to tell her what to do. Always, or so it seemed. "What to do want me to do?" Blythe screamed as she clutched her hair between her fingertips, slowly sliding her hands down to cup her ears tightly, trying to block out the sound.

"All you have to do..." it called.

"What! What? What on earth do you want?" Blythe cried out in pain. The voice, although sweet in sound, was speaking so loudly that it felt as though it were making Blythe's ears bleed. "Just tell me what I need to do, and consider it done," Blythe called, "please..." she said as her voice was carried away by the wind. She were begging the voice now. The sun-colored hair she saw. It must be one of her sisters. Although she didn't recognize the features or the voice. But even so, the cry for help was not one Blythe was willing to ignore.

"Just tell me what to do," Blythe whispered, a single tear trickling down the side of her cheek as she held her head, the wind whipping her clothes wildly around her. "Just tell me, whatever it is," Blythe said with a loud sob. "You can trust me with your secrets. Your pain."

Blythe was rambling at this point. She was unsure of how she truly felt. For she knew that her fear, and her discomfort from the loud nature of the voice was merely a mask for something else. Perhaps excitement. Perhaps longing, pity or sorrow. Blythe could not be certain. But whatever it was, the feeling was holed up deeply within her, unable to show itself. Thus, Blythe was left with muddied and generally confused thoughts, that hardly seemed to string themselves together. Everything within her was a jumbled mess, and now, she merely spoke whatever came to the forefront of her mind. Mainly her fear, her endless line of questions. Her desire for the voice that seemed to be whispering, and shouting, and calling to her all at once to quiet down.

"Just tell me what you want," Blythe whispered into the wind, "please," she added, as a single tear fell off the tip of her chin.

OOCSlightly repetitive, and makes my pc seem psycho. Ahh the life of the Konti.

[Alice]

The voice rose and fell with the wind, whispering its secrets into the breeze so that Blythe didn’t understand the last part. Several times it repeated a single sentence, again and again. “All you have to do ...” To Blythe, it felt as if the purpose of her meeting with the other Konti was slipping from her hands, like smoke she tried to catch, but couldn’t. Catching smoke was impossible, after all.

But then something changed. The melodic quality of the voice died off and it seemed to hesitate for a moment. Was Blythe the right one for that task? Of all Konti, the voice had chosen her. Had it been the right decision, considering her personality, considering her history? Only time would tell.

Suddenly Blythe wasn’t alone anymore. The glimpses of white disappeared. At the same time a person manifested in front of Blythe, out of thin air. The person was naked, with scales running up and down the lower half of her body, and featuring a few on her forehead. They shimmered white and pink in Syna’s light. Short white hair was dancing around the person’s face, and eyes the color of Blythe’s examined her. After the initial shock Blythe would realize that the person was an exact copy of herself. The fact that her entire body was exposed to the light left no doubt. Blythe knew her own body well enough and her opponent looked exactly like her. She would even feel the presence of a gnosis mark on the other one, her other self, and she’d know that it was located on her right shoulder blade.

The person chuckled a little. “Being overwhelmed with confusion won’t help you, my dear.” Her voice was soft and caring, but also featured a steely edge. Then she straightened and regarded Blythe with a stern look. That person looked like her, but what she said and how she moved indicated that her personality was much different from how Blythe perceived herself.

“Anyway, there is something I must ask you to do. It is very important that you do it as soon as possible, right after you wake up would be best. I have seen the future ... a terrible omen. Something will happen soon, a bad turn of events for Mura. Many things are not like they seem. I must warn you: It sounds terrible, and cruel, but remember that one has to make a difference between life – you – and the shadow of life – me. Everyone has a shadow. The future, however, will see one of those shadows become a problem for Mura. The first step will be taken tomorrow. I believe that you will be able to stop the development before it gets out of control.” Although there was no proof, the other Konti’s words radiated a strange intensity. Blythe would notice an underlying, albeit faint tone of warmth. The person cared about Blythe and was worried about the future at the same time. The decision had been made, but the inner struggle remained.

Suddenly the Konti grabbed Blythe by her shoulders. Her touch felt eerily familiar, but also somewhat comforting. “You are the only one who can do it. Please, Blythe, promise me that you’re going to do it. For your sisters. No, do it for yourself.”

The wind still played with their hair. A strand was blown over Blythe’s eyes, but the other person, her mirror image, gently put it back behind Blythe’s ear. “Blythe, you must kill the Konti child that will be born tomorrow morning.” She hesitated, waiting for an answer, almost begging Blythe to say yes.

[Blythe]

"What do I have to do?" Blythe shouted one last time as the voice started to quiet down again, to whisper to her. It made her feel as though she had been crazy for shouting. Far too distressed, and that her actions had been out of line. Slowly, Blythe lowered her hands, drawing long lines of blonde hair between her fingertips as her hands slid down the side of her face, caressing the tip of her chin, before dropping to her sides.

When she looked up at from her hands again, Blythe noticed that there was a naked woman standing before her. Definitely a Konti, the scales gave it away. The way they shimmered in the sunlight. The blonde hair. Lavender eyes. All distinctly Konti. But this wasn't just any Konti. It was her. But how could that be? Blythe wondered, as she stared at the woman intently, trying not to let her mouth hang open too much. But she was probably failing miserably at that.

"But how do you expect me not to be?" Blythe questioned, taking a step closer to her other self, and then another. Soon enough, she found herself standing only inches away from her shadow self. The two were standing so closely together that Blythe could feel the woman's breath on her face. Could sense an invisible line of heat radiating from her body.

The two were standing eye to eye, but even so, Blythe found that she couldn't bring herself to believe that the other figure was real. She had to be a figment of her imagination, a dream of some sort, a hallucination. But just to be sure that she was, or even, that she wasn't imagining her other self, Blythe raised her right hand. She curled her fingers so that her hand was cupped, and pressed the back of her hand into the woman's face. Lightly. Blythe's skin seemed to tingle as the two touched. An inner heat seemed to be radiating from the woman's skin. As though she had been in the sun too long. Her skin felt strangely soft, like a baby's skin, and it was rather smooth despite the scales that lined her face. The woman was definitely real, Blythe though as she slowly lowered her hand. The movement seemed soft, delicate, much like each of the woman's facial features. But unlike her feature's and Blythe's own voice, the woman's voice had a rather sharp edge. A large contrast between the woman's features and the more feminine aspects of the woman's voice.

"At least I have a pretty shadow," Blythe commented absently, as she looked down at the ground. It was the first time she had looked away from her shadow self. "But, I don't know why you'd come to me with your request. I'm not a very powerful person. I know nothing of magic, or weapons. Little of medicine, and only a fair amount about the cards, and the goddess, and how the world seems to work." Blythe paused for a moment, as if considering her words. "Nonetheless, you have come to me for a reason, and thus, I shall do my best to help you, and avoid whatever catastrophe you have seen."

Suddenly, the woman's hands shot out and grabbed Blythe by her shoulders. She seemed to be shaking her a bit. Pulling her closer. Doing her best to get Blythe's attention, and to keep it. Blythe looked up at her again. The two had locked eyes. The woman's seemed to be burning with an inner intensity that reminded Blythe of a roaring flame. Blythe's eyes, on the other hand, were wide, and the edges seemed to be lined with fear. She must have looked like a doe who had just caught sight of the being who was hunting it.

The woman's nails seemed to be digging into Blythe's shoulder blades. Slowly but steadily sinking deeper and deeper into her flesh. Blythe gulped. "I'll do whatever you ask of me," Blythe said, "I promise." Of course, she had no idea what she was getting herself into. And when the woman's request slipped its way in-between her ears, and swirled around in her mind, Blythe's heart sank. It seemed to stop beating for a few seconds. Her palms had grown sweaty, and her eyelids felt sweaty and sticky. Her legs were trembling slightly, and felt as though they were just about to give out.

"The only one..." Blythe's voice trailed off. Her heart had begun to beat again. At first, it skipped a large number of beats, but soon enough, she found that it was beginning to drum rapidly in her chest. Faster and faster. So fast that she feared it may explode. Trepidation had seeped its way into her chest, and was slowly wrapping itself around Blythe's heart. From time to time, it would reach its hand out and stroke the side of her heart, and then, grab it. Hold it in its hands so tightly, that Blythe could barely breath. She knew she was at the mercy of her emotions. The fear that was slowly consuming her.

Blythe was at the mercy of her shadow self. The person she had made a promise to, without knowing what the promise would be. How could a being ask her to do such a terrible thing?

"Kill... a child... a baby..." Blythe's voice trailed off. She was in complete and utter shock. Her of all people? The one Konti who longed for a child more than anything else in the world, would have to rip a baby out of her loving mother's hands and end it's life? Blythe shuddered. That was asking too much. Asking her to do the unspeakable. Asking her to destroy her own hope and dreams, everything she stood for. Asking her to inflict the same pain she had endured when her own daughter had died upon another. Surely Blythe could do no such thing.

A large clump seemed to form in Blythe's throat, making it nearly impossible to speak. Let alone clearly. "If you really are a part of me," Blythe began in a whisper, "than you know that I am not made to destroy life. You know that I am not made to be destruction. You know that I have no experience with weapons. That I don't own one. You'd know that I would never so much as consider doing such things, no matter what is at stake." Blythe paused for a moment as her throat grew too dry to speak. She swallowed what little remained of her saliva a few times over until she regained her voice. "Surely you don't expect me to do this? Please tell me this is some sick, and cruel joke, something that has been carried too far. Something that was never intended for my ears."

Blythe looked down at her feet again. She didn't want to look at her shadow self anymore. Her shadow self both scared her and disgusted her. "But I did promise..." Blythe said, as her voice was lost in the tiny space in-between their bodies.

Blythe's head was hung, and she felt utterly defeated. She was silently praying to Avalis that it was all a joke, and if it wasn't that her goddess would forgive her if for some strange reason, Blythe managed to go through with it.

OOCI hope this isn't too confusing.

[Alice]

Her shadow self curled her lips into a tender smile as Blythe asked for the reason. “You have been chosen because of your past. The events have shaped you into the person you are today. Because of that, only you of all Konti are able to do what I ask of you. We are one.” So that should mean that everything her shadow self wished for was also Blythe’s wish? They were similar, but in many aspects the shadow Blythe seemed to be more self-confident, more comfortable in her own skin. She didn’t question, didn’t hesitate. She had already decided which way she’d go. Probably it was her future self. But then, why had they suddenly met at such an odd time?

But Blythe already promised. As soon as the words fell from her lips, the wind picked up again, tugging at her hair and covering her face with it. Both of their faces. The shadow Blythe reached out and tucked Blythe’s hair back behind her ears, and then did the same with her own. The touch was entirely familiar, exactly mirroring how Blythe would have done it. She had promised. Her shadow self first blinked with surprise and then smiled broadly.

The promise had been made. Still the words lay heavy on the two versions of the same person.

The shadow self felt Blythe trembling and the burning curiosity that had driven her to ask fading. Her determination was gone. As the wind howled around them and sent waves through the wheat field, the shadow self felt her influence diminishing. She had to do something about that. The biggest difference between her and the present Blythe was that the latter didn’t know the entire truth – so she had to eliminate that difference.

Gently shaking her head, she squeezed Blythe’s shoulder to get her attention. “No, listen. Listen to me! It seems like an impossible thing to do, especially for you, and I understand that. How could I not? I’m you. I’ve gone through the same pain, the same consuming doubt and sting of jealousy. Don’t expect me to not know what you feel when you’re alone. No, trust me, it’s not as terrible as it seems. I told you there were real bodies and there were shadows. I’m your shadow. I’m your ideal self. But what if the shadows overtook the real bodies? That’d be a total chaos. Nobody would know who was real and who was a shadow.” She paused, letting the information sink in.

Then she continued explaining. “Now, what is so important about that? Shadows are ideal, but they don’t know anything about reality. Mizahar is not suited for the existence of shadows. They work like malfunctions, like broken mechanisms. The worst case scenario would be a second Valterrian!” Her eyes widened at the thought. Blythe’s cooperation was extremely important. “That is why we, the race of seers, have the power to eliminate the possibility as soon as it is created. The baby will be a shadow without a real self. It’ll be no real Konti, Blythe! And I promise you nobody will realize what you have done; you will not be a murderer!” Her speech was fast and hurried now. She was trying to get her point across as convincingly as possible.

“But Avalis will remember what you have done. I know the truth because I’m your shadow. Trust me, Blythe. Please, trust me and go.”