Ever since he spoke with Shuri, he'd found it hard to sleep. He believed she was the highest level of strength in this world. But from what she insinuated, there were beings far, far stronger than her, monsters that would make his fight with that monster seem like a play.
If that was the case, then…what were the odds of his parents still being alive?
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|DxD|- Chapter 11- I'm Here
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'Do not trust the Fallen. Do not trust the Devil. Do not trust the Angel. Their lies know no bounds. Their deceit is a craft they've honed for millennia. Hold my words dear, boy. The moment you are understood is the moment you are owned. Remember that always.'
Igor had long since lost track of how long he'd been standing on the balcony. The moon was beautiful tonight. It curved like a sickle polished to perfection. He had asked himself question after question while gazing at it.
Where were his parents? Marcei said he would understand everything by sunset, yet three days had passed since that very sunset. And grandpa Tallus? He said he'd know everything once he defeated the monster. But he was more confused than before.
He was told to kill the monster. He did so. He was told to not trust the Fallen Angels, Angels, and Devils. He hasn't revealed any information even towards his savior. But for the first time, he began to ask himself. Could he trust his grandfather and Marcei?
[They lied to me.]
His fists clenched and his teeth locked together. The wind blew apart the strands of hair, revealing cold blue eyes rippling with anger. He fulfilled his side of the promise, yet they didn't fulfill theirs.
"..."
His eyes veered from the moon to the forest before him. The sea of green expanded far beyond the midnight mist. His gaze narrowed. He didn't know where he and that monster fought. There were no landmarks to speak of in this forest.
Heavy breaths escaped through his rows of teeth. He wanted answers and the wait was eating him inside. Maybe he'd find something if he went back to the site. The chances were laughably low, but it was better than wasting away with this itch.
He turned around and peeled back the curtain. A glance at the clock told him it was one in the morning. He had four hours to come back. Igor let the curtains fall like the finale to his choice. Searching with his nose would be much better than with his eyes. Just catching a whiff of blood would be enough.
His grip on the railing tightened. The tiles felt cold beneath his feet. The wind was like a gentle hand pushing against his chest, quietly begging him to reconsider. But all he'd been doing was thinking. The momentary peace gave him plenty of time to think, to question everything he thought he believed. The tears, the pleading, the promises—were they all a lie to use him? Then what for?
He looked below at the cut grass. A jump from this height could break an ankle, but something in him, an instinctive feeling, told him he could survive the fall.
He was not one for hesitation…not anymore. He vaulted over the railing and landed on the ground. There was a faint thump when his heels struck, but nothing more. The fall of several metres felt no different from jumping up and down on the spot.
He jogged towards the fence and cleared it in one leap. He landed on the other side. His feet slid on the wet grass, painting his soles with a shade of green.
After that, he paused. There was a sense of trepidation, a feeling of 'what if' crawling its way into his mind like a parasite. What if there were more monsters? What if his parents were dead? Maybe he'd find their corpses?
The feeling of not knowing crumpled his chest into a fistful of doubt. The midnight wind felt as cold to his skin as the hope in his heart. But there was a flicker, a candle fighting to stay lit. As long as there was a single percent of hope, he'd take it. Anything to find closure. Five years was too long to not see them.
Fists clenched with resolve. His figure blurred the moment he took the first step. He vanished into the dense foliage and darkness enveloped his figure. Perhaps this wasn't the best path, but one way or another, he will find answers.
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|DxD|
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The depths of the forest were unnervingly dark. The branches cast a wide net on top like a cloud of leaves. One could barely see beyond their hand or even a silhouette.
Igor made his way through the dark. His eyes and enhanced senses gave him a picture of his surroundings. He sped around the trees like an agile jaguar. The wind whipped past his ears and leaf litter was crushed beneath his feet.
The times he stopped were to take in the air. To sense the world through his nose was a new feeling unlike any other, yet he could understand it. There were many scents to take in. There were illusory trails he could follow. Some led up the trees where the birds nested. Others led underground. Most pointed to wildlife.
He had learned to differentiate between animals through their unique scents. There were times when he smelled blood and bile. It was always from predators who made kills. He'd speed past just fast enough to startle them, but not be seen.
His new strength made it so he never tired. His muscles brimmed with vitality and his bones were hardened with endurance. The passage of time had only aided his adaptation. He got used to the tight spaces and twisting turns between trees which allowed him to pump more speed.
While the forest was indeed dense, there were large areas where trunks were spaced enough for him to properly sprint past. A small dust trail would form behind him like rising sand. If he kept this pace, maybe there was hope he'd cover the whole forest.
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|DxD|
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[Where is it?]
Igor wasn't sure how much time had passed, but it should've been more than an hour. There was a trace of anxiousness, but it had yet to replace the anticipation and hope. He didn't care for any secrets or mysteries. He only wanted to find a clue about his parents.
The northernmost edge of the forest was combed completely. Its end was marked by a stretch of road. Igor had run to the farthest edge and searched from the perimeter. He combed the edges until the scent of tar was no more and was replaced by river and wet stone.
The minutes continued like this until they blurred into hours. Through this whole time, Igor was determined and focused, but as the moon shifted in the horizon and the darkness retreated, he was losing hope.
He still paced across the forest floor. His pants were drenched in sweat from his exertion. Each time he stopped, steam would waft from his body. His yawns were growing closer in intervals.
He was getting very tired. He'd been pushing himself without stopping for a long time and his speed had fallen. His eyes remained clear, but his body was weakening.
He continued to search. He had to find a clue. He had to find something. Maybe his parents would be there. Maybe they'd left a note or at least something! The desire for even a scrap of information forced him to rush on even when his body pleaded for rest.
He searched, but he never found that familiar set of trees. His hope was steadily eroded and gradually, lapses of time began to appear.
The darkness had faded into a deep shade of blue. It was enough for a normal person to see silhouettes. Igor could barely notice the time. The vital energy in his body had dimmed under hours of exertion.
He was tired, so tired he forgot to search. He would find himself having travelled several hundred metres yet not recalling when. He didn't know which direction he was heading to anymore. Only that he must search for answers.
The minutes dragged and dragged. His pants had torn from the times he crashed into trees. Each forced stop made it harder to move, like trying to push a boulder uphill. His speed was dropping and without the wind, the sweat piled on his eyebrows and soon pooled in his eyes.
He'd run for so long he lost all feeling in his legs and soon, he collapsed on the forest floor. His body tumbled and skidded, kicking up plumes of dust and rotting leaves. His momentum was stopped when he hit his back against a tree with a thump.
Faded leaves fell loose and old branches cluttered around him like raindrops. His body slumped and his head drooped. This time, he did not get up.
[Why…]
His body remained unmoving like a fallen soldier. His will, his determination, his beliefs—everything had fallen.
'You want answers. I understand and sympathize with you. You will receive them before today's sunset. You have my word. The only premise, is that you survive, because only on the premise you survive can I divulge everything.'
They lied to him.
'Your parents…your parents are waiting for you, Igor. If you can survive, you will see them. But you have to survive, okay? Promise grandpa you will survive.'
They looked him in the eye and lied to him. The man who called himself his grandfather deceived him. He fought for his life and did everything right. He survived. He did what he was told. He did not question nor did he cry. He endured and finally, he pulled through.
So…where? Where were his answers? Where was the honest truth? Where were…his mother and father?
*Drip…drip…*
His fingers dug into the dirt and litter. He grit his teeth as he tried to feel angry. He should feel angry, yet he could not summon the faintest trace of anger. His hair cast a shadow over his eyes. From that shadow, two lines of clear tears flowed down his cheeks like a steady stream.
He endured five years of solitude…for this? He didn't care anymore. He didn't need to know about that grey world. He didn't care to know why he was taken anymore. All he wanted were his parents…the very people whose faces he'd forgotten.
"Father…"
A choked sob escaped him. His face was like a painting with a blank face, but he would never forget those huge hands that always ruffled his hair. He was tall, taller than anyone he'd seen. His biggest joy came from riding on his father's shoulders, and it was taken from him.
"M-Mother…"
The tears gushed. All he remembered was a beautiful woman with long blonde hair. She would hum until he fell asleep and cover his ears when there was a thunderstorm. Her face was something he could not recall no matter how hard he tried.
Every fibre of his being was urging him to rage, to lash out and curse the world. He wanted to scream and let instinct take over. But the fire in him had burnt to its last embers. His drive had been scraped clean by the weight of the supernatural world.
Now, he was no different from a puppet with cut strings. The sun would soon peek over the horizon. The time had already passed five and Shuri would wake up soon.
But so what? What did it matter anyway if she found him gone? If his own grandfather could lie, then Shuri could too. Maybe she'd just use him like they did. That talk of being there for him was definitely a lie. There's no way she'd accept him in such a short time.
"I'm alone…"
In this world of strange people and beasts, he was on his own. Someone like him would be used sooner or later, and they'll be worse than that monster. Maybe…maybe it was better if he went back to that grey world.
"I don't…want to be alone anymore…"
His eyes grew heavy. His hand reached out. Through his blurring vision, he saw a figure approaching him slowly. Maybe it was one of those beasts like the monster he fought. A trace of fighting spirit flickered, but it faded just as quickly. It was fine. Maybe once he woke up, he'd be put out of his misery…if he ever did wake up. He couldn't find himself to care anymore.
"Please..."
Tears pooled in his eyes like a curtain. There was a gripping fear in his heart. His breath hitched at the thought of pain, but he no longer wanted to live like this…not anymore. He was tired of enduring.
"...make it stop."
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AN: I…have no words. This is a bit intense for me.
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Chapter 11
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