1 Prologue

Chink!

A carpet of red spurted out uniformly from a luxuriously dressed young man as a blade pierced through his mail and mixed up his insides. The youth's countenance paled as he glance down at the blade that had exited through his chest for he had recognized it. It was the treasured sword of his closest friend who he had grown up with. As his life was slowly coming to an end, his mind was not on the excruciating pain but instead on the black haired youth holding the blade.

"Why?" He asked without turning around.

The black haired youth simply looked down at him, his eyes pure without trace of guilt or sadness.

" And why, would I tell you?"

A slight smirk surfaced on his chiseled face as he turned away, not wanting to look upon the gory mess he himself had created. He was determined to not let this event affect his mind as he had a much more difficult task ahead of him. Step by step, the previous events grew further and further away until it was just a bit until it was out of reach. Yet he as he passed by a willow tree slowly swaying in the wind while, he suddenly paused. The willow and tall grass swayed with the breeze casting a melancholic tone upon the scene. Yet what broke the scene was a barely audible cough.

"I'm still alive, I won't go that easily you know?" The pale youth finally spoke up in a croak.

Receiving no response he assumed that the black haired youth had left. With the remaining bits of his energy, he took out a rustic old pendant and stared upon it one last time as he laid upon the blood matted grass. On the pendent, his own name was engraved with somewhat rough yet nostalgic craftsmanship along with his family name. His hand brushed over the letters as he suddenly felt as that even his own name was very foreign. 'Reno, just what does it mean? What had my name been inspired by?'

As he stared at it, he felt that he knew truly very little about himself. Because of his sickly constitution and his parent's early passing, he never had the chance to get to know himself. Perhaps under the influence of blood loss, he finally began seeing flashbacks. From his infantile self, to the passing of his parents when he was four to his death at a tender age of sixteen. 'so this is what its like to have your life flash before your eyes huh?' As memories played themselves out in no particular order, Reno gave a melancholic sigh. Although it was nice to see his friends again for one last time, it also brought to surface the scars left behind by their betrayal. He had put too much trust into the strength of their relationship. He had not even noticed the clear signs of warning they had passively sent him. As the flashback ended, Reno lamented over the meager length of it. A mere 16 years he had lived. Even with his constitution, he was supposed to live until 20. 'Yet to think, my life would end even before they predicted.. Ha, had I known, I would've went out to explore the world instead of spending all my time researching. To think that all my research will go to waste without even having been applied once..' As he laid there in despair, he suddenly felt that since he was to die anyways, he may as well release his pent up complaints to the world.

"When I was just 3 I was diagnosed with a terminal illness that prevents me from living past 20. At 4, my parents died in an accident. From then on, I dedicated all my time to researching my disease. Throughout this period, I met all sorts of amazing people, many of whom I thought of as close friends. Today, on the day of my death, I finally find that all my research was for naught and I was alone all along. If the world just wants to toy with my feelings then maybe its actually better I die now."

As the soliloquy ended, so had his life force. Blood had already formed a river streaming down, pooling , congealing and seeping into the soil. 'Even at the end of my life I'm still throwing a tantrum' He smiled in self-derision as his eyelids closed one final time .Time seemed to freeze for an moment as a final breath was released. Still standing behind the willow tree the black haired youth slowly but firmly walked over. As he reached the body of his closest friend and kin, trembling, he knelt down and placed his hand on the still warm body.

As Reno Lycius's last strand of consciousness faded away, he seemed to have heard one last poignant whisper.

"Sorry"