1 Despair

"Ash!"

"Ash!"

A man could be seen kneeling on the ground and shaking an extremely pale and slender girl on the floor while he cried out.

The girl was nude from the waist down while blood was everywhere, leaves were padded underneath her for maximum comfort, but she couldn't be comforted at all right now, or ever.

The man shook and called out her name repeatedly, he seemed to be in denial but he never got a response.

"ASH!" "ASH!" "ASH!" "ASH!"

"Ashlynn..."

Faint crying noises could be heard but he didn't seem to care, his hand grabbed the dainty shoulders of the pale, cold, beautiful, but lifeless young girl on the floor.

This can't be happening...Ash can't be dead..the man could be heard muttering to himself but halted.

It was like his vision blurred as he entered some sort of weird state...

He couldn't hear the faint crying noises, the beasts lurking in the shadows, the birds chirping in the wilderness, or the wind casually blowing the leaves around, even his own rapidly beating heartbeat stilled as his senses shut down.

His eyes looked dull as he stared at her dead body, his mind completely stopped, the love of his life gone...gone forever...his eyes and sclera turned pitch black...the world started spinning faster, dark clouds and rain manifested out of nowhere.

Many miles away people gathered around to witness the strange scene taking place, a few wise seniors had a look of disbelief on their faces as they witnessed the dark clouds gathering, and the blue and sorrowful rain trickling down, they recalled ancient records while it became eerily quiet.

"I-Is th-that the First of the Nine Legendary Intents?"

"Despair Intent" Another senior's eyes shined with brilliance as he looked on from far away.

"Who was lucky or unlucky enough to awaken Despair Intent in the Wilderness Trials?"

"If he doesn't control himself the despair will eat him alive."

The rain seemed to pour harder and harder like tears of someone who just loss everything, the rain of despair was now viscous enough to kill anyone in its vicinity like it had its own soul and wanted them to experience even more pain than its master was feeling.

The trickles turned into strikes, the rain started to kill the beasts lurking in the wilderness and wildly bombard their own master who was kneeling, bringing him even-further into despair, until a wail, a damn wail seemed to flick the forehead of the man on his knees and awaken him as he recovered his senses.

His eyes darted toward the culprit of the wail who had no idea what was going on.

The man's eyes returned to his original stormy grey and blue color as he stared at the one who was crying not because of their deep-seated emotions but because it was natural for those who were just born, the man's very being seemed to return back to normal as he snapped out of the elusive death of despair.

The deadly rain abruptly stopped and the dark clouds began to disperse.

He took a deep breath as he realized he almost really loss everything, himself, and the creation of his love.

The sound of the nascent girl's eery but weirdly irresistible wail that seemed to pull in all attention from the surroundings continued as she cried in her dreary mothers embrace, it was like she could tell that her mother was frigid and stiff, nothing like what a newborn should be greeted with when coming into this world.

It all happened so suddenly, one second they were walking hand in hand happily as ever, the next, Ashlynn started going into labor.

The man looked toward the tiny baby, the cause of everything...if she would have never been born then...

No

I can't blame her.

He looked toward the crying newborn girl and slowly stood up, tears stained his eyes and cheeks but he quickly wiped them away.

He didn't want his daughter to see him crying.

He knelt over and pried her away from her lifeless mother's and his lover's pale cold arms and hands, the umbilical cord detaching by itself.

"Come up"

The man's voice could be heard now, but it was slightly immature for a father like it came from a 14 or 15-year-old boy.

He picked up the tiny figure, ripped off half of his shirt and wrapped her up in it, he couldn't help but admire her, she had similar stormy blue eyes and looked just as beautiful as her mother, she was shining like the starry night even in this incomparably gloomy atmosphere.

He held his daughter over his broad shoulder and patted her back to try and ease her crying, tears couldn't help falling from his own eyes as he made sure his daughter couldn't see him.

He stared at Ashlynn on the floor and sang with a heavenly soothing voice.

Hush little baby don't be sad...

Father doesn't blame you and isn't mad...

However, Father can't state you as his daughter...

Or the whole continent will attempt to slaughter...

Once you get older we will know one another...

For now, you are my little sister and I'm your brother...

Zero, the young man's name, finished the lullaby as he kissed his daughter's elegant little forehead, the song seemed to have worked because she wasn't crying anymore, dozing off into a deep sleep.