Chapter 29: Memories (2)
STEP
STEP
STEP
The sound of footsteps echoed through the corridors of an empty library.
"Youths these days are completely lost!" an old voice complained to its own echo resonating through the air. "How has the sacred judgment become so trivial that such young beings can do whatever they want with it... I really don't understand!"
The old man ran a hand through his gray hair.
"More than that... why would Miss Brigid allow such infractions...? I really hope the boy manages to handle it; it would be terrible if his story ended this way."
The man paused for a second and sighed lightly.
"Well... in any case, don't... hm?"
His gaze shifted to one of the shelves.
"What do we have here?"
And his hand reached out to pick up one of the books.
"I don't remember you... this is... interesting." The old man furrowed the wrinkles on his forehead. "I, Hakim, should remember every book in this library, except those that will be insignificant to the history of this world, but I don't remember you... what is a book like this doing here..."
It was a short book of no more than a hundred pages. Turning the book's cover, the man read aloud the title it illustrated.
"Tales of the Secret Blood... might be an interesting read to entertain my thoughts..."
And so, Hakim opened its first page.
Tales of the Secret Blood
Chapter 1: The Beginning
A millionth of a second ago in the time of the universe, two girls met amidst poverty and loneliness. They lived in a village south of Anpýrgio, one of the largest cities in Erebus. Quickly, these two young girls became inseparable friends; one was large and gentle, like a giant plush toy. The other was small and strong, like a stressed raccoon. Both girls survived through petty thefts and hunger.
There is no job for such small children that doesn't cost their sanity and dignity. The soul sisters were aware of this and vowed never to surrender to the abyss of despair; they knew once in that place, there is no return. All they did were small thefts to try to satisfy their hunger.
What is hunger?
Hunger has hundreds of forms, tastes, colors, and memories. Hunger can be dry, wet, yellow like sand, black, or green like a plague; it can taste like dirt, mold, or have no taste at all. It can be a closing of the eyes, a regurgitation of the throat, a scream of agony, and sometimes... a thread of false hope. However, in all its forms, one factor always remains the same. Hunger is, above all, painful.
For these two girls, however, hunger was warm, tasted of iron, and was ruby-colored... not that they had ever seen such a gem, but that's what they heard and repeated. "Blood is the color of ruby." Therefore, "Hunger looks like blood. It is as warm as blood, tastes like blood, has the color of blood, and whenever it is there, it is accompanied by it."
And so, they lived, always inseparable, always hungry, always hurt, always fighting, always... surviving.
The younger sister was more agile, smarter, and more capable. Despite being smaller and weaker, she always took care of her large and gentle friend. The big human plush was a comfort, bringing peace and hope to the little girl. Such a thing was not to be discarded when one had nothing. She would always protect her so that this sweet soul would never disappear.
When your mind and stomach are empty, your head starts begging for a distraction. Among all the children and teenagers living on the streets, the big and gentle girl was the easiest target for these distractions. Every time her sister left her side, the torment would return, a torment never retaliated against. The little one would always appear furious, injured, either to beat up the boys tormenting her friend's gentle spirit or to steal some food to share once she returned. One way or another, both tasted blood; one way or another, both suffered from hunger.
One day, however, the orphans in the village grew tired of losing to the little girl. When the younger sister left the giant alone again, they dragged her away; as someone said, "A violent game one day becomes pure violence."
When she returned, all she found were signs of what had happened, and following these signs, she ran. After some time, she finally found her sister, a bit hurt but okay.
"Run... please... run," the older sister mumbled.
BAM
But before she could react, the little girl was hit on the head with a piece of wood and fell to the ground. The rowdy orphans laughed at the girl on the ground just before they gathered and began to vent their daily frustrations on her malnourished body.
"Stop... please, stop!" cried the older sister, yet all she received in return were laughs".
"What are you going to do, you retard? Cover your eyes and cry again?" And they resumed hitting.
That was when the big girl's mind went blank.
"AH, LET ME GO!"
"GET AWAY FROM ME!"
"YOU MONSTER!"
Screams of terror escaped the alleys. The blood that once signified hunger now soaked the arid ground. The bodies that had their limbs thrown into the air, and their heads torn apart by giant hands fertilized it, and the despair of those who screamed for help seeded it.
All this, witnessed by the nearly closed eye resting on the ground, a window to a mind overwhelmed by pure fear and terror of what it had just seen.
"A giant," she thought, "She will kill me, I have to run," she thought, "My body won't move, someone, please!" And when silence took over the alley, the monster approached the girl on the ground, and with its large hands, the giant lifted her.
Unable to move or scream, the girl just finished what the swelling in her eye was already trying to do and closed it. Waiting for death, drops of a liquid fell on her face and trickled to her lips.
"Blood," she thought, it was warm... but it didn't taste like iron, her eye opened again, and what she saw wasn't ruby-colored, it had no color at all.
SOB
SOB
SOB
The monster, which gradually shrank in size, held her like a baby and cried on her face. The girl's vision stunned her thoughts, and for a second, she felt disgusted with herself; for the first time, she felt contempt for her thoughts and actions.
"I am a disgrace as a sister."
She had failed. Failed by causing such a gentle and good soul to dirty its hands so much. Failed by feeling afraid of someone who always loved her. Failed by thinking that same person would harm her. And most of all, failed by accepting what she thought would be her own death.
"When she regains consciousness, how will Irmin feel when she finds out what she did? I can't allow this."
Returning to her normal size, the big girl fell unconscious on the ground as if she had exhausted every drop of her energy. Surprisingly, the little one was the first to get up; with superhuman willpower, she used every particle of her strength to erase the traces, tore off rags that weren't soaked from the bodies, and used them to clean the blood from her sister's body. When not even her willpower was enough to keep her standing, she lay on the ground in the alley beside her and finally passed out.
"Selene! Selene!"
A voice woke the unconscious girl.
"Ir...min?"
"What happened here? And you...?"
"Are you... okay?"
Irmin began to cry desperately.
"What do you mean!? Of course, I'm fine! I don't remember exactly what happened, but I'm sure you protected me! I'm perfectly fine!"
Selene's lip trembled. With all the effort of her being, she had managed to keep her sister sane; she desperately wanted to shout about it.
"People are coming here. I'll get you out of here, okay?"
And so, carrying Selene, both left the village, never to return.
End of Chapter 1
Hakim closed the book as soon as he finished reading the first pages.
"Strange, I finally remembered the entire content. This definitely shouldn't be here..."
Turning and flipping the book's cover, the old man tried to think of why the library would change the shelf where the book was kept.
"Well, in any case, all I have to do is wait to see the result; the continuation is being written right now..." Hakim smiled. "What other surprises will this work bring me...?"
In the deep pupils of the Librarian, two pairs of eyes were reflected, incredulous gazes staring at a scene in disbelief.
"LI!" shouted Selene and Irmin.
The beginning of the bridge was completely destroyed, making it impossible for anyone else to pass through there. In the other side, Jihan stared at the two with a smile that said, "Trust me".