Chapter 6 - Chapter 6

A couple of days passed and the time came for Sarah’s personal audience with her brother.
“I suppose you know rumors that a ghost has been seen roaming around the palace.” Sid started as he paced around the room. He liked to pace it helped him think, it was why the carpet in his office was so worn down. “I see… those rumors have floated all the way here…” Sarah sighed taking a seat, folding one leg over the other and resting her hands in her lap. “Yes, I am afraid to say that gossip indeed flies farther and faster than one would like to imagine. It is also said that said ghost is responsible for the sudden change that has come over mother. Is there any truth to these allegations?” Sid inquired looking over to his sister as he made yet another lap. “I can’t say for sure that these rumors are correct, but I have noticed some differences in mother’s behavior. I have also caught quick glimpses of a strange man skulking around the palace. Whether the two are connected and whether this person is spirit or not is beyond my knowledge.” Sarah informed him taking note of the formal speech she used. She still has a way to go before she sounded like an average person, but that didn’t really matter now… now that her journey was over. “I see…” Sid said growing quiet as he was thrown further into through.
The room was quiet as Sid finally took a seat next to his sister. He had his head lowered in thought. “Brother?” Sarah whispered breaking the silence. He looked over at her, his brown eyes gleaming over his glasses as they slid slightly down the bridge of his nose. “What is all this really about? Why did you go through so much trouble to bring me here?” She added. He sat there, quiet for a moment as he attempted to formulate an answer, then with a sigh he pushed his glasses back into place and started his explanation. “I have to admit, these rumors did play a part in this, though I have yet decided how big of a role. There is danger rising, everyone can feel the tension in the air, their instincts driving them to hide like beasts. It wasn’t long ago when I was walking through town and came upon an old seer. She spoke of a great evil foretelling that a war between the elements would soon begin. As much as I would like to toss her words aside as insane babble, I must heed her warning for I too sense the peril. Though we could probably protect ourselves with ease due to our advanced technology, we have always relied on Zandoria for our defenses. In fact I would say we are dependent on Zandoria for their army since we don’t have one of our own. But suddenly Mother has all but tossed us aside with this new change in demeanor. She is blind to the danger. That is why I wanted you out of there. I believe it may be better here where we are aware of the danger. But then there is the matter of the people of Anvalia. They are on edge fearing that when the time comes Zandoria will not send out their forces leaving us defenseless. Thus-” “You hired Kyla to put the people at ease.” Sarah interrupted giving Sid a break from his long explanation. He nodded.
Sarah understood what he was saying, but something troubled her: why didn’t she sense the danger? Was it because she was being sheltered by her mother or was she just that naive? “But what will you do if battle does break out and mother’s forces never come? As you said Anvalia has no planned military.” She inquired. “Well… We’ll just have to do our best to fight back and have hope. The seer also told of heroes of multiple lands joining together to combat the evil.” He told her. She nodded letting him know that she heard him. Things went quiet between them as they both fell into thought.
Can we really put so much trust in the words of a seer? Kyla has visions that she describes as “worthless.” Are there any differences between her visions and a seer’s prophecy? Although… when it all comes down to it… if a great evil were to rise would it really matter? Can anyone do anything about it? And more importantly is there any place that would be safe?”

Time continued to pass. No matter how much they looked Felix was still nowhere to be seen. Sarah spent the time when she was alone out on the balcony overlooking the city, hoping to catch a glimpse of one of her friends. For the next few days that followed her conversation with Sid, Kyla spent most of her time with Sarah keeping her entertained with stories. Kyla laughed merrily from behind her happy mask, but suddenly Sarah was starting to see things differently. For the first time she glimpsed the frightened pup in Kyla, the frightened pup that was seeking shelter from the upcoming storm but had nowhere to go. It was then that Sarah realized that danger was real and Kyla felt it.

The day that Kyla was preparing for had finally come. She took care to memorize all of her notes. There were so many possible things she could have done: a play, a song, a plain out motivational speech, but she chose to do a story. All she hoped for was that she would get the correct message through and that he would hear it. She was hoping to kill two birds with one stone she may never get this chance again. The whole city was to attend; even Sarah was allowed to escape the factory.
“Hey are you ok?” Domon asked bringing her a glass of water. He noticed that her hands we shaking and that her legs wobbled when she walked. “Yeah… just a little stage fright, no big deal, I thrive off the fear lets me know I’m still sane.” She said smiling at him. He blushed slightly as he handed her the glass of water. “Thanks.” She whispered gulping it down. She handed him back the glass and started to stretch. Only 3 minutes before I go on… She noted doing a mental countdown. Did Sarah get here ok?” She asked rotating her shoulders trying to loosen them up. “Yeah I walked with them here. She and everyone else is sitting in the reserved section with Sid.” He told her. She smiled. Two more minutes… She told herself as she closed her eyes and opened her mind doing a metal search of the area. She sifted through the crowd’s thoughts before she managed to find her friends Rain, Rikku, Britt were using their mental powers to send her their good mojo. She wanted to search for him but she was running out of time. 1 minute left. She realized. Why didn’t I think of searching for him earlier? She scolded herself then turned to Domon. “Well you’re about to go on.” He sighed “Hey can I have a hug for luck?” She requested. 40 seconds left… Domon quickly wrapped his arms around her and held her close, she was still trembling. He could tell she had something else on her mind and he had a pretty good idea what… or should he say who it was. Those last few seconds ticked by quickly to his dismay. It was time for her to go. He wanted to say something to her, something comforting, so words of luck, but nothing would form. All he managed was a shy smile as he released her. She smiled back as she quickly made her way to the stage. “I better find a seat…” He whispered forcing his way through the crowds hoping that Rain and Rikku left him a seat.
Kyla walked out to the center of the stage waving as a few people cheered for her. Her stage fright had vanishing leaving her only with the jittery feeling due to the adrenaline. Taking in a deep breath and giving a broad smile she began her monologue, moving her hands and walking around the stage slightly as she talked.
“Hello everyone, a few of you may know me but to those who don’t my name is Kyla. I do a bit of everything really, but we’re not here to learn about me. Instead I am here to promote something very valuable, especially during dark times… hope. I’m not going to give a long dull emotional speech, instead I am going to share a little story, and hopefully it won’t fall into either of those categories.
“A long time ago there was a boy, an orphan wondering the wild. He was young and lacked the abilities to survive on his own. It was then he met a girl, she helped him, built him up to be able to survive on his own. One day the time came and the girl had to leave him but she promised she would come back. Time passed without her returning and more than a year went by. During the time frame the boy grew tired of waiting for her and he went to live life on his own. Finally the girl came back, it took her years due to multiple incidents along the way, but she did come back only to find that the boy wasn’t where she left him. After that the girl went on a hunt for the boy she wanted to keep her promise but above all she wanted to say ‘I’m sorry.’ She wanted more than anything to apologize for abandoning him in the first place.
“Now I know everyone is probably wondering what this has to do with hope, but think about what the girl is searching for. If you think about it the boy was hope unable to live at first without someone to believe in him but she helped him grow. Then she abandoned it only to come back and find it wasn’t where she left it. Hope will not wait for you, you have to find it on your own, and when the time is right you will find it, just like one day the girl will find the boy as long as she keeps searching and never gives up on him. The boy is her hope that she is sorry for leaving for so long. Many things may happen that will try and prevent you from believing in hope but please never give up on it.
“My name is Kyla and I hope you enjoyed and were able to draw something out of this message.” She finished and bowed deeply before leaving the stage. She got backstage and listened to the crowds the applauded but she couldn’t tell if it was because the enjoyed it or if it was out of courtesy, and she was afraid to listen to their thoughts and learn the true answer to that. Domon pushed through the crowds to find her pacing. He walked up to her and was about to congratulate her on a job well done when she turned to him worriedly. “I should have sung… Everything is always magically solved by song. That’s what I should have done.”She ranted second guessing herself. “Stop beating yourself up, you did perfectly fine.” Domon said gripping her shoulders tightly. “You really think so?” She whimpered looking up at him. “Y-y-y-yeah.” He stuttered blushing as he quickly released her. Domon… thanks… She said to herself as she took his hand in hers. A chill ran up his spin as his face turned completely red. “Come on lets go join the others.” She suggested. He gulped and nodded as he led her through the crowds. They went up to their friends who congratulated her and began chatting merrily. She laughed along with them as she opened her mind once more. She didn’t have time to do a mental sweep of the area but she was going to send out a message and hope that he heard it. She didn’t care if anyone else heard it; if they did they would probably disregard it as a snippet from a conversation close by. If only it will get to him. “I’m sorry…”

Felix stood there leaning against the wall. There was no way he was going to skip this event and miss seeing the little beast make a complete fool of herself. But the thing was… she didn’t. In fact the story she told struck a nerve with him. He knew the story well though the boy being hope and the girl chasing it was an interesting twist. He let out a sigh as he continued to think about how she told the story. Was there a hidden message in there? Yeah he’s not that stupid, but did she mean it… Another sigh escaped his lips as he ran his fingers through his hair. “I’m sorry…” He jumped as those words were close enough to be whispered in his ear. He instantly recognized it as the kid’s voice, but she was nowhere to be seen. Was this just his imagination? Or was it another one of her tricks? He was able to hear so much sorrow and sincerity in her voice it was more than just a trick. It was her going out of her way to apologize to him, and this time there was no mistake that she meant it.
Felix continued to think this through there was so much he had to wrap his mind around, but one question remained: Would he forgive her?

You are not authorized to comment here. Your must be registered and logged in to comment