-The next day-
Location: Soarele blestemat, Boys' room
ΦHearing the footsteps pattering around me, rapidly I open both of my eyes, and in front of me, I see Iancu reaching out his hand for help in front of me.
Shocking me awake, I say, "Iancu!" Taking a good look at him, I see Orb is bear-hugging him, and I ask, "Wh-h-hat are yo-ou doing?"
"He came back home last night and has been bear-hugging me since he arrived. You need to kill him, you need to kill him right now."
With a face full of sadness, Orb says, "It's your family I feel like this. It's because I met you in Elpída, I ended up here. Take responsibility."
"I WILL DROWN YOU!"
"STOP BEING A BULLY!"
As Iancu tries to break Orb's tight grip, I merely hold my hands in the air over them and panic, before I say, "No fighting!" And push my body in between them, both breaking them apart.
Orb holds onto me as sad as ever, and walking beside the bed, Dumnorix, with Abbán on his shoulders, both dressed in red, look down at me, and without even saying a word, he smiles and goes on his way.
That look he gave is something I could never mistake, because it is the only expression I remember on my parents' faces. Is this really the best you can do, Cyrus? A question I was always asked, but one I was never able to surpass.
Orb, putting his tail on my chest, says, "Don't be sad, Cyrus."
As the child comforts me, I tighten my facial expression as much as I can, then I say, "I won't."
ΦBoth Orb and Iancu's eyes become locked on the sad expression throughout Cyrus's face, and Orb hugs him tighter to try and send his happiness to Cyrus.
But Iancu, while completely avoiding eye contact, says, "Punching Orb in his face is a really easy way to make you feel better about every aspect of life."
"Hey!"
"It's true, though."
Maple, appearing at the side of the bed in a red dress, says, "I second that."
Orb turns his head towards her and then giggles, saying, "You look so fancy? Looks like a perfect princess, the hunter of predasaurs has finally awakened. All hail Ma-."
She decks Orb in the face, stopping him from finishing his boasts, and then turning to Cyrus and Iancu, she says, "Are you guys going to get dressed?"
"Dressed?" Cyrus says.
Iancu, putting his hand to his face, says, "I cannot believe I forgot. It is the second last day of Radonitsa, today is when we bury all of the bodies of the nightmares."
Hoping up, Orb says, "Really? I didn't know? This makes sense why Dragoste looked so busy the night before."
Maple, staring at Orb with a smile, says, "Did you're outing go well?"
Nodding excitedly, Orb says, "It really did. We have really grown so close, I feel like I have become his friend somewhat."
"Nice to hear. Though don-."
"It's almost like we are siblings."
"Huh?"
"Maybe he might end up seeing me as Captivant's adopted son, and will enjoy my company so much that he will ask me to do something like taking on the Nightfall last name. Or maybe he might make me have his daughter's hand in marriage so I might become a nightfall, and would end up his son. Could you imagine?"
Maple, staring at him, with disgust says, "I hope you enjoy being a nightfall then."
Orb, seeing the anger hiding behind the disgust, grabs her from behind, and spinning her around in the air, he says, "Even if I ever become a nightfall, I will keep the Rian. Because I have this cute little family here."
Standing in the doorway, another presence emerges that says, "Oh, don't fall for his sweet words. This whore doesn't care for any form of commitment or decency."
All of their eyes quickly fall on Elia, standing in the hallway with her big red eyes open that looking at Orb with a cold fury, they shake all of their souls.
"Orb, what did you do to her?"
Looking away and at the ground, he says, "You know that whole marrying Viata was a joke, right. I am a funny guy, I make jokes."
Elia walks up to Orb, and a bright smile appears on her face as she says, "As if I would care in the slightest. Though understand, the quickest way into an early grave is to send multiple women mixed signals. Because you know our woman brains can already complicate simple information, I wonder how they would handle contradicting ones."
Her expression was that of an angel, but both Orb and Maple shook in fear as they saw it.
Turning to Iancu, she says, "It's time to put on the clothes I bought for you, my little man!"
"I brought my open clothes to wear for this."
"I burned them."
"You what?"
Putting her finger on his lips, she says, "I am not going to let you where that uncoordinated trash to the Purificare. So I bought you and everyone else new clothes."
"I won't wear them!"
"Or yes you will, because I am going to make you!"
Elia grabs Iancu by his face and says, "It's time to get naked!"
"Let go of me, you freak!"
Both of them start a furious battle in front of the other tree, and Maple says, "I thought Iancu and Suzuka's fights were bad, but this one is just a step above that. Maybe they should share the name Twinflame."
"You hear that, my little brother. Looks like we are Twinflames."
"Like I said before, you're not my sister! You cooked chicken."
Elia's fist tightened, and she says, "You didn't just call me a cooked chicken."
Her rage soars, and Iancu says, "That's in no way the worst thing. I called you, and it's what sets you off!"
Orb, Maple, and Cyrus quickly leave the room as the bloodlust leaking off Elia becomes too strong for any of them to remain for even a second longer.
Walking into the hallway, they all take a deep breath, then press forward, and turning her head towards Orb, Maple says, "Oh yeah, I almost forgot. Hey Orb, I am going to need you to talk to Suzuka."
"What for?"
Putting her hand against her face, Suzuka says, "Where do I even begin?"
-Break-
Location: Girl's room
Gheorghe, Wadim, Ivana, Dumnorix, Abbán, Willow, and Avram all sit in a room dressed fully in red, with Suzuka standing right in front of Avram with her body bowed. The air in the room is tense, and a stressed look hangs on Avram's face.
"Do you really know what you're asking, Suzuka? It just sounds like torture."
"It might be, but I want to do this."
Orb busts through the room, and with black hair, he runs to Suzuka and grabs her. "You want to attend the purificare, are you insane?"
"No."
"You do realise most people in the country will be there in hyper-emotional states. They will crush you with their raw feelings."
"I understand that?"
Maple, moving over to Suzuka's side, says, "I don't think you do. I saw how much pain you were in at the parade yesterday. Your mind may break if you try to do that."
"SO WHAT!" Suzuka screams at both Orb and Maple. "I understand and respect your words. But I want to try hard. I have been saddled with this curse of mine, but I have no desire to allow it to control my life."
Looking past them both towards Cyrus, Suzuka says, "The people of this country have been burdened with curses, yet they live with far more vigour than a husk like me can. I want to change, I want to be like them, and when I see people like them, and those I respect trying to change themselves I can not just sit down and twiddle my thumps waiting for my curse to consume me, I intend to fight back and take control of the life saved by the people in front of me."
Orb's head turns a deeper black, and Cyrus, moving in between them both, says, "I think Suzuka should be allowed to do this."
Grabbing her hand, he says, "And if she struggles, I will hold her hand all throughout it."
Orb's hair turns green, and he says, "I understand. Avram, I will watch over them both."
"Ok then, but at the first sight of trouble, I want you to pick her up and take her out."
"Ok," the three of them say.
"Now let's head out, the purificare is starting soon."
-Break-
Location: Church of the Cursed Sky/ Pasmerktas Dangus
Throughout all of Căderea-dracului, nightmares dressed in red walk under the purple light that shines down upon each area of the city. As the light from the sky hits each church, it completely changes the colour, and in the Cursed Sky district, a white light with a redish hue falls over everyone.
Each one heads towards Pasmerktas Dangus, and blending into the crowd as perfectly as they can, Orb and his allies walk forward. Each of them watches the faces of the dreary crowds that pass them.
Iancu, looking at Dumnorix, says, "You'd better behave."
"Don't worry, I know more than most how much respect you must have for those in times of mourning."
Suzuka walks in between everyone with Orb, and Cyrus at her sides grips on tightly to Orb's arm as she walks, and takes deep breaths as the sweat across her face increases.
"Are you okay, Suzuka? We can leave whenever you want."
"I am good? It's just a little pain. It's a sign you're building resilience to it."
A surge of pain rushes through Suzuka's face, and she leans against Orb with more of her weight, then says, "Could you tell me a story to distract me for a little while?"
Elia coughs then stares at Ivana, Wadim, and Gheorghe.
Gheorghe says, "Member of the Cursed Sea region wears kelp and algae all across their clothes. Before sea travel, technology advanced, those with aquatic curses were the rulers of the sea, and often when on their exploration missions, they used some special kelp and algae to decompose the bodies of the nightmares with them at sea so their bodies wouldn't be weaponised."
Ivana says, "Members of the Cursed Land region wear masks made out of dirt and rocks from their land. During the early days of our history, the curse upon the land made farming essentially impossible, as there were entire areas where the nutrients were all but drained. So for the first few centuries, people of the cursed land district took it upon themselves to fix this. Many took care of their health and would live clean lives so that when they died, their bodies would be full of nutrients. They even went without meat for centuries just so animals could be buried as well. Little by little, their efforts brought the soil up to a semi-serviceable state and allowed Blestemate to survive. Without them maintaining the soil, even our advancements wouldn't have saved it. So to honour the dead of the region, the people fast and wear masks."
Wadim says, "Members of the Cursed Sky region hold items that have flames within them. Nightmares from the curse sky region often spend a giant amount of their time not touching the ground, usually staying on mountain tops or just flying in the skies. So when they were buried, it is said that their blood cries for the sky yet again and that the messiah makes the wind unsteady for us all due to their tears. A practice was born of burning the bodies, and turning them into little feathers, and scattering them about so they fly through the sky for eternity, forever making the skies peaceful for the next generation. So nightmares of their region hold candles to commemorate them, they make little boxes for kids to carry them, or even embed live little candles in earrings and amulets."
Suzuka, with a smile, says, "I got to keep trying my best as well."
She grips both Cyrus, and Orb's hands, and they all walk into towards the church.