Hellbound With You

The misery inside her heart was bubbling over so much she found it hard to even breathe. She had foolishly hoped, trusted… and now, here she was, barely breathing in utter defeat. The hope that she had been desperately holding onto was slowly crumbling into pieces, being scattered by the wind. Why? Why did he lie to her? What was the point in trying so hard to bring her to this place then? Was there even any point to all this?

In the midst of her agony, Alicia suddenly stilled. That's right. If the reason Zeres told her was a lie, then what's the real purpose of their journey?

She lifted her face and the moment she saw Ezekiel standing below, Alicia rose from the crystal throne. A long and deep breath escaped her lips as she forced herself to suppress the misery that was threatening to swallow her whole.

Descending the crystal stairs, Alicia didn't take her eyes off Zeke as she approached him in quick but measured steps. Ezekiel straightened as he waited for her to reach him, not moving from his spot.

Alicia reached out and grabbed onto the lapels of Zeke's cloak as she looked up at him, not minding that her hood was not hiding her face anymore.

"Ezekiel…" she said in a hoarse and pleading voice. "I need you to tell me the truth. What is the real purpose of this journey? Why are we here? What is the purpose in us searching for this cavern?" she bombarded him with questions. The only sign of her crumbling emotional state was the trembling of her hands that she could not hide.

When the man just stared at her, Alicia's grip on his cloak tightened and she hated how desperate her voice sounded as it came tumbling from her lips. "Talk. Now. Please."

A strange glimmer flashed in his grey eyes that disappeared almost immediately before he spoke. And finally, she got the answers to her questions. Zeres had been seeking for a way to die and the whole purpose of this journey was solely for that.

"W-why?" she still asked even though her gut had already told her the reason why.

"He said he must die cause that's the only way for you to live. It appeared that this same situation happened before, thousands of years ago. He didn't mention the details about what had happened in the past, but he is certain that as long as he is alive, he'd suck all your powers and then eventually, your life too."

A sickening and stomach-dropping feeling came over her once again, and this time it was more severe than the previous one. She shook her head slightly in disbelief because it all made sense to her now.

"We sought for the prophetess' help per his request and the only thing the prophetess saw in her vision was this cavern." He continued and Alicia did her hardest to speak again.

"That day I woke up before you left…" she cleared her throat for her voice to come out clearly. "Zeres felt different… you said he already came here. What happened? And you said this is the cavern we were searching for… so why is he not here?"

"Since this is the place the prophetess saw in her vision, Zeres thought that he'd die here. But it's apparently not the case. I told him this cavern is probably just the first clue but… after he attacked this cavern and still ended up leaving it alive, as you have also noticed, something in him changed. He most probably realized one thing and thus made his own decision."

"Decision? What decision?" Alicia asked hesitantly. Her heartbeat began to beat in fear and the unease she had been feeling had grown so strong it was threatening to shut her already weak body down.

Zeke was silent for a moment as if weighing whether to answer her or not.

"Please… answer me. Don't hide anything anymore, Ezekiel." She could no longer keep her façade.

A small sigh left Zeke's lips as he averted his gaze away from her and stared at the throne. His gaze was distant, as if he were staring all the way through the crystal cavern to the farthest edge of the world. Seeing things only he could.

"I believe he had decided to become the villain, Alicia." He said and Alicia just looked at him, frozen.

"What? What did you say?" a forced bitter smile curved on her lips, as she spoke. Her heart still in denial.

"Zeres had asked me once about Alex in the past when he was still seeking death. He had asked about all the methods Alex had tried out. And then he asked what method Alex had yet to try. I didn't answer him, but he somehow began to compare Alex with Dinah. And he had realized that the reason why Alex failed to die is most probably because he didn't do this one thing that Dinah did. Alex never tried to go against the world, and never attempted to threaten the peace after he left his throne. He didn't try to become the enemy again. And this theory is the most logical explanation why Dinah ended up dying despite being an immortal. The reason the prophetess's power worked on Dinah was because she was a threat to the world… and Zeres knew that. In fact, I believe Zeres already found the answer even before this journey began. He just tried to find another way, perhaps, for your sake… but he found out that it was futile, and he decided that there is actually no other way."

Alicia shook her head in dazed misery. Unable to believe what she had just heard. Zeres, choosing to become the enemy so that he could die… and so she could live… how could she accept this?

"Tell me… Ezekiel," Alicia's voice had become just a weak whisper as she held on to him to keep her feet standing. "There's no way he's serious about this right? Because look… he's Zeres… he's not an evil man. He's a good man. Someone like him can never… become a villain…"

"I know you already felt it, Alicia. When you felt that something changed in him… when you felt he suddenly seemed different… do you think a good man cannot become evil? The devil was once an angel, Alicia."

Suddenly, Alicia's weak hands moved on Zeke's collars, tears began pooling in her eyes. "Why… why did you let him go? Why didn't you stop him?" she asked. She knew she had no right to ask this of him, but she did not know what else to do or say at that moment. Her emotions were getting the better of her.

"Let's stop him, Ezekiel. We must stop him –" She paused, the words jamming at the back of her throat, refusing to emerge. As she tried, all she could seem to do was repeat numbly, "Let's stop him."

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