PROFESSOR THORNE
As Einar's words hung in the air - "Are you afraid to die?" - he tightened his grip on Maxwell, the tension palpable. The massive serpent-like beast stood sentinel, awaiting its master's command, its unblinking eyes fixed on the scene unfolding before it.
My heart began to pound in my chest, its rhythmic beat accelerating with each passing moment. A creeping sense of dread seeped into my veins, as if the very fabric of reality was beginning to unravel.
Just then, a faint whisper seemed to caress my ear - "Ei...nar" - and Einar's attention snapped towards the sound.
With a dismissive flick of his wrist, he discarded Maxwell, sending his body crashing to the ground like so much discarded trash.
Einar's gaze swept past me, his eyes locking onto Kaiden's fragile form, which lay motionless on the floor. A faint flutter of his eyelids, and Kaiden's gaze met Einar's, a weak smile playing on his lips.
EINAR STONBROL
"Hey...there...buddy," he whispered, his voice barely audible.
I forced a smile, desperate to reassure him, holding back tears that pricked at the corners of my eyes begging me to let them out.
"Hey Kai..." I replied, my voice cracking with emotion.
As Kaiden's chest rose and fell with two labored breaths, he spoke again, his voice laced with a sense of longing. "I want to show you something." With a faint shimmer of magic, he transported me to a realm both familiar and strange - a white, hollow plane that closey resembled the null realm in some way.
As I gazed around, bewildered, Kaiden's hand closed around my shoulder, instantly grabbing my attention. I turned to face him, and his eyes sparkled with mirth as he let out a massive towards me.
"What is this place?" I asked, my curiosity getting the better of me.
"Oh, just think of this place like my mind," he replied, his tone airy and nonchalant. I raised an eyebrow, intrigued by the prospect of delving into the inner workings of Kaiden's mind.
"I see...that's probably why it's soo empty," I admitted my tone laced with a sense of mockery and mischief. As we stood there, suspended in the timeless expanse of his mind, the silence between us grew, a palpable entity that seemed to thicken the air.
And then, without warning, we both burst out laughing, our voices echoing through the emptiness like the carefree shouts of children.
As the merriment faded, Kaiden's expression turned wistful, his eyes clouding over with memories. He reached out, his hand brushing against mine, and the world around us dissolved into a kaleidoscope of images, each one a snapshot of a moment we had shared.
I watched, entranced, as our memories danced before me - the time we had nearly gotten suspended by accidently burning down the Director'soffice, the endless pranks we had played on our classmates, the quiet moments of introspection we had shared.
All moments that brought back some of my favorite and most cherished memories.
And then, like a ghostly apparition, a memory materialized that I couldn't quite place.
As I reached out to touch it, Kaiden's voice whispered in my ear, "Do you remember that day?" I turned to him, my eyes searching his face, and he smiled, a faraway look in his eyes.
"That's the first time you and I actually met," he began, his voice weaving a spell of remembrance around me. "Exactly two years ago, I was infected by the unknown disease that was spread by the black mist. My older sister tried every healing spell she could to try and save me, but none of them worked. I for sure thought I was going to die."
As he spoke, the memories seemed to deepen, the colors growing more vivid, the emotions more intense. I felt myself becoming lost in the labyrinthine corridors of Kaiden's mind, the past and present blurring into a seamless tapestry.
And then, like a whispered secret, Kaiden's voice revealed the truth - "Then on the day I thought I was going to die, I was cured. By a human boy with onyx black hair that contained purple highlights. He had violet-colored eyes that just seemed to draw everyone's attention towards him."
As the memories faded, I felt the weight of Kaiden's words upon me, every line burning with an inner fire. "I never got the chance to thank you, back then," he whispered, his voice trembling with emotion.
The world around us seemed to contract, the air thickening with unspoken words, unresolved emotions. I felt my heart pounding in my chest, my very existence hanging in the balance.
And then, in a voice that was barely audible, Kaiden said the words he longed to say for soo long - ."Thank you."
As the weight of his words settled upon me, I felt my heart shatter into a million pieces. "I don't want you to die," I whispered, my voice cracking with emotion and tears begun pouring from my eyes.
Kaiden's eyes, those piercing blue orbs that had seen into the very soul of me, locked onto mine. "It'll be fine," he whispered, his voice barely audible. "You'll get through it."
I shook my head, desperate to try stopping the tears that had now consumed me. "No..i don't want you to die. I don't want you to leave." I repeated the words over and over, hoping that each time I said them they'd become more truthful.
He smiled, his gaze unwavering, his eyes burning with a sense of passion. "It's okay," he uttered, his voice filled with gratitude.
As the words hung in the air, I felt Kaiden's life force ebbing away. I held him close, desperate to hold on to him, to keep him from slipping away, to keep him from crossing over to ghe other side.
But it was no use. His body was now illuminated by bright dazzling lights. He slowly broke off into tiny fragments of light that I tried holding on to.
My vision blurred from all the crying as constantly called out his name, begging him not to go. Chasing after the remenencts of the brilliant light.
I wept uncontrollably, my heart shattering into a million pieces. The tears streamed down my face, a relentless torrent of grief that threatened to consume me whole.
I felt his presence fading away, and i was soo powerless that i couldn't do a single thing about it. The memories of our time together flooded my mind, each one a bittersweet reminder of what I had lost.
And then, like a whispered promise, right before he vanished i heard Kaiden's voice one last time. "Take care, buddy."
The words echoed in my mind, as I found myself snapping back into reality. His body was cold and I couldn't hear his heartbeat anymore....he was gone