That night… was cold.
There was some light snowfall, but nothing too serious.
I had just gotten home after my walk I took after school.
Of course, nobody was there.
I went to lie down on my bed, checking my phone in the process.
Nothing, just like usual.
For about an hour or so, I stared at the ceiling.
That was all.
Eventually, I had enough.
I admitted to myself that the loneliness was too much.
Picking up my phone, I decided to text Faith.
It was just a simple hello, checking on how she was.
She had been busy practicing for the school musical that was in a few months.
It turned out that she got one of the main roles.
To be honest, it didn’t surprise me.
She was so charismatic, cheerful, and had a truly beautiful singing voice.
I was so happy she had rose so far above that scared little girl who sat alone on the swing set many years prior.
I was also envious.
There was no point in hiding it.
I felt as though I had nothing.
A few minutes passed, and she texted me back.
She seemed ecstatic to hear from me, giving me all kinds of details as to how things were going.
The message ended with her asking how I had been.
That hit me.
It was the first time in awhile that someone had asked me that.
I began to tear up, to be honest.
While that happened, another feeling welled up inside of me.
I felt like I was bothering her.
On one side, I was genuinely curious as to how she was.
But on the other… I really wanted someone to help me.
And I felt as though it would be a bother to her.
Yet, I pressed the keys on my screen, opening up to her.
The words that were formed were ones I would only let Faith read.
I regretted them, however, as soon as I hit send, fearing what she would say in response.
It didn’t take too long for her to message me.
She showed great concern, as I expected her too.
Faith was too kind, after all.
It turned out she was already done with practice for the evening, and wanted to come over to see me.
I figured she was tired, so I declined.
At that moment, something happened in my head.
To this day, I can’t quite figure out what exactly triggered it.
I simply wanted to die.
Before she could reply, I sent one last text.
I told her I was going to disappear.
So I did.
Throwing my phone in the trash, I walked out of my house.
Entering the woods, I began to pick up speed.
By the time I was enveloped in the shadows, I was sprinting.
It was time to get away from there.
To get away from life.
The snow had picked up at that point, making it harder to run as the ground was blanketed rather quickly.
I ended up tripping and falling down.
It was cold, especially since I didn’t bother to put on a coat, or anything like that.
Yet, it felt nice.
It was here that I decided I would meet my fate.
I would let the bitter cold take me.
For some reason, however, I was in a rush.
Moving my arm, I noticed there was a thin sheet of ice beneath the snow.
Due to my fall, some of it had cracked apart.
A rather… sharp piece had caught my eye…
…
I felt it, there was no doubt about that.
But I didn’t care at that point.
I lied there as the blood rushed out of me, making the white snow underneath me turn red.
It was warm.
It felt nice.
Then, it started to get cold again.
I could feel it this time.
I could feel that the cold was going to get me.
It was so… calming…
Just a beautiful sleep in a beautiful void. That’s all I wanted.
And I was going to get it.
…
Somehow, someway, she found me.
Through the void, I could hear her voice screaming out to me.
It was… agonizing, to hear her sound like that.
I decided to curse whatever god led her to me, cause she did not deserve to see this.
My hope was for the snow to cover me up.
That didn’t happen in time.
I had gained the energy to see her.
The tears falling from her face was a hell I never wanted to see.
Yet, I looked into her eyes.
I did not listen to whatever she was saying, I simply focused into her eyes.
They do say that the eyes are the gateway to the soul, or some crap like that, right?
Well, that may be correct.
I felt her entire being cast into me.
It revived the memories I had forgotten.
We had always been so close to each other, Faith and I.
Our adventures as kids were incredibly fun, despite how nonsensical they were.
Many times, we searched these very trees to find treasure.
What treasure? Beats me.
Yet, we searched for hours, knowing in our hearts that it was here.
A lot of these quests Faith had apparently learned of from fairies.
She was a big fan of fairies, and believed that they existed to give us joy and wonder.
Joy and wonder…
What happened to those?
If fairies do exist, and for that purpose, why was it that they seemed to no longer exist?
I wasn’t mad about it, in fact, I was more curious.
Curiosity…
Yeah, I was curious.
That’s why I went on those adventures when I was young.
I was curious as to what would happen.
The joy and wonder part ended up being the adventure itself, and despite never finding anything too exciting, those times were so precious to me.
I’m not sure where it originated, but I was always so eager to shout “XYZ!” with Faith as we began each and every adventure.
To us, this was our “let’s go!”
Let’s go…
XYZ…
Yeah. Now, when I look back at that moment in the forest, things make sense.
For example, Faith had successfully gotten me out of there and gotten me help.
When I reached the hospital, my cut was long gone.
Not even a scar remained.
Everyone was baffled, as signs did indicate I suffered from major blood loss.
Along with the fact that I was soaked with my own blood.
I had recently figured it out.
Charlotte did not help me awaken the World Mirror.
It had already awakened inside of me.
Although incredibly subtle, it responded to my curiosity that had come back to life in that moment.
It did more than that, however.
Faith’s desire for me to survive…
The World Mirror reflected that as well.
I myself… also reflected it.
I did want to survive.
I desired to go on adventures again.
I wanted to hold her hand, rush into the woods, and shout “XYZ!” to the world.
…
So, this body of mine, I have to ask you-
“Just what makes you think you can take that away from me?”
White light erupted out of Adam, who had been covered by pink flames due to Alexander’s Ability. He had be lazily sitting on top of a nearby rock, moving his fingers around to control the Psycho Matter.
“Oh?” Alexander grinned. “I was trying to see if I could still get some kinda info out of ya, but it wasn’t working. I like this a lot better!”
Adam walked forward. His clothes were in tatters, yet there were no noticeable injuries on his body. It seemed as though the World Mirror had been keeping it safe, despite him being in his stupor.
The energy faded, although it began to act differently. Instead of the powerful aura it usually had, the World Mirror formed a thin white line around Adam. He glared at Alexander with his fierce white eyes.
“I’m not sure how long I can use my Ability at this point, but I’ll be sure to give it my all.”
“That’s fine!” Alexander landed in front of Adam, forming a pink aura of his own around himself. “Let’s have some fun while we learn some shit! This is what it’s all about! Fighting while learning!”
“You find joy in this, huh?” Adam raised his guard, while Alexander did the same. “I find joy in other things. That’s why I’m getting out of here.”
Alexander smirked. “Fine with me. Just be sure you give me the best damn show you can!”
At last, the two young men cloaked in white and pink had begun their real battle.
Kyologist 