Fading Away
It seemed like only hours ago since Phoena's Chronicle had foretold the end of our world.
It had happened one morning; the world's fate was etched in dark ink. For what felt like hours, we could only stare in disbelief. With no explanation, the world we had once struggled desperately to save was going to end on February 29th.
Only a mere five weeks.
Panic constricted my throat as I tried to offer words of encouragement to my friends and comrades.
I could see the fear clouding in Marina's eyes.
Phoena's hands trembled as she held the Chronicle in shock.
Michidia slumped to her knees in despair.
Kain clenched his hands in fists to his sides; he turned to me with despondent eyes.
I had never been a very eloquent speaker. When it came to raising everyone's spirits, Pirika, Phoena, and Kain had always been far more skilled. Yet even now, in this dire situation, I still couldn't think of a single thing that would help us.
It was Pirika who spoke up then. Suggesting we visit Yggdra had given us a goal and more importantly, hope for a possible future.
Two weeks had passed by the time we arrived at the World Tree Library. During that time the Volunteer Army had slowly grown smaller. Many were returning home to spend their last days with loved ones and family members. It was certainly understandable. By now, we could almost all feel that something was indeed very wrong with our beloved world. The sky was turning gray, the ocean black, and the land white. The once fertile soil was turning dry and incredibly hard. It was as though the entire world was losing color.
We had contacted the Great Sages using the mirror Gilbert once gave us, but not even Fatima could see past the sea of darkness.
Yggdra had looked incredibly ill when we finally reached her. Marina tried to ease her pain, but nothing else could be done. Grasping Phoena's hand, Yggdra handed her the Chronicle of this world. She whispered through tears and unfocused eyes as we watched the Chronicle's history slowly disappear, line by line, as though the world was simply being erased away.
I can only recall a crushing feeling of despair and terrible rage.
Why was it that this world, the one we had fought for and once saved, was being ripped away from us? We had stopped the world from ending before, yet this time there was no enemy that we could reach. We were utterly powerless, for not even the will of this world could do anything.
The dream we once chased was no longer reachable.
Thinking back on the times we spent together, I almost wish we could have spent less time fighting the Black Army and more time with just each other. It's almost ironic that fighting for the world's future brought us all together. There was so much more I wanted to do.
Our last minutes tick away as everything starts to feel cold. The light disappears and all of my energy along with it. I try to reach out, to grasp someone's hand, but my body only feels colder and colder.
Was there really nothing we could have done?
I see my friends faces gathered around me. Forlorn and bitter, for we could do nothing to change our fate. No matter how much we fought against the remaining Black Army troops in the past few days, there was no change in our situation. We became stronger, faster, and more powerful, but nothing we did would stop the slowly crumbling world.
In these last moments, I feel tears streaming down my face as the world turns black.
What is it like to no longer exist?
To be erased along with a vanishing world, utterly incapable of changing anything is frightening.
I used to believe we could truly grasp the light of hope, of our dreams. No matter how many times we lost sight of it, as long as we were together, and that we believed, there were no heights we couldn't reach.
Now, those words are empty.
Why did it have to be this way?
If only we could rewrite the future.
But, perhaps this is better. We don't have to fight anymore.
At least we can sleep peacefully as our world slowly fades away.
