"So there you are!"
Jin heard his own voice and opened his eyes. He saw a girl in front looking at him. Suddenly his lips started to move on their own and began to talk as if everything seemed natural...
"Your face looks a little pale...are you sure you´re all right?"
"Yeah..."
"If Brother saw that face..."
He remembered what was that scene. It was one of those memories when they were together. When he recognized Saya´s face, instead of feeling hatred towards her, he felt an unexpected sympathy. Her way of talking reminded him of Noel and yet this confused him even more, it was as if he couldn´t understand why just looking at her no longer angered him...or why he hated her so much…
"Brother?"
"Yeah, He´s probably sweeping the hills looking for you..."
Saya got lost in a forest near the church and both Ragna and Jin were worried for her. Before he could say a word everything turned black, shocking him at what he just saw. Those images never crossed his mind even once in his lifetime, yet now it felt as if those memories where always inside his mind. Seconds later, he found himself in another scene...
"Jin, here, it´s for you"
"A katana? Where did you find this?"
"I always hear you say you want to be a hero and Brother making fun of you...s-so..I-I want to help you. Please, don´t tell auntie about this..."
"Saya, you better return this. We´ll get into trouble if they see something like this. I don´t want to imagine his reaction if he knew you were holding a weapon."
"Please, Jin! You always wanted to be a hero! I just want to help you be one!"
In very few occasions Saya spoke her mind like that. She showed a face her brother simply couldn´t resist.
"Alright..."
"Yes!"
Saya smiled after listening Jin agreeing with her, he took the hilt and looked at the sword closely.
"Um, Jin?"
"What?"
"No, nothing..."
"What are you doing here, Saya? Oh Jin, you were here too."
Ragna appeared and quickly started to ask them what were they doing.
"Jin! What are you doing holding something like that?Where did you get it?"
Saya was about to say something but Jin interrupted her.
"This? A man left this so I thought I could keep it for a while."
"Give me that, I´ll give it to auntie..."
Jin didn´t want to let go the weapon, and when Ragna held the hilt. Saya put her hand on his arm.
"Please, brother...the truth is..."
"It seemed interesting to know how it feels to hold it."
Jin insisted on interrupting Saya, making sure Ragna didn´t discover the truth.
"What! The more the reason you shouldn´t be playing with that! What if you have an accident!"
"I´ll return it once it´s owner appears! I promise!"
Ragna was angered at how Jin insisted to keep something so dangerous, but Saya seemed to not want seeing them fighting anymore. So he simply sighed and let him do as he pleased.
"You better hide it, and don´t think I´ll allow you to play with it whenever you wish. You hear me?"
"Yes...brother."
On that ocassion Jin remembered the day he received Yukianesa, but at that time no one was aware it was a Nox Nyctore. Since when he cared so much for Saya? Two voices started to whisper inside his head, it was a discussion. This time he was inside the church with Ragna, again he found himself as if everything was natural.
"Brother, do you want to play? I´ll be the hero and you the beast!"
"Sorry Jin, but Saya is sick and she needs me right now..."
"But she is always sick!"
Ragna remained silent, but Jin kept insisting...
"I know! If you want I´ll be the beast and you the hero this time!"
"Jin, I don´t have time to play with you now."
"You always say that! Since she is like that you don´t play with me anymore!"
"Jin, stop it. You should understand she isn´t in a good condition!"
"I bet she does that on purpose! If she weren´t here anymore..."
The sound of someone being hit is heard.
"B-brother...I-I...I hate her!"
Afterwards he simply ran away and everything turned black again. It was a weird sensation, suddenly changing personalities between his young and present self. He started to think on what he felt on that moment. At that time he knew Saya wasn´t at fault, neither his brother, but he felt he was being pushed aside, he didn´t want to be left alone. It wasn´t clear for him to remember when he started to have those doubts...
The lights returned and Jin found himself in a church, he could still feel the tears falling through his cheeks, and remembered his fight with Ragna...
"Oh, boy...you sure looked like having some serious Cain and Abel shit there!"
"Who...are you?"
The strange voice seemed somehow familiar...but his face was blurry, he couldn´t see it clearly...
"Me? I´m just a friend..."
The man sat on a bench and started to listen Jin´s story...
"I know it´s not her fault, but still..."
"But how do you know that?"
Jin looked at the man shocked at his comment...
"Why that face? It surprises you the idea she could be acting? How do you know she isn´t trying to take away your brother from you?"
"No, that´s not true. She wouldn´t do that."
"How can you be so sure about that? Little Jin, this world is full of lies...you´ll see I´m telling you the truth..."
Before he could answer the lights were turn off again...the words of the man didn´t stopped to make him feel uneasy, the voice seemed awfully familiar. That phrase...he knew he heard it before...but where?.
Jin turned around and again he saw himself in another scene, this time he was in front of Saya, but for some reason, whenever she said something, a strange echo followed her voice, saying something completely different. He tried as best as he could to ignore it.
"...are you alright? (Heh, you look pitiful)"
"...huh? Yes..."
"Wh-why were you fighting? Are you alright? (Did it hurt?I bet it did...")
"Uh, no, it was nothing. Don´t worry about it..."
It was hard for him to remain calm while listening those words coming from her voice...
"Brother!"
Ragna entered the room, he seemed troubled to see Jin after what happened before, so he went directly to Saya and held her hand...
"Do you feel better?"
"Yeah (Now that you are here...)"
Jin tried to remain calm, the echo was still there. Ragna couldn´t avoid to notice his behavior but still remained silent. Then Saya, noticing the atmosphere, took both their hands with a timid voice.
"T-tomorrow, wh-why don´t we play together? (And then leave Jin behind?)"
Jin couldn´t stand it anymore, he took away his hand and left. It was a torture to keep listening those voices.
"Hey, Jin!"
Ragna wanted to go after him and demand an explanation, but Saya held his hand, wishing that they didn´t fight anymore...
Jin hoped his brother would come after him and at least yell at him for his attitude. But that didn´t happened, he took his toy sword and went out to play by himself...
He swung the sword randomly and while doing so he remembered how he used to play with Ragna, Saya acted as an spectator watching and enjoying the play. He was one of the Six Heroes and his brother the Black Beast. "I´ll be a hero of justice when I grow up!" he always said over and over again, "How can you expect being a hero if you always depend on me?" Ragna answered making fun of him, "You´ll see, I promise I´ll be one", "Heh, idiot..." answered Ragna followed by a smile. Then he realized his siblings were not there anymore...he was by himself, alone..
The man from before again appeared from behind a tree...
"Told ya, that girl is only trouble..."
"Shut up! Who are you?"
"Me? I told you, I´m a friend..."
"You´re not my friend! Leave me alone!"
"Is that the way to refer to one of the Six Heroes you so much admire?"
Hearing him say that made Jin turn his head and look at the strange individual.
"Oh, it seems I forgot to present myself!"
Commented the man with a sarcastic tone. He made a reverence and continued...
"Of course you must have heard of Terumi...right?"
Jin seemed shocked at the revelation, but immediately he adopted a skeptic attitude.
"You´re not one of the Six Heroes..."
"Well, obviously you wouldn´t believe me...let´s see...what can I do so you can believe me...Oh I know..."
The man takes Jin´s toy sword and with it cuts the tree vertically with only one swing. He couldn´t believe it, but quickly realized what just happened was real.
"P-please, teach me to do that...!"
"Well..I wouldn´t mind having a pupil...tell me why should I teach you?"
Jin remembered the promise he made when playing with Ragna...
"I want to be a Hero of Justice"
Terumi looked at Jin for a moment and he smiled, at that time Jin thought of it as a smile of someone being proud, but now it seemed more of someone who is satisfied...a satisfaction of finding something after a long time...
"But you´ll need a true sword, not a plastic thing like that..."
Jin remembered the katana Saya gave him.
"I-I have one! I´ll bring it, please! I´ll do anything!"
The man showed a smile and again everything turned black. Jin seemed shocked to remember those scenes, but everything was more clear now. Starting that day he began to visit Terumi, his anger towards Saya increased every time she spoke with him. Afterward he knew the truth about his destiny. The name, the voice, he was sure he already knew them...but how?
Without an answer the scenario once again changed, it was a dark night, Saya´s fever got worse and Ragna ordered her to stay in bed. Jin was outside on the fields with "The Hero". He found himself kneeling, looking at the ground completely shocked after listening Terumi´s words...
"What...why...how...?"
"It´s the truth boy. Ragna will become the Black Beast and it´s your fate to defeat him..."
"You´re lying, that can´t be true!"
"Oi, when have I lied to you? Didn´t I took you as my apprentice? Who was the first person who helped you realize the true nature of that bitch?"
"Shut up, don´t talk about her like that!"
"Boy, you were destined to do this..."
Again, he didn´t understand how, but the Hero´s words started to sound logical, as if there is no other explanation...that was the truth, even though he tried constantly to deny it...
"I guess it´s time to let the show begin..."
The man suddenly disappeared and left behind the katana, the same he kept hidden after Saya gave it to him. Jin found himself alone and looked around for Terumi. Asking himself if it´s a good idea to take the sword, he grabbed the hilt. Touching the weapon was more than enough to remind him the idea of killing Ragna. It was a strange influence that came into his mind, an urge to "fulfill his destiny" started to grow inside him. He didn´t want to do it and tried to control himself. He ran towards the church and inside he tried to remain calm...then he saw someone enter from one of the doors...
"Jin?"
It was Saya, he no longer could hear the strange echo, but still he couldn´t avoid feeling uneasy near her and it was growing stronger with every second it passed.
"Jin? Are you alright?"
He felt guilty of what he was supposed to do.
"Jin..."
Every footstep made Jin more confused of what to do, a hatred towards everything started to grow...a hatred towards "this world full of lies". He barely managed to remain sane and convince himself that it´s not true. He then muttered a few words, hoping to make Saya leave him alone. Saya seemed worried about him and pulled his shirt, trying to get an answer.
"Saya...you´re supposed to be in bed...brother will be angry."
Hearing his voice made Saya feel less worried. Despite her tiredness, she smiled and answered trying to not make Jin worry for her...
"I´m...fine. (You really thought I was sick all this time!)"
Jin wasn´t looking at her, but at that comment he quickly turned his head, confused at what he just heard. In the beginning he saw a smile, but it quickly was replaced by a pitiness expression, as if she was making fun of him all this time. He lost it...
"Yes, you were fine all this time..."
The sound of someone being stabbed is listened. "Why?" was the only word she said, she repeated herself that question while her body fell to the ground. A delighted smile showed Jin when he saw Saya´s body on the ground…bleeding. Ragna appeared from the entrance, shocked at what he just saw...Jin simply looked at him smiling...
"Hello, brother..."
Everything started to get blurry and dark...Tsubaki´s voice was being heard as the dream was ending…
"...Then I suppose you will never understand the pain of those who must lie..."