Chapter five for those of you who have been following this story. A rather tragic event, or so our dear President believes. He takes the news of her death hard, and makes a vow.
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She wasn't dead. She couldn't be dead. But here was this black haired man, telling him that Raine Sage had been pushed over the side of a precipice; here was her ripped and somewhat bloodstained cloak, which he was told had been found snagged on a bit of rock. "How..do you know she was pushed?" he asked, trying the keep his hoarse voice steady.
"The marks in the snow, sir. There was clearly a struggle. I'm...sorry, Master Bryant. I know she was your friend." Matthew bowed his head.
Regal stared at the cloth in his hands, gripping tightly, as though by clinging to it he could bring her back, erase what had happened. How would he tell everyone else? How would he tell Genis? He hadn't been able to protect her, as he had wanted to. The young boy would never forgive him.
Then again, he wasn't sure if he'd forgive himself. "...Thank you."
"Yes, sir." Matthew bowed, and turned to leave. The President didn't look up as the man walked awawy, the cloak held his gaze. Who would have gone out of their way to see that Raine never returned? Granted, she had the tendancy to provoke people she didn't like. But to the point of murder?
She had seemed so unnerved when they had parted just a few hours prior, so upset. He hadn't gotten a chance to talk to her again under better circumstances. Genis hadn't gotten to bid her farewell properly. And she was gone. "Raine..."
The first thing he felt that had to be done, was a letter to Genis. Regal didn't have one inkling of any idea of how to say that his sister was dead, that she'd been killed by another being. He didn't even know how to tell himself that she wasn't coming back.
It took him nearly another hour to get the short message completed, and it was only really a paragraph long. Regal knew he ought to be more sympathetic, but he himself was trying to cope with it. So he stood, and sent it off with a willing citizen of Flanoir. He could see the young mage's face as he read it over in horror. The Half-Elf would hate him, he knew it. "I'm sorry," he said, again to no one.
With that out of the way, he felt compelled to visit the scene of the crime, to say goodbye properly, to be able to grieve over the loss of a valued friend. It wasn't hard to find the place, the snow was highly disturbed in the area, and visible from several feet away. There he stood, amongst the footprints and other various marks, looking down at the rocky water below where she had, presumably, fallen.
Even if she had survived to reach the water - unlikely by the look of her cloak, which he still held - Regal knew she couldn't swim. She was hydrophobic, massively afraid of the ocean. And that, mixed with the icy chill, would have been enough to end up drowning her.
"Raine, I'm sorry. It's my fault...again. I didn't protect you, though I wanted to. I wanted to come along, to make sure no harm would befall you...And instead, I let you wander away. I gave them the opportunity...Raine, I--" he broke off. He couldn't make any excuses. It was his fault, utterly and completely his fault.
He bowed his head in respect, and noticed an odd imprint in the snow. A body had fallen over into the fluffy white substance, and simply laid there from the look of it. Had they incapacitated her, and then dropped her off? Had she been able to knock them down before losing balance?
While he wanted very much to believe it was the latter, there was no evidence that whomever had fallen had gotten back up of their own free will. There were no footprints leading from the place. It had to have been Raine that fell; fell at the hands of whomever had pushed her over. He clenched his fists.
Who had done it? Who had wanted Raine Sage dead? He had to find them, he just had to know who had commited this horrible act. He had to know who had done the same as he had with Alicia - but with heartless intent, with different motives.
He wouldn't make excuses for either case, for it was running away from what he'd done. But for Raine's sake, in honor of her memory he would find her killer. "That I promise you, Raine. You will not go unavenged...I will not allow it." But the affirmation comforted him only slightly. He had a hollow feeling in his stomach now, one he couldn't understand. It was one similar to what he felt every day when he visited Alicia's grave. But why?
Was that not reserved for the one he loved, and she only? He shook his head, a mere jerk to the side, to rid himself of these thoughts. This feeling must be what it liked to lose someone one cares for. Their frienship had built itself up during the time they had spent together. Yes, it was short...But they had a bit in common, and much to talk about. Or, at least, they had.
He bundled the cloak tightly in his hands. He would keep it as a reminder of what had happened. Yes, he would keep it until her asassin had been found and brought to justice. "Raine...Raine, I'm...sorry," he said again. His gaze lingered on the imprint in the snow for a moment longer, before he turned to go back to the city.
Such tragedy...Life was cruel.
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If only he knew what was really going on, huh?
Then there's Raine - what's going to happen to her in the hands of those prejudice thugs? Tune in next time to find out:)
