3/100 - Light

Tiki remembers her light.


The sun was bright, so bright — too bright for Tiki to take in. She blinked once, then she rubbed the corners of her eyes with her fists, pushing hard enough to see stars. Her body felt heavy, as it always did after a long sleep.

But she had not entered any sort of a deep sleep. She couldn't have, because next to nothing had changed since the last she remembered being awake. She stretched, her tiny limbs going in all directions. At most, she had taken a short nap. It was such a pretty field of flowers, after all. She was surprised more of Marth's friends hadn't taken a snooze, too.

Curling her limbs back toward herself, Tiki looked at the sky. It was still a light blue to match Marth's eyes. Fluffy white clouds drifted across, carried by a light wind. The sun didn't seem to have moved even a scant centimeter. Perhaps she had only been asleep for a few seconds.

She ran a hand through her hair as she looked across the field at her friends. Her tiara had fallen off when she had laid down — the thing had always been too big. Bantu had told her to wear it because it meant she was important, but she didn't like it. She left it on the ground as her eyes traced her companions. Cain and Abel were sparring not far away under the watchful eye of one of the older knights. Tiki thought his name was Frey, but she was not sure. Close at hand, Bantu was by the side of an old man, a curate whose name Tiki could not begin to guess. Minerva, the fiery princess, was tending to her wyvern while Maria, her little sister, spoke emphatically. Tiki's eyes stopped roving when they fell on Prince Marth. He stood amongst several advisors, most likely discussing strategies. She caught his eye, and he gave her one of the smiles that was reserved just for her. She smiled back, feeling her face flush.

"Lady Tiki! Are you here? Prithee answer!"

Tiki yawned and looked around. She didn't recognize the speaker's voice. Prince Marth had left his advisors and was approaching her. By his side was a swordsman — Nabart? Nabaat? Tiki had never spoken to him before. She assumed that he was the one who had spoken. Why was the swordsman asking whether or not she was there? Of course she was there. He could see her, as plain as the sun in the sky.

The pair stood before her now, mere silhouettes against the light of the sun.

"Ah, my lady," the swordsman said. Why was his voice so high? Tiki held her head in one hand; something was wrong. "I'm so relieved to see you're all right."

Tiki frowned and held her head tighter. This was wrong. She had never spoken to the swordsman before. It didn't make sense. Her mind supplied the answer: This isn't real. These people aren't here. Tiki shook her head. The voice sounded like Naga, and Tiki didn't want to hear Naga. She wanted to hear Marth. It's all a dream. You need to wake up now.

"So you are Lady Tiki? She who speaks for the divine dragon?" Marth asked.

Why would he ask that? "Marth?" Tiki questioned. His eyes widened, and she could see that perfect, inimitable blue. There was no other blue like it. She felt her doubts falling away; Naga's voice was wrong. It had to be. "Oh, Mar-Mar, is that you?"

Marth started and frowned. "My name is Lucina, milady. Though I did go by the name Marth for a time. Might we have met?"

The sun swallowed Marth and the swordsman and the entire Altean army. Tiki had to squeeze her eyes shut so as not to be swallowed, too.

When she looked up again, she saw the world through the hazy fog of reality. Tiki was staring at two women, the one who had identified herself as Lucina, and another, the one who had spoken earlier. Behind them were two knights, one green and one red standing by an older man; a tiny manakete by the side of a young cleric; and a woman with long, flowing pink hair an a wyvern. The illusion, the dream, had fallen away. Tiki swallowed to give herself a moment before responding to the woman Lucina's query.

"Alas, no," she said, speaking slowly. Lucina's eyes, they were so similar… "I'm sorry." That alone would not suffice, Tiki knew. There were questions in the eyes and on the lips of all those around her. "You reminded me of someone I knew," she said softly. "But he is gone now. Lost during my endless sleep…"

Tiki looked to the sky. That, at least, had not changed, though she now thought it strange, so strange that it should go on as it was, as it always had been, after he had passed away.

Tiki shook her head to clear thoughts of bright eyes from her mind. Though the light had been extinguished, it was not the time to mourn. That she was awake at all told her so much. The fell dragon was rising. It was up to Tiki once again to help seal the beast away, to keep the world that Marth had fought so hard for safe from harm.

Even so, Tiki allowed herself one more frown, one more sickening reminder. She had gone to sleep without so much as a good-bye. The man she loved, the light of her life, was gone, and in his place stood his descendants — a man now stood by the woman Lucina, the two unmistakable alike in bearing. The world had gone on without her.

When she opened her mouth, she forced herself to speak. She had to carry on, painful as it would be. "You and your father are of the exalted bloodline, are you not?" The words were dust in her throat. Even as she began to ascertain the situation, trying to focus on what Prince Marth's descendants needed from her, her mind would not quiet.

The light is gone. The light is gone. Prince Marth is dead.

That night, Tiki wept and did not sleep.