Chapter 2- Painful Truths
Once Sairu opened his eyes, his eyes brought him to a dimly lit room, yet from what he could see, he seemed to be in some sort of bedroom: the walls were void of any decoration, revealing the stones that undoubtedly held the ceiling above their heads. There were exceptions as banners adorned the walls in random places, each looking rather noble and undoubtedly expensive. As the baby Sairu adjusted his neck into a more comfortable position, his eyes looked to the ceiling, which itself was devoid of any decoration, with the exception of a large, rustic-looking chandelier dangling by a single chain in the middle of the ceiling, composed of simple wooden beams at regular intervals. Then Sairu felt something behind him: something warm and comfortable. Being unable to move, in his mind, the inner Sairu concluded he was in a bed.
Out of Sairu's line of sight, the room he was now in was a large, irregular rectangular shape, and at the centre, he laid on a rather extravagant bed with a woman cradling him in her arms. She was a rather pretty woman: long flowing blonde hair, a heart shaped face that shone of kindness and love. What was interesting were her eyes: a deep chocolate brown, the same eyes the baby in her arms now had. She was dressed in a simple white nightgown, and was looking worse for wear, yet she smiled serenely at the baby she held. As she gazed at the baby, she was suddenly struck with a fit of coughing which eventually died away, earning a whimper from the corner.
In that room, sitting in a chair in the darker corner of the room, sat a man: he was rather handsome, with a chiselled face and a look of joy and sadness mixed into his emerald green eyes. He had particularly spiky and messy auburn hair with longer bangs framing the sides of his face, whilst the rest flowed past his shoulders at the back in a straighter manner, and was dressed in a long flowing blue military coat that reached to his ankles, a white collared shirt and white trousers, complete with a silver ascot around his neck. He wore white gloves on each hand, and wearing navy and light blue boots that reached to his thighs, and propped on the wall beside his chair, was a sword designed after a moon, a long, thin but brilliantly white blade, a hand guard shaped as a crescent moon, and protruding from the bottom of the black hilt was a chain with a crescent moon charm attached.
As the man in the chair sat, saddened yet overjoyed, he noticed two individuals enter the room: one was a man just a bit older than him, with his black hair tied into a high topknot with a single bang of hair draping the right side of his face, which featured a black moustache and a triangular tuft of hair protruding from his chin. He was dressed in a blue shirt adorned with an X-shaped pattern across; around his abdomen, he wore a piece of dull green armour adorned with a peculiar symbol, reminiscent of a heart atop a cross. He also wore black and golden boots that also resembled armour, and seemingly shorter hakama. Finally, he wore a white hooded haori that was adorned with red lining, and around his neck was a pendant of the same symbol as depicted on his armour, yet this was gold in colouration, hanging from a black length of rope. His steel grey eyes bore a look of happiness as he turned to the man sitting in the corner, while the second, a woman with short black hair dressed in a high-collared medical outfit, who approached the woman in bed, hoping to examine the baby.
"This is a momentous day, Getsuryu, yet you look sorely disappointed. You are a father as of today, something I believed you wanted more than almost anything" the newcomer addressed the man in the chair, a look of happiness adorning his face. Seeing this, Getsuryu turned to look him in the eyes with a serious expression, before crouching forward, closing his eyes in sadness before answering dejectedly "That's right. I did wish to be a father. However, that has to come at a great sacrifice. And considering the war that had ended only a few days ago, too much has happened in so little time" "I understand. However, regardless of what occurred before, celebrate and rejoice today. You have a new role to fulfil: that of a father. And while it may not be easy, it will be worth it, I assure you" At this, Getsuryu's posture relaxed as he opened his eyes and smiled, addressing him "You are right as always... Eraqus, my friend"
The man known as Eraqus smiled in return. Then, the woman in the bed waved a hand weakly over to the two men, gesturing them to come forward. "My darling" she said weakly yet sweetly to Getsuryu "you have not yet held our son. Here" and she delicately lifted the bundle in her arms towards Getsuryu, who hesitantly took the baby into his own, yet that hesitance diminished as he looked down at his little boy, as his eyes swam with unshed tears, yet bore an expression of sheer joy. Then, he noticed, to his horror, his wife suddenly fell still, yet her chest began heaving in ragged breaths. At this, the two men and the baby were shipped from the room by the woman who accompanied Eraqus, both men oozing unbridled fear. As the door shut behind them, it felt as if time suddenly froze: with the baby in his father's arms, in his mind, Sairu saw everything that transpired, and was equally as terrified for the woman in the bed: 'That woman... These men... Does that mean... This was the day I was born. And this must be the day... that my mother died!' the older Sairu thought, horrified, in an area of black, though through his infant self's eyes, he saw everything and was remembering all of it.
As the two men and the baby Sairu stood in the corridor for fifteen agonizing minutes, the door opened again, as the woman stepped out. She bore an expression of utter defeat. "Lady Siaren is still alive, but I'm sorry. She will die within the next few minutes. She wishes to speak to you, my lord" she said, addressing Getsuryu who absentmindedly nodded and handed the baby to the midwife as he entered the room alone. As he approached the bed again, he noticed that Siaren was looking ghastly pale, and her breaths were few and far between. He nonetheless approached her, and held her hand in his own. "I'm here, Siaren" he said, despair evident in his voice. "Getsuryu... I'm so glad... I met you... I want you... to promise me something" Siaren struggled to say as her husband fell to his knees, as the first tears fell, streaking his cheeks. "Anything, my love..." he sobbed "Please... protect little Sairu... and tell him his mother will always love him..." "I... I will" he replied, as the tears now cascaded his face, and then, he felt it, in his hands and in his heart: Lady Siaren's reassuring grip suddenly ceased, as she closed her eyes for the final time, smiling until she stopped breathing altogether.
Little did he know, not only was the baby Sairu crying in the hallway, but also the teenage Sairu in the realm of his mind. Though he hadn't bore witness to it, he felt it and it struck like a blade through his heart. As he felt it, he fell to his knees, a look of devastation masking his face as the cold steel of pain skewered and ripped him from the inside out. 'So... my mother... really died... But at least I know now... she loves me, and is watching over me... If only I could have met you like I am now... mother" And then both his inner self and his past self began crying heavily. In the real world, the midwife struggled to calm the baby in her arms, as Eraqus looked at the door, devastated himself, knowing that whatever Getsuryu was experiencing, he would not be able to help.
After ten minutes of crying helplessly at his wife's bedside, uselessly clutching her cold hand, Getsuryu eventually released the corpse's hand, and left the room. As he emerged in the corridor, he did not even look in the direction of Eraqus, the midwife or his son. He simply left, taking the right to reach his quarters for time to grieve. Once he was out of sight, the midwife attempted to follow, but Eraqus stopped her with a firm hand on her shoulder, simply shaking his head. Though she looked defiant, she reluctantly nodded and left with the baby Sairu in her arms. As she walked, she noticed how he was no longer crying, but was now sleeping as peacefully as possible considering the night's events. Once she arrived at a large wooden door, she pushed it open with a single hand and entered. As she approached the cot at the far end, she gently placed Sairu in his cot, looking at him with a saddened expression, and left without saying a word, tears now streaking her own cheeks.
Deep within baby Sairu's mind, the teenage Sairu now laid on his side, in the inky blackness, with his knees brought up to his face, curled in a egg position. Though he had stopped crying, his mind was going a mile a minute: he had borne witness to the night of his birth and his mother's death at the same time, two opposite and conflicting events that made his mind feel as if it were a turbulent ocean. Even though he was deeply saddened, one thought still comforted him despite it all: he had been loved by his parents. At least he now knew that. Yet he was also confused as to the man known as Eraqus. Though he hadn't had a good look at him, Sairu felt a strange sensation when he heard that name, feeling as if that name was another door to questions burning in his mind. Eventually, he fell asleep, wondering what tomorrow would bring.