Chapter 12: Unexpected Encounter


    Feeling someone shaking her, Nyx finally regained consciousness as she slowly opened her heavy eyelids.


    What greeted her was Raizel''s worried face as he held both her cheeks, trying to make her body stable.


    He then made a sigh language and asked, "What happened? Did you faint?"


    Nyx was puzzled by his question and suddenly, she recalled of what just happened.


    She remembered that there was a statue of a woman, most likely, a deity inside a underground place. And then, there was that shadow-like deer creature with shining eyes.


    Her eyes widened in horror as she also remembered that gruesome and terrifying scene where her nose, ears, and eyes bleed out as that pool of crimson suddenly formed into a foreign language.


    She read it, she read it out loud without her knowing the language, what''s more, she read it without knowing that she even did, as if possessed.


    Nyx couldn''t help trembling in fear when she remembered it. She thought she would die back then.


    Cold sweat dripped down her face and Raizel frowned when he saw this. He asked once again of what happened to her.


    Nyx looked at him for a moment, fear still palpable in her face.


    Licking her dry lips, she opened her mouth and tried to speak but found that she couldn''t, she was afraid.


    Because she knows that one must not pry to others about deities and cannot speak lightly of their name, only those who are their incarnation or their most faithful servants can do so. But even then, some can still be killed whatsoever if the one they worship are displeased with them.


    Knowing that there is a risk in speaking about that incident, she decided to stay shut and pursed her lips.


    Nyx looked at Raizel and shook her head, indicating that she cannot reveal it which Raizel instantly understood as Nyx had always been an honest person.


    Raizel fell into contemplation, wondering what could possibly be the reason why Nyx is so frightened that she did not dare to speak of it.


    In the end, she did not forced Nyx to speak about it and just helped her stood up.


    Bumping into the basket of berries, Nyx''s body turned stiff and her hand trembled for a second.


    If she is not mistaken, shouldn''t she be currently in that secret underground? Why-...


    Why is she here then? In the forest where she last have been before following that shadow-like deer.


    ''Could it have been just an illusion?'' She wondered.


    In the end, fearing that it is not just a mere illusion, she decided to keep what she had seen as a secret from Raizel and just hook her head and said, "It''s nothing, I think it was just a nightmare..."


    Raizel looked at her for a moment before just nodding his head.


    Picking up the berries and placing it back to her basket, they strode back to their house.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    Before leaving, Nyx unconsciously looked back at the place where the deer appeared but did not saw anything.


    She felt restless but in the end, decided to set aside this fleeting feeling for the moment.


    ----


    Not long after, it was nighttime already and Raizel and Nyx went back to their own rooms.


    Lying on the mattress, Nyx looked up at the wooden ceiling and couldn''t help being lost in thought.


    "Did what I''ve ''experienced'' actually happened? Was that all reality and not just some sort of illusion?" She muttered.


    Fiddling with her fingers, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath, easing slightly her restlessness.


    She thought of the possibilities and remembered that there are rare magicians living in this world and that only a few are able to create illusions.


    But if it really was a magician who made her see those illusion, what is their purpose to begin with? Why would they go so far as to create such a horrible incident to a nobody like her?


    ''Could they be related to Dr. Shane perhaps?'' She thought for a moment but immediately discarded her thoughts. ''There is no way. Because I''m certain that Dr. Shane are enemies with the magicians because he experimented us to create a being that can compare to the magicians, the gifted ones and blessed by the Gods.''


    But then again, if what she had seen are neither a dream nor an illusion, then...


    Opening her eyes, she pursed her lips and finally decided on something.


    ''I''ll go visit the library tomorrow, and maybe also go ''back'' to that ''place'' if I have to.''


    With that decision, Nyx closed her eyes to sleep, alas she did not slept that well at all throughout that entire night.


    She kept dreaming about that scene, remembering and feeling those vague moments when 003 died before her.


    ----


    Waking up, Nyx dressed up in a plain black pants and white turtle-neck shirt. Looking at herself in the broken mirror, she heaved a sigh as she went out of her room and met Raizel in the kitchen.


    Approaching Raizel, she said, "I''m going out for walk."


    Raizel tilted his head, making a sign language. "Where to?"


    Nyx did not looked at Raizel and just wore her robe as she said without turning back, "To the library."


    Just as she wanted to go, Raizel grasped her hand and he made a sign language saying, "I know something has been going through your mind lately."


    "I can help you, you know that, right? You don''t have to bear that heavy thought alone."


    Nyx fell silent, her eyes drooping sadly before she spoke softly, "I''m sorry." Before leaving.


    Nyx didn''t want to get Raizel involved with this situation, because he might suffer, or worse, die if she is not careful.


    Raizel stared at Nyx''s fading back, his reached out hand clenching slightly, feeling empty.


    Thinking of something, he also went off and went to the woods where he last saw Nyx before she became anxious and restless such as this.


    ****


    In the nameless village near their house, Nyx went inside a library and searched in the history section.


    She took countless of history books and placed them on a table before reading all of them, trying to search for clues.


    ''Why is that statue of a Goddess hidden underneath the depths of this world?''


    ''And how can I distinguish between a God and an Evil God when I can only see their statue and not know their identity and prowess?''


    Those were her questions and as she searched, she finally found something.


    [Evil Gods are generally hidden from the outside world as they are condemned by most entities.]


    [An Evil God can be titled such if their prowess are meant for destruction instead of good.]


    [An Apostle once determined that the statue they saw was a God because they conveyed a message that is for the good of people, whilst they also determined that another statue is an Evil God because they conveyed a destructive message, such as sending the message through blood or bad omens.]


    Reading this, Nyx couldn''t help having a foreboding feeling.


    Since the one that sent her a message was an Evil God, it is obvious that she should stay away from it.


    That was the obvious answer.


    However, she couldn''t help but feel tempted when she heard that the deity can grant any of her wish come true, seemingly one from a fairy tale.


    But the thing that bothered her the most was the question why that deity chose her to do that mission.


    Just as she was contemplating, the open book infront of her suddenly flipped itself to the next page whereas she saw an underlined sentence.


    [Never pry into God''s mysteries]


    Reading this made Nyx unconsciously gulp, and she finally realized something.


    ''They are watching me.''


    ----


    Getting out of the library, Nyx pulled her hood back and sighed, feeling empty inside.


    ''In the end, I couldn''t get the answer I wanted the most.''


    Just as she was about to go back to her house, she faintly saw a familiar figure, making her stunned.


    ''There is no way...how come he is all the way out here from the Noxus Empire?''


    Nyx looked at the burly figure and couldn''t help falling into puzzlement.


    ''There is no way that it is him, absolutely not.'' She kept denying the possibility of the person being ''him'', but in the end, she couldn''t help but follow the figure secretly.


    As she followed the figure secretly, she saw him enter a dark alley, making her hesitant into continuing following the person.


    But then, she saw a group of four thug-like people peeking inside the alley before they also entered.


    Nyx involuntarily frowned as she clenched her fist and decided to take a peek.


    When she looked inside the alley secretly, she widened her eyes as she saw that there was a brawl going on as the four thugs started to fight the figure.


    Just as she watched the fight, the figure turned as he beat one of the thugs with his bare fists.


    And that''s when Nyx finally saw the appearance of the figure.


    "Mister?" Nyx couldn''t help calling out softly, which no one heard.


    It was the person that treated her as herself despite knowing that she came from the slums, and even let her borrow their books from their bookstore.


    It was the only person who told her stories and made her feel like a family other than her best friend in the slums.


    ''Why-...Why is he here?''


    ****


    Meanwhile, Raizel explored the place where he had seen Nyx last and looked around but did not find anything strange, making him feel annoyed.


    Just as he was about to give up the search, he suddenly heard a rustle and when he turned around, saw something that made him froze.


    It was the shadow-like deer, staring straight at him with shining white eyes.


    The deer looked at him and Raizel did the same, which was a grave mistake.


    Because the last thing he saw, was Nyx.


    And then everything went black.


    Only an empty void remained.


    ''Nyx...''


    That was the last word that echoed in "his" mind.