1.4. Alive

Her head rolled slowly toward my feet... I tried to run but realized I couldn't; my vision, directed downward, began to slowly approach the head.

— The previous king sent him on an expedition so he would allegedly find the remaining people of Earth and instill his faith in them, but he simply disappeared. They couldn't find him for several months and just gave up... And about the machines...

Motherfucker, does this mean I'm going to die soon?.. I grabbed Aria by the hand and tried to run, but she jerked it away with all her strength. "What are you doing? I didn't give you permission to touch me! Did you really think I stopped seeing you as a demon, an anomaly that took over my brother's body? And now you decided to grope me too!"

A black figure appeared behind the girl. Dammit, I need to run... I bolted away from Aria as fast as I could. "Hey, we aren't finished yet!" her voice shouted from the distance.

I continued running with all my might until I tripped over a stone right in front of the village entrance. My face collided powerfully with the surprisingly soft ground in a split second. I tried to get up as quickly as possible but noticed that Aria was already standing in front of me, extending her hand. How did she catch up to me so fast? "Why did you run off so abruptly? And you fell, too. You need to take better care of my brother's body, or else I'll just kill you!"

I crawled backward, refusing to take her hand—who knows what she really is? And I don't want to die, no... Never again... "What's wrong? Are you afraid of me?" she chuckled. "Well, that's right, devils should fear humans. Who knows what earthly hellhole you came from, but you better get up now. There's a patrol nearby, and if they see us, I'll get in trouble at work..." She started walking toward the village. "Come on, let's go!"

I don't know if I can trust her... But she doesn't trust me either. But what was that figure? Who was that person who cut off her head so easily? Maybe it was just a hallucination? Maybe just a patrolman, but do they really cut heads off just for a night walk? I got up and followed Aria toward the house. I could only follow her silently, walking behind.

"Hey, you'd better walk in front. I don't want you walking behind me; who knows, you might pull out a shank and kill me right here." She stopped and waited for me to go first. But what if she's doing this on purpose? What if she wants to stab me? Oh well, I'd sense something like that anyway... I walked ahead. Fortunately, to get to the house, one just had to walk in a straight line; getting lost in broad daylight here is simply impossible. Lucky the village is small.

It's actually quite cute and clean here, and the sky is incredibly beautiful: at night you can see every star, and during the day—or morning, I don't even know—the sky was heavenly blue with snow-white clouds. My face met something soft. I quickly stepped back and examined what I had collided with, or rather who... A man, seemingly quite young, dressed in some kind of black coat. Damn! He looks colossally different from every other resident of the village: long hair tied in a ponytail, glasses... A scar running through his left eye... A sword in his hand... Is this the end for me? I looked back and saw that Aria was no longer behind me.

The man carefully examined me from head to toe. "Kid, what are you doing here? Did you see the time? Everyone should have been in their beds long ago. How are you going to work if you don't get a good night's sleep..." He paused and examined me once more. "And I haven't seen you before... What are you? One of the librarians who never crawl out of their booth?"

Motherfucker, I'm in so much trouble... What should I do? Say yes? Or just pretend to be mute? I haven't said a word yet, right? "Cat got your tongue?" he chuckled. "Are you a freeloader? You know what happens if that's the case?"

For some reason, his gaze is incredibly heavy on me... "Relax, kid, I'm joking. There haven't been freeloaders in this village for ages," he put a hand on my shoulder. "But I am very interested, where do you live? Come on, show me your quarters." He started walking somewhere, holding me by the shoulder. I don't even know where we are going...

"Let him go, that's my little brother!" Suddenly Aria ran out onto the road and blocked the path. "He suffers from sleepwalking, so he ran away from home, and now he probably came to his senses and doesn't even understand what's happening!"

The man stopped and smirked. "I don't even know if I should believe you, lovely lady, but at least that explains why he's so silent." He let go of my shoulder. "Hey, kid, is it true that she's your sister?" I nodded approvingly, afraid to utter a single word. "Well then, your sister must know where you work. Let's have you both say your place of work simultaneously on the count of three."

"And yes, I won't believe that you can't speak: I saw you chatting about something near the village," he smiled and put his hand on my shoulder again. Aria nodded. "Yes, alright..." she said very uncertainly, lowering her gaze somewhere down to her feet. He raised his free hand and held up three fingers. "Well then, let's begin. One... two... three!"

Aria said: "Farm." I said: "Library."

The man laughed loudly. "Hahaha, are you serious? You aren't very close for a brother and sister, seeing as you named different places. I think your brother should take a walk with me."

I am so screwed... What will they do to me? What if they find out that I'm actually dead? Or do they already know? Was it him in the clearing back then?

Aria looked down, and the man led me toward the village exit. She was getting further and further away. The man walked forward silently with a smile. We had already left the village; that majestic building with the statue in the distance was approaching inexorably.

"Kid, why so upset? You keep staying silent, won't even say a word, for example: 'Oh no! Don't take me away, I'm not guilty of anything...'" He laughed and continued walking, holding me by the shoulder.

What was the point of saying that? I really am not guilty of anything. What's the problem with taking a walk at night? We approached the front door—it was huge and imposing. Two stern, muscular guards with spears stood on either side of it.

"Let us in!" the man pronounced, and the guards immediately hastened to throw open the heavy doors.

Bright light flooded my eyes: gilded lamps, a red carpet, statues, and marble columns—everything spoke of the richness of the decor. It looked more like a castle. Somewhere in the distance, a huge throne was visible, but no one was on it. The man didn't lead me to it; he turned and opened some door. Behind it, there was no such luxury, just a table and two chairs, and the room itself looked as if it had been hastily poured with concrete. We went inside. Cold immediately wrapped around my body. He sat me on a chair and chained me to it with handcuffs he produced from somewhere inside his coat.

"Sit here for a bit, I need to step away. And so you don't get bored..." He opened the only door in the room that didn't lead to the exit, and a few seconds later came out with a book in his hands, placing it on the table. "Read a little and don't worry, no one will harm you."

Smiling, he left. I remained alone in this cold concrete room; the book on the table was my only companion.

THE KING'S QUARTERS

The man walked down an expensive-looking corridor adorned with many paintings, and a luxurious red carpet lay atop the marble floor. He stopped at a huge door trimmed with some kind of red leather, took the knocker in his hand, and knocked a couple of times.

"Your Majesty, it is I, your loyal knight! I have good news, open up!" he smiled. Light footsteps were heard behind the door, and it opened. A tired-looking girl stood on the threshold in pajamas decorated with many feathers. "What news in the middle of the night? I just fell asleep."

The man smirked and entered the room. "My dear Your Majesty Aetheria, remember I noticed a kid who escaped from the offering center? Well, I found him. What shall we do next?"

She walked to the bed and sat on its edge. "So, the living dead man has been found... You know, we won't do anything. Just send him home, but from now on you will watch him!"

The man was surprised: "Just let him go? Did you forget what the doctor said? He was terminally ill, and now he's walking calmly on his own two feet, and this is after death."

The woman lay on her back and stared at the ceiling. "We don't know what this is. This is happening for the first time in all the time people have lived here. Perhaps it's the influence of our 'battery', but hardly: she is currently completely powerless and can only produce energy for our dear citizens. Maybe a miracle of the goddess or some other nonsense... There is no point in killing him yet. But if this is indeed the influence of our 'battery', then we are in deep shit. Watch him... My knight..."

The man chuckled: "And here I wanted to kill him. Corpses shouldn't come back to life after all, it's a strange business..."

THE ROOM

The book lay before me; I didn't dare open it, I just stared at the leather cover. The door opened abruptly. "Well, I have good news for you, kid." The man walked up to me and unlocked the handcuffs with a key. "You're going home now, but this time—don't walk around at night anymore, or else who knows what might happen."

He smiled and put his hand on my shoulder again. "Forgive me if I scared you. Come on, I'll walk you home." What? They imprisoned me here, and now they are just letting me go? What nonsense, maybe this is all a delirious dream? "Get up, my time isn't infinite," he waited at the exit of the room.

I followed him: expensive interiors, then the street, and finally, the village. We stopped at my dwelling. He walked in front and unerringly led me to the place without my directions. Does that mean he knows everything about me?

"Kid, tell me, how the hell did you come back from the dead?" he stared at me with a maximally serious gaze. So, he does know everything... "I... I don't know..." I mumbled under my breath. "Relax, I'm joking. Who comes back from the dead? That's unrealistic," he patted me on the shoulder. "Take care of yourself, kid." After these words, he departed rather quickly into the darkness.

I walked up to the door... He just pretended not to know. In reality, he's aware. Something is wrong here. Why is all this so colossally different from what I saw on the internet? Usually, reincarnation is a fun adventure... I chuckled. Apparently, not with my luck. And I wouldn't be able to pretend to be another person, and it's impossible. Why did others succeed, but not me? Why did those stupid characters fit into someone else's life so easily, absolutely not hesitating to occupy it? It's just terrible...

I opened the door. Darkness filled the entire space. Feeling the walls, I walked toward what used to be my room... Finding the handle, I pulled, and the door opened. A faint yellowish light illuminated the room. Aria was sitting on my bed, reading.

"Wow, you returned. I thought they had already used you for experiments. They one hundred percent have all your data, and they surely knew you were dead," she said without looking up from the book. Damn, she's right, that's logical... "And what are you doing in my..." I cut myself off... Damn, can't say that... "In his room?" I asked Aria.

She smirked: "Mine? Want to take over his identity? I am here because I have the right to be..." her face became serious. "I have the right to remember him, to grieve, to rejoice, to love... He was alive, he wanted to see this world. Hell, not even the world—at least these stupid islands..." A light tear rolled down her cheek. "But he never could, and then you occupied his body. And now you can calmly stroll around in his guise. I played a lot of things over in my head and came to the conclusion that I still cannot forgive you. I can't. I will never be able to... Whether you are a demon or a human whose soul fell into his body by accident, I cannot forgive you. You touched what is sacred to me. Don't speak to me ever again and find yourself a job tomorrow. Pay for your sin by helping me support our mother and this fucking house..." Aria got up and left the room without letting the book out of her hands.

It's true... It is impossible to forgive me. If someone else came in my father's body, I wouldn't be able to forgive him for that... I lay on the bed; my gaze caught a slight crack in the wooden ceiling. How terrible everything is... Just like my life... What life? I've been dead for a long time... I want to go home so much... My eyes closed, and soft angelic wings embraced me, sending me deep into the kingdom of sleep.

"Grandma, Grandpa, I'm home!" I shouted, entering my house. Grandma and Grandpa waved at me. "Grandson, by the way, guests came for you while you were gone!" Grandma said. "Wow, guests? Wonder who." I quickly took off my shoes and went to the kitchen.

Asahina and Leo were sitting at the table, slowly sipping tea. "Oh, you're here, man," Leo got up from the table and extended his hand. I shook it. Asahina also got up and hugged me. "Guys, what are you doing at my house?" Asahina laughed: "What a fool you are, Felix! Today is your birthday!" she released me from her embrace. "My birthday? And you even know when it is? Guys, I'm just happy!" I smiled like the happiest fool in the world. "These aren't all the guests, grandson!" Grandma said.

The door from my room opened, and he came out. "Father! God, you returned!" I ran to my father and hugged him. "Son, I am so glad to see you. My last journey didn't go very well, but I still managed to return. And how could I miss your birthday?" father said, hugging me back.

Everyone started singing. Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you... Happy... I was hugging emptiness. Well, of course, who could I be hugging? He's been dead for a long time... And I was never friends with Leo, and the relationship with Asahina can hardly be called friendship. Prima appeared before my face. "You are in so much pain, but you know... There is someone here who is in more pain than you and whom you pledged to help. I hope you keep your promise."

Something cold poured onto my face. I slowly opened my eyes. "Wake up! You're coming with me, we'll find you a job." Aria was standing over the bed, pouring water on me from a glass. I jumped up. "Yeah, just a sec..." I mumbled. "Your breakfast is on the table. Eat quickly, we have little time!" Aria threw out, leaving the room.

On the table stood a plate with steaming potatoes. I sat at the table and began to eat it greedily. It was incredible—I don't recall potatoes being so tasty, simply a heavenly taste! Suddenly, a multitude of maggots filled the plate; they were eating a heart in the middle... I recoiled with such horror that I fell off the chair.

What the hell?

Aria burst into the room. "Why are you making noise in here? Aha, so you didn't like the Malum I cooked?"

Malum—what is that? Isn't it a potato?

She took the plate from the table. "Then earn your own food yourself. Get up and let's go to work!"

I slowly got up from the floor. "I'll be waiting for you outside!" Aria shouted.

Understood, so from today I'll have to work. Well, I didn't work in life, so I'll try it after. Nothing to be done, and I am obligated to do this...

I went outside; Aria was waiting by the house, arms crossed. "Follow me," she headed somewhere.

It was lively on the street: many people, carts pulled by some cows... The village lived its own life, but soon we went beyond its limits. Fields stretching to the very horizon amazed with their beauty. We approached two large houses located on one of such fields.

"Oh, Aria, you're a bit late today," said a man with a pitchfork in his hands.

"I know, I needed to bring someone. Meet my brother!" Aria said, pointing a finger at me.

"Your brother? He died recently, unless I'm confusing something..." the man scratched the back of his head. "Well, alright, I'm always glad to accept someone from your family to my farm. True, I don't need help right now, but I know who does!"

"Is that so? And who then?" Aria asked.

"My buddy Torsten. They are short a couple of hunters; I think they'll gladly take the guy, even one as scrawny as this! They are in the west right now, go toward that forest," the man pointed with his finger, smiling.

"Thank you, Foreman Torkell! Then I'll walk my little brother there and definitely return to the farm!" Aria bowed.

"Alright, I'll be happy to wait for you, Aria." The man began throwing hay into some cart with the pitchfork.

What a huge guy, and just a farmer.

"Let's go, just hurry, I can't let the farm down!" Aria moved at a fast pace toward the forest.

I barely managed to keep up with her; she walks fast... Suddenly the forest blocked the view of the beautiful blue sky. Ahead stood some men dressed in slightly different clothing from ours; it was of more red shades, and scabbards for daggers adorned their belts.

"Hello, I am from Foreman Torkell, he said that you need help," Aria pronounced, approaching them.

A hefty man spoke in a bass voice: "We do, but we don't take girls, sorry. Hunting is more of a man's job. But that kid over there can still be tried out," he pointed at me.

Light anger appeared on Aria's face. "I brought him to you. I didn't even want to be involved in your hunting. Take him, and I'm leaving." Aria turned around and headed toward the forest exit.

"Wow, what a girl! Why did her face change so much from my words? Does she really think she can hunt better than men?" the man spoke, scratching the back of his head.

"Dad, I don't think you should have said that to her. You know what they are like," the guy next to him pronounced, smiling.

"Right, your mother is the same: always gets offended, and then I have to cook myself. But oh well. Hey, kid, come here!" The man beckoned me with a gesture, and I approached humbly. "Hunted before?" he asked me.

Mumbling under my breath, I answered: "Yes... no... never happened..."

The man slapped me on the shoulder: "Why are you mumbling like that? A real man must speak loudly and clearly. But I heard you. Then you'll go with my son after the fliers," he laughed. "See, son, your time has come: now you too will become a teacher to someone."

The guy next to him nodded: "Yes, father, I will teach him everything you taught me. Let's go, rookie!"

I walked toward the guy, but the man's large hand stopped me. "Wait, where are you going without a weapon? Here, hold this!" he handed me a dagger. I slowly took it in my hand. "Use the weapon wisely!" he smiled and pushed me toward his son.

"My name is Darian. And what's yours, rookie?"

Damn, should I call myself by the name of the guy whose body I'm in, or my own?"My... Fe... Elian..." Damn, I still called myself by this kid's name.

"Well, nice to meet you, Elian. Ever held such a formidable weapon in your hands?" Darian asked, taking his blade out of the sheath and starting to wave it around.

"Well, actually never..." I answered, looking at the dagger in my hands.

Darian laughed: "Eh, Elian, you are just stepping onto the path of a real man, I was like you once!" Yeah right, he's about my age...

Some grunting sounds were heard ahead among the trees. "There they are! Watch how I do it!" said Darian, moving at a fast pace toward the noise. He abruptly jumped into the bushes, and not a second passed before he flew out of there. The grunting sounds began to cut the ears. He clung to a flying fish with his dagger; it lifted him into the air, and he hit it on the head. Afterwards, he fell to the ground together with this fish, which seemed to have lost consciousness.

"Look at that one! The next one, so be it, I promise to leave for you," Darian said with enthusiasm.

"Well, okay..." said a confused me.

"Well, let's go, why pull the fliers by their tails," he headed further into the thicket.

We moved slowly through the forest like ferocious predators tracking prey. A flying fish appeared nearby: it was sitting at the root of a tree and gnawing on one of the many beautiful flowers.

"So, man, slowly or maximally fast... although it doesn't matter, the main thing is to do it unexpectedly and unnoticed by it. Anyway, approach from behind now and insert the dagger, and then start hitting it on the head," he looked down somewhere and picked up a stone. "Here, hold this, it will be more effective with this," he slapped me on the back, thereby pushing me forward. "Well, good luck, bro!" Darian said, waving at me.

Okay, okay. Need to approach it from behind and plunge the dagger, and then hit it on the head. Piece of cake, I can handle it... I approached closer. The fish seemed not to notice me. I abruptly jumped forward and plunged the blade. The fish rose sharply and squealed like a stuck pig; I soared up with it... Right, now need to hit it on the head. I raised my free hand with the stone clenched in it and started tapping, blood sprayed, staining the cobblestone and fingers red. The fish started thrashing wildly in all directions, then—a sharp fall down. Unpleasant pain echoed in my occiput...

"Bro, are you okay? Holy crap, you fell hard..." Darian said, running up to me.

I looked around: the fish lay nearby, and blood was oozing from its head. I touched the back of my head and felt a couple of bumps there that ached unpleasantly. Darian extended his hand to me. "Get up, bro, I think a couple of fish is enough for your first time." I took his hand and got up. "And you hit your head on a stone, lucky that it didn't bleed. Take your flier, and let's go to camp."

"Wow, so fast? And I was just getting a taste for it..." I said.

"Yeah, we have nothing to carry them on, so we'll make do with two. The main thing is that you showed you can hunt, so dad will most likely keep you. We are just short on hunters. But instead of money for the first time, you'll take the flier with you," Darian said, walking ahead. I picked the fish up from the ground and threw it over my shoulder. It was quite heavy, twelve kilograms, no less...

Soon we returned to the camp. My shoulder had already gone numb—this catch was too heavy, while Darian carried his like it was nothing. "Dad, we're back! This guy, Elian, can actually become a pretty good hunter: caught a flier on the first try," Darian said, placing the fish near the fire.

"Really? If he really never hunted, then that's wonderful. Let's keep him for a week or two, we don't have hands anyway, and you keep an eye on him," the man said.

I finally dumped that stupid fish on the ground too. "Alright, father." Darian approached me. "Well, now I'm like your senior. Although that's not important, let's be friends instead." He extended his hand to me.

Friends? I've known him for next to nothing... But maybe it's for the best: I wouldn't refuse a friend. "Okay," I shook his hand.

"That's great, Elian. Listen, my dad is going to give a speech now."

Darian's dad, named Torsten, raised a wooden cup full of a foamy drink. "My dear comrades, today we hunted gloriously, and we also have an addition! Meet..." he paused. "Darian, what's your buddy's name?"

"Elian is his name," Darian answered.

Torsten laughed: "Right, Elian! He is now our new comrade, and my son will look after him. I won't delay, let's drink to Elian!"

A hum of male voices filled the forest. How can they celebrate the addition of just one person, moreover one who just caught one fish? They are all so joyful and happy... What fools.

"Let's at least fry one flier, you probably haven't even tasted them," Darian said with a smile, skewering the fish on a huge skewer.

"Well, okay, let's..." I agreed, looking down somewhere.

Darian slapped me on the shoulder. "Hey, why so sad? Have fun like everyone else! It's a celebration after the hunt. If you don't have fun, the prey won't be caught so easily later!"

Seriously? It's even kind of funny. I wish I could just be carefree... What would I change if I went back?

Darian handed me a skewer with a piece of meat. "Have a snack on this while our flier cooks!"

I took the treat from his hand and bit off a piece... "God, this is the most delicious meat I've ever tasted... What kind of meat is this?!" I asked with burning eyes.

"Bro, this is Gamayun—a bird I can't hunt yet, but father and his friends catch them often," he looked somewhere into the sky.

"Gamayun, so that's what it is..."

For the first time in all this time, I was communicating with a person who sees a friend in me. We chatted with him about different creatures filling this paradisiacal island; he told me about types of hunting and various weapons. It got dark quite quickly outside, and I headed to the village with Darian, while his father and friends remained in the forest.

"Listen, I haven't seen you here at all. How did you appear here?" Darian asked me right in front of the village entrance.

"I... just... was very sick, just recently got cured and now I'm healthy..." I smiled foolishly.

"Really? You look like a lively one. I wouldn't have said you were sick, you're pretty strong." He looked me over, then abruptly got distracted. "Oh, bro, follow me, need to visit one lady."

He went toward something resembling a small shop. There was an inscription on the sign that I couldn't make out for some reason. The shop doors flew open from the strength of Darian's hands.

"Prima, I came to buy another little flower to, naturally, give it to you!" Darian said with a stupid smile.

Behind the counter, which resembled a register, to my surprise, stood Prima. "Oh, Prima... Hi..." I waved my hand to her.

"You know her or something, bro? No way!" he slapped me on the shoulder. How much can he slap me...

"I... I... don't remember you, sorry..." Prima said shyly, with a light velvet blush.

Did she really behave like that? Something is wrong here... Absolutely wrong. Either she is lying to not reveal this in front of Darian, or she really doesn't remember.