Kald woke up in the same bed he'd slept in before the quest. He wore a loose robe, and bandages were wrapped around his hands from the force burns.
Kald quietly looked up at the ceiling, not saying a word. But then, in an instant, it all came back to him.
Kald shot forward and burst from his room, surprising a passing maid. He didn't stop, stumbling down the stairs as he rushed.
Please be a dream.
He raced to the living room, finding the Mayor and Dan sitting on the couch, sipping their tea. Papers were laid out on the table, likely revolving around Dan's enlistment into office. The two men looked up. Their surprised expressions soon turned solemn.
Please be a dream.
"WHERE ARE THEY?!" Kald shouted, his voice raw. Doing so sent aches through his body, but he didn't care.
Dan stood. "Kald, I—I'm afraid—"
"WHERE!?" Kald was fighting back tears.
Please be a dream.
Dan went to say something, but the Mayor interrupted.
"Outskirts of the village..."
That was all he said, taking another sip of tea.
Without another word, Kald dashed from the house at full speed, imbuing his legs with as much force as his body could muster.
Once he was gone, Dan turned to his father with a disappointed expression. "Father..."
The Mayor looked up and shook his head. "Listen, Dan. In times like this, there's no easy way to break the news. You just have to be honest and upfront, "For no matter how you deliver the news. it'll be the same suffocating pain regardless..."
Kald channeled even more force into his legs. They burned. His whole body burned. But even so, he continued. Tears streamed down his face as he thought back to the fight—Dalan, Lea, Er—he couldn't even bring himself to think her name. Up ahead he spotted a small group gathered on a small grassy hill just outside the village, beneath the same tree he'd practiced on earlier.
Please be a dream.
Kald reached the hill, panting, his face wet with sweat and tears. As the villagers noticed him they quietly parted upon seeing him, some bowing theirs heads while they went—it was as the people cleared that Kald saw them—tombstones. Two of them, side by side. He trembled as he stumbled forward.
"Please be—..."
His voice trailed off as he collapsed to the ground, sobbing. On the gravestones were written the names Dalan and Lea, and beneath them:
Heroes of Mako
Kald continued to sob. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't think. He couldn't do anything but cry.
"AUGHHHH!"
He screamed in anguish.
Why?
Why them?
Why!?
He kept crying as he heard footsteps behind him. He didn't turn.
"I'm sorry for burying them here of all places. You were asleep for over a week—we didn't have much of a choice..." It was Dan. He held a small bundle in his arms.
Kald didn't respond.
Dan's stomach sank. He cringed at the sight of him. He thought back to his father's words.
"I—"
"Where is she?" Kald muttered in a low whisper. "Where did she go?"
Dan hesitated. Not because he didn't know what to say—but because he did. He tightened his grip on the bundle.
"Lord Kald... forgive me, but we couldn't bury her."
Kald slowly turned toward him, almost looking hopeful.
Don't look at me like that, Dan thought. You should know better than anyone else...
Dan blinked away his tears. Why was he crying? He felt like an idiot.
"T-there wasn't enough left to bury," he choked, handing Kald the bundle.
"This was all we could find…"
Dan quickly turned away, covering his face with his sleeve.
Kald stared down at the bundle in his arms. He reached for the cloth… but paused, his hand trembled.
I shouldn't open this. I—
Then he remembered her face. That last expression she gave him—just before he swung.
In that moment, Kald made his decision.
His fingers continued to tremble but he hesitated no more… Kald began to unwrap the bundle.
Please be a dream.
(And thus, Kald's adventure continues…)