Eryas stood outside a florist shop with many beautiful flowers on displays. He examines each flower thoroughly while casually rubbing his chin. The florist then came and greeted him.
"Excuse me sir, are you interested in buying some flowers?"
"Oh, yes I am."
"Have you decided which one?"
"Yes."
"Well then, let's head inside sir."
A few minutes passed, Eryas walked out of the shop holding a bouquet of flowers in his hand. He looks at the bouquet of beautiful white roses making sure everything is neat and organized. He even smells the flower making sure everything is to perfection. The funny thing is, Eryas faced some difficulty when making payments. Nowadays people usually only accept cashless payments. Because of his conditions being manaless, he is having difficulty in this area.
Frostreign, the name of the family who founded Veloria is not just the ruler of its city but also the face of the leading advancement of Sorcertech. They had a company named Frostreign Inc. which specialized in developing and creating new things that can improve the well being of its citizens. In the last decade, they introduced a new device that is supposed to help people communicate even when they are far away from each other. This weird device comes in the shape of a small rectangular block and it has a glass screen on top of it.
When it is first released, one of its functions is that it can send messages to the recipient in an instant. A week or even months worth of travelling to send letters were simplified using this device called Sorcerfon. People can send messages back and forth, learning about their friends or families' well-being at that right moment. The other function of this device is that they can use it to call someone and hear their voices as if they were right beside you even when they are far away. The creation of Sorcerfon really puts a huge jump in the advancement of Sorcertech.
Every year its features get updated, where now people can see each other through the device screen. Another new feature is where people can use it to purchase things without the need to use cash. How crazy is the advancement of Sorcertech over the years. Sorcerfon has become a trend in people all over Veloria, where every single person would have it.
From the looks of it there is only one person in the city who doesn't use it, and it is Eryas. The technology in Sorcerfon itself is mind-blowing, causing custom modifications for Eryas seems impossible. Its build is so intricate that even customizing it to use a runestone battery is not possible. Another reason is that each device had a biometric identification where it can only be operated with living being mana. The fon itself scans the owner mana and can only be operated by its owner only. This is one of the security measures for the Sorcerfone in case it was missing or stolen. So even putting on a battery wont help Eryas to use it.
In the end Eryas manages to pay it using cash but it requires him to pay more because of the inconveniences he caused. But he didn't really mind it much because he has a lot to spare.
'Huh, I worked hard earning all that money, but in the end I couldn't really use it.'
After a few minutes of walking, Eryas finally arrives. On his left, lay a beautiful crystal lake. Some families were having a picnic near it and some were strolling at the edge of the lake. Right in front of him stood a beautiful cafe facing the lake. This is the first stop of his date. Enjoying delicious food with beautiful scenery. Eryas scans around the cafe looking for his girlfriend, but it seems she hasn't arrived yet. He sighed.
People can easily text each other nowadays, asking where they are or when they will arrive in just a few seconds. But that benefit is not applicable for Eryas. Both he and his girlfriend are still using an old method to contact each other, which is sending letters. The problem with this old fashioned method is that it takes a long time before the message is successfully delivered. Even when he wants to receive a reply it could take a whole week. So right now he doesn't have any means of knowing when his girlfriend will arrive. Eryas takes a look at his watch.
'10 : 00 A:M'
"Guess I'm the first one."
The meeting is at ten, so it seems that his girlfriend would be a little bit late. With that he seated himself at the outside table with a huge patio umbrella in the middle covering him from the sunlight. He lifts the cup of coffee on the table and brings it closed to his mouth, sipping it slowly. His eyes wandered around at people who were enjoying themselves while sometimes searching if his girlfriend arrived. The cup is then carefully placed back on the table, Eryas looks at it and chuckles.
"It's true what people say, ignorance is bliss. Everybody is just enjoying their own daily lives without realizing that the world is about to end."
He sighed.
"Well, technically I am just the same as them."
'It's not like I can do anything about it. I'm just a powerless human.'
He continued sipping on his coffee until eventually he heard footsteps running hurriedly towards him.
"Click-clack"
The sound of heels clicking the marbles catching his attention. Eryas turned his head slightly and saw a woman in a white blouse and long black skirt approaching him. She had long raven black hair and her eyes were covered with sunglasses. Eryas rises from his seat and pulls the opposite chair back. He then pushed it back once she finally sat down. He sits back on his chair before greeting her.
"Hi, Helena."
She took off her sunglasses which revealed a pair of beautiful obsidian black eyes. She looked at Eryas before replying.
"Hi… Eryas."
Eryas felt something weird about Helena. There is no excitement in her face, she doesn't even smile. But Eryas tried to not overly think of it.
"Sorry I haven't ordered any food yet. I'm afraid it will get cold before you arrive. Lets order it, you like pasta right?"
She didn't answer. Eryas look in her eyes, he noticed that she sometimes avoids eye contact with him. He could feel a faint tremor in those pupils.
'I don't like where this is going.'
He forced a smile.
"Helena, are you okay? What's wrong? Is it too hot or you don't like eating here?
She replied with hesitation.
"No… no it's not that."
She lingered for a moment and finally looked at Eryas directly into his eyes.
"Eryas… I'm sorry. I think we should end this."
Eryas was stunned. He was frozen in place for a few seconds trying to digest what he had heard.
'She wants to break up? Why?'
"Why?"
She took a deep breath.
"We're just… not fit for each other. You know… we both live in a very different world. I'm sorry but I can't. I just can't. Both of us would get hurt in the end."
Eryas leaned back on his chair and crossed his arms.
"I'm not convinced. So you're saying that you would rather for one of us to be hurt now?"
"Yes, I would rather hurt myself before everything is too late. I'm really, really sorry. But this is for the best."
"So everything is all about you. What about me? What about my feelings?"
"This is just how things are, Eryas. Even if we try, the future for us is impossible. No matter how hard we try, my future doesn't seem to fit you into it."
Right now his head felt dizzy. His heart felt like it was about to explode. He tried to surpass his emotions cause he doesn't want to cause a scene. Eryas moved his hand onto his forehead and slowly massaged it. He is sweating even when he sits under the patio umbrella.
'Why does it feel so hot today?'
"So just like that? You want to throw everything away? Just like that? What about all those memories that we create, all those promises we make? You said that we will figure out things together. You said that my condition won't stop you from loving me. Does any of that have any meaning for you?"
In an instant, Helena rose from her seat. She put on her sunglasses back, trying to avoid eye contact with Eryas.
"I got to go. Don't bother finding me anymore after this. I'm sorry I had to do all of these. I don't mind if you hate me… bye."
She walked away in a hurried step. The sound of high heels clicking on the marble road slowly dissipates. Eryas froze at his seat. His mind went blank. He wants to go to stop her but his body feels numb, heavy as if the force of gravity crushing him to the ground. Things that were supposed to feel like a dream suddenly turns into a horrendous nightmare. He placed his hand onto where his heart is as if trying to relieve the pain he felt. But those actions seem useless as the pain never subside. The only thing he could feel was that his heartbeat was getting faster. His eyes suddenly turn towards the left side of the table where the bouquet of flowers were placed.
'I didn't even get to give it to her.'
He tried to massage his temples next but ended up brushing his hair causing it to be terribly messed up.
"Arghh! What the hell man?!"
Eryas closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He tried to put himself together and assess the situation rationally. His eyes linger on those flowers from time to time. His mind suddenly came up with an idea.
'That might work. Yeah it should work. I think I'll go with that."
With that he took the half finished cup of coffee earlier and drank it hurriedly.
"Uhh, it's cold."