Apologize Not

Chapter 5: Sieya

     I did not expect for my warning to stick. Amorious is predictable once you spend enough time with him. He is not someone to be trusted. I learned that the hard way. I made those mistakes. And I refuse to make them again.

      I watch from the shadows, waiting for Amorious to show his face. The children think I went off hunting amongst the humans. I do not exactly tell them much for their safety. The little they know, it what my body has decided to use against me.

       It has been centuries—eons. The last thing that really changed my body and self is nothing but a hazy nightmare. A nightmare that scarred me for life. Subconsciously, I reach up to my mouth and place two fingers on one of my barely visible fangs. A snap of a twig jerks my attention back to reality before I can sink too far into my pain.

       A young hare bursts through the trees, running for its life. I watch as a fox pounces on it out of nowhere and kills it. I sigh and lean against the huge oak tree. Fog has slowly appear around me. Autumn is nearly over and soon, winter will take its place.

       "He won't come through here. You're too far away from the kids." Voices hiss. I turn and stare directly into Depression's eyes.

        "I am close enough to protect them. Far enough to avoid them." Depression smiles and backs away. Depression appears as an entity you would be the most comfortable talking to. I have learned through the years that she will never appear as an actual person or animal. Rather, she will appear as its silhouette.

         In my eyes, she is a black female entity with long pointed ears, huge white eyes, and long claws for hands. Her upper half usually appears while her lower half is complete smoke. Unless I call for her to appear completely, she remains that way. Right now, her mouth is like a human with sharp fangs. Upon being called, she becomes an entirely different level of horror.

       "Anne won't stand a chance against a minor god—major now since you made him king of the Underworld with the treacherous snake you used to call a sister. You are weak, Azora. Why didn't you kill them? You have the power to do it." Depression hisses and circles around the fox as it eats the hare. The fox stops and looks at me.

        Depression's presence alone has a significant affect on living things. Those random feelings of sadness you get are most likely small parts of Depression hover over you. Depression herself has been trapped within me. Sometimes I wonder if it was correct to bind the demon to myself. But there is nothing I can do now.

       "I understand that you want me to survive. But distracting me is not going to–" I morph into a raven and fly up into the tree beside me as Amorous emerges exactly where the fox and dead hare are. Depression disappears and becomes quiet.

       Amorious claws his way up and rolls onto his back. He looks at the dead hair and shakes his head. He stands and looks around. With a small triumphant smile be reaches down and pets the fox. As soon as he stops touching it, the fox dies. Amorous takes the hare's heart along with the fox's and eats them in a single gulp. He gags a bit but shakes it off.

      The silence upon his presence has already alerted the nearest warriors. If he does not move quickly, he will be subdued and forced back to the Underworld. I wait for Amorious to disappear out of sight before taking flight. I fly ahead, keeping watch over him.

       Just before he reaches the clearing, I fold my wings in and begin to fall like a rock. I morph back to myself and land in front of Amorious with my wings spread out. Amorious summons his sword and jumps backwards.

        "Nice entrance." Depression grumbles. I growl, silencing her.

         "I came for Anne." Amorious says as he tries to glance behind me..

        "I suggest you return to the Underworld." Amorious's eyes narrow.

       "Why do you even care? Elektra betrayed you and took everything away from you. Why didn't you just kill her?" 

       "You know already, Amorious. She is an innocent. She will not be defined by the mistakes of her parents." Amorious lowers his sword and glares at me.

       "What about us? Did you ever even love me?" I sneer.

        "You speak of love, Amorious. What do you know about it?" Amorious drops his sword and takes a step towards me.

        "I stood beside you for years. I fought by your side. I–"

        "Amorious. Love is not a feeling." Amorious stares at me in confusion. "Love is what you do despite what you feel. Perhaps, what you do will not be understood despite the sacrifices you make. Amorious, love is not a feeling. Love are the actions you take and the sacrifices you make for the betterment of others."

        "You lost your sanity! You lost your family and friends! You lost everything you loved—"

        "I did not. You asked me why I did not kill Anne despite her blood originating from the two who hurt me the most. The answer is simple. She does not deserve to bear the weight of your ignorance. She does not deserve to suffer because we could not get our priorities straight, Amorious."

         "No!" Amorious yells angrily. "No! You don't understand! Give me my daughter! Return what is mine!"

        "Depression." Depression begins to manifest beside me. Amorious's eyes flash red as his own demon stirs.

        "You wouldn't survive with me whispering in your ear." Depression says and smiles. Her mouth becomes liquids. Strands appear in its place as she opens her mouth. With a sicken roar, she rams into Amorious and knocks him to the ground. Amorious screams and thrashes. I tuck in my wings and sit.

        I sit there for a while, watching Amorious get tortured by Depression. I pull my legs up to the point where my knees touch my chest. I wrap my arms around my legs and quietly watch Depression torture Amorious up to the point that he sinks back into the ground.

       Black smoke is left behind. It floats up and forms Depression. Her back is turned towards me. She is panting angrily. Her long claws drip with blood. Her "skin" has cracks in it with golden blood seeping out.

      "Azora." Depression turns her head to look at me. "He disgusts me."

      "I understand." I say and stand. Depression turns completely and looks at me. Her usual smile is gone. Her eyes droop inwards.

     "Kalavos. That's the name of the demon inside of him. There's no way we can get rid of Amorious without getting rid of that thing."

      "I know." Depression nods.

      "Of course you do." She grumbles and melts into nothing. I walk back to the mansion. I sense Anne running away from the kitchen. She had seen everything. Possibly heard everything, too. She will have questions. Questions I wish not to answer.