Secret Diary of the Goddess of Light: Regret
If you spend millennia hearing everything you do is right, why would you ever question your choices? Yet I weep alone, doing just that, for none can know I'm weak or could ever be wrong. He reached for me as my champion to be loved and saved from darkness, but when he was at his weakest and dying, I killed him. An act of mercy and love, for all his kindness.
—Lost to time, a page from the Secret Diary of the Goddess of Light
Tom watched as his friend tapped the table, growing more annoyed with each passing moment. The noise from the tavern seemed to be getting to Jerry, but something else was eating at him too—Tom just wasn't sure what. He'd tried to calm Jerry earlier and got smacked for his trouble.
"HEY! MY DRINK, YOU DUMB BITCH!" Jerry yelled at a barmaid walking past.
Tom flinched at his friend's voice. Jerry was a fellow knight, but his temper had been getting worse lately. Tom watched the barmaid flip Jerry off and saw Jerry's face darken as he debated taking it further.
"Jerry, calm down. The knight captain warned you before about—"
"FUCK OFF! WE'RE IN THIS SHIT BECAUSE OF HIM!" Jerry spat, leaning closer as if ready to give Tom another smack. Tom flinched and decided it was best to stay quiet.
A drink slammed down in front of Jerry, ale sloshing dangerously close to the rim.
Tom looked at the server in alarm, wondering if this would make things worse. The woman stared Jerry down with surprising boldness.
"You got lucky," Jerry sneered at her defiance. "I want to get drunk more than I want to deal with your ugly ass." She walked away in disgust while Jerry stared at her retreating form.
"Jerry, do you know what happened?" Tom asked quietly, hoping for some answers.
Jerry drank and ignored the question. Tom wasn't sure what else to do except look around the tavern, trying not to stare directly at his friend. Jerry didn't like it when Tom stared.
"Why are you asking me, you dumb fuck?" Jerry finally said. "You know what we do. We clean up his messes. And I want more men before I go into that cursed land."
"Maybe he came back?" Tom offered, hopefully.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJYLbCUKN4c
"You optimistic shit." Jerry took another drink. "It's been weeks. He's never been gone more than a few days. We haven't even heard from the town he was supposed to save. That means bad shit happened, and now they want us to deal with whatever's left."
A quiet fell over the nearby tables. Other patrons had been ignoring Jerry's ranting until now, but hearing about something being wrong with the Light's champion worried them. They'd never had to worry before. What could have happened to him?
Whispers began to spread among those who'd heard, and soon everyone knew. Rumors circulated that things were not good.
Hours later, the two knights who'd gotten stuck with this assignment managed to hire twelve mercenaries. It made Jerry feel better, but not much.
The ride to the affected area was uneventful. When they approached where the town should have been, they encountered a scene that made no sense.
It was an odd mixture of paradise and destruction.
The land wasn't barren or full of rot, as this region was known for. The ground looked clean and fertile, with grass growing everywhere and flowers bright with life. Yet where there should have been a thriving garrison town, only empty, charred remains stood. Not one structure was complete—all were ash frames, skeletal remains of what once was.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1UCYptt2aM
"It makes no fucking sense. How..." Jerry said beside him, looking as dumbfounded as the rest of them.
They hadn't expected to come here for a fight, but a ruined village surrounded by flourishing life wasn't on their list of possibilities. They'd expected a town to welcome them and explain what had happened.
"The crystal must have done this," Tom said, looking at his friend, hopefully. "You think it's still here?"7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrWkP7ZseLA
Jerry scowled. "Shut up, idiot. Use your brain for once. If there was still a crystal here, why would only part of the land be clean? And where the hell is everyone?"
Jerry's irritation was reaching a boiling point. "You really piss me off, you know that? And you dumb fucks," he addressed the mercenaries, "stop gawking. Scout the area and report back."
As Tom walked away to begin searching, he knew this was bad. Jerry was always mean, but this was the first time he seemed truly rattled.
Tom simmered as he moved through the strange landscape. He hated being looked down on, but he knew his place. He was weak. He wanted to be strong like Jerry—always able to take command—yet Tom couldn't even look someone in the eye without flinching.
He'd been scouting for about an hour, knowing he needed to find something or Jerry would call him useless again. He was about to give up and accept whatever punishment awaited when he reached the edge of the meadow.
There, at the rim where the crystal's influence seemed to end, he noticed something odd. The flowers were dying. It was subtle—only a few were wilting—but it was worth investigating.
Maybe some animal had relieved itself there, he thought. That would make sense. He'd seen dead grass from horse droppings before.
He found a small area that looked almost like a puddle and wondered what creature could have made such a mess. Moving closer, he caught an odd smell—not particularly strong, but different from the general rot scent of these lands.
The substance looked almost like dark water. He wondered why it hadn't soaked into the earth. Drawing his knife, he poked at it a few times. The substance clung to his blade, but nothing else happened. He wiped the blade clean on his pants and headed back, resigned to getting yelled at for finding nothing useful.
As expected, Jerry wasn't pleased. He even hit Tom a few times for being worthless.
Jerry didn't trust any of them to handle the situation properly, so he ordered them to make camp. He would ride back for new orders and return in a day or two. He wasn't going to rush back to deal with their incompetence when he had his own problems.
That night, Tom slept and dreamed.
He dreamed of darkness that blessed strength to those willing to fight for it. Fear gripped him at first, but as the visions showed everyone bowing and worshiping him, it felt right. Natural.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡknavUWWtDe
The next morning, he noticed more dead grass around their camp. Had it always been this bad? He thought the meadow had looked healthier before. Maybe this was normal—maybe that's why the champion had to keep cleansing these lands.
Poor bastard.
The day passed without Jerry returning, and without dreams, which disappointed Tom. He found himself longing for that place where he'd had power.
The next morning, Jerry returned, angrier than before, if that was possible.
"THANKS TO YOU WORTHLESS FUCKS," Jerry screamed, "WE NOW HAVE TO HUNT FOR THE CHAMPION! HIS STUPID ASS CAUSED THIS MESS, AND WE HAVE TO CLEAN IT UP! IT PAYS DOUBLE IF YOU KEEP GOING, OR GET OUT OF HERE NOW! YOU WON'T SEE ANOTHER COIN IF YOU LEAVE!"
Tom rubbed his tired eyes. Jerry had been yelling constantly, but at least he wasn't hitting anyone today. Small victories.
The land looked worse than the day before, or maybe it was just his mood. Jerry didn't seem to notice or care, and the mercenaries only cared about money. So deeper into the rotting wilderness they went, searching for what had become of the Light's champion in this place of decay and growing shadow.
Behind them, the meadow continued to wither at its edges, darkness creeping inward like spilled ink on parchment.7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡto1ghkuVwI
and then Add to home screen.