Author's Preface
The sounds of the world slowly began pouring into Naren's ears like a low running tap. First came the gentle breeze of the wind, then the slow croaks of critter. Finally, the murmurs of foreign tongue washing by.
Naren exhaled a deep breath, as he stood in the same familiar place in the town plaza. His golden eyes set on the statue of Atlas that once captured his attention.
But now, it wasn't so much as he was inspecting it, it was more, just a place for his eyes to rest.
Rest. That's what he wanted now more than anything.
As he finally came to terms with and understood just what kind of predicament he was really. As he finally stopped lying to himself and began unveiling the truth.
She was always seemingly able to escape the wolf. Always there when it appeared. And somehow, never killed.
Someone as frail as Vera had always been there under his nose.
"Vera...is the wolf..."
Saying it out loud, Naren took another deep breath. His chest was hurting. A deep gushing pain with every second that passed.
Naren legs shook as he fell back onto the stone pavilion. His body sprawled out as countless husks continued to walk by him. Some even stepping on him.
Though, their individual light bodies barely hurt.
Still, even if they did, Naren didn't notice. His gaze was instead set onto the twilight ocean in the sky above. The waves gently rocking and knocking into each other.
A droplet of the sea falling every once in a while.
Naren yawned as his golden eyes rested on the sea above. His breathing slowly settling as he closed his eyes.
'Just five minutes...For five minutes I want to disappear.'
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As always, Naren's dreams were rarely ever anything he looked forward to. No, instead they were things he dreaded.
Even though he loved to sleep, this was the one caveat he had. Letting him further appreciate those dreamless nights he'd have every once in a while.
But this wasn't one of them.
A boy about fourteen years of age smiled at Naren. His wide grin missing a tooth as his amber eyes squinted at him. His scruffy brown hair was parted at the side, yet somehow still messy.
It was a face Naren had known all too well.
Naren opened his mouth to speak, but before he good, the boy's face contorted. His expression melting away as his face was left without a feature to speak of. Yet, even without a mouth, the boy could speak.
"My name...what is it?"
Suddenly, Naren blinked awake.
The twilight sky just as bright as it had been when he slept. The husks in the same place as always running the same routes.
Naren took a deep breath.
Naren blinked. Sweat beading down his neck. He was breathing heavy without even realizing. His chest beating hard. Noise flooding in as a stray ray of light from the oceanic sky crept onto his face.
Naren breathed. He blinked. Dozens of husks pushed and shoved past Naren. All of them wearing a mask of some woodland animal.
Naren blinked, stumbling around as his head and chest were both in agonizing pain.
Naren blinked.
Blinked.
Blinked.
Blinked.
His eyes adjusting to the light while husks pushed past him.
Naren's legs finally buckled as he fell to a seat on the floor. His eyes tracing the statue peering through the crowd.
How many times had it been?
How many times had he died trying the same thing over and over again.
At some point, Naren gave up on explaining. He gave up trying to win people over. He gave up using his underhanded methods.
But at every turn. At every instance, he would fail.
He would die. Every time. Without ever even seeing her as human. No, she made it a point to be never seen by him. Somehow constantly disappearing, only to turn out at the dead of night as the hideous beast.
And now, he laid in the middle of a never ending dream wondering why he was doing any of this.
Why was he trying so hard? Why did he keep pushing himself? Why did he wake up, over and over and over again just to die again and again.
Naren clutched his chest. It hurt. Every time he died, it was an unfathomable pain and even deeper loneliness. As his vision began to fade, Naren couldn't tell if he would wake up again. If that was it.
And...he was tired of it. He grew tired of it all.
Save Vera?
Who cares. He barely knew the little girl. Why was he so obsessed over helping her? What was driving him to such lengths.
After so long, Naren couldn't remember anymore. He couldn't bother to. He...He just wanted this to be over.
As his thoughts grounded him, he watched a familiar figure approach the peculiar statue his eyes were locked onto.
The one-eyed man, examining the statue.
Cairo was brought there in all of the recent loops. He would approach the statue and stare at the back of it. As if looking for something that should've been there. And everytime, without fail, Cairo would find nothing. He would follow his gut to nothing.
Naren watched the charade over and over again.
Nico being prosecuted by the husks and Cairo saving him. He watched as the boy slowly lost more and more of his features, and as Cairo helplessly warded off any husks that approached.
But that never happened anymore. No. There was no more Nico. Just like there would be no more Cairo, no more Naren, no more Yuna.
Maybe that was for the best.
Naren yawned as he rest his eyes.
Maybe it would be better to just become a husk. Not having to think about what you were doing. Not having to waste your energy. Not having to worry about anything.
Suddenly, Naren felt a something dig into his side as his body flipped across the town plaza.
Staggering up to his feet, Naren's gaze focused on a one-eyed man, staring daggers at him.
"You got a problem with naps, now?"
This was also apart of the never ending cycle. Everytime, Naren would be attacked by Cairo. Whether it be when Naren told him he wanted to save the Werewolf. Or when when he simply did nothing. Cairo would attack him without words.
But this time differed.
The one-eyed man, strained his eye as he sparks flew from the finger he held pointing at Naren.
"I liked you...But now...You're face really pisses me off."
Naren grit his teeth, approaching Cairo. Then within the blink of an eye, he swung his hip around, digging the heel of his bare feet into Cairo's arm, throwing him to the ground.
Naren breathed as he let a smile creep onto his face.
"The hell're you kicking me for? You think I want this? I want to even become a shaman?!"
In the next second, Cairo threw an elbow at Naren, digging into his nose.
"You never wanted to be a shaman?! You think this is just some we do for fun? Kick rocks then! We not some heroes. We sell our souls to beasts jus to get a taste of power! We're not some fuckin lofty goal for you!...If you're a shaman you bite down on your tongue to stop crying!"
Naren swept the ground, his foot cutting through Cairo's as the one-eyed man dropped to the floor. Naren stepping over him.
"Like I give a damn! I don't care if you're a hero or a beggar! I got my own problems you know! Who the hell cares about yours?!"
Cairo grabbed Naren's leg, flipping it over, as Cairo dropped Naren to the ground, his knee over Naren's chest.
"Everyone's got problems dickhead! You think you special?! Listen, little shit, you're pathetic. Sulking here. Just looking at those dull eyes pisses me off!"
Cairo drew closer to Naren.
"An here my gut was tellin me you was cool, Naren."
Naren. Who was that? It sounded familiar...Wait that was him. He was Naren. That was his name. Cairo remembered his name?
Naren blinked.
"You...You know me?"
"Nah...Just felt right sayin that."
He didn't know...But he still said it.
Someone...Someone else had called his name. How long? How many loops since he last heard it? Wasn't this what he wanted? Why was he doing all this? It was because of his name. He wanted to hear Vera call his name.
He looked at Cairo, the color returning to his golden eyes.
"You got a crush on me, candle?"