The sky was dark, indeed there were no lumpy clouds but the stars were reluctant to fulfill their duty to illuminate the void of the universe. Two people survive in silence in a position facing each other back. The windswept meadows fluttered their different colors strands. They didn't look at each other but they could tell what face the other was making.

Maybe some magic help? Who knows.

"That lazy insects wouldn't wake up if there wasn't a commotion. Let me hit its head once," a low but angry tone sounded loud in his ears. He let out a small laugh, knowing that the figure behind him was already at the limit of his patience.

"Louis, it's not nice to call people 'insects'."

Louis' muttering already showed how annoyed he was now. "You're too soft on your enemies, John! If he puts sleeping pills in your meal and capture you in silent, I'm sure no one will notice."

'You think I'm that easy Louis!?' Not yet finished his mind continued the pain of his heart, now the focus of the two was shifted to the rustling sound that appeared around him. The two beads who had been playing around now stared intently while taking out their respective equipment.

Another sigh sounded, "Ogre and Larva for dinner today? Looks like we have to stop for a while to the market to shop for spices, Ogre meat is notoriously tough and Larvae have a lot of mucus that is difficult to clean."

It seemed that that night John would not choose to finish his dinner, even though it had been made by Louis, the best cooker among their group.

***

No matter how many times they passed that road, the feeling of damp and wet always lurked. The dark cave in the interior of the forest with the sound of gurgling water droplets crystallizing above, it's beautiful but gives a mysterious mystical impression even to 'wanderers' like the two.

The sound of shoe soles filled their ears, soon the two of them would arrive at the portal that was previously used to return to their world. The laborious work they had done well, very well. It is appropriate for them to get a break before returning to their normal human activities.

And moments like this sometimes take their minds to dive into the past.

"You know John," he said first, cutting off what John wanted to start and briefly ending their journey.

"The pendulum swings between Light and Darkness," he continued in a low whisper. Don't worry, John can still hear it.

"Louis? Are you all right?" It was unusual for a young man who was famous for his seriousness to talk ramblingly like now.

On the other hand, Louis was fully aware of what had happened to him. Many foreign 'particles' were 'talking' since they entered the cave. I don't know what makes 'they' chatty more than usual.

Louis hastily took the first step, leaving John slightly behind. Of course, seeing this, John immediately followed his partner, afraid that something might happen to him as his heart was beating wildly.

"Hey, Lou—"

Stopped, they suddenly stopped and looked at each other. The pomegranate beads that glowed brightly in the dim light briefly blended with his autumn bead.

"Isn't it surprising that you almost became alive?" Believe me, if John says there is something wrong with the body of the young man in front of him.

His hands slowly reached into the pockets of his robes, trying to be on the lookout for what might happen. Then silence, neither of them said anything after Louis' ambiguous sentence just now.

"I do live Louis, and will continue to be like that forever."

"Until when, how long?" There was no point in reproaching those words, but his tongue was too mute to work with right now.

Flash after a flash of memory flashed through his mind. From birth to death. The war that slaughtered their people, forced children to learn the art of killing, taught women to be fighters, men, both teenagers and adults, gave themselves up to serve as killing machines on the front lines.

Time and again the fishy blood splashed on their faces, soaking the cloth and heavy iron that covered their bodies. The heat from the hot atmosphere of the battlefield sheds unmitigated sweat. But what if there is a word in the news that spreads that the sweat is not half as much as the tears of the victims.

It is no longer good and bad, nice and horrible. When the war started everyone was the same, just as violent, just as insolent. Kill or you are killed first. Planting this sentence is not only scary but a reminder that life is only a small price in this situation.

"I don't think we know what kind of enemy we are really dealing with," that statement is true.

Our self or ruler? Should we blame the Kings who started to protect what they have, including the citizens? Or should we blame ourselves for being selfish to win with the excuse of maintaining a life that blows?

A tight hug wrapped the cold body. Even though he was wrapped in thick clothes and robes, John could feel how cold the pale skin was on him now. "The sun does not abandon the moon to darkness. Same to me, your are my sun and you will not forget me, just like my possessive to you."

The two of them maintained each other's existence, refusing to be separated, and that was what was happening right now.

The circle of hands fell off, as the younger boy walked away from him. "Come on, hurry up John, I'll be late for dinner."

His eyes still hadn't left, staring straight at the figure slowly swallowed up by the light of their transportation. There was no gentle expression as usual. Now he is not a smiling John, but there is only poor John who is carried away by deep pain.

Biting his lip, John immediately followed Louis who had not yet left the portal. He quickly grabbed the slender arm and once again put it in his tight embrace.

"I'm sorry for forcing you to join the war. You have to suffer emotional loss, even your eyesight can't fully recover. If only I was stronger, more daring to slaughter—"

"Sshhh, magic didn't make you powerful, it fed you with lies and distractions, that's what I learned until becoming like this. You don't have to pity me like this," isn't finished but his voice has been silenced first.

"I've never felt sorry for you! Why do you love to maintain a mask when other people truly care about you!? Should you continue to be silent until it drives me crazy for not being able to protect you? Then what's the difference between you right now and you slowly killing me?!"

This is why Louis is reluctant to go on a mission with him. In the end, it all ends the same.

"I won't apologize. For me as long as the breath of life is still with you, it's more than enough," he said sadly, inviting the autumn beads to widen once again. But now the light inside faded away, same as the pomegranate that already turns dark like piece of old ruby. 

His tone was very empty in reply to the selfish words earlier, "what's the point of this 'breath' still being there, if my 'soul' is gone forever?"

The day passed in the gloom. The sunlight wasn't enough to illuminate the lingering darkness. In them, there is a will to get stronger, for the sake of a loved one. But what can they do, even though the most glorious magic is obtained only brings disaster because of something called 'beloved'. It's as usual if people say 'devotion is the strongest magic to kill you' and that's what swallows them up if one day it is wrapped around their destiny.

No matter how hard you try, after you swallow the lovely words, than that is the time you lost to the magic, and will never win against with it.