Chapter 3

Crimson Sky

Arthur woke up to the scent of breakfast from the kitchen. For the first two years, he had been getting nutrition from animals' milk that Katarina was raising. Animals. He almost laughed, remembering how bizarre they looked. A small cow with a duck's beak, an elk's horns, six legs, and a tail with three fingers, acting as a hand. Just remembering it made his stomach curl. Besides, he was getting sick of sucking on the semi-rigid horns, so he had been eager to eat solid food for the past few months.

Arthur shut his eyes again, tired from the sleepless night before. Then he opened them again, a sudden realization lighting his eyes.

"Oh," he exclaimed as he stood excitedly from his bed. "I can finally go out of the house in the morning after breakfast," he said, starting to fold his white wool blanket. With his short arm span, he had to lay it on the bed and pull one corner to the other, and he did it multiple times. "Then I can sneak on the secret chamber tonight to learn magic," he murmured like a child, who seemed to think that he had a perfect plan.

The living room was the same as usual. The brooms and dusting sticks flew from each corner while the three Goth Armors stood unmoving from their place. Arthur walked passed them, however, lost in his world.

"Mornin', Granny," he greeted, walking straight to the dining table as Katarina busied herself in the stove.

She turned sideways. "Mornin', sunshine. Did you sleep well?" she asked, noticing the bags under the boy’s eyes.

Arthur shook his head. "No, I was too excited to go out today."

"That isn't good," her forehead crumpled a little, though she still looked sweet. "Did you know that children should get enough sleep so they'll grow faster and stronger?"

"Really?" he feigned being in a shock. "Then I'll sleep early tonight."

Katarina beamed a smile, then finished her work in the kitchen.

Arthur ate but tasted nothing. He was too preoccupied with thoughts of going outside and even more so, learning magic. He had been eager to learn it more than anything else since the first time he saw it. He had tried it many times, memorizing the incantation that Katarina used to enchant objects in the workshop upstairs. But everything resulted in utter failure.

Can I do it? Can I use magic? He thought as he swallowed a spoonful of vegetable soup. There was a part of him that was afraid to know. What if I couldn't? After all, I don't come from this world. A despairing feeling crept up to his face, which Katarina immediately noticed.

"Arthur," she called out.

"Yes?" he asked in surprise.

"Are you alright?"

Arthur nodded, then he said, "I just thought if I can use magic like Granny."

"Of course, you will," Katarina smiled, assuring him. "Just wait when you're bigger. Okay?"

"Okay..." he said in a low voice.

Observing Arthur's sullen demeanor, Katarina immediately led him outside after breakfast. The moment he stepped into the sun, the morning breeze blew on his skin. He smiled from ear to ear. He looked around, even turning his body around to see everything.

Outside of the house was a clearing big enough for Katarina's garden. He ran towards it and gently touched the budding flowers and vegetables. His steps were fast but careful, not wanting to ruin its beauty. Then he ran towards the weird-looking animals called Hazu. Some were lying on the ground while others were pecking on the grass. Arthur laughed a little as he approached the nearest one.

"You sure look weird, brother," he said laughingly. Then he looked back to his grandmother and shouted, "Can I pat him?"

When she nodded, he immediately patted the Hazu's head. After a while, he turned to her again and yelled, "Can I ride him too?"

Katarina didn't answer. Instead, she swayed her hand. The Hazu picked him up with its tail and put him on its back. He grabbed its horns with both hands as it supported him from behind with its tail. With another wave from her, the Hazu ran around the garden at full speed.

Arthur laughed and screamed in excitement while everything blurred in his view. He closed his eyes, relishing the moment. The sweet scent of fresh air caressed his nostrils while the warmth of the morning sunlight touched his pale skin. It was exhilarating. Arthur felt lost at how beautiful it was to be free.

A smile lingered on Katarina's lips as she watched the smile on his face. She then sat on the ground, making sure to burn this memory forever in her mind.

When the Hazu lost some breath, it stopped and put him back down on the ground. It tilted and brushed its beak on Arthur's arm. He beamed and said, "You like me?"

It screeched, letting out a high and loud 'quack' sound.

"You're sound is weirder than I heard," he laughingly said as it was the first time he heard it quacked up close. "So I'll name you..." he paused, pressing his lips together, tapping his temple with a point-finger. "Alberta! How about Alberta?"

Alberta quacked again, now, louder.

"You like it?"

It didn't make another sound. Instead, it picked him up and raced around again. When both of them exhausted their energy, Arthur laid on the grass beside Katarina. He stared at the blue sky and the clouds, making out some shapes and images in the cloud's pattern. "Isn't that Alberta?" he blurted out with a sheepish grin.

"Where?"

"There!" he exclaimed, pointing at the southern sky.

"Is it?"

"Yes! There's her beak, then the horns and the tail!" he answered, closing his right eye as he traced the shape of the cloud.

Katarina laughed, "It is!"

"I wonder if I can go to the fore–"

"No!" She interrupted, her voice straight and clear.

"Why not?" Arthur looked at her, his gaze searching for an answer.

She sighed, brushing his golden hair. "It's dangerous, Arthur. Many monsters lurked around here."

"Monsters? Like those things in the book?"

"Yes," she paused, looking straight into his eyes. "They love to eat us, especially children like you."

"Eh?" Arthur tilted his head to the side, his forehead lightly crumpled. "But couldn't grandma just shoo them away? Grandma is strong!"

Katarina laughed, her giggle lingered more than she intended.

Arthur then stood up, wiping the dust and grass on his back. He spun his waist a little, "Are my parents strong too?"

She froze, her smile dropped. An air of silence brushed between them before she responded. "Yeah, yeah," she said, her voice filled with tremors. Her feeble hands clenched into fists.

"Sorry," he said, then hugged Katarina. "Did they ditch us here, alone?"

"No!" She bit her tongue, barely containing her tears. "No, they were strong and wonderful – especially your father."

He let go and grinned innocently, "Then where are they now?"

"Somewhere," she began, searching for the right words. But it was hard. How could she explain it to a child, to a three-year-old boy? "Your father's not here anymore. Superus Dupulu has taken him away to a happy place."

"Superus Dupulu?"

"Yeah," she paused, putting Arthur on her lap. He slightly looked up. "He created everything – you, me, and even Alberta."

"Like a God?"

She nodded.

"So, God took my father to heaven?"

"Yes."

"How about my mother?"

She took a deep breath, "We'll talk about that when you're old enough."

"Why?"

"It's kind of complicated," she said, standing up while carrying Arthur with ease. Then she smiled at him, "How about I'll show you how strong grandma is?"

He nodded eagerly, his eyes flaming in excitement.

Katarina closed her eyes as both their bodies began to glow. She opened her eyes and stomped her right foot. After a brief delay, they soared a few hundred meters from the ground. Arthur clutched her arms in reflex, even shutting his eyes tight when he looked down.

"Open your eyes, honey," she laughingly said.

Arthur took a deep breath and obliged, and he never regretted it. He stared awestruck. The forest stretched as far as his eyes could see, and in the west, a mountain stood proudly among the clouds. The woods were teeming with life, and he could see a lot of animals, microscopic from his point of view. The plants, the birds, the flowers – everything – glistened under the sun, now a quarter before reaching the middle of the sky.

"Please watch thoroughly, Arthur," Katarina said as though there was something that could impress Arthur more than this, more than flying, more than this scenery.

Katarina murmured words from her second language. It was faint, but Arthur could feel a warm sensation that radiated from her body. As it grew, Katarina held him with one hand and raised the other towards the sky. After a few seconds, she muttered in a loud but soft voice, "Cosana Sherisque!"

A blast of scorching fire exploded from her hand to the sky. The fire was so gigantic that Arthur thought that he'd burn just being near it. The light emanating from his body, however, that originated from Katarina – warm light – acting as though it was a coating or a shield, protecting him from its heat.

Arthur shifted his gaze to the forest. His eyes widened, his heart stopped, and his breathing paused. The greenery of the leaves and trees, even the sky and the mountain, had mirrored a crimson hue, dreadfully bloody, yet, stunning and perfect.

Tears fell, one after another, and began to form a river, springing from the rim of Arthur's eyes. He didn't notice until Katarina stopped the spell and descended to the ground.

"Honey," she said, her voice sounding remorseful. "Did I scare you?"

He couldn't answer. He stared at the trunk of the trees as he cried mutely.

She got down on her knees and hugged him tight, but he didn't react. Her hands found his back. She brushed carefully, afraid of him slipping away. Did I overdo it? I only wanted to distract him. He's too young to understand, she thought, her movements becoming more desperate to get a reaction from him.

As Arthur's cry became more audible with each passing moment, she let go and cupped his face. "Arthur, honey, are you alright? Did I scare you?" she asked him again, staring straight to his jade orbs.

He shook his head, then he hugged her and cried helplessly on her shoulder. The crimson sky, yes – awfully bloody yet so perfect and stunning. And for the first time since Claire's death, he cried the pain, the sorrow, and the regret. She was the most beautiful thing that happened in his life, and also the most tragic, the most regretful.

When Arthur calmed down, he looked sheepishly at Katarina and said, "Granny is strong, right? So she'll live until I become strong too."

"Of course, darling," she lied. They both knew she lied, but she smiled nonetheless. "I'll even live longer than you will."

"Yes!" Arthur exclaimed. "Then, I'll be with you until I die!"

"Yes, you will." Katarina snickered, though a dreading feeling loomed over her. She would love to see him grew up, to see him ascend to greatness, to be his friend, to be his guardian, to be with him, and so much more. But only time can tell – time – that which she didn't have much.