A melancholic sound started playing in the background.
Lillian took a deep breath.
And then she sang:
♪Let me breathe,
Let me brave,
Let me free,
Let me feel♪
While her voice was not as mature as that of older singers, it carried a charm, a charm that could enchant one's heart.
The audience listened to the song, listened to the story of one who was miserable.
Lillian started to move across the stage in slow motion with sadness etched into her every move.
♪Please,
Hear my song,
Hear my cries,
For now I'm worn,
For now I'm gone♪
Her facial expression turned into a frown as she did a spin.
♪They called me I'm lone,
They called me I'm lost,
Ever pale,
Ever strange♪
Lillian then stood straight arms parted as she glared at the audience.
♪THEY SAID I'M NEVER MORE! ♪
Her arms rose, her legs fell, she danced around the stage as her body reflected her emotions.
♪Let me smile,
Let me cry,
Let me walk,
Let me run♪
Her breath grew heavy as she sighed.
♪Grew in black,
Chained in black,
All I know is ever black♪
A single tear spilled from her left eye as gazed at the audience in pain.
♪They made me scream,
They made me screech,
They made cower in my dreams♪
Lillian clenched her jaws, tensed her muscles as she shouted.
♪OH MY LIFE THAT IS ALWAYS GRIMM! ♪
Her dance moves turned into chopping gestures.
♪Let me hum,
Let me sing,
Let me fight,
Let me flight♪
Lillian gritted her teeth as her moves became more aggressive.
♪They broke my arm,
They broke my leg,
Broke my heart,
Broke my world♪
Her shoulders slumped as if a heavy burden held her down.
♪They liked to see me bleed,
To see me beg,
To see me scared every night♪
She balled her hands into fists as gaze at the stage's floor, unable to meet the gaze of the audiences.
♪WHAT A WICKED WORLD! ♪
Her breath grew ragged as her body swayed across the stage, as if to show how tired she was.
♪Let me skip,
Let me dance,
Let me grow,
Let me dream♪
Lillian looked at the audiences with an expression of being wronged, with an expression of being betrayed.
♪I search for help,
But I never saw,
I scream for help,
But they never heard,
All they do is always stare,
And turn a blind eye♪
She gave the audiences an inquisitive look.
♪Tell me why!
Tell me why!
In their ears,
I always cry♪
In anger, she shouted.
♪BUT SILENCE, THEY ALWAYS ARE! ♪
Lillian's arms fell, her legs rose, as they accompanied her in her song.
♪Let me sleep,
Let me rest,
Let me die,
Let me lie♪
Her movements began to slow down for the inevitable end.
♪A timeless corpse,
A formless dust,
By the wind,
I was scattered♪
Her movements grew even slower and an expression of indifference was etched on her face.
♪Forgotten by all,
Remembered by none,
A lost soul,
A dimming light,
So let me go♪
Lillian knelt down on the stage's floor with her head bowed. She voiced out her last words, her last scream for all to hear.
♪LET ME REST IN PEACE! ♪
The melancholic sound playing in the background came to an end.
CLAP! CLAP! CLAP!
The audiences stood up and started clapping.
Some of the audiences were barely holding back their tears, tears of sadness for they can relate to the song, the song of a miserable person.
Some audiences had smiles on their faces, the smiles of joy for they truly enjoyed the show.
Amongst the audiences, Agnes and Duncan also stood up as they clapped for Lillian with smiles on their faces.
Agnes shouted.
"That is my daughter!"
Duncan lowered his head in an attempt to hide his face.
"Mom! You are embarrassing us."
Agnes shrugged.
"Nothing can suppress a mother's happiness for her daughter."
Duncan sighed and turned to face the stage.
The scene that greeted his eyes as he looked back at the stage made his blood turn cold.
On the stage, Lillian had a smile on her face as she waved at the audiences.
It was what was behind her that made Duncan freeze.
There, right behind Lillian, a tall shadow loomed.
The menacing teeth that could crash one's bones.
The deadly claws that could rip apart one's flesh.
The crimson eyes that made one shivered in fright.
Only one word, there was only one word that Duncan could use to describe the tall shadow.
"Salzati."
___________________________________
The boy, Duncan shot up from his resting place.
His breath was ragged as he stood on his feet.
"What the hell is that freaking bastard doing in my dreams?"
Duncan closed his eyes and calmed his racing heart.
He then looked around only to realize it is another day, another day in the nameless forest.
The ground was littered with fallen leaves, acorns and twigsThe dense canopy of the live oaks created a shaded environment and thus reducing the sunlight reaching the forest floor.
Duncan grumbled.
"Curses! I was supposed to be dead by now."
He then added in a sad tone.
"Dead and reunited with the others." Duncan shook his head.
One might wonder why he was not willing to die at Salzati's hand but still willing to commit suicide.
Despite the fact that Duncan was not afraid of death, he was still cautious of the means that he attained death.
He was like a person willing to be beheaded but not willing to boiled alive.
Duncan then sighed.
'I should find a more decent place t–'
Duncan's thoughts were interrupted by a foe he knew.
"Ah, little human. Thy Salzati blesses you with thy presence."
Duncan glared at Salzati.
"You didn't come to say hi, did you?"
Salzati tilted its head.
"No."
Then it gave Duncan a sinister smile.
"But thy Salzati wishes to increase thy entertainment."
A chill ran down Duncan's spine.
Swoosh!
Before he could react, Salzati was gone.
Bam!
What followed was the sound of something heavy hitting the ground.
Duncan turned to face the direction of the sound only to meet confused eyes that stared back at him.