10 Garden

Ryo exhaled a gasp of air as a sudden shock from the center of his spine nearly created a seizure. He had awakened from a brain-numbing nightmare that was clear as day. Set in the middle of an ash-covered blanket of snow, a blizzard surged through the vision that prevented him from reaching Ash Meguro's silhouette. Ryo could still sense the winds blasting against his frail eyes as the ashes covered his nostrils with a pungent and metallic scent. Progress was impossible. The ash shadowed his eyes and soaked his heart in soulless demise as he collapsed to the snow.

Now that he had awakened from his nightmare, he had to ensure his eyes were ash-free. His back was soaked in a mixture of sweat and snow droplets that melted into water. The skies of Aries were crystal clear blue without clouds, being a direct contrast to the midnight weather. The sun warmed up Ryo's face as he covered his eyes from the stunning and blazing light. It melted his surroundings, which contrasted with his nightmare's haunting imagery.

Ryo steadily lifted his upper body from the grass, ensuring his wounds wouldn't sting as a result of his careful movement. He wiped the sand crusts between his eyes and glanced at his slightly open wound. Nothing much had changed, but the blood seeping out from earlier had dried. With a gentle press with his two fingers, he inspected it thoroughly to see its specific status. His skin was terrifyingly bruised with a light purple hue surrounding his wound, and even the bare minimum of pressure stung it with intense pain. Ryo clenched his teeth and laid back down on the grass to ease down. As he used his hands to feel his surrounding area, the orange crystal from Genesis Laboratories had vanished.

"Shit!" Ryo panicked aloud, yanking himself up from the grass like a crane pulling his collar. He grabbed his equipment: the shield, the nanotech suit, his phone, and his gym clothes. He remained shirtless as he lunged out of the shrubs. The sun had beat down upon his forehead, blocking his view of the wondrous spectacle that stood four stories above his height. A glorious golden and concrete white mansion, almost resembling a queen's castle, was in plain sight. Bird fountains with water surging outwards watered the blue and purple colored poppies underneath it. The exterior's extravagance revolved around the amount of floral decoration surrounding the white brick stone paths that led to the castle's front door.

"What is this place...?" Ryo's breath was taken away at the masterful architecture of the castle that stood in his wake. The soothing chirping of the birds and the wind brushing the trees surrounded him. The more he stood up straight, however, his wound pulsated with intense pain. Clutching his wound tightly, he stood up and limped slowly towards the entrance of the golden castle. The castle's owner was nowhere to be seen while Ryo examined the area.

"Fuck... at this rate... I don't know if I can make it..." Ryo exhaled through his mouth, collapsing his back against a marble pillar next to him. His wound pulsated at a rapid pace, nearly about to explode. He approached the front door of the castle but couldn't muster the strength to open its twin doors. Instead, he pressed his eyes against the door's glass, uncovering the castle's main lobby with one gigantic colorfully lit chandelier brightening the expansive room. Rows of stairs circled the lobby, leading to the second floor.

"No one's there..." Ryo muttered to himself, leaning his back against the glass twin door. His attention immediately circled to his right, where a delightful entourage of blossoming pink and white flowers aligned with multiple spruce trees through a stone archway and path. Neon glowing koi fish swam against the current of a light stream providing water to the soil surrounding an exquisite crop farm of fresh fruits and vegetables. They had appeared to be tended recently, as the fertilizer glistened with the water beginning its absorption process.

For some odd reason, Ryo could sense his pain tolerance level rising underneath the blossoms. He released the pressure on his wound as the light cherry scent of the flowers indulged his nose in a heartwarming paradise. He had never witnessed a beauty this momentous in his life before, and out everywhere he had expected, it was Aries who housed such a serene complex. With his nostrils bathing in the calm scent, Ryo's found his eyes suddenly tearing up at such a marvelous landscape. He stood underneath the stone archway while he wiped his tears away with his right hand.

"What's this... feeling...?" Ryo whispered to himself. "For some reason... I feel so strange..."

Ryo clutched his wound and recalled the path he had taken throughout his life. No sight had ever made him feel so peaceful. Such a place, he believed, would make a lovely replacement for heaven's gates. Or hell. With the guilt pent up in his shattered heart and soul, Ryo wondered if he deserved such a mesmerizing sight if he were to suddenly pass.

"Yes... if I were to die... would I meet God?" Ryo spoke in a hushed tone. "Or would I be burned for eternity? Something tells me... it won't be that easy..."

As Ryo continued to passively soak in the cherry blossom delight in the garden, he failed to witness a short and slender figure standing idly behind him. His head turned at a snail's pace to face a stone embedded bridge where the figure stood, recognizing its existence. Ryo's eyes lowered themselves before he could even catch a glimpse of the person in his presence. All he could witness was a fiery blonde blotch before his tears mingled with his eyelashes to create a smudged image. Ryo's wound was beginning to take over his system, forcing him to surrender his strength to nothingness.

Before he collapsed on the stone pathway, the obscured figure caught him with delicate hands. Ryo opened his eyes and saw April Springwell, fixing her golden blonde straight hair after his fall. Her worried amber eyes and slightly opened mouth gave off the impression that she cared about Ryo's wound rather than his intrusion. As Ryo was rendered speechless against the blossoming winds, he couldn't believe that his eyes feasted upon the owner of such an elegant establishment. His breath suddenly revived itself after his mind double-checked that it was April Springwell in the flesh. He couldn't name a more fitting individual to own such an establishment, especially when her enchanting presence revived his spirit.

"It's you." Springwell calmly whispered. Every breath she took numbed Ryo's wound.

"You..." Ryo feebly spoke. "You have such a beautiful garden..."

"What's wrong with you?" Springwell asked, shaking Ryo's body slightly to keep him awake. She noticed the blood slowly gushing out of his sides and gasped in awe. "Hey, stay with me! Can you hear me? Stay with me!"

Ryo lost consciousness from his wound's pulsating pain. Miss Springwell caught his head with her sweaty palm, believing that Ryo's presence meant serious business. She placed her right hand into her white dress pocket, revealing the orange crystal from the Genesis Laboratories heist. A slender tabby cat pounced on her arm, gazing into the shining crystal. Miss Springwell nodded to herself and lifted Ryo's unconscious body into a standing position. She placed his arm around her shoulder and began lifting her into the castle.