No one knows what life is. Does it follow logic? Or is it completely random and prone to change, be it conscious effort or not? Is someone or something controlling it? There are many possibilities but no true answers to the many questions people ask about life. It is fascinating how many opinions spurred throughout the ages about what life truly is and what meaning of it there is.

A computer simulation. A dream. A play where you have no control or its presence doesn't matter. There are many possibilities, and none of them have been proven yet. People are free to think as they will, but the truth is yet to be discovered.

Some people are guided by their beliefs in supernatural beings — faith. Others use science, facts and logic. And some don't care at all, going with the flow. They do whatever they deem right at the moment, and they don't believe in destiny or fate.

The meaning or the purpose of life is also a debatable topic among many people. They find meaning in serving a god or goddess, whichever they prefer. They may also believe in higher purpose, fate or destiny. Some people make their own meaning, their purpose, and they live by it.

There are also people that searched for answer but gained nothing. No purpose, no meaning, no goal, nothing. Such people either accept it and do whatever they want to do or end their lives in fear of living a meaningless life.

Life is great many a thing: a gift or a burden; blessing or a curse. It all depends on the individual and if they decide to value their life or not.

Some decide that even their own lives hold no value even to themselves.

Iclyn walked through the forest, often looking around. A light drizzle was still present, making her shiver slightly. Her steps were careful and cautious, her body tense as a spring, her feathery wings twitching slightly, ready for take off. Her ears swiveled around, picking up the smallest sound and slightly twitching as well. However, there wasn't much to be heard. The forest was almost completely silent, and only the wind and the occasional rustle of the foliage added to the ambiance. Leaves were falling from the trees, covering the ground in yellow, red, and orange. The carpet of leaves was soft at times, as well as crunchy under pegasus' hooves.

The narrow path that Iclyn had found earlier was mostly straight and led deeper and deeper into the forest. To her surprise, she noticed snow falling down from the skies, and there was a thick layer of it further behind the trees. The clouds were gray with a purple tint, hiding the sun behind them.

Suddenly, Iclyn came to a wide asphalt road. Old white markings could still be seen on it. Before she could inspect the road further, a car drove past her. She jumped in surprise and flew up in the air, her eyes following the sudden noise-maker.

She blinked a few times as the car disappeared around the next turn. She had no idea what it was but she was certain she noticed something familiar about it. And thus she decided to follow it and see what it was. She took off into the air and proceeded to catch up with the fast object.

It resembled a chariot or a train but looked like it was made of some kind of metal. It had only four wheels and no tank, yet it still moved, and moved fast, maybe even faster than a train. Which left a question — how was it even possible?

There were what Iclyn assumed were glass windows on all sides of the strange object. She looked inside and saw Stanislav along with his parents. Andrey was handling a wheel of sorts, and the other two were sitting calmly in their seats. All of them had stripes of what looked like some sort of fabric wrapped around them securely.

The pegasus flew alongside the car but it didn't look like any of its passengers or the driver noticed her. It puzzled her — all of them were able to see her before.

Stanislav was staring out of a slightly opened window, the look in his eyes blank and disinterested. His face was even paler than Iclyn remembered seeing it.

On their way, the family passed by a small settlement, which quickly faded into nothing. After about five minutes of driving, the car reached a town. It stopped near the edge and everyone disembarked. Stanislav was bearing a backpack and a simple bag with shoes in it.

"Is everything alright?" Nadezhda asked him with worry as he breathed deeply, vapor coming out of his mouth and sweat visible on his almost snow-white face. Before responding, he made a couple of deep breaths, following it by spitting out thick saliva.

"Y-yeah..." the boy shakily replied, calming down soon. He put on a wool hat after his breathing subsided. "Is it okay if I take a walk from here?"

The mother looked at her watch for a brief second before replying.

"Well, classes start in twenty minutes. I think that if you hurry, you will get there just in time." she told him. "Good luck, Stas!"

A few minutes later, Stanislav was walking down the streets, keeping to the buildings. Gray people passed by him as he looked down at the ground, avoiding any eye contact. Even while he had warm gloves, he kept his hands in the pockets of his jacket. He was walking quickly but not running, his boots crunching the snow underneath them.

The scene suddenly changed with Stanislav standing in front of a big building. After looking at it for a few seconds, the boy sighed wearily and then entered it, Iclyn closely following him. He hadn't noticed her yet, which was a surprise. Why couldn't she interact with him at the moment? She even waved a hoof in front of his face, only for it to pass through his skull as he moved forward, slightly startling Iclyn.

As soon as Stanislav entered the building, the pegasus understood that it was his school. Many other children were around, some younger than him, some older. The boy made his way past them and to a staircase. He kept his head down and avoided bumping into anyone.

Unfortunately, he bumped his shoulder against a door as he tried to get onto a staircase. He stopped for a second, and then kicked the door strongly, making it rattle. The boy huffed a few times, clenching his fists and fighting the urge to hit the door again. He relaxed shortly and went upstairs.

Iclyn continued following him, and no one noticed her. Instinctively, she tried not to get into anyone's way. However, the ceiling was low, preventing her from flying, and thus she had to pass through some of the students. The sensation was strange but not painful, making the pegasus feel slightly uneasy.

Suddenly, the time seemed to stop as soon as the two stepped into the hall of the second floor. Confused, Iclyn looked around. A chill went up her spine as she felt a presence. She didn't know who it was or how she could feel it but she knew someone was there. Someone familiar and at the same time completely alien.

*click*

She knew that sound.

The pegasus' eyes widened, immediately looking at the opposite end of the hall. There, a tall and naked human stood. Its skin was unhealthily pale and looked like it was stretched over a skeleton. Its eyes were nested deeply into the skull and emitted a reddish hateful glow. In its left hand, a revolver was pointed at Iclyn, its barrel gaping at her like a snake ready to bite.

Without a second thought, she dodged to the side, and then fire erupted from the revolver.

*BLAM!*

https://youtu.be/BcPkZU8kMw0

The shot barely missed her as she ducked, and then ran back to the stairs. She galloped down them as quickly as she could, but it seemed like they had no end. She descended deeper and deeper and yet she couldn't reach the first floor. There were windows behind rusted bars but she had no time or enough strength to get out using that way.

She heard footsteps behind her. She breathed rapidly, panic wrapping around her in a cocoon of fear. No matter how fast she went, the thing behind her only grew closer and closer. The rapid drum beat of her heart deafened Iclyn as she desperately tried to get away from the one who was chasing her.

The next stairwell turned into a straight narrow corridor of gray and featureless concrete. The pegasus dashed forward, hoping to get to its end or the nearest turn before the nightmare got to her. She propelled herself forward with her wings, flapping as hard as she could. She wasn't the fastest pegasus but she did all in her strength to get away from the stairs as quickly as possible.

*BLAM!*

Iclyn yelped and tumbled across the floor as one of her wings suddenly twitched violently, breaking her flight. She stopped soon, hitting a wall. With a huff, her body fell down.

A dead end.

After her head stopped spinning, she turned around, facing the creature. Her eyes went wide, her breath still rapid. It was aiming at her. Each millisecond seemed like an eternity, and Iclyn knew it would be futile to evade the nightmare. She closed her eyes, not wanting to see her own demise.

A second passed. Iclyn breathed in. Another followed. She exhaled. And another one.

All was silent.

Slowly, the pegasus opened her eyes.

The revolver was no longer being aimed at her. Instead, the nightmarish creature struggled as the gun turned on its bearer, a purplish aura around it. The being held the revolver with two hands but it inexorably rotated away from Iclyn and towards the one holding it.

"We'll see..." the Figure spoke in a ghastly and yet familiar voice. It was straining to speak as it used its strength to prevent the revolver from turning. "About that."

Everything immediately changed back to the school. Iclyn continued to stare wide-eyed in front of her as shock washed over her body.

The bell rang, signaling the start of the classes.

The pegasus let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. She blinked slowly, the tension in her body going away and the pain coming in just as slowly. A stream of blood was dripping down her left wing, leaving small spots on the floor.

Iclyn inhaled sharply. She knew why it didn't kill her. She suspected that the one who managed to prevent the murder was no other than...

"Sirius..."

The former human was wide awake, his eyes red, veins bulging on his forehead, and his horn glowing. He poured all his will and power into turning the revolver away from Iclyn. He couldn't allow it to happen, he would never forgive himself if she died.

Sirius was relieved after the Figure disappeared but not for long. Soon, the nightmarish creature appeared near the former human. Without saying anything, it used the revolver as a club, punching Sirius in the face until it bled. He groaned in pain but more hits were delivered, forcing him to close his mouth and nearly bite off his own tongue.

The chains released him and he fell to the ground, blood splattering around him. He screamed in pain as his leg bent in an unnatural way under him.

Silently, the Figure started beating up the former human with a free hand and the revolver at the same time, making nasty bruises appear on Sirius' body. The nightmarish creature didn't cease the beating even when the former human weakly tried to resist.

It punched him everywhere, breaking the bones under heavy hits. Soon, Sirius was no longer able to move as he wheezed.

"I said..." he spoke quietly, his eyes barely open. Then, he poured the most of his strength into one small sentence before collapsing, breathless: "Don't hurt her!"

The Figure stood up, the revolver disappearing from its hands. After kicking Sirius for the last time and a good measure, the creature faded away with a disappointed and angry frown on its face.

The chains reappeared, quickly finding a way through the body of the former human and lifted him up once again, securing him in place.

Sirius opened his eyes slightly as he felt a jolt of pain.

"Iclyn, if you hear me..." he said quietly. "Please, end this. I can't... I can't be like this anymore." he paused, listening. "P-please..."

Unbeknownst to herself, Iclyn was already doing what she could.

Just not in the way Sirius implied.

Author's Notes:

While I'm sick at the moment, I managed to finish this chapter and do a song for it. What do you think about the latter?

None of us (as of now) have replied to the question I asked in the previous chapter. That's a bit disappointing but I understand that you need more information to make assumptions on.