Part 2
The land around the cottage had begun to heal with the death of Amaranth Liddell. New trees were growing, and the dead grass was being slowly replaced by fresh green grass. Rebecca stopped at the front door.
"Are you ready, Rebecca?" Sirene asked, having finally caught up to her.
"Ready as I'll ever be, come on." Rebecca said after a moment, opening the door.
Rebecca was surprised by who she encountered inside, it wasn't who Sirene had described at all. It was Rebecca at the age of 14, she knew immediately. Her hair was still black at that age, after all. She glanced over at Sirene, who didn't seem to be taken aback at who was here.
"Oh, I get it." Rebecca said, crossing her arms. "You look like the teenage version of whoever looks at you, is that it?"
"You're very perceptive." The teenage girl sitting on the chair replied. "Much more than Sirene."
Sirene shifted uncomfortably. How did Rebecca figure this out so easily?
"You got a name?" Rebecca asked, taking a seat opposite of her.
"An intriguing proposition." The girl replied. "You may call me... Eren."
Eren waved her hand and the small bottles reappeared on the table. "Eigengrau is far too stuffy to do this, you know."
"What do you mean?" Sirene asked.
"The cure was made by the Raven King. He loved dramatic and over the top performances. Eigen's... a dead fish. She can't cast the cure." Eren stood up, and arranged the bottles. "It needs to be done in a specific order, Eigengrau already asked him."
Rebecca took a closer look at the bottles. It felt like they were looking back at her, and they made her slightly uneasy. Still, she picked up the first one in front of her, the liquid inside a dark grey charcoal colour.
"Mmm. That one's the last one. The curse of decay, Eigengrau's portion. No, the first one we need to do is The Raven King's. The curse of dead flesh." Eren said, pointing at the dark green bottle. "Go on, drink it."
Rebecca uncorked the bottle and took an appraising sniff of the liquid inside. It smelled of pine needles and fresh rainfall, to her surprise. Deciding not to drag things out, she drank the entire bottle in a single gulp, and slammed it onto the floor. She regretted it immediately, as a searing hot pain quickly spread from inside her. She fell to the ground and screamed, holding her stomach.
"What's wrong with her?" Sirene asked, looking concerned.
"Her body is remembering how to live. Her heart hasn't beat for over a hundred years. Rebecca, feel the thunder in your chest as your heart roars back to life. Feel the pain in all your limbs as your senses return to normal. Remember that you wanted this!"
As Rebecca's heart started to beat for the first time in over 115 years, the pain began to fade away. Slowly, she remembered how to breathe, and the tightness in her chest faded.
"Don't stop now, Phantom Thief!" Eren shouted, taunting Rebecca as she laid panting on the ground. "That's just the first curse! The curse of starvation is next!"
Rebecca made it to her knees, and grabbed the bottle full of white liquid next, also swallowing it in a single gulp. Again she collapsed to the floor, the pain wracking her from within, as she seized on the floor of the cottage.
"Feel the hunger of a century!" Eren yelled. "Remember the taste of food long forgotten! Feel the pangs of hunger long dormant as you starve! Live once more, Rebecca! Sirene!"
Sirene nodded and snapped her fingers. Food appeared on the table in an instant. Rebecca reached up and managed to grab a loaf of bread, and devoured it in seconds even while she still winced in pain. After she cleared the table of all the food, Rebecca leaned against the table on her knees, panting.
"Good news, the worst is behind you." Eren said. "But next is the curse of fire." Eren pointed at the bright red bottle.
"Let's get this over with." Rebecca said, still panting. She uncorked the red bottle, and sniffed it first. Like a warm summer day. She sipped it, then drank it, the liquid burning slightly as it went down her throat.
At first, she didn't feel anything. Then the burning started. It felt like she was being cooked from the inside out. She looked around the room in a panic, for it felt like she was being burned away.
"Feel the unmatched power of the sun! Feel it burn through your soul, as it remembers the gentle warmth long denied all at once!" Eren said loudly in a commanding voice.
"I feel like I'm on fire!" Rebecca shouted, shaking Eren back and forth.