Gwin fell through the air as rainwater and darkness surrounded him on all sides. He was falling blindly in the last direction he saw the balcony in. His eyes closed on their own. Guided only by his sense of direction he angled himself for the balcony as rainwater dragged down his wings and drenched his hair. His hair clung messily to his face like an annoying cobweb.
Something in the air shifted and Gwin hurriedly opened his eyes to witness the apocalyptic bolt of lightning illuminate the entire city. In that brief moment he was given the chance to scan his trajectory. He was heading the right direction. Thunder shook the world and Gwin thought for a moment the castle might topple from the sound. Alas the castle was too sturdy and abyssal darkness moved to reclaim the world soon after the lightning's departure.
His essence was dwindling. The stream of essence leaving his soul had persisted for far too long, much longer than when he had stumbled upon Doran and his friends and it was now rearing its ugly head. He still had reserves though…he'd just use them. His soul's essence ran dry yet his wings and memories remained, drawing on a different reservoir now.
'I'm close…aren't I? Where is it…where is it? I'm so close…a little…more'
His ribs made contact with something sturdy and forced the air from his lungs. A marble railing. He fell over it and crashed into the rim of a wooden tub before finally resting face down on the ground. Rain patted obnoxiously on his face as he drew in moist and ragged breaths. He felt and looked like the chalk draw out of murder victims he had seen on cartoons when he was a kid.
In more ways than one he was.
Lavender's fragrant scent trickled from under the covered glass door leading inside and found his nose. A weary smile tugged his lips. Rain fell fat on his cloak and filled his ears with their tapping. He took one deep breath and surrendered to catharsis.
****
Gwin dreamed of a giant flower on an endless expanse of white. Its roots dug into the featureless earth like mighty anchors and its stem reached high. It was larger than any tree he had ever seen in a textbook, a hundred meters at least. Its petals were a mix of golden yellow-orange and vivid crimson. They circled around its bud which was made of clear red glass. How he could see this from the ground he did not know.
This flower wasn't alone, surrounding it were five other flowers in a circle. Each was as unique and beautiful as the first. However they were hardly half the size. Somewhere in the featureless sky was a sun that cast long shadows over these five flowers. The first flower's petals were simply too large.
*SHATTER*
One of the smaller buds shattered casting fragmented blue glass high into the sky. It rained down next to him like meteors as the flowers stalk twisted before toppling over. Its blue and green petals wilted becoming a ghastly brown, then they became dust.
Gwin's eyes widened in horror.
*SHATTER*
*SHATTER*
Two flower buds shattered in sync right next to each other. Their stalks groaned as they crashed into each other and tumbled to the ground. Their petals mixed, orange and yellow petals wilted from their flowers making a large mound. The glass from their buds rained down next to Gwin yet none hit him, instead they began forming a multicolored wall around him. He hurried to the edge and desperately tried to escape and reach the remaining two. He clawed at the glass till his nails ripped from their sockets and his fingers bleed. He gnawed at glass with his teeth until they chipped and broke like shale.
He needed to save them.
*SHATTER*
Another flower toppled away from the central one and perished alone. Its petals made a halo where its receptacle lay wilting. Long gashes began forming on its stalk by invisible means. The glass from its bud fell encircling Gwin completely. He was nearly crushed by the rain of glass. He stopped moving, his eyes locked on the last flower. An awful ache started in his chest and spread to his throat.
He felt it coming.
*SHATTER*
"AAAAAAAAAAGGHHHHHH"
Gwin's wail was drowned out by the defeating shattering of the last bud. Its mighty stalk swayed and fell into the largest one with a snap as its stalk broke internally. Its petals crashed into the central flower's stalk with a hollow thump and rained to the ground. Its petals were a shade of fragile light pink. It dragged down the length of its stalk before the fracture in its stem broke completely with a wet snap and it fell to the ground. The largest of them all was unaffected by their plight.
It stood tall still absorbing the sun's light greedily as its siblings lay rotting on the ground. His fingers and mouth drenched the featureless ground in red blood. In that blood was the writhing and tortured faces of five beautiful young women looking up at him. Their faces were twisted in anguish and they opened their mouths to speak.
Gwin was screaming.
****
Gwin woke up with a jolt before his eyes opened. A nauseating feeling welled in his empty stomach. Damp leather clung to his body uncomfortably but there was something else. Coarse fabric surrounded him in a vague semblance of comfort. His head rested on something soft and warm. He took in a subtle inhale of his nose and his shoulders relaxed when lavender flooded his nose. He opened his eyes. The world blinded him for a moment and he had to blink away the fuzziness.
He was in the familiar room of Elena, his only friend. Her room was larger than most were given in the bright castle and featured a rough mattress made of quilted cloth and stuffing. Her furniture was made of some of the nicest pale wood furniture the castle had. She had a desk and a folding screen as well. The image painted on its surface had long since faded but a few things could still be made out.
A faint set of seven stars.
There was the glass door leading to her balcony as well and the wooden tubs she was tasked to fill,
"You are awake."
Said Elena whose lap his damp head was currently resting on. She looked down at him as her crimson hair cascaded down the sides on her small and pale face. A ribbon of enchanted black silk was tied around her eyes but he could tell she was looking at him, he could always tell. She had wrapped him with the quilt of her bed and laid him on the floor of her room.
'What the hell is this?'
He sat up to escape this oddly intimate moment and Elena let him. He swapped his armor to the [Scorched Aegis] which had finished mending in his soul and escaped the quilted cocoon. His metallic boots clacked on the ground as he fumbled and Elena stood too. She was wearing a simple yet elegant beige short dress made by the artisans no doubt. It had long sleeves that ended in flowing cuffs and she wore a set of leather boots made from the hide of an abomination. It was embroidered with a simple pattern that magnified her beauty.
"I found you drowning in a puddle on my balcony. Are the handmaidens that went with you back too?"
She asked, craning her head up to look at him. Gwin avoided her eyes. He chewed the inside of his lip and stared out of the glass door. That awful ache returned in his throat. It felt like it was going to break. He knew she was looking at him despite the silk ribbon covering her eyes, he always knew.
{I'm hungry.}
"You just missed the first meal so you'll have to wait." She paused and looked at the door, "Why did you come through that way? You didn't leave them outside with the storm coming did you?"
She asked accusingly while crossing her arms. Gwin looked at her and felt his shoulders tense.
{They are dead.}
"What?"
{They died. They couldn't handle it.}
"All of them?"
{Yes.}
An uncomfortable silence settled between them as she digested the news. She frowned for a moment then sighed. Her face relaxed as she walked towards him. Gwin backpedaled away from her fearing what she might do or say. It seriously wasn't his fault though. He had told them, he had told them it wouldn't be safe! They were the ones who insisted! He did the best he could!
"You look terrible. How long has it been since you slept?"
She said while putting her hand on his cheek and tugging at his eyebags with her thumb. Gwin flinched waiting for the harsh words to follow. He waited yet nothing happened. She didn't scold or scream or even raise her voice. Her hand rested gently on his face before drawing back. He missed its warmth. It reminded him of the lack thereof in the crevice.
{I haven't slept since the last time I was here. The whole month. I really tried Elena it was just…they couldn't do anything on their own….I couldn't do everything for them}
Her mouth opened slightly at his claim.
"It's alright Gwin. If anything it was this godforsaken place that ended them, it is uncompromising to the inadequate."
He bristled at her words.
"Stop glaring at me. I wasn't insulting them. It was simply a fact that if Jasper and the rest were talented enough and had what it takes they'd still be here. It's a fact that they were not."
His brow did not unfurrow. The idea did not comfort him at all.
{I want a bath}
She looked to the balcony and the tubs of collected rainwater. That water was meant for drinking though, what he wanted was her water memory. It had been a long time since he had drank something other than blood, not since Lola died and took her memory with her.
"You can use one of the tubs, no one will see you."
'That's a glass door…'
"You think I'd want to peep at you naked? As if! I've seen more than enough of you naked already."
Gwin's cheeks tinted red. Did his thoughts show on his face?
'When has she- oh right…'
There had been that time in the obelisk and in the meeting hall when he flew for the first time. And to think he had almost forgotten about that… A hollow smile twisted his lips and a warm feeling struggled to exist in his chest. Hearing her voice again was filling him with a hesitant feeling of satisfaction. He was glad to talk to Elena again, despite all of her candor and bluntness. It was nice to talk to someone who wasn't afraid of him and didn't treat him like an idiot for not speaking. Her brutal honesty was refreshing, and he could tell she really meant well she was just…not the best at putting it into words.
{Thanks.}