THE APPLE OF SNAKES

v. halo of ice

That night, Nerluce and others were placed in a large, open building with many others, both those who came to Ethera to train as Seraphs, and patrons of the temple who needed a night's rest before their pilgrimage home.

It was late. Nerluce could hear the soft sound of snores of the people around him as he tossed and turned. The futons were thin. The sheets were rough and riddled with holes gnawed by mice and insects and time. Nerluce wondered if he was really so spoiled his insomnia was caused by all these minuscule factors. But considering how he'd dosed on dirt and in trees, Nerluce didn't think so.

Giving up on sleep, Nerluce got to his feet. He moved like a shadow through the room, stepping over outstretched legs and hands, careful not to brush against any. It was a skill that had taken many years to hone but just like the servants of Hebikoti Castle, Nerluce was good at not being seen when he didn't want to be seen.

Nerluce shivered as he stepped into the night air. He tugged his red cloak tighter around his body, wishing he had something warmer. Or maybe he wished he'd bothered to put on his boots. But that would've taken too much time and would've been too loud so instead, Nerluce walked barefoot across the grass, feeling the ache of the frost on his heels.

The moon was full and bright, hanging high above the clouds. Full moons were a good time to practice magick. Nerluce couldn't remember exactly why - something about tides and pulls - but his masters had him sit outside all night on full moons, attempting to meditate and failing. Attempting to fight off exhaustion and failing. Attempting to control the flames and failing.

The moon had always been and always would be, just the moon.

Its position in the sky indicated that it was an hour or so after midnight. Nerluce huffed in defeat. The sooner he got this pent-up energy out, the sooner he could get to sleep. So, he started to walk.

At first, Nerluce wandered around Ethera's grounds aimlessly. He didn't exactly have an objective, it just seemed that walking would help ease both his excess energy and the deep cold that seeped into Nerluce's bones. That quickly morphed into a desire to explore. After arriving, there hadn't exactly been much of a tour.

The temple was larger than Nerluce had first thought. The buildings were arranged in an odd and twisting manner and many of them looked similar. However, Nerluce eventually found a pattern. There was a rhythm to the buildings and Nerluce stopped trying to force a way through. Instead, he walked with them, following where they led until he was in the innermost part of the temple.

Nerluce knew he shouldn't be here. He knew it because he had seen the guards. They stood - relaxed and sleep deprived - as Nerluce slipped through the shadows behind them. Nerluce knew he really shouldn't be here. He knew because the innermost portions of temples were the most sacred places. Nerluce knew he really, really shouldn't be here. He knew it because if he was caught he'd be punished; sent back home or worse.

Yet he did not return. He was a heretic in burning glory. 

The heart of Ethera was a pond garden filled with lily pads and small water spirits - no bigger than Nerluce's thumb - skipping across the water's surface. Twisting rock paths danced through it and a bright red bridge jumped across on the far side. In the middle of the pond garden, there was a tree in full bloom. It was the wrong time of year for any fruit tree to be blooming, yet this one did so anyway. It was a beautiful sight.  

Nerluce bounded across one of the rock paths, the water - which held the reflection of the full moon - nipping at his toes and the hem of his robes. He grinned, feeling giddy. This was the exact kind of thing he'd been looking to find. Someplace to play and relax. Someplace like the apple orchard.