The Elements of Zion: The Vine, The Branch, and The Thorn

Chapter 4

The wind screamed past me. I dug my fingers into Trose's feathers, my knuckles numb from the cold. "Trose!" I shouted. "Where the hell are we going?"Trose's voice rumbled like thunder beneath me, fierce and urgent. "To Zion, swiftly now! Time waits for no man, and least of all for us. We're in peril every moment we linger outside the sanctuary of the grand city's walls."

I wasn't ready for this—whatever "this" was.

"Trose," I muttered, barely holding my breath, "I think I need more time."

.The skyline stretched below us, overwhelming at first. But soon, I was mesmerized. The landscapes were almost too fantastical to be real—terrains blending into an otherworldly tapestry. In the dense, deciduous forest, we found ourselves surrounded by patches of mist that seemed to shimmer in hues reminiscent of the aurora borealis. With every step upward in elevation, the once-thick air grew thinner as we soared above immense rock formations. Peering between the massive boulders, I caught glimpses of creatures I had never seen before. Some had wings; others walked on all fours. Some bore an air of menace, while others seemed utterly harmless.

"I've never seen any place like this," I called out. "What is it called?"

Trose relaxed his wings and glided for a moment. "Tis the Hidden Realm, a mystic place existin' between our world an' the realm of the livin'. Its laws be ruled by the treaty bindin' the forces of good an' evil together. An' yet, the lands inside are in a constant struggle between those blessed with the sight an' the fearsome Thorned Army."

I thought back to the thorned monster that had tried to cast me into the pit. "That beast, she's a part of the army?"

Trose gave a nod. "In this realm, she's known as Briah the Garrote. Her spell, 'tis a harsh one, leavin' the soul completely defenseless as she tears the life out of her victims."

I frowned, unsettled. "So she's... Death?"

Trose's feathers ruffled slightly, and he paused before speaking again. "Not exactly, lad." He shifted his weight, his wings flapping uneasily. "Briah is not Death herself," he said, glancing at the darkening clouds ahead. "She is what you might call the spirit of death, a mere shadow of the true force."

I blinked, trying to wrap my mind around it. "The spirit of death?"

"Aye," Trose continued, "Briah rules over the dying, but she's no Death. She's just a shadow—a child compared to him."

I sank back. Briah wasn't the end. She was just a taste. If she was a fragment of something worse... what the hell did that mean for me?

"But death has no place in Zion," he continued. Trose abruptly ascended through the thick fog, with visibility barely beyond my reach, as I grappled with gravity's harsh pull, struggling to hold onto him. Fearing that I might yank the feathers out of his neck, I clenched my eyes shut.

The air thinned as we climbed higher, each breath feeling sharper, colder, and almost alive against my skin. I dared to open my eyes as we glided above the clouds, the horizon melting into a sea of gold and lavender, and then—there it was. The mountain loomed like a titan, its glowing face pulsing with life, as if the stone itself breathed. My heart raced, not from fear, but from the sheer overwhelming awe of it all. The wind carried whispers I couldn't make sense of, and for a moment, the entire world seemed to hum with something ancient.

Set atop the mountain was a magnificent golden tree, towering high above a stone-like city nestled beneath its protective canopy. As we continued our approach, the deafening sound of bells rang out from every direction, announcing our presence.

"Trose, wait!" My voice cracked against the wind. "I need more time! This Vine—what if I'm not enough?"

Trose didn't answer. Instead, the deafening bells of Zion chimed out again, louder this time, as if the city itself disagreed with my doubt. And maybe it did.