The Sun's Awakening

Chapter Seventeen

Three weeks? It's been a week, at most. There's no chance the lack of daylight caused that much of an internal time imbalance.

Ele tossed onto her right side, struggling with the sheets that wrapped around her like a cocoon. Trapped in this chrysalis state, sleep overcame her with little convincing. Even with the knowledge that –not too far outside these palace walls– there was a chance her mother was alive. That lingering thought right before the plunge into the realm where dreams and reality collided would be her undoing. 

Within the delicate folds of her dreams, something sinister took hold to create a vision that felt real. She felt flames licking her ankles. Struggled to breathe with thick smoke in the air. And in front of her, the reason for the inferno... The faenix temple. 

The last remaining pillar of her people. 

Their safe haven.

A beacon of light.

She ran forward, desperate to put out the flames that engulfed it. As she got closer, the fire only rose higher towards the sky. Calling out for mercy from the gods. In a sudden flash of realization, she looked down at her hands to see the source of all this destruction. Flames spewed from her fingertips, even as she desperately tried to shake her hands to extinguish them. Her powers acted out of their own free will. 

She had no control.

No control and no reason to stop here.

'Let the whole world burn!'

The voice jolted her awake. It sounded right next to her in the waking world, speaking into her ear. Nothing like the voices twisting her mind. This one was feminine and... Strangled. Almost starved. 

Rising from her bed, she cast aside the remnants of her nightmare and sought to make herself stronger. Only then would these demons leave her be– If her resolve overpowered theirs. 

Navigating through the pitch-black room, she felt her way around. First to where her sword lay in waiting and then to the door, venturing toward the atrium nestled in the heart of the circular palace. She caught a brief glimpse of it upon their arrival and she now observed it with more attention;  noting its air of neglect. Devoid of life, the garden lay barren, its once-vibrant rose bushes now reduced to corpses on barren soil. 

She sneered at the blatant disregard for life. 

Outside, the rain poured relentlessly. With sword in hand, Ele ventured into the downpour, the darkness of the night shrouding her figure as she moved with purpose. Each stroke of her blade cut through the air to strike down the invisible foes in her presence. 

One with an attuned sense of hearing could hear the sound of steel slicing through raindrops. One such as the vampire watching from the comfort of the palace with a roof over his head. 

Ever watchful, forever longing. 

Yet, something about her demeanor seemed different to him. A shadow lingered over her; only visible to him now that the rain washed away the mask she wore day in and day out. Now he harbored suspicion that there was more to Ele's inner turmoil than met the eye. He continued watching her as the night wore on, steadily realizing that the darkness she battled was not merely external, but a darkness that threatened to consume her from within.

A loud grunt pierced the air as she slammed her sword into the mud, causing it to fling onto her face. The mud freckled her face as she grimaced in frustration. 

"Great. Just great." She muttered, wiping the mud from her brow with the back of her hand. 

What started as a trickle now became a downpour. Relentlessly drenching her to the bone. With an unwavering hand, she retrieved her sword from the mire and resumed her practice –honing her skills– until the poor excuse for daylight graced her skin. Only a touch lighter than the night.