The Flower of Soline Volume 2

Waking Up

[I hope your world will be better than mine!]

The familiar figure blurred. His once plain clothing transformed into a pair of pajamas that were a little too familiar for his liking. The long silver hair that seemed to be constantly glowing finally trimmed down until they reached just above his ears. The color dulled until they reached a soft hue of brown. His eyes blinked and the redness from before was replaced with a beautiful and calm blue. He glanced downwards, taking in his appearance as he twirled around and lifted his arms and legs as if he were testing out his new body. With a bright smile he let out a joyous laugh.

He could only watch as the previous Aether danced around happily in his body. His fingers curled. He was the one that made the decision to stay, but still, it was hard to get over the fact that he was leaving behind a world that he grew up in. Would his family even notice? Or would they like the new him? The questions were endless, but ones he would never know the answer to.

He couldn't help but smile at seeing the other Aether look so bright and happy. It was a stark difference compared to his life here. Maybe, this was for the better. He closed his eyes and welcomed darkness.

The next time he opened his eyes he was met with an unfamiliar ceiling. He let out a hoarse laugh, instantly regretting it with how dry his throat was. He reached for his throat, wincing when he noticed that his arm was completely bandaged. It seemed the fall did him more harm than good. He let out a dry sigh.

It was kind of funny. Being in the same scenario as when he first got here. The only difference was that this time he could truly feel the pain in his body. The cuts, the bruises, the pain radiating throughout his body was enough to tell him that he had truly hurt himself. It was a stupid decision, really. Jumping off a cliff, but what choice did he have.

With pursed lips, he glanced over to the side, not surprised when a small glass of water came into view. Wherever he was, at least the person had the decency to provide him water and treat his wounds. Though that did little ease his mind.

The room he was in was larger than his own. He couldn't see much due to black curtains blocking out the sun, but from what he could see he knew that he had never seen this room before. His hands clenched the blankets that were covering him. There weren't once or two, but four. Although useful when he was asleep, it was proving to become too hot now that he was awake.

With great effort, he began to peel the many blankets off him. Just like the rest of the room, he didn't recognize these blankets. They were pitch black, with the exception of a single small one being silver. The Frenzel household was known for the colorful decor, black was one color that was rarely used. He could be in the Royal Palace, but knowing his family, he wouldn't have woken up without one of them being by his side.

Which left him with two options.

One, and sadly the most likely of the two options, was that even though he jumped off a cliff he was still captured by the Gelani Empire. The second option, and the one he was hoping for, was that someone had found him and saved him. Who that someone was though, remained a mystery.

Taking a shuddering breath he pushed the blankets to the side and hoisted his legs over the side of the bed. Same as his arms, his legs were also completely bandaged. So far the only thing that wasn't bandaged seemed to be his face. He glanced at the floor, it was dark, but he could just barely make out a small outline of a rug. With a deep breath he clenched his teeth and stood up only for the world to tilt.

With a startled yelp he found himself falling face first onto the floor. Grunting he pushed his arms underneath him and lifted his upper body. With gritted teeth he glanced back at his bandaged legs. He could feel and move his toes, but it seems that his injuries were too much for him to walk.