Servitude: The Hydrangea Chapters

Chp 27: Marlina's Restoration

Marlina took only a moment to understand what Elek was talking about, while Tessa showed complete confusion until they reached the nearest window overlooking the new crop field. Just a few hours after it had been planted, there it was: a massive purple flower bud that could easily hold a person inside. Its vibrant hue and sheer size captured the attention of the others, who gathered to inspect it. Even the two men, finally awakened from their mead-induced stupor, couldn't help but gaze at the spectacle. They tried to get closer and poke at it with their spears, but Mordecai and Aurea politely held them back.

Mordecai had to lead the men away from the flower and back to the Colonies to prevent them from meddling. Marlina kept her distance until the men were in Mordecai's sled and out of sight, then she, Tessa, and Elek emerged, fed up with their disrespect for her.

Aurea and the twins gathered around the flower, but Aurea didn't dare touch it while Neterion and Natashia couldn't help but be hands-on. Neterion kept tucking his fingers into the seams between the petals to peek inside, but it was as if it was sealed shut. Just as he was about to dig in with a knife, Natashia snatched it from him and smacked the back of his head, which he countered by pulling her leg out from under her, causing her to fall into the soil.

"Your guardian has only been gone for a few moments, and you two are already at odds," Aurea sighs.

"Then you probably have never had siblings; you wouldn't get it," Neterion states before Natashia grabs his arm, yanks him down to the ground, and forces him face-first into the dirt, holding him down as he struggles to escape her grip, sputtering.

"Someone needs to keep him in line. If you have kids one day, Aurea, I hope you don't end up with a pain in the neck like him," Natashia jokes before bending Neterion's arm, prompting him to shout and pound his hand on the ground so she'd let him go. A glimpse of a grimace flickers across Aurea's face, vanishing as quickly as it appeared, unnoticed by the others.

Once the others approached, Elek circled the flower while Tessa struggled to comprehend how something of this size could sprout so quickly.

"It has to be some kind of growth magic," Tessa mutters.

Marlina stepped up to the flower and placed her wrist on it. The petals immediately bloomed and opened for her, while the others stepped back to avoid being covered by the long-reaching petals.

"Fascinating..." Elek exclaims in awe.

"Can this flower heal you, Marlina?" Aurea asks.

"I hope so. I've been inside this before, but never with so much of me gone. It's the only lead I have. Once I step inside, it will close, and I... sleep, if that's the best way to put it. I can't say how long I'll be inside; I've been inside for hours before."

"Then we'll make sure you get a peaceful rest," Aurea assures her. "You deserve it for all you've done."

Marlina smiled but hesitated before glancing at her wrists and the gaps in her form. She then climbed into the flower, its petals rising to envelop her as the others watched with curiosity. Once it closed, Marlina could only hear the muffled chatter of the others before her vision began to blur and darken, her body collapsing and lying at the base of the flower.

For a while, there was nothing—a familiar blank abyss that Marlina experienced while within the flower. A void that made one wonder if all that ever was had suddenly ended, leaving only the void behind. When she was outside at night, as everything settled into sleep and she found herself alone, at least there were the sounds of the wind and insects. But here, an unsettling disconnect made Marlina avoid the flower. Every time she returned, she was alone with her flower, deep within the Urushian forest, far from civilization.

This time, there was a sense of ease. It was comforting to know that others existed outside the void. She had faith that they would try to uncover why she remained inside if she lingered within the flower for too long. Although she may not have known them for very long, she understood that they cared for her in some way. Just that awareness made the wait less frightening yet more agonizing at the same time.

As suddenly as the flower's influence lulled her into the void, her consciousness returned, and all she could see was the inside of the flower. Lying on her side, she noticed her hands beside her. Sitting up, she extended her hands and wiggled her fingers, a smile spreading across her face. Checking her body, she found that the holes had been repaired.

"Yes! I've been restored!" Marlina bellows triumphantly, then notices shadows cast by others standing outside the flower who suddenly leap up in response to her exclamation.

As the petals opened to let her out, her expression of joy quickly turned to fear when she saw the shadows of several armed Colonial strangers pointing weapons at her.