The Two Authorities [[ HIATUS ]]

XXI. (Part I)

Aegis sought refuge in the nearest bathroom away from prying eyes. She thought the return of her rucksack a godsend. Her recent apparel was like having Dweller written across her forehead. She entered the largest stall and locked it, shuffling through the clothing in her rucksack. The ecstatic expression she sported disappeared as she paused, groaned into her bag, and pulled out a tattered, bulky cardigan.

It looked like it'd been present in Earth's demise.

The clothing wasn't new but stolen out of her chest on Stillusion Mountain. It wasn't a complete downer. The reason she adored the cardigan wasn't that it kept her warm, but because the sleeves ended in makeshift gloves with thumb holes. The problem of her lost gloves was solved.

Aegis tossed the cardigan on a hook behind the stall door. She sincerely hoped Rorik wasn't merciless enough to pack the rest of that outfit but Aegis shook her head, knowing better. She typically wore the cardigan with secondary hunting attire. Rorik even threw in the kneepads she wore so the hard snow wouldn't cut up her knees when tracking.

The only saving grace was her halter top. Aegis slipped into her wardrobe and threw the rucksack over her shoulder to exit the stall. She stopped in front of the mirror and flicked her hood on to overshadow her bruised face but the gold bangle around her wrist cast a warm glow against her cheek.

It'd been glowing from the moment she woke up. Aegis shook her wrist in front of her face to watch the bangle spin around it as if that would thwart its luminosity. As it ceased spinning, Aegis felt her sullen eyes upon it. Without reasoning beyond regret, Aegis found the bangle's clasp and pinched it undone. She dangled it in front of her and heaved a sigh before snatching it off and clenching it within a fist.

She spun around with the angry intent of beaming it at the nearest wall, yet her trembling arm hung above her head as she felt a lapse of breath cripple her lungs and blot her sight. Invisible weights pressed upon her chest and she wheezed, collapsing to her knees so hard the world shook before her. Aegis clutched her chest, realizing the bangle once in her possession was nowhere to be found. It was only when she slumped onto her side as if dealt a final blow, did she spot it absent of glow across from her underneath a stall.

She blinked hard, her sharp breaths filling her conscience with panic as she pulled herself across the cold floor with a single hand. The other was firmly pressed against the wound upon her chest - as painfully fresh as the moment it was dealt. Aegis' fingers strained underneath the stall door to slide the bangle towards her. Its warmth skimmed her fingertips until she reached even farther and swallowed her groans. She slid the bangle towards her and fumbled it in her hands until they shakily clasped it back around her wrist.

Aegis laid there on her side, wheezing a few moments longer and inhaled the largest breath life had to offer when her lungs expanded. She rolled onto her back, gasping for the very air somehow numbing her agonizing chest. Sprawled and basking in steady breaths - her head flopped to the side and she stared at the glowing bracelet warming her wrist.