The Edge Of Forever

21| crimson tears

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21

c r i m s o n  t e a r s : 진홍의 눈물

GORYEO, SONGDO, 1214

THE STARS HAD BEEN MY SOLE COMPANIONS.

The darkness had been lonely, it was endless and everywhere. It was the place I was stuck in, it was the air I breathed in, it was where I tried to escape from and it was me.

So I found solace in looking up at the gems that were lifetimes away knowing no one could take them from me. 

It was all I could feel; darkness and stars. So when the stars vanished one by one and the darkness began to dissolve into a light, I began feeling nostalgic, as though a part of me was being taken away.

Then came the sounds. Different sounds evaded my ears, of people talking, of objects and some sounds that I could not distinguish. I tried to reach out but nothing came of it, I was still stuck, in a dimension far away from where the sounds were coming from.

I descended into the darkness once more, finding it easier to fall than to climb to the light.

When I woke up again, I tried to open my eyes but it were as though they had been pinned shut with a padlock for extra measures. 

But I did not give up trying, not when I had been given a second chance. 

I needed to wake up.

So I tried, and tried again until I managed to lift my finger before it fell down again and I knew that I was going to live.

I heard voices, this time there was an urgency to them. They were frantic, sounding on the verge of excited. I felt a sharp light above my face, it was making different patters swirl in my closed eyes and so from the help of the light, I forced my eyes to open themselves.

They shattered close as soon as they were open a fraction. It resulted in a sharp breath drawn from my mouth.

"Queen." 

I recognised the voice, it was not simply a sound anymore. I distinguished the deep sound, the worry tilting his one word.

I tried to open my eyes again, this time, keeping them open for a few seconds before they fluttered shut furiously.

"She's opening her eyes!" This voice belonged to someone else. It was a man, he had a rasp and hysteria to his words. 

After a few short breathes, I peeled my eyes open once more and this time, I forced them to stay open, not caving into the force that was trying to pull them down again. All I saw was a blur of light for a good ten seconds and I blinked a few times to adjust to the light around me.

Soon enough, the haziness dissolved and I made shape of the ceiling above me. The dark blurs molded into wooden panels running vertically and horizontally to create a rectangular grid on the ceiling. 

"Queen Anhye?" A soft voice called out and then I found the King move into place to stand above me.

His face was a mix between a gawk and relief with many other emotions embedding into his features.