Elegy of the Leaves

XVIII | The Center of the Sky

The world had become a black place. Evan felt himself adrift amongst that very darkness. Visions of Tahlia, his mother, and Claire seemed to swirl around him. He tried to look away, but no matter where he looked, all he could see was the crimson that soaked Tahlia's dress as she rested, skewered, on that man's sword.

The dripping of her blood echoed in his mind, reverberating around until it became a deafening beat in his ears. Visions of his mother came next, burning, screaming as Estailia was razed to ash by the Empire. He could almost smell the acrid smoke, the sickening searing of flesh. The sizzling of it filled his ears as The Empire marched around. They all looked the same as they threw torches and lanterns on her—black faces and glowing red eyes. A suitable description of the demons that they were. Evan's blood coursed with fire. He wanted to see them all burn the way he knew they were burning his mother and the other people of the Arcadian Alliance.

Claire came next, and his heart ached at the vision of her sobbing. He reached to her, grasping at the darkness instead. Despair welled inside him. All she'd wanted was to keep him from this fate, this abyss that now surrounded him. He cursed himself for seeing that now. She never wanted him to give up on his dreams, but the trivialities of his bond with his sister kept him blind. Every time she tried to tell him, he got defensive and angry, lashing out at her as though she wanted to keep his dream for herself.

That had never been less true as she was the one who convinced mother to let him join. She made sure to give him all her notes, answered his questions any time she was home from a mission, and cheered at his graduation louder than any other.

And he pushed her away when she suggested his talents were better served elsewhere.

She was right; however, he would never match her skill behind the helm. Claire was a prodigy with piloting. Evan was decent with a sword, and could shoot with some precision, but his true talent was academics. He probably would've shined had he enlisted with Stratwing instead of the Flightwing.

It mattered not now. Evan grasped his head as it began to throb. Was this the next torment The Abyss was to give him? There was dry grit stuck to his lips. He licked them and pressed his eyes closed as the taste of minerals filled his mouth. He spat and coughed as a flurry of dust pestered his face.

He blinked the dust from his eyes and caught a glimpse of blue through the haze. He grasped at his head again. The front left side throbbed with vengeance. He clawed his way to his feet as he tried to flush clear his vision, wiping his eyes with the leather of his gloves when a sharp pain pierced all sides of his wrists.

He screamed in agony as he fumbled loose the clasps that held his gauntlets on his hands. He pushed them off as relief flooded over him and made clear again the pain in his head. However, he paid little attention to it this time. His hands shook as he looked at the jewels that grew embedded in his wrists. They were a silvery blue, with one orange just like Tahlia's.

Evan wiped his eyes again and looked around. A gust of wind blew a curl of dust from the edge of the patch of land he'd awoken on, and all around was blue sky with brushstroke clouds painted far from where he sat. He was on the edge of an Isle, but how? The last thing he remembered was being struck in the head and being thrown over the edge of the ship before darkness consumed him.

"You're in the center of the Everblue." A woman's voice came from behind.

A prickle shot up and down Evan's spine. He whirled around, reaching for his sword, but grasped at nothing.

"Calm yourself child," she said. "You are safe."

Evan's mouth fell open as he looked at who stood before him. The air became heavy, but light at the same time. He thought his eyes would burn from his sockets yet felt no pain at all. The woman before him seemed to glow from her pale skin. Violet eyes gazed down upon him and filled his soul with a peace he never knew existed. Crimson hair flowed like blood over her shoulders, and she wore a white veiled dress that seemed transparent, yet he could not see her body beneath. Instead, it was like staring into a womb of life.