unraveled

red ruins

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          Somehow, everyone was alive. No one had yet died which seemed less merciful than it should have. They had walked through the night in the dark and with the sun overhead, it was afternoon of the second day. The sky was clear so the sun bore down on them in its full brightness but not warmth. The Master was now walking along the bull and the horse who were also somehow alive in his red and blue coat which seemed less like a coat and more as if he had draped the fabric of his tent over himself. The boy had half a mind to kill one of the animals and feed his stomach, even if it were just raw meat but his hands couldn't be bothered to find a knife. Every thought was forgotten as soon as it was thought of. As if his brain couldn't be bothered to keep track any longer. He knew Nia walked somewhere nearby but wasn't sure exactly and his tired body didn't bother to make extra effort to specify her coordinates. The night had been the worst of all. Trudging along underneath stars that seemed to mock them by shining too brightly, the boy had added those hours to his list of the worst moments in his life. Just thinking about it made a shudder pass through him, despite being in a no better situation now. At some point he thought he had cried but he couldn't be sure if it had been tears on his face or frozen pieces of his soul. He could feel his body feed on itself, like a too hungry monster, too selfish monster. He tried thinking about the warm blue sky in Esterham. Or the clean sails cutting through sea breeze. Or anything other than the still, white, nightmare he was encompassed in. But the true terror of nightmares was that you couldn't escape them when you needed to most.

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          Stranded alone in black space with nothing nearby to keep company the sun squinted to see the little ants walking on the white snow. It could see the end of their journey even if they couldn't - the snow ending in an abrupt black sand beach. The start of an icy bay. The end of an icy bay. The ships in the bay. The docks of Esterham. It sent sunshine bouncing and playing around the boy, chasing him, licking him, tickling him to tell him that he was near the end. That even if he couldn't see it, there was a bay right in front of him. The sun saw also the snow between the boy's last footstep and the first grain of black sand. It saw the surprise the snow held. As if in conspiracy with it, the sun held its silence, silently giggling in excitement. The snow shone a little brighter in response.

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          Nia heard jogging footsteps behind her and she wondered what kind of monster born in what kind of fresh hell had the strength to jog. She opted for conserving energy by not turning around and simply waited for the person to eventually show up on her side. She wondered if it was the boy but he didn't seem to have the power to blink much less jog unless something was wrong. The footsteps neared her now walking upto her. With an annoyed grunt she mustered from the depths of her body, she turned around. It wasn't the boy. It was Christoph. She turned back around. The snow ahead suddenly seemed more inviting. The clean slate begging to be stepped on, its smoothness interrupted. Christoph was now walking next to Nia, matching her step for step.

"Hey, Nia!" he said. His voice was hoarse but she could see his effort to make it seem friendly.

And as appreciation for that effort, she replied, "Hey, Christoph!" in a voice that would have stayed unfriendly, frozen throat or not.

"So, are you excited about Esterham?" he asked.

She pursed her lip, raised her eyebrows, shrugged her shoulders and gave a frank smile in return.

To her further annoyance, he took it as a sign to keep talking.

          Her heart beat was slow and frozen and she clenched her own chest in an attempt to make it slow enough for her to slip into a comatose long enough for Christoph to take a hint. But he would just use his unknown, hellish strength and pick her up in his arms which she would hate even in a coma. He bumped into her and she realized he had been talking.

          "- I know that's not how it works but I still wonder," he babbled though in his broken voice it sounded like someone was speaking scribbles. She had no idea what he didn't know but wondered about. "- doesn't understand that bulls are male cows. Anyways I was wondering if when we reach Esterham, you would like to go to the Red Ruins with me?" he asked. Her heart slowed down further, which she amusedly thought was an ironic reaction towards most romantic offers. The Red Ruins in Esterham were millenia old ruins. Leftovers from the first establishers of the Carac Kingdom. The first Kings and Queens. According to what Calix had said, the Ruins were blessed. Every royal wedding was held there and thus in a way blessed directly by the ancestors who guaranteed trust, loyalty, growth, and bloom in the marriage. Oftentimes couples journeyed there together to gather up pieces of that blessing. It was said that roses bloomed through the cracks and that at sunset you could see wispy outlined traces of the castle it used to be. It was also said that there was a massive tree in the midst of true that was immortal. Just thinking about it, Nia could feel its awe. The essence of time and space captured in wood and purple leaves that turned to heavenly fire at sunset. For Christoph to ask her to go there with him meant an offer to start a relationship, another step in his journey to find a wife to love and have his children and vu Nia who promised that as long as this journey was associated with her, she would make sure it ended in flames. With a start, Nia realized she hadn't spoken for a while and with a quick glance she knew that Christoph was staring intently at her as if he could force the answer out of her if he opened his eyes wide enough.

          "But Christoph," she said explanatorily, "don't the performances start soon enough? With most of your time divided between practice and costumes and performing, I hardly imagine you'd have the time to take me there," Nia said subtly planting obstacles in his mind, making him doubt how he had ever thought this could have happened. The snow however must have ruined her enough to fail at her well-skilled inception as he rioted back with, "If your answer is yes then you need not worry about my time, I'll manage."

          That was a well-guarded response which forced her to look for the plot holes harder, but her brain couldn't manage. The thought of the Red Ruins and Esterham seemed far away, and moved further away with each step. They were a horizon she chased after and was beginning to believe was a lie. She highly doubted ever making it out of the hellscape so she said, "Yes, Christoph. When we reach Esterham, I'll go to the Red Ruins with you." She didn't specify whether this accounted for her alive body or her corpse.

He grinned wide at that, "You won't regret it," he said excitedly.

If I make it out alive, I'm sure I will, she thought to herself but to him she said, "I'm sure I won't."

          "We could go on -" he broke off. Nia looked to him but he was staring off into the distance with a terrified expression. She followed his gaze and felt her features twist into a similar expression. A little distance away from them, the snow was red.

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Author's Note: Hope you enjoyed! And yes there is another murder. MUAHAHA! come back for the next part! take care <3

Love,
Cora. ✮