Chapter sixty-one: In Dreams
After the night’s fiasco, the only thing I wanted to do was sleep. I wound through the quiet halls, making my way briskly to my room. I closed and locked the door behind me, bee-lining toward my bed. I really hope no one was in here.
I crouched down and fumbled under the mattress, sighing in relief when my fingers brushed against the cool metal of the key. I pulled it out and walked to the dresser, unlocking it. The rose, even in the almost pitch black room, seemed to be giving off a faint light.
“You’re such a strange little plant.” I mumbled, reaching toward it.
A soft knock on the door froze me in place. “Lady Kyla, would you like me to send a maid to help you change?” Martin asked, sniffling.
“No.” I called, slipping out of my shoes. “It’s late and I don’t want to wake anyone up.”
“If you’re sure.” Martin said, a frown in his voice. “Pleasant slumber, my lady.”
“You as well.” I walked across the room, lighting a candle, and stripping off the jewelry.
Martin turned away from the door and walked down the hall, leaving me to my own devices. I undressed quickly, blew out the candle and flopped into bed. Yawning, I turned my head and looked down at the rose.
“Tonight was hell, you know.” I reached over, plucking it from its resting place, and turned it between my pointer finger and thumb. “I wish you could talk and tell me all about what you can do.”
The rose didn’t answer but I did feel a small humming coming from it. I yawned once more, resting it on my chest and began to replay Cassius’s words. He hadn’t been very helpful at all, not that I was surprised. He seemed to be a straightforward man, but he never actually showed what he was thinking. Not really.
I yawned again, feeling my eyes begin to droop. What a pain in the ass. My thoughts began to slow, my breathing began to level, and in moments I fell into a strange dream.
The smell of flowers filled my nose – roses, lilies, and violets. A soft warmth caressed my body, embracing me as a lover would. I opened my eyes, happy to see my garden was in full bloom. It had taken years of meticulous work to get it to this point, however, it was worth it. I should have tried my hand at planting a long time ago.
The twinkle of laughter behind me drew my eye, and I turned to see a boy around six running toward me. At his heels, a small white and brown puppy followed behind, tongue lolling to the side.
“Mama! Mama, look what I found!” He squealed, waving his chubby little arms around.
“Hyasaen, you shouldn’t be running out here.” I walked forward, moving to meet him half way. “There are rocks and holes you could trip on.”
Hyasaen skidded to a stop before me, blue eyes shining with joy. “Mama, see!” He held out his hand and a small caterpillar wiggled in his grasp. “Look what I found!”
“Hya.” I sighed, plucking the bug from his palm. “Caterpillars give life, you can’t be grabbing them as you please.”
“Mamaaaa.” He whined as I walked over and set the insect down. “Papa said it’s okay to play with bugs.”
“Your father always…” I trailed off when the dog began to bark excitedly and darted back the way they had come.
Hyasaen turned his head and let out a laugh and followed after his companion. A shape emerged from the large palm trees – and I knew right away who it was. A man I had known through more than half my life. He bent down and lifted our son into his arms, making the boy giggle.
They jogged toward me, all three of them looking joyful. It struck me, as it always did when I saw them together, how much father and son mirror each other. Their noses and face shape, along with their golden hair. The only thing he inherited from me was my iris color.
“My love, I have brought the mini-Flame.” My husband held out Hya, gently turning him in the air. “Behold the-”
“Honestly, Roywen, who is the child?” I sighed, taking Hyasaen from him and planting him on his feet. “Off with you, go play.” I nudged him forward.
“Come on, Peetro.” Hya whistled, running off. The pup barked twice then chased after his master.
“I missed you, Aemri,” Roywen bound forward, pulling me into his embrace. “So very much.”
“Stop it, Roy.” I laughed, slapping him on the chest. “You’re no better than our boy.”
“Is that so?” Roy lifted me off the ground, brushing his lips across mine. “Maybe we should try for a daughter next.”
My vision began to swing, despite the joyous reunion. I blinked a few times – feeling flames licking at my heels. The dream shifted, roasted and snapped into place and I realized where I was. The Temple of Creation. Instead of being quiet and peaceful – screams filled the air. The smell of blood and ash permeated all the senses.
“Priestess, you must leave!” One of my attendants screamed, wrapping her fingers around my gown. “You must leave before he finds you!”
“No,” I shook her off gently, stepping forward. “You must find my husband and son.”
“B-but I can not find anyone!” She yelped when a portion of the ceiling fell, landing inches from where she stood. “There’s too much happening. I do not-”
“Find them.” I shot a look over my shoulder and stepped outside, directing my mana toward the fires and putting them out. Why is this happening now? It’s too soon.
Overhead, the sound of the mad dragon roared, spitting fire toward the people who dared to flee. What made him act in such a way? I hiked up my gown and ran down the steps, stopping in the center of the sandy road.
“Dragon, cease your assault! You’re committing blasphemy on this hallowed land!” I yelled, enhancing my voice magically.
The rampaging serpent didn’t so much as glance in my direction. I took a deep breath and focused all the mana I could muster into my palms. Flame, dark red and blue swirled together as though alive.
“Dragon, stop your madness!” I held up my arms, sending the sacred flames toward the creature.
The hit true moments later – ripping a cry of agony from the dragon. He twisted in the air, black blood dripping from his scales. A cry of rage filled the air and it descended, too quickly for me to escape.
It’s talons wrapped around my body, squeezing until I felt several of my bones begin to crack. I winced from the pain, keeping my eyes level with the black eyes of the cursed beasts.
“You…will be punished for…this.” I gasped out, tasting blood in my mouth. This is how I die, it was foretold, but I thought I would have longer to live with my family.
The dragon opened his mouth – hot air whooshed across my skin, singing where it touched. Two voices, both equally broken and warped, reached my ears. I looked over, blinking through the blurriness of my eyes.
Roywen, face full of rage and anguish, held a screaming and sobbing Hyasaen in his arms. I’m sorry, I could not change my fate. I couldn’t hear the words they spoke, but I knew they were crying out, knew they would mourn me.
“Run!” I screamed with the last of my strength. “And never return!”
What happened next, I did not know. The jaws of the dragon descended – sinking into my flesh. Pain scorched through my body – and then…I felt nothing.
I woke up with a start – heart pounding wildly against my chest. I gasped and pushed off the bed, knocking the rose to the floor.
“What…the hell?” I huffed, touching a hand to my chest.
The room around me spun on an axis, warping around the edges. My stomach twisted and I bent over, pressing my other hand against it. My eyes burned from unshed tears, and my lungs felt as though I had been the one who inhaled smoke. I shivered unconsciously, squeezing my eyes shut. What just happened?
The dream, as if to mock me, replayed on a loop – forcing me to recall the sensations. No, push it back, focus on the room or something. I opened my eyes and glanced up through my sweaty hair. The room was dark – save for a small ray of sunlight peaking over the horizon. The shadows in the room stretched endlessly – reminding me of the flavor of ash.
“Damn it.” I gagged, slapping my hands over my mouth.
I took a few deep breaths, willingly my body to calm down. Each breath made my lungs burn further, but slowly the sensations began to fade. I removed my hand and glanced down at the flower, afraid to touch it.
What if that thing did this to me? I scrunched my brow, gripping my knees. No, I’ve been having strange dreams since being here. It could have been the cigar smoke left overs…but why would I dream of something like that?
“It doesn’t matter.” I bent over, picked up the rose, and dropped it into the drawer – locking it. “I can’t let anyone find it. Whatever it is…” I trailed off and walked to the window, pressing my forehead against the cold.
The coolness helped ground me and remove the trembling in my body. I don’t have time to even consider what just happened. I sighed, closing my eyes. Within an hour, I would be summoned to my lessons – contemplation was pointless.
I walked back over to the dresser, grabbed the key, and hid it once more under the bed. I sta on the bed, rubbing my arms. I pushed the dream aside, intending to return to it later – when I had the time to consider what had transpired. For all I knew it was nothing but a conglomeration of anxiety and stress.
Then who were the people? No. Stop it.
I took another shaky breath and rubbed my temples.
There was something fundamentally wrong with this world and I had no idea what that was.
Today is going to be a long day.