"I CAN'T PULL YOU CLOSER THAN THIS
IT'S JUST YOU AND THE MOON ON MY SKIN."
I didn’t want to go too far. I had told myself that logically, Mama and Papa couldn’t be that far away. We had all come through together, surely that meant they had to be close? However, I knew that the real reason that I didn’t want to venture too far was out of some false sense of security here. Whatever it was that had chased us out of Helovia - that had extinguished the light of the moon - didn’t seem to have followed us here. At least, that’s what I was telling myself. I needed to do something to hold myself together.
Perched on my withers, Everly, slipped into unconsciousness with absolutely no warning. The Zephyr dozed for a few moments before startling awake, seeming just as confused and startled by her unplanned nap as I was. I let out a soft sigh as my ears flicked in the direction of every sound. I wondered how many had made it to this place out of all those that Kaos had...harvested. I shook my head at the thought, trying to chase away the memories. Now wasn’t the time to let myself be consumed by those thoughts. Those nightmares.
A noise, small at first, was enough to draw my attention. I spun around, preparing myself to flee or to fight, my muscles coiled and my wings tense. However it was not fear that crested over me like a wave, but relief. The relief was so overwhelming it was almost enough to chase away the other, unsavory emotions that had taken up residence in the deepest corners of my mind and the most primal parts of my soul.
I closed the distance between myself and the silver girl, letting out all the air in my lungs as I wrapped the smaller girl in an embrace. I dropped a moonlit wing over her back, pulling her close. The rhythm of her breath rising and falling against my chest was enough to chase away some of the fear - at least for the time being. And then Neaera was there too, barreling into the impromptu embrace. I opened my other wing to the other girl, holding what remained of my family together - both literally and figuratively for just a moment. “Don’t worry. We’re together now, and we’ll stay together. And we’ll find the rest of our family,” I murmured to the little ones, wondering if I was reassuring them or if I was reassuring myself.
The presence of a stranger, however, was enough for me to immediately raise my guard again. I did my best to stand to my full height, slowly pulling my wings back to my sides and taking a step in front of my sisters. I studied this stranger carefully, before electing to answer him. “Something like that,” I replied, matching his cool tone, but not feeling comfortable elaborating further.
“Who are you?”
V E S P E R
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The Portal
