01-20-2020, 02:25 AM
The terrain was unstable. Aïdōneús chose his steps carefully. He twisted an ankle one time as a child. He could still hear the pop that cut short a runner’s exercise. He took up swimming later that season at the behest of the country club’s trainer. Turned out he had a knack for the sport despite a natural detest for the water. But once submerged, flying weightless, it was rather exhilarating. Besides, the exercise kept him fit.
The air was thin here also. It reminded him of Siberia, cutting wind included. He put a hand to his eyes, gauging the remaining distance. A sunless sky blinked from above, blinding him momentarily as his heart sank low.
Aïdōneús gathered the wool close, warm, but annoyingly scratchy. He preferred fur, a nice skein dyed black as night. Why was he here, he thought as slate scattered loose beneath his boots. Grumbling, he carried forward despite the unease growing in his belly - not from the menacing caverns stretching far below.
His swimmer’s lungs - so accustomed to stretches between breaths - burned in the thin air. The darkness of a cave opened temptingly nearby, but with a sigh, he turned his back to the cold air. The hand went to his brow again, eyes piercing the sky with the same biting blue that snapped back at him. Then he saw it. A black speck at first. A frown deepened the lines on his face. It soared straight as a missile - a what? he thought. He stretched outward, trying to capture the demon with his very eyes.
The arc of its trajectory turned downward. It was then that he knew that something terrible was going to happen. When it touched the horizon, the mountain trembled and the resulting fires touched the heavens. Horror wrapped him tight as the shroud knotted his neck. Dozens of the demons darkened the skies sharper than arrows and mightier than bombs.
Power swelled his bones, but he spit out the taste of doom that silvered his throat. With his furious steps, the earth trembled. He’d not see everything he built cast down like this! The mountain bowed with his departure. Aïdōneús roared defiantly, and their aim was drawn toward himself.
He knew what had to be done.
The earth opened beneath his feet. When the maw closed, the fires were swallowed to its depths, and the darkness trapped them all.
Nikolai’s own cry of alarm woke him up, and the darkness sure to have been real, was banished to the four corners of his room by a swift flick of the power’s light.
He was drenched in sweat. Bad dreams plagued him like the ijiraq made good on her promise with nightly dedication. That had to be the origin of these nightly screenplays - or so his therapist suggested. A frown, and he got up. 3:15 AM was early, even for the Ascendancy.
He called Evelyn.
She was radiant, answering almost instantly. Her expression changed after the initial moment of gleeful surprise.
“Nik, it’s the middle of the night there. Whats wrong?”
He couldn’t help but look at the scene behind her shoulder. Daylight streamed into her office. No bombs blanketed the horizon. No hellish pits swallowed them all.
“You had another one,” she deduced.
“I just wanted to see that you were safe. You’re important to me.”
She chuckled at his austere gesture of affection. “Oh Nik, I love it when you talk like that.” She winked and some sort of spell was discharged. His shoulders relaxed, and his own face dropped the tension.
“What’s on your agenda today?” He asked, but Evelyn knew exactly what he really wanted. She filled the following minutes with the sing-song sound of her voice. He didn’t really listen to the details, but soon, he was laying his head back down, and had no idea when the call ended.
The air was thin here also. It reminded him of Siberia, cutting wind included. He put a hand to his eyes, gauging the remaining distance. A sunless sky blinked from above, blinding him momentarily as his heart sank low.
Aïdōneús gathered the wool close, warm, but annoyingly scratchy. He preferred fur, a nice skein dyed black as night. Why was he here, he thought as slate scattered loose beneath his boots. Grumbling, he carried forward despite the unease growing in his belly - not from the menacing caverns stretching far below.
His swimmer’s lungs - so accustomed to stretches between breaths - burned in the thin air. The darkness of a cave opened temptingly nearby, but with a sigh, he turned his back to the cold air. The hand went to his brow again, eyes piercing the sky with the same biting blue that snapped back at him. Then he saw it. A black speck at first. A frown deepened the lines on his face. It soared straight as a missile - a what? he thought. He stretched outward, trying to capture the demon with his very eyes.
The arc of its trajectory turned downward. It was then that he knew that something terrible was going to happen. When it touched the horizon, the mountain trembled and the resulting fires touched the heavens. Horror wrapped him tight as the shroud knotted his neck. Dozens of the demons darkened the skies sharper than arrows and mightier than bombs.
Power swelled his bones, but he spit out the taste of doom that silvered his throat. With his furious steps, the earth trembled. He’d not see everything he built cast down like this! The mountain bowed with his departure. Aïdōneús roared defiantly, and their aim was drawn toward himself.
He knew what had to be done.
The earth opened beneath his feet. When the maw closed, the fires were swallowed to its depths, and the darkness trapped them all.
Nikolai’s own cry of alarm woke him up, and the darkness sure to have been real, was banished to the four corners of his room by a swift flick of the power’s light.
He was drenched in sweat. Bad dreams plagued him like the ijiraq made good on her promise with nightly dedication. That had to be the origin of these nightly screenplays - or so his therapist suggested. A frown, and he got up. 3:15 AM was early, even for the Ascendancy.
He called Evelyn.
She was radiant, answering almost instantly. Her expression changed after the initial moment of gleeful surprise.
“Nik, it’s the middle of the night there. Whats wrong?”
He couldn’t help but look at the scene behind her shoulder. Daylight streamed into her office. No bombs blanketed the horizon. No hellish pits swallowed them all.
“You had another one,” she deduced.
“I just wanted to see that you were safe. You’re important to me.”
She chuckled at his austere gesture of affection. “Oh Nik, I love it when you talk like that.” She winked and some sort of spell was discharged. His shoulders relaxed, and his own face dropped the tension.
“What’s on your agenda today?” He asked, but Evelyn knew exactly what he really wanted. She filled the following minutes with the sing-song sound of her voice. He didn’t really listen to the details, but soon, he was laying his head back down, and had no idea when the call ended.