Chaser of Faith

Darkness consumed me. I thought it would have been quicker… I could smell her blood almost immediately, though.

I fought my way through the darkness towards her.

The anticipation made my skin itch, though I could not yet find it- my skin.

I could feel my body putting itself back together. The pain was little compared to what I had been through when I lost her. And now…

I heard drops of liquid drip-drip-dripping somewhere. Her scent was overwhelming. Her fire overwhelmed me.

I felt my feet first. Knees, hips, chest, arms, hands, neck… Finally I felt my head stop buzzing. There was a red haze in my vision, even before I opened my eyes.

I heard two distinct heartbeats.

I took in a deep breath- the first breath of fresh air that I had tasted in… hundreds of years.

Taste her.

I opened my eyes slowly, taking in a breath and letting it out through a seething grin.

Take her.

I felt her heart beating quicker. I heard the illusionist kneel to the ground and, looking up, I saw that he had his head down, as well.

“Xesand,” he greeted. He had let the dagger fall from his grip. His hands were covered in her blood. She stood next to him.

Taste her. Take her.

Her breathing was heavy. Her wings; her skin; her clothes were all stained a rusty red.

“Perses,” she whispered. There was something in her eyes- almost like fear. It was something that I had never seen in her before. It didn’t suit her.

“Asteria.”

My eyes shot open, my lungs burning to fill with air. I put my hands on my head, squeezing tightly to try to soothe the pain.

“Perses,” I whimpered. My throat was sore and dry. “Perses.” I tried to take in my surroundings as I curled into myself. My wings clung to my back. The world blurred as tears pooled in my eyes. It all hurt so much. I had to squeeze my eyes shut again. With my eyes closed I was able to process what I saw.

I was in a new room, laying on a bed with dark blue bedsheets, and Simon sat in an arm chair in the corner of the room. The room was lit with several lamps along the walls. It was nighttime. The room was bigger than the last, and there were bookcases and paintings lining the walls. My sword and my bag sat on the side table next to me.

“Claire,” Simon said quietly from his place on the other side of the room. “What did you see?” I wiped stray tears from my cheeks, gritting my teeth and sitting up in bed. I opened my eyes slowly to look at him.

“What is happening to me?” I demanded. “What happened to me?” Simon shut the book he had in his hands and set it on the table next to him. He stood up. I held out my hand with my palm facing him. “No,” I urged. “Stay right there. Do not come near me.” He stared stoically at me, but sat once more. “Just answer my question. What is happening to me?” He held my gaze. As my headache subsided, my courage grew. I refused to be afraid of him anymore.

“You died, Claire,” he said quietly. I let out a breath as it felt like I had been punched in the gut. “Again.” I glared at him.

“You’re full of shit,” I growled. “What did you do to me?” Simon took in a deep breath and let it out slowly.

“My goddess, you had a vision. I did nothing to you. You are Asteria. Titan of the stars. Goddess of the night. Prophet and foreseer of the future.” My head spun. I shook my head at him.

“How could I possibly be a god?” I hissed. “That’s impossible.”

“You were reincarnated,” he insisted, his voice still calm. “And you were sent to me by my father to be my wife.” I scoffed.

“If I’m a god, why would I marry you?” He shrugged as a whisper of a smile grew on his lips.

“It’s our destiny.” I held my breath as my ears started to ring. I took one last, long look at Simon, blinking repeatedly.

“I don’t believe in destiny,” I hissed.

I stood up as fast as I could and jumped off the bed. I grabbed my things and sprinted to the door. I tried the knob and it turned fully, making my heart beat with adrenaline. I whipped the door open and shut it behind me before Simon made it near me. No one was in the hall. I took in my surroundings for a split second and took off to my right. I ran down halls and down stairs, not running into a single soul. The rush of adrenaline made me dizzy but pushed me onwards. But, my determination paid off- I found the front door. My heart soared.

I grabbed onto the door handles and pushed them open successfully. I was alone in the hall. Simon had not followed me. His Enforcers were gone.

I was free at last.

I took a few steps out into the cool night air and immediately pushed off the ground, stretching my wings out as wide as they could go and ascending into the open sky. I grinned and let out breathy laughter, flying directly away from Simon’s home. I didn’t know where I was heading, but anywhere was better than here. As I left his property, I turned around to make sure no one was following me. I felt goosebumps prickle on my arms as I saw Simon standing on his doorstep. He made no move to come after me, but I saw a hint of a smile on his face as he waved at me. I ground my teeth together and turned back around, speeding away into the night.

I was free.

“How’s that for destiny?” I asked the stars, ready to go home.

-*-

It was hours before I landed.

The sun was high above me in the sky when I came upon the first city I had seen since I left Herith. This city was not as sparkling as Herith had been, but not as sketchy as Beythas. It sort of reminded me of my home back on Earth. From above, I saw neighborhoods of small houses, all connected by dirt paths through the forests. Down the paths I had followed, I found the main part of the city. The road was smooth stone, lined with shops. There was no wall around its border. The streets were busy, but not tightly packed. I felt happy knowing that a town like this existed on this planet.

I landed in an empty part of the city, towards the woods, my legs shaking as I got used to being back on my feet. The people were mostly Saniats, it seemed, but I did see a couple of angels on the streets. This made me feel more confident to talk to one of the inhabitants. I stopped a woman who seemed to be about my age. She had a bag slung over her shoulder full of books and carried a thick, heavy novel in her arms.

“Roaati ko,” I started, excusing myself. “Sav rith kolet bet es. Pene thas rith ode?” I’m not from here. What city is this? The woman shifted the book she was carrying to her other hip, glancing at my appearance subtly. I had not been able to grab shoes before I left Simon so I walked barefoot through the town. I knew I looked like a homeless person, but I tried not to let it bother me too much. At that point, I could have been naked, for all I cared. I just wanted to get back home.

“Ode rith Setax,” she replied. Setax… The city Setax. I didn’t remember where that was. I tried to visualize Nicholas’s map, but I was drawing a complete blank. It had been ages since I had last seen it. Before she walked away, I asked her one more question.

“Bethel rith Beythas?” Where is Beythas? She thought for a moment, hiking her bag higher up on her shoulder. She turned and pointed further down the street.

She started speaking quickly, and I panicked. “Vaxontor sagh ve xotev eto zete ra deaet, jo ha rith zete Beythas,” she said pointedly. I understood only the last word, Beythas. I nodded, hoping that I understood her basic meaning- go down the path to get to Beythas.

“Talas yovet,” I stuttered to thank her. She smiled at me and went on her way again. I let out a breath, standing in the middle of the street as men and women passed me by.

I stopped at the nearest cart and bought a couple pieces of fruit with the remaining coins I had in my bag still. I was sure that most of what I had had fell out at some point. All I had left was about 20 hass. I ignored my growling stomach, deciding to save my food for later in the day, and started in the direction that the lady had showed me. I tucked my wings into my back, trying to make myself smaller in this crowd.

“You died, Claire…

Again.”

I shook my head, scolding myself.

Don’t think about him, I told myself. That’s insane. He was insane.

Taste her. Take her.

My hallucination had flickered in and out since I left Herith. The detail was excruciating.

Taste her. Take her.

How could I have seen these hallucinations in such vivid detail, and from someone else’s point of view? If Gage had been using a mental illusion on me, I would have still been myself.

And, if this scar really is what Simon called ‘a mark of the gods,’ why do I have it? How could I possibly be a god? It didn’t make sense. I was just… Claire.

Claire, the orphan. Claire, the alien. Claire, the thief.

Wasn’t it one of Cal’s charms that had given me these wings? The matches I had taken from his shop gave me these wings. Perhaps this scar; those visions, were more side effects. Simon was so busy putting silly ideas into my head that I hadn’t had a clear enough head to consider the reality of my human body.

Human. I was just a human.

I was going to miss flying when I finally had to give these wings up, but if I had to choose between flying and never having another one of those visions- I’ll be a boring human again until the day I die, and I’ll enjoy it.

I managed to make my way past the crowds and the shops to the forest. When I reached the open path, I sprung off the ground and up into the air. I relished the feeling of the wind on my face and the force of gravity trying to push me back down. I felt defiant. And after what I had been through… that was a good feeling.

As I soared through the sky, following the path closely, my thoughts drifted to the angels, Remy, and Nicholas. What had they been doing? Had they been looking for me? What did Adriel do after I escaped from him? Did Rahmiel have to track him down again? Would anyone be at the cottage once I got back? What if Adriel was there? What would they say about the charm? About where I had been? About who I had been with? If I even told them…

A hundred ideas ran through my mind.

After hours in the air, the sun began to set. And as the moons rose above the horizon, my eyelids felt heavier and heavier and my stomach panged with hunger. I decided it was time to take a break.

When I landed on the path, I took a look around to see where I could stay safely for the night. I trudged through some bushes and tall grass, searching for sticks to make a fire on my way to find a clearing. A thought occurred to me suddenly, and I searched through my bag until I found the box of matches. I was relieved to see them, but when I slid the box open, I noticed that there were only two matches left.

“Shit,” I muttered. I would only have one left if I made a fire tonight. What if that meant that I might have only one chance to undo the charm?

I closed the box again and slid it back into my bag. I couldn’t risk it. I sat on the cold ground, playing with dark green grass around my legs. The outfit I had left Simon’s home in seemed to soak in the dirt almost immediately. The black knee-length dress was now stained in dark brown mud.

I sighed and looked up at the sky. The cruel stars shone brightly. It was almost a good enough substitute for a fire but I missed the warmth that the flames could offer. Fatigue made my eyes heavy.

There were rustles in the tall grass around me, but I didn't move to look. I continued to stare up to the sky. It wasn’t until I felt the pat-pat-pat on the ground in front of me that I finally tore my eyes away from the stars. I stared in amazement at the first wild animal I had seen on Aksan.

The small creature reminded me of a rabbit. It blended in with the grass around it with its dark green-colored fur. It had glowing yellow eyes, large ears, and a long tail trailing behind it. I took in its appearance with awe. I slowly reached down to my side. It watched me carefully. My hand found a piece of fruit from my bag and tore off small bits. I laid several pieces down in front of myself, offering them to the animal. It continued to watch me, not moving. I hoped that it would come to me. I tried to will it closer to me. I felt desperate to befriend this creature.

“Come here, little guy. I’m not gonna hurt you,” I whispered to it.

I took a bite of the fruit, hoping to show it that I meant it no harm. Its nose sniffed the air, guiding it to the food. I smiled with excitement. It stopped a few feet in front of me, sniffing a piece of fruit and starting to chew on it. I watched it happily. The silent night felt less lonely with it there.

I took another bite of my fruit, eating with my new friend. I didn’t think much of it when it stopped eating for a moment to stare stiffly at the tall grass around us. But, when it suddenly started to sprint away from me, I screamed in surprise as a figure jumped from the tall grass and pounced on top of it. I heard the animal squeal right before I heard the sickening crunch of its bones snapping. I took in gasps of breath as I scratched at the dirt and grass to back away from the figure. He had no shirt on so his pale skin shone in the moonlight. As I hyperventilated and tried to get away from him, I heard squishing skin and slurping noises. When he threw the animal to the side, I tried to scramble to my feet, tripping over myself.

The man stood slowly, growling deep in his chest. He turned to me suddenly and I was shocked to see his face. His blond hair, sharp white teeth, and bright red eyes… I hadn’t seen him in so long.

“Nicholas?”

When I fell silent once again, Nicholas crouched, flashing his teeth and snarling. He pushed himself off the ground, jumping towards me furiously. All I could do was scream and lift my arms in front of myself in defense.