The Hidden Shadows Within the Clouds

When I woke up, I found myself sweating on a white bed in a pure white room with bright white light shining on me. I didn’t know where I was, or what had happened, but I was alive. I think.
“Finally, you’re awake,” said a bored male voice. I looked around. The room was completely empty except for a teenager that looked a little older than me.
He was the kind you would call hot. His face was rugged and his jaw was set in a determined way. He looked tough, but he seemed a bit on the young side, like a little boy trying to act like his father .
I wasn’t sure how to respond, but resulted in responding with an, “Umm…hi?” His skin seemed on the orange side but looked like it was hot to the touch, and his hair was a uniquely intense fiery red that seemed to also emit its own heat. His eyes were a blend of multiple shades of red, orange, and yellow. This guy was just blazing.
“I assume this is a big change for you…?” he says, gesturing to myself. I look at him, confused. I look down at my body and was extremely surprised. I was wearing black clothing that you might think it was one of those girls’ clothes that write their numbers on the bathroom stalls. It was a somewhat tight dress that seemed to stand out in the completely white room. It had sleeves ending at my wrist and was semi short and ended at my knees. But, the design was my kind of style. It seemed almost lace-like at some parts, like my belly and arms, and created small swirling designs with a solid black style. It wasn’t really considered modern fashion, but looks more like the future than the past.
My hair was also jet black, but I suppose I wouldn’t have known if it was any other color because I can’t seem to remember anything before now. I seemed to be made of shadows. What, black blood too?
But that wasn’t much of the surprise.
I had white swirling designs tattooed from my shoulders to the tips of my fingers; the light intricate details looked just about permanent. The designs looked quite similar to the dress I was wearing, but seemed to create something I couldn’t quite interpret. No matter how cool it looked, I still wanted to know who did this and why.
“What did you do to me?” I asked, bewildered, surprised, angry, and wondering all at the same time.
He looked at me like I was the stupidest person in the world.
“I didn’t do that, you idiot. They appear automatically after you Turn,” he said it like it was just that simple, like I would immediately understand it right then and there. But how could I? After all that’s gone on, I don’t even know who I am! Heck, what has gone on? I’m just assuming things at this point.
He must have seen my confused (and agitated) expression, because he reacted, just not the way I would think he would. He whistled a strange tune and in a few moments I heard a flapping sound next to the room. I then heard the sound of hooves on cobblestone, and a larger door the size of a garage door opened without any evidence that there was a door in the first place. I hadn’t seen it before. This place is weird.
I stood up from the clean bed as a majestic white winged horse with dappled black spots trotted into the room and stopped at Flame Guy . He rubbed its nose affectionately and it whinnied softly in happiness. He looked back at me and the horse did the same.
“This is StormCloud. StormCloud meet…uh…what’s your name?”
“My name…? Um…” I honestly didn’t know my real name. I mean, I don’t remember. But I had to think of something…
“Topaz. My name is Topaz,” he didn’t seem quite surprised by the name, but there seemed to be a slight ember of recognition...or, something like that.
“Okay…well, Topaz, meet StormCloud. She’s a flying horse, also known as a Pegasus,” he made it sound like he explained it to a lot of outsiders. I wonder if there were lots of outsiders like me. I wonder if there are any outsiders. Wait…am I outsider?
What am I?
The Pegasus walked up to me calmly and stopped in front of me. I held out my hand tentatively so my palm was facing the winged horse. I disregarded the information I seemed to know about strange horses, but did it anyways. She sniffed it for a bit, and then put her muzzle in my hand, and I rubbed her slowly. She seemed quite familiar, but I couldn’t place where I’d seen her. Oh well, it was probably nothing.
“Well, you seemed to have remarkably bonded extremely quickly,” I think I heard a bit of jealousy, “so why don’t you ride her?” and maybe a bit of sarcasm.
“Wait, what?” I was confused again. I don’t know how much longer the confusion will last.
“You heard me. Do you want me to give you a leg-up?” Yup, definitely sarcasm. Also, his stupid smug expression was bothering me. I wanted to slap it off of his face. He probably knew that.
I felt myself blushing slightly but tried to push the color out of my face. “I can handle myself just fine!”
“Alright, then do it,” he said plainly, obviously proud of the trap he put me in. StormCloud seemed to know what we were talking about, so she readjusted herself so I could use a small stool in front of the bed. I don’t know why she did it, maybe she felt pity for me or that she likes me, but I was starting to really warm up to this Pegasus. Unless, this was all part of a ‘plan’ this horse and Flame Guy could have been making.
I hopped up onto the stool and mounted StormCloud. I feel like I had the experience of horseback riding, but there were no reins. There was no saddle. I think I have never ridden a horse bareback, because it felt strange, much less a Pegasus. But, it almost felt like I could almost feel the power or aura of StormCloud. I think she was excited, but for what? I think she knew something was coming, which I did not know.
“Alright now. Topaz,” he smirked, “you better hold on. StormCloud, go!” he shouted. I didn’t even have enough time to figure out what was going on until StormCloud started cantering. I held on tightly to her neck and mane as she cantered towards the big white garage door. She jumped out and I made a noise in between a gasp and a scream.
Now, when I mean out, I mean out in the open air. The sky, I mean. With clouds and cold winds. StormCloud was flying, or should I say falling, almost completely vertical. The rush was exhilarating and amazing, the way it tickled my stomach and the wind pushed my face with invisible hands. StormCloud slightly unfolded her wings so we slowed a bit after we had fallen for about fifteen seconds, and unfurled them all the way before we hit one of the lower levels of cloud with a whoosh.
It was amazing.
I was flying! Well, I wasn’t technically flying, but I was still in the sky and not falling. So, basically, yeah, I was flying.
I swept my hands through the clouds and got major déjà vu. It was that I was doing the same exact thing I was at the moment, sweeping my hands through the clouds, and enjoying myself. I held tight onto StormCloud’s mane to regain my bearings. I felt like this had happened before, like when I get déjà vu, it’s like seeing visions, and I leave one world for a few seconds to go to the next, and then come back to world I came from. It was confusing and disorienting. It’s probably nothing.
I breathed in the fresh air of the sky. The sapphire sky held only blue and white, sky and cloud, but it was still pretty awesome. The blue amazement and the white wonder seemed to reach my spirit and free it from a dark grounded cage, the wind bringing it up into the light and freedom. I felt alive and happy like I’ve never felt before.
“Hey, Topaz! What do you feel about skydiving?” I heard Flame Guy shout over the wind somewhere on my right.
“What?! NO!” I screamed back. I was NOT skydiving.
“Okay, that’s fine…. PSYCH!” he shouted and then heard a shrill whistle cut through the wind and make its way to StormCloud and I. I guess it was some other signal that StormCloud had been accustomed to, and, next thing I knew it, I was bucked off of the Pegasus.
I was very perplexed and confused and surprised all at the same time that I just couldn’t handle it. I froze, paralyzed, but fell facing towards the ground.
It was weird because I had regained control faster than I would have thought. My mind was still blank, but my body started moving. Somehow, I wasn’t falling so fast and my back seemed to be lifting me, as if I had a parachute strapped to my back. I slowly turned my head to look up behind me and saw a pair of jet-black wings the size of an overgrown ravens’ wings.
And they were connected to me.

Okay...now...I thought my back seemed heavier for some reason before, but...whoa. My mind blanked out all of my questions and thoughts as I glided through the air. My head felt light, my wings faltered and I started falling again, back towards the ground.
Great.
I didn’t feel like trying. Maybe, which was completely possible, this was all just one, long, horrible nightmare. Maybe, I’ll wake up before I hit the ground. So I just fell, closing my eyes, believing I’ll be safe in a soft, warm bed as the cold winds ran past me. Maybe I-
OOF!!
“Ooww...” I said as...something happened. Maybe I fell out of bed.
“Sorry, but I’m pretty sure it would’ve hurt much more if you fell all the way to the ground.” It was a guy. Wait, I’m confused again. I opened my eyes and saw an angelic face, glad not to be seeing Flame Guy’s face instead. He had me cradled in his arms with pure white wings bristling behind him. He was sitting on a cream colored Pegasus with a half-amused, half-concerned expression. Another part was fear and suspicion. I wondered why, but decided it didn’t really matter at the moment, pushing it to the back of my mind.
This was weird. This was really weird. It’s like I had fallen out of a Sci-fi movie into a fairy tale. Just to get this straight, I went over the things that just happened in my head. I woke up in a white room, jumped on a Pegasus, flew out a garage door, got bucked off by the Pegasus and almost died by “skydiving” (more like sky-dying), and then, finally, a white-winged angel caught me in his arms. I’m starting to dread that this is more than a dream.
I could be in a coma.
Well, it’s not like I could believe everything that just happened the past day! I don’t know what I would do if it just happens that all of this crap is real. Don’t blame me for being stressed; try imagining being in my shoes !
“Umm...wh-who are you?” I asked, trying not to be very sarcastic or mean, because obviously he saved my life and obviously, why would I want to be rude to a face like this?
He smiled and said, “My name is Skychaser, but you can just call me Sky...or Chaser," he said coolly.
I grinned and laughed nervously and said, “Well, Sky, you’re very strong.”
He smiled, showing pearl-white teeth and then looked up and concentrated on where we were going, still somewhat smiling. I don’t know where we were going, but there was something reassuring about the way he made sure I was comfortable as well as not falling to the ground .
About ten minutes later, we arrived at some sort of pure white, clean looking palace that seemed to be balancing on clouds, as well as floating on its own. I don’t know how that was possible, but I got the feeling that I didn’t want to overthink it .
Finally, we could see a runway made of marble looking material. The Pegasus eventually landed bumpily onto the marble while slowing down to a stop. Sky gingerly set me down onto the ground and my legs wobbled, but I stood.
“T-thanks,” I said, I still quite didn’t recover and take in everything that just happened. I guess I’m going to have to start believing now. Dreams don’t interrupt thoughts. I didn’t even know I could think in dreams. Guess not.