The Hidden Shadows Within the Clouds

Finally, I feel someone tap on my shoulder. I had laid down on my side to stare at the rising sun, back to the darkness. I looked behind me, seeing Sky’s angelic face staring curiously and concerned at me. I sat up, light headed and tired, regretting my decision to have come up here in the first place instead of sleeping in the offered bed.
He helped me stand to my feet and I shivered; his hands were freezing, but I couldn’t tell how he could possibly be cold when I’m not; though he didn’t look like it bothered him.
“Well, looks like you got your beauty sleep,” he said sarcastically.
“Sleep is overrated.” He chuckled, smiling at me. I smiled back at him.
“Today, I’m going to take you on a tour of the palace and city, me being your tour guide; you have to listen to everything I say.”
“Oh really?” I snorted.
“Yup.”
“Everything you say?”
“Yup.”
I stared at him in amusement and said, “Alright, tour guide, lead me.”
To get off of the building, he held my hand as we descended, me being clumsy, of course, faltering every inch of the way down. But his wings brushed mine slightly a few times, as if to reassure me. I tripped on my landing, but at least I landed on my feet.
“Don’t worry, we have flight practices.” He said it as if I were a toddler. Well, they probably taught the ‘little angels’ to fly there anyhow.
He led me away from his house after grabbing breakfast (which was, astonishingly, cereal) and through the city. I thought it was more of a small city, or big town, but I suppose it could have really been hard to create something as big as even this. There were bits of cloud floating around. There were streets, but no cars. It was probably only for Pegasi and carriages.
There were shops; I noticed as we kept on walking, that offered things like medicine and tack for the Pegasi and multiple other items.
People with white wings on their backs milled around, walking around doing normal things like shopping. Everyone seemed extremely casual and comfortable; I on the other hand, was not.
“As you can see, we have shops for all of your needs, so you will never be in need,” he said, gesturing to all of the shops, while smiling widely at his own joke. It was funny, which was ironic, because it wasn’t even actually funny. It was barely a joke at all, let alone a bad one.
I stretched my wings, rubbed my eyes, and yawned.
I guess it would have been better if I had just fallen asleep, I thought, feeling exhaust and regret crawling under my skin and into my brains. I almost started to regret having such curiosity, but curiosity can be good, I just have to learn to have caution with it.
I wonder what my life would have been like if I’d had grown up here, instead of elsewhere. Maybe it would have been better for me, a better life, with normal problems, and everything that is strange to me would be part of my normal life and problems. My life would be casual, normal...though, I’m not so sure about the black wings...
The white-winged people kept giving me strange and untrustworthy looks, as if I were the enemy in their kingdom. I looked back at Sky, and he said, “I’ll explain later.”
Then, I snapped.
“No! If you’re going to explain anything to me at all, just do it now.” He sighed in response.
“Fine, Miss Stubborn,” I roll my eyes, “I’ll give you the short part of it. We are not the only ones that live in the sky. There is another...um, race. They, well...they have black wings instead. They are considered evil to us, and we fight them. I assume the Councilor has informed everyone of your arrival.”
I wouldn’t really call it arrival… If anything else, more like an unplanned visit. At the moment he stated they had black wings, I looked over my shoulder at my own wings and he threw a look at me tinged with pity. That explained the strange looks from the other white-winged people living here. They probably thought I was an infiltrator, a spy perhaps, pretending to be stupid and unknowing.
Maybe-
With sudden haste, he continued, “If you were wondering why we fight them, it is because they have killed a former Councilor long ago. We have never forgiven them. We call them the Phthora or the Phthorians. Fun fact: ‘phthora’ is Greek for corruption or corrupted, and that’s exactly what they are.” If I’m not mistaken, I thought I heard a slight hesitation on the word ‘they’, as if he were to say ‘you’ instead.
“Well...I suppose the Councilor would love to see you. You are, after all, a- uh...an uncommon guest,” he said. I noticed that it seemed like he was trying to keep me from thinking that I wasn’t a guest.
He led me down the side of the wide streets and towards a huge palace-like building. Notice I didn’t say ‘palace’. I wouldn’t have called it a palace; it looked more like a gigantic school, with the addition of a massive bell placed within extreme altitude. It looked like a thousand cathedrals all elegantly molded into one giant building. I couldn’t even see the back of the huge building.
We walked through the materializing doorway, into the building; its white walls and smooth marble floors were surprising and yet not surprising at the same time. It had the feeling of being a very fancy yet staid interior, making me feel like I was one black in a sea of white.
“If you, I guess, represent the white rather than the black, why have me wear this?” I asked curiously.
“It is really just for...well, it’s really what we make prisoners or hostages wear, since they would be black. Plus, it looks better on you.” His voice was devoid of anything as he stared on ahead, but I knew there was something more hiding behind the curve of his lips. Somehow, his smile was reassuring, and didn’t quite make me feel like a prisoner.
His light-looking white shoes silently tapped against the flawless floors. My bare feet were sticky with sweat, despite the cool air, and stuck to the floor, making weirdly gross noises . He kept his eyes staring restlessly ahead, and I tried to keep my eyes from constantly gazing at him.
The hall was very long, much longer than it seemed from the outside, as if to say, you don’t know why you’re here. Let’s make it seem even more tense and oblivious for you. I didn’t appreciate it.
There were long columns that probably would have held the Moon if they didn’t already support the wide, high ceiling. The columns had elaborate yet delicate carved creatures, and each column seemed to have something different, some even I didn’t know. They seemed to be creating their own paths, perhaps carved themselves, instead of have been carved by their artists. I stopped and put my hand on one of the columns. It was the picture of something that looked like a wolf with the wings and talons of a bird. It was very...I don’t know...powerful looking. I didn’t know lines could tell me those kinds of things, especially if I had never seen it before. I have a feeling...a strange one, something I’ve never felt before. It’s not like I’ve seen it before, but I was supposed to see it. It’s the only easy way I can explain it without blabbering on and on about something very unrelated and random.
I felt the symbol, the curve and depth of the line and everything about it. It seemed to tell me, do not lie, or we will know. Who were we?
Suddenly, I felt a warm hand grip my shoulder. I turned my head and saw Sky. He drew me away slowly; we then continued walking for the longest minute of my life. Maybe the length was just for the effect of making people edgier the whole way there. Wherever ‘there’ is.
We’ve finally reached the end, where there was a simple white door. It wasn’t big or fancy or didn’t even have a business look to it. It wasn’t even plain, it was just...blank...but not in the reassuring way that there was nothing there. It seemed there could be two ways to look at it: there was something hidden beyond that door, and there was something beyond that door that you didn’t want to meet. Sky held the door open for me, gentlemanly, and I walked into the room.
The room was not unlike the rest of the interior, except it had some furnishings: a not-so-comfy-looking white couch, a large painting of something I was unable to depict, a colorless desk and rolling chair. The chair was faced toward the painting, which was behind the desk and chair, and, when we entered, the chair spun around. There was a man in the chair.
His face was thoroughly lined with age and, perhaps, scars. He wore a suit that seemed to be made for him, the black and white colors complimenting his strangely dark eyes. I couldn’t tell what color they really were, but my best guess would be black or gray.
“Hello, Topaz. I presume you are wondering why I have brought you here. Well, you are a peculiar...guest. We don’t have many dark-winged people come to Aryll, besides the Phthorians. You are not...affiliated with them, are you?” The question was told with curiosity, but a liar didn’t have to tell that he highly suspected me.
“No. I’ve never even seen them before.” That may not be true. If that dream I had had, if the tall dark man with shadowy wings was a Phthorian, then I would be lying by not seeing one before. But I wasn’t sure; for all I know, that was just a random dream, with nothing to do with any of this. However, I had my doubts.
He nodded, looking down at his desk, folding his hands over his stomach. Of course he didn’t believe me. I wouldn’t have believed me, either.
He opened up a drawer and seemed to press a button or something of the sort, and said, “Pyrros, please come down to my office.” I exchanged a puzzled look to Sky, but he didn’t say anything. Who was Pyrros?
A few seconds later, the door opened, followed with a blast of heat.
It was Flame Guy that entered the door. Apparently, his real name was Pyrros, and I assume the name has something to do with fire.
He glanced at Sky and I for about a millisecond before returning his gaze to the man in the white suit. He then elaborately bowed, saying, “King Salvadore.” Well, finally I know his name. I hadn’t realized he was an actually king, just maybe the...head officer, or something. He certainly isn’t dressed like I thought a king would have dressed.
He swept his hand toward me, a gesture directed to Pyrros, “Please accompany Topaz and Skychaser with their tour and make sure you show her everything she needs to see.” Pyrros nodded obediently, turned, and started herding us out. Before I left the room, I caught one last look at King Salvadore, watching me, seeming to note my every move.