And they screamed, cried, and begged, yet none aided when all would end.

The beasts howled and growled, they went, for the ravages done naught, they bend.

Where dark, black eyes stared distances amend, the spiral of emerald, back they sent.

Sirius opened his eyes to the sound of a creature that must have howled in pain, in calling, in warning. Until he realized it was just the passing of laughter from outside when he came to. He stared at the delicate designs of the ceiling. Autumn colors were not exactly how he pictured his room last he checked. But he wasn’t in his room. The spin of last night’s incident dawned on him.

You lucky bastard.He disliked reminiscing about the pain of the past. Especially the time when he told Caltha he must have fallen for a girl by the name of Fraige. Only to realize Fraige liked him too. It was wondrous and unnerving. A feeling all too new to him at the time as a teenager. But it didn’t work out because Fraige left with her family to resettle in Dryar, the desert waste’s main city.

The scent of witheroses and desert lilies filled the air, something he knew so well. He touched the wound on his shoulder. He was not religious, but Idianale must have taken his side for now. The poison crept fast last night. Bubbling in ways that ate the immunity he built from years of battling against the mud and grime of his occupation, as if to mock his carelessness.

Hey, I’m only human. He didn’t have any special abilities like the damned Flesperian monarchs. Those people had all the power in the world to rule, and yet they were still given mahiqa. Why can’t the less fortunate have that instead? It was amusing, what mahiqa can do, and it was frustrating what it cannot do to serve the struggling.

“I see you’re doing well.”

Sirius switched his attention to the couch across the bed. There was a man with a book peculiarly covering his face to conceal his identity. He should be glad this person was safe after all this time. But he knew that was how his mentor often performed his phantom strides.

Sirius had the slightest smile after seeing a familiar presence. “Didn’t know you still cared. Eleven years, was it?”

Saihme flipped a page of the same book that covered his face. As if the one he read was of more interest than meeting his student. “I figured I had to make sure you’re still in one piece. That was careless for someone who was supposed to know what he was doing last night.”

Sirius looked at the remnants of the wound on his shoulder. His gaze shifted to the window. He didn’t know what time of the day it was, but it felt like a pleasant day. “Nice to see you too.”

Silence was his reply, only disturbed when Saihme turned a page.

There was one thing that boggled Sirius though. A vague vision. Like they were frostbitten signs. He knew he should confide with Saihme. Because he often told Saihme about these images whenever they made him restless. Even as a child years ago. “I had a dream. I saw ice, and three pillars. Then the High King.”

Saihme was about to flip another page but didn’t bother. He leaned forward instead. “What happened?”

“They were looking for someone. There was a woman, she was blonde. Wolves chased people around.” Sirius looked at Saihme. “What do they mean?”

He expected some sort of explanation from Saihme. Something that might tell him the meaning of the dream, the same way he often explained to him as a boy. To his dismay, his question wasn’t answered in a way to clear the fog.

“All I can say for now is that you stay close to the people that matter to you,” Saihme said. “Keep them within range and always watch your surroundings.”

That’s it? That sounded like one of his lectures from training years ago. There was no warning in his voice, just a monotone of gray, dull.

Ah well. He should have expected less of his mentor when it came to dreams. At least he was taught to survive, that’s something.

“Never thought I’d find you here.”

Another voice. A tone Sirius recognized. His gaze shifted to the balcony only to see Castellone standing there casually. He stole a glance at the couch where Saihme was. He was not there. He wasn’t anywhere in the room.

He always knew Saihme had that kind of vanishing trick up his sleeve. As a boy, he was often left when the man went out in search of necessities to take care of him like his own child. But there was no display of fatherly affection. None of that. In this world of envy, greed and desire, there was no need for such things. Only the sharp end of the blade would suffice.

“Not good?” Sirius asked, focusing back on Castellone.

Castellone’s eyes wandered around the room. “Nah, everything’s fine. Dyie was just wondering why you haven’t returned yet. Followed your trail here in case you’re wondering. It’s hard to ignore the reticulation on your tracks.”

Sirius wondered why Genon had not thought about that whenever they wished to find him. He was one of the few who had their gears customized. Now that he thought about it, he always found Castellone with an unusual air around him. Even his bearings and equipment. Like he wasn’t fit to live in the wastes. As if he belonged somewhere else. Somewhere more important than Rastite.

Castellone was silent. Sirius knew him to be that way ever since he became a part of the crew. The family, as Dyie would say. He was the youngest, only because he was the most recent one to enter the Archii’s household.

“Did they need anything?” Sirius broke the silence.

Castellone glanced back outside. “Not really. They just asked me to find you. I don’t have to report anything...unusual.”

“Right. About that. About this,” Sirius tried to relay a message that he knew Castellone would understand.

“Tsk. When have I ever given away your privacy anyway?” Castellone referred to the three of them and that included Blaze and Genon. “I’ll tell Dyie you went whoring. See you back there.”

That didn’t sound right. Sirius saw Castellone took off in a matter of seconds without alarming anyone along the way. That’s just the way he knew him to be.

Now that he was alone, he stood by the threshold of the solarium and stretched his recently healed arm. He often found it odd that a solarium was next to a bedroom. But he realized they added light and aesthetics into this woman’s interior haven, just the way she liked it to be. He smiled. That was so typical of her.

Like the echoes heard from a distant hill, the one person who owned that room entered. Instead of the usual air she often brought, she had a face of mild concern. And disappointment.


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