14 Unification Part 1

On the first day of their nineteenth years, Rosalind, Feng Mian, and Noe hatch a plan to break out of Ziraeth. Tiny crickets and firefly-like creatures flicker and coo within their woody homes. One by one, the three students crack their eyes open. Observing the peaceful meditation expression on Fadziso's face, the seconds tick by in their minds. If they miss this chance, they do not know if their crippling longing can grant them any more passes for another opportune moment to arise.

"We have to get out of here," Rosalind states. A flicker of instability flashes across her eyebrows. She winces, "Wait... I'm losing control of our cognitions."

"I'll take over," Noe pulls the weight of all their spiritual energy onto himself.

"I counted the seconds during each of our meditation periods. They last exactly forty-five minutes. We now have a total of eighteen minutes left until this one ends and every Ephrene in Ziraeth awakes from meditation," Feng Mian tells them.

Rosalind continues, "Our biggest problem will be outrunning Fadziso. Feng Mian, can you put her to sleep using your emotional manipulation power?"

"It's not 'manipulation' but I can try."

"You'll do it. From there, we just have to reach the sky so I can provide cloud cover and make sure we aren't detected."

"What about actually getting out of the Fields of Ziraeth. We're in another realm," Noe interjects.

"If you guys could come up with your own ideas too, maybe we would have left already?! Why do I always have to start everything? Don't you two have brains in all that 'Ephrene magni-'"

"Calm down," Feng Mian comforts her. "You're okay."

"I know a library we can go to," Noe voyces as he scratches his neck. "There's a book I saw that has everything about anything in Ziraeth."

"Twelve minutes left."

"Great," Rosalind agrees. "You'll take us to that library. Let's go."

Churning as much REM vibration into her hands as she can, a wave of drowsiness assaults Rosalind and Noe. Feng Mian cautiously raises her palms in Fadziso's direction but hesitates.

"What are you doing?! Get to it!" Rosalind barks.

"Is this the right thing to do? A lot of things could go wrong if we leave. Won't Sister Fadziso get in trouble?"

"Stop being a COWARD and just tranquilise her already!" Rosalind breaks her seating position and grabs Feng Mian's arms, squeezing them tightly. Havng caged her, the enraged beast glares into Feng Mian's eyes, "Do it."

"What is all this blabber I hear about escaping Ziraeth?" Fadziso quizzes out loud, connecting her gaze with all of theirs. She stands and begins to stretch out her limbs, as if preparing to fight a boxing match. "I could hear everything you were voicing from the first word. Remember, teachers open the door but you enter by yourse-"

"DO IT!" Rosalind screams and jostles the serenity of the forest.

Frightened by her outcry, Feng Mian shoots a billow of pure blue energy, that glitters with a tangible thickness, into Fadziso's body. For a moment, the light glows in her veins. A milky scent wafts into the atmosphere before Fadziso's body collides onto the ground, completely knocked out.

In protest, a chorus of woodland insects chirps.

"How much time do we have left?" Rosalind asks.

"I don't know; I stopped counting."

Noe and Feng Mian immediately take their feet and the three jet into the clouds. Only Feng Mian glances down in concern at Fadziso's snoring figure. The thought that no harm can come to an Ephrene in the Fields of Ziraeth drifts in. Resuming her composure, she tightly claps her hands together.

Breaking through the cloud line, Rosalind stops their ascent. Blue sky engulfs their black-robed bodies while they comfortably stand on a vast bed of clouds. They can view the landscape below them but lie comfortably hidden within the cool cotton strands. Only Noe has adequate control over his spiritual energy to be able to hold invisibility. Cloud coverage provides a useful instrument.

"Head west," Noe directs them in the opposite direction of the sun. The cloud they reside on flings them forward. Chomping the sky, the library's cliffside soon comes into view.

"I only need two minutes," he says.

"We probably only have two minutes!"

Suddenly, Rosalind breaks off a cylinder of cloud from the rest and sends Noe plummeting into the library. He catches himself mid-fall and swiftly collects the book 'Comprehensive History of Ziraeth and Xeron by Angel Adelaide'. As the man who brought him to Ziraeth, in his book, Adelaide would surely have written means of getting in and out of the realm. Noe turns to the section, 'Travel and Tourism'.

On the page, it is written:

Dear Brother Noeremous, I see you have taken the initiative to leave the Fields of Ziraeth a little sooner than expected. I know you do not believe your journey going forward shall be easy. However, the Omniscient respects your free will. In order to travel realms, you must travel to the Silver Lake and unify with a Guardian of the Fields. In the History of Ziraeth, there has been no other way to access this sacred realm.

The Silver Lake? Guardian of the Fields? Noe searches the colossal index but finds no indication of either of those phrases. Out of time, he quickly collects 'A Guide to Ziraethean Myths and Legends', and opens a pocket in space to store it in, before reconvening with his friends on the cloud.

"Did you find anything?"

"The Silver Lake. The Silver Lake. The Silver Lake." Noe turns around, searching the land.

Rosalind and Feng Mian assist in his endeavour and scan the ground beneath them.

Finally, Noe spots a waterfall with sheets of flowing silver cascading into its pool. "There!" he points towards it.

"Why would they call it a 'Lake', then?! These people... beings... whatever!" Rosalind groans as she sends them full speed ahead.

Arriving above the waterfall, Noe quotes, "We have to unify with a Guardian of the Fields." The three demount the cloud and float towards the waterfall.

BOOM!

Suddenly, their flight path is broken. Like a chimaera, a streak of violent flames bulldozes through, smacking them away from each other.

Noe, Feng Mian, and Rosalind form a wide circle around the raging fire only to discover that an armoured dragon has shot out from beneath the waterfall. Its surly body forms a ginormous painted wave of orange-red whose embers heat the blue sky.

The dragon bellows, a rumble the reverberates through all of their skulls.

BOOM!

Again, an indomitable wave of power strikes out from its body as if the dragon is a scientist protecting their research.

"The Guardian of the Fields at the Silver Lake!" Noe exclaims in excitement. He has completed Adelaide's first task. Only one more thing to do until he and Mr. Henderson meet again!

Noe's exclamation enchants its attention. Like a moth drawn to a flame, the dragon's disposition turns to one of awe. Its ravenous waves ease to gentle caresses as its enormous, armoured head faces Noe.

Green eyes meet black as the dragon almost recognises him. Subconsciously, the two flow together like spices in Vivian's favourite curry dish; at the time, Noe did not know it, but, that was his favourite of his mom's recipes.

"Be careful," Feng Mian cautions when she sees the two are about to converge.

Noe reaches for the sides of the burning dragon's head. When their skin meets, the world around them disappears. It is as if they alone are in a vortex, in the heart of blazing flames that lick, play, and kick at them.

At that moment, Noe and the dragon's foreheads gently graze each other.

For the first time, Noe feels he has arrived home with someone who understands him.

In this real-life fantasy, Noe knows he has found a friend, a confidant. They are no longer dragon and Ephrene, but Rubin and Noe, eternal companions. They have unified.

--

The Silver Lake:

A waterfall whose waters of silver run across the entirety of the Fields of Ziraeth.

Guardians of the Field of Ziraeth:

Armoured dragons that protect the Fields of Ziraeth and all its inhabitants.