Chapter 8: My Fair Maiden

Behind the broken trees of the forest. There was a silence as the two stared at each other, not uttering a single word.

The wind had become still and the leaves of the broken trees fell quietly unto the ground enveloped by the shining light of the sun. It would have looked beautiful if not for how nastily the trees had been broken apart and pilled among themselves in disarray.

Reina couldn't shake of them the uneasiness she felt from Solomon; she couldn't imagine what at all was running through his mind.

"Follow me," he said. Turning and walking away. "Wait!" Reina yelled, but he wouldn't stop. Thus she had no other choice but to follow.

They walked together through the broken forest; climbing the roots of the trees and climbing the layers of earth that were higher than others.

"You're a good climber," Solomon said with a smirk on his face, as he offered his hand to pull he up at the top of the mountain. Reina looked away sharply as she swatted away his hand like it was molded filth, pulling herself up to the mountain's flat top where she found what could have been the most beautiful sight in all creation; but instead, it was visible.

A wide vertical line that had destroyed the forest and split in half. Trees barely dangling among the edge by it's large roots, others falling deep into the dark depths of the of opening that Solomon drew upon the Earth.

But that wasn't all that was there.

The giant portrait of a woman's face and hair made entirely of large layers of wood entwined among each other growing from all the roots in the forest her palm raised before her breast, her face bent down as she was split from her other half, like the forest, but still left standing staring down at them as it stretched high into the the sky.

"Reina. I retract my statement. I will explain to you all that you all that has happened and all that you would wish to know."

She didn't reply. She turned away from Solomon and stared at the split wooden woman; furrowing her brows.

With a yelp, she felt her body become light; trying to maintain her balance as her body began to leave the ground. She turned to the side as she floated along with Solomn, who was able to maintain his composure.

"Another one of his abilities?" Reina asked herself as they began ascending to the top of the wooden woman. It wasn't that fast, but it was still more than normal speed. The shuffling sounds of the roots were audible, and as she began to get used to the floating, she regained her balance.

It was at that moment she took note of the slight rumbling sound of the earth.

They had reached the top of the woman's head, layers of thick, broad branches tightly woven beneath their feet, but none of them bore any leaves.

Suddenly, there was a loud roar, much louder than that of the titans and a mighty raging wind at its wake.

Reina bent down quickly, pressing her hands tightly against her ears, keeping her eyes tightly shut.

After the wind had relapsed, she cautiously took her hands off her ears.

"Where are w-"

"Be patient. It'll be here soon."

Annoyed, she rose from the ground and remained silent as they waited. Throughout the time that they stood there, Solomon didn't move nor utter a word, though the wait was not long.

The clouds opened and made way for what first appeared to be a large piece of floating earth like that of a giant meteor that could greatly destroy a city, torn out of the ground; but how greatly was it not; that was merely what was carrying it.

After its exposure from behind the clouds, it emitted its own light; shining, lustrous, and golden, making everything around it appear dim. A grand castle, far too big and far too grand, the most beautiful my eyes have ever witnessed. Covered with layers of precious jewels like gold, jasper, sapphire, and many others, both known and unknown. There is so much beauty so much that it cannot be defined.

In awe, Reina's eyes were stuck; but there was something off. From the grounds of the castle, before the gate, it was covered with large golden chains wrapped against each other, dangling in its lustrous radiance. 

At first sight, it was like she was in a dream. She couldn't believe her eyes. She breathed out of her mouth, and it felt like she was being pulled along by its beauty.

Solomon's sword drew out of its scabbard and came floating before Reina. A silver sword, with a long hilt with an exquisite design of a blue crystal that flowed like water, making the cross-guard, spiralling into the grip, then emerging like a blossoming flower at the pommel bringing forth a lustrous blue crystal.

She turned to him.

"Hold the sword," Solomon said.

For a moment, she hesitated; but then she slowly began wrapping her fingers around the grip, clasping it firmly in her palm; and within a second, her body was frozen.

She could feel the last thump of her heart, veins, and arteries as well as all the organs within her body suddenly coming to a halt, like frozen time; but there was something else inside her heart.

It shone brightly, and it felt light and easy to weave, calm and queit. It was beautiful, and before she knew she had returned.

Reina fell to the ground, clenching her hand against her chest as she gasped for air.

The sword had flown back into Solomon's scabbard as he walked up a flight of white stairs enclosed in a path within a beautiful garden.

When Reina regained her breathe she took after him. She glanced outside towards the garden for a moment, and above it, she saw that the sky had become completely taken over.

A great blue serpent like body spiralled on top of each other, covered with sharp scales with a flaming radiance coming from its ends. Blocking out all light from the sun and leaving the environment in a bluish colour; white glimmers flying around everywhere from the body of the serpent and a bright blue smoke filling up the air.

She tore her eyes away from it, coming up to Solomon, who was opening a shut golden door. Slowing down, they walked in together.

Reina stared at the scenery, the same scenery Miya had seen. The wide circular room embedded with white pillars arranged diagonally with golden tiles and a giant tree at the centre of it all.

She was trying her best to keep up with Solomon's quick pace while engraving all that she could into her memory. The emblems on the walls and pillars, the paintings at the ends of the room, the slight layout she could make of the white floors above, the waters above the the great tree that gave a reflection of houses on green grass.

She had followed Solomon round the tree when she saw a splotch of black on the floor, a purple flame burning on it. Looking up, she saw multiples of the same thing.

On the pillars, on the walls, even on the ceiling, dripping down with its flames. Broken pieces of golden tiles scattered about the floor.

As they had about reached the second half of the room. There was a black figure obstructed from her sight by the wide stem of the tree. 

Ignoring the trembling in her legs, she kept moving until she had seen what the figure truly was.

A giant beast made of pure black. Hands and faces squeezed tightly together, growing from every part of its body, the eyes and mouth of each face emitting a purple light with smoke of the same colour, revealing their black decayed and grotesque features. 

As the faces ascended, numerous black horns grew from them, elongating their fingers and faces as they took shape to form the horns and head of a beast with no eyes, just the same purple colour and smoke. Its black razor teeth, tightly clenched.

Before it, the head of a gaint blue dragon, emerging through the top corner of the room. Shimmers of white sparks and smoke emit from it in spirals, as it snarled at the beast.

It's rage and contempt visible through its white eyes that coul put torches to shame with its brightness.

Solomon walked towards the beast, completely unphased about all that was happening. Reina stood hesitant and watched.

He took a step into the purple flames, and they began to estinguish. He kept walking forward, his head facing the ground.

Reina crept behind him, imitating whatever he did. 

At a point, Solomon stopped moving. A brown book with its vertices plated gold beneath it a black leather cloth partly hidden by the black liquid and in front of the 2 items a hand, roughly ripped apart from the the base of the wrist.

Reina took one look at it, and her stomach stirred. She held onto Solomon's cloak as she bent down, almost collapsing; using her hand to block her mouth as she fought to hold back her vomit, squeezing her eyes tightly shut.

She took her palm of her mouth as she slowly opened her fear filled, trembling eyes filled with grief and despair.

Tightening her grip on Solomon's cloak, she looked up to him, panting heavily, some of the vomit and saliva still drawing from the corners of her mouth.

"Please, Miya...where is he?"

Solomon turned back at her. His eyes, cold and emotionless.

"Over there," he said, nodding his head towards the direction of the blue dragon before going back to facing the items on the floor.

She let go of his cloak and wiped her mouth. Solomon's blank eyes were already enough to wipe away her courage, but she clenched her palm and walked on her own towards the dragon without looking back.

Frost coming out from her mouth, her hand knotted into a tight fist, while the other clenched against the cloth on her chest.

She moved slowly, step by step, ignoring the sounds each face on the beast's body whispered, whisperes of words of hatred that echoed across the fumes of purple smoke it emitted

Fear filled her heart, but still she kept moving, whispering beneath her breath; I assume, a prayer, forcing her reddened eyes to stay open.

The many eyes and mouths on the horns of the beast poured out more of the black liquid continuously, though not doing so before; The dragon snarled as Reina walked beneath the horns, allowing herself to get soaked in its fluid.

Her lips trembled.

"He's alive, he's alive, he's alive, he's alive, he's alive, he's alive, he's alive."

She kept her head down, but at the sound of the white sparks falling to the ground, she raised her head, her jaw and eyes trembling; her breathing heavy and hard with large amounts of frost of pouring out.

"He's alive, he's alive..."

She slowly turned her head away from the shimmers of white sparks and looked beneath the head of the beast.

Miya was seated there on the on the ground practically naked, save for the remaining of his shorts that covered his crotch; playing with the beastily fluid that covered the whole floor.

"Miya..." A large smile on her face, a breath of relief, tears of joy flowing from her eyes, the trembling of her body coming to a halt . She thought her heart had made its final beat.

"Thank God."

Miya looked at her, his face blank as usual, but his eyes seemed a little more...bright. 

They stared at each other for a while before Miya spoke. "Hey Reina, look up." He said in a light voice.

"Hm? What's ther-" Reina stood frozen, her eyes fixed and her head inclined.

It stuck out of the beast's mouth, which stretched as far as the second floor. The light from the tree making it all the more visible.

Miya's body from the chest upward stagnantly raised, his left arm from beneath his shoulder, torn and ripped of its flesh a broken bone sticking out.

Drips of blood on the beast's tooth. Bloodstains on Miya's shirt where he was protruded; plae eyes that reflected no light, like that of a dead man. Blood dripping down his chapped. His white hair stuck to the sweat on his face as his head faced downward.

"It's my corpse."