Rochelle

Colours are all I see.

Vivid hues of violet and magenta one second, and then lilac and turquoise the next. Like the palate of an artist who just can't make up his mind, different shades of this and that colour whirl through my mind, and for a moment it annoys me because they're so beautiful yet they disappear so quickly. But the images are breathtaking, all the same.

I feel a strong sensation of falling, high up from somewhere, and suddenly I feel a pang of sadness; did Ethan or Marduke throw me off the cliff? Is this why I feel so weightless, about to fall onto the valley ground? But no, that couldn't be it. There are no such skies this beautifully-coloured in Angel Falls. No, I must be dead. Is this how dying feels? I died of honour, didn't I? I died for the one I love. Isn't there some sort of better ending I'm supposed to receive?

My stomach churns in slight nausea from the fall, my mind getting dizzier by the moment. I reach out with my hands to feel the air passing me by, to maybe grab hold on to something that might stop this fall, but they flail in nothingness. I try to scream out, for someone, anyone to hear me but I know it is all in vain. I am alone. As alone as I have ever been, without the trust and care of anyone except for the one I love, the one person who ever trusted my words and actions. The one person I just left behind, the one person I died for.

I lose all sense of time. It could be seconds, hours, months for all I care, but for now, falling seems to be my only way of passing time. How long has it been since I last saw Ethan's face? His piercing eyes, and his caring, hidden glances. What I'd give to have him with me right now!

And that kiss. It was all I ever dreamed of. It was the one thing I yearned, the one thing I ever longed for, because before it I had thought it impossible. To know Ethan felt the same way about me ever since we first laid eyes on each other was far better a gift than anything I had ever gotten. After those sleepless nights of guilt and hating myself for rejecting Ethan for Matt, after the Tribunal and the Guards' mistrust in me, everyone's hatred that I felt so strongly, after all that, and he still came for me, and kissed me like it was nothing I should care about.

But it's gone now, and all I'm left with is memories, falling, and falling again, and then falling some more, through time and space in this coloured abyss, for what seems like forever.

And suddenly, it stops.

I open my eyes slowly and realise I'm lying down flat on my front. My nausea and dizzyness is surprisingly gone, replaced by a calm and soothing feeling of being somewhere I belong, of being at home. My hair is splayed all around me, and the ground beneath me feels like soft grass, but that's not what strikes me first of all. What strikes me the most is the scent of this place. This scent is like no other I've ever encountered, not even in my life of mixing herbs and potions. It is a sweet and soft smell, one that I cannot describe in words, because such flowers and herbs probably do not exist in Angel Falls, or in Lathenia's dark underworld. No. This scent could only be of this world. To put it in the vaguest form, I taste in the air some hint of lavender and green apple and mint and honeydew. It makes me feel even more safe and at home.

I sit myself up and take in my surroundings. I'm dressed in a sleeveless white cotton chemise down to my calves, and it whips lightly in the gentle breeze. I'm surrounded by dense foliage of millions of brightly coloured flowers, and beyond these are mountains and valleys, stretching for miles and miles away. Down the summit I spot a stream in between the valley, through which crystal blue water is running through. I look upwards, and in the sky I see an odd scene, but nonetheless brilliant. To the west is a dark, glowing sun in an indigo colour, and to the east is another slightly brighter sun in a light shade of blue, indicating the moment of twilight. Two suns.

The sky portrays a haphazard of colours, and now I understand the images going through my mind during my fall. Mixtures of every colour possible are spread across the horizon, like an abstract painting on the Canvas of Heavens. It is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen.

Someone clears his throat behind me. I turn around and see a stout man about a foot shorter than me, wearing an oversized beige-coloured linen robe, with his long brown hair around his face.

"Hello," he says.

This is a seemingly startling gesture because I don't know him and neither does he know me. Surprisingly though, I feel no fear or sense of insecurity. "Hello. Who are you?" I ask.

"I'm Janah."

"Where am I?"

"We're in the realm of the outer universe. If you can recall, your soul left the world just moments ago when you were stabbed by Marduke's arrow. One of your friends has come here before you. You know him very well."

And suddenly I understand where I am. I'm at the same place Matt went for his training with his father, Dartemis. I am at the land of free souls, forever to roam in this peaceful landscape. This thought quietens me for awhile, until Janah speaks again.

"I don't believe you've heard of me from Lord Mathew?"

I don't recall Matt mentioning anything about Janah. "No, Matt has never mentioned you. But he did make a note of the special treatment he got when he was here," I reply with a smile.

He returns my gesture with an even broader smile, apparently proud that someone has finally acknowledged his services. "What do you think of our lands?" he asks, looking around us.

"I think it's a magnificent place. And you have two suns!" I exclaim in amazement.

"That's exactly what the Lord said!" he says, laughing heartily. "Come," he beckons me with an extended arm, "We have much to see and do. And Dartemis can't wait to see you, he seems very pleased about your arrival."

I walk beside him, and before I know it, he sends us both flying in the air, and this time I am completely in control of my flight as if it's the most natural thing to do. We glide on past forests and more fields, the air sweeping across my face. I close my eyes, giving in to the breeze, and allow Janah's gentle hands to guide me through through the journey to Dartemis' palace.