"Goodbye, Jupiter, you gave me nothing and yet everything."
For the first time in a long while, Arvella's thoughts were silent. She let her wandering mind drift off into the fiery world that she was now departing, letting the soothing sounds of her ship's engines lull her into a meditative state. She had taken a place on a window's ledge, unsure of what had drawn her to look out on this planet of death to begin with. Perhaps it was her way of saying her last goodbyes to a future that never stood a chance.
She should have known that her relationship with Balem was doomed from the start. From the moment her destiny had become intertwined with the Abrasaxes on that fateful day so many decades ago, she should have run. They had caused her nothing but heartache, but not now.
She supposed now would have been a good time to be sorrowful, to waste more salty tears on the man that refused to let go. She should have been screaming and torn apart, but the only thing she felt now was peace. She finally understood what Balem loved, knew what held his heart for so long. Power, glory, praise. In his world there was no place for Arvella Silaverius, and she was finally at peace with that.
She sighed heavily as her eyes rested on the high structures that graced the planet's skyline, watching as they passed countless amounts of them. Soon Jupiter and all of its dark secrets would be behind them, Arvella would finally be back home where she truly belonged.
Her eyes left the structures only to look at herself reflected into the window, having barely recognized herself after all she had been through. The only thing she could see was how tired she had looked, and as her gaze moved down she had recalled she still wore the bulky silver collar.
She moved her hands up to remove it, undoing the latches in the back with soft clicks. She exhaled as she removed it, wincing as the marks on her neck were agitated once more. It would be awhile until the bruising vanished, it was a wonder there wasn't any permanent damage from his attack.
She dropped the heavy choker to the floor with an audible 'clunk', rubbing her neck once more. Her mind drifted to what Titus had told her about Seraphi's death, how her neck held similar markings. However, Titus was one she knew lied often, he was probably just trying to pry her away from Balem. Well, Balem had already done that himself.
A knock coming from the other side of the room roused her from her thoughts, turning her head to see her brother, Batair.
"Everything alright in here?" He asked calmly, stepping out from around the doorframe.
Arvella could tell he was clearly concerned, his amber eyes filled with sorrow as his gaze fell to her exposed injured neck. She could see a bit of anger sparking behind his golden state, but he didn't allow his face to express it.
"You made the right choice," he finally spoke, striding over so he was standing next to her, gazing out the window.
Arvella remained silent, looking down at her hand which still wore Seraphi's sapphire ring. She knew she should have tossed it out of a window, should have shoved it back into Balem's hand when she had the chance. But when she looked deep into the starry jewel, she could see the vast expanses of the universe calling to her, becoming her, she couldn't let that go.
"Balem made his choice," she answered quietly, closing her ringed hand in a fist, "this planet was all he ever wanted."
What left her lips should have made her break down in tears, should have made her crumple herself into her brother's arms for comfort. Perhaps at one time it had, but now she knew her words were the truth. She had given Balem far too many chances than he deserved.
She looked back up to Batair, who offered her a sad smile in return, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"Well, mother and father will be more than happy to see that you are safe," he assured her calmly, "in fact they-"
His words were cut short as he stared out the window, his face scrunching to one of confusion. Arvella furrowed her brows, turning her head to the window to see what had caught her brothers attention so quickly. She wasn't prepared for the scene that was playing out before her.
She watched as a small ship seemed fall from the eye of the storm, crashing through the gravity field in a trail of fire and smoke. It wasted no time plowing through the large arches that supplied power to the facility, the structures bursting into flame upon coming in contact with the poisonous atmosphere. The explosions reflected in her amethyst eyes, staring in disbelief of what was happening.
She whipped around as she heard Batair curse under his breath, his eyes filled with fear as the explosions seem to worsen by the second.
"We need to get off this damn planet now," Batair growled, whipping around towards the door, "no doubt that the grab-hull is collapsing, everything will be destroyed in a matter of minutes."
Arvella turned her head back to the window, her mouth agape as she was lost for words. In a matter of seconds things had turned for the worse, this refinery that seemed indestructible and strong was now collapsing under the weight of the storm above them.
Her eyes fleeted across the structure to where Balem's throne room rested and a sickening feeling filled her gut.
"He's still there," she breathed, her voice shaking in fear.
Batair stopped in his tracks upon hearing her, twisting his body to look at his sister.
"I'm sure he has enough sense to evacuate this grave situation before anything happens to him," he snapped realistically, seemingly in disbelief at his sister's words.
Arvella knew that his words held some truth. Judging by the amount of ships now taking off, everybody who had any sort of survival instinct was abandoning this doomed city. She knew if Balem had the same sense, if he had been the Balem she had first met, he would have been on one of the ships. But the Balem that now rules alone in his empty throne room, the Balem that had almost ended her life, would never leave.
"He won't leave this place," Arvella bowed her head sadly, shaking it from side to side, "this is his legacy, his future. He will die here."
"Then maybe that's for the better," Batair spat, no longer reigning his temper, "just look what he did to you, Arvella, he's a monster!"
Arvella narrowed her eyes, looking up to him with a cold glare. Slowly, she stood up, inhaling sharply as she strode past him, fists clenched as she tried to compose herself.
"That may be so," she exhaled calmly, closing her eyes, preparing for what she was about to say, "but you're no better than him, indulging in immortality when you know how many lives went into making you last a little longer."
She stared at Batair, her eyes glistening confidently as she watched his expression shrink from rage to regret. After she had told her family the dark secrets of Abrasax they still continued to gorge themselves with it without a care.
"Whether you like it or not, you're a monster for supporting this practice. You're no better than Balem, and you're no better than me."
Batair Bowes his head in shame, like a defeated dog with his tail between his legs. Arvella would admit that she used to be no better than her family, no better than the Abrasaxes. Perhaps the old saying was true, ignorance is bliss.
"So if I can save one damn person off of this bloody planet, then I'm going to try. Monster or not, peasant or king, we're all the same. Balem is still down there, and I'm going back for him."
Batair finally met Arvella's gaze once more, his expression softening to one of understanding. He held his stare for a moment longer, and broke it when he closed his eyes in an exasperated sigh.
"Fine, but when I say we have to leave, we're leaving. I won't let you perish in this terrible place."
The corners of Arvella's mouth lifted into a slight smile, nodding her head in agreement. Perhaps this was entirely stupid of her to propose, but something inside of her was screaming to save him.
She rushed to the control room to the surprise of the small crew who piloted the ship, leaning onto a small panel as she typed in some commands.
"I need all the bio-scanners on to detect life-forms still in this area," she ordered as they approached where Balem was last seen.
The crew nodded in confusion as they began to scan the area, already having received the riders from Batair to head back, even if they didn't like the idea.
The area around them was crumbling fast, smoke and flames erupted from every point of their view. Arvella held her breath, knowing the chances of Balem actually having survived this destruction was extremely slim. She jolted when a familiar and welcomed ping filled the air and Arcella quickly pivoted to where the signal was coming from. Using her fingers on the holo screen she zoomed into a small blinking form, noticing it fading in and out rather quickly.
"10 degrees northeast, and quickly!" She barked, the pilots responding quickly and making the necessary adjustments.
"Arvella we have to leave soon!" Batair barked, "the grav-hull will only hold for a few more minutes!"
Arvell bit her lip nervously, looking out the window as she scanned the crumbling structures, the metal frames that held this city together melting u see the intense heat. She was about to give up hope, about to come to terms with Balem's sealed fate, but that was until she saw a form sliding quickly from a collapsing metal balcony.
Balem.
"There!" She shouted suddenly, pointing as his body began to fall freely.
Before her mind could even realize what her body was doing, Arvella had shoved one of the pilots away, shoving her hands into the blue controls of the ship. It was only a matter of seconds before Balem would fall to his death, would be buried with his legacy forever on this stormy planet, there was no time to think.
Her hand stretched over as she flicked a glowing switch, listening to the hiss of the emergency roof hatch open in the room behind them. She ignore the shouts and protests of the other in the room, ignored the anger and fear that left her brother's throat. The only thing she heard was her focused breathing as it slowed down, her eyes fixated on his falling form ahead.
In one swift motion, she ducked the ship down quickly beneath him, and everything seemed to stop when she heard a loud thud from behind them in the room.
Time seemed to slow down from that moment on. Arvella didn't remember flying up from her seat as a panicked pilot took back over his seat, she didn't remember shoving past her brother as he screamed for them to leave the planet now. The doors hissed open upon her approach, but she wasn't ready for what lied on the other side.
She collapsed onto her knees next to his still body, staring at him for the longest time. She was trying to look for any sign of life still within him, waiting for a ride and fall in his chest.
But it never came.
She moved his body so he was propped onto her lap, hoping that maybe this change in position would suddenly bring him to life, anything was better than this broken man that she was trying so hard to hold together.
Her trembling hand reached out to his fragile, shattered face. Her fingers brushed against the damaged skin, tracing the lines of his jagged cheekbone. A shaky gasp escaped her throat as she gently laid her palm against his freckled cheek, shivering at the frigidness she was met with. Tears swelled in her amethyst eyes as she dared to look at him, dared to look at his still form, closed eyes that would see no more.
"What has happened to you, my starlight?" She choked, rubbing her thumb over the blood and ash that had trespassed onto his flawless skin.
Finally, the barrier broke as her eyes shut tightly, a horrible sound retching from her throat as she cried, screamed, released the pain she had held for so long. He was gone, he had left her, he had broken his promise. She wept into her free hand, held her own shattering face as she cried, cried for the first time in a long time. She was gone, she had left him, she had broken her promise.
After a few moments, she brought herself to open her eyes, to look upon him once more, hoping to see him smiling at her, his smokey eyes so full of life, so full of ambition. Her hand still cupped his cheek, his frozen face. She ran her hand through his hair, running her fingers through his untamed strands, brushing them away from his lifeless features.
The tears ran freely down her cheeks, sobbing as she froze, her fingers idly running through his hair. She remembered when he would let her touch him, let her fingers playfully dance across his skin, memorizing every secret his body held, memorizing every single strand of dark hair. Now, those secrets had vanished, he was now so unfamiliar to her touch. He was gone.
She looked away from him, gazed up through the skylight of stars passing by, of planets spinning endlessly through vast amounts of space and time. She had yet to see what most of those unknown worlds possessed, and now she had no desire to, not without him.
"You promised me, Balem," she whispered, voice trembling, "don't you remember? You promised."
Her gaze was unbroken as she watched the sky pass overhead, she found herself lost as she had many times before. She was a dreamer, a lost soul, a star-crossed hopeless girl with no path, as she had been told many times before. In her sorrow, she found a glint of happiness, a hint of humor as she thought about the first time she had met him. It had been anything but joyous at the time, but now it was all she could find to keep her heart beating.
She didn't hear the hissing doors behind her as Batair entered the room as she relished in her past memories. She didn't want to forget everything they had been through, she wasn't ready to let him go. She lowered her head and buried it into Balem's lifeless form, sobbing uncontrollably into his torn and bloodied silks.
"Arvella," Batair sighed in a hushed voice, looking sadly upon the two of them, "I'm sorry."
Arvella only continued to weep, her brother's words bringing her no comfort. Everything seemed so futile now, she had tried to save his life, but even then she was unsuccessful. She had miscalculated the impact from the landing, she had hoped that she was close enough to negate the impacts, that there was a small chance that he could survive it. But now as she studied his broken body, the blood and bruises that caked his once perfect form, it was too much for him to take.
Slowly, she brought her head away from him, gazing upon his face once more. For the first time in centuries, he was at peace.
Tears rolled down her cheeks as she began to gently lay him down, her sobs softening ever so slightly. He was no longer suffering, no longer struggling with the pain of his past. Balem Abrasax was-
Breathing.
At first Arvella thought it was a cruel trick of her eyes, that the movement in his chest was just caused by a nearby vent blowing air. It was a shallow movement, barely noticeable unless one were looking for a pattern.
Batair must have noticed this too and quickly knelt on the other side of Balem, placing two fingers just u set his jaw as he felt for a pulse.
"I need a medic!" He shouted suddenly, confirming Arvella's own disbelief.
"He's alive…" Arvella exhaled, staring down at her former love's face in awe.
"Barely," Batair reminded her as he stood, moving out of the way when a couple of crew members flooded the room wearing white.
Arvella moved out of the way to allow them to assess him quickly, and with a few motions they had equipped him with levitating devices, and she watched as he was floated out of the room to the small infirmary.
She stood there in disbelief as the adrenaline pumping through her veins began to disappear, replaced with a sense of calm. She looked to Batair, who looked equally surprised as he ran a hand through his disheveled blond hair.
"Well, you did it," he half-laughed, looking out of the window as they left the stormy planet behind them.
Arvella's gaze fell to where his lay, at the planet Jupiter with its swirling surface. Beneath it died a legacy, buried secrets that would hopefully remain there. The planet had reclaimed itself, had healed the wound that Seraphi Abrasax had made, that Balem had kept open for so long. Arcella had a notion this was the doing of a certain recurrence, no, a Jupiter Jones. She watched as a ship sailed towards the west, and Arvella had a good feeling about who was aboard it. A smile graced her lips as it disappeared into the horizon, carrying a family back to its home, a safe one. With the title to Earth now in Jupiter's hands, it was safe from Balem and his siblings. Perhaps one day she would even be able to thank her in person.
Somewhere Arvella knew that Seraphi Abrasax was smiling, watching as her work was finally put to an end. It would be one last regret that the Abrasax matriarch would have to carry with her. Now, it was time to heal the other regret she had tried so hard to fix herself; Balem.