Ash swept through the halls of his temple searching for and call the dreams of the sleeping Hiereus. One by one they floated to him, taking the shapes of little gold balls of lights that shimmered in the darkness. When he had gathered them all, he began to pull and spin them until they unraveled, becoming thin strings that hung gracefully in the air. Then he started altering them. Ash plucked the ends of the strings and bound them together, weaving a new dream. He spun in terror and his own displeasure and anger. Soon the golden lights dimmed into a stormy grey as they reformed the glowing orbs.
Once he was finished he released each dream back to their sleeping owners. They floated down the hall and into the bedchambers, leaving a chill in their wake. It only took a couple of minutes for the moaning and groaning to start. Soon the halls echoed with the wails of the Hiereus. Ash listened as the low moans become loud cries and sobs as the nightmares dragged them farther into the depths of terror. They could not escape their own minds. Ash smiled, satisfied with his work.
For the High Hiereus Ash conjured a complex and frightening dream. He wanted the man to understand the consequences of his actions.
In the first year, the people were dancing joyfully in the mid-summer festival. A Lynx with golden fir as bright and warm as the sun approached them but they did not fear. They held up bundles of wheat and the Lynx consumed it. From that moment on, the people of the nation receive a plentiful harvest and prospered greatly.
In the second year, the people were once again dancing joyfully in the mid-summer festival. The Sun Lynx approached them, and they offered it their fatten cattle and sheep. The Lynx consumed those as well and left. From that moment on the people received a plentiful harvest and prospered greatly.
In the third year, the people were again dancing joyfully in the mid-summer festival. The Sun Lynx appeared and approached them. This time, in their greed, they offered up a young man with hair as dark as the night skies and eyes that shone with hundreds of stars. This young virtuous man was beloved by the sun and adored by the moon. The Lynx consumed him and instantly the sun went out. The wheat died and refused to yield the yearly harvest. The people cried and wailed in the midst of the everlasting darkness. Hunger consumed them and the people's wails increased. Then a great hush fell over the land, as the last of its inhabitants drew their final breaths.
Ash watched the High Hiereus groan and squirm in his sleep. Tears pooled in his eyes as he felt the fears and hunger pains of the people. His mouth was open in a silent scream that mimicked the dying inhabitants of his dream. The nightmare would eventually end and release him back to the world of the living but until then he would experience helplessness. Ash felt a smile creep onto his lips. Good, the man deserved to experience the same helplessness that Eiji endured for the last 24 hours. Turning his attention away from the High Hiereus he checked on the dreams of the other Hiereuses. For them, the nightmares were simpler though still alarming.
Happy people danced around a fire but one young man stumbled and is trampled by the others. The world became cold, and no fires could be lit. They begged for heat and fire rained down on their heads from the stormy sky. Their screams were cut short as they were smitten from the world like a blight.
Or
A young man stood adorn with fireflies; moonlight guides his feet. His countrymen passed him in groups of three and one pushed him aside, down a deep chasm. He hit the bottom and was killed in an instant. From the depths of the pit, fire erupts traveling upwards until all the land was burnt and dead.
Or
The people held hands together and walk in the light. One person let go of the hand of a young man who stumbled into the darkness and was devoured by shadows. Instantly the light went out. The world became dark and. No matter what the people tried no fires could be lit. Soon every human was encased in ice as their homes became like the cold hard tomb.
The dreams continued in a similar way, each with a young man's life ending equaling the death of all. He wanted them to understand what would happen if Eiji died. He wanted them to see their folly. He wouldn't be truly happy until they fell at Eiji's feet and begged for his forgiveness.
It took about half an hour for the first Hiereus to be released for her nightmare. Ash watched her gasp and tremble as she clung to her blanket. Once the Hiereus realized it was a dream she gave a frightful wail and staggered out into the hall. The sound was echoed in each room as other Hiereuses joined the first one. Soon the halls were full of cries and low voices. They huddled together sharing their dreams and trying to understand them.
"What could it mean?" a young Hiereus asked another.
"Is Ash angry?" An older one trembled.
"But why? We followed his directions?!" A third cried pulled at his hair.
"The High Hiereus would know!." Another Hiereus said pointing towards the High Hiereus's chambers. "He's the one who guides us! If Ash is angry it should be against him not us! We didn't do anything!" The others fervently agreed, their fear turning into anger.
"Yes let!"
"If he led us astray then let Ash cast him down!"
"Let's go to the High Hiereus!"
The small mob of Hiereus wound their way down the hall towards the High Hiereus's chambers. Ash watched them in delight. Humans turned against each other so quickly when afraid. The dreams were still vivid in their minds and the night seemed to press in on them. Unlike normal dreams, these wouldn't fade away with times but remain terrifying in their minds. Now they finally felt Ash's displeasure. It wouldn't take them long to figure out the meaning of the dream and release Eiji. Of course, they were wrong about something. None of them were blameless. They were all too willing to sacrifice Eiji. Ash had stood among them and yelled that he didn't want this, yet none of them even tried to hear him. Ash was going to make them suffer for it.
When the mob arrived at the High Hiereus' door they paused. As agitated as they were they still respected their leader. After a minute one of the Hiereus standing in the front knocked gently.
"High Hiereus we need to talk to you!" There was no answer. The man knocked again harder. "High Hiereus please come speak to us!" When the High Hiereus still didn't answer the man began pounding against the door. "You dare abandoned us in our time of need? Come out and face us!" They waited for a moment more but when no sound came from the room their anger flamed up against the High Hiereus.
We are plagued by nightmares that showed us our graves and the graves of the ones we love! You guided us to our doom, yet you refuse to stand before us? Take responsibility for what is your own! Or we will do it for you!" The others roared in agreement.
Some of the men began pounding against the door as well. An angry chant started up as they demanded the High Hiereus' presents. A few Hiereus in the back were debating if they should lift one of the large lynx statures and run it through the door.
Ash, floated above them watching the scene unfold. He knew the reason for the High Hiereus's lack of response. Unlike those under him, The High Hiereus's dream was long and he was still trapped within it. Perhaps he wouldn't wake before the others broke down the door. Humans turned into monsters when they had someone to blame for their misfortune.
Although he usually didn't wish for human deaths at this moment he hoped the Hiereuses would tear the High Hiereus apart. He was so tired of humans sacrificing their own for his sake. How many times did he have to tell them he didn't want that. With Eiji's life on the line, it was worst. The dark wildness that had lingered in him when he was under Dino's thumb was surging again. The only thing keeping it from boiling over was the reminder that Eiji would be alright after this. He would go home and the Hiereuses wouldn't kill anyone else for him.
After a few moments, however, the dream ended and the High Hiereus fell out of bed and lay huddled on the ground. After a couple of seconds of cowering, he became aware of the mob outside his door. Quickly he went to them. They fell silent when the door opened.
"My brothers and sisters why do you yelling so?" The group fidgeted under the High Hiereus's calm gaze, their anger ebbing away.
"You refused to answer our summons." One Hiereus finally said. "We've been trapped within our dreams. They hunted our minds and plagued our senses. We do not know what we did to earn Ash's wrath. You speak for him, yet he is punishing us!" A murmur of agreement bubbled up from the crowd as their anger began to return.
"I see." The High Hiereus nodded solemnly. "You have a right to demand answers.." He looked squarely at them. "I too have received a message from him while deep in my slumber. Do not worry! We should not shrink away from the sun god's demands but embrace them!" He held out his arms. "Let all of us go to the meeting room and discuss the dreams, then Ash's vision for us will become clear."
A calm rippled through the Hiereuses. They felt comforted by the High Hiereus's confidence and words. The High Hiereus walked before them and the others followed, heading towards the meeting room.
Ash turned away and headed back to Eiji's side, his bloodlust draining. The High Hiereus would see now that Eiji's death would end in fire and release his boyfriend from his fate. Then Ash would refuse to let anything grow until the High Hiereus stepped down from his position and prostrated himself at Eiji's feet.
In the small chamber, Eiji was still sleeping peacefully. Unlike the Hiereus no frightful prophesy dreams plagued his mind. Yut-Lung, probably bored of sitting in a room with Eiji had left. Ash was grateful for it. He didn't think he had the energy to deal with the night god. Slipping into the small bed next to Eiji, Ash wrapped his arms around him.
"Ash" Eiji muttered, still asleep. Ash kissed his forehead and was blessed with a small smile. His heart fluttered in joy, truthfully there was no greater gift in the world than being Eiji's boyfriend.
The next morning Ash was woken when Eiji shifted out of his arms and sat up to stretch. It was still dark out with only the faintest light on the horizon. On a normal day, Ash would have rolled over and fallen back to sleep. However this wasn't a normal morning so instead, he forced himself to sit, giving a piteous whine as he did so. Eiji snorted at his bleary expression.
"Good morning to you too." He flicked Ash's nose earning another whine. "You're up early." He blinked sleepily glancing around the room. His smile faded. "Where are we?" He rubbed his eyes in confusion.
"You don't remember?" Ash asked gently, now fully awake. Eiji paused and Ash knew yesterday's events were returning to him.
"Oh." He curled his legs close to his body and hugged them tightly. "I hoped that…I didn't want to…" he buried his face in his knees.
"Eiji it's alright." Ash wrapped his arms around him and tucked him under his chin. "I sent them horrible dreams. Right now, they're discussing it in the meeting room. It'll be hard for them to worm their ways out of this one. You'll be going home before you know it."
"It's over?" Eiji looked up, hope glistening in his eyes.
"Yes." Ash kissed him. Eiji let out a joyous laugh and tackled Ash back on the bed kissing every inch of his face.
"Thank you." He repeated between kisses. Ash caught Eiji's lips and steadied them. He wanted to savor their moment of triumph. He wanted to remember Eiji, wild and free above him. He wanted to remember the taste of his soft lips pressing against his own.
At that moment the door burst open, and two guards entered. They paused at the sight of Eiji making out with the bedsheets. One of them cleared his throat and Eiji, realizing how it must look to those without sight, got off Ash.
"The High Hiereus requires your presents in the meeting room." One of the guards said gruffly. "Please finish… whatever you were doing…" Eiji's face turned pink. "And prepare yourself."
"Yeah ok," Eiji mumbled mortified. The gaurs left and Ash snorted with laughter.
"Shut up," Eiji growled throwing a pillow at him. "It's your fault."
"You must have looked so weird," Ash said through his myth. Everything seemed funnier now that Eiji was safe. He didn't realize how heavy the weight was pressing against his chest until it was lifted. Eiji scowled at him as he washed his face and combed back his hair.
"Let's just go and get this over with. I want to make it home before lunch."
The meeting room was large with mats on the ground where the Hiereuses sat reclining facing the middle. When Eiji entered they placed him in the center of the circle, all eyes on him. Ash stood with Eiji holding his hand as they waited for the High Hiereus to speak. The man seemed deep in prayer. After almost twenty minutes he stood and smiled around the room. Raising his arms high, he turned to the east towards the sunrise and bowed, then turned to face Ash and bowed again. Ash almost rolled his eyes. He didn't care about all the formalities; he just wanted the High Hiereus to release Eiji. Finally, the man spoke.
"My brothers and sister, last night Ash appeared in our mist and gifted our visions of what is to come. These terrible, terrible visions shook us to the core as we were forced to watch death and destruction of all we hold dear." Some Hiereus shivered at his words. "After listening to each of your dreams and meditating on my own I have finally interpreted what Ash is telling us." The whole room seemed to hold its breath. All eyes were glued on the High Hiereus. He smiled gently.
"The sacrifice will not happen tonight at sunset!" He proclaimed. "Instead, it will be moved to midday, when the sun is right overhead and Ash is smiling down at us. This was foretold through the dreams sent to all Ash's devoted ones!"
Cheers rang out around them, but Ash could barely hear it. Reality seemed to have fractured. Somehow, despite his best attempts, they were still going to sacrifice Eiji. He couldn't understand where it went wrong. The dreams were very clear. THe Hiereuses knew Ash was displeased about something. That's why they turned on the High Hiereus. How did Ash's clear displeasure turn into confirmation for their actions?
The High Hiereus reclined on his seat as talk broke out among the Hiereus. Ash watched them numbly. How could they call themselves his devoted ones when they would take his happiness and smash it? Only a few hours ago they were willing to throw their leader to Ash to appease him. How did things turn so fast? The dream was obvious, the young man looked exactly like Eiji. It wasn't that hard to put two and two together.
The answer was obvious. It had nothing to do with what Ash wanted. The High Hiereus and those under him wanted a sacrifice. No matter how terrifying the visions were, no matter what Ash actually wanted, if the High Hiereus interpreted them positively the Hiereuses were happy. They covered up their misgivings with their greed. They turned a blind eye to the feelings of the dreams. This was what happened last time a group of humans started sacrificing humans to him. He could stand in front of them and yell that he didn't want this until his face turned blue and they would still not hear him. Yut-Lung had been right. It was poetic to them that Eiji would die. All of them like the idea. They wanted blood. Nothing that Ash did made a difference. He didn't have the power or time to try anything else. There was nothing left.
Eiji was going to die.
At noontime, Ash would sit by Eiji's side and hold his hand trying to feed him a few seconds of comfort as the blade ripped him apart. He would pray that his being devoured Eiji's soul fast enough that he didn't endure the unbearable pain. Then…..then Eiji would truly be gone. Over time Ash would forget his voice and his touch. There would be no way to grasp onto his memory. Eiji would slip like smoke into obscurity. Ash's whole being ached at the thought of eternity without Eiji.
"That's not what the dream meant." Eiji's voice rang out loud and clear, startling Ash back to reality. To Ash's surprise, Eiji didn't look scared, instead, his eyes burned with fury. He had almost escaped before they wrenched him back to darkness. The talking died down as Eiji stormed across the room and grabbed the front of the High Hiereus robes. He yanked him forward until their faces were inches from each other. A gasp rang out and a guard took out his sword. The Hight Hiereus held up his hand stopping him.
"Did you resave a dream as well oh sacred sacrifice?" he asked Eiji, that infuriating calmness still present in his voice.
"No, but I know what Ash wants and-"
"You didn't get a dream, but you think to interpret mine." The High Hiereus said grasped Eiji's hand and twisted it. Eiji gave a cry as he was flung to the ground.
"Don't think so highly of yourself" the High Hiereus said standing above Eiji. "Ash's favored does not give you the right interpret his messages. I know the meaning of the dream Ash placed in my head." He bent down next to Eiji. "Listen carefully young one.
"In my dreams and the others around me, we saw our enemies. They were celebrating under the sun and Ash was favoring them. Then a young man died. Their favor ran out and Ash smite all of them." He reached down and lifted Eiji's chin. "The meaning is clear. If we want Ash to favor us in this war and smite our enemies we must sacrifice you as soon as possible. At noon, we shall send you to Ash as a fragment offering to please him." He smiled at Eiji triumphantly. "Do you understand now?"
Eiji didn't say anything. He seemed to deflate as he stared up at the High Hiereus. "That's the dream Ash sent?"
"Indeed, now stop this nonsense. We have work to do." The High Hiereus stepped away from Eiji and turned to the other Hiereus. "Send out the message to all the land. The sacrifice has been moved forward!" Hiereuses hastened to do their work leaving Eiji lying alone in the center of the room. He looked up at Ash with a hurt expression.
"Why did you show them that?" He choked out. "I thought you were going to convince them not to sacrifice me."
I was!" Ash bent down and helped him up. "I showed them innocent people dying if you were to die." He trembled in rage "I don't know how they managed to twist it again. I'm sorry." Ash bowed his head. "I don't think there's anything left I can do. They'll just keep twisting my words."
"Oh." Eiji's face became blank. "I see." The dullness in his voice was worst than the tears or anger. Ash hugged him to his chest. They stood there for a while knowing each second was a second closer to the end.
"Ash," Eiji finally muttered "Can you please stay with me…. until the end"
"Of course." Ash's tears fell into Eiji's hair and he fought to keep his voice steady. "Forever" Eiji close his eyes and buried his head in Ash's embrace. Their forever was going to end in a couple of hours.
A servant approached them and gingerly took Eiji's arm. Eiji didn't fight as he was led away to the preparation room Ash followed a little behind. As they passed through the doorway of the temple he saw Yut-Lung sitting on a ledge above him. His eyes gleamed with amusement as he mouthed.
"I told you that wouldn't work.