For days Deminia sat in a haunting silence hunched over and facing away
from the door. She had done such things before.as all Tier' Dal do in what
they called their "Teilum' Kih", or " The Loathing Death". Others of
lighter hearts would call such a thing a prayer.but for the Dark Elves, it
was no prayer. It was a curse, a plague, and even sometimes power. In
silence they would sit or lie as the dead and disconnect themselves with
the world around them and be born into the realm of their 'Father',
Innoruuk himself. Lost in this hellish trance they succumb to all mortal
weaknesses to regenerate their hatred for the "Perfect Ones" as their ears
are pierced by the shrewish voice the 'Father'.
Surrounding her were silver trays full of food and drink left untouched at her side upon the floor. Each crumb meant to satisfy her hunger was stolen by starving rodents that scurried past the angered house servants to Deminia's side, where they somehow knew the servants would dare not go.. except Pana Dear.
The mole-like woman waddled through the archway once more clad in her dust-smudged apron over her ash colored dress and white cloth that tied back her dying gray hair. In her hands was another tray with a few slices of bread upon its surface and an acrylic mug filled to the brim with chilled water. Her dim-witted smile fell as she entered the deathly quiet room where Deminia sat unmoved for days as a look of worry came upon her once cheery face.
Her color had faded to a ghastly grayish hue while her ribs appeared to be almost see-through under her skin that was cloaked in a deep sweat. Her face was dull and emotionless with her mouth hanging open just barely with thin streams of drool running out of her mouth and onto her chapped lips. But nothing in all of creation ever appeared as hellish as her eyes. Like deep burrowing tunnels, her eyes were a solid black against the pale color of her skin. They darted out at nothingness for extensive periods of time without a single blink or flinch; making it appear as if she were dead. Perhaps she was.. because sometimes after leaving, you could never come back again.
Wearily, he pulled his cream-colored tunic over his thatch of crimson red hair and tossed it to the ground where his leather sandals and sword nestled cozily in the tall, green grass. After it landed so lightly on the tops of the grass he stretched his bare arms out and motioned them forwards and backwards to give his muscles a good shake. With a quick motion, he jumped high into the air and dove forward only to crash into the watery depths of the lake that silently laid only a few steps away.
It was like a new life poured strait through his soul and washed all his troubles away. He could feel each current brush against his fragile cheek as the water flowed past his sinking body and swirled in a mass of rising bubbles. For the first time in almost one week.one very long, and unprogressive week, he felt calm. Just for that small bit of time that he dove, his frustrations with Deminia seemed to diminish; like they drowned with each second he plunged. Yet his worry for her still lingered in the back of his High-Elven mind as she had been in her demonic trance for days. The hopelessness of his intent was growing.
Lost in the tranquility of the water that encased him, Aurion felt his lungs begin to ache underneath the mighty muscles that contained them. Quickly, he arched his back towards the waters ceiling and began to paddle quickly with his bare feet. With each kick, the light of near by lanterns grew brighter even in the bent darkness of the waters. Finally, he broke through the crest of the waves and gasped for air as his soaked, wet hair clung to the frame of his pale, damp face. Immediately, his sense of calm faded as his senses brought him to an immediate state of alarm.
Before he had jumped into the lake, there was a peaceful breeze about the night air. Now, there was a strange disturbance lurking somewhere out in the near by darkness. Aurion spun about in the water as his arms flapped quietly to keep him afloat. For some reason.Aurion did not feel alone. Using one hand to wipe the water drops from his eyes, he kicked forward as fast as he could to the edge of the lake where his protecting sword laid upon the dewy grass.
As his fingers griped tightly onto the muddy ground, he swung his legs up and over onto the dry land and quickly stumbled to his sword. His feet being so slick caused him to stumble only a few times, but he manage to reach the comfort of his sword.
He stood in the eerie silence of the night with his long, gleaming sword griped tightly within his moistened hands. The gray of his eyes began to glow hauntingly in the moonlight as he looked forward into the darkness for looming shadows that moved suspiciously in the night while his ears perked up high above his brow becoming acute to every little scurry underneath the masking brush. Yet no matter how alert he had become, he was completely unaware of the lantern near the lakes edge that began to glow and shift into a humanly form.
Thinking he was completely alert, Aurion began to turn towards where his back was originally faced. His breath condensed in the coolness that now fell in the air as he slowly turned. Everything seemed to be in order. Then, a quick surge of pain struck him hard in his abdomen as he felt all his air leak from his lungs and became breathless. The blow that caught him off guard knocked him back only a few steps when another punch fell across his jaw and spun him around and knocked him to the ground and onto the hilt of his own sword.
"I thought you were taught manors, Auri. Tis' not polite to point a blade to a woman's throat unless she takes hers to yours first." The familiar voice chimed as she tried to hide the laughter under her breath. As she finished her speech, the woman walked forward and draped her white, satin covered arm across another massive mans single shoulder.
Still catching his breath upon the cool ground, Aurion turned his aching body over to his back and off of the hilt of his sword. He could feel the blood drip down the left corner of his mouth where he had been so forcefully mauled to the ground. Lifting his startled had to his lips to wipe the mark of defeat away from his mouth; he took in long gasps of air to refill all that had been lost.
"My, that whore is really wearing you down isn't she?" the woman giggled gleefully as she laid herself down upon the ground next to where Aurion was trying to recuperate. As her thin body slid down practically on top of him, she lifted her delicate finger to his bleeding wound and softly stroked around it. Bothered by the provocative-ness of her actions, he used the remainder of his strength to push her aside and stand up to make way to where his tunic and sandals still laid upon the ground.
"Laeanla, I wouldn't go around calling yourself a "Woman" now. That's giving you a bit too much credit that I don't believe you deserve." Aurion mumbled to the woman who began to stand and wipe the grass away from her snow-white robe. He knelt down to his worn tunic and tossed it over his sopping, red hair and slipped his feet into his warm, leather sandals.
Laeanla laughed to herself as more witty comments swept through her devilish mind.
"Come now Aurion," she began as her laughing muffled her words " Do not keep the success of your research to yourself! Tell me, how is the progress you are making?"
Aurion shook his head in annoyance and began to walk away from Laeanla before he decided not to run away from her torments since he knew they would not stop.
"I'm having slight difficulties getting through to her lately. That however is perfectly understandable though considering the short amount of time I've been able to actually sit down and work with her. Patience is a virtue, and it is one I have a great amount of when it comes to things as important as this. I'll reach her sooner or later." He brilliantly replied back to what Laeanla thought would be a difficult comment to return.
Laeanla sighed and through her long brown hair over her shoulders as she once again approached Aurions side. She cocked her head to one side and looked into his eyes in search of some form of doubt that he would have hidden.yet she found nothing.
"Why do you waste your time on something that is hopeless? Trying to teach a Tier' Dal good in this world is about along the lines of teaching an Ogre or Troll to be smart. It cannot happen.. it will not happen. Yet you cannot come to ease with that truth."
Enraged Aurion through down his sword and closed himself around Laeanla; bringing his face within millimeters of her own. The fear in her eyes was evident as he scowled at her then began to speak.
"That is no truth. It is not written in a forever binding and Godly law that Tier' Dal cannot know 'good'. They fear good as we fear evil. We know shadows.. which leads me to the one conclusion that they can know light. And that, Laeanla is exactly what I am going to prove to you and everyone else! Once that day comes, we'll get insight to the Dark Elven culture and perhaps then we can settle upon indifferent grounds with one another. Then, Laeanla, there will be peace between all the Elven nations.and possibly after that, there could be peace for all." He stepped back from Laeanlas frozen body and turned his gaze upward towards the curved balcony of arches that encaged Deminia.
"It all starts with that one girl. All I want is to understand her.and for her to understand me. If that can happen between her and I, then there's a chance it could happen for all of us. That chance I know is small, but if it means peace then it is worth every second to me.as it meant every second to Maylia."
Laeanla followed his gaze upward and turned her eyes to a hunched over figure that quickly paced over to them with an Elven lantern within it's wrinkly hand.
"Pardon my disturbance, Master Aurion." The figure spoke with a raspy voice.
"Pana Dear, you were in an awful hurry. Something wrong?" Aurion asked as he bent over and looked the old lady in the eyes.
"Yes M'lord. It's the child. She hasn't moved a muscle since I last checked in on her. The poor dear has grown deathly thin as she hasn't eaten a single morsel of the bread we've prepared for her nor drank the water within the mugs. I fear for her life, sir. This can mean no good tide!" Pana Dear gasped as she clasped her weary fingers around one of Aurions massive hands. He nodded back at her and turned back to Laeanla whose gaze was cold and uncaring.
"You and your friend must excuse me. I have important business to attend to. Evidently you already know the ways in.and out." Aurion casually uttered as he turned his back towards the unwelcome visitors and made his way back to his mansion with Pana Dear close behind.
In the all-stillness of her balcony, Deminia still stayed staring off into the distance. Yet in the time since Pana Dear had run out of the room, Deminia's facial expression changed drastically. Instead of what seemed to be her permanent careless face, her brows wrinkled downwards in frustration underneath the sweat beads that began to pour off of her now grayish forehead. It seemed as though she would never be relieved from this horrific trance, until a loud screech broke through her mind as something crashed into the seemingly open archways.
The air in the room thrashed about in a quick and mighty breeze as Deminias eyelids fell shut over her dilated pupils, then reopened to their original demonic, prismatic purple. Immediately her breaths quickened as the pain of hunger and thirst she had ignored until now consumed her and left her lying weak upon her stiff bed. Her left arm hung lifeless to the cold marble floor while her hand crawled weakly to a molded piece of bread that had already been gnawed at by stray rats that had slipped past Pana Dears watchful eye. Slowly, she clinched her colorless fingers about the crumb and hesitated to bring it up to her chapped, starving lips. It was such a normal and insignificant task, yet after the torment she just endured, she could not perform it. Her eyes began to flutter again, and then open back to the lantern light that filled throughout the room. Confused, she squinted her eyes tightly as she saw the light flicker off of the black figure that lead dead right outside the archway that stood across the endless floor from the dying Deminia.
With all her strength, Deminia balanced her torso upon the now frail sticks that used to be her muscular arms. She made tiny motions to the side of her worn, couch-like bed until finally, her upper body fell harshly to the ground. For only a few moments she laid upon the side of her cheek before she lifted again to pull the remainder of her body to the floor. The pain that raced madly through her body was excruciating, but she handled pains like these before.
With the flats of her arms still upon the cold ground, Deminia continued to squirm across the floor like a snail. The world around her still ceased to exist except for that little black object that glistened out of her grasp in the lamp light. As she crawled towards it, the floor seemed to grow in length and push her further away from her goal. Finally, when the ground seemed to grow no more, she reached forward towards the little thing, only to find she still could not reach. Frustrated, she lunged forward with the strength of her legs and was immediately tugged back by the cuffs that surrounded her ankle. She turned to her frail little foot and glared angrily at the massive iron fist that seemed to weigh a ton. However she still would not give up. Turning back forward, she lunged again and gripped at the ground with all her strength and pulled. Being that her ankle was so frail, she slipped through the giant cuff and fell within reach of the object she desired to see.
As her frail fingers reached out to break through the archway, they were again met with resistance of an unfamiliar sort. Her fingers rested upon an unseen force that glistened a spectrum of wild colors at her touch and was as smooth as glass. Immediately, she became fascinated with it and began to run her fingers back and forth with curiosity as she hesitated to prop herself onto her knees.
"It's a magic shield.I wanted to keep the standard amount of protection without the walls. That, because I took the assumption you would like the view." Aurions voice meagerly broke through the mesmerizing silence.
Startled, Deminia fell to her back and leaned up against the magical wall. The aching in her body grew worse as each second rolled by.
"Pana Dear and I were worried about you there for awhile." Aurion began as he scratched at his lumps of red hair and cautiously walked forward. "Are.are you feeling alright?"
It was then that Deminia felt her old self filter back though her. After the torment she endured from what seemed like a never-ending nightmare, she felt lost and didn't quite know what to think. For those brief seconds before Aurion entered the room, Deminia didn't feel any hate what so ever. Perhaps what happened in her Teilum' Kih was true..
"What happened to your face?" she mumbled as she tried to cancel out the running thoughts in her head that didn't seem to slow at all. Aurion reacted quickly as he smudged the drying drops of blood from the corner of his mouth while he searched for an excuse to lead her astray.
"I lost my footing on the steps, that is all." He sputtered as he regained his posture. Her right eyebrow cocked upward in question as an evil smirk was painted across her grim face.
"You sure you didn't get the shit kicked out of you?"
For it being the first time she actually made conversation with Aurion in awhile, a smirk too came across his face. She was a bright girl and he knew it.perhaps now he'd be able to get through to the "hopeless" being.
His eyes diverted from her still quivering body and stared at the moldy masses of bread upon the floor. Flies and other insects began to devour them in mass hordes that went unnoticed for days. Cringing at the sight, he turned back to Deminia and worked his way back into conversation.
"Hungry?" he mumbled as he pointed his wet finger towards the deformed bread.
Deminia's eyes followed his finger then streamed strait back up into his with a look of utter disgust. For being such a brutal people, the Dark Elven stomach didn't seem to handle things too well.
"I'm doing a fine job of starving in my opinion." She spat back at him and curled her arms around one another and looked away from him.
"This is completely unorthodox," Aurion mumbled to himself before raising his voice for Deminia's ears to hear, "but perhaps it would be a better idea if you dined with me this evening. I'm sure you will find the food quite pleasing."
"Unless it is Elven Veal I will be feasting upon, I think I'll pass." She snorted.
"Well, then I shall leave you to your bread then. It was stupid of me to think you would prefer a rich, Bear fillet in Cream with a Jum Jum salad and pound cake for desert. Pana Dear was even having the cooks make their prized Hot Crossed Buns for you...but I can see that is of no interest to you."
Already knowing the thoughts running through her head concerning the food, Aurion turned around and began to make his way out of the archway. Purposely, he slowed his footsteps to give her more than enough time to call out to him. Just as he expected, she did.
"Did you say bear fillet? With.. cream?" she asked as she smacked her lips together just at the thought of the food. It made a soft, puckering noise that caused her chapped, lower lip to start bleeding from an unknown cause. Yet with the food he mentioned on her mind, she really didn't care.
After covering up his beaming smirk of victory Aurion turned around to Deminia. She was like a tiny little puppy with eager eyes awaiting its next meal that obviously had been long delayed. He proceeded over to her with cautious steps and then knelt down before her. As he nodded in agreement, he locked his cool, gray eyes with her gleaming amethyst ones and just stared.
"Shall I send Pana Dear here to fetch you once it is prepared then?" he asked with a soft whisper.
Like a shy child, Deminia lowered her chin and stared at the lower half of her dying figure. The thoughts running through her head were still so very confusing. What had happened to her? What was happening to her? It was like she was cut off at the knees and left a cripple to die. Maybe, she was supposed to die. Instead, she just nodded slowly.and wearily.
"Then I will send her in nearly two hours. Until then, perhaps you should rest." Aurion said as he stood himself up and gave her a concerned glance before he turned and left the room with a looming question in his heart.
'Maybe she was supposed to die.'
Surrounding her were silver trays full of food and drink left untouched at her side upon the floor. Each crumb meant to satisfy her hunger was stolen by starving rodents that scurried past the angered house servants to Deminia's side, where they somehow knew the servants would dare not go.. except Pana Dear.
The mole-like woman waddled through the archway once more clad in her dust-smudged apron over her ash colored dress and white cloth that tied back her dying gray hair. In her hands was another tray with a few slices of bread upon its surface and an acrylic mug filled to the brim with chilled water. Her dim-witted smile fell as she entered the deathly quiet room where Deminia sat unmoved for days as a look of worry came upon her once cheery face.
Her color had faded to a ghastly grayish hue while her ribs appeared to be almost see-through under her skin that was cloaked in a deep sweat. Her face was dull and emotionless with her mouth hanging open just barely with thin streams of drool running out of her mouth and onto her chapped lips. But nothing in all of creation ever appeared as hellish as her eyes. Like deep burrowing tunnels, her eyes were a solid black against the pale color of her skin. They darted out at nothingness for extensive periods of time without a single blink or flinch; making it appear as if she were dead. Perhaps she was.. because sometimes after leaving, you could never come back again.
Wearily, he pulled his cream-colored tunic over his thatch of crimson red hair and tossed it to the ground where his leather sandals and sword nestled cozily in the tall, green grass. After it landed so lightly on the tops of the grass he stretched his bare arms out and motioned them forwards and backwards to give his muscles a good shake. With a quick motion, he jumped high into the air and dove forward only to crash into the watery depths of the lake that silently laid only a few steps away.
It was like a new life poured strait through his soul and washed all his troubles away. He could feel each current brush against his fragile cheek as the water flowed past his sinking body and swirled in a mass of rising bubbles. For the first time in almost one week.one very long, and unprogressive week, he felt calm. Just for that small bit of time that he dove, his frustrations with Deminia seemed to diminish; like they drowned with each second he plunged. Yet his worry for her still lingered in the back of his High-Elven mind as she had been in her demonic trance for days. The hopelessness of his intent was growing.
Lost in the tranquility of the water that encased him, Aurion felt his lungs begin to ache underneath the mighty muscles that contained them. Quickly, he arched his back towards the waters ceiling and began to paddle quickly with his bare feet. With each kick, the light of near by lanterns grew brighter even in the bent darkness of the waters. Finally, he broke through the crest of the waves and gasped for air as his soaked, wet hair clung to the frame of his pale, damp face. Immediately, his sense of calm faded as his senses brought him to an immediate state of alarm.
Before he had jumped into the lake, there was a peaceful breeze about the night air. Now, there was a strange disturbance lurking somewhere out in the near by darkness. Aurion spun about in the water as his arms flapped quietly to keep him afloat. For some reason.Aurion did not feel alone. Using one hand to wipe the water drops from his eyes, he kicked forward as fast as he could to the edge of the lake where his protecting sword laid upon the dewy grass.
As his fingers griped tightly onto the muddy ground, he swung his legs up and over onto the dry land and quickly stumbled to his sword. His feet being so slick caused him to stumble only a few times, but he manage to reach the comfort of his sword.
He stood in the eerie silence of the night with his long, gleaming sword griped tightly within his moistened hands. The gray of his eyes began to glow hauntingly in the moonlight as he looked forward into the darkness for looming shadows that moved suspiciously in the night while his ears perked up high above his brow becoming acute to every little scurry underneath the masking brush. Yet no matter how alert he had become, he was completely unaware of the lantern near the lakes edge that began to glow and shift into a humanly form.
Thinking he was completely alert, Aurion began to turn towards where his back was originally faced. His breath condensed in the coolness that now fell in the air as he slowly turned. Everything seemed to be in order. Then, a quick surge of pain struck him hard in his abdomen as he felt all his air leak from his lungs and became breathless. The blow that caught him off guard knocked him back only a few steps when another punch fell across his jaw and spun him around and knocked him to the ground and onto the hilt of his own sword.
"I thought you were taught manors, Auri. Tis' not polite to point a blade to a woman's throat unless she takes hers to yours first." The familiar voice chimed as she tried to hide the laughter under her breath. As she finished her speech, the woman walked forward and draped her white, satin covered arm across another massive mans single shoulder.
Still catching his breath upon the cool ground, Aurion turned his aching body over to his back and off of the hilt of his sword. He could feel the blood drip down the left corner of his mouth where he had been so forcefully mauled to the ground. Lifting his startled had to his lips to wipe the mark of defeat away from his mouth; he took in long gasps of air to refill all that had been lost.
"My, that whore is really wearing you down isn't she?" the woman giggled gleefully as she laid herself down upon the ground next to where Aurion was trying to recuperate. As her thin body slid down practically on top of him, she lifted her delicate finger to his bleeding wound and softly stroked around it. Bothered by the provocative-ness of her actions, he used the remainder of his strength to push her aside and stand up to make way to where his tunic and sandals still laid upon the ground.
"Laeanla, I wouldn't go around calling yourself a "Woman" now. That's giving you a bit too much credit that I don't believe you deserve." Aurion mumbled to the woman who began to stand and wipe the grass away from her snow-white robe. He knelt down to his worn tunic and tossed it over his sopping, red hair and slipped his feet into his warm, leather sandals.
Laeanla laughed to herself as more witty comments swept through her devilish mind.
"Come now Aurion," she began as her laughing muffled her words " Do not keep the success of your research to yourself! Tell me, how is the progress you are making?"
Aurion shook his head in annoyance and began to walk away from Laeanla before he decided not to run away from her torments since he knew they would not stop.
"I'm having slight difficulties getting through to her lately. That however is perfectly understandable though considering the short amount of time I've been able to actually sit down and work with her. Patience is a virtue, and it is one I have a great amount of when it comes to things as important as this. I'll reach her sooner or later." He brilliantly replied back to what Laeanla thought would be a difficult comment to return.
Laeanla sighed and through her long brown hair over her shoulders as she once again approached Aurions side. She cocked her head to one side and looked into his eyes in search of some form of doubt that he would have hidden.yet she found nothing.
"Why do you waste your time on something that is hopeless? Trying to teach a Tier' Dal good in this world is about along the lines of teaching an Ogre or Troll to be smart. It cannot happen.. it will not happen. Yet you cannot come to ease with that truth."
Enraged Aurion through down his sword and closed himself around Laeanla; bringing his face within millimeters of her own. The fear in her eyes was evident as he scowled at her then began to speak.
"That is no truth. It is not written in a forever binding and Godly law that Tier' Dal cannot know 'good'. They fear good as we fear evil. We know shadows.. which leads me to the one conclusion that they can know light. And that, Laeanla is exactly what I am going to prove to you and everyone else! Once that day comes, we'll get insight to the Dark Elven culture and perhaps then we can settle upon indifferent grounds with one another. Then, Laeanla, there will be peace between all the Elven nations.and possibly after that, there could be peace for all." He stepped back from Laeanlas frozen body and turned his gaze upward towards the curved balcony of arches that encaged Deminia.
"It all starts with that one girl. All I want is to understand her.and for her to understand me. If that can happen between her and I, then there's a chance it could happen for all of us. That chance I know is small, but if it means peace then it is worth every second to me.as it meant every second to Maylia."
Laeanla followed his gaze upward and turned her eyes to a hunched over figure that quickly paced over to them with an Elven lantern within it's wrinkly hand.
"Pardon my disturbance, Master Aurion." The figure spoke with a raspy voice.
"Pana Dear, you were in an awful hurry. Something wrong?" Aurion asked as he bent over and looked the old lady in the eyes.
"Yes M'lord. It's the child. She hasn't moved a muscle since I last checked in on her. The poor dear has grown deathly thin as she hasn't eaten a single morsel of the bread we've prepared for her nor drank the water within the mugs. I fear for her life, sir. This can mean no good tide!" Pana Dear gasped as she clasped her weary fingers around one of Aurions massive hands. He nodded back at her and turned back to Laeanla whose gaze was cold and uncaring.
"You and your friend must excuse me. I have important business to attend to. Evidently you already know the ways in.and out." Aurion casually uttered as he turned his back towards the unwelcome visitors and made his way back to his mansion with Pana Dear close behind.
In the all-stillness of her balcony, Deminia still stayed staring off into the distance. Yet in the time since Pana Dear had run out of the room, Deminia's facial expression changed drastically. Instead of what seemed to be her permanent careless face, her brows wrinkled downwards in frustration underneath the sweat beads that began to pour off of her now grayish forehead. It seemed as though she would never be relieved from this horrific trance, until a loud screech broke through her mind as something crashed into the seemingly open archways.
The air in the room thrashed about in a quick and mighty breeze as Deminias eyelids fell shut over her dilated pupils, then reopened to their original demonic, prismatic purple. Immediately her breaths quickened as the pain of hunger and thirst she had ignored until now consumed her and left her lying weak upon her stiff bed. Her left arm hung lifeless to the cold marble floor while her hand crawled weakly to a molded piece of bread that had already been gnawed at by stray rats that had slipped past Pana Dears watchful eye. Slowly, she clinched her colorless fingers about the crumb and hesitated to bring it up to her chapped, starving lips. It was such a normal and insignificant task, yet after the torment she just endured, she could not perform it. Her eyes began to flutter again, and then open back to the lantern light that filled throughout the room. Confused, she squinted her eyes tightly as she saw the light flicker off of the black figure that lead dead right outside the archway that stood across the endless floor from the dying Deminia.
With all her strength, Deminia balanced her torso upon the now frail sticks that used to be her muscular arms. She made tiny motions to the side of her worn, couch-like bed until finally, her upper body fell harshly to the ground. For only a few moments she laid upon the side of her cheek before she lifted again to pull the remainder of her body to the floor. The pain that raced madly through her body was excruciating, but she handled pains like these before.
With the flats of her arms still upon the cold ground, Deminia continued to squirm across the floor like a snail. The world around her still ceased to exist except for that little black object that glistened out of her grasp in the lamp light. As she crawled towards it, the floor seemed to grow in length and push her further away from her goal. Finally, when the ground seemed to grow no more, she reached forward towards the little thing, only to find she still could not reach. Frustrated, she lunged forward with the strength of her legs and was immediately tugged back by the cuffs that surrounded her ankle. She turned to her frail little foot and glared angrily at the massive iron fist that seemed to weigh a ton. However she still would not give up. Turning back forward, she lunged again and gripped at the ground with all her strength and pulled. Being that her ankle was so frail, she slipped through the giant cuff and fell within reach of the object she desired to see.
As her frail fingers reached out to break through the archway, they were again met with resistance of an unfamiliar sort. Her fingers rested upon an unseen force that glistened a spectrum of wild colors at her touch and was as smooth as glass. Immediately, she became fascinated with it and began to run her fingers back and forth with curiosity as she hesitated to prop herself onto her knees.
"It's a magic shield.I wanted to keep the standard amount of protection without the walls. That, because I took the assumption you would like the view." Aurions voice meagerly broke through the mesmerizing silence.
Startled, Deminia fell to her back and leaned up against the magical wall. The aching in her body grew worse as each second rolled by.
"Pana Dear and I were worried about you there for awhile." Aurion began as he scratched at his lumps of red hair and cautiously walked forward. "Are.are you feeling alright?"
It was then that Deminia felt her old self filter back though her. After the torment she endured from what seemed like a never-ending nightmare, she felt lost and didn't quite know what to think. For those brief seconds before Aurion entered the room, Deminia didn't feel any hate what so ever. Perhaps what happened in her Teilum' Kih was true..
"What happened to your face?" she mumbled as she tried to cancel out the running thoughts in her head that didn't seem to slow at all. Aurion reacted quickly as he smudged the drying drops of blood from the corner of his mouth while he searched for an excuse to lead her astray.
"I lost my footing on the steps, that is all." He sputtered as he regained his posture. Her right eyebrow cocked upward in question as an evil smirk was painted across her grim face.
"You sure you didn't get the shit kicked out of you?"
For it being the first time she actually made conversation with Aurion in awhile, a smirk too came across his face. She was a bright girl and he knew it.perhaps now he'd be able to get through to the "hopeless" being.
His eyes diverted from her still quivering body and stared at the moldy masses of bread upon the floor. Flies and other insects began to devour them in mass hordes that went unnoticed for days. Cringing at the sight, he turned back to Deminia and worked his way back into conversation.
"Hungry?" he mumbled as he pointed his wet finger towards the deformed bread.
Deminia's eyes followed his finger then streamed strait back up into his with a look of utter disgust. For being such a brutal people, the Dark Elven stomach didn't seem to handle things too well.
"I'm doing a fine job of starving in my opinion." She spat back at him and curled her arms around one another and looked away from him.
"This is completely unorthodox," Aurion mumbled to himself before raising his voice for Deminia's ears to hear, "but perhaps it would be a better idea if you dined with me this evening. I'm sure you will find the food quite pleasing."
"Unless it is Elven Veal I will be feasting upon, I think I'll pass." She snorted.
"Well, then I shall leave you to your bread then. It was stupid of me to think you would prefer a rich, Bear fillet in Cream with a Jum Jum salad and pound cake for desert. Pana Dear was even having the cooks make their prized Hot Crossed Buns for you...but I can see that is of no interest to you."
Already knowing the thoughts running through her head concerning the food, Aurion turned around and began to make his way out of the archway. Purposely, he slowed his footsteps to give her more than enough time to call out to him. Just as he expected, she did.
"Did you say bear fillet? With.. cream?" she asked as she smacked her lips together just at the thought of the food. It made a soft, puckering noise that caused her chapped, lower lip to start bleeding from an unknown cause. Yet with the food he mentioned on her mind, she really didn't care.
After covering up his beaming smirk of victory Aurion turned around to Deminia. She was like a tiny little puppy with eager eyes awaiting its next meal that obviously had been long delayed. He proceeded over to her with cautious steps and then knelt down before her. As he nodded in agreement, he locked his cool, gray eyes with her gleaming amethyst ones and just stared.
"Shall I send Pana Dear here to fetch you once it is prepared then?" he asked with a soft whisper.
Like a shy child, Deminia lowered her chin and stared at the lower half of her dying figure. The thoughts running through her head were still so very confusing. What had happened to her? What was happening to her? It was like she was cut off at the knees and left a cripple to die. Maybe, she was supposed to die. Instead, she just nodded slowly.and wearily.
"Then I will send her in nearly two hours. Until then, perhaps you should rest." Aurion said as he stood himself up and gave her a concerned glance before he turned and left the room with a looming question in his heart.
'Maybe she was supposed to die.'