Dripping Wings

Yuugi opened his eyes slowly. The view of a shining platinum ceiling glowing in early morning sunlight greeted his vision. Atemu was on top of him, the Prince's arms wrapped tightly around his chest. Love making the night before felt desperate, as though Yuugi could feel his lover's anguish reaching out to him. I wish I could make it better, whatever it is. I wish he would tell me. If he pushed the matter further, however, Yuugi was afraid that Atemu would pull away from him even further.

His attention was drawn elsewhere when he heard the call of a bird from somewhere beyond their balcony door. It was not the sound of a songbird, or a raven or crow, but rather, it was the untamed cry of a falcon. A bird of prey. The Elves were known for their birds. Atemu had explained to him once about the regions of Sekesha, and the types of animals that were rode in them. In the area of the Divine City and the far north, it was the Sacred horses that were most rode. In the desert region of El-Ehkerah, it was the Sacred dragons that were in greater numbers. The Elves, however, had their own form of Sacreds, which were giant, falcon type birds of varying colors that were favored. These birds, called Ceryll Gyres, were large enough to ride, and often times larger, and that was exactly what the Elves used them for.

The cry from outside sounded very much like one of those Gyres.

Yuugi pulled himself out from underneath of the Prince's death grip and stood. He stretched his arms wide and wiggled his toes. The green and silver marble he stood on had warmed under the sunlight. Yuugi walked over to the balcony and pulled his wings out of the in-between dimension. He rarely took them out. It seemed the army that was with them in Northern Reach, and the Ice Gifted from the far frigid north did not speak of his wings much. After the tales that had been told when they returned, they were chalked up to only being an addition to the fabulous tale to bedazzle children.

Yuugi felt it was best that way. No awkward questions. No dodging questions. No wayward glances.

Yuugi stretched his wings wide and relished in the feel of the morning sun cascading over his feathers. The towering trees of Elendiah shimmered as the leaves danced in and out of golden light as they swayed on the breeze. The place was nearly more beautiful than the Divine City. Yuugi could easily see how an Elf would never want to leave their city.

Warm arms wrapped around him tightly. "Good morning, sweetheart," Atemu whispered in his ear.

Yuugi watched a pair of wings flap in the distance and squeezed back at the arms around him. "Why do you suppose the Goddesses made us?" he asked out of the blue.

"What do you mean?" Atemu asked him curiously.

"Us. The Assai. Why were we made? What was the purpose for us?"

The question threw Atemu for a loop. He had at first believed that Yuugi was asking about life in general, but to hear him ask about the Assai and refer to them as 'us,' made him give second thoughts to the question.

"Well, from what I have come to learn, the truth of the past is a little hard to believe. People don't know this, and most never will. In Sekesha, there are different ranks in society. The first and lowest rank is the average citizen. They have no other responsibilities than worrying about average life and work. The next rank is Guardian. It is the role of the Guardians to protect the citizens of this country, and act as the cavalry for an army when required. The next rank is Royalty, and only immediate Royalty at that. The Royal family protects the Guardians and citizens alike. Nobility has no more rank than the next citizen aside from connections and money. There used to be another rank that went right between Guardian and Royalty, and that was the Assai." He paused here and ran his fingers through Yuugi's hair. "The Assai were created to be the guardians of the Royal family. I saw recordings of the memories of those from that time, Yuugi, when the palace halls were swarmed with Assai warriors. It was glorious..."

Yuugi waited for Atemu to continue. This was information he'd never been privy to before.

"The Assai were, well...they were much more divine than any other creature on this planet. The Assai were the born protectors of the Royals. I don't think it was in their blood to ever do anything wrong, just as they couldn't turn the sky purple."

This was interesting news. Yuugi decided quickly that contemplating the right things versus the wrong things he'd ever done in his life probably wouldn't change anything, and thus decided to not dwell on it. Best not to make his head hurt if there was no need. Instead, he walked closer to the balcony. "Let's go for a flight this morning," he said. He looked back at Atemu's warm ruby eyes. "Please?"

Atemu smiled at him and released his wings. "I'll race you."

x x x

Yuugi hugged Atemu tightly. The Prince had only been able to stay with him for a month, and now it was well past the time when he needed to head back to the capital. He had wondered about being separated from the Prince with the blood bond in tact, but Atemu assured him that he would only be traveling by foot to get there. As long as no magickal transportation was used, they would be fine. Also, the Ribbon Barrier apparently acted as a sort of shield, making it harder for the bond to drag Yuugi along with the Prince. "I'm going to miss you," Yuugi whispered into his ear. It was going to be the first time they'd ever been separated for a long period of time.

"I know love. I will see you soon. Five months. Five months and counting."

Yuugi backed up and watched Atemu mount Senke. "Don't die on the way home, okay?"

The Prince laughed. "Come home safely to me."

Helios crooned sadly at Yuugi's side. He bent down and rubbed vigorously behind the dragon's horns. It was one of Helios's favorite spots to get a rub. "You protect him for me, all right? I'm counting on you. Don't worry. I'll be home soon."

The dragon crooned again and blinked his huge watery eyes, but turned around and began to walk alongside of the Prince's black Sacred. Atemu winked at him and waved one last time before nudging Senke in the side and they started to move.

Yuugi waved until they were out of sight, escorted by a troop of Elven guards. Goddess, how he was going to miss him.

"Well, my dear Betrothed friend, are you ready to get back to your training?"

Yuugi looked back to the Elf that had been training him in Cold Light healing since his arrival, Lady Cercinah-Kor-Seah. "My dear Lady, your are a regular slave driver, aren't you?"

The light green haired elf laughed. "Hop to it, boy! You won't be any kind of King if you can't even heal a poisoned bleshnum-bo!"

Yuugi groaned. Bleshnum-bo's. The bane of all humanity, surely. Silly little creatures that belonged to the Elves. They were a lot like goats, but thicker, harder, and damned near impossible to penetrate their practically concrete hide. If one ever did get poisoned, it would take a month for it to die, and hours and hours of hard, concentrated, laborious hours to try and pull every last tendril of poison out of the creature. Yuugi had never tired before when healing, but the Elves were pushing him to his very limits.

They had yet to do so with his light and shadow Gifts, but they were coming close. If Daemon and Ayana had taught him how to conjure grand shows, then the Elves were showing him how to pump as much power into one concentrated little area as possible without passing out. What Yuugi didn't know is that some of the Elven tutors were wondering if Yuugi didn't need to stay as long as originally planned. His powers were beyond even their wildest imaginations. There were very few Elves that could heal as well as he could, and his training had only gone on for a few months that concentrated on the healing of the Elves.

"My dear, I don't think Tranquility herself could heal a bleshnum-bo."

The Elven woman tisked. "Ever the pessimist. Off with you now, You've got work to do!"

Yuugi groaned but did as he was told.

x x x

Yuugi's eyes snapped open without hesitation. He wasn't sure why he woke up when he did, it as, after all, still night time. The stars were twinkling brightly in the night sky.

It was interesting how much brighter the stars were in Elendiah than elsewhere. The moon in the Divine City was the brightest thing in the night sky, in Elendiah, it was the stars.

Yuugi usually slept with his balcony door open when the weather was warm. He really enjoyed the soft breeze that came in and graced his senses. The air always smelled so fragrant. The sheer curtains billowed back into the room as the air current continued to blow. Yuugi sat up and rubbed his eyes. Whenever he woke up, he was painfully reminded of how empty his bed was. He missed Atemu so much it almost hurt.

He stood, stretched, and walked towards the balcony. His body was not tired, even though he had worn himself out to the point of passing out the day before. Border raids were getting worse, and the Elves had to protect their hunting grounds. Elendiah was closer to Queschtal than anyone wanted to admit. Hostilities were at their highest, and Yuugi was helping as much as he could to heal all of the Elven fighters that were injured. Yesterday, he'd gone out himself and helped fight. It was good practice for when the full scale war that he was sure to partake in finally arrived.

A black spot on the moon grew larger and larger. Yuugi squinted his eyes to try and better see it. Once the black space when outside of the moon's circle, he realized that it was not on the moon, but rather, in the sky, and it was steadily heading his way.

Silver and platinum began to glow and shimmer on the figure of black. Yuugi backed up when the thing landed on his balcony railing, and gasped when the light finally revealed what he was looking at. The thing back winged as it landed and created a giant gust of wind as it did so.

It was a Gyre. A real, bonafide, Ceryll Gyre. Golden eyes blinked at him benevolently. The giant, hawk-like bird ruffled it's wings after landing and folded them in tightly. It had to squeeze into the double door opening. It just barely made it. The reflective feathers of the creature dropped off and created a myriad of tiny, mirror like shards that fluttered about the room.

Yuugi suddenly noticed that he hadn't breathed since it landed. He breathed in noisily, then respectfully closed his mouth. He gave a half bow of respect. "I...do not understand why you have come to my room at this hour, but I welcome you. Is there trouble? Am I needed?"

The bird gurgled deep within its throat and blinked. :Hello, my dear Yuugi. There is not trouble yet, but there will be. I am here for you.:

Mental speech. Yuugi hadn't learned it yet. Apparently, it didn't matter to the Gyre, for it could talk to him anyway. The feminine voice of the bird seemed to fill his entire soul. "For me?" He asked. "Why?"

:You have been aligned with the avatars of both Tranquility and Eternity. Now, it is your turn to gain the friendship of the avatar of Divinity. My name is Velinah, Yuugi, and I am your new companion.:

The avatars of both Tranquility and Eternity... By Goddess...Astarte and Helios. "Oh my god," Yuugi whispered. "I..."

The ends of Velinah's beak moved, and it reminded Yuugi of a smile. :Fear not, dear heart. You will not go into the future alone. You are our greatest treasure, and our salvation. The Goddesses favor you above all others. I will be by your side, if you'll have me.:

Yuugi was dumbfounded. He wasn't sure what to say, or how to say it. He felt his voice might fail him anyway. Nor was he sure why he was everyone's salvation. One step at a time, he told himself. Best not to dwell on something I don't understand. If the Goddesses favor me so much, they will keep me safe. "Of course I'll have you," Yuugi said. A strangled laugh bubbled up in his throat. He wondered what Atemu would say about another animal following him around.

Velinah walked up to him and nuzzled the side of his face. He reached his hands up and touched her feathers. They felt silkier than smoother than any other thing on earth. "You're beautiful," he said.

Velinah clicked her bead. :Of course I am. I'm a Ceryll Gyre. Let's go for a ride, Yuugi. I think you'll enjoy it.:

x x x

Yuugi stood stalk still as he starred up at his Sacred. Astarte was looking at him in bemusement. Her aloof green eyes were laughing. :Can...um, can you understand me?:

Astarte whinnied loudly. :Clear as crystal, Yuugi.:

Yuugi grinned stupidly. Finally, he mastered mind speech! Finally:This is so cool!: He cried in excitement. :I can talk to you! Whoo-hoo!:

Astarte's bright voice laughed inside of his head.

:Tell me,: Yuugi asked deviously. :Are pregnant like I think you are?:

Astarte snorted. :Yes. My offspring will be born at the end of the Winter Solstice.:

"Ha! I knew it!"

Cercinah-Kor-Seah, Yuugi's Elven tutor, looked at him curiously. "Knew what?" She asked.

Yuugi just giggled.

x x x

This chapter probably seems really abbreviated, but it's just the set up for the rest of the story. Boring, but necessary. Yuugi will be going home in the next chapter.