Chapter 6 - Dance 'Till Our End

#Writing #BloodofSilenceSeries #DanceTillOurEnd #DTOE

"We stand
Ashes crumbling the world we call our own
Slowly
Desolation crashing down to the earth

So alone inside
The fire burns tonight
But now it's fading away
The strength to carry us home
I promise I'll stay
It's such a beautiful lie
Tomorrow can wait
And I'll be dreaming with you
I cry for the end

First light
As dimensions wide unfold before our eyes
Our dreams
Falling endlessly above the starless night
On and on"

-- Entropy, Dos Brains

Hades

Tonight was the night of the ball.

"You can't seriously still be wanting to hold that godsforsaken thing! Do you not think the public will notice the absence of over half the convocation?!"

"The public need a sense of normality restored, Emet-Selch. There has been nothing but misery, and I would see them enjoy themselves."

"You just want to distract them from the skies."

Though I couldn't see his eyes, I could feel the emissary's searing glare burn into my soul. "Zodiark. Will. Succeed."

Zodiark would succeed, of that I had no doubt. Whatever inferior creation the rebels were attempting to conjure up--if it came to fruition at all--would stand no chance against His might. Still...

Irritated, I cursed under my breath. I detested dressy events like these. Gaudy dresses and fancy outfits were no where near as comfortable as our humble robes, and I never saw the point in them. Alas, the current situation gave me no choice but to show my face.

Citizens piled into the large hall, smiling and laughing. Passing glances were sent our way as small groups whispered and giggled amongst themselves.

"Miss Azem musn't be here," came the quiet observation of a youth. "I was hoping to ask her about her adventures again."

They slumped in annoyance before another around their age patted them playfully on the shoulder. "You'll just have to catch her when she's in town again," they laughed.

I observed silently, taking another sip of my drink before turning slightly to Lahabrea. "I see her resignation hasn't been made public yet."

"Knowing Elidibus, it's probably to prevent public unrest. She was ever the favourite of the people."

"Indeed."

"It would look bad on her to announce it, and then announce our comrades' passing short after as well, would it not?"

My brow furrowed. "What are you implying?"

"Oh, nothing. Where did that emissary wander off to, anyway?" As if avoiding the question, he drifted off into the crowd.

"Hades, my friend! I'm surprised to see you here!" came the all-to-enthusiastic arm around my shoulder. I frowned, turning to regard him.

"Hyth," I grumbled. Then I noticed what he was wearing. "What on earth is that?"

He wore what was essentially a white piece of fabric, draped from shoulder to waist, covering the essential parts of his chest. It joined with a simple skirt with a slit up the leg. All adorned in golden linings, various small details and an intricate golden mask.

"I figured if we didn't have to wear our robes, I'd go for something with a little more breeze," he explained cheerfully.

"It sure doesn't leave much to the imagination," I murmured.

"Fufufu~ How bold of you to notice."

I glared daggers at him from beneath my own mask.

"Nevertheless, I come bearing a gift and message from a certain someone." He was noticeably more subdued as he placed a simple white lily flower in my palm. "She says she's sorry."

"Sorry? I don't- You saw her? Where is she?!"

"She said you'd know where to find her," he smiled, waving as he scurried off.

I stared at the flower in my hand for a few moments before it dawned on me. A symbol of rebirth. She was intending to-

"Where did you get that?" Elidibus questioned sternly.

"Hythlodaeus gave it to me, why?"

His lips tensed into a thin line, "There's something you should know."

I tilted my head in question, and he continued. He told me that when each of the convocation members were found lifeless, a white lily had been found placed on their chest. With it, a small note. On it was the neatly penned name "Persephone".

They had each been found as if they'd been sleeping soundly, with not a single finger laid upon them. The flow of their aether had simply stopped, and their life along with it. It was likely they hadn't felt a thing.

It had been the same each time. With how quickly our comrades dropped, one by one, it was not surprising that someone was behind it. We had all assumed as such by now, but what beggared belief was the fact that he'd never told us this crucial piece of information.

"Why didn't you tell us?"

His face grew to one of anguish, as if he didn't want to accept the truth himself. His tone changed ever so slightly in a way that felt as if I was one again talking with the young Elidibus we had all grown to love, instead of the stoic emissary Zodiark had returned to us.

"I think you know why, Emet-Selch..."

A heavy silence grew between us. It didn't take a genius to figure it out, and I was sure that deep down we all knew, but refused to believe it.

It was Azem.

Elidibus had been convinced that we could bring them all back, along with the rest of the sacrifices. He was convinced that it was within Zodiark's power to save those who summoned Him, but I had watched their souls drift unto the Underworld with my own eyes, and I questioned whether such a thing was possible.

"Put an end to this," he had pleaded. "Spare our brothers and sisters any more pain."

And so I found myself in a garden, adorned with beautiful flowers and violet trees--restored to its former glory as if it had always been this way. I could tell, however, that it was not tangible. It had been recreated with aether. Her aether.

She stood gazing up at the stars as the moon shone down on her, making her almost seem as if she was glowing from the shimmer of her dress. It was an amber coloured dress, fitted majestically to her figure. Butterflies adorned her left arm and held together a bow at her waist. A sheer cape draped along her back and over the other arm.

Her hair rustled softly in the breeze--worn long, with a simple braid adorning her head like a halo. Berry-like ornaments were weaved throughout with delicate golden chains. Two flowers, surrounded by golden patterns sat at the front on either side, as if it were a crown befitting royalty.

Perhaps it was, I thought as I beheld her. Wearing a simple tailcoat suit, I felt like a peasant next to a queen.

Years ago, we had met in this same place under a clear blue sky.
Hythlodaeus had taken me to introduce a friend of his, joking about how "it was about time I stopped being gloomy and tried talking to someone other than him."

I, of course, told him such a thing was unnecessary; that I simply put up with him and did not actually need his presence.

But then I saw her.

"Ah, you must be Hades! I've heard a lot about you," she smiled, placing the last of the flowers she'd been picking into a basket.

Before she could store the last one, she handed it to me with a giggle "You can have this one if you like. Hyth said you could do with a little sunshine to pierce your 'dark and gloomy' heart."

She was radiant as the sun, and her warm smile set my nerves alight. In her presence, I felt alive. It was as if the whole world went into bloom around her.

It was not a smile that greeted me this time, but a melancholy shadow of the woman I loved.

"You came..."

"Of course I did. Didn't I tell you once that I'd follow you to the ends of the earth?"

She looked as if she was about to cry, and I quickly engulfed her in my embrace. I clung to her as if she'd disappear any moment--savouring every second we had left.

The sad song of a piano could be heard a little ways away--just loud enough to reach our ears. It was the unmistakable work of Elidibus, talented as he was.

"Dance with me? Just one more time, before the end."

I would have danced with her 'till the end of eternity, if only she'd asked.

Her violet eyes seemed almost as if they were glowing in the moonlight as I ran a hand along her cheek. Little stars glittered within them, and I'd always found them the most captivating sight to behold.
Gently, we started swaying to the melody--clinging to each other as if our lives depended on it. Perhaps they did.

We moved effortlessly, as if we each knew exactly what the other would do; as if we were one in the same. Our souls reached out to entwine with each other as the music came to a close, and I could feel her anguish...her guilt.

"Hades," she whispered. "I love you. I love you so much..." tears began spilling forth as her voice began to break from the built-up emotion "I'm sorry...this is the only way to save you."

A chilling sensation washed over me as I felt my consciousness begin to drift away, and my aether begin to slow its timeless flow. With tears in my eyes, I drove a dagger into her centre, and immediately it stopped. "I'm sorry, my love... This ends here."

"You knew..." she whispered. "I knew you of all people would figure it out, but..." she coughed, straining her voice.

"Shh...save your strength." I held her tightly against me.

"Please...save yourself. I don't you to...be all alone."

It was then that I felt it. I winced in pain as I felt as if something struck my core, but nothing was physically there. The sky lit blindingly with the clashes of a battle amongst gods. My eyes widened as I looked up at the sky. "That's..."

"Please..." she pleaded, weakly trying to pry the dagger from her stomach. "Quickly, you have to--" another fit of coughing.

"Cynthia, don't! You'll hurt yourself."

"Hurt myself..." she breathed a laugh. "I'm not the one that's going to..." Another fit of coughing as she clung to my shoulders, nails digging into my back as she struggled to keep her balance.

I tightened my hold around her and she looked up to watch weakly as the battle unfolded. The citizens of Amaurot danced blissfully unaware as the sky itself seamed to chip like glass under the pressure.

My eyes widened at the sight, and I quickly picked her up, running for cover. "There's no way Zodiark will... That's impossible!"

"Hades..." she whispered, struggling to keep her eyes open. "Don't let...Zodiark...leave you alone. You have to...fight it."

Light engulfed my vision as I heard an ear-piercing crack. She screamed against me--blood-curdling and petrified as the ground beneath us started to break apart at the seams.

"Cynthia!"

I let out a reflexive cry, clenching my centre as a stabbing pain engulfed me. I struggled to maintain my hold on her as I ran. "Just hold on, we'll be okay," I struggled. "Just a little bit...longer."

It felt as if I was being stabbed and crushed alive at the same time. My soul strained under the unbearable pressure, and it felt as if I'd break any moment.

I doubled over in a battle to keep my eyes open and my wits about me. In my delirious state, my eyes went blurry and I wasn't sure what happened to Cynthia. All I knew was that my arms were painfully empty.

I wanted to scream, but speaking felt impossible, and breathing even more so.

There was a cooling sensation, lulling me to sleep as I lay helplessly on the ground. It was a relief from what felt like an eternity of suffocation. It was intoxicating, and I was all too willing to let it engulf me.

Anything to stop that unbearable pain.