Chapter 32: The Change Of Sky
The three Ethereals assisted Eliana back to her dorm. They wanted to help her all the way to her room but she refused. She managed to carefully climb up by herself.
The following day the two cousins offered to give Eliana some assistance to help her with walking but Eliana declined. To be seen with the Ethereals is something she doesn't want to happen after knowing the power they hold in the school.
It was already lunch time and half of the morning stressed her out. Not from the lectures nor the maze-like structure of the school she needed to navigate through, it was because of the people. All day she received looks and even heard gossips as she passed by the other students.
The topic was always her and the possible reasons why she was involved with the Seven. The atmosphere inside the building suffocated her. She hated attention more than anything.
After buying something to eat from the dining hall, she decided to eat elsewhere away from the prying crowd. She later found herself outside the main building. The thick forest she remembered from the tour was where she decided to go. Under a big tree Eliana sat in between it's gigantic roots.
True to that, her bruised ankle was getting better as seconds passed by. Like what Veesha instructed, she applied the last drops of medicine from the tube's content. She watched the viscous liquid stick to her skin. The soothing sensation it brought helped her relax a bit from the tension she felt.
She took the uniform coat off to be more comfortable. She placed it down on her side.
The sky was cloudy, and the air seemed to be colder than usual but it was fine for her. She ate in silence as she gazed through the forest. The sound of crickets and leaves swept by the wind was all she could hear.
She sighed softly, relaxing from the peaceful ambiance of the forest. She closed her eyes and recalled everything she went through. From the mall incident to yesterday's training. Until now, it was hard to believe everything wasn't a dream.
She wished for the moment when she would open her eyes, she'd wake up in her room. Under her comfy sheets and hear the crisps of her mother's cooking while she scolds Jacer who always ate more than he should have.
Clearly it was wishful thinking. When her eyes opened, the gloomy atmosphere greeted her. The wind blew a bit stronger than before dragging the dry leaves along with it. She looked up at the sky in melancholy.
She blinked. And blinked. Even brushed her eyes with her sleeves. She wasn't seeing things.
The sky was devoid of bright colours. A thick dark cloud spun around in the sky like an ocean's whirlpool. The middle resembled a black hole, the center was empty. A terrifyingly jet black oblivion looking like it would suck you in whole, forever.
Eliana could feel her breath hitched on her throat. Air. No air was entering inside her lungs. She clawed the tree behind her as if it would magically come alive to offer her the oxygen she needed.
Her knees slowly weakened. The lack of oxygen was knocking out her strength. She clutched the side of her neck. Her cheeks was losing the sense of touch and her lips were turning pale fast. She tried so hard to breathe in and out, but it was no use.
Suddenly the strength in her legs gave out, like slow motion she fell to her back waiting for the ground to catch her.
Strong and swift masculine arms caught her from falling over. He picked Eliana up and brought her over to another tree, one farther from where she sat. He placed her down gently on the grass and examined her pale complexion.
"Wake up." He brushed her cold cheeks drained out from the red. He frowned. "Wake up."
Eliana felt terrible. What happened left her in a nauseated condition. The beating of her heart was fast like she had run a thousand mile. The veins in her head were pulsating and her ears were ringing. She struggled to make her eyes open.
"Yeh-- ve--" Her words stumbled and her voice sounded like croaks.
Yehven gave her a blank stare. He was kneeling beside her on the ground. He examined her body looking for other injuries, he eyed the bandage wrapped around her ankle.
Eliana closed her eyes and focused on regaining her breath. She fought the feeling of weakness that sucked in the last drops of her remaining strength. Her body was still numb. She tried wiggling her fingers and thankfully it moved.
Yehven didn't leave her side. He shifted his legs around, crossing them to sit more comfortably on the ground. He waited patiently for Eliana to recover back to her normal condition.
After a while, Eliana could manage to move her limbs around. She can move but still the weakness didn't fully leave. She sat up clutching her heart breathing in and out. She whipped her head towards Yehven who was examining her. A frightened expression written all over her face.
"Did you see-" She stopped herself remembering the whirlpool sky. When she looked up, there was none, no trace of what she believed she saw before. Clear blue sky in broad daylight. "It's gone..." She whispered.
"What are you doing here." A baritone voice entered the scene. It was Anzai, he walked closer to where the two were on the ground. "Eliana, lunch time is almost over. And why are you so pale?" He eyed her with a slightly confused look.
Yehven who wanted no involvement in the scene stood up. He gave Eliana one last look to see if she had recovered before leaving without a word.
Anzai didn't bother to acknowledge him, he only studied the guy and returned his attention to Eliana.
Eliana was staring at the ground with a confused expression. Anzai crouched beside her. She turned her head to meet his curious eyes.
"What happened?" He asks.