Reimi continued to lay still.
It felt like hours and hours, but the sun hadn't moved an inch yet. Her eyes felt akin to sandpaper. Closing them felt coarse and itchy, but leaving them open for the cold air also wasn't ideal. She sighed and kept them closed. At this point, all the memories seemed to subside. Almost like repression in a way, keeping the pain far away for another day. Though all the puzzle pieces about what just transpired lingered on. None of this made any sense to Reimi, things had never gone this wrong before.
She pondered through everything, in an attempt to take her mind off of the more painful things. From the start, she stepped into the void from her room. By the end, she crawled out in front of the throne room doors. Her brows furrowed, since clearly where she was there were no longer any doors. Or much of a castle for that matter. Perhaps, time had passed through this exit portal she took. Though that should've been impossible. Reimi continued to drift, waiting until her body calmed down a bit more.
As she was in this trance of hers, a pair of heavy footsteps bounced against her ears. Within a moment she relaxed her face and her muscles, as much as she could anyway. It was better to play dead, for the person walking could be a foe or ally. Being the princess, at least if it was an ally there would be a chance they'd call out first before approaching. It wasn't much to go on, which is why she deemed possum would be the best course of action. Besides, her skin was already so pale and her hair went down to her legs — covering a lot of her body while she laid like this. Even while alive she looked deceased.
The steps stopped right next to her face. Reimi could feel the heat caress her face. She tried to slow her breathing down as much as she could, nearing the door to asphyxiation. Though her eyes were closed, she could feel a weighted gaze. It felt crushing in a way; these eyes seemed to pierce through her guise with the ease of a hot spear. Doubts started to plague her mind, this act wouldn't fool anyone. Whoever this person was, whoever this glare belonged to, knew she was alive. Was there any point in acting anymore?
Just as Reimi tried to sort through her panic, the steps started moving past her. A slow and steady pace, before a sudden stop. The decrescendo of a falling rock replaced the silence. Until a voice overpowered the last bit of noise.
"You there… No need to play dead, your aura spoke loud and clear."
She gulped and opened her eyes slowly. This voice was new to her, and it had a sharp undertone laced into the seams. It was husky and heavy, almost like an impact to the ears. Akin to that, his aura by contrast to Reimi's felt like gravity itself had been cranked up beyond normal limits. He began to walk closer, and closer. Each step he took made the pebbles around flick upwards for just a moment. Before eventually, he stopped. The debris this time stayed suspended within the air as he crouched down.
"I'm looking for the king, he seems to have just escaped me," he sighed, "any idea where he could be?"
Reimi glanced up at the man. A baggy black hood lay over his head, with only glints of purple shining where his eyes would be. The rest of his body was covered in a similar kind of cloth. It was rugged and torn at many of the seams, but it still covered the majority of his person. The only thing in perfect condition was his weighted black boots. He had an undeniable air of mystery that made it risky to contend with him. Reimi knew she needed to answer but… all her lips could do was quiver.
Her throat tightened in her feeble attempt to let even a sound out.
The man glanced down and caught the notion rather quickly. "I'll give you ten seconds, for generosity's sake."
I can't, she coldly said, just to herself. Not a hint of noise came from her. It was an instinctual fear almost, to even utter a word. That feeling that someone would berate her for even letting out a sound. Which would be the lightest of it all. Generally, the consequences were a lot worse. Being starved, hit, forcefully isolated, shunned; these memories hung like lodged bullets within her voice box. They doubled as a knife to cut away the chords as well. No… for her voice was painful to listen to. Especially so for Reimi herself. She stared at the man with a blank expression. Her lips fell flat and her eyes shut their blinds. There was no more information to gather, and the man seemed to have sensed that.
"Alright then… I suppose I've done my kind act for the day."
The man flicked his hand up with a precise motion. Within the moment, Reimi's body was enveloped with a purple energy; it flew her up higher and higher, akin to all the floating debris in the room. The magic hung around her like a weighted vest with locks strapped around the pockets. All she could do was look at the scene in front of her. The entirety of the main hall was also in ruin. Chunks of stone continued to fall from the roof and collapse onto the stone floor. All the glass was shattered across the walls — allowing the frost-coated air to sweep across the room. Even the carved angels seemed to weep at the state of the castle.
Only one thing remained untouched, which was the statue of Mikael himself. Whoever caused this destruction, if it was the hooded man or not, at least knew not to touch the figure of radiance. It may seem ridiculous to some, but many people believe in bad omens. Curse-like in nature, from messing with objects reflecting the divine. If there were any place in the world that would amplify this negative karma, it would most definitely be this holy kingdom — Latriah. Compared to everywhere else, this land has always been the closest to the gods. At least according to the books in the library. Far above the clouds, this island sat. Where angels and humans first made contact.
Reimi sighed, still frozen in the air. The more she saw the state of the castle, as the man moved along, the more needles seemed to poke different parts of her brain. The strings in her heart seemed to tug in a melancholy tone, covering her in a blanket of guilt. For not feeling all that sad, seeing this "shelter" of hers being in tatters. Yet simultaneously, her heart began to beat like drums of freedom. This place haunted her since childhood. Took parts away, and never seemed to give much back. Many in the city would be envious of her "position" as princess but — they knew nothing of what hid behind the light.
For she has never been a part of the royal family, or at least it felt that way. She spent most of her time locked away in her room; it was hardly ever by choice. Either she spoke, and someone didn't like that, or perhaps someone was just in a bad mood. Regardless no one liked seeing her around. The reason was never clear to her. She just cried and cried, why am I the monster? Why is everyone so cruel? No one would answer. Not because they couldn't hear her, but for some unknown reason. Due to that, Reimi's always been eager to find out. Nothing concrete ever came her way, though inklings of answers would pass by now and again.
Though she had no way of knowing what was real or factual. Perhaps she didn't want to believe it, or the things in question were too outlandish.
As Reimi sunk into her thoughts, the man continued to walk closer to the front of the castle, bringing Reimi along with him. The entrance hallway shared the same look as the rest of the castle, though much more violent. Giant gashes were carved into the surrounding walls and floor; almost as if a massive beast was let loose. All the white stone was deeply singed, sporadically across the stretching space. That faint smell of fire drifted around the area, with the air from the outside pushing it deeper inside. At last, the man stopped at the very edge of the palace.
The grand doorway which was once here existed no longer. The quartz angels that aligned its frame were also gone, lost somewhere under the sky. Instead of all that, there was now an open view of the entire city. Purple flames coated the rooftops of many buildings near the center of the Featherless region, though clouds continued to hug every nook and cranny regardless. Almost like an attempt to cool the flames, they kissed every building and home in its embrace. Around the mounds of new rubble, they danced around the people's panicked footsteps — patterns that would normally form and erupt throughout the day.
From the palace down, steps and gradual inclines all started from the place with no feathers, rising higher and higher to glorious 'freedom.' Though now it was all in shambles. The man sighed, and once again flicked his hand but forward this time — causing Reimi to get flung in the same direction. She was still suspended in the air, but now, with a fifty-meter drop below her. There should have been fear in her chest, but there was nothing. She just looked at the man and nothing else. He was oddly fascinating to her. Throughout her lifetime she hasn't met many people, only the folks living within the castle, and all of them felt like strangers. They were all so far detached from her reality.
Though this man… felt the most similar to her. Reimi couldn't quite put her finger on it, but in that way, she wanted to know who he was. What was his story?
The thought of being dropped to death by this same person didn't seem to faze her at all. Her curiosity was the only thing that mattered to her in the moment, which the man couldn't pick up from her face.
"Are you afraid?"
A smirk snapped across Reimi's lips. She didn't wish to die here, not like this. She needed her answers, and nothing was gonna stop her. A flash of light broke through the purple energy holding her, dispelling the magic that the man had cast. This… was not her doing; her eyes widened as the pull of gravity immediately got her. Her body was still in a terrible state, due to her illness and fatigue. There was no way she could cast any magic to save herself. Even though she knew that was the case, the thought of passing on didn't cross her mind. Reimi needed her answers; she needed to see all of Hyethour, before ever visiting the afterlife.
The wind continued to blast by her ears and the currents enveloped her in their embrace. She was falling fast, but she also knew, this wouldn't be the end. There had to be a way.