Beyond Hollow Echoes (Book Three)

⋆˖☽ ​​​​​​Chapter 12 ☾˖⋆

I remained frozen in place. The golden rays of the dawn reflected against his pale face. My mind played cruel tricks, making me imagine his chest rising and falling again—begging for just one last, sudden gasp for air. How I wished this were a nightmare.

A grasp tightened around my shoulders. The world blurred as I was yanked backward away from his body. I didn’t resist. I didn't even try to brace for the impact. I allowed my hollow, exhausted body to give way, collapsing into the snowdrifts.

My cheek crashed against the frozen crust of the snow. I didn't bother to move. I allowed the biting winter cold to seep into my skin, hoping it would numb my aching body and heart. I lay there in the snow, the last lingering warmth of his blood slipping away from my freezing hands forever.

A broken, ragged gasp shattered the haze. "No… no, Mikaeus."

I blinked, my vision blurred with unshed tears. A few feet away, Mira had dropped to her knees in the exact spot I had just occupied. Her hands hovered above his shattered armor, trembling. Her wide, dark eyes were fixed on the pool of blood.

Her attention shifted to his peaceful, changed face. Her hands hovered unsteadily on either side of his cheeks, as if she were terrified that touching him would make it real.

"Not like this," she choked, a sob tearing from her throat. Her hands lay against his skin. "Come back. Please... come back."

Her fingers slid around the back of his neck, lifting his heavy head to cradle it in her lap. Her arms tightened around him as her body crumpled against his chest, weeping into the quiet, blood-stained dawn.

A shadow cast over my vision, blocking the rising sun. Emeric stood behind me for a long moment. His boots crunched through the snow, walking past me to stand beside Mira. He stood towering over them, staring down at his friend.

"Mi… Mikaeus," Mira choked out between sobs.

Emeric lifted his hand and rested it on her shaking shoulder, his armored fingers tightening. She didn’t react at all, lost to the void of her grief.

Ondina dropped silently to her knees in the frost at my side. I blinked away the hot tears blurring my vision.

A flicker of crimson caught my eye. Just ahead of the others, the Siren's body lay broken in the snow. A crimson butterfly fluttered down, landing on the creature's chest. The Siren's body dissipated into a fine, sparkling mist, carried away by the wind.

The butterfly lifted, hovering momentarily above Mikaeus with its wings almost stilling. Then, it drifted closer to me. It fluttered up to hover right in front of my eyes.

A sharp gasp tore from my throat, my eyes going wide as the realization hit me. I knew what was about to happen. Before my frozen muscles could react, the butterfly drifted down, landed over my heart, and pressed itself through my armor and into my chest.

I tried to suck in a frantic breath, but the air caught in my windpipe, refusing to move any further. A croaked, airless gasp escaped from my lips.

Pain erupted within my chest, radiating outward from where the butterfly had vanished. Black dots swarmed my vision. Hot tears welled and spilled from my eyes as the agony spread like fire through every fiber of my being.

Mira’s tear-stricken face looked up from Mikaeus, her dark eyes locking onto mine. Hatred was etched into her features before she blurred into shifting shadows.

​⭒☽ ◑ ☾⭒

Soft, fragrant grass pressed against my back. A warm breeze drifted over my face, carrying the scent of lemon blossoms. I drew in a ragged breath, letting the clean fragrance fill my lungs. The muscles in my body were relaxed, devoid of pain, yet my throat remained tight. I lifted my trembling hand in front of my face, watching the golden sun peek through my fingers.

There was no blood. No evidence of Mikaeus at all—just my pale, clean skin. But the visceral memory of the life draining from his golden eyes still burned in my mind.

“Child,” Enkarthos's ancient voice echoed from everywhere at once. It was heavy, sounding as if he had just awoken from a long slumber.

I pressed the heels of my hands into my eyes, trying to scrub Mikaeus’s final, bloody moments from my mind. I opened my mouth, and a silent, soul-tearing scream tore from my chest.

“I am coming, child.”

The earth beneath my back began to quake. The leafy branches of the surrounding trees rattled with his approach. The air grew warmer. Enkarthos's massive body encircled me like a living, breathing fortress. His enormous snout nudged under my back, lifting me upright into a sitting position. The great dragon settled in front of me, his crimson eyes filled with sorrow. A flicker of emerald light rippled along his body, illuminating the mossy grooves of his ancient scales.

“It’s alright…” his voice rumbled. “You do not have to be fine.”

I took one shaky inhale. Hot tears blurred my vision, spilling over my cheeks. Enkarthos lowered his head and pressed his snout into my lap, anchoring me to the earth. I slumped forward, burying my face against his warm scales as the immense heat of his body seeped into my freezing skin.

"It’s..." I sobbed, my voice cracking.

“Do not blame yourself.” Enkarthos shifted pressing me tighter against the protective curve of his body. “We never know what the tides of fate may carry. Life is tragically short, but memories...” The ancient dragon paused. “Those remain branded into our hearts forever.”

I wrapped my arms as far as they could go around his scaled snout, my body trembling as the tears continued to fall.

But I can’t change what happened.

He died because of me.

I squeezed my eyes shut, letting the tears flow until there was nothing left. Enkarthos's slow, steady breathing blended with the rustling breeze, creating a grounding rhythm.

When my chest felt hollow and there were no tears left to give, I opened my eyes. They burned against the light of the mindscape. Exhausted, I released my tight grip, allowing my hands to fall to my sides, but Enkarthos kept his head resting in my lap.

“You need to wake up now, child,” he murmured, the sound vibrating against my legs. “Otherwise, you will miss it.”

“Miss what?”

“Open your eyes.”

The sunlit world around me warped, dissolving into a rushing hum of background noise. The furnace-like warmth of Enkarthos dissipated, replaced by the weight of heavy wool blankets pressing down on my chest and the biting chill of the winter air.

"Alanah, you need to wake up," Ondina's quiet, strained voice muttered from beside me.

I let out a low groan, turning my throbbing head toward the sound. My eyelids felt like lead as they fluttered open. The familiar walls of Luminethra greeted me, and Ondina’s face hovered above as a shapeless, pale blur. I squeezed my eyes shut and opened them again, my vision clearing to reveal the grim reality of the waking world.

Bruised circles rested under Ondina's green eyes. The vibrant life in her face had faded, leaving her looking exhausted.

"I am glad you are finally awake," she said, standing up from the wooden chair beside my bed. She moved across the room to the wardrobe, pulling a folded pile of black clothing from the bottom shelf. "I do not want to rush you, Alanah… but we are going to miss it."

I froze, the blood running cold in my veins. Miss it? Enkarthos had said those exact words.

"Mi… miss what?" my throat croaked out.

Ondina walked over and set the dark clothing on the edge of the mattress. Her hand lingered on the top of the pile for a second before pulling away.

"Mikaeus…" Her eyes locked onto mine. "His funeral is today."

My fingers curled into tight fists in the bedsheets, and I bit down on my bottom lip.

"I understand you are hurting, but—"

"Please step out," I managed to whisper, cutting her off before I cracked. "I will change."

A flicker of concern crossed her features, but she gave a single nod. She turned and walked to the doorway. "I’ll be waiting just outside."

I grabbed the dark clothing, gritting my teeth as I pulled on the trousers. My battered muscles protested, my legs stiffening as I stood up and locked my bruised knees into place. They were left to deal with his body alone while I slept. A wave of guilt washed over me. I pulled the black shirt over my head. Even the soft, woven fabric brushing against my skin felt as if it were leaving a bruise in its wake. Taking a slow breath, I slid my feet into my boots. I closed off my thoughts, forcing my mind to focus only on each mechanical movement, each sharp sting of physical pain.

As I opened the door, Ondina pressed herself off the wall, falling into step beside me.

"Everyone is already gathered," she murmured.

I nodded once, my eyes falling to the floor. Our synchronized footsteps echoed as we walked through the halls of Luminethra. The air felt stripped of all life. It was as if the sorrow was a living, breathing entity, occupying the halls themselves.

As we stepped out of the wooden doors and into the day, the blinding light of the new sun forced me to shield my eyes. The winter storms were gone, replaced by a vast, never-ending sky of crystal blue. Thick snow still lay on the ground, though the warm dawn had begun to melt it, leaving reflective puddles along the stone path.

There was no sound of dragons trotting playfully through the snow or groaning in the yards. No children's laughter echoed from the town square; not even a hushed whisper was carried on the gentle wind.

A large, roaring fire had been lit at the center of the square. Long, wooden tables were set up around it, where people leaned over, dipping fine brushes into dark ink to write on strips of green fabric. Some held their ribbons to the flames, setting them on fire before blowing them out to leave charred edges, while others tossed their ribbons in, allowing the fire to consume their grief. A young child clutched a blank green ribbon to his chest as his mother tied her own above a stone doorway. She held out her hand to him, but he clutched his ribbon tighter, squeezing his eyes shut. She knelt in the melting snow, laying a gentle hand on his shoulder before pulling him into an embrace.

I followed Ondina to one of the wooden tables. She picked up two ribbons, setting one in front of me alongside a brush.

I can’t write. Beside me, Ondina dipped her brush into the dark ink, pressing it with ease to her ribbon. My fingers fumbled with the wooden handle as I picked it up. Closing my eyes, I thought of Mikaeus, letting my hand move across the fabric to draw the very first image that popped into my mind. I folded the ribbon in half, tucking it into my pocket.

The rest of the townspeople had begun the procession toward the ocean. In the distance, a crowd of dragons and humans had gathered. The dragons' vibrant scales gleamed like polished jewels beneath the sun, a stark contrast to the sea of black mourning clothes worn by the townsfolk.

Ondina and I followed the sea of black. Silent tears ran down the faces of the villagers. Young children were carried by their parents, their faces tucked away into shoulders to hide from the overwhelming sorrow.

The stone path shifted to soft sand beneath our boots. I pressed my way through the dense crowd, drawing closer to the crashing shore.

Emeric and Mira stood like immovable statues beside a beautifully crafted, wooden longboat resting on the tide line. Hundreds of charred green ribbons lay scattered like leaves around the wood. A line had formed; some citizens stepped forward to lay their ribbons around Mikaeus, while others stayed rooted in place, simply watching. I stepped numbly into the line.

A mournful hum began to ripple through the crowd behind me. A woman's beautiful, aching voice carried over the silence, singing a note of heartbreak into the winter breeze. Soon, another joined her, and then another, until the entire shoreline was swallowed by the haunting, ancient tune.

I stepped up beside the wooden boat. Emeric and Mira remained silent, their faces unreadable masks of grief as the choir of voices swelled into a symphony.

Mikaeus lay perfectly still within the hull. His eyes were closed, the bright rays of the unclouded sun shining warmly down on his face. There was a peace resting in his features that I had never once witnessed in life. The crushing burden of his leadership was permanently gone.

I pulled the folded ribbon from my pocket. My hand trembled as I opened it and pressed it against his cold chestplate. I memorized the lines of his face one last time, his desperate, vulnerable voice echoing through my memories: Please trust me.

His promise was finished.

"You gave us the dawn," I whispered to him, my voice breaking. "Now, I will return it to you."

I lifted my hand from the green ribbon and stepped backward, surrendering him to the tide. Emeric and Mira stepped forward in unison, throwing their weight against the wooden hull and pushing the boat off the sand and out into the rolling ocean.

The crowd sang in unison, their voices echoing off the waves. "Your fight is done… follow the light. May it guide you home, until we meet again." High above, Zarina shot like an arrow into the sky, her crimson scales catching the sun. The great golden and red dragon let out a roar that shook the very earth as she hovered over the open water.

Mira remained wading in the freezing shallows, her head bowed. Emeric stepped backward out of the surf. As he turned away from the water, the bright dawn caught his hair. For the first time, I noticed a distinct, fiery red hue hidden deep within his dark locks. His head lowered, Emeric moved through the crowd, retreating into his own inescapable grief.

Zarina cried out again, a tragic rumble building deep within her belly. Her throat glowed like a furnace before a blast of hot flames left her jaws, bathing the wooden boat in dragon fire. As Mikaeus burned, lighting up the sea, the rest of the gathered dragons on the shore let out a unified roar in honor of their fallen king.

The bright flames crackled and danced on the dark water as the entire shore fell silent, watching the pyre drift away.

Your duty is over. The glowing embers rose into the endless blue sky.

You are free.

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