Blooms of the Empyreal

Mariana took another deep breath, sweat dripping down the length of her back. The night air was cool, but her breath labored and her body heated up in the joy of movement. The bike flew underneath her, the wheels spinning with incredible speed. There was a release in this kind of movement, this kind of joyful abandon of regular problems.  The city was swirling around her, blurs of faces passing her by as she continued on the bike road past busy shops and glittering lights. Under her labored breathing, there was a sigh of contentment. Mariana was one with the breeze, and it felt like freedom through the sweat-drenched lengths of her curls. It was easy to forget your problems when nothing was between you and endless speed, wind, and movement. Everything was right and Mariana’s heart was lightened, if only for a moment.  There was little that brought Mariana joy anymore, and thankfully the love of her bike would never be taken away. The city faded slowly into the background as she rounded the hill to her home, pulling into the brightly lit parking lot of her apartment building.  She was on the fifth floor, and she groaned as she pulled into the lot; there was a big yellow sign on the damned elevator again. Of course it would be broken. Of course she had to drag her bike up all those stairs after a long day at work. Her feet ached in response to that blasted yellow “out of order" sign, and she groaned out loud. She'd spent 10 hours on her feet already, why not another several stories up too? But as she slowed to dismount her bike, something new happened. The world seemed to tremble a little under her tires, shaking everything. She cried out as the lights shuttered, then turned off in the parking lot, throwing the whole world into complete darkness. The quaking of the earth continued, and something ear-shattering split through the night. It sounded like a building being demolished, the whole world shrieking before falling into complete silence. And then Mariana was falling. She screamed in her mind as she fell, fell, and kept falling, her heart exploding in terror.  But when she landed, it was on something soft. Her bike tumbled onto her legs, battering the already damaged flesh there, tearing at the tender skin behind her knees. She was face down in something soft, her arm twisted under her in a horribly uncomfortable way. Mariana could feel the weight of her backpack slam into the back of her head, pressing her face even more into the soft surface below her. She couldn’t see, and it was getting harder to breathe. “Oh stars, someone get that thing off of her!” It was a male voice, sounding panicked and kind of distant through the fabric of her backpack. Hands grasped at her belongings, detangling her from the straps of her pack and carefully extracting her limbs from the bicycle's grasp. She moaned low in her throat as the weight lifted, but she couldn’t seem to get her arms underneath her body. Breathing labored, Mariana rolled over gasping as she tried to refill her lungs. But the scene before her merely knocked the air from her again. She lay on an oversized, plush couch wrapped in a soft blue fabric. The room around her was massive, filled to the brim with men in long dresses and women laying on blue couches. Two of the robed men were trying desperately to get her bike to stand upright. Mariana stared around her, gasping, sweat dripping down her face as she took in the room. The women nearby looked as startled as she, the men excited. Her heart seemed to come to a complete halt, her whole body freezing over.  “Am I dead?” she asked the closest man. Although Mariana had never been religious, she had at least assumed that in the afterlife, she wouldn’t have a bleeding knee and end up tangled up in her bike.  One of the men close by chuckled a little at her words. “No, my lady. You are not dead. Welcome to Valora.”  Mariana studied this man’s face; it was weathered and lined but with wrinkles caused by smiling. They dove deep into the flesh around his eyes and carved into the soft area around his mouth. Mariana instantly took to him, sensing in him a calmness that she liked. A soul at peace. Mariana smiled back at him without meaning to, her mind overlapping images of this withered old man with those of her beloved maternal grandfather. “What is your name, my lady?” the old man asked, smiling so broadly that his eyes nearly disappeared under the bushes of his eyebrows. “I am called Reece, and I am a priest of Valora.” “Mariana,” she whispered, her eyes falling past the shoulder of the gentle old man and back to the greater room. The women on the couches around her all seemed to be upset, a few of them cowering against the backs of their couches. “What is happening? Where am I?” “This world is called Valora,” the old man answered gently and with infinite patience. “We are a lonely world, and we have called many women from all over the universes to make our world better. You have been brought here to be worshipped and loved.” Mariana gaped at him, her heart twisting in her chest. “Wait a second, this isn’t Earth? I’m in a new world?” Her mind flew through the last memories of riding home, the elevator, the sign, then… Then there was an earthquake.  Mariana must have hit her head pretty hard to have made up a world like this in her dreams. Perhaps she was dying in a coma in a hospital somewhere, her mind making up weird dreams to fill the void. She wondered how long it would take anyone to notice she was missing. “No, my lady. You are not dying, not dead, not on your home planet anymore. We have called you here. I know this is a lot to take in, but I am here to give you whatever you need to adjust to your new life.” It sounded a little like a speech he had practiced, and Reece held out a withered old hand, that smile returning to that open, honest face. Mariana, confused and feeling a little sick, took it, feeling the contrast between the priests’ soft, cool, dry hands and the sweating heat of her own. “I want to go home.” “I believe you will change your mind here, my lady,” Reece said, chuckling. “We are deeply in need of you, and you will find that whatever troubles you had in your world have disappeared in Valora.” Mariana opened her lips a little to protest as the priest pulled her to her feet. Her leg ached, shooting fire up and down her body. She winced, cursed under her breath, the sound whooshing from her lungs. “I know my lady is injured. If you feel you cannot walk, I shall summon a younger acolyte to carry you to the healers.” Reece looked worried his eyes trailing to the long line of blood running from her knee. “I don’t need to be carried,” Mariana snapped, the pain making her short. “I’m sorry, Reece; I shouldn’t have yelled, I just- I would like to walk out on my own. Can we walk slowly?” The other women were already being escorted by all the robed priests from the room, each of them looking just as lost and dazed as Mariana felt. “It is a lot to take in, but I will be here for you every step of the way, my lady.” Reece smiled again, and Mariana couldn’t help smile in return. What a strange dream this was. Reece was silent as they walked together, slowly, taking care not to overextend her leg. They rested often, and other pairs of priests and women walked by. They whispered to one another, the women looking everything from nervous to pleased to scared. Mariana studied the walls as they slid by, covered in glorious artworks. The paintings were intricate and beautiful, each of a different landscape. They didn't look like anything she'd ever seen on Earth. Mariana could feel a million questions bubbling up from her lungs, but she kept silent, focusing instead on putting one foot in front of the other. The pain slowly grew until she could no longer even glance at those immaculate artworks, and kept her eyes locked with her feet. The sweat that had dried on her hair and face returned, slipping down her face as she focused on not limping.  This dream really sucked. Suddenly, a cool breeze slipped across her whole body, and she inhaled deeply. It was much brighter out here, and her eyes took a moment to adjust to the sunlight. Clouds spilled across a perfect blue sky, looking like puffs of pulled sugar. A gasp slipped through her teeth as she glanced up. It was a trick, right? It was because she was so tired. It had to be. She blinked, tried to clear her vision, but the dual suns didn’t disappear. “Two suns?” she whispered, her heart hammering in her chest. “My lady?” Reece asked, his ancient voice drenched with concern. “Are you alright?” “Two suns?” she repeated, louder, looking at Reece. “You weren’t kidding; this is a different world. You- you stole me away? kidn*pped me from my life.” She planted her feet firmly, refusing to take another single step forward. “Why am I here?” “I told you, my lady, you have been brought here to be worshiped. I cannot answer your questions while you are injured; please allow me to bring you to the healer. I cannot in good conscious leave you bleeding for a moment longer.” Mariana swallowed hard. She looked around, watching as the other women marched through the sunlit courtyard. A few of them also appeared to have small scrapes and bruises, and each was being directed towards the building Reece insisted belonged to the healers. She followed, her lips pressed together in a tight line. They completed the walk across the courtyard after more agonizing steps, and Mariana was just about ready to let anyone carry her if it meant getting off of her damned feet. The coolness of the healing building hit Mariana like a blast chiller after the heat of the courtyard, and she gasped. The hallway was well-lit with floor-to-ceiling windows on one wall. The opposite wall was segmented with what looked like makeshift curtains. As Mariana watched, the other women disappeared behind the other curtains, and the dull hum of distant conversation filled the room. Reece pulled one of the curtains to the side. “This is your healer, my lady. Healer Palara, this is the Lady Mariana.” The makeshift room on the other side of the curtain was tiny, half the walls made from hastily hung fabrics that were at odds with the beautiful architecture of the building itself. Palara was a middle-aged man, his peppery gray hair longer than would have been fashionable back on Earth. But, Mariana supposed, this place was not much like Earth at all from what she had seen so far. Mariana felt a terrifying thrill along every nerve in her body. Reece lead her into the curtained room and took a step back. Her throat started to close up a little with fear. “Reece, do not leave.” The old man hesitated. “My lady, there is not much room in this-” “I’m here to be worshiped?” she answered, her hands planting themselves on her hips. “Then you should stay; I will not be left alone here.” The healer looked shocked, and Reece chuckled. “Of course, my lady. I fear for whoever will be housing you in the future.” Mariana blushed. The old man inched his way into the room, closing the curtain behind him with some difficulty. Palara smiled gently at Mariana, and held out his hand to her. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, my lady.” Mariana was expecting a firm handshake from the doctor, but instead, the man bent and kissed her hand, a mere brush of lips against her fingers. He seemed to think it a normal courtesy, but the move shocked her, sending more shivers of fear up and down her spine. Now she was very glad she’d asked Reece to stay; this doctor seemed like the type who thought nothing of touching women he hardly knew. “With your permission,” he said, his hands moving toward Mariana’s injured leg. She nodded, coming to sit in front of the doctor to give her a better view of the cuts and bruises on her body. She took hold of Reece’s hand firmly, feeling the steadiness and warmth of his presence fill the room with calm. “I believe you have severely twisted your ankle,” the healer said, looking over her quickly swelling limb with disinterested eyes. “The movement of your foot is not impeded-” “So it’s not broken,” she whispered, a breath of relief slipping from her. The healer glanced up at her, his gray eyes intense. “Is her ladyship versed in anatomy and healing?” She blushed a little, though she wasn’t sure why. “Yes, I am.” “Well, then. I’m going to wrap these, and we will recommend icing the injury several times a day for less than five minutes at a time." “Any more would damage the tissues,” she nodded. The healer nodded again, looking pleased. “The cuts we can bandage, but I request that you remove your clothing for the rest of the exam.” Mariana’s hands flew up to protect her body. “I’m not injured under my clothing, Palara. I will not remove my clothing.” The two men glanced at one another, the look shared between them one of surprise. “My lady, as you wish of course, but I do believe a change of clothing may be in order. And you will most likely need our help to change and bathe anyway.” Reece said, carefully, his eyes flicking between her shirt and her face. Mariana glanced down, her blush growing. She hadn’t noticed that her t-shirt was torn, splattered with blood from her tumble, and her bike shorts were hardly leaving much to the imagination. She looked entirely out of place sitting next to the two men in immaculate robes, both heavily embroidered and of amazing quality. The clothing in this place was so strange. Just like everything else. Was her mind creative enough to have come up with all of this in a dream, or- No, she didn’t want to think about or. She had to just keep moving through this dream until she woke. What did it matter if a doctor and an old man saw her disrobed? With their help, loads of limping, and a few cries of pain, Mariana managed to slip her way out of her bloodied clothing. She kept on her undergarments and the doctor wrapped her in a soft robe of white cotton. The healer reverently wrapped up her bloodied clothing and put them in a bag, handing it to Reece. “You should come back in the next few days so that I may check on that ankle of yours, my lady.” Palara bowed low as Reece helped her to her feet. “Please let me know if you experience any other symptoms.” She swallowed hard. Just what other health problems did this doctor expect her to experience? She and the other injured women all filtered out of the makeshift tents, all of them with various bandages and wraps around a variety of wounds. They huddled together in the hallway, and the priests directed them back into the courtyard. Mariana was out the door with Reece supporting her and back into the sunlight. “Welcome, new citizens of Valora!” a booming voice filled the courtyard, bouncing off of the stone walls and filling the air. Mariana and all the other women turned almost in unison to the source of it. On a stone dais in the corner of the courtyard stood a young man, his flaxen hair glittering in the sunlight. He was stunningly beautiful, the emerald of his eyes deep-set in his mocha-colored skin. He wore a magnificent outfit, all braided, beaded, and glittering. There was a sort of enthusiasm to him that drew people in, but there was a shadow over him that Mariana instantly distrusted. “I know you all may be confused as to why you are here, but we of Valora wish to welcome you with open arms. I am Regalia, and I will give you a brief introduction to what has happened.” He paused for a moment. “You will undoubtedly have questions, but you will need to ask your sponsor to get answers; there are simply too many of you to answer them all with the completeness you will require. Therefore, briefly, allow me to explain. A tragic accident occurred in Valora two decades ago; every single woman and almost all of our children were killed leaving only about two-thousand men alive. Without hope, we prayed to the God of Wisdom, the great Olec for a solution. We commune closely with our Gods, and Olec did not disappoint us. He brought forth a call to lonely maidens across all the worlds, all the dimensions, and brought you here to help bring balance back to our world. Without this balance, the entire world would crumble.” A buzz of conversation filled the arena, but Regalia continued. “Now, we have chosen high-ranking noblemen to take each of you into their homes until you decide where you wish to live and how you wish to continue your lives here.” Regalia stepped down from the platform, and Mariana’s heart sunk. So, what, she was stuck in this place with thousands of women-less men that were touch-starved? This- this was no dream, she thought, her hands slick with sweat and her knees weak with fear. This was her worst nightmare. She could feel her mouth dry up at the thought of being surrounded by- Mariana could not get enough air and she wobbled uncertainly on her feet. “Lady Mariana!” Reece took a firmer hold of her arm, worry making new lines between his brows. “Are you alright?” “I think I need to sit down.” And she did, right in the middle of the dirt. It was hot and gritty underneath her, and Mariana wrapped her robe a little closer around herself. A dream, a dream, it’s just a dream. Mariana bent her knees up and pressed her forehead to them, unable to slow her breathing. Reece patted the hand he still held, repeating her name over and over again, but it sounded like he was speaking to her through water. Thoughts and blood swirled around in her brain, the world spinning and quivering as she felt herself fall completely into panic. She could never go home, never go home? She was stuck in this dream forever? “My Lady?” a gentle voice filtered through the rushing blood in her ears. Something appeared before her eyes, and she focused on it, blinking uncertainly. “Cold water for you. I- You seem to be-” the voice was calm and hesitant, soft and deep, undeniably masculine. Mariana blinked back tears and looked up. A gentle creature with soft black hair that fell to his shoulders in sleek glowing lines looked down at her, his purple-colored eyes like a cat’s. They were all full of curiosity, but there was kindness in them as well. Mariana swallowed hard. With shaking fingers, she took the water glass from the beautiful man before her, sipping carefully. “Forgive me, my lady, but you do not look well. I would be honored to be your sponsor in this world, to give you a home and a place to lie down until you find your bearings. I can carry you if you wish.” He did not touch her, but his eyes roved over her in a way that made it seem like he was just waiting for her to fall over. She must look even sicker she felt. They all treated her like something fragile, breakable. Like something that was in need of protecting, but also like something that was worth protecting. A warm sort of feeling filled her chest, and the war of all the mixed emotions in her breast made her want to hide. Pressing her face into her hands, Mariana hid her tears from both the men next to her. “Do as you please, so long as Reece remains with me,” she said, her voice muffled in the soft cotton of her sleeves. The man lifted her to her feet as though she weighed nothing at all, and carried her away. She didn’t look up or around, too overwhelmed already with everything that boiled around inside of her chest.