by JK Ensley
This is their Life Celebration, she thought. It’s not so different as the ones we have back in Tamar Broden. Perhaps all races have their own sort of healing festival. It’s good… it is a blessed thing indeed.
Jenevier made her way out of the now joyous dome and sat on the edge of the marbled landing. She was listening to the laughter behind her, watching her feet swing back and forth as they dangled high above the treetops, when there was a strange, yet undeniable pull within her heart. She looked around, but everyone was still inside. No one had noticed her departure and no one had followed her.
She felt it again. This time it was as a beckoning voice. She gently slid from the landing, spread her wings, and let the wind carry her to the hot springs.
She was sitting by the little pool she and Varick had bathed in so many times, when his reflection stood next to hers.
Jenevier closed her eyes and whispered. “If you are a vision, please… do not disappear. Let my mind play upon this path a while longer for I shall not live through losing you twice.”
“I am not a vision, Anicee. I came because there is something extremely important I wish you to know.”
She slowly turned and beheld her majestic Guardian standing there in all his glory. She lunged for him, felt her arms tighten around his flawless form.
“How is it you’re here?” Her words were muffled against his chest. “I care not. Just promise me now you will stay, always.”
He rubbed her curls and kissed the top of her head. “My most beautiful Anicee, would that I could stay with you always. Alas, I am blessed with but a moment upon this plane. Look at me. Let me see those most magical of all eyes.”
She wiped the blinding tears away and looked to the owner of her fragile heart.
“That’s better.” His beautiful lips turned up at the corners. “You’re so much lovelier when you smile. I wish you only to smile now so I may take that image on with me.”
She sniffed. “Where are you going? Where are you now?”
“In another place, my love. But that matters not. I have something of great import to tell you.” He stroked the side of her face, outlining the edge of her sapphire scar. “You don’t belong in this city, Anicee. I was wrong to make you stay. There is yet much you must do. Your path is a long one, tiny Angel.” He smiled lovingly down at her. “Mother was not blessed with a vision of you after you were taken from us, because you were exactly where you were meant to be. Heed Munenori in all things, in all he says, in all he shows you. He is a wise Angel and your dear friend, whether he’ll admit it aloud or not. So love him always, Naga.” He kissed her forehead. “You will be a great ruler one day. But first, you must set things to rights within the universe. Do not hide here, Empress. You will only bring these noble people harm if you stay. This isn’t your home. You were made for grander things.” His arms tightened around her. “I must go now. My time has reached its end. Do not mourn for me, Anicee. I am preparing a place for you to join me one day. There is much I have yet to do. Remember this, Empress of Jinn.” He twirled one of her curls around his finger. “Live long, love your Daichi, and never ever try to sacrifice your life again. You are much too valuable to waste. Great things yet await you, and many races will prosper or fall because of you. Make good choices, Kagi Naga. And never forget how much I love you.” He kissed her as he began to fade. “I’ll be waiting for you, Anicee. I still hold all the pieces of your shattered heart. I long for the day I can return them to you, make you whole in my arms once more.”
And with that, he was gone.
*****
Daichi found her curled up by the springs—despondent, crumbling. He was furious from worry. But he couldn’t force himself to wake her once he’d found her safely sleeping, still within the city.
“We will have these words tomorrow, Milady,” he whispered as he carried her to her old domicile.
He spent the better part of that night sitting by her, or gently rocking her, as he continually snatched tiny pieces of her soul and carefully wove them back together.
Why did you leave the dome, my Angel? What could have pulled you from your family? Whatever it was has left you shattered. I give thanks I found you in time. Otherwise, I would have to spend eternity chasing down all the tiny pieces of you scattered throughout the universe.
After that, they spent many days in Vanahirdem. Daichi didn’t leave her side for a moment, while Tenshi was out having fun exploring the wonders of the holy city. He’d become rather attached to Vareen and she sensed a great power of intuition within the docile blue son of her tiny daughter-in-law.
“I would like to see what you’re capable of, Angel. Perhaps you and I can work together concerning this mess we must now see to.”
“I’d like that very much, revered mother, but only if you promise to call me Tenshi. The way you people say Angel feels more like an insult.”
“Apologies, my son. It was not meant as such, especially in your regard. You remind me so much of your mother when she first came here. She was so full of wonder and life.”
Vareen fell silent and looked down. Tenshi noticed her tears but thought it would be too rude to pry.
She sniffed. “We took that away from her. Did she tell you? We took that beautiful, innocent soul and tore it to shreds.” She released a sarcastic laugh. “And then we condemned her for not being who she once was, for not holding on to the part of herself that was worth saving.”
“She never said the words, no. But I knew, all the same.” Tenshi stared out the window, a troubled shadow falling over his countenance. “I can see Mama’s mind. I know what happened. She doesn’t realize it herself, though. She only believes you all did what you had to do. She accepted it and holds no ill toward anyone… save herself.”
“Yes. I can see what you say is true. She is blind where we’re concerned. She thinks too much of us.”
“She loves you too much, yes.”
Vareen let out a soft laugh. “Yes, my son. Your mother loves us too much. As is her way.”
“Has she ever truly hated anyone?” Tenshi mused. “I know she has felt hate. But she dismisses it so easily.” But then he remembered her dreams of the night she was forced by Emperor Musashi. Yes, there was at least one man she truly hated, he thought.
“Such is your mother, Tenshi. How is it we can sit here and find fault in the most glorious trait imaginable? If the universe contained a few more souls like hers, we would all be blessed.”
Tenshi laughed sardonically. “Or be destroyed completely. Can you imagine such a thing? Being destroyed by too much love.”
“Such is your mother,” she whispered.
They sat in silence, drinking their tea and staring into the past.
*****
Jenevier stretched her arms and arched her back. She felt sore, bruised inside and out.
“Ah, Naga. You rise from the darkness.” Daichi mussed her curls as he teased her.
“I felt you there the whole time.” She kissed the palm of his hand. “Gratitude, Daichi. I need you too much.”
“That is as it should be, my lovely Empress.” He smiled at her before going to put on the water for her tea.
Tenshi gently pinched her toe, drawing her gaze down to where he sat near her feet.
“Mama, what will I do when you leave me? I’ve never slept without you by my side. I do not think sleeping alone will be a very enjoyable thing.”
“When you say childish things such as that, Tenshi, your mother should give you a good thrashing,” Daichi yelled back from the kitchen. “You are no longer a babe she needs to swaddle through the night.”
“Daichi, please don’t speak that way to your brother,” Jenevier scolded. “It rips little holes in my heart.”
Tenshi snatched her up in his arms and held her on his lap. “I’ll miss you so much, Mama.”
“I’ll miss you too, dear one. More than you will ever know.” She played with his beautiful blue hair. “But this is where you belong right now. This is what
you must do. My brothers won’t go easy on you.” She kissed his cheek. “Yet you will be all the more glorious because of it.”
“I cannot believe my elder brother cries to his mother over such as this.” Daichi snorted as he plopped down on the lounge beside them. “This is a grand adventure, Brother. Can you not taste it? My wings tingle at the very thought.”
“I want to go back to Jinn,” Tenshi whispered. “I want to live in our secret valley and swim under the waterfall.”
“You want to go back to your little raven-haired Mika and play footsie,” Daichi taunted. “Now’s the time to spread your wings. Learn to be the mighty Angel you were born to be.”
Jenevier only smiled at them. “Have there ever been two more different creatures?”
Tenshi turned quickly, looking toward the door.
“Be at ease, my son. It is only Vareen who approaches.”
The soft knock came soon after her words.
“Enter, Mother,” she called out.
Vareen, as elegant and graceful as before, swept into their home. Jenevier rose to greet her.
After exchanging pleasantries, the revered seer turned toward Tenshi and held out her hand. “Come, my lovely blue Angel. We have much to do. The time has come for your training. Valadrog awaits you at the dome.”
Jenevier lightly touched the woman’s arm. But the ancient Vanir already knew the heavy words within her tender young heart—words now racing through her tormented mind, unable to find a voice.
“Fear not, tiny Empress. I shall treat him as if he were mine own son. He could be in no more loving hands. I give you my word.”
“Namaste,” Jenevier said with a bow.
“And to you, little Angel.” Vareen returned in-kind.
When they had kissed farewell and left her home, Jenevier felt somehow diminished.
Daichi softly cleared his throat. “We need to talk, you and I.”
She turned toward him and knowingly inclined her head. “Yes, I suppose we do. Shall I make the tea?”
He followed her into the kitchen. Anxiety and trepidation churned in the air between them.
“Did Munenori explain to you properly who I am?”
“He did,” she whispered, a foreboding darkness filling her mind.
“I wish I could have been there with you, Naga. I can only imagine the pain your heart must have felt.”
Jenevier most definitely did not want to walk down the path she must now take. All whom she loved and trusted told her this was the right way to go. Yet every cell of her being was screaming about the wrongness of it.
“How is it you can weave my essence back together?” she asked.
“I know not. It was born within me.” He carefully pulled her hair back from her shoulder. “Father knows you well,” he whispered, placing a tender kiss on the side of her neck.
She flinched and pulled away from him. “Daichi, what do you think you’re doing?”
“What I was made to do.”
She turned to face him. “Well, never do it again. This feels wrong. How am I ever supposed to accept this?”
“Apologies, Naga. I did not mean to make you uncomfortable.” His cheeks flushed and he looked away. “It felt like the most natural thing in the world to me,” he mumbled.
Her heart ached. This was the first time she had ever hurt his feelings. The first time she had seen such pain cross his brow. It left a bitter taste in her mouth.
“Daichi.” She reached for his hand. “I want to understand. I need to understand.” She turned his chin back toward her, forcing him to meet her apologetic gaze. “How is this so easy for you, my Angel?”
“I have known since the day of my birth. Nay, since the day I was placed within you.” He pressed closer to her. “You spoke with me the whole time, Milady. Tenshi was too shy to say anything until nearer the end.”
“It was always you?”
“Always.”
He ran his fingertips over her collarbone. She drew back as if he’d burned her.
He smiled knowingly and caressed her soft cheek. “You only recoil because you have not been given the chance to know me for the Angel I am, and not the boy you took me for.” He slid his hand into her hair, pulling her ever closer. “I plan on changing that, Naga. I must show you who I truly am.”
“Daichi, please. Now’s not the time.” She trembled in his arms. “I cannot do this.”
“You cannot do this… or you cannot do this with me?” His breath was hot against her neck as he spoke.
Her voice quivered. “Both.”
“Were you not told I was your Blessing, the gift meant to complete you?” he whispered into her ear, lightly kissing her there.
“I-I was.”
She jumped and very nearly panicked when his hand slid up from her waist, gently caressing her back.
“And were you not told you must accept your Blessing?” His lips traced the curve of her jaw line.
The words God had spoken to her when He blessed her with her glorious weapons, echoed through her racing mind… And now, you must accept the Blessing I have already bestowed upon you.
“Y-yes,” she whispered.
Daichi’s soft lips found hers, but she turned her head.
He smiled, taking her chin in his hand. “If you will but let me show you, Naga, it will all be made clear.” He rubbed his nose across her cheek. “There are some things words simply cannot describe.”
She closed her eyes in resignation. A single tear trickled down to her chin. He caught it with his tongue, causing those tiny little lightning bolts to shoot through her veins. She remembered when his touch had elicited this same response, back when he healed her troubled mind before she left with Munenori.
He lightly kissed the corner of her mouth. The sensation caused her breath to catch, her back to arch. Chaotic electricity ruled her, unbidden. Yet it was there. His labored breathing now matched hers.
She heard Varick’s voice in her head… It’s not the wrapper, but the treasure within that’s precious.
When their lips finally met… she felt it in her soul first, and then her heart.
She lost herself in him, melted against him. She wound her fingers through his hair, held him ever closer. Jenevier wasn’t certain if they left the corporeal realm, or if it only felt as if their souls took flight. She understood the truth of it now. Her heart finally accepted what her mind already knew.
This Angel was not of her. This Angel was for her.
Daichi’s gentle kiss pulled everything into place. It opened her mind. Freed her soul of any lingering guilt, any remaining doubt. This special kiss lit a fire deep within her. A fire that burned hotter than she thought possible. He sensed it as well. Everything about them was connecting, weaving together what they, twain, would become. This internal bond surpassed even that most glorious blending she’d shared with Apollyon. Nothing could compare to what was now between these two unique Angels. They were as the same person, no longer individually distinguishable. It wasn’t as if one started where the other stopped, no. It was more akin to the sensation that they flowed along together, naturally, ceaselessly. With no beginning and no end… an infinite celestial unification.
With great effort, Daichi broke their embrace. “Be calm now, Milady. This day is not meant for that,” he rasped. “My intent was only to open your eyes and your beautiful heart to my true purpose, nothing more. I had to show you I was made specifically for you, to complete you. I knew no other way than to simply kiss you, Empress. Kiss you and let our essences decree where our words had failed. We will not be joined this day, Milady. Not in that way.”
She balled his tunic up in her fist, pulling him back to her. “You open my eyes to my glorious future, to my very own blessed destiny, and then withdraw?”
His chest heaved with labored breaths, he could barely answer her. “If we continue, harm will be wrought where only bliss should reign.”
She spread her wings, lifting herself up to match his great height. He
gasped when she took his beautiful face in her hands, gently tilting his head back.
She licked him from his collarbone to his ear. “This… this is who you truly are?”
The growl rumbled deep in his chest, like thunder. He snatched her from the air. “You have tasted the truth of your Blessing, Kagi Naga. Heaven rejoices, but not as much as I.”
Her heart and mind warred within her. “You were my son but a few short weeks ago. How is it, with but a kiss, I now desire you more than breath in my lungs?”
He smiled. “Be at ease, Naga. Our bond is not forged with the flesh.” He chuckled softly. “Could your delicate spirit even handle such a thing? No, our connection is akin to utopia. An addicting euphoria, yes, but an addiction sated by touch alone.” He gently lifted her chin. “Besides, I’m not certain your tender heart will ever be strong enough to accept me as a man, Little Fire. Especially so soon after—”
She placed her finger to his lips, ceasing his words. “Do not heal me and destroy me in the same breath.”
“It is not possible for me to destroy you, Milady. I was created to heal only.”
Jenevier fought with the strange desire this extraordinary Angel had awakened within her with but a single enchanted kiss, a desire that threatened to abolish all her better senses. The indescribable adulation his touch elicited was truly a magical thing, the rarest kind of magic. Utopia was too small a word to encompass the whole of it. With great effort, she finally regained control—centered her trembling soul and took a deep breath.
When next she opened her eyes, Daichi was staring at her, admiring her. She had never seen this look in his eyes before. It went past love, past adoration. It bordered on awe.
“You are so beautiful, Naga. I am the blessed one.” He lightly kissed her again.
“You mustn’t do that, Daichi. I cannot think clearly when your lips are upon mine.” Her breathing was erratic and her heartbeat followed suit. “I lose all sense of self.”