Divinitas

038 - The Wind and the Rain

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Only two words circled in Phoenix\'s mind as he raceck ack as fast as he could towards the castle, heartbeat like a humming bird\'s, fluttering in his chest, threatening to burst.

He\'s stalling.

Phoenix\'s heart ached. With fear, with exhaustion. But his mind only whispered those two words continuously, a sanity eroding mantra.

\'Why would Aether stall?!\' Phoenix wanted to scream, both his and Solar Flare\'s breath ragged, the horse\'s hoof beats like thunder. \'Why would he fucking throw himself off a cliff to stall?!\' His skin was frozen by the wind and rain, his flaming hair now matted to his scalp and the colour of oxygen deprived blood.

Solar Flare burst out of the scrub, splashing into the raging river without hesitation. What had once been a calm clear stream was now a torrent of brown derby strewn water. The tall stallion was forced to almost swim across the divide, the strong current driving them tens of meters down stream before they reached the other side.

Night\'s darkness had covered the dreary landscape when the trees gave out to water logged paddocks. Phoenix could hardly feel his hands, so cold and bloodless they were, clutching Solar Flare\'s wet reins as if it were a precious lifeline.

Most of the class had already returned and had gone back to the castle, opting to dry off and eat some decent food than wait for the last of the groups to return. In fact, only Phoenix\'s group and Casi had remained behind, along with the instructor.

Chima dashed out from under the shelter of the stables as soon as he sighted the black stallion and rider materialise through the torrents of rain, catching Solar Flare\'s bridle to halt and clam the tall horse. Phoenix was leaning heavily on the stallion\'s neck, pale from the cold, exhaustion and fear.

\"Aether… fucking fell off the cliff at the lookout…\" Phoenix breathed out, dull crimson eyes looking into worried emerald ones. \"I couldn\'t get to him… And he wasn\'t moving. We have to go back…\"

The younger boy bit his lip, pulling Phoenix down off his horse, their bodies falling and landing on the muddy ground. He just couldn\'t move. All his limbs felt like cold marble. He could barely feel the cold mud on his back or the heavy droplets of rain that fell into his eyes from the leaden sky.

Footsteps slashing through puddles sounded the arrival of the others, and Draco quickly took charge, ordering Gryps and Ari to pick Phoenix up and for Chima to tell their instructor what had happened.

The twins carried Phoenix into the stables, setting him down on the bales of straw and throwing a thick blanket around his shivering form whilst they waited from their instructor to arrive. Casi dashed up to Phoenix as soon as he was settled on the straw, dropping down onto her knees by his side.

\"What happened?\" she demanded, serious and pale, her aqua eyes dark and staring relentlessly up into Phoenix\'s. \"Where is Aether and Shiro Tsuki?\"

\"I don\'t know what happened…\" Phoenix frowned, shaking his head, a look of pain passing over his near white face. \"Aether took off to the lookout, so I went after the stupid idiot. He looked sick already then, like he would faint or something. When I finally caught up with him, he was already at the lookout, standing at the edge of the rock piece… He asked out of the blue if I had made up my mind not to become the Child of Fire, and when I said yes, he just smiled and said we would go home then. I turned around… And there was this huge blot of lightning and thunder. Both the horses started. Shiro Tsuki took off. When I turned back around to check on Aether… He just wasn\'t there anymore. I don\'t know how he fell off the lookout. Maybe Shiro Tsuki jerking her reins out of his hand unbalanced him or something… I just don\'t know. Just… when I got to the edge of the lookout and looked down, he was lying on his back on the rocks several meters below. I tried calling out to him, but he didn\'t respond at all… I tired getting to him, but there was no way down by foot and I didn\'t have any ropes or equipment.\"

A look a fury and disgust disfigured Casi\'s usually sweet face. In the blink of an eye, she had slapped Phoenix heatedly across his numb face, reddening it and making it smart painfully. Phoenix could only stare at her incredulously, shocked at her action. \"If anything happens to him… If he\'s hurt… It\'s your fault!\" she accused, eyes flashing with tears.

The ache in Phoenix\'s heart at hearing those words forced him to sink back onto the straw bales, eyes squeezing shut, even as his mind argued that it couldn\'t have been his fault, that he had tried everything possible to get to him. It sounded weak and unjustifiable. An immature excuse.

You should have protected Aether… It\'s your duty to keep him safe.

Even if it is from himself.

The arrival of their instructor promoted Draco to relate the situation to him. Upon the conclusion of his report, the instructor said gravely it would be impossible to send anyone out to him in this weather. Even if they called for a helicopter, there was no way they could reach Aether safely in this wind.

Casi burst into tears on hearing this. \"You have to bring him back!\" she cried, still on her knees besides Phoenix. \"You have to bring that stupid, stupid, obsessive idiot back!\"

The group of boys didn\'t know how to react from such an outburst from Casi, even if they could understand the reason for her actions. Ari awkwardly touched her shoulder, trying to let her know they were still there for her. Immediately the young girl buried herself in his arms, letting her tears soak into Ari\'s already drenched clothing.

\"Draco, take everyone back to the castle and clean yourselves up. There\'s nothing more you can do here. I will notify the proper authorities and we\'ll launch a rescue team as soon as it\'s possible to do so,\" their instructor said, pulling out his mobile phone.

Phoenix stood up and caught his hand, preventing the instructor from dialling. \"No. By the time they get to him, it\'ll be too late. Aether is our responsibility. We will save him, somehow,\" Phoenix interrupted fiercely, forcing the obvious signs of fatigue and fear from his demeanour. Casi was right. If anything happened to Aether, it would be his fault, and he could never forgive himself for it. It didn\'t help anyone for him to be frozen with fear and guilt or confusion.

\"Phoenix… There really is no way to cross that river right now…\" Chima spoke up in a quiet voice, his hyperactive nature smothered by the grave situation.

\"I\'ll fucking swim across then! Damn it, Aether is my boyfriend! I\'m not going to leave him to die up there! We can get to him if we had the right equipment!\" Phoenix burst out, his whole frame ing ing with anger and frustration.

Gryps tore his jealous eyes away from Ari holding Casi\'s fragile frame, fixing his gaze on Phoenix and then on Draco. He caught the latter\'s eyes and gestured for him to speak with him privately. The raven haired boy slipped away as Phoenix relentlessly started searching for ropes and blankets, anything that would help with his self devised operation. Chima reluctantly helped whilst their instructor looked at a loss as to what do to with his headstrong students.

\"You know who you are, don\'t you,\" Gryps began, getting straight to the point as soon as both he and Draco were out of ear shot. He waited for Draco to slowly nod his head before continuing. \"And you know of my elemental powers already. We can stop the storm and slow the river enough to cross it if we work together.\"

Draco frowned in confusion. \"Both your brother and Aether have alluded to my being the true Child of Water. Whilst that might be feasible, I do not have any elemental powers such as you do. As much as I desire to help Phoenix rescue Aether, I can see no way in which I can be of help to you.\"

Gryps forced himself not to roll his eyes. \"Lympha, for all your intellectual intelligence, you miss the most obvious things. You, like Incendium, who chooses not to acknowledge his destiny, have the elemental powers sleeping in you. I\'m not asking you to use them directly. I\'m asking you to trust me and to let me use your power through you. Air and Water compliment each other, especially when dealing with weather phenomenon.\"

\"How do you know this will work?\" Draco questioned. \"And why do you want to help Aether?\"

Gryps smirked. \"You feel it too, don\'t you? The intense sense of duty towards protecting the Child of Soul? As for knowing whether it will work or not, I have no experience to say it will. It\'s merely instinct. But I\'m sure you\'re willing to play the odds to help Incendium, so you will trust me, won\'t you?\" the silver haired boy questioned rhetorically, letting his thin lips curve up in a knowing smile.

Draco steeled his sapphire gaze. \"Even if I agree, do you really think our instructor would allow us to mount such an insane scheme?\"

The silver haired boy gave a bitter laugh. \"Whether he does or not, nothing will prevent Incendium from rushing head long into it. Besides… Aether practically runs this school, doesn\'t he? And according to the Legend of Genesis, we are his protectors. I\'m sure he won\'t mind us ignoring the order of our instructor to go save his sorry ass.\"

The sudden commotion caused by Phoenix shoving their instructor away for trying to prevent him leaving left little doubt on Draco\'s mind the credibility of Gryps\' words. Chima dashed after Phoenix out into the heavy downpour, shoving a bundle of equipment into his bag. Yuki bounded out from where he had been hiding, falling in step with Chima.

\"We\'re going with them,\" Gryps said without room for argument, walking past Ari who was still awkwardly comforting Casi. \"It\'s probably best if you took Casimir back up to the castle. We\'ll return with the Child of Soul as soon as possible. Alert the hospital wing of the situation.\"

Chima brought out four fresh mounts, the coats on the horses quickly darkening as the rain ran through them. The rescue party mounted and set off, ignoring the angry protests and threats of punishment from their instructor.

The destined Child of Earth led the way, Yuki bounding ahead, a near invisible streak of grey through the darkness. The waterproof torches the group carried with them did little to cut through the gloom. When the reached the raging river, they were met with a roaring body of inky black that churned and boiled, threatening to swallow anyone and anything that dared try and cross it.

Again and again Phoenix tried to make his horse dive into the river until the horse reared and nearly unseated him. The other three students had stopped at the edge, examining the grim situation. Gryps dismounted after a few moments, signalling to Draco that he should do the same.

\"Stand behind me and place your arms over mine,\" Gryps ordered, standing to face the wild river. Draco complied without question, threading his fingers over Gryps\' delicate hands. On instinct, Draco closed his eyes and relaxed, letting his arms be moved by Gryps\' will.

The storm suddenly ceased its onslaught, the buffeting winds dying, causing the air to become stagnant. Phoenix barely noticed, seeing only that the water levels of the river were dropping rapidly, and urged his horse forward relentlessly. This time his mount complied, splashing into the icy cold waters. Chima followed without hesitation, Yuki swimming out behind the pair.

Draco disengaged from Gryps, feeling light headed and drained. The silver haired boy turned around and caught Draco as he stumbled, preventing him from falling.

\"Perhaps you should wait here until we get back,\" Gryps said quietly, holding the older boy up against his rain soaked body.

The rave haired boy rested his head on Gryps shoulder, wet hands clutching the wet material of Gryps\' shirt for stability. \"No, I\'ll be fine,\" Draco whispered back, even as he felt as if he would faint without Gryps holding him up. He just felt so… Exhausted. But they had to go. He couldn\'t afford to be weak right now. Pushing him off Gryps who almost reluctantly released him, Draco remounted his horse and set off across the calmed river.

Gryps stared after Draco with slight surprise before shaking it from his mind and following him. Yes, he wasn\'t use to people trusting him. Not after the past two years of his life. But letting such a small show of unconditional trust affect him was not acceptable, especially in this situation.

The lookout was silent and still when the group reached it. Phoenix quickly dismounted and grabbed a coil of rope before proceeding to the edge. The flaming haired boy dropped onto the ground, peering over below. The path of his light swept the rocks below until they caught the figure of Aether lying still as a corpse.

Without thinking, the fiery boy shoved the light into Chima\'s hands and tied the rope to a thick tree trunk. He threw the other end over the edge and immediately began scaling down, the fear of falling or hurting himself the furthest from his mind. He jumped down the final two meters, landing in a crouch besides Aether\'s passive form.

Upon landing though, the automated actions that had carried him thus far abandoned him. A great deal of uncertainty grasped Phoenix, making him reach out like a child towards Aether\'s milky wrist.

Touching it was like touching ice. But underneath the coldness there was the faintest beat of life, weak but constant. Hesitantly Phoenix ran his hands over Aether\'s still limbs, lingering for a moment on his emotionless face. There was no blood anywhere, no sign of any wounds or broken bones.

Chima scrambled down from the lookout, another rope slung over his shoulder and a bundled blanket in his farm.arm. The younger boy glanced at Phoenix who was still staring motionless at Aether\'s face before making a sling out of the blanket and tying it to the end of the rope.

\"Phoenix,\" the younger boy called out softly, as if almost afraid to rruprrupt Phoenix\'s in depth examination of Aether\'s face that more resembled a mask of death. \"We have to get Aether back up to the lookout… Do you think it\'s safe to move him?\" he asked cautiously, holding out the makeshift sling.

Scarlet eyes tore themselves away from Aether\'s face, looking eerie in the torch light filtering down from above. Without making a reply, Phoenix took the sling from Chima and lifted Aether\'s upper half so he could pull it over his head and under his arms. There was an unspoken message in Phoenix\'s gaze. Whether it was safe or not to move him, they had to. Somehow, time mattered here.

It took both Gryps and Draco, as well as one of the horses, to pull Aether\'s unconscious body back up to the top of the rock piece. As soon as Phoenix and Chima had climbed back up, the group began their return journey. There was no argument when Phoenix said he would double with Aether, riding behind the golden haired boy on his mount.

When the group finally turned to the castle in the early hours of Monday morning, the nurse from the hospital wing was there to meet them, taking Aether from Phoenix whilst being both thankful for their safely and scolding them for their rash course of action. Their Equestrian Skills instructor was still awake and waiting for them, giving all four boys detentions for ignoring his orders.

Whilst Draco looked slightly shocked and disbelieving, Phoenix barely acknowledged, eyes locked on the closed door to the hospital wing. Everything inside of him was muddled and confused. But of all the mixed emotions that twisted like a whirlwind inside of him, relief was not among them.



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High above the returning students and horses, the Principal watch their progress from a castle window. A slight frown marred his shadowed features. \"Aether, your courses of action become more and more ruled by your obsession with that boy.\"

\"You\'re referring to the soul binding in the past and now this?\" Aether\'s voice wondered from behind the Principal. \"Hardly… I did this to ensure Phoenix would become the Child of Fire and take possession of his elemental weapon. Since completing the soul bind is now… undesirable, this is the next best choice.\"

The Principal smiled grimly. \"Perhaps. But you were risking a lot, weren\'t you? Weakening your body enough to let your soul be released. Had your precious Sacred Bird of Fire and his companions not brought your vessel back before sunrise, it would have broken the link with Genesis and rendered it mortal. And that would have put a rather large kink in both our plans.\"

Aether\'s bodiless laughter filled the empty corridor where the Principal stood, seemingly alone. \"Do have a little more faith in me, Principal. I would never allow such a thing to happen…\"

\"I am assuming you will not even tell Casimir or Ari about your current… condition?\"

\"You\'ve assumed correctly, Principal…\"

\"Your sister will be worried sick over you.\"

Aether seemed to smile. \"I know. But I can hardly trust her not to tell the others out of spite for upsetting her. And as for Ari… He would no doubt taunt his other half with the information… Something I would not be too grateful for, considering his current frame of mind… Now, if you will excuse me, I have several things to prepare for the Trials next week. Please do me a favour and do not allow our overly mothering nurse to remove my unconscious body from Genesis.\"

The older man smirked. \"Of course. As I said before, that would be an inconvenience to both of us, wouldn\'t it, if you were to become a mere mortal.\"

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