[IMPORTANT NOTICE]
after great and extensive consideration under the effects of ketamine and cannabis it has come to my attention that Umbra is actually GIANT
like, 20ft 10in tall giant. and crimson is 8ft 6in.
revisions are currently pending, but this chapter incorporates that change
[RESUME!!!]
I'm right back where I started.
Umbra has taken me in just like before, and has taken care of me over the past few days as I pass through them in a confused daze. Never does she leave my side or immediate periphery, and most of our time is spent nuzzled together in her bed, although she does bring me along whenever she goes about her business. It seems she's busier than she was last time, and on the rare occasion that I'm awake, lucid, and aware, I've been seeing behind the scenes of her organization. It's much more legitimate than I ever could have anticipated.
I don't pay much attention. I'm simply here. With her bloodred tail wrapped tightly around my waist, my much longer lead dangling from her fingers, and my new black soft leather collar about my neck, I know I'm not going anywhere far from her.
I don't want to. I want to be kept on my leash.
I want to be her pet. I want to be hers.
I want to be Wretched. But she won't let me.
Carrying me in one arm as she strolls through the grand hallways of her enormous underground palace, she takes me away from yet another council session that I seem to have slept through. Her huge hand curled around my lower body is my seat, her arm is my backrest, and I'm tucked in and held close to her side. Additionally, her rose petal wing shields me from behind. It is a blissful and healing sanctuary I've found myself in. I feel safe.
She makes me feel safe.
How strange an inversion…
Once we reach her private wing of the palace–that chasm I was brought out of the dungeon into–she takes flight and brings us both over the glowing mushrooms and bountiful pools and radiant crystals to the cathedral structure on the far side. Finally, we end up in her dining hall, just the two of us.
With me seated on her lap, we share a supper of various grilled meats. I don't pay much attention to what she's feeding me. I don't particularly care what I'm eating. I don't particularly care about anything anymore. My heart is bled dry, and no amount of sutures will ever repair it.
From behind and above me, her free hand holds me by the middle and presses my back against her front as she speaks in her usual hushed hissing whisper. "My rose. My lovely rose… My Crimson. Won't you speak with me? I worry… And I fear… I fear that you might become more lost… Adrift… In your silence…"
I haven't spoken a word since I fell.
I have nothing left to say anymore.
But I don't want to make her worry.
"Yes," I croak. Speaking is a touch painful. "I'll… I'll speak."
"Ahh…" Her airy moan falls upon my ears. "Thank you… Please, little rose. I wish to know… What did they do to you? Up there… So far away…"
"They ruined me. Killed me, in all but a literal sense. They destroyed everything I loved. My home. My castle. My animals… And then Vitalius told me it was insignificant…"
She hums a light sound, hugging me closer and placing a goblet of wine to my lips. As I drink it with abandon, Umbra mutters, "There is nothing more significant… Than the loss of loved ones… How dare he? That poxy pretender… One day, my rose… I will bring you his head for that."
Some wine dribbles down my neck as I choke out, "He's already dead."
"Hm?" With a sudden lurch, she curls up over me and extends her black tongue to lap up the wine from my body. With that, she strokes her thumb across my cheek, brushing my hair behind my ear with a claw. "Dead? Vitalius? How? By whose hand?"
"Mine," I exhale, relishing the ghost of her tongue on my skin. "By my dorsalblade. And my red lightning. That blasted pretender is no more."
Her lips part slightly, blind eyes looking through me from above. "You… You slayed him? Vitalius? On your own?"
"Yes. In less than ten seconds." I reach for our plate and grab a chunk of fatty meat to furiously gnash on, the sheer hatred resurging. "That sycophant was expecting a clash, but I don't fight fair. I fight to survive. All it took was one swift maneuver. One slash of the tail. One bolt of lightning. Yes, Vitalius is dead, Umbra. I took his life myself."
"I… can hardly…" She sits motionless for a moment before refilling our goblet. "My little rose. I apologize… I fail to see how that's possible. You are fast and mighty. But… his magic was uniquely potent…"
"As is mine."
"You… You told me… Average."
"I lied to you." More meat to rip into. "Of course I did. I was wary. If you knew, I feared you would use me. Or turn me Wretched right then and there. No, for whatever reason, the women of my family have a remarkable knack for electrical magic. It's a family secret, really. Kept quiet so people underestimate us."
"I'm… amazed. But… Vitalius had the advantage of experience."
"Perhaps in terms of time. But I had the advantage of intensity and repetition. Careful, constant, focused practice. I trained myself, by myself, for myself. Every single day since I was an adolescent. Always in secret. And yet people love to call me lazy. I'm just tired from training."
"I never… could've guessed."
"That's why I'm so strong. That's why I'm so fast. That's why my magic is so potent." After drinking more wine by her hand, I exhale a sigh. "But that ancient quetzal… My entire life, he did nothing but lay there at the altar. Far from his prime. Which is why I'm not all that triumphant about this. All I did was kill an old man who never stood a chance in the first place. But he deserved what he got. Perhaps even worse. Regardless, thank you, Umbra, for offering to help me. I… I need… someone at my back. Right now…"
"Here I am. Quite literally." She feeds me a strip of smoked salmon, resting her hands across my front. "And after?"
"After?" A short dry laugh leaps out. "She didn't smite me right away, so I demolished the Cathedral. The whole thing. Set it on fire. Knocked out the supports. Brought the roof down. Only when the sky opened up did she hit me."
"How ironic… She abstained to preserve the building. But it was destroyed regardless…" Umbra hums as she pours more wine down my throat. "How did it feel? To be struck. To be smited. To fall from grace…"
"It burned like nothing I've ever suffered before. That pain has seared itself into my memory forevermore. I will never forget it. I can never forget it. However…" I stand up in the chair, turning around to face her and wrap my arms around her neck. I know she can't see me, but I still look her in the eyes. "You… Umbra. You caught me. Even after the horrendous way I left you, still you were there to help me. To save me. To take me in like this. To treat my burns, and wipe away my tears, and see to my care. Why? Why are you doing this? For me?"
"Yes," she whispers, milky eyes wide as they look through me, and her hands gently take hold of my hips and waist. "For you. Crimson. My darling little rose."
"But… Why? I was so nasty to you. I fought against you. I hated you. All those things I said to you the day you let me go…"
"I had a feeling you would come back to me someday." She continues touching me, feeling my body. "And I never held any of it against you. All that you've ever known about me… It was distorted through them. Through her."
"That doesn't excuse it. I'm sorry, Umbra. I was wrong to cast such vitriol at you. My knowledge of you was tampered with. And I was deathly afraid of you. I lashed out because of that. And I'm sorry."
"Ahh. My rose…" She leans forward to kiss the top of my head. "Please. Don't fret. You've done no wrong. There's nothing you need to apologize for."
"No. No. I never should've believed any of those lies about you. And after meeting you, after you were so fucking kind to me, I should've listened to what you had to say. Your side of things. Hells, but it all makes sense now. They lied to me. To us. About everything! Most of all, you. And that's not fair. It isn't fair…"
She embraces me, holding me to her chest within her arms. "Crimson… Crimson. I need to tell you. You ought to know. Whatever they may say about me up there… Not all of it is untrue."
"What do you mean?" I hold her face, both hands on her soft cheeks. There's sadness in her expression, and my heart sinks at the sight of it. "Umbra? Which parts are true?"
"We're at war. She and I. We have been for thousands of years. Violence, carnage, brutality, destruction… they're inherent to both sides. Mine and hers. And between the two of us… Well… It would be a lie to say my heart isn't any more cruel than hers. I am far more callous. I am anything but merciful. I have a ruthless, vicious, frigid fury in me. The only thing is… I'm honest. I make no attempts to hide it. You were not wrong to be afraid of me. You would not be wrong to condemn me for my actions, even though I'm harboring you."
Scowling in thought, I let my horns fall against her chest. "I'm listening."
She takes a deep breath, playing with my hair. "I'm telling you this now, Crimson. In no uncertain terms. I am not a good person. I am wretched. My warpath is lined with corpses and bones, and it does not end until I am standing over Aurora's grave. I will not stop. I will not surrender. I will not retreat. Until vengeance is mine, I am going to fight. And I am going to fight my way. If you wish to continue staying with me, you need to be aware of that fact. If you prefer, I can protect you from the details, but I will not deceive you regarding my methods. Do you understand what I've just told you, Crimson?"
I cling to her. "Yes. I do. I understand."
She holds me tighter. "I will never hurt you. Others, yes, terribly. But not you. Never you. I like you. I enjoy you. And I will protect you. Always."
"There isn't a doubt in my mind." This time, I brush her black hair behind her ear. "I'll need more time to… To understand you. But I want to. And I want to know the truth of it all. The whole story. What happened that drove you to this cruelty. Once I do… Who knows? Maybe I'll fight alongside you."
There, she smiles a little brighter. "I would like that. And we've plenty of time to speak of these things. In detail. I'll tell you everything, Crimson. Ask me anything you want to know."
Holding onto her shoulders, I steal a look slightly downward.
It goes unnoticed, of course. I'm quite subtle.
Up until the moment I'm not.
"Do you want me, Umbra?"
Her eyes widen and she perks up. "Hm?"
"Do you want me? If so… In what way?"
"Ahh…" Her lips curl. "In every way, Crimsy."
Now I'm smiling. And blushing. "Crimsy, you say?"
"Yes. I like it. It's cute. And so are you…"
My chest flutters. Hells. "Th–Thanks… Umbsy?"
"If you want me to have my way with you, say that again."
"That again."
"Sss! You know what I meant."
"I just had to, Umbsy, it was–Mmph!"
She kisses me and flattens me out on the table.
It seems my body is served for dessert!