“Do you want to keep going or should we get some lunch?”
The sensual whisper tickles his ears, his brain and sends a shiver through his being. The lingering touches dust over his skin and all he wants is to have more. The person flush up behind him wraps their arms around his waist, keeping him close.
Yet as he opens his eyes and looks over his shoulder, he realizes it’s nothing but his fantasy. A dream that tortures his heart.
In bed with a lover is the opposite of where he is.
Zye groans as he stares up at the ceiling. A hand drags over his face from the embarrassment. Worse yet when he realizes this bed is far bigger than his. A quick glance about reveals he’s in Orion’s bed. From what he can remember, the Mark was still cleaning up his room when he was about to pass back out.
Except there’s no Orion in sight.
A shift to move proves that he’s glad Orion isn’t. He shoves the blankets away with a grumble, “Gotta be fucking kidding me. I’m not a kid. What the hell.”
If anything, he’s glad an attempt to stand up allows him that much. After what happened, he feels okay. Not completely back to normal, but better. Which means his first priority is cleaning up the mess he’s made and finding Orion.
The desire to go back to Earth, Civicus especially, is stronger today than ever before. He knows he shouldn’t even ask. Still, it has a hold on him so tightly that maybe just by talking with Orion he can satiate the curiosity. If Orion is helping, maybe he’d relent and accompany him.
Zye is quick to get clean and changed into his usual; an attire of blacks with dashes of purple. Today he leaves the suspenders dangling down against his legs as he leaves Orion’s chambers to search for him. The first place he thinks of is Celeste’s.
Orion has been spending quite a bit of time up there.
He hears the footsteps on the stairs before he sees them. Why he slips around to hide behind the mirror he’s not sure. Especially when it’s hovering off the ground and if anyone pays attention to their surroundings they’ll sense his presence.
Yet he hides nonetheless.
Zye is glad he does when he hears Celeste’s voice first.
“You’re acting ridiculous. I can’t believe that’s your plan. It’s not right, Orion. You know it, too. You’re…You’re being as stubborn as Charmilla would be.”
“Say what you want but I only brought him here because Hax’s fingerprints were all over him. Once I’m sure he doesn’t pose a threat, we should send him on. He doesn’t belong as an Infernal.”
“That’s cruel, even for you. All of you seem to think you can juggle life in the palm of your hand. I don’t like it— Haru wouldn’t either. Let him decide.”
The thuds of their feet stop for a moment. Zye can see Celeste idle while Orion continues on.
“I’m trying to fix their mess. You’ve seen what they’ve done. Besides, he’s not capable. He wasn’t made for that purpose. He’s a mortal.”
Celeste tilts their gaze down at their feet. “Maybe it’s because we didn’t talk about what happened. We pretended he never existed in the first place. Maybe the powers that are above us are letting this happen for a reason. Maybe he can do it.”
Orion stops only once he’s at the bottom of the stairs. He steps aside as Celeste begins to move again. They’re confident with how their shoulders straighten out and their chin is held high.
“No more secrets and lies, Orion. No more thinking you can control the situation. It’s no wonder you and Hax could never get along. You both behave the same way sometimes.”
Orion allows Celeste to pass him. They continue walking while calling up a portal.
“I have to check on something. But when I get back, we’re sorting this out with all of us once and for all. At this point, I’ve even tried getting in touch with Kerse. Maybe she’ll listen to one of my messages and agree to come.”
Orion glares at their back as they leave. Nothing is going the way he planned and it’s more frustrating than he ever could have thought it’d be. He angrily summons a portal while muttering under his breath, “Damnable mortals…all they do is cause trouble for us.”
From behind the mirror, Zye can’t believe that neither of them sensed him. Or perhaps either or both did and they didn’t care. Regardless, it has Zye slowly retreating from his hiding spot.
Each step toward Ilista’s room has his mind spinning.
Jace.
He needs to know who that is and why they’re important first and foremost. Ilista always dodges the question. Perhaps he’ll just have to ask someone else. She’s the one he trusts the most but if she can’t give any new information, well, he’ll figure out who can.
Someone around here has to know something. Or can help him figure it out.
The door opens a few seconds after he knocks. The Mark that does so dissipates before he can even make it into the room. Not that he minds either way. The only person he needs to talk to is Ilista.
She looks up from where she’s lounging on the couch. A thick, plush blanket is wrapped around her as she seems to be dozing. At the serious expression on his face, she perks up.
“Xerxes is about to be done cleansing if you want to game and relax. I got him whatever that thing is,” she says while gesturing to a television and a table below it off on the other side of the room. Before it is three beanbags, all bright pink.
“I just wanted to let you know if you see Celeste when they get back let me know. I’m sure they’ll come and get me…just…you know.”
Slowly peeling the blanket back, she leans over and tries to get out of it. “It doesn’t look like everything is alright. Come on, tell me. Did Orion do something stupid?”
“Yes. No…I don’t know. You haven’t heard anything about the name Jace have you?”
“No.”
The quick answer has him deflating. He was really hoping she had.
“Then I’ll try asking Celeste. They have more power or influence or maybe just knowledge? This guy has to be out there somewhere. I can’t believe I forgot to mention it to them from the start .”
“Zye, you don’t even know who he is or where. You can’t just—”
“It’s important to me. Vespera said I need to find him. I don’t care who he is, I’ll trust her on that. Obviously, he can’t be human if she knows him.”
He watches as Ilista’s movements slow. Everything about her is precise with how she folds the blanket off of her. It’s sat on the couch and her hair pinned back into pigtails. She’s drawing it out, whatever it is.
Finally, she stands and walks toward where he’s in front of the door. “Are you sure you can trust what she says?”
“Why would Vespera try to get me killed over a name?”
“You barely know her, Zye. And she already did. She kidnapped you and left you in a miserable state.”
“She tried to heal me.”
“That doesn’t negate her wrongs or her intentions.”
Zye shakes his head. “I get you’re worried. I do. But do any of you really know each other? At least I’m trying to give her a chance. She’s not all bad. If she was, you wouldn’t have seen me again.”
“Is it really worth it to find one person?”
“I don’t care who helps me. I…I hate asking for it. But right now I can’t do it on my own and I want it. So if I have to ask Vespera or Celeste I will. Hell, I’d even ask Aster right now.”
Ilista shakes her head and reaches out for him. A touch he recedes from, keeping the distance between them. “It’s not that simple.”
“It can be. I don’t know why all of you make this harder than it should be. I’m a coward, I always ran away from things that hurt me. Everything that hurt me, I tried to destroy.”
“Zye, it’s—”
“Until my mom got worse and then she was gone. Everything I worked toward, and ran away from in the process, was all I had left and it wasn’t worth it. If chasing after this name kills me, fine. But it’s my choice and I want to know. I’m not settling anymore.”
He doesn’t break away from her gaze until she looks down. Ilista heaves a deep sigh. “Fine,” she finally relents. “I…I haven’t been completely honest. And I want you to know I only kept this from you because I don’t know what’s going on and didn’t want you to get hurt.”
“What’s that mean?”
“I love Yue. I trust her completely. Except…he was there at the trade-off. He wasn’t fighting with us. He was against us. A Keeper, just like me, and he wasn’t helping Orion at all.”
“So…from that other place?”
“Solis, yes. I’m sorry I—”
“I don’t care who he is. I’m going to find him and I need to talk to him.”
Clenched fists at her sides, she stomps her foot. “You don’t understand at all. What if you go and it’s a trap for Orion? What if you get hurt or we lose you?”
Zye steps forward. His fingers brush over her arm and the way it trembles. “I’m getting hurt more here anyway. I came to you because I trust you. If I have to do it without you, I will. I was only hoping you’d have my back.”
In the distance, Xerxes slips into the room with a towel mussing about his hair. He’s trying to dry it as best he can. In a pair of loose shorts and a t-shirt, he looks like he’s about to go to bed if nothing else.
He glances between them with the feeling of tension in the air. “What’s going on?”
Ilista exhales out her nose, trying to calm down. “I don’t know him personally. Yue is with Gray. Gray is his right-hand man, his best friend. I’ll…get it set up for you to meet with him.”
“I appreciate that. Thank you. Maybe if you agree to play that game with us I’ll forget that you knew and didn’t tell me while I’ve been losing my mind.”
“I really am sorry. I…I don’t know where he stands no matter if he’s friends with Gray. Not after Gray got hurt from all of this.”
Zye steps back after a light punch to her shoulder. “It’s fine. I get it. Next time trust me enough to tell me and besides, if I find a quicker way, I’m taking it.”
“But—”
“No Zye this or that. I make my life difficult enough on my own. I’ll see you two later.”
He wants to leave it there. It’s better to walk away and shake the frustration out. Better than taking it out on someone. Especially when he knows Ilista means well. Her intentions were golden even if the actions weren’t.
Then again, so did he and he still cut ties with Kass and Shae when he shouldn’t have. Not talking it out only left him with regrets even if they patched things together later. He lost out on so much time he could have spent with them.
What he doesn’t expect is for Xerxes to not only follow him out to the center of Noctis but grab his wrist to make him stop. Turning his attention from the stairs he wants to climb and to Xerxes is painfully easy.
The young man is always a beam of sunshine.
Until he looks up at Zye with eyes full of worry and fear.
“You’re not…leaving are you?”
“Nah, don’t worry about it. I’m just waiting to meet this Jace or whatever. I’m sure most would be happy if he came here anyway.”
“Really?”
Zye is about to reply when he hears footsteps slamming against the stairs coming up from behind the ones going up to Celeste’s room. The depths of darkness part around Vespera as she springs up to the landing.
Her eyes widen at the sight of Zye standing there. Skidding to a stop in front of him, she nearly doubles over. “I’m glad you’re so easy to find.”
“And you’re a sight for sore eyes. I like the hair, by the way. It’s badass.”
Pink brushes beneath her eyes as slaps at his arm. “S-stupid, focus. Why else would I be here?”
“Uh…to cleanse?”
“I can take you to him. We have a safe place but not for long. We have to go now before we have to move locations again.”
“Why didn’t you just bring—”
“You know it’s never that easy. Now come on, I don’t have permission to bring them and all of us can’t go there. It’s too suspicious and we don’t have time.”
Vespera grabs Zye’s other hand and tugs at it. Zye can’t help taking a step toward her until Xerxes keeps his grip on the other hand. A stern shadow over his countenance, Xerxes stares up at Zye.
The silent plea for an answer is given with a smile.
“Stay with Ilista, I’ll be back soon.”
“You can’t do this alone. What if I lose you again? I…I mean…”
“Xerxes, look at me.” Zye smiles at the way Xerxes clutches at his hand a little tighter. “We’re friends, right? And Vessi here is a friend, too. I won’t be going alone.”
“Vessi?” sputters Vespera, dissatisfied with the nickname.
Zye turns back to her. “And you’re sure I can’t—”
“No. No, no, no. I promised I’d only bring you. I can’t risk anyone else coming along in case something goes wrong. The number of energy signatures needs to be kept to a minimum. I’ll send Ilista a message with the location once it happens.”
Vespera careens her neck to nod at Xerxes. “We might need backup. I just don’t know where we’re going yet. Understand?”
A presence appears down Aster’s hallway. She can feel it. That’s one of the two people she doesn’t want to run into. The fact that he’s walking toward where they are has her panicking.
The portal springs up behind Zye.
“Please. Trust me?”
Zye begins to tug his hand from Xerxes. Once he does, he pats Xerxes on the shoulder with a shrug of his own. “I can’t not go, Xer. I have to know.”
“But Ili said she’d handle it, right?”
“And Vessi beat her to the punch.” He nods back to Vespera. “Promise him you’ll send him the coordinates the second we’re there. Everyone at that.”
“I promise.” She moves closer to the portal, tugging Zye with her. “I’ll protect him with my life. Just…please tell her not to go to that location until I give the signal.”
“I…I promise.”
Zye lets Vespera pull him. “You know I’d take you if I could. But it might be dangerous and she’d have my head. So stay and protect her too, alright?’
“The hell is going on over there? Why are you back up here?”
Aster’s voice has Vespera clinging to Zye with all her life. She’s halfway through when she yanks at him again. “Zye, please.”
Xerxes steps between the two of them and Aster, who is steadily approaching. He’s picking up into a jog just as Vespera and Zye vanish through the portal.
The only problem is they come out on the roof of a mall. Sunlight streams down through wispy clouds. It has Vespera groaning.
“Dammit! I missed because of that jerk.”
“Huh? Missed?”
“Aster, he…I was worried he’d stop us. I lost the connection and messed up. We’re close and should be fine…I know where it is even without being able to track it.”
“Then lead the way, I can keep up.”
Vespera nods and sprints for the edge of the roof. Zye follows her as best he can. From the top of the mall to the ground is a hard hit to take. Even with Orion’s power, the shock to his knees hurts.
Not to mention when they cross over a few streets and she leads him back to the rooftops. She gestures wide with one arm, “We’re almost there. Two more blocks over.”
The second she turns her attention back to the forefront, she comes to a dead halt. It has Zye stumbling to not get closer. Especially not when he sees who is in front of her.
Vespera doesn’t seem too concerned. She summons her sickles and runs at the man. At least, she intends to until a gust of wind knocks her to the side.
It gives Zye a perfect view of the last man he wanted to ever see again. A smile curls across his sharp features to the point where blue and green eyes squint.
“There you are beautiful! Where have you been hiding, hm?”
“Fu…fuck. Daichi?”
Zye takes a step back at the sight of Daichi moving forward. He’s not sure what he’s feeling. The hurricane of emotions is swirling so fast that he can’t process the fear, panic, or even the fact that he’s here.
“Did you miss me? I know you did. What a stupid question. We have so much to catch up on and now we have all the time in the world!”
Vespera slings herself between them once more, both sickles held out in a defensive position. “Back off.”
“The hell are you getting in my way for?”
“I’ll kill you if I have to. Zye, back me up?”
He’s not sure why she asks until he feels it as they close in behind him. The senses he’s been trying to train feel weak. If anything, he guesses right that there are three of them when he turns around.
Except he expects Nether.
Before him are people just like him. At least, they look to be. Parts of their body and faces are ashen and stone-like in appearance. Wherever it is, blue veins weave throughout it like cracks.
Zye summons his sword and already he can feel it. The power won’t extend. It won’t manifest as a second one. It won’t even shimmer into a shield around his body.
“The hell is going on?”
Defense isn’t something he’s used to anyway.
All he knows is to rush forward and try to catch these three off guard the best he can. One has a spear, another a bow, and the last doesn’t seem to have anything at all. The unarmed person is who he lurches for first.
Behind him, Vespera is slicing her sickles through the air in an effort to get closer. She wants to do just as she was told— cut that cord. It’ll limit his attacks if she can manage that much. Getting in a few cheap shots on him helps her ego to keep going.
Daichi laughs and sidesteps her after taking a deep cut to his arm. “I just knew I saw you. Camping out this world because of a tip really paid off.” The lighthearted attitude shifts into a glare in her direction. He sends out a blast of air against her sickles. “I already phoned in backup too, think you can handle it?”
Nicks and scrapes snag on Zye’s legs and arms as he moves between these three. They don’t seem very coherent and working together is impossible. Still, he finds it hard to keep up.
He feels sluggish.
The sword is heavy.
Knocking the hilt against the side of the head of one and the neck of the other, he focuses on the last person. They run at him with a yell. Zye waits for the last second to use their momentum against them. He dismisses his sword to instead place the man in a headlock.
They struggle only for a moment before he lets them go. Zye kicks at their back to make them stumble off the side of the roof. Summoning his sword, he spins back to go help Vespera.
A tingle of energy makes itself known. Enough for him to swing back around, intending to slice down whoever is behind him.
At the last second, the enemy dodges.
His wrist is grabbed, twisted, and he can’t help letting go of the sword. Dismissing it is his first thought. It’s just not fast enough.
Hot pain pours through his senses at an overwhelming pace. He looks down to see the blade now in the hands of his enemy as it cuts into his side. The only thing he can think of is to shove himself away.
Doing so has the tip of the blade carving up to the hem of his shirt, ripping into it and his skin. It’s still better than what would have happened if he didn’t. Stumbling, he clutches at the wound and the blood dripping into his waistband.
Daichi is one thing.
The person standing before him is worse.
“Soren?”
“How kind of you to remember me.” Soren tosses the sword to the ground as it vanishes. “What do we have here? A lost kitten?”
“Who the hell are you?”
“Everyone seems to be after you. But…I don’t see anything special. Yet you don’t seem to be able to stay dead. Should I help you with that?”
Vespera knocks Daichi’s weapon away and kicks at his chest. The distance allows her to partially turn to Zye.
“Run! He’s too dangerous for you!”
Move. Walk. Run.
It all sounds like a plan he should be following. A single step back is all he manages. His gut screams for him to do more. His brain struggles to keep Soren talking in hopes that he can stall and think of something.
He can’t leave Vespera here.
“You’re lucky I like being able to take care of two birds with one stone.”
Soren chuckles at that. “I think the same. Taking you and Celeste’s little tag-along out is too perfect.” He gestures to where Daichi and her lock blades. “I don’t know what everyone sees in that pathetic Celestial. I was with them for quite some time and never saw anything particularly wonderful.”
The words do their job. They irritate Zye, sure. Behind him, however, Vespera is distracted— infuriated.
She slices across Daichi’s chest and kicks off the ground to go for Soren next. As she does, she stops mid-step with the cord around one of her wrists. She’s yanked backward and into the small blade stabbing into her back.
“Vespera!”
Zye summons his sword only to realize he can’t take his eyes off Soren. Except he needs to— Vespera’s shield is fizzling and the next hit could be fatal. He draws his sword back into existence, intending to bring it down on the man lunging at him.
Soren is unarmed. It should be easy.
Unfortunately, he’s there one second and to the side of him the next. The confusion is enough to allow Soren to knock the sword from Zye’s hand all over again. Not that he plans to go down without a fight.
Zye grabs onto Soren’s jacket, clinging to it even as he’s shoved to the ground. A knee slams into his chest to keep him still.
Not that it does.
Reaching for the sword in front of him on the rooftop only has Soren standing up. A heel grinds down against Zye’s hand. Yet he refuses to scream in the slightest. He bites the inside of his cheek until he can taste the blood.
Soren scoops the weapon up, surprised that Zye won’t dismiss it. He levels it over where he’s sure Zye’s core would be. All the while he watches Daichi shove Vespera off the roof and come running over like a man possessed.
“I can’t wait for Hax to find out I killed his little toy, finally.”
At the last second, Daichi knocks Soren’s arm so that the blade stabs to the side, closer to his shoulder.
“What the fuck are you doing, Soren?”
“Cleaning up your mess.”
“You…no. You promised me!” Daichi glares at him and brings his weapons up as if he’s determined to fight for this.
A sigh slips from Soren’s lips as he tosses the sword away. Instead, he grabs for Daichi’s chin. Drawing him close, he glares at the brunet. “You can keep him for now. If someone comes and I say to, you kill him. I’ll be there shortly to figure out what to do with him. Understood?”
“Ye…yes, sir.”
“And you say?”
“Thank you, sir. I couldn’t be more grateful.”
Soren lets him go and wipes his hands across his coat. “Then get that piece of trash out of here before I change my mind. I’ll see if I can track that little star to see where she’ll crawl off to since you can’t finish anything I assign you to.”
Daichi doesn’t move until Soren has hopped down to find Vespera. Once he has, Daichi squats down to help Zye sit up. It’s all well and good until Zye is on his feet.
Bloody and weary, yes. Wanting to go with Daichi? No.
He pushes away from Daichi, “S-stay away from me.”
“It’s alright. I’m sure I can fix whatever they did. And we’re even going back to Civicus!”
Zye shakes his head yet can’t pull away from the arm wrapping around his waist. No more than he can shove the hand away before fingers dig against the wound in his side.
The shout that leaves him is one Daichi shushes. “It’s okay, calm down. I won’t let him hurt you again.”
“Let. Me. Go!”
The power he’s so used to pushing out to shield his body won’t come. The pain is making him woozy. However, the thought of going anywhere with Daichi gives him enough adrenaline to push away one final time.
He stares at the way orange drips from Daichi’s fingers. Panting hard, Zye brings his hands in front of himself. His mind screams for his sword, for this power he’s been allowed to borrow.
A portal opens behind him. Daichi steps forward, hands raised defensively.
“Just be good and go through the portal. We can talk once you’re healed, okay?”
Zye shakes his head. He knows he won’t make it far but if he can just get a little bit of distance, it’d be a start. The second he goes to step to the right, Daichi is racing at him. The palms of the brunet’s hands slam against his chest and send him staggering backward.
Right through the portal.
Off the rooftop and into a living room he knows all too well. Staggering to a stop, Zye gathers his bearings fast.
Zye kicks the coffee table aside and rushes around the portal. Behind it should be the front door. He’s twisting the doorknob when one of Daichi’s arrowheads wedges into the wood. It’s perfectly done so that he can’t open the door unless he pries it out first.
Spinning back around, Zye keeps his back to the wall while he summons his sword. He’s surprised it flickers into his grasp. Thankful more than anything when both his hands grip the hilt and it doesn’t fade away.
The portal is gone and all he’s left with is this house and Daichi. He used to spend so much time here that he knows how to get out. He’s had to slip out in the middle of the night so many times. He knows he can do it now. He just needs to get some distance.
Daichi sighs, “Put the sword down, Zye. You shouldn’t point that at someone you love.”
Zye grinds his teeth together and holds steady. Chest heaving, he waits patiently for Daichi to make the next move.
When Daichi moves forward, Zye is bolting to the side as best he can. The pain is something that has his nerves fraying at the seams. The fear is the only thing that encourages him to slash through the space between them and go around the back of the couch.
Daichi frowns at this. He calls his weapon back into his hands. “Don’t make me use force. I don’t want to hurt you.”
“You already did!”
“That was Soren, I wasn’t a part of that!”
Zye doesn’t let that deter him. Two minutes ago isn’t what he’s talking about. Daichi hurt him plenty in the past. A toxic relationship with a man he didn’t realize was broken in ways he can’t help. It’s something— someone— he can’t get near again.
The sword is steady despite his trembling hands.
Another cut through the air parries Daichi’s arrowheads away. A shallow rip etches through the back of the couch. Daichi’s only concern is closing the distance between them.
Even if it means he slings one end of the cord to cut across Zye’s leg. Not that the latter pays it any attention. The adrenaline is the only thing keeping him from collapsing. He knows he’s losing too much blood.
If he doesn’t keep going, he’s aware he’s done in at least one or two ways.
The cord swings and Zye takes the chance in slicing it in two. It falls apart with both sides dropping to the ground at his feet. Anger, Zye knows it coming.
“Again?”
The quiet, distraught rage is not what he imagined.
The wind swirls around Daichi’s feet and steadily rises up to his knees. Zye can only move further back. He doesn’t know what Daichi can do— he’s not like fighting Ilista. Two arms flail, sending the currents to Zye.
The latter can only dodge around the side of the couch. Something that gets knocked over the next second. It crashes into the coffee table, cracking it in half, as Daichi stands before him.
“Put the sword down, Zye. You’re bleeding. You have no way to project a shield. It’s your fault if you get hurt.”
Lifting his blade in defiance is foolish.
It speckles out of existence right before his eyes.
Zye glances between his hands and Daichi’s eyes. He’s not sure if Daichi thinks he did that on his own or not. He realizes quickly that it doesn’t matter.
Scooting across the ground, he tries to increase the distance before Daichi is upon him.
He kicks at the legs getting too close.
Wind knocks them away. He can’t so much as touch Daichi.
Shoving himself to his feet does little.
A gust slams against his chest and sends him onto his back.
Daichi sits over his waist and leans forward. Two hands wrap around his throat to trigger the last surge of energy in his body.
His fist collides with the side of Daichi’s face. Even with blood dripping from his nose, Daichi continues to squeeze his fingers tighter.
Zye kicks his knees up, knocking them against Daichi’s butt to try and get him to shift enough to be moved. His arms have already given up. Heavy and unbearable to lift, he settles for scratching at the hands that can’t truly suffocate him.
Air isn’t the issue.
It’s the dread settling into him that is the greatest blow.
He knows he’s screwed.
He’s stuck here with Daichi and he can’t get away. He can’t call for anyone and no one knows where he is.
When he stops moving, Daichi lets go. A sad smile curls across his lips as he cups one hand to Zye’s cheek. Zye can’t pull away, he can’t flinch or make a noise. He can only look anywhere but the face staring down at him.
“See, was that so hard?”
ns 15.158.61.53da2
