Golden Dawn

|Chapter 37 ~ Statera|

There was dust and fire everywhere. A horrible scene of complete annihilation and destruction that stretched out before us like a decaying carcass. The storm above still raged on as if it was furious.

I stared up at the sky.

I got the slight suspicion it was not nearly as evil as it was several hours before. The tempest was now only a normal storm, no ominous hatred embedded into each bolt of lightning that shattered across the sky.

I tried to move and winched.

There was a pounding ache in my back and it made me grit my teeth with each small movement I made. When I surveyed the rest of my body, I found I was not nearly as wounded as I previously thought one would be after destroying an entire mountain. Sure - my skin suffered nasty cuts and bruises that made odd purple bumps over my body - but the most troubling was the consistent tremors that traveled through my spine.

Next to me, Jacob sat up from underneath a thick layer of dust and rock. He coughed as he wiped away dirt and shattered glass from his face. There were lacerations and deep cuts all over his body, especially across his head. Dried blood covered his entire forehead, crusted and slick with sweat thanks to the slight rise of temperature in the valley. There was a far-off look in his eyes as he surveyed our surroundings.

I followed his gaze and almost entirely forgot about the horrible pain in my spine.

Shards of electric blue and black lay scattered across the entire valley, shimmering and blazing in the morning rays of sun that managed to travel pass the dark storm clouds above. It was actually beautiful in its own terrifying way, a grim reminder of what we had to face the night before. There was no sign of the Ertheon except for an exceptional large hill of boulders and rocks. Behind us, sharp glass spires penetrated the heavens above - the only remains of the mountain we had destroyed. The shards looked dangerous and alien, still fatal to the touch.

"Damn it all! We have a problem!" The voice that belonged to Quîncîn yelled.

I jerked my head in the direction of the Lesphares - just to notice the rest of our group slowly recovering from the battle.

Everything was a blur.

How we managed to destroy the mountain. How I managed to save Ferîan and why we were able to fly so fast without the Ertheon turning our innards into mesh. I couldn't remember what happened after we narrowly dodged the rockfall nor how we managed to survive the gallons of falling shards. At that moment the only emotion I could somehow muster was that of utter relief. Grateful that - for the moment - my friends and I were at least out of harms way.

Well everyone except Ferîan.

My mouth tasted bitter.

The Lepshares was so still that for a moment I firmly believed he must have been frozen by his Northern-kissed powers. His skin was more ashen than any snow I had ever seen and lips, so dark they looked surreal against the white hue of his flesh. Golden ichor drenched his entire body - the body that Quîncîn was currently huddled over - desperately trying to stop the wound from further leaking.

The swearing Lepshares was the most wounded second to Ferîan. His beige wings were skewered and torn like cloth, his tanned skin cut in so many places that his flesh appeared shredded. There was a darkness in his eyes as he tried to close Ferîan's chest, the wound appearing more fatal by the minute.

Before I could blink, Angelus kneeled next to Ferîan.

The Defender looked utterly striking as always. His skin was peppered with bruises, skin golden with blood I suspected was not just his own. Dark crimson eyes were covered by a curtain of silky onyx hair and his entire being, rigid with concentration. Even though I oddly wished to see Angelus' expression, I somehow knew it would only cause me more harm than good.