44. Ellowyn
Chapter 44
Ellowyn
M y bare feet snagged over the cracked, dry ground, the crackling in the sky seeming to mirror my mood from when I was awake. The storm that dominated this dreamscape appeared angrier than usual tonight, the normally pensive colors whirled agitatedly in the sky, and lightning periodically cracked from dark cloud to dark cloud.
But still there was no rain.
The ground, if possible, was drier than the last time I visited this place.
It’s a dream, I should be able to make it rain.
But try as I might, I couldn’t mentally affect the dreamscape.
I walked for a few minutes before growing agitated. The landscape never changed, no matter how much I walked, the mountains in the distance never got closer.
I think I’ll just sit .
Eventually Fate would find me. Or Torin. They always did when I was here, and I was tired of walking.
So, I sat. In the middle of the cracked and barren landscape, I sat. Nothing for company—no animals, or plants, no noise aside from the occasional crack of lightning.
It was eerie and my itch to create in this space was almost overbearing.
I had practiced with my powers recently, creating a few landscapes and gardens that even my private tutors were shocked by. Creation Mages were few and far between, so my parents had sent for one from a few territories over to come act as my tutor until I could attend the Academy in Vespera. We were keeping my Destruction Magic a secret, for now, and so my parents only had me trained in the magic the Warlord knew I possessed.
My control was still lacking, though, and I often gave into the demands of my magic. It called to me, spoke to me. Whispered things.
It was like I could feel when a place needed a dose of Creation, and this place was simply radiating with that need.
I sighed as I called the green magic to my palms, a kaleidoscope of colors winking from within the tendrils. The sight of it was calming, and my agitation instantly lessened. I went to push my hand to the ground and thrust my Creation Magic into this space, but halted when I heard a voice—his voice.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”
I whirled, my magic dying as I closed myself to it, to find Torin staring at me.
“We really need to stop meeting like this,” I deadpanned as I shoved to my feet, my nightdress catching on my toes as I stood.
I hastily threw my arms around my chest, trying to block the sight of my nearly sheer gown.
Torin quirked a half-smile at me, his almost blond hair falling into his hazel eyes. It was cut differently than last time, shorter on the sides with longer pieces on top. He was still just as handsome as ever, though.
“I know, Ell,” he admitted softly, his expression and eyes matching his tone. “I’m...sorry it’s always like this and never out there.” He gestured vaguely to the outside world.
I quirked my head at him as the storm raged overhead. “This is my dreamscape. And I haven’t seen you since my Awakening, so I really don’t know why I would call you here.”
He gave me a full, dazzling smile at that. “It’s not actually your dreamscape. Neither is it mine. It’s Fate’s, I think. Or at least that’s what I’ve come to believe.” I cocked my head at him as I thought about it. It really did seem like Fate’s landscape. “And I’m sorry for not visiting recently. Or writing. There’s been . . . some unrest in the South and the Borderlands. I was needed back home to take care of some things.”
I nodded my head absently, still clutching my arms to my chest. I knew better than most about sacrificing for the good of your territory.
“So, this is Fate’s dreamscape, hm?” Torin took a few steps so he was standing next to me, and my breath caught in my throat. He was more beautiful than I remembered, or maybe it just seemed that way, considering I hadn’t seen him in months. Those honey-flecked hazel eyes regarded me with such an intensity that I felt his gaze over every inch of my skin, heat singeing my flesh as his eyes licked over me.
“Yes,” he said as he tucked an errant strand of hair behind my ear before tearing his eyes from my face to look at the mountains. “Over there? I think that’s where the gods live—Fate, Solace, and Kaos, that is, which is why we can’t reach it. We have to be invited. At least that’s what the stories say.”
I nodded, remembering the tales my mother used to read to Peytor and I when we were little.
“If that’s their home, then what is this? And what is with the storm?”
“I’m not sure, to be honest. But I’ve been trying to figure it out for years now. Every night is the same. I wake up here, walk around for a bit, then run into Fate. I can never get any closer and there is never anyone here.” He turned his attention to me again. “Until you, that is.” His gaze was probing, and goosebumps ran down my spine as I unabashedly stared back.
“Same for me,” I whispered. “But the dreams only started recently. Just before my Awakening.”
Torin nodded his head absently. “That seems logical. That’s when they started for me, as well.”
“What does it mean?” I asked as the storm’s intensity grew, spewing tendrils of color from the clouds.
“I’m not sure, but I think we weren’t invited tonight. I think we forced our way inside,” he had to shout the last part over the increasingly volatile storm and winds. The lighting cracked in earnest, escaping the clouds to strike the ground, scorched earth left in its wake.
A bolt suddenly cracked from the sky, landing next to Torin and I, the blast of which sent us both tumbling away from each other. I flew through the air, jarring my head against the dry earth as my body sprawled on the ground.
I searched for Torin in horror, hoping to see he was uninjured. Our gazes met at the same time, the relief etched in his face mirrored my own.
“We need to go, Ell. We’ll meet here again, just give me some more time before you pull me in again. I have a theory, I just need . . .” I could no longer hear his voice over the sounds of the storm, but I nodded my head in earnest .
“I’ll wait, I’ll see you again,” I mouthed as a bright white light encased the dreamscape, throwing me back into my body in Hestin .
I woke fitfully, gasping for air, the smell of charred earth still heavy in my nose and the back of my head still smarting from where I knocked it. The dreamscape felt different, more sentient than ever. And, if what Torin had said was true, it was the entryway to the home of the gods.
I wasn’t entirely sure what to do with that information, just like I wasn’t sure what to do with the fact that Torin could also access the dreamscape.
I laid back on my pillows, gently pulling my magic into my hands.
Why did he not want me to put my magic into the dreamscape?
I fell back into a restless sleep eventually, with more questions than answers on my mind, and no way to access information that would answer those questions.
Unless I called on Fate, that is.