Zodiac Academy 8: Sorrow and Starlight
Sorrow and Starlight: Chapter 20

Exhaustion held me tight in its fist, but I didn’t care, it no longer mattered because I’d made it! A cloud hung ahead of me at last, the final leaves from my nummy pouch and drops of water from my flask lining my groaning stomach, gifting me a touch of magic for my escape.

I had been a dead man, whispering my farewells to the stars and beyond as I awaited my end, expecting the small spark holding me aloft to gutter out soon and mark my descent into the awaiting probes of the creatures below.

But my salvation had crested the horizon and the dark rain cloud there called me forth with a wry grin and promise of freedom. In the depths of those clouds, I could lose them, hide myself from deadly probes and live to fight another day once I made it to some distant safe haven.

I kicked my legs as if I was running through the air itself, then hastily tightened the straps around me, hard enough to make my skin tingle with pins and needles, but I ignored the sensation and leaned towards that cloud with determination.

A wild laugh spilled from me as the first tendrils of grey brushed against me, and I cast one final look down at the Nymphs who had been chasing me, shaking my fist at them and calling out.

“There’ll be no feasting on my flames tonight you blaggards! So take that and stuff it up your jumper!”

My cheeks flushed pink at the foul words as they escaped my lips, but there it was, the brute in me awoken and set free for all the world to see.

The wind picked up at my back and I swept forward quickly, pushing a touch more magic into the flame above my head so the hot air made me rise into the belly of the cloud, lost to the Nymphs below and safe at long last.

Water droplets formed on my cheeks as they condensed against my skin and I opened my mouth wide, licking at the air itself to gain myself a drink.

It had been a long, hard week. But here I was, Justin Masters, Master of the Nymphs and now Captain Cloud Cruiser too. Perhaps someone would write a bard about my daring escape upon my return. Perhaps my dear Grussy would be the one to weave the sonnet.

Something in my chest constricted as I gave that some real thought, my mind returning to that blood-soaked battlefield, my queen throwing me aloft and remaining to fight alone after all others around us were lost.

It had seemed so hopeless, but I had seen the fire burning in her eyes, seen the fury and determination, and I couldn’t believe that such ferocious power could have guttered out.

My queens were out there somewhere. And I would return to them just as soon as I made it beyond this cloud and found a way back to civilisation.

The first hour within the belly of the cloud passed quickly enough, my thirst eventually sated by the droplets of rain I’d managed to steal from it and my clothes slowly soaking through until even my bones felt heavy with the cold.

But even that couldn’t dampen my mood. No sir-ee.

Two more hours dragged on, the shivers wracking my body intensifying to the point of pain, my teeth chattering and clattering like they were playing a tune all of their own until finally, I had to give in.

I took a steadying breath and banished the flame which had been burning above my head for so long, keeping me aloft and alive within this parachute of salvation while I drifted hopelessly above a sea of death.

I began to descend instantly, my parachute buffeted by the wind which had been guiding the cloud across the sky and pushing me north.

The thick layer of cloud thinned out below me, the ground calling my name as I dropped lower and lower, the last of my energy fleeing as I held on to consciousness by pure force of will. Perhaps I might replace a warm bed to rest upon once I landed. Perhaps some kind Fae would offer aid to a fellow fresh from war and in need of some charitable resilience.

I dipped beneath the cloud at last, drawing in a breath through my still-chattering teeth and looking out at the lush green landscape below.

I had travelled over a forest during my time within the cloud, a mountain looming in the distance which drew my eye.

I knew that mountain, had studied it in foraging club and even taken a trip out to it on a grub gathering expedition with my forage chums. There were ruins there of an old temple dedicated to the worship of the planets and beyond. Mount Lyra.

I could replace shelter there, perhaps replace some scrummy lichen for food and rest a while before setting out on my quest to return to my queens.

At last, my luck was changing, and just in time too now that my magic had well and truly gone and my return to the ground was inevitable.

But just as I began to give in to the sweet and wholesome call of the earth beneath me, my toes passed beyond the outskirts of the forest and a screech straight from my nightmares sent a spike of terror coursing through my heart like a spear.

No.

My eyes widened in horror as I looked down and found the Nymphs pouring from beneath the trees at my feet, their wild cries and violent desires colouring the air around me until I was choking on it.

I didn’t know if they had somehow been able to keep track of me through the cloud cover, had followed the direction of the wind or had simply made a lucky guess, but it mattered not now.

I was totally out of magic, not even a snuff of it left to ignite a flame to carry me skyward once more. I had nothing left. Nothing but guts and gusto, and as I dragged my eyes from them towards that mountainside once again, I found myself diving into those parts of me.

It seemed as if I was destiny-bound to face this path. And if that was the case, then I would do so upon two feet with my sword in hand.

I reached up and tugged on the vine securing the righthand side of the parachute above me, forcing the thing to turn me towards those ruins where Fae of old had worshipped the sun in all its glory. It was as good a place as any for a final stand, and with a bit of luck, I could replace myself a narrow spot to place my feet and force them to face me one at a time.

I had no illusions about the way my fate would turn in the face of so many foes, but I would aim to take as many of them as I could into the after with me.

The Nymphs yowled in hungry victory again and I darn near soiled my britches.

So this was it. Destiny had come calling for my soul. What a dastardly end to endure.