Elona Bound: Part 10
----- Alignment of Stars -----
From behind, Ember approached the woman, taking a few moments to admire her. Demitra's shoulders glistened in the moonlight, her skin a radiant bronze. Her auburn hair hang midway down her exposed back, touching a small knot which held on her top. She stared upwards and, while not being able to see such, Ember knew her emerald eyes were sparkling. The woman was breathtaking! She laid down, her legs exposed and for the first time, Ember could see a stained pattern of design flowing their length. Ember involuntarily heated up while staring at down her feature, but upon realizing this, she attempted to interrupt her own discomfort by making her presence known.
A familiar feeling washed over Demitra, her empathic powers picking up the arrival of someone she'd grown to think of as a friend. A shuffle of her feet and a clearing of Ember's throat confirmed the identity.
Demitra continued staring at the sky, but grinned. "The stars… they are where they should be."
Ember looked up and blinked. "Do they… Are they known to move?" she asked, perplexed.
"They did when I was in your homeland. They looked so very different there."
Ember looked back down to Demitra, still confused. "You've been to Ebonhawk?"
Demitra brushed her hair back. Feeling the woman's confusion made her giggle. "I meant Tyria as a whole, my dear Ember," she explained. Standing, she dusted off a bit of sand from her dress, finally turning from the view.
Immediately her attention was drawn to Ember's arm, which rested in a sling. Her clothes were dirty, her hair a bit unkempt. Demitra's expression was worrisome as she reached out, was about to touch the woman, then recoiled. She'd noted the woman's aversion to touch, and while all she wanted to do was coddle her friend, she practiced restraint out of respect.
"What… What happened?"
Ember glanced down at her bound arm. She hadn't considered this news to be alarming. "That? Oh, it's nothing. I find a good campfire, and I'll be fine."
"Relax. I heal quick." Ember stated, as Demitra approached the her, carefully inspecting but not touching. Her concern was… unexpected.
The Elonian scrutinized a few more minutes, then looked up at Ember. It was clear she didn't drop the concern, but attempted a nonchalant shrug. "Relax? I… I am relaxed. I am not… not relaxed. I am not concerned," she struggled with the lie.
Ember pursed her lips slightly, with a small shake of her head. "Anyway," she singsonged her disbelief then changed the subject. "Are you enjoying being home?"
Demitra gestered to the stars overlooking the bay. "You tell me: Have you seen a more majestic display of beauty?" she asked in awe, her emerald eyes glimmering.
Looking up, Ember made a half smile and considered. "I used to watch stars in my nest growing up. It's nice."
Demitra could feel the warmth of Ember's words, then she paused to consider the word. "Nest? I am uncertain this word translates well… You mean your house, yes?"
"Oh, I had a house, but I slept with the drakes, in a nest," she stated matter-of-factly. It all seemed perfectly understandable to her.
A laugh suddenly erupted from Demitra, at what she perceived to be a joke.
Ember cast a sidelong glance to the woman. "What?" she asked with a bit of irritation in her voice. This was not the reaction she expected.
Demitra paused, raised a scrupulous eyebrow at the woman, then a moment later her face flushed. She hadn't meant to insult the woman; was immediately ashamed and embarrassed she had laughed. "I am… I am sorry, Ember. This… This is no joke? You were raised… by drakes?" She treaded lightly, attempting to navigate the subject without being rude.
"I mean, people were there… eventually. I'm assuming that's weird to you?" Ember glowed and rubbed the back of her neck, but from a mix of anger and embarrassment, Demitra couldn't tell.
Apologetically, Demitra explained. "I… I meant no disrespect, Ember. It was simply unexpected news; if this makes you who I see before me, then it is not weird! Unusual, to be sure," she smiled warmly, invitingly. "It makes you even more intriguing to me."
Ember cleared her throat, flushing red. Her eyes suddenly found the ground interesting. "My house is famous for drakes. So I bonded with them easily," she offered softly.
"I suppose such familial drakes would be easier to talk to, indeed."
"They are!" Ember perked up. "Drakes are pretty easy to read, if you know how. When they'd nest too close to towns, someone like me would go in and help! They're so much easier to communicate with than people."
Demitra nodded, then raised an eyebrow at a question. "Curiosity abounds: Why were you raised in the drake nest, rather than with your own kind? Was this by choice?"
Ember frowned. "Uh… See, I'm cursed. So father didn't want anyone in the house to interact with me. One night, I was locked outside, and Ramoth dragged me to her nest," she laughed.
"I see. So, in a way, this drake, Ramoth, saved you! (Given what you've said about your father.)"
Ember nodded solemnly, fondly at the thought of the drake.
Demitra glided over to a small pool on the flat-topped roof of the ziggurat, in which they occupied. A part of Amnoon's water filtration system, the waters would flow up to the pyramid's roof, flowing freely through the pools, which extracted contaminants before exporting the clean water out. The desert heat assisted in the process to an extent only those attuned to water truly understood, but the result was a thing that many residing in Amnoon knew: the ziggurat was a refreshing place to dip one's feet.
This goal in mind, Demitra removed her shoes, then looked over her shoulder with an alluring smile. "Join me?" she asked.
Ember looked warily at the water, still standing a few feet back. "I… uh… I'll watch," she said hesitantly.
Demitra dipped her toes in the water, splashed around a few times. She turned to regard the woman strangely. "You do not like exposing your feet? Or you do not like the company?" She hoped for the prior.
"I do not mix well with water, but… I… I love the company," she said bashfully.
Demitra smiled thick full lips. "As do I. And I must say, I am elated the desert suits you so well, with obvious excepetion." She gestured to the woman's arm.
"I wasn't expecting Forged to be so close," she uttered shamefully.
Demitra bent down to splash some water on her face, while she felt Ember's anxiety. "You went looking for them, did you not?" she asked bluntly.
"What?" Ember was taken aback, her cheeks flush with the accusation. "Of… Of course not!"
The Elonian came to stand beside the woman, her knowledgeable gaze almost penetrating. Ember blushed, her cheeks as red as her eyes. Demitra always seemed to know what the she was thinking, and while she'd started to realize it, Ember was never quite ready for the woman's forthrightness.
"Truthfully?" Demitra whispered as she returned her sandals to her feet.
"I… I felt… called. Then I hurt my arm when Cinder was scared by the Forged," she mumbled the words.
"Cinder?"
Ember grinned. "My raptor!"
Demitra giggled. "A perfect name, indeed for your flamelander!"
"It's a talent," she exclaimed as she watched the woman pull her dress up, wringing the water it had collected. Embers eyes traveled and her cheeks darkened as a small whisk of smoke found its way from her head. "It's good to see you happy again though," she murmured, embarrassed at giving the compliment.
"This attraction you felt…" Demitra began as Ember awkwardly shifted. She paused at the woman's reaction, purposefully let it linger a bit, and smiled flirtatiously at her before correcting herself. "I mean, the attraction you felt to the Forged," she explained. "You say you were being called?"
"Oh… Oh!" Ember realized she mistook the statement and grew redder. "That was… I just felt I needed to go."
Demitra tilted her head to the site, looking over the white-haired woman. "This was the same attraction you felt, as you did when we fought the Herold?"
Ember scowled. "That Herald and her god aren't worthy enough to lick my boots!"
"Perhaps not. But I… felt… the pull you had to the being of fire and metal."
Ember averted her eyes. "I… I don't know what you mean," she murmured.
A solemn nod came from Demitra. She knew additional questioning would be met with evasion. "Apologies for my presumptions; sometimes these abilities aren't completely honed in," she lied.
"He betrayed us, you know," Ember spat.
Demitra took in a breath, looked at the horizon as the sun began to rise. The blanket of night was being slowly dissolved, retreating for another day. "I never had such use for gods. Under the oppression of the Scourge of Vabbi, I rarely had time to think of much else."
Ember followed the woman's gaze to the miraculous horizon. "He was supposed to save me," she confessed. "Instead, he made me like this." Her head plumed smoke. "So, I am going to use it to kill him."
"While a betrayer to you… and to most people, Balthazar is but a story from a childhood I was denied. Thus, he means nothing to me."
Ember's red eyes reflected the sunrise, lighting up from her own internal flame and ambitions. "I'll be a better god than him! I'll wage war on this Palawa Joke!"
"Joko. His name is Palawa Jo…" Demitra suddenly burst into laughter. "Your jokes are, indeed, amusing!" Demitra tried to catch her breath.
"Yes my… jokes," Ember conceded. She honestly hadn't meant to make the mistake, but so enjoyed the woman's laugh.
Demitra stared at the woman, her complexion illuminated by the rising sun. She seemed to spring to life as the rays hit her, and her presence truly made her happy. "I am glad we are companions, Ember Drakenfist," she said, not realizing she'd said the full name.
Ember nodded, smiling genuinely. "I'm glad I met you, too."
Demitra raised an eyebrow at the woman, beamed a flirtatious smile at her. "Where are you staying, Ember? Here in Amnoon?"
"Around. I was in the town we saved: the raptors needed help, and I sort of have a way with them," she stated, not picking up on the subtext.
Demitra flipped her hair back from her shoulder. "Well then," she offered, "If you hever find yourself in need of a place… to sleep, do not hesitate to inquire."
Ember tilted her head inquisitively, completely confused by the situation. "Are you offering me business?"
"No… I…" Demitra softly sighed. "Nevermind," she said a bit colder than she meant it to sound. Ember obviously hadn't meant to make a reference to her contemptible error in judgement with the captain.
"I didn't mean to upset you, I… I just don't understand people that well," Ember apologetically mumbled.
Demitra blushed. "No, given what you've explained, I suppose it would be a bit difficult. It's alright Ember; I suppose I have been a bit off my game lately as well."
Still attempting to understand the conversation, now being propositioned about game, Ember frowned. "This is why you need a tail!" she said with the epiphany, "Then I could understand you better!"
Demitra giggled. "A reef drake, yeah?"
The women exchanged a few more pleasantries, a few more awkward moments, in a budding friendship neither had much experience with. Ember said goodbye to the Elonian, who promptly sheltered herself under a shade umbrella. She closed her eyes, leaned back on a pillow, and relaxed in the heated desert air. She came to wear a smile as she drifted to sleep.
To Be Continued...
