Chapter 19: Chapter 19

CHAPTER 18

RUBIN

I slowly creep down the stairs as I hear voices coming from the study, the fire crackling merrily as two shadows elongated from inside of the room.

“Do you still hurt? I must help you brew the medicine to get you back to your feet.” Aeon’s voice drifted across from the room, sounding like an ancient healer as I watched him fluster around Caelum.

“Mind you, she really means it, Aeon. When she said she hated me, it’s like a sword was plunged in my chest and I grew weak. It hurts a lot.”

I gasp, ‘Did I really hurt him by saying that? He is bluffing, I am sure. I peeked inside and saw Aeon’s hand over Caelum’s back, patting him rather tenderly.

“I didn’t know that you’ll be affected like that. You are lucky I was there.”

“I’ll be goners if you didn’t come. It would be my third attack and if it did comes to that, I won’t return like this. I worry about what will happen then.” Caelum snorted. Aeon stands and head towards his desk, taking something out from the drawer before holding it out, the shining golden arrow glistening by the firelight. “The arrow is here. The scroll apparently pertains to your fate and Rubin’s. The only thing to do now is to inform her about it. I will think of ways to prevent you from suffering as she pierces your heart-”

What? Did I just hear--

“So, she should really do it? Shoot the arrow at me?” there’s no mistaking the tremble in Caelum’s voice as he speaks. Aeon nodded once and continued, “I’m afraid, yes. There is no way around this.”

“She would kill me, then?”

Aeon paused, and said, “Yes,” he said, looking at him with his odd purple eyes. “Caelum, it is essential that you will do this. We are trying to put an end to this lifelong curse. I believe—”

“But I don’t want to die,” I can almost imagine Caelum’s frown gracing his ever-angelic face as he sat there, worrying about his life. “Then what do you suggest that we do? Ask her to pierce it on her chest instead? We can’t do that!”

So, it’s me or him?

I am going to end up killing him because it is written in a piece of parchment that has existed millennia before. But, do they consider my opinion? I know that there will be another way so I don’t end up killing him. We can find another way, right?

I couldn’t listen to this anymore.

I marched up the stairs in frustration, opening my door with the spare arrow I have come to possess before falling back on the bed. I snuggled with the pillow and curled up, pulling the blanket over me as I stared outside the window, the pale moonlight casting an eerie glow inside the room.

I had hurt Caelum with my words and now they wanted me to pierce an arrow at his chest and possibly kill him. He’s a Dieuoubliè, he doesn’t even want to touch me – me piercing him will be his end. Are they mental? Why are they asking me to do such a horrible thing?

And Caelum – he sounds so scared when he speaks about me and how I will be the reason of his death. Is he going to hate me now because I am bound to kill him in the end? My mind drifted back to that golden arrow I saw. I have never seen such an arrow before and even from afar, I can tell that it wasn’t like my arrows. There is something ancient about it judging by the golden glow that it emits that simply proves how powerful it is.

I tossed and turned on my bed, staring outside. A chink of the dark sky was visible from the window, the moon glowing luminously, reflecting the sadness that I feel inside of me; I am restless. I turned once again tugging at my hair and pondering about what I should do. I couldn’t let Caelum die, not like this.

No matter how rude he is, he doesn’t deserve this.

I got up from the bed and silently settled next to the door, leaning my ears close to it and waiting. It doesn’t take that long before I hear Caelum and Aeon’s voice drifting as they made their way up the stairs and soon, a pair of doors opening and closing resounded at the empty hallway, leaving a lingering silence afterwards.

I hugged my knees closer and waited for a few more minutes for them to settle down. I reached for my satchel and bow from under the bed and slung my bow over my shoulder, taking the quiver from the nightstand before I latch the clasp for my cloak. I resumed my position against the door and waited some more, turning the door knob slowly so as to not create any noise with my hands shaking slightly. I quickly went down the stairs, not waiting for another moment as I headed to Aeon’s study.

The room was dark that I knocked over a stack of books on the floor, diving on the sofa as I did so. I bit back a yelp and struggled as I get up from the sofa, waiting for a light to be turned on and a suspicious gaze coming from Aeon.

None of it came.

Breathing hard, I still checked for any signs, making sure that they won’t catch me red handed. I crouched down on the floor, muttering some enchantments to help my nerves calm down. Slowly, I crawled my way to the great oak desk by the end of the room, straightening up as I reached it. With bated breath, I yanked the drawer open, cringing at the drawn-out squeak it lets out.

It was hard to grope around the dark for the slim box since the drawer contains numerous boxes of the same sizes. I closed my eyes and trusted my instincts, trying to feel the power that is coming from the arrow and hoping that it will direct me to it. Like magnet to metal, the arrow struggled inside one of the boxes. I hastily take it outside the drawer, beaming as I put it carefully in my satchel.

I was about to walk away when I saw an ancient scroll lying on top of the table. Out of pure curiosity, I opened it and read the inscription, “For he who fell on earth because of love will suffer the same fate once again, an endless life only to be ended by the wielder of the arrow whom he greatly defended against heaven and hell.” I frowned down at the ripped part; the prophecy was incomplete. Where are the others? I lookef around the table and inspected the top, ruffling through the pages of each book and expecting the missing part to fall from them. Hopeless, I focused my attention back to the scroll - Is this why Caelum is trying to distance himself from me and had assumed that I will end him? Because of a scroll – they are going to accuse me of being a murderer?

How can they be so insensitive?

Seething, I put down the scroll and silently made my way out of the room when a glass vial rolled from under the sofa, the green liquid being reflected luminously from the fire that is coming from the chandelier. I pickef it up, instantly recognizing that it was actually the potion which Caelum used for my wings to shrink on my back.

I retraced my way back to the threshold and took a trip inside the kitchen to grab myself some sandwich. It will be a long trip and I do not know if I will have any chance to grab some snack while I stay afloat. I hastily stuffed three sandwiches inside my satchel and carefully picedk my way out, swinging the fletching of the arrow by the gap between the front doors. I yank door open and shivered as the cold night breeze blew on my face.

I tightened my hold at the green cloak that Vivian has lent me and stretched my back, smiling as my wings sprouted from them. The cloak splits and I scratched my ear.I hope Vivian won’t be that disappointed that I have ruined it.

I stretched my wings and jumped, soaring up the night sky and wishing that I could reach Paris before the sun rises up on the sky or else, I will surely be the subject for the media. NASA will have a field day if it all comes to that.

*

My wings are sore. My back aches and my shoulders burned as I stretched my arms and tried to land gracefully by the tree overlooking the valley. I believed that I am nearing Paris now judging by the sophisticated way this French people are acting. I took my first sandwich from the depths of my satchel, entertaining myself with one of those shivering letters.

Mon Reve,

It’s quite funny to think that somewhere, you were probably sleeping soundly as I write this letter to you, or maybe, you are having your breakfast, or going out with a friend – in some other place and possibly in some other time – thinking about things that won’t even be par with my own thoughts. It’s possible that you are out there — loving someone, wishing upon stars, dreaming of things I can’t even fathom and so, I look up at the bright morning sky – imagining you doing the same.

I stuffed the packaging of the sandwich inside of my satchel, and rummage for another, tucking in to one of the branches as I read the continuation of the letter,

You’ll have no idea, that I’m waiting – looking for you – having no clue about your name or where you are. Life on earth brings me more sadness than happiness considering your lack of presence. I have –

I squinted my eyes, trying to see the next words but failing for the paper was badly burnt, with some of the parts unreadable.

Evidence your existence keeps blocking up my mind, I just wish that when the time comes, you will love me just how much as I have loved you,

Your half

I folded the letter and put it inside the satchel, a little bit jealous of the girl Caelum was writing to. Why should he be so affectionate towards her? Reading his letters makes him appear like a saint in the past; like he has suffered the last millennia looking for someone that he doesn’t even know have existed. How can he simply trust his dreams?

The sun is starting to rise so I attacked my half eaten sandwich with such ferocity unbeknownst to the rest of my kind. The sky is such a beautiful shade of cool and clear blue, of somewhere between night and dusk where the birds softly sings about their early adventures. I can imagine the women of French houses rising up their beds to prepare the meal for their families.

With a rude but satisfying belch, I rubbed my stomach and rolled my shoulders to stretch my wings. I supportex myself with the bark and stand up from the branch, diving down before soaring up. I am lucky enough that the morning fog still hung thickly down below.

Even though I dislike my clothes getting wet, I flew by the clouds so as to avoid any curious human who might thought about taping my flight in their black pads.

I landed just a few streets away from Vivian’s shop, in between a alley where the cat was hissing loudly at my bizarre appearance, and I mocked it, making it scurry away.

That furry little scaredy cat.

I fixed my clothing and walked up to the front of the shop, thinking about an explanation about my situation and why I ended up here, back to Vivian, again.

“Rubin!” her voice startled me that I jumped up. Vivian passes the bouquet of lilies to a half-asleep Viktor, startling him. “Oh, where have you gone to?”

“Vi, I am so sorry I left. It was so urgent but now I am back. Can you still give me the job? I don’t need money, just some food and shelter will be fine. Offer me the job so I can earn my keep, please,” I bowed my head at the request I made and Vivian pulls away from me so she can look at my face.

“No need for you to say please, Rubin. You will always be welcome here,” With those words she captured me once again in her arms and we went inside the shop, Viktor trailing behind us with a lopsided smile.

Slowly, things have finally went back to normal as though I haven’t even gone for a single day.

Vivian let me help with the flowers and the shop, specially the deliveries. Every time I felt Caelum’s presence though, I fly back to Edinburgh at Rause’s place, making excuses to Vivian about my friend asking to have me over and such. It wasn’t long after a week before I found myself, sat on Rause’s living room, explaining about my and Caelum’s misunderstanding and how I am so torn.

I couldn’t tell Rause about the arrow and the scroll. I can only say that there are circumstances that doesn’t allow me and Caelum to be together.

The only thing that keeps my days on earth exciting is my mission and I am afraid, I will run out of happiness soon. I counted my arrows and sighed at the sight of only seven remaining ones. I stretched my arms and lie down on the makeshift bed, pulling my satchel from under the pillow and taking out the slim box.

It never fails to amaze me every time I see the arrow float from the box and just zoom around, glinting as it reflected the late afternoon sun that shines light from the barred window of the back room. I snatched the arrow and inspected it closely – the engraving on it are bizarre, not like the ones I usually see at the temples of Eros, but more ancient, as though it was the language Zeus has thought his children. I stowed the arrow back on the box and pushed it inside the depths of my satchel with the rest of the shivering letters, refusing to remind myself of Caelum and our tragic fate.

I lied down on my bed, not caring about my wings spread out behind me, watching as the sun slowly disappear, taking its light and showering the room with darkness. Viktor and Vivian has gone out to have some dinner and spend some quality time outside. I would have loved to soar up the Paris’ skies but find it hard to do so considering the amount of aerial disturbance this days.

With a little to nothing to do, I spent my evening, cooped up inside my bedroom, inspecting the shivering letters I have chosen specifically to help me understand Caelum and his feelings – longing for a girl that he is not even sure would love him back. Refusing the fact that Caelum was still in love with that girl, I hastily rummaged the depths of my satchel and pull out the slim box again, taking the lid off so that the arrow floats eerily with its golden glow, just by the level of my nose. I kept on thinking about it and what I should do – killing Caelum was out of the question, of course. The longer I watched the arrow float, the more I feel sad about it as I hear Caelum’s and Aeon’s resounding conversation inside my head –

“She would kill me then.”

Stop it. I gritted my teeth as I hear the words echo.

“But I don’t want to die.”

I grabbed my head and closed my eyes, willing for it to stop.

“Then what do you suggest that we do? Ask her to pierce it on her chest instead?”

I bit my lip and take the arrow that is floating in front of me, Aeon’s words still echoing inside my head, “Pierce her chest instead?” the arrow’s glow is the only source of light inside my room, making me notice how dark it has become in just a matter of minutes.

“Pierce her chest-”

My fingers trembled as I held the arrow close, asking myself “Is it really – should I really do it?” I bit my lip, a bit confused as to why Aeon would even suggest such a thing and why it seems to wriggle inside my mind, pestering me and driving me insane. I looked up at the calendar I have marked – there’s roughly two months left of my mission and I am mostly done but I wanted to find my mum.

Where could she possibly be in this earth? How should I begin my quest of finding her if I keep on thinking about Caelum?

Deciding that fresh air will help me clear my head, I tucked the arrow inside the satchel, not bothering to put it inside the box as I headed out the shop. I silently observed the Parisians – basking in the street lights as they laugh, couples stealing kisses and a handful of children still roaming about.

I reached out for my quiver and took an arrow, shooting it across and smiling as the man who is dawdling next to a girl, leaned down to kiss her. The cold night air did me some good as I relaxed underneath the glow of the full moon. Glancing around, I settled by the bushes in the middle of a secluded meadow, lying down on the earth. The sky is a beautiful shade of the darkest blue with an occasional twinkle coming from a handful of early stars. I smiled wistfully, wishing that I could find my mother soon.

A couple sat next to my meadow, their laughter shattering my moment of silence. Frowning, I sat up and scowled at them, recognizing the mop of curly brown hair leaning down a blonde beauty. I ducked down, my breathing quickening – it was Caelum!

Was it?

I took a peek by the bushes and squinted, my mouth dropping open. It was really him! But then, who is that girl on his lap? Her blonde hair was blowing with the wind and Caelum pulled at it as he tilted her head, her cheeks glowing red as she giggled, slapping Caelum’s shoulders as he continued. I gritted my teeth. I wanted to run at him and yank her out of his lap; possibly slapping her face if I will be given the chance to do so but I couldn’t.

I shouldn’t.

With my hands terribly shaking, I took the arrow from my satchel and tightly clasped it with my fingers, not risking for to float and catch the attention of the Gaeans. Puffing my cheeks, I sulked behind the bushes, spying on them as they continue to kiss, making my heart feel like someone has been squeezing it.

What do I expect? Caelum is a Dieuoubliè, an opposite of love – bringer of chaos and confusion. He will never love anyone back. He has warned me before that I have to stay away but I’m stubborn and stupid. He simply cared for me and showed me some decent attitude for he pities me. He just took me in because he thought that if he did, he will stop our fate from happening.

But now I have the arrow, and what the scroll contains is easy to accomplish. I just have to align the arrow with my bow and shoot it across, attacking an unsuspicious Caelun just like how cupid’s do. Though, I couldn’t. I can’t hurt him. Aeon has predicted that there won’t be any danger because he knows my feelings about Caelum.

The arrow glinted dangerously as I scowled down at it. Is that why they have whispered behind my back about the arrow? Why Caelum and Aeon refused to tell me about it, because they know that I’d rather hurt myself than hurt him?

I sat up and turn my back against them, fighting the tears that have threatened to fall from my eyes. I ran my hands at the arrows base and remembered how my peers usually teased me about my odd appearance, me being a freak. I never really belong there, did I? Neither do I belong here. So, where does it leave me, then?

I have always been ignored and used – all because of an arrow.

My fate has started with an arrow, I guess it would only be fitting to end my fate with an arrow too only if I choose to plunge it in, pierce it on my chest, just like Aeon has suggested it.

I am a cupid, surely, nothing bad will happen to me.

I felt the tip of the arrow and gasped as the pointed end scraped my finger, drawing out blood. I tightened my grip at the arrow and took a deep breath as I aligned it by my chest before forcing it in with my other hand. I turned my head so I am looking at them only to see Caelum’s stormy eyes staring back at me, confused.

He stopped laughing with the girl and it seems that she finally noticed it too.

Though, before any foul thought occur inside my head, a burning pain started from the tip of the arrow, spreading to its base and eventually in my chest, cutting my supply of oxygen. I gasped and collapse, my vision blurred as slowly, the rain fell down from the sky. As each drop battered my skin, I blinked and was shocked to be transported inside a dark room.

The softest skin that belongs to someone so fragrant settled next to me. The room is covered in a nightmarish glow, the moon’s full façade appears by the window yet the light was pushed out by something inhuman. I tried to calm down my raging nerves as I turned my neck, noticing the fact that the body lying next to me was naked as a spatter of curly hair spurt forth that someone's chest.

I can tell that it is a guy.

At the very least, that is one fact I am sure of. I took a deep breath and tried to move away from him but gasp edas I was pulled back. The guy pushes my head on his chest, breathing in my hair, “Don’t ever leave me,” His voice sounds familiar to me and like a lullaby it calms me enough to fall asleep and forget about the pain in my chest.

The feeling of that curly hair on my fingers and the thin satin covering my eyes made me gasped as I was suddenly showered with kisses, my mind in a disarray, “Be mine, forever. Be mine, mon reve.”

The bed from beneath me shifted and I found myself lying on the floor. My breathing ragged as though I have run a thousand miles. I force my eyes to open, realizing that Caelum is actually looking down at me, the arrow protruding from my chest. But something else was different – this version of Caelum has beautiful locks of hair, almost touching his shoulders, looking at me with such a forlorn expression, much serious than my Caelum, yet equally as sad. He is wearing medieval clothes and he has beautiful red wings that are fluttering on his back. He leans down and I reached out my hand to touch his face, not believing the words I say, “Don’t bother with me.”

Caelum’s eyes filled with tears. He looks so sad as he nuzzles his head with mine, caressing my face with his hands, “How can I live without you?”

His voice is full of hurt but my only reply to him is a laugh. The arrow painfully embedded itself further and I gasped, my lips quivering with the pain as I cried, “I’m sorry, so sorry.” My consciousness slipped and for a moment, I thought I have died. Though, being as stubborn as I was, I held unto him and vowed, “I promise you, my half, I will find you...” and I pulled him down, forcing him to lean close so he can kiss me, even if it is the last time.

The floor shifted and I found myself lying down on earth, gasping as the pain on my chest intensified, as though someone is pushing the arrow deeper. The rain pelted down on me and I am drowning it.

I blink. Was everything I just saw, a dream, or was it a memory?

I looked around and noticed Caelum staring at me, a frown gracing his confused face. He takes a step forward and slowly makes his way to me only to stop as a haze appears in front of him. I touched the haze and was shocked when Uncle Cedric appeared from thin air, “You have failed?”

“Uncle Cedric, how come you are here?”

Uncle Cedric sighed and pulled his sword from his sheath, using it as a support as he leaned down at me. He clicks his tongue and said, “I have thought that you will succeed in your mission but I guess, the apple does not fall far from the tree. You are just like your father; gullible, ignorant, stupid.”

“I am not stupid!”

“Yes, you are. You just proved it. You are stupid; meddling with human emotions and look at what happened to you.” Uncle Cedric pulled his sword from the soil and pick my bow from beside me. He snapped it in two and threw it down on the ground. He focuses his cold blue eyes at me, "You have abandoned your mission as you succumb with your feeble emotions. You are a disgrace, just like your father.”

“I am not like him!”

“Silence! You are in no position to argue, the damage is done.” Uncle Cedric held out the sword in front of him before swinging his sword down on me. I shielded my face with my hands, an attempt to block the swords attack when it collided with the bangle on my wrist. The force of it threw me back a couple of feet away from my uncle Cedric. I writhed in pain, clutching my chest and my bleeding back as I felt my wing ripped out. The blood overwhelming me as I looked down on my hands.

“Argh!” I scream, my throat sore while my tears flowed down, the excruciating pain blinding me as my chest constricted, as though it was being opened from inside out. “Have mercy, please.” I gasp as I see my chest bleeding, what is happening?

“Venus does not show mercy to Cupids who have failed her.” Uncle Cedric bitterly said and raised his head, slowly fading in the moonlight. The haze that surrounded me disappeared and Caelum approached me with caution, asking me,

“What did you do?”

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