The Sun Will Rise Again

Crystalline forms rose from the ground to meet them. High above, the night sky was idanthrone and sapphire, with flowing streaks of pink and purple energy coursing through the deep vapor of encroaching dusk. Sayane allowed her eyes to open as consciousness slowly returned. Can-Mo was still carrying her with two of his tentacles, while another was seemingly draped around Azag’s waist to support his unsteady legs. Both of them were looking to the heavens.

“In all my life, I’ve never seen an unshackled night sky,” Azag muttered in quiet reverie.

“Aye. I’m a bit older than you, so I was there all those decades ago when The Silence cast the sky snares and Dissonance. Now, after all this time, it’s as dark and blue as I remembered in my dreams,” Can-Mo whispered.

Sayane stayed silent to allow them the moment. Her gaze turned upwards as well. She had also never seen the pure sky. With the Dissonance gone and the barrier hexes shattered, she could now fully appreciate that there were no stars above them. Instead, only moving, radiant pulses of light and warmth moved like currents, carrying sparkling jewels of unknown forms in their wake. It was wondrous, soothing, and wholly foreign.

But it was home. Relief moved through Sayane. She had awoken once more. She hadn’t faded in her sleep. Without thinking, her tired fingers reached for Azag, seeking the comfort of his touch again. He saw her effort and immediately raised his own exhausted fingers to hers.

“One more sunrise,” she sighed.

“One more sunrise,” he agreed.

“If I start crying, it’s your fault,” Can-Mo said as his voice quivered in understanding.

“You’re still here with us, our beautiful ethereal. I’m so sorry I didn’t even stop to think you might fade after freeing the Shards,” Can-Mo said.

“It’s okay. We all had so much to focus on. I wasn’t going to stop regardless.”

Can-Mo nodded.

“Plus, I had Azag. He knew. He was afraid, too. We talked about it,” Sayane added, feeling Azag’s hand press closer against hers.

“Yet you both still carried on,” Can-Mo sighed in wonder.

“You are both truly incredible.”

Sayane couldn’t think of anything else to add, so she merely let her head return to the gentle, warm firmness of Can-Mo’s tentacles as her eyes returned to the starless sky.

Ebbs of pink and orange pulsed through the crystal ridges beside them as they passed. Azag noticed and chuckled to himself.

“The stone seems more awake,” he said.

“Like the old days. I assume it’s the ether returning,” Can-Mo said as he slid his weight along a ridge.

“I believe it is,” Saxum replied from nearby.

Sayane looked up to see Saxum and Anahita waiting for them at the edge of a sloping hill. Simple modular columns of light jutted from the ground beside them, casting a yellow ambience onto Saxum’s multi-faceted arms and waist. Trails of shimmering sparkles floated behind Anahita as she flew through the air with a quiet hum.

Both seemed to be slightly more radiant than before.

“The ether- What brought me here and gives song power?” Sayane asked as Can-Mo lowered her to the ground.

“Yes. The Silence had subdued most of it, which is why so many of my ancient siblings could barely shine a pulse of power. But now, I sense their splendor returning. Thanks to you,” Saxum said with a slight bow to Azag and Sayane.

“It was all of us,” Azag deflected.

“But it was you two most of all,” Attis said from behind.

Sayane smiled when she saw her fuzzy counsel approaching with Erosc limping beside him.

“It was all of us. I wouldn’t have been able to do any of this without all of you. Or…” Sayane’s words stopped as her throat seized.

There was one member of the party who would not be seeing the new sunrise. Echo’s screams of suffering and rage whispered in Sayane’s memory as she tried to say his name.

“Echo… we never would have been able to do this without Echo,” Sayane cried.

Saxum cleared his throat and retrieved a simple canister and necklace from the ground beside him.

“Sayane, Azag, I honored your request as best I could. We burned Echo’s body with the others. But I gathered his remains so that he could be placed in a more appropriate place. And… before he was burned, I found this on his neck.”

Saxum held the chain out, and Sayane whimpered when she saw it. Tied at the end of the chair was a simple piece of stained fabric. It was a segment of Y’aaku’s robe she had been wearing the night of the Underworld’s attack.

“Oh, sweet child,” Attis sighed as he looked at the remnant.

“Y’aaku…” Azag whispered.

Sayane nodded as her lip trembled into a strained frown. Reality was starting to return once again.

“One of the last things he told me…”

Sayane forced her throat clear as she wiped her eyes.

“He told me he’d only survived on hate for all those weeks after Y’aaku was killed. And I believed him. And now that we’re in this new world, I’m afraid of how many others might also be so absolutely consumed by that hate. For The Silence. The Revolution. I tried to help today, but it felt so, so very heavy. What do we do?” she asked in honest concern.

“Sayane, it is not up to you to save every single person. It’s not up to any of us,” Anahita said.

Sayane shook her head.

“But Vraxlyn. What was that? I’ve never been so afraid,” she said.

“We will hunt her down. The Shard severely wounded her,” Erosc said.

“Where will we go? We have thousands. Plus the former Silence citizens…”

“There are a few cities that still stand. We will figure it out,” Attis said.

It was starting to feel like too much again. Doubts, concerns, and fears were biting at Sayane’s hope, threatening to topple it over. Everything felt so fragile.

Sayane exhaled in hesitation. Azag looked around and turned back to the camp.

“Sayane, please listen. Right now, listen around you. There are thousands of refugees, Revolutionaries, and former Silencers here. This morning, they were killing one another. Yet now they are peacefully asleep. Even if it’s just one night. Just like your sunrises, maybe all we can do is go day by day as we try to make this peace survive. Echo is proof that some hate can be unlearned. And your deeds are proof that better days can come. We will figure out what to do.”

Attis and Can-Mo nodded.

“Hear! Hear!” Can-Mo whispered.

“But I feel like I need to do so much. Like I want to do so much,” she sighed as the weight in her chest returned.

“I think all of us do,” Azag agreed.

“I think that is exhaustion and your soul still needing to have an immediate purpose,” Erosc said.

Sayane looked to him, and he lowered his head.

“For what it is worth, beautiful songstress, I am now a warrior in a time of peace. My entire life has been dedicated to killing the ones with whom I will share a meal in an hour. It has left me unmoored this first night. But I will find peace. I think it is the same for you. It likely won’t be today, but that peace should come. I believe this sunrise will help.”

To Sayane’s surprise, Erosc gave her the faintest hint of a smile. There was some truth to his words. Her time in this realm had been nothing but chaos, revelations, and conflict. For weeks, all she’d thought about was freeing the Great Harmony Shards. Now that was done, and she was still alive, trying to find what her next purpose was as an ethereal, while also desperately hoping that her efforts as a songstress would help keep peace in this fragile new reality.

“I just feel like I need to do so much more,” she admitted.

Attis smiled his fanged smile before shaking his head in paternal disagreement.

“My dear child, you could do nothing for the rest of your days, and you would still likely go down as the singular most important individual in all of Illarios’s history,” he said with a cautious tone.

The others all agreed. Sayane’s grip tightened on Y’aaku’s fabric and Echo’s remains. Azag’s hand rested over hers.

“I imagine it is terrifying being an ethereal and not knowing what else you are supposed to do, or how long you’ll have left. It’s terrifying to care for one. I didn’t want to look away from you for a moment earlier, because I was afraid you’d be gone when I looked back,” he confessed..

Sayane exhaled once again and nodded in agreement, and her hand tightened in his.

“But please, allow yourself to rest. I’d like you to one day not just find your way, but also find peace,” Azag said as he limped to be nearer to her.

His subtle reference to her singing made her smile. He always paid attention, even when he was silent.

“You too, my Guardian. I don’t ever want to leave you,” she whispered as he shifted his crooked legs to lean nearer to her.

The moment calmed, and Sayane accepted that her spirit would take some time to find its footing. But as long as those surrounding her in that moment were there with her, the path towards that new footing would be survivable. If she could make it this far, she could do anything.

A quiet squeak brought everyone’s attention to Can-Mo, who was now fumbling with a large satchel he’d been keeping on his back thus far.

“Fr-friends…” he chirped.

The group turned to him. Tears were already in his eyes, and Sayane could not help but smile as his tentacles flicked the latches of his pouch to retrieve a piece of parchment with notes inscribed on one side. Can-Mo began to read his script.

“Honored friends, I… I wanted to make something to commemorate this momentous day and to show my sincere gratitude to all of you. By your efforts, we regular people were able to overthrow the mightiest empire ever known. I am but a lowly tailor, yet you allowed me to join you and bear witness to this glorious time. So, I wanted to present you with what I could to let all of you know just… how… grateful I am.”

His voice rose as he laughed and wiped his eyes.

“Don’t cry, Sayane,” he chuckled.

“Too late!” she sniffed.

Can-Mo smiled and continued.

“So… I wanted to make you something of my skillset.”

“Sweet, like tour merch!” Sayane laughed.

“Something like that…” Can-Mo replied as his shaking grip lowered the paper.

“But I didn’t have my tools, scissors, or time… and I cried a lot… and I didn’t have much fabric beyond what I had laying around. Sooooo… how about…”

His tentacles reached into the pouch and retrieved several flowing clumps of gorgeous, deep purple fabric.

“How about… Gowns?!” Can-Mo squealed as he held up his quick work.

Everyone burst out cheering and laughing as they observed the regal nightgowns. He had made one for each of them, even fitting them accordingly. Sayane couldn’t help but smile when she saw Anahita’s gown, which was barely larger than a napkin.

“More fabric than I’m used to,” Anahita joked as she received the gift.

Beside them, Saxum was already trying to dress himself. His jutting shoulders and unfamiliarity with clothing made the process delightfully clumsy to watch. Edges of polished stone caught drapes of purple, and eventually he stopped with the gown simply hanging over his back spikes and shoulder angles.

“Oh, forgive me, darling. I would have fitted it to your geometry better if I’d had time,” Can-Mo nervously admitted as he gingerly adjusted the fabric over Saxum’s hulking body.

“I am grateful for this gift. I have never received clothing before,” Saxum admitted as his enormous fingers fumbled with the edge of cloth nearest his head.

The others immediately began to pull the cloth over their bodies. Without thinking, Sayane turned to remove her current gown. Just as it slid from her shoulders, she stopped herself with a humored snort.

“Goodness. Sorry, that’s a little much, isn't it?” she blushed.

No one said anything. Azag’s head tilted slightly, and he started to speak, but Anahita came to his aid.

“Sayane, we’ve, ummm, we’ve seen way more…” she laughed.

Embarrassment flooded Sayane’s face and chest as she fully remembered the details of her song for the Akna all those lifetimes ago. It had only been three nights since, but she still felt like it was a different existence. Still, the imagery of rain falling through the humid jungle as the orange ambience coated Azag’s glistening skin did make her blush.

“Oh my gods, we had an orgy. Just, like, a few days ago…” Sayane burst out laughing.

“Or-jee? Is that what it was called in your first realm?” Anahita asked.

“I don’t know what I would have called THAT… But yes… A ‘communal affair’ as you called it, would have been an orgy. And Azag!” Sayane chortled as she looked to him.

He was fumbling with his robe and paused to stutter an answer.

“Muh? What?” he asked.

“I’m so proud of you! And so… impressed!! You didn’t hesitate, you just… climbed onto me and pushed me onto the ground,” Sayane replied.

Now she was feeling flushes of longing mixing in with her genuine appreciation that the being who only a few months ago couldn’t look others in the eye and hadn’t touched anyone in decades had been so willing to do such an intimate deed in front of hundreds.

“It was very attractive,” Anahita admitted.

“Right?!” Sayane asked.

“Aye,” Can-Mo agreed.

“Ooookay,” Azag sighed.

“I would have been too nervous,” Saxum added.

“We can talk about literally anything else,” Azag muttered.

“It was an important tactical benefit. Sayane’s mission would not have succeeded without you, so I commend you,” Erosc agreed.

Azag could only grunt and stifle an annoyed laugh. His gaze looked to Attis, who was the only one who hadn’t spoken.

“I know you have something to say,” Azag said as his head tilted to the side.

Attis’s lip quivered as he tried to stop himself from spitting from laughing.

“I- I just hope you two young people had a good time. I hope it felt nice, all things considered. I’d been hoping for it to happen, though I did NOT expect it to go that way,” he cackled.

Azag exhaled and gave up adjusting his robe, resigning himself to tying it around his waist like a loincloth. As he moved, Sayane noticed the firelight dancing along the grooves and insets of his lean, rigid body. His fangs were long and chipped. His brow was deep. That night, he’d felt so enormous as he lay over her, but he was so gentle to her. Until she whispered for him not to be. Then-

“Anahita, is this you?” Sayane moaned as she shook her head clear.

“No idea what you’re talking about,” the small sprite joked as she flew to Sayane’s shoulder.

“It was nice though, wasn’t it?” Anahita whispered as she and Sayane laid their yearning eyes on Azag once again.

“It was. You didn’t tell me about the ridges,” Sayane whispered back.

“Alright, may we please discuss literally anything else? Also, I seem to remember looking over and seeing you four entangled in one another as well,” Azag pointed to Attis, Erosc, and Can-Mo.

“No idea what you’re referring to,” Attis smiled.

“Tactical necessity,” Erosc added as he looked away.

"Let's just say yours isn't the only body my tentacles have been in this week," Can-Mo blushed.

All Azag could do was shake his head. Sayane joined him as everything washed over her. Memories of the last several weeks and the freeing of the Great Harmony Shards moved through her mind like a fever dream. It was almost too much to believe, but as she stood there surrounded by her surreal menagerie of companions, she knew it was all true. She’d gone on tour before, but never like that.

Life was indeed strange.

“Well, if you all don’t mind looking away, I’d like to put this lovely gown on,” Sayane said.

Everyone looked away, save for Azag.

“I’d like to keep my eyes on you,” he said softly as Sayane fully undressed once more.

“I want you to,” she agreed.

“That wasn’t me,” Anahita clarified as Sayane pulled the purple flowing gown over her bruised chest and arms.

Softness enveloped her, and she immediately found herself calming. Can-Mo’s mystical fabrics were once again doing their job by soothing her body and spirit while adorning her in splendor. Sayane exhaled in comfort and looked up. Above them, the sky had started to gain some manner of brightness. Dawn would be arriving soon.

While she was looking up, Azag removed his own pouch from his shoulder. It was smaller, and he handled it with care as he lowered it from his arm. Sayane reached out to help, and she heard a familiar clinking of glass from within the satchel. Her brows raised in curiosity, and her head tilted. Azag rubbed her shoulder and then looked to the others.

“Well, I’ll be joining Can-Mo in the gift giving,” he said.

Attis clapped in surprise.

“A battlefield isn’t a great place to find product like this, but I did find some drinks for us. I’m still good at talking to Silencers and Revolutionaries alike, so I found a few options. And Sayane, I made sure to find you this,” he said as he revealed a small vial of familiar glowing pink.

“My drink!!” she squealed with excitement.

Tracers or orange and pink flickered in the heavens. The world was awakening.

Bottles were uncorked with cheers. Haphazard mugs and containers were passed around. Soon, multiple glowing liquids were poured out into the waiting chalices. Floral, earthen aromas drifted to Sayane’s nose as she inhaled the nearly forgotten scent of her favorite beverage in this realm. All of them began to take their seats on the bluff’s ground as they faced the gathering light.

Azag slowly moved himself to be right beside Sayane, and once he was in place, she found herself wanting to rest her head on his shoulder.

“You called The Shattered Stone home, when you were struggling,” he said.

Sayane nodded.

“It was. It was the place where I felt safe when I arrived here. It’s where you let me heal. You let me work. It’s where I sang. It’s where Attis stayed with us. It was where you were… And you became my home,” she admitted.

Pure warmth rose and broke over the distant jagged edges.

“What wonder,” Attis said as he softly cried.

Sayane looked up with eyes fully awake. Across the sky, floating shards drifted within the radiant waves of ether as rose and tangerine coloring burned from below. Hints of purple sparkled in the incandescent lines as the singular star appeared, sending uninterrupted luminosity into the world.

Can-Mo sniffed as the sunrise fully appeared.

“What wonder,” he agreed.

“What wonder,” Erosc followed.

“What wonder,” Saxum and Anahita repeated.

Pleasant awareness coated Sayane’s body. Tranquility made its way into her spirit and for one brief moment, perhaps for the first time since she’d arrived, she felt something beyond daring hope. She wasn’t sure if it was peace yet, but it was kind. And for now, that was more than enough. A smile appeared, and she nodded to the new sunrise.

“What wonder,” she agreed.

Azag looked at her for a moment as he thought.

“This life is beautiful,” he said.

Sayane looked to him in quiet surprise at his word choice. But then the others joined and repeated.

“This life is beautiful,” they all said.

Before Sayane could process their words fully, sounds of bodies shuffling behind them caused her to look over her shoulder. Doing so revealed that hundreds of others were quietly gathering behind them as the sunlight began to permeate the entirety of the realm.

Then the singing began.

““Toooooonight, when I close my eyes.

Hold to that beautiful view

IIIIIIIIII knooooooooow

Keep it close and feel the sun,”

It started deep in the crowd, made by unrefined, nervous voices. Two or three comrades were trying to harmonize. Then others joined.

“I’ll awake to a true sunrise

Look to the sky as we’re born anew

For a healing world

Please stay together,”

Soft tears ran down her cheeks as she allowed herself to simply listen instead of joining.

“Please meet me at the sunrise

I’ll be here with you.

The rest of our lives maaaaaaaaay start

For the story has only just begun

In the morning sky!”

Hundreds were quietly singing. It wasn’t bombastic or triumphant. If anything, it felt prayerful. Sayane soaked in the wonder as more voices rose, not expecting her to join them, and not singing for her or to her, but simply singing her song once again as the new day appeared. Hints of true blue glinted in the crystalline expanse above them as the glowing orb fully lifted from hiding. Streaks of life pulsed through the shards around them and Sayane’s wrists flickered with joy.

Dawn was there. It was the first day of a new world.

“This life is beautiful,” she agreed.