A second letter gilded in sunlight

I had been sitting outside of Theresia’s theatre. The sunshine peeked harshly through the constant red-haze, burning against the back of my neck with a fiercity that would not cease.

The events of an adventure into the heart of the Undine’s happiness had been too much for my heart. I knew that was simply because of Theresia, however.

To be so close to her meant so much more than it had before. Even her simple touch against my palm had been enough to stop my heart momentarily.

Underneath the harsh sting of the sun was the only place I could relax my quick-beating heart. I let out a sigh amidst the warm air, glancing upwards to meet the gaze of a man who stood simply before me.

He had a white-shirt that had been freed of its wrinkles by the simple steam of the atmosphere. Over it was a knitted light-brown sweater. He wore a flat woolen cap that matched well the shade of his sweater.

It was the courier who had previously delivered me a mysterious letter.

“I have a letter for you, Mr. Agreste.” The courier spoke simply.

He pulled out an envelope from his satchel, and handed it directly to me. I accepted it kindly.

“Sit and rest a moment, won’t you?” I spoke to him with a smile.

He simply shook his head in response.

“Sorry Mr. Agreste. I’ve no mind to slow down.”

He gestured towards his satchel. It had been filled with letters to the point that it had begun to overflow.

“Then, I wish you luck with the rest of your day, my friend.”

The courier nodded simply, and then adjourned within the next moment.

I let out a sigh, for I had arrived simple center once again within the bustle of Aethine.

Sliding my elongated nail against the edge of the envelope, I revealed quick a folded piece of parchment resting within.

Eyeing the contents of the parchment, my gaze quivered upon its words.

‘Dear Baron of Lilacs,

I see that you have given the whole of your heart towards her plays.

Your rendition of the stars was beautiful.

It sends a chill down my body when I think of it, despite my being forever warm.

My best regards,

Solis.’

The name the note had been signed with was one I had heard often, and one that had been given description by Theresia.

Whether by some cruel joke, or by the will of a god, the letter had come from the name of the blinding sun that sat endlessly within the sky.

I simply stood up from where I had been sitting, my own sudden motives carrying me forward.

The calm within my body was pervasive, trying desperately to do away with the chill that settled upon my bones.

“Where are you going?” A voice asked of me.

Glancing to the side, I met gaze with the beauty of my ever-beating heart. She held curious waving oceans within her eyes, and a smile that was constant upon my mind.

Theresia stood before me, dressed in casual wear.

“Where else would I go, but to the library?” I smiled.

“I’ll accompany you, then.” She spoke softly in return. “I must keep my prized assistant safe. It’s my duty as a playwright.”

She wrapped her arm around mine, pulling me close towards her as we walked.

“You’re wearing glasses.” I noticed of her.

“I only need them when I weave words.” She shook her head. “It’s grown hard to see them up close.”

The curator’s carefully crafted process of entry into the Grand Librarium of Aethine was a string of long, difficult tasks. One would have to prove in meticulous fashion that they were not ill, injured, and cleansed of all particulates and infectants. The books were too prized in their eyes to allow any contaminants through.

After we had passed all inspections at the hands of the curators, we were allowed inside the multi-floored establishment.

Its halls seemed to stretch peerlessly, floors stacked effortlessly on top of each other. With my midnight gaze. I glanced upwards towards the crystalline chandeliers that hung from the ceiling. They swung back and forth gently from the movement of the bustling streets above, for the library was wholly underground.

Towering bookshelves made up the walls of the library. They were bastions of knowledge that were nestled deep within its many nooks and crannies. If I held greed within my body, I would have felt peace within such a place. The library curators were extremely cautious, having sealed the building tight to keep the steam of the outside world from twisting the parchment of the books kept within. While entry was free to all, the curators were tedious in their precautions.

As time passed, the candelight of the chandeliers begun to burn low, and it grew harder to read the words set before me.

Once again, I sat before a massive textbook. I was not a stranger to words, but a towering collection of pages still sunk my heart greatly.

I let out a large sigh, glancing to my side. Theresia had fallen asleep against the table next to me.

I couldn’t help but smile as I gazed upon her. She had overworked herself. Sleep was the least of what her effort had deserved.

Moreover, that effort had all been for my sake.

The leather-bound textbook that looked as if it had been aged a thousand years sat in front of me was the story of Solis, the God who hung endlessly in the sky.

It read as if it was a storybook, rather than an informative piece.

There was once darkness within Crelle. It mentioned as much, but there was no record of the stars.

There was a day that came when those who lived within the darkness witnessed emergence of a blinding light. It was one that arrived, and stayed for the entirety of their dwindling lives.

The God Solis sat within the sky as a constant. The denizens of Crelle did not know of the meaning behind his existence.

They had once been gifted magic, to which the origin had long been lost. All that was known was that magic had been used in horrid ways, to wage war that stained the blood a permanent crimson-colour.

Solis seemed to despise this, and out of seeming spite, struck the beloved hearts of the Undine and Spriggans in parallel.

The Spriggans had long-worshipped the shadows. Even the silhouettes that hung constant underneath them were those beloved. Yet, against the spite of Solis, it all seemingly vanished.

The Undine had grown to love the waters around them, yet against the cruelty of Solis, they were scorched in an instant. Turning black with soot, they become unusable.

In such a way, the Undine had immediately abandoned the use of magic to spite Solis, sensing a connection between the two.

That was not the end of the spite of Solis.

Atop the battlefield stained permanently red, Solis had seemingly wiped out both sides of the war front. Both the Undine and Spriggan forces had been left without a semblance of a beating heart in an instant. Within his cruelty, Solis massacred the entirety of those who chose to shed blood. It was as if his spite was simple in its contradiction and hypocrisy.

That had been the final page, however. It simply ended by speaking of Solis’s bloodlust.

So then, I began to wonder. If the truth of the letter’s sender was not false, then why had such a God sought contact with me? Was it because I had been a mismatch of a puzzle pieces within his grand portrait?

Tucked against the final page of the textbook was a singular envelope, white as the parchment contained within it. On the paper, ink had been scrawled carefully as to preserve its message. I unfolded it softly, reading carefully the note that it had contained.

‘Dearest Agreste,

To have made it this far out of curiosity,

you truly are the most interesting gift I could have received.

To have welcomed you into this world that is not my own,

it has been an entertaining blessing.

I wish to extend my courtesies, my congratulations, and an invitation.

Sincerely,

Solis.’