Awake & Alive – The Planes of Existence

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Matthew arrived back in Daring Heights late the night before a bit more tanned than when he left on his trip. He looks around in the Four Fair Winds in the late morning trying to see either Arkadius or Sheryl. He spots the young fae-woman walking down the staircase nimbly with her beautiful wings. He catches her attention with a wave and points for her to come join him at his table.

Sheryl saunters over, a soft smile on her face. “Well don’t you look freshly sun-kissed! Been anywhere exciting this past week?” she asks as she sits down and starts pouring herself a glass of fresh juice from an elegant decanter. She pours one for Mathew as well seeing his empty glass.

“Thanks,” Matthew nods to the glass. “Yes I have! The song we sang a couple of weeks ago felt very similar to one I am looking for. I had an idea which... you will have to wait for,” he says, giving a mischievous wink.

A waistcoated server in an elegant cravate comes over as if on cue. “My usual please, with some extra cheese,” she says, then turns back to Mathew. “I shall wait only as long as it takes for my food to get here, then you shall have to tell me,” she says, giving him a charming smile.

“Tell me, where is Arkadius? Late partying?” Matthew asks seemingly unaffected by her charm.

“I haven’t seen him since we got back from our last job together. He couldn’t have been drinking too late, I have most of his money from it,” she takes a sip of fresh fruit juice. “But you’re probably not far off the mark,” she sighs, shaking her head.

Matthew tilts his head slightly, deep in thought “Last week might have not been our best week, but I enjoy your style of music. Interested in giving it another go?” he asks, as a handsome waiter appears with Sheryl’s breakfast.

She thanks the waiter, then smiles coyly at Mathew. “You don’t even need to ask, of course I am ready to do another performance together! Although,” she hesitates. “I don’t know about Arkadius. He was prattling on about a business venture down in Port Ffirst the other night. I couldn’t make heads or tails of what he was really saying at the time.” She pops a piece of cheese into her mouth and chews trying to remember. “I don’t know if he will be able to perform with us right now is what I’m trying to get at. Would that be a problem?”

Mathew smiles. “Shouldn’t be a problem. We will have him join us on the next one. I got part of a song in my head. Maybe we can build it together on stage tonight?”

Sheryl’s eyes light up and she picks up some fruit from her plate. “Colour me curious. What is this song?” She takes a bite of the fruit and gives Matthew a flirty smile.

Mathew’s smile turns a bit sad as he says, “It’s about experiencing dark times, wars, going against powerful beings, and enduring.” His mood darkens for a brief moment before clearing. “It’s about missing home and loved ones but carrying on to show your strength and love for them.”

Sheryl’s smile fades as Mathew talks. Thoughts she had been pushing aside – aches of the heart and worries of the mind she did not wish to deal with about wars, missing those at home, longing for the safety of the Court, wanting to stand strong in the face of powerful beings even when you yourself were but a small light in a vast darkness. Her appetite is now gone. She tries to swallow the bit of food in her mouth though it now feels as heavy as lead as it makes its way down to her roiling stomach.

She pushes her plate away and delicately dabs at her mouth to gather her thoughts. “I am not sure if such a song is within me Mathew.” She tries for a light laugh but it comes out too bright. “I mean, such a song would be wonderful to perform but maybe you take the lead more on this one? You seem very passionate about this idea.”

Mathew looks into Sheryl’s eyes, seeing the conflict in them. He smiles encouragingly and leans forward giving her shoulder a light caress, letting a small amount of his angelic energy seep into her skin to calm and comfort her. “Let’s both sing and help each other through the song. How about that?” He lets his touch linger a moment longer, then he lets her go and shifts back in his seat.

Sheryl touches her shoulder. She can still feel the warmth of his touch and something else that Mathew just instilled in her. “Mathew… Are you- You’re more than human, aren’t you?” She tries to study the man sitting across from her but she doesn’t know what she’s looking for. “I-I’m sorry. That was rude of me,” she quickly says, realizing she’s been staring at him. She feels a small blush spread across her face. Reaching for her glass of fruit juice, Sheryl takes a long, deep drink nearly draining the cup, an attempt at centering herself again.

Matthew gives a small chuckle. “I am surprised Arkadius hasn’t told you. Let’s just say I might be less human than him.” His eyes shine a bit brighter but he doesn’t elaborate.

“Curious,” she says, tilting her head and raising an eyebrow. “You say less human and yet you comfort me. I get the feeling that your hidden self is of a good constitution…” She searches his face but his mask is inpentetrable. She holds her hands up in surrender. “I will not pry. I’ll just say this.” Sheryl places her small hand over his and gives it a gentle squeeze, eyes soft and warm. “Thank you. I would be happy to sing this song with you by my side, guiding me through it.”

Mathew nods and smiles warmly back. “Then I will see you this evening. I would love to rest a bit more before our duet tonight.” He stands up giving a bow of respect and points out to the waiter for their meal to be put on his tab before retiring to his room.

Sheryl watches him go, unconsciously touching her shoulder again. Mathew really intrigued her. This talk of a certain sound or song he is looking for made her wonder if it was already in existence or something new that Mathew would discover. She had never thought of songs sounding a certain way or another, it was more the feelings they invoked. But maybe there is something in the style of the song that makes certain emotions come forward more strongly than others.

An interesting man with a story of his own to tell, she thinks to herself, a smile touching her lips. She plucks a grape from her half eaten plate and pops it into her mouth. Maybe I will be the one to discover that tale.

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AWAKE & ALIVE

Mathew waved to the audience of the Four Fair Winds again and they shouted their love for the song the two bards had just performed. Sheryl notices his face is aglow with a light, something she only barely glimpsed earlier in the day when he comforted her. But this is different. It’s brighter, purer.

She enjoyed performing with Mathew. He brought something more primal out of her songs which she hadn’t known was there before. But there was something about this song that also tore into her. Maybe it’s because it made her think of the people of Jarvenol and their city in ruins as they fled. All that history, all those lives sacrificed so the few could make it out alive…

Sheryl turned away from the lights, from the audience’s applause and quietly retreated behind the curtain. Mathew turns to where she was standing and out of the corner of his eye sees the tips of her shimmering wings flit behind the curtain. His brow furrows for a moment, but then he turns back to the audience, bowing again and smiling.

A couple of small fireworks explode safely in the shape of ‘The Planes of Existence’. As the words fade people notice Mathew has disappeared from the stage as well, but the audience’s applause continues.

Mathew sees Sheryl standing off to the side of the little room backstage, holding her harp close, like a security blanket. She doesn’t turn as he enters but he can hear a small sniffle.

Mathew stands next to her for a moment, quietly thinking. Suddenly he turns towards her saying, “Come with me!” in a soft tone as he reaches for her hand.

“Wha-?” she starts but then is being pulled forward by Mathew. “What are you doing? Where are we going?” Sheryl tries to hide her face as she brushes the tears away.

Mathew stays silent as he pulls her through the kitchen away from the crowd. The chef shouts at them but Mathew deftly throws a silver piece towards him to quiet him. He takes Sheryl through the back door then starts walking towards one of the gates. As they walk neither of them speaks, Sheryl focusing more on trying not to trip in order to keep up with Mathew’s longer stride. After they exit the gate he continues to guide them towards a big clearing outside of town. In the middle of this field is a huge purple tulip in full bloom in the moonlight.

He stops and there’s a moment of silence. “Do you know what this is?” he asks.

Sheryl looks down at the beautiful flower and then back up to Mathew. She shakes her head, confused.

Mathew sighs. “I heard of what happened in K’ul Goran, about you being one of the first people to witness the start of the war. There was a guy I understood who died there. Do you know him?” Mathew looks to her eyes intently.

She gives a small nod. “Yes. His name was Mystogan.” She looks down at the flower. “I heard that he....” she trails off, slowly making the connections in her head.

Mathew nods as he looks back at the flower. “Heard he had his demons but he kept on fighting, recklessly might I say, but he had heart.” Mathew approaches the flower slowly and touches it ever so softly. “I’m looking forward to seeing what else he is going to do.”

“If you brought me here because you think I’ll stop fighting, I won’t. I’ve been fighting all of my life,” Sheryl holds herself tighter. “Sometimes it doesn’t feel like it’s enough though.” She looks west, towards the Feythorn forest, the tree tops dancing in the cool night breeze.

Matthew looks at her, his eyes glowing brightly and says in a serious tone, “I brought you here to show you someone who chose to come back to this life even though he went through pain and finally got to rest.”

“You don’t understand Mathew. I can’t risk–” Sheryl suddenly stops and clears her throat. “I only have only so many months left here. I cannot risk getting into…” she trails off, gesturing to the flower. “It’s hard to explain. I’m sorry. And I’m not making much sense.” She looks up to his face and attempts to smile. “I appreciate what you’re trying to say to me. I won’t give up. But I still feel like… like whatever I try to do isn’t enough. I’m so small. My powers…” she gestures to herself and then laughs. “Illusion and charm. He, Mystogan, was so much bigger than me. And yet he fell. Even though he came back, I can’t risk that.”

Mathew’s face softens as does the glow in his eyes. “My advice is no one can stop you but yourself. And I have known you for a short time but I’ve seen your strength. Only leave if you choose to. And if anyone tries to pull you away, Arkadius and I will show them the wrath of the Heavens and the Hells.” As he says this his body starts shifting and two black decaying wings appear behind him. His eyes melt into pools of black, blood falling from them. Sheryl is frozen in place in awe, unable to move. Mathew’s voice when he speaks again is horse and deep, “You’ve got friends here.”

After a moment the wings fold back in and his eyes shift back to their natural form. Then Mathew slumps to the ground next to the flower.

Sheryl tentatively comes over to Mathew, kneeling down in front of him. Her eyes roam all over him, unable to believe what she saw. She had never seen an angel before. Reaching out to touch his shoulder like he did to her, she starts to hum a melody that’s both sad and beautiful, haunting and full of longing. She pauses after the one stanza and looks into Mathew’s eyes.

“Mathew…” she searches his face. He looks at her and the moment he does she hugs him, burying her face into his chest. “Thank you.”

He hugs her back.

The two of them stay there for a time, holding each other. The comfort of being close to another person reverberating through their hearts.