Departure//Arrival
Departure // Arrival
In-universe date: Era Nova, October--November, Year 2
Real-world date: 22 August 2026
Author: Seras
That night, I had a dream. I was in endless darkness, staring at something below me. my clothes looked different, yet somehow familiar. They weren’t mine, they were Risa’s. I stared at my hands, They weren’t mine either. They were hers.
I felt weight on my back, pulling me down slowly. When I tried to find the source, my hands found wings. When I brought my hands back from them, they were stained black. I looked down again, trying to find the floor, if there was one.
I saw a face instead, round and ivory white, safe for hundreds of pale grey lines etched into its surface. It’s eyes, just like its body, was completely still like a predator stalking its prey, and it was staring at me, it’s eyes as bright as the sun, and yet, the darkness remained, wrapping the scenery in a thick, impenetrable veil.
I felt my mouth open, but I didn’t feel myself speak when words began to tumble outwards. My wings seemed to grow heavier by the moment, dragging me towards the creature faster and faster. Risa’s words came out in reverse as she repeated the same mantra from our mouth, inky black tears welling in our eyes as she spoke.
Suddenly, the darkness behind the creature seemed to erupt in a mess of motion, splintering into strange shapes. And then I heard the fluttering of wings, and the screeching began. Hundreds of voices began to scream at once, and despite the frequency being far beyond what a human could reach, they sounded like people.
After a few seconds, the screeches began to sound different. As they blended together, it almost sounded like a song too perfect to describe with words, and too perfect to be sang like this. As soon as it began to change, Risa’s mantra faded into nothing, and her body went stiff.