Page 112 of Florescentia

From beyond, a light.

Not the moon above, but a star.

It was bright, then dimmed. The rays danced in my bleary vision. There were others, then more than that. An entire sky of a world rarely seen. A star for every year Earth had existed and more. Never had I seen clusters so clearly. It was like the light rippling off a cloak of diamonds, veiling over the dark sky.

“Is it everything you thought it would be?” Altair’s voice, somber beside me.

I turned my head, resting it on my knees. “I don’t know yet.” He appeared to me as a person, but it wasn’t any comfort.

Altair’s eyes were as bright and pure as the stars. He couldn’t even hide the dim glow that came from them, especially when he looked at me. “Do you want to find out?”

I looked back out at the sky.

He reached to touch my leg, and I winced.

“Let me—”

“I don’t need your help.”

He tugged my ankle, ignoring my protest.

Altair’s hand turned black as he pressed his palm to my skin. A tingle erupted across the surface, making even the smallest hair turn on edge. It was warm, a wave of comfort. But it wasn’t real, was it?

“I hope you find what you’re searching for, Lucia,” he said, his eyes not leaving the wound.

“You say that like you know something I don’t.”

“I just hope whatever it is, it brings you peace,” he said simply, “because you won’t be able to go back.”

“What do you mean?” I stood quickly.

Altair looked at me through his lashes, letting go of my leg. “You should have stayed where you belonged.”

“You knew what I set out to do.”

“As if I could have changed your mind,” he laughed.

“You will help me,” I argued. “You said this would work.”

“It did, didn’t it?” He gestured around him. “You spoke to the dead, you traveled through—but no one said it would get you back. Did you really think the dead could go back?”

“You said it was . . .” I shook my head. “You sabotaged me!”

“I said you may find your dearly departed here. I did not promise you would find him or be able to bring him back. You are meddling.”

A white-hot anger erupted in me. It was like all the strings I’d been strung along by were suddenly all too taut and in every opposing direction. It was enough to wish for the sweet release that would come when my limbs were torn away from my body and I no longer was trapped in this web.

I kicked the dusty dirt in his face. “You speak in riddles because you have no substance to offer!” I hissed, stomping back down the path.

“You wanted to see it for yourself.” He materialized beside me, already walking in stride. “I am just here to show you the options you do have.”

I stopped in my tracks, turning to him. “Yet you neglected to tell me that I would have no way back? What choice do I have now? Where are you leading me to?”

He leaned close, his eyes lowered on me. “At this time, you can choose to pass on, or you may become stuck, doomed to repeat a loop in a cage fashioned just for you.” He paused, his eyes scrutinizing me, carefully directing his words. “Or you can join me.”

“Join you?” I scoffed. “I thought you were here to lead me.”

“With me, you can pass freely to and from briefly, but you can never fully return.” His words came quick, and if I didn’t know any better, I would’ve thought he sounded excited. “Just like you showed me your home, I can show you mine. Imagine every single question you’ve ever had, every wonder that’s ever crossed your mind, things you didn’t know you could know.” He grasped my hands in his.