Chapter 11: You're Stripping?!
The Forgotten One gasped as the portal swallowed them whole, enveloping them in a kaleidoscope vortex of mesmerizing amethyst, emerald, lime green, and turquoise colors.
Once inside the portal, Calista's eyelids drooped, and her head slumped against his shoulder since she lacked the strength to hold it up on her own. Her left arm slipped from around his neck, falling into her lap. Her right hand, used to summon the portal, came to rest on top of her left.
In the blink of an eye, the portal coughed them up after devouring them like some monstrous beast, almost as if it was disgusted with their taste. Within a couple of seconds, it tossed them back into the freezing ebony sky while tiny water droplets beat down on them from above.
After the two of them had escaped the portal's jaws, its edges began to curl inward, resembling a flower's petals withering away. The portal closed up entirely from behind them without a trace, as if it had never existed in the first place.
A concerned look crossed The Forgotten One's face as he could feel Calista trembling against him and her body going limp in his arms. "What have you done, Dove? Do you have any idea where we even are? Tell me. Where did you send us to?" he asked, his tone impatient, while looking around them.
"What have I done? I just saved our lives. And as for where we are, I'm afraid I'm not sure myself," Calista managed to say, her voice barely a whisper.
Hearing her struggle to speak caused his golden eyes to dart downward to look directly at her face. He winced as if in pain as he caught a glimpse of the toll that using such a powerful transportation spell had inflicted upon her. The spell appeared to have sapped the last bit of remaining strength she had left from within her.
Calista's face looked a dull pale color, as if something had stolen the life from it. Her breaths came out as shallow and ragged. The Forgotten One soon brought her body closer to his as he held her tighter in his arms to comfort her as much as he could since he wasn't sure what else he could do.
Seeing her in such a state caused him to shudder since it brought back a horrid memory from the dead that always seemed to be lurking in the dark depths in the back of his mind. Even with all those years that had passed him by, it continued to haunt him like it had occurred the previous day. No matter how desperately he wished, he would forget.
He squeezed his eyes shut in an attempt to try and stop himself from seeing the events that took place on that tragic day play out right in front of him, but it was no use.
The images and odors still came rushing back to him as vividly as he had experienced them. The nauseous scent of iron filled his nostrils while he watched in horror as the vermillion-shaded liquid began to run rampant across the floor.
"Why do you look so concerned? You know, I'm a lot tougher than I look. I've been through so much worse; believe me when I say that this is nothing," Calista said in a voice not much louder than a whisper. Her voice caused his eyes to snap back open while she peered back at him, her eyes locking with his.
Even though she tried to reassure him with her words, the genuine concern etched into his face didn't waver, but why? She didn't even think he was capable of experiencing such an emotion, especially with how he had been toward her this whole time.
The man claimed more than once how much he disliked humankind and her, so she wasn't sure what to make of the situation at hand, but there was one thing she was sure of. Something was off about him at the moment.
He sighed frustratedly before saying, "Why do you have to be so stubborn? You know we wouldn't even be in this mess if you would have just trusted me like you claimed you would."
He stared aimlessly ahead of them while she could feel his heart rapidly beating against his chest. His chest heaved as quick breaths escaped his lips as panic began to well up inside of him.
Calista's eyes narrowed before scolding him in a shaky voice, "Trust you?! How could you expect me to do something like that when you acted completely reckless back there by provoking some wind goddess, hoping she'd fire an attack at us? If it weren't for me, you likely would have ended up getting us both killed."
"You want me to trust you so bad, then tell me why we're talking in the rain instead of taking shelter?" Calista said while trying her best to raise her voice to outdo the sound of the raindrops pounding against the ground.
That was the entire point, Dove. You were never in danger. She's quite the temperamental goddess. I was hoping to get her angry enough so that she would launch her strongest attack toward us. I intended to redirect it with twice the force back at her, knocking her out of the sky instead. But, things didn't play out that way because of a certain someone," he said in an unhappy tone.
"Well, if you kept quiet for a moment and refrained from distracting me, I could easily find a place to shelter us from the rain. It would be pointless for me to fly around aimlessly since I can sense our surroundings without relying on my eyes," The Forgotten One said in a frustrated tone.
Calista rolled her eyes, realizing he did have a point, and held her tongue for the time being to let him focus.
Temporary silence existed between them as neither spoke a single word while they were suspended in the air as if frozen in time with the wind and rain raging around them. The Forgotten One sucked in a deep breath before exhaling slowly to try and calm his racing heart and clear his mind while staring straight ahead of them.
Suddenly, he turned his head, fixated on something in the east, causing Calista to follow his gaze and ask in a low voice, "What is it?"
He didn't answer her immediately. But after a moment, he told her smugly, "I hate to be the one to brag, Dove. But it seems as if I've already found somewhere to stay the night to shield us from the storm."
"Well, that was fast. Are you really being serious? How can you be so sure there's one over there?" Calista asked weakly in a curious tone, wondering where exactly he would be taking her.
The Forgotten One replied while smiling mischievously, "Oh, I'm quite certain of it. My instincts don't lie. Trust me, I have my ways of knowing; it's just one of my many talents, you see~."
"I don't want to waste any more time out here than we already have. I want to take you there as soon as possible since I need to warm you up. It may not be perfect, but as of right now, it's the closest and best option we've got," The Forgotten One pointed out.
"Ugh, seriously, could you be any more full of yourself? What kind of shelter even is it?" She asked in a tone of irritation and skepticism as he began to fly eastward without wasting a second.
She pursed her lips together in slight annoyance that he wouldn't reveal the details about the shelter except that she should just trust him. But at least he appeared confident, which was somewhat reassuring.
The further they went in that direction, the more a deep rumbling noise joined the roar of the wind, which grew louder with each passing minute. The sound was all too familiar.
"So I see you're taking me to a waterfall?" Calista mumbled softly.
"Well, sort of; there's a cavern behind it. So that should do for now," The Forgotten One said reassuringly.
He descended, landing gently on the ground, still carrying her bridal style in his arms. A rush of water cascaded overhead from a rocky ledge in the darkness.
Before going any further, he stood there, whispering, "Hang on a moment. Let me make sure there's no one else lurking around here."
After a few moments passed, he said in a relieved tone, "Good, it looks like we're all alone. Are you able to stand on your own?" He asked her while gazing directly into her face and holding her in his arms, awaiting an answer.
"I don't think I can. I'm afraid that if I try to, my legs will give out on me," Calista said quietly, slightly drifting off.
"It's alright; I don't mind carrying you," he said softly.
As soon as they walked around to the other side of the waterfall, there was indeed a small cave to shield them from the storm.
"By any chance, do you have enough strength left in you to cast a spell? Maybe to start a fire or change your clothes into ones that are dry and warmer?" he asked curiously.
She tried, but it was no use as she laid out the palm of her hand flat. Only a few crackles of light emerged from it before the sparks died out within the blink of an eye.
"Sorry, it's no use; I'm too weak," she said with disappointment filling her tone.
He sighed loudly before gently laying her on the ground and saying, "Guess it's come down to this. This isn't exactly what I had in mind."
"Wait, what are you doing?!" Calista said, stunned.
"What was that sound just now?!" She exclaimed while her eyes widened and her face flushed a deep shade of pink as soon as she heard the sound of fabric flopping onto the floor.
"Oh, that~..." He chuckled playfully, pausing for a few seconds to add to the suspense before answering, "That was the sound of my coat falling to the ground because I just took it off."
"I can't believe you're stripping at a time like this!" she yelled at him as the pink on her cheeks darkened further.
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