Chapter 267: Whispers In The Void
From within that light, an ethereal woman descended gracefully from the sky, her golden hair flowing behind her like warm sunlight.
Her luminous golden eyes swept across the devastation beneath her. Then, with a single raised hand, a surge of blinding golden light erupted from her palm, washing over the entire land, making Eve squeeze her eyes shut against the sheer brightness.
And then....everything went silent.
The next time she opened her eyes, she found herself watching as a mere spectator.
Two figures hovered above a mountain shaped like the mouth of a volcano, and she recognised the figures immediately as Solaira and Malakai.
They raised their hands together, and in the very next moment, the scene was swallowed by darkness once more.
When Eve looked around again, there was nothing but the void.
From within that darkness, a soft, honeyed whisper reached her ears.
"Forget about him. You are just a defenceless princess with no powers....Evelyn..."
"Evelyn... listen to me," the voice whispered again.
Eve looked around frantically, trying to catch even a glimpse of the person whose voice kept calling out to her.
Then she felt it.
A physical sensation. A hand resting gently against her head.
"Evelyn...you are useless," the whisper continued, closer now.
"Who....who are you?" she asked, her voice trembling.
"Evelyn...forget about him..." the whisper grew softer.
"Evelyn!" The faint whisper suddenly grew louder, and recognition struck her all at once.
"Evelyn! Wake up, baby!"
And at his voice, her eyes snapped open, blazing gold.
She was panting heavily, her chest rising and falling erratically. Something damp clung to her lashes and forehead, and when her vision finally focused, the first thing she saw was his handsome face hovering above her, etched with raw concern.
Ivan.
His hands cradled her cheeks and forehead as he gently dabbed at the moisture there with a cloth, carefully, as though bringing her back into the waking world.
"Ivan?" she spoke in a slightly hoarse voice, her throat feeling painfully dry.
"Yes, I’m here, love. It was just a nightmare," he reassured her softly.
She lifted her hand to her throat and whispered, "Water..."
Ivan nodded at once and quickly fetched some from the jug, returning moments later with a full glass. He set it carefully on the table before helping her sit up, then brought the glass to her lips.
Eve placed her trembling hand over his as he held the glass and slowly drank every last drop.
Once she was done, he set the now-empty glass aside before turning back to her, watching her with keen, worried eyes. He saw the golden glow in her irises slowly fade, her gaze settling back into its familiar, clear blue.
Carefully, he lifted his hand so as not to startle her, sensing how shaken she still was by whatever she had seen in her dream. He brushed the loose strands of hair away from her face and tucked them gently behind her ear before speaking lightly, though concern still lingered beneath his tone.
"I leave you alone for one moment," he murmured, "and this is what I come back to."
Eve’s eyes softened as she looked at him, and she suddenly threw her arms around his neck, burying her face deep against his skin. Drawing in a long breath of his familiar, calming scent, she felt her racing heart begin to slow, little by little.
Ivan pulled her closer into his warm embrace and tilted his head to press a gentle kiss to her neck.
"It’s alright," she heard him murmur softly. "We’re still here..."
His hand moved in slow, comforting circles along her back, just as it always did, and she sank further into him, her body gradually relaxing. Keeping her eyes closed, she let herself focus on the steady rhythm of his voice and touch, until the tight knot in her chest finally began to loosen.
When she neither moved nor spoke, Ivan lifted his head to look down at her and cracked a joke to lighten the mood. "I hope you haven’t fallen asleep on me already?"
Only then did she mumble against his neck, her voice muffled, "I might have... you’re just so comfortable," she added, nuzzling against his neck, which instantly drew a smile to his lips.
"Am I a mattress?" he said in a dangerously low voice, sending an entirely different kind of shiver through her.
That finally made her lift her head.
She looked up at him with wide, innocent eyes before breaking into a sweet smile. "I could consider it," she said lightly, "if you’re offering."
Ivan narrowed his eyes at her, then reached up to lightly grasp her chin. "You’re getting very bold, aren’t you, my Eve?" he murmured, giving her chin a gentle pinch.
She only smiled wider in response.
Pressing a light kiss to her lips, he sank back onto the couch and drew her with him onto his lap, keeping his arms wrapped securely around her.
His hands continued to move slowly along her arm and back, before he finally asked with care, "So....am I allowed to ask what you saw?"
Eve rested her head against his shoulder, her fingers absent-mindedly playing with one of the buttons on his shirt as she let out a heavy breath. "Another dreadful scene from our past," she said softly. "You could say."
She went on to tell him about the Nocthrax attacking the people, about the chaos and bloodshed, and how Solaira descended from above in a wash of golden light. Then she spoke of the brief vision that followed, the mountain, and how she saw the two of them there together, if only for a moment.
"But....there was something else this time." She looked up at him, meeting his calm gaze, and asked softly, "Ivan? The woman you saw, the one who whispered to you....what exactly did she say?"
Ivan’s brow furrowed at her question, yet he still replied, "She kept asking me to forget about you. Why?"
Eve swallowed hard. "I think....it was the same woman who told me the same thing. The only difference is that she did not just ask me to forget you. She kept saying things like I am useless, that I am a defenceless princess with no powers."
The frown on Ivan’s forehead deepened, and a surge of rage bubbled within him at the thought of someone daring to speak so cruelly about his Eve.
Eve could see and feel his silent rage and frustration, and she continued, "I could not see her face. For me, it was as though I was trapped in a dark void with nothing in sight. The only thing that kept happening was her whisper, echoing those words over and over again, as if she wanted me to succumb to them... as if she was trying to make me forget about you all over again. It felt... too real."
Eve looked up at Ivan, worry filled her eyes. "What do you think it means? All of this is very strange, and I....do not like it one bit."
Ivan could feel her distress and reached up, weaving his fingers through her long brown hair.
Then, gently, he spoke. "I do not want you to worry about this right now. We both know that our memories of each other were already tampered with. And the fact that you are finally able to see some of them is a good sign that they are slowly returning to you, just as it is happening to me."
He then cupped her cheek. "I am sure that as more fragments return, sooner or later, you will be able to see a clearer picture. Alright?"
Eve searched his eyes for a moment before giving a small nod.
"Good. And Eve....remember, whatever you have seen is a part of your past that you cannot erase. Nevertheless, it is not your present or your future. So no matter what you are feeling while watching it, if or when it happens again, know this: you have a brighter present to come back to. Try not to let it affect you so much."
Eve nodded, then voiced her concerns once more.
"B-but Ivan....what about that woman? If she tried so hard to separate us back then, then surely she might come back now to do it again, would she not?"
"I mean, we are much more public now, and if she clearly knew about the prophecy, then she must have known our identities from the very beginning. Not to mention, she must be aware by now that we have awakened our powers."
"She cannot touch us, Eve. I would burn her, or anyone else, alive before they could get close to either of us." He said it calmly, far too calmly, and somehow that made his anger feel even more deadly.
Ivan brushed his thumb against her cheek and continued, "I do not have many things I hold close to my heart, Eve, but my memories are something important to me, something that truly holds value. She took them and meddled with them. I do not think I will ever let anyone do that to me again. I promise you I’ll make her pay for the consequences of committing this sin. Otherwise, I would be putting my name to shame."
