Nice Byx

"Foresyte"

I turned over the mysterious note hoping to find some sort of indication or clue that I had looked over but there was nothing. Only the cryptic disyllabic message and the same conticurl that Sage Syn had drawn over the cave walls. I looked down at the bouquet of lush purple flowers lying on the stand. I knew what he wanted me to do but that wouldn't make carrying out the task any easier. 

Abandoning the note, I grabbed the flowers by their stem. It was a dark green color and oddly pliabale in my hands.  It became instantly clear that it wasn't a stem at all; It was a long vine that had been wrapped and coiled around itself so that all the flowers blossoming along it were protruding from the top. I brought the group of purple flowers closer to my face. At this distance, I noticed for the first time that each of the flowers contained thousands of tiny specks of twinkling light. The contrast between the dark violet color of the flowers and the bright twinkling made for an awe-inspiring sight that actually made me forget about how volatile these small plants could be. Lifting them up to my nose, I inhaled and was surprised to find the flowers were completely scentless. That was a good sign; hopefully they'd be tasteless too.

I picked one of the smaller flowers from the vine and examined it. The four petals connected to the flower's large bud were velvety and cool in my palm. After my third time turning the flower over, I faced the fact that I wasn't actually looking for anything. I was stalling. I wasn't afraid of the taste of the flower, nor was I even worried about the possibility that I would black out again. I was scared that I would have another vision of the Dravons, or worse, that I would have to experience the darkness again. 

"Come on Leks! You got this! It's just a flower and you've already done it once! You're the Sage now, it's time you start acting like it."

Even though I was taunting myself, even I had to admit, I was making a lot of sense. I was responsible for more than myself now, a lot more. I had to start rising to the occasion and it was time to take the first step. I closed my eyes, opened my mouth and quickly stuffed the flower into it. Before I had time to think or react, I took a few quick chews and forced it down my throat.

I'd made the entire process as fast as I could manage yet somehow I could still taste the bitter earthy Skrill. The taste was literally making me sick to my stomach, but other than that I felt unaffected. The paste had taken effect instantly during the Illumination, so I'd prepared to feel the effects of the flower soon. But as I stood in the cave's dark room and nothing at all happened I wondered if I had taken enough. 

Growing restless waiting for some type of change, I decided to go back to one of the other rooms. I didn't want to have to see the skeleton of the unknown Byx again, so the first room was definitely out. And I didn't know if I could bear the sight of Sage Syn lying motionless on the floor again, which only left one room.

As I walked into the room the pressure in my stomach started to worsen causing me to grip my sides and lean over in pain. It felt like my stomach was rearranging itself and each slight movement was met with a shiver of pain. I decided to try closing my eyes and shutting the pain out for the second time. Just like with earlier, it seemed to actually increase the pain. Now instead of my stomach rearranging itself, it began to maneuver its way up my throat as if it were marching to freedom. Then I vomited. 

The flower's taste was like the sweet taste of ambria compared to the taste that now coated my entire mouth. I'd always hated vomiting but this had felt like something completely different. It was as if an actual part of myself was missing from inside me now. I braced myself for the disgusting sight of regurgitated Skrill that would be waiting, and opened my eyes.

On the ground in front of me was the completely intact flower. Almost nothing about it had changed. Almost. The small twinkles of light that had been scattered over each petal seemed to have united and now the entire flower had a dull glow covering each inch of it as if it was from a GlowBush. The glow of the flower was alluring but I desperately needed to rinse my mouth out.