TBATE | GREY x CAERA - A Fanfiction

Chapter 19

I was surprised at how I missed that. Shaking my head, Caera and I walked towards the opening while Ion closely followed.

When I stepped closer to the archway, my heart started beating faster as a familiar sensation rose up inside me—inside my core. I could feel the amount of aether contained on the other side of the room, slowly pulling me inside its grasp.

Surprised, I gave in to the sensation and moved in haste.

Just as I crossed the archway, my vision was filled with motes of purple and swirling whites...it took me a few good seconds for my eyes to adjust to the scenery on the other side.

And when I saw it, I froze.

My whole body stiffened and my throat went dry as I dazedly stared at the humongous tree in front of my eyes.

Regis leapt out wordlessly, as if he was under a spell.

My eyes—our, eyes—fixed on the large round fruits hanging from the tree. It's glowing purple colour lighting the entire circular room with bright amethyst tint.

A-Aether...fruits.

Just as I took a step forward, a warm hand pulled me out of my temptations. I soon felt my cheeks hurt.

"Grey, look! It's the portal!" Caera's soft voice brought me back to normality as I practically peeled my gaze off the aether fruits and looked at Caera. Her hand was poking my cheeks as she tried to gain my attention.

Ignoring her odd action, I followed her other hand to where she was pointing at.

It wasn't anywhere else. It was under the tree. There stood a large portal archway, but it wasn't active.

"There's no power source." I said out loud for Caera to hear. She walked forward and stopped as she touched the portal frame to study it.

There were few rune symbols etched on its surface, much like the ones we had found in the Dragon's zone. But, I could see the runic pathways—similar to the ones we have been following—connect to the portal frame. There was a circular cavity at the bottom of the portal which was empty. "This empty cavity must have held the power source."

"Don't tell me that we have to go search for it." Caera said in a tired tone. I knew she must be exhausted after the fight. My eyes studied her form, her previously glittering eyes now a dull red...yet they looked beautiful nonetheless. I thought as my eyes subconsciously trailed down at her body—her posture, which was now slightly hunched.

I stopped—when I noticed her looking back at me with a curious gaze. "What are you looking at?" She asked hoarsely, as if she was holding onto her breath. Her eyes peered into mine, drilling deep for an answer.

My lips formed a faint smile while I shook my head. "You look tired. Take some rest." I replied and walked over to one of the tree branches and plucked out a fruit. Just as my hand touched the surface, I felt a prickle on my skin as the aether started to slowly seep into my body.

Resisting the urge to take a bite, I handed the fruit to Caera, who was now sitting down on the ground, her hands hugging her knees as she kept eyeing me curiously.

"Eat this. It contains aether...but it should be good enough for you as well."

She smiled back warmly, as she took a bite. As soon as she did, her face gained a few shades of colour and her complexion visibly soften. I could see her posture relax as she slowly started to look like her usual self.

Satisfied with the outcome, I went back to grab a few more of the fruits.

"Can you eat it already. I dying to taste the aether!" Regis grumbled with an urgent tone.