A New Age, of old strength and allies (ONC 2023)

5. The pain of survival

He laughed again, a soft richness ringing through the air. “Eventually you’ll lose.”

“True, but when I’ve given everything that I have to give, there's nothing left but peace.”

And I’ll finally be able to get some fucking sleep.

His eyes narrowed. “And what if your time simply never comes, only an endless path lays ahead.” His gaze deepened, as though searching the hidden depths of my soul.

I looked away, before looking back. “Then I would find a loophole to soften the harshness of time.”

This time they both laughed, as green-eyes came to rest against the same wall as his friend. I had almost forgotten that he was still there. I met his friend’s eyes once more, but this time his harsh expression had mellowed, touched by amusement.

As we’d been talking, it took me a few moments to realise that the pain had died down to a more manageable threshold. My body felt lighter, as I pushed myself to sit up. Although it still wasn’t easy. My breathing deepened as pain pierced my joints, and I trembled.

“You shouldn’t move,” he said, as he reached past green-eyes to steady me with a graceful movement.

I nodded my thanks and closed my eyes, as dizziness turned my vision black before slowly returning.

“I’m Cain,” he said, as he turned to look at green-eyes.

“And I’m Abel, it’s lovely to meet you, Lilith.”

They both smiled, but it held no small amount of slyness.

“And before you ask, no, not like in the Bible stories. The true tales are rather different,” Abel remarked with laughter.

I narrowed my eyes, thinking back on our meeting at Bluebird. My hazy thoughts, slowly piecing things together.

“I’m assuming that’s why your abilities are beyond unique, and there’s no record of them even in the oldest of the archives.”

“Not just a pretty face, and yes, our history is closely guarded because of it. We’ll tell you more about it later.” Abel said, as he came forward to join Cain.

Cain leaned in towards me. “I’ll tell you what happened, but don’t speak, unless you wish to go without food for several days, or enjoy the agony that arises from it.”

His almost threatening expression was complimented by a serious intensity in his eyes, as he ran a barely there fingertip down over my throat. I tensed as a scolding heat flared, burning my skin. The pain from such a fleeting touch was unbearable, as I realised that he'd done it deliberately to make a point.

I gave Abel an ironic look, but he just laughed as he sauntered away, throwing words over his shoulder as he left. “Don’t worry, he’s no longer able to corrupt your memories. You’ll find out why that is in a moment.”

After watching Abel leave through an archway, I turned back to Cain. We simply stared at one another as I waited for him to begin. I didn’t enjoy having restrictions placed on me, but I could still feel the subtle ache of my throat.

He relaxed, stepping back slightly. “From what you said earlier, you must remember saving the girl from those strangers?” he looked at me.

I nodded, feeling irritated at the jarring pain that followed the movement.

“I’m sure you’ve guessed, but they, and many more like them, are the ones responsible for the dead and the missing. They’ve been corrupted by a divine energy known as heavenly fire, although the source is still relatively unknown. The divine flames are potent and deadly.” He raised an eyebrow, at, I assume, the irony. “The energy drives them into madness whenever they choose to wield it, slowly eating away their life-force until they are consumed, and nothing but death awaits them.”