Wings Of Fire (WOF) : A dark family affair

Chapter 23

Be aware. This chapter may contain content that can hurt your sensibility. (beginning of depression)

The two of them waited in vain for Maple to arrive and, after one last desperate exchange with Dandelion, Nightjar submitted to waiting. Doing nothing. Wandering in circles in her room. Worrying all the time. Tormenting her mind and imagining the worst. The days that followed proved to be psychological torture for her. It was like falling into a deep abyss of unknown depth. But it didn't last forever. This unpredictable fall was going to be fatal and the anxiety surrounding this fear was driving her mad.

The day after Maple's disappearance, she and her colleague had decided to revisit the dangerous side of the city, even more cautiously. Nightjar was still holding out hope that he had hidden somewhere in the deserted streets and was waiting for them. But even when they searched high and low and made enquiries of the few inhabitants, they found nothing, not even a clue. She reluctantly called off the search.

The only thing they learned was they had to avoid the prison on the edge of town. There were rumours, among people, that it was not the authorities but Revenant who strangely controlled the place. No one knew how they had managed to take possession of the place or why they were allowed to do so. For some, Queen Cactus was letting them do it and for others, it was linked to animus magic. Still in the rumours, the Sky kingdom may have tried to negotiate with the Sand kingdom in order to control the prison which they lost control, but in vain.

On the second day, Dandelion had gone to get some information and had advised her not to go out, for her own safety. She scoffed at his advice and went out, hoping to take her mind off things. But nothing worked. The streets seemed bland, colourless and lifeless. The chatter and music fuelled her irritation and she resigned herself to returning to her room. But finding this room empty drove her deeper into despair. She had nowhere else to go and she felt desolate to spend so much time here.

That night, her head was clouded by a fog of sordid thoughts. "How did I get here?" "It's all my fault" "Why do I attract trouble?" "IS IT ALL DANDELION'S FAULT WITH HIS STUPID PLANS... or mine?" "Maybe he's already dead by now?" "I'm pitiful" "I've got to hope" "Will I be able to join him in..." Tiredness overtook her, plunging her into an empty sleep, without dreams or ambition.

The following day, Dandelion came to check on her, having noticed that his friend was lacking in willpower. As for him, he still had nothing. Not a single piece of useful information. "He's really useless". He had also come to give her back a filament of fire, which he placed on the table in the bedroom. "Or not ?". From her window, despite the dryness of the desert, clouds had appeared in the sky, accompanied by distant flashes of lightning.

Later, she had made the effort to go and eat something to settle her stomach. But she still felt as empty as ever. Empty. Not since she left home had she felt so empty. Hollow. That was how she felt inside. Even her lack of truth hadn't made her feel so hollow. It didn't matter and in the end she had been selfish.

The thought clicked in her mind. Anger overcame her without her being able to do anything about it. Accompanied by the noisy opera of the rain and the storm that rained down on the streets, she shouted, screamed and cried. She pathetically pounded the ground to let her distressed body speak for itself. Her furious blows lost their rigour, hatred giving way to unbearable sadness. She cowered on the ground, feeling miserable.

It was because of her that they had come to this. Maple wouldn't be suffering if they'd listened to her earlier. Maple had warned them of the danger but she and Dandelion hadn't listened to him and he was paying the price. It was unfair and Nightjar blamed herself to no end. If she hadn't been blinded by her stupid journey, they might still be in the Kingdom of Heaven, learning to appreciate what they had lost now. This feeling of helplessness and guilt was unbearable for her and she suddenly fainted, out of sheer exhaustion for life, giving way to a short nap.