Winged

~~9~~

Then she turned.
"Do you—" the look in his eyes completely misplaced any words she had been thinking to say.

An openness. Determination. Sincerity and...love, maybe? She didn't know what that meant, but her heart was thrumming with all the exact same emotions. Her feet moved on their own accord, as if drawn to him by invisible threads of connection that had begun weaving themselves the moment they met. Two lost souls searching for safety, security, love. Freedom.

"You wanted to be free. And you are now. You don't need me to hold you ba—"

"You could never hold me back. You lift me up. With you I can soar. Being bound to you, my darling Silva, is the greatest freedom I could ever imagine."

Tears pricked her eyes and blurred her vision. The vision of Cyrus smiling down at her. That's it; it must just be a vision. How could anyone look at her in this way? She was not beautiful, she had muddy skin, she was bruised and broken—both inside and out.

Cyrus lowered his head and his lips met hers a heart-stopping second later.

All her doubtful thoughts vanished and were replaced with certainty. Heat. A flame of passion ignited in her core and raced through her body. A longing and desire she'd never felt before surged with each thump of her heart, his against hers beating in sync.

"I love you, Silvana my darling. Never leave my side?" He murmured against her soft lips, her heart nearly thumping too loudly for her to hear his words.

"Never," she smiled in agreement. A vow. A pact between them that had most likely been forged long before she realised the bond growing between them.

Laughter and singing voices reached them from across the beach, and they both looked up at the tree line. Smiling faces. Skin of all colours: gold, fair, olive, tan, bronzed, and dark cacao like Silva's. Clothing with tinkling bells and dyes of many hues, so bright and cheerful like their countenances.
"Welcome, Cyrus and Silvana, to the Isle of Yahweh. He will be so pleased to finally greet you. He has been waiting for you to arrive for a long time!" a woman with ponderous arms enveloped them in a hug and her sing-song melodic voice floated around them harmoniously.

"What?" Silva pulled back in confusion. "How does he—"

"Oh you have nothing to worry about, dear child," an elderly man said reassuringly, laying a calm hand on her shoulder. "Cyrus, however..."

"Hey, I thought I was all forgiven!" It was Cyrus' turn to look surprised and a little peeved.

"So you are, so you are," the woman's eyes twinkled in agreement and merriment.

Silvana had no idea what they were talking about, so instead gazed back at the crashing ocean, at a growing white smudge of smoke on the horizon. "Pax...? What happened to them?"

A young man with a shock of midnight black hair on his tanned forehead stepped up and crossed his arms. "Their hate and thirst to kill you destroyed them," he spoke with a faraway look in his eyes, as if he was seeing beyond the realm of their immediate vicinity.

Satisfaction. A strange feeling of relief curled in her stomach and caressed her heart. Justice. Sweet retribution had finally caught up to the monster that nearly destroyed her.

She looked at Cyrus, a smile tugging on her lips. But he was frowning. His eyes were creased in...sadness, maybe? "So they can no longer be saved," he stated, his deep voice washing over the quiet crowd around them as they all looked at the vanquishing speck in the distance.

"Come on," another woman, tall and slender with glowing green eyes and a floral design etched on her pale skin, motioned for them. "Yahweh has great plans for you."

But was Silva ready for great plans? Something about this idea left her unsettled and nervous. But as soon as Cyrus slipped his strong arm around her waist and smiled down at her gently, she knew she was ready for anything that awaited her in this land.

The group turned as one and headed into the coastal forests, peaceful laughter tinkling from their lips once more. The floral woman brushed her fingertips on the leaves, and the trees and vines opened up before them, allowing them passage amongst the dense foliage. Warm rays of sunshine hugged them close as it sparkled down through the trees, the dark-haired man's arms lifted and his hands glowed as with the sun. Silva took a deep breath of the invigorating air. This place would take some getting used to, she thought as she rested her head against Cyrus' shoulder.

Her wings—her beautiful, strong wings—hung delicately behind her, brushing Cyrus' scarred back lovingly in a manner that didn't want to let him go. Ever.

Together, they would rise. Together, they would fly.

Together, they were Winged.

Colours
surround her
The air shimmers
and sparkles
with rainbows

She breathes
forgetting the suffocation
of coal greys
and stone blacks
of hardened earth

She soars in azure skies
Free