When the Stars Burn

Chapter 7: επτά

Blinding light struck his eyes and he couldn't help but squint as he tried to acquaint himself with his surroundings. He could hear the waves crashing so he surmised that he was near the shores. He blinked once, twice and then three times and the light faded to reveal a meadow overlooking the ocean that was glinting in turquoise. Ths skies were clear and crystal blue, the air crisp, and the grass touching his ankles were swaying with the cool breeze that danced past him. It was paradise. But not to him.

He took a deep breath to calm himself. He pinched his arm, there was a sting that disappeared shortly. He placed his palm against his chest and felt his heart beating steadily. Everything that indicated a sign of life was there. They manifested in him. But it didn't take long until he noticed the iridescent glimmer that radiated from him.

This couldn't be, he mused. He sprinted off to seek for someone— anyone who could tell him where or when he was. He kept running but the meadows also sprawled across in what seemed to be a never-ending terrain.

"Is anybody there?!" he cried but was responded to only by the whistle of the wind. He sat on the nearest boulder he saw while he tried to make sense of what was in front of him. It was when his hand brushed against a slight protrusion from his trouser pocket. He slipped his palm in and took out a lone gold coin... A drachma. He swept his eyes across the wide expanse and almost cried in relief when he saw a rainbow where the earth met the seas.

He was panting when he reached the end of the rainbow but he didn't waste any time. He dropped to his knees and laid out his palms. "Iris, goddess of the rainbows, hear my plea. Milady, come to my aid where aid is gone but in thee," he whispered reverently, hoping that the deity would hear him.

He felt a gentle breeze brush against his face and when he opened his eyes, he saw a lady. Adorning a diaphanous chiton that glimmered in a myriad of colors as she moved, he saw a diadem atop her head and he knew that his plea was heard.

"Arise demigod," her gentle voice coaxed him back to reality. "Why have you called me? I do not have power in this realm."

He gulped and did as she bid, with his head bowed slightly so he didn't tower over her. "I need answers."

"And answers you shall have."

He released a shaky breath. "Where am I?"

The lady chuckled softly. "Hast no sprite gone to thee yet?"

He shook his head.

She gave him a small smile. "Thy reputation precedes thee. They are wary of thou."

"Wary of me? Why? And why must sprites come to see me? Where am I? The last thing that I could remember was I was in the forest—"

"Playing a song so sorrowful even the Maenads heard thy lament," she cut him off. "I know, dear child. And thou know what else?"

He shook his head.

"Thy music drove them mad. Fitting is it not? The followers of Dionysus, the god of madness, were driven mad by a lone man's anguish."

"I don't understand," he whispered in desperation.

"The sprites are frightened of your music." The lady sighed. "Look around thee. What lay before thy eyes?"

He did as he was told. "Sunlight as far as the eyes could see. Where mornings are eternal..." Eyes widening in realization, his head snapped towards her. "The Isle of the Blest? But how could that be? I tried to follow my beloved many times but the earth, sea and sky and everything that laid in between refused to claim my life. Have I met my demise?"