Hall of Games [The Celestial Chronicles #1]

Chapter Thirty-Six: The Crystal Cave

"It was a mistake," you said. "But the cruel thing was, it felt like the mistake was mine, for trusting you."   

-David Levithan "The Lover's Dictionary"

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Chapter Thirty-Six: The Crystal Cave

The melting snow flaked the vast landscape. The undulating crests of emerald mountains resembled breathing giants, shaking themselves awake from a deep slumber. The storm was over at last.

Delicate flowers dotted the entire scenery, flanked by vistas of puffy round clouds that dipped down onto the earth and bounced up again. It looked like an oil painting, composed by the hand of an artist no greater than the Stars themselves.

Cady stepped out of the cave, squinting as her eyes adjusted to the blinding rays of the new dawn. Zoroth stood by her side and together, they took in the tinge of new grass and the gentle bite of the subsiding frost.

"Are you ready?" Zoroth asked.

Cady nodded.

"Follow me." Zoroth signaled. "You're lucky that the lands are not too spiky. There isn't much to see near Arya's Arch except for trees and greenery. But watch out for man-eating rocks. They're everywhere.

"Man-eating rocks?" Cady was horrified. "Where?"

Zoroth shrugged nonchalantly. "They are all over the place. They're always hungry—like you."

Cady poked him hard in the ribs. "Stop insulting me!"

Zoroth winced. "I said I'll help you. I didn't say anything about keeping my mouth shut."

Cady wanted to shove Zoroth into a tree, but the smirking Decanate had a point. She decided to snub him the entire journey until he apologized.

*****

"Aww, come on, Cady. Don't be mad," Zoroth pleaded for the umpteenth time.

Cady had paid zero attention to his continuous rambling about man-eating rocks and his claims on one rock that had supposedly chomped the hand off Jeremiah Sanguinis.

"Cady?" Zoroth leaped in front of Cady and batted his long lashes.

Cady knew she couldn't hold up her façade any more, not when Zoroth was being far too adorable. He had tried everything in the past few hours to capture her attention, random roses, weeds, even a poor rabbit to accentuate his puppy eyes.

Finally, her self-control snapped and she burst into laughter.

"Stop it!" she managed to choke out in between hysterical peals of laughter.

"Only when you forgive me," Zoroth's voice held a note of seriousness to it. "I don't like to hold the thought of someone being mad at me for long."

Cady stared at Zoroth's sulky face and took her own sweet time before she smiled. "Alright, you're forgiven."

Zoroth released a loud cheer. Frolicking ahead, the tip of his wings caught the sunlight, shimmering like rainbows. His hair was wild and his purple eyes burned with an intense happiness that made Cady recall the tales Firaun had told her about Decanates. There was no way this lively, over-enthusiastic creature could be a senseless murderer.

Cady was so lost in her thoughts while climbing up a giant dune, she didn't see Zoroth cartwheel continuously through the air, proclaiming: 'I've earned the forgiveness of the Last Walker! Valador bless us all!'