The WindFlyer

Chapter 18

Draen's PoV

I am standing so close to the pirate that we share breath. She looks... incredible. Her dress matches the tattoo on her back which is more like a work of art. She looks like a princess -- no. No the way she carries herself, she looks like a queen. Elegant and strong.

I look up at her direction and time slows down as the sky full of stars explode in color. It's like great sheer ribbons of green and blue and purple are being dragged across the sky and flutter in the wind. It knocks the air right out of my lungs. A hush has fallen over everyone in the whole city, it is so quiet that a pin dropping would disrupt everything. It's like no one wants to speak, like no one wants to breathe, lest they somehow shatter the magic in the sky. The lights roll and twist and morph right before my eyes. I look back to the pirate in awe to see her looking at me, her eyes are bright and clear. The strange lights paint her features and seem to make her glow in that dress as the small gems embedded in the fabric catch the phenomenon of colors. She looks like the sky itself in all its glory.

The people start to move and time goes back to normal. I here some people weep at the beauty and some just sigh. The girl looks up at the sky and some form of raw joy takes hold of her face, brighter than any sun. And then she laughs and smiles, not her usual smile, but one of unleashed unmasked passion, a smile nearly as radient as the lights above. Her laugh, her laugh as clear and warm as the dawn. I am at a loss for words at the kindness and delight I've watched the pirate go through. The interactions with these people, her people, it's like nothing I've ever seen. How she talks to them and how she love each and every one of them so fiercely. There is no doubt in my mind that every person here would go to their death for the pirate, but I also think she would gladly go to her death for any one of them.

She looks back at me as the lights begin to fade from the sky. I don't really know how long we stood there and watched them dance across the night, it could have been minutes or it could have been eternity.

"What was that?" I whisper, my voice betraying the utter awe I feel.

"That is Festival," she says, her words soft spoken and holding the same reverence as mine did. "We don't really know the exact cause of it, there is a legend, though. We choose to celebrate it every year because we don't want to waste such beauty." Astoria speaks with such adoration of the celebration and her demeanor completely shifted tonight. She danced with vigor and then danced again with care. It's almost like her dancing was an offering in some way.

Before I can speak again Astoria glances over to a cluster of children by the edge of the platform. I see Ren's daughter among them, I think her name is Vall. They look to where we stand and then huddle together, whispering amongst themselves. There is a slightly mischievous spark in her eyes when Astoria looks back at me. I raise my eyebrows in inquiry as she starts leading me to the children. "Every year, when I am home for Festival, I tell the legend that surrounds the strange phenomenon. It has become a tradition... of sorts."

"So you tell a story to children before they go home to their beds," I say with a shrug. I find it almost amusing that a ruthless pirate is now going to tell a bedtime story.

"Oh no, prince. I tell the story to anyone who wishes to hear it," she replies and instead of stopping once we reach the cluster of children, she beckons them to follow. That is the beginning of our small parade through town. When more people see the pirate with a trail of children following, the share secret smiles and join the party until nearly half the people at the celebration are walking with us. More seem to flock to the procession the closer we get to our destination.

Astoria leads us to a grassy knoll. I see Amma and Arya, the owner of the restaurant the girl took me to when we first arrived, already waiting for us. There is also a small bonfire burning with a few clay jars  sitting next to it. The give the pirate a brief nod before joint the mass that now sits on the grass, on logs, leans against each other, or simply stands around us.

Astoria walks behind the fire and faces the crowd with a hard look on her face. She raises her arms for silence and a hush falls over everyone. They look at her with expectance. "There is a legend that has been passed from mother to child. There is a legend whispered by dreamers in Stramtor. There is a legend and it all starts ages ago..." she trails off and grabs a handful of something from one of the jars and throws it into the fire. The fire jumps and turns a back and grey mix before returning to its original color. And her eerie voice plays across the area.

"Legend has it that a great artist died many eons ago by wrongful execution." She tosses powder in to dye the fire a crimson red. "He had no family to claim his body and give him burial rights, so the people from his town took the body and brought it to his shop where they set the whole place ablaze." The fire soars to scorch the clouds.

"When the fire finally died after seven days of burning, they entered the remains of the gallery only to find that all the paintings and artwork had been spared, but none of the supplies made it. They say he brought his paints with him to the afterlife. He begged the creator to send his thanks to the villagers but the creator would not, so the artist snuck out one night and painted." The fire dies down now to near embers. "He painted the whole night sky with mighty brushstrokes. They say it took him a whole year to finish the sky and once he completed it, he admired his masterpiece." She spins around and tosses in great handfuls of various powders in a flourish. The fire jumps again and nearly mimics the sky. "But, the minute he brush left his great canvas, the paint began to fade and disappear. But the artist would not be deterred so he began again to paint for those who had loved art so. He does not care that it takes him all year to paint the sky and he does not care that it lasts for only a little while before he begins again. The artist continues to paint the sky as a thank you to those who cared about his life and to those who cared about him in death, but mostly, for those who care enough to look for the art every year."

With two handfuls of a different powder, Astoria tosses them into the fire, causing it to leap into the silhouette of a man before plunging into nothing. No embers, no smoke. It's like the fire was never there in the first place. My mouth dropped open some time early in the spectacle and remains open now. The crowd applauds the girl but she has vanished with the fire. I look for her only to find her at the back of the crowd, smirking at me.

"Impressive," I murmur when I stand before her again. She winks as she begins the walk to her home. The crowd, upon finding the story over and the music ended, all find their own bed or makes it to someone else's. I clear my throat and speak again after a little bit. "Festival, everything about it, is amazing. Everything about this city and these people, is incredible... is perfect," I say, though I do not know why I lay myself out there like that.

She looks back at me, her eyes lined with what looks like unshed tears. Her voice quavers slightly when she speaks again. "You could... you could stay here, with us."