Always Dreaming

Prologue

As the sun slowly tucked itself between the silhouetted mountains which stretched across the valley, the orange tint which burnt the vast, unending sky above began to fade into an intense shade of crimson. Her hand gripped Eli's more intensely, her fingers curling across the edges, trembling with fear. Eli's gaze shifted towards the face of the maiden, widening as he observed her features. Her eyes seemed to rest comfortably in their sockets, within them lay dark, intense pupils, surrounded by a sea of green. These beautiful eyes were stained with trauma and fear as they stared straight ahead, as the ground beneath them shuddered. A scar ran down the side of her face, seeming to have formed recently. Her pale skin reflected the crimson dome above as she turned her head towards Eli, eyes wide with shock. Eli's mind was blank. Memories were attempting to surface, but none prevailed. They were slowly being ejected from his being as he desperately scraped for them. His efforts were in vain. It seemed as if something of higher power had willed for his memories to be removed. The only thing he retained were his emotions. Anger coursed through his veins, but at the same time, a sweet flavour seemed to rest upon him as he gazed at the girl. Nostalgia rushed through him as he inched closer. Her lips shuddered as she formed words, "It's time...he's coming, we must leave." Eli tilted his head in confusion, nothing she said made sense. He grimaced as a sharp jolt pierced through his forehead. For a split second he remembered, then he didn't. His soul seemed to be struggling against something...someone. Him. A sour taste formed in Eli's throat as fear overtook him. A being of pure sovereignty was approaching. Eli could feel an insane amount of energy heading towards their direction.

Tears fell from the girl's eyes as she whispered, "You have already forgotten," she said as she inched even closer. A sweet aroma filled his nostrils as her breaths rested on his face. "Eli...I," she paused as her cheeks flustered. With her head hung low and darkness enveloping her eyes, she uttered a single, ominous word, carrying with it a tinge of melancholy. "Goodbye." Heat singed Eli's skin as electricity crackled against the crimson dome above. A metallic fragrance strung through the air as Eli's vision slowly filled with dark spots. Thundering footsteps rang through the ground as the girl was seemingly erased, without a trace. A scream pierced through Eli's skull, as he collapsed onto a bed of earth, the world before him slowly evaporating into nothingness.