Clouds rushed past her ears as she cut through the mist, moving as effortlessly as a fish through water. Her tail fin swept through wisps of cloud, dancing with the wind.
The cloud layer felt thick and heavy, casting a dim glow around her. As she plunged deeper, the surrounding light faded, and darkness closed in.
Zane could not make out the surroundings, forced to rely on Ether energy to probe. It was truly pitch-black, as if one couldn't see their hand in front of their face.
Beside her, she continued to glide, yet within the inky clouds, it felt like traversing an endless night, with no end in sight.
A tiny boat adrift in the ocean—perhaps that was the perfect metaphor for their current situation.
But despite the howling mist, the small boat pressed onward.
Surrounded by utter darkness, she pressed onward, rising steadily into the dark.
Suddenly, a faint glimmer appeared.
So dazzling in the darkness.
Yes, as long as you march toward it unwaveringly, it will await you ahead. Perhaps distant. But always present.
Charging toward that faint light, it ceased to be faint. Radiance filled her vision, and suddenly, everything became clear.
As her eyes opened, the scene before Zane sharpened into focus. The azure sky stretched endlessly above, while the clouds now lay far below, obscuring the entire ground. Everything once familiar had vanished.
Looking up from the ground, the sky was a hazy gray. Looking down from the sky, it was a vast expanse of white.
Lowering her gaze, the scene before her was like snow. Yet it was even more delicate and dreamlike.
This was the romance of the sky itself..
After reaching a certain height, she no longer charged straight toward the clouds. Instead, her body twisted, and she flew toward the boundless distance.
She had never come to scale great heights. She came to admire the sky.
A peculiar humming sound reached her ears. She let out a jubilant hum, like a girl discovering a long-lost dream.
She was different from the Twins. She wasn't born from the corruption of humanity, nor could she become human. But perhaps because of Zane's influence, she now possessed a hint of human-like feeling...
Her bud-like tail fins swayed, causing the surrounding whiteness to drift and scatter, only for more white to gather anew.
Arms that had remained tucked away now extended, fingers touching the pristine mist. Black and white intertwined, both hues blurring—leaving behind a warm shade of gray.
Deep love for the sky?
No, or rather, that alone couldn't explain why she made this choice.
Fish cannot leave the sea, but birds are born for the sky... That is life's pursuit—that is the soul's freedom.
Mighty clouds filled the horizon. The mist didn't form a barrier above the sky like a screen; instead, it surged like the sea, rolling and tumbling.
Waves upon the sea, islands upon the sea—here, neither was lacking.
Towering "waves" formed by clouds stood high as mountains. Before these waves, she and Zane seemed but a tiny black speck.
A lone black speck drifted across the white canvas of clouds, leaving only the faintest trace.
This was a journey.
Moving swiftly, the air flowed around Zane like a gentle breeze. Her hair danced freely, her eyes bright and alert.
The warm wind caressed her face, leaving a faint blush across her cheeks. The golden tips of her hair glowed more vividly as she drifted through the sea of clouds, lively and spirited.
Adrift in the boundless sea of clouds, the two were like a small boat, carried along by the currents.
Like a dream.
Perhaps if they fell, the clouds would bounce them back up.
That was Zane's thought at that moment.
Time passed, its duration unknown—perhaps long, perhaps short. Here, time seemed to lose its meaning. It felt as though it could go on forever.
But... every journey has an end. Even dreams must awaken.
At one point, Zane raised his hand and tapped her gently, signaling her to stop. As they halted, the lingering wind stirred the clouds, forming a sheltered cove.
Brilliant light flowed past Zane's eyes. He lifted his hand, and the shimmering radiance slipped through his fingers.
Floating beside her, Zane released the tentacles supporting him, hovering in the air as he stood upon the sea of clouds.
Lowering his hand, Zane's expression remained inscrutable.
The next instant, he lifted his cold, striking eyes rippled with a faint light, like water stirred by a breeze, his gaze fixed steadily upon the distance.
She drifted, slowing her movement around Zane before leaning in close, her core faintly shimmering—as if gazing forward with him.
A faint golden glow rippled across her form.
Zane's eyes reflected brilliant crimson and golden light, his hair swaying slightly with his thoughts.
"A sight unlike any other."
A peculiar humming resonated in harmony.
Far off, waves crested and crashed, colossal swells churned. Amidst billowing clouds and mist, beams of light pierced through, illuminated, or refracted.
Above the sea of clouds, a dazzling crimson glow shone.
It sank downward—both a fall and a rebirth.
His meeting with Qingyi was set for dusk.
Yet now... golden hues mingled with the setting sun.
...
The sky grew heavy. A storm brewed within its depths.
Few souls ventured out under such weather. Zane walked beside the road, the world around him eerily quiet.
Only the occasional vehicle speeding by briefly broke the stillness.
The red light flashed. Zane watched the empty road and halted his steps.
His expression was calm as his gaze fell upon what he held in his hand.
It was a "flower." A "little flower," no larger than the palm of his hand, pieced together after a core shattered.
Crystal clear, it glowed faintly.
Moments later, the green light appeared. Zane tucked the small object away and stepped forward.
Waves of cold air seemed to seep through every opening in his clothes. The snow on the street was much less than when Zane had awakened from the Dead End Hollow incident.
"The snow should be melting."
Zane murmured softly. This season wasn't one for snowfall, and even when it was, New Eridu rarely saw snow.
An unexpected snowfall was bound to depart.
"Hmm, rain after snow... how peculiar..."
Zane shook his head, his gaze settling ahead. There, a small black cat sat quietly on a cardboard box by the roadside, licking its paw.
Watching it, Zane smiled softly.
"How did you get out?"
He stepped forward. The little black cat meowed once, then trotted along behind him with nimble cat steps.
The cold grew more intense around them.
Zane once again took out the "flower" pieced together from fragments. But he didn't put it away.
He raised his hand, holding the "flower" upward, and spoke softly.
"Fly... fly..."
"Fly up to the heavens..."
As his words faded, the "flower" spun upward, swaying and drifting, gradually disappearing from sight.
Yet Zane believed it would not vanish into the darkness. For it glowed with its own faint light.
When a bird falls, is it because its wings refuse to beat, or its heart ceases to beat?
And now, she had given her answer.
The rhythm of life itself wrote poetry across the sky. And wings born of will... rose above death.