Mazzaroth: Amnesia

I was running... I was running and crying, terrified by what I had seen and heard.

He... He vanished. He disappeared, and she went down with him. What am I supposed to do now? I knew exactly what had to be done: I had to get home, no matter what, and tell my mother what happened. We had to do something... We couldn’t just let them get away with this. Not like this!

I sprinted down the crisscrossing glass stairs of the tower that led toward the purple algae garden in Nyxia. I threw my entire weight against the heavy door separating me from my so-called freedom. For a few seconds, I collapsed against the cold wall beside the door, desperately trying to catch my breath. But in that frantic rush, I hadn’t noticed that my fingers were resting right inside the doorframe. I didn’t have time to pull my hand back, and as a result, I ended up crushing my index finger—a soon-to-be bruised nail. The pain was sharp and blinding, but my terror was greater.

I took off running again through the purple algae garden when, suddenly, a powerful wave of energy hit me out of nowhere. Physically, I couldn’t say I felt anything significant, but mentally... I felt an invisible force flooding my mind. My breathing grew heavy, though I couldn’t tell if it was because of that mysterious pulse or because I was inhaling the dense, stagnant air of Nyxia. I felt a heavy pressure filling my lungs, yet at the same time they seemed to clear, and my nostrils burned horribly. I closed my eyes as the world spun around me. I felt like I was going to fall... going to fall...

I was running... I was running and crying, terrified... terrified? Why was I terrified?

I didn’t know! I couldn’t remember. My legs were carrying me on their own toward the intersection prism that connected the Sector of Nyxia to Zephyria. It was getting harder and harder to push forward because I couldn’t breathe properly. I ran blindly, crashing into the massive, violet algae of the garden, when suddenly, I collapsed entirely onto the pearlescent sand beneath me.

I tried to get up quickly, but something was pinning me down. My epaulet from my work jacket. Perfect! The silver threads interwoven with pinkish opal crystals were caught fast in a thick cluster of large algae. I tried desperately to untangle them without destroying my uniform, but after a few failed attempts, I yanked with all my strength. The fabric ripped at last, and a few of those silver threads remained captive, tangled up with a particularly stubborn piece of algae.

I forced myself up and started running again through the short stretch of road that was left. When I reached the main gate of the garden, I stopped before a difficult choice. I could either bolt through the Nebula—the boundary dome of the water and air cusps—or cut through the prism of the diplomatic corps to save time. However, the latter route would spit me out directly at the Iron Citadel, where I would be forced to give explanations to the guards for my presence there at such a late hour. That, of course, was assuming anyone was still on duty in that sector of the building, which at midnight seemed nearly impossible. Honestly, it felt much easier to risk being caught by the Flint Guards than to try and cross the suffocating fog of the Nebula, which never cleared up.

I took off down the pearlescent corridor, heading straight for the prism. My heels echoed loudly on the tiles, like heavy hammer blows crushing my sensitive eardrums.

Suddenly, the second wave of energy hit me. It was a shock that felt as if it would tear my mind apart. I felt my pulse throbbing violently in every vein leading to my brain, a pressure so immense it felt ready to explode. My entire body began to vibrate uncontrollably. I couldn’t move. I froze right there, in the middle of the hallway, with no way of knowing what was happening to me or why this was happening to me of all people... I closed my eyes and I felt like I was going to fall.

I was running... I was running and crying, terrified, but why was I crying? Why was I terrified?

I was standing right in front of the prism between sectors, and all I knew in that moment was that I had to run as far away as possible. I looked around dazed, trying to identify where this “here” was. I was in the water sector, in Nyxia. What on earth was I doing in a place like this? I had too many unanswered questions, and the hour seemed quite late. I stepped through the prism, feeling my body emanate a powerful, translucent light upon contact with the transit energy, and I stepped out directly into the grounds of the Iron Citadel.

I started running again toward the exit through the empty corridors of the Citadel. In those moments, the building truly lived up to its name: everything around felt gray, heavy, and cold. When I reached the massive door separating me from the next prism toward Zephyria—toward home—I began searching frantically for my crystal keycard to unlock the exit. I usually kept it in the inner pocket of my jacket, but this time it wasn’t there. I started patting myself down feverishly through the rest of my pockets, finally finding it in my trousers.

I swiped the card through the reader and pushed through the doors, arriving in front of the Zephyria prism, which resembled a giant mirror. Unlike the one in Nyxia, you could actually catch a glimpse of yourself in this one. The reflection staring back at me sent a shiver down my spine: my hair was completely messed up, my cheeks were flushed, and my eyes were bloodshot, as if I had been crying for hours. I touched my eyelids with my fingers, and only then did I feel a sharp ache in my left hand. The nail of my index finger was already turning a bruised reddish-purple, as if I had slammed it into something violent. But I couldn’t remember where, or into what.

I crossed the prism, waking up inside one of the towers in Zephyria. I ran down the crisscrossing glass stairs and pushed the exit door with all my might, finally making contact with the crisp, clean air of Above.

-Finally! I whispered, inhaling the cool breeze deeply.

I slowed my pace down to a walk. From here to my house, it was about a leisurely ten-minute walk. I was desperately trying to put my thoughts in order, because I didn’t understand a single thing about the last few minutes.

Just then, a third wave of energy pierced my mind. An unbearable pain struck my brain; I felt my veins throbbing as if they were about to burst, while my body began to vibrate again, leaving me completely helpless. I closed my eyes, gritting my teeth as I waited for the agony to pass, and I felt like I was going to fall...

I WAS RUNNING... I WAS RUNNING AND CRYING, TERRIFIED. I DIDN’T KNOW WHY I WAS TERRIFIED, WHY I WAS CRYING, OR WHY I WAS RUNNING.

I looked down at my bright red heels, which rang loudly against the glass street of Zephyria in the dead of night—or perhaps long after midnight. My body felt incredibly exhausted, as if I had just run a days-long marathon. My nostrils burned terribly, leaving behind that same unpleasant sensation you get when you drink water and it comes out of your nose. My eyes felt heavy and swollen, proof that I had been crying for minutes on end. I sighed deeply and looked up at the foggy sky. What happened? Why was I in the middle of the street? And more importantly, why had I ended up here running? I didn’t know. I couldn’t remember anything from the last few minutes... or maybe hours.

I walked the rest of the way to the front of our house. Right on the threshold, right before the door, lay a rose. And what a rose! It was a brilliant red combined with orange; the red part had these unique purple reflections, while the orange part sparked with yellow glints. In the dim holographic light of the front yard, the flower truly looked like it was burning. I picked it up and spun it a few times between my fingers, amazed by its strange beauty, when suddenly, the rose didn’t just look like it was burning... it actually caught fire. It dissolved in a second, vanishing right out of my hand and leaving nothing but a void behind. Nothing.

I took off my heels and tiptoed into the house, trying not to wake my mother. I slipped straight into my bedroom, sat on the edge of the bed, and lay back. But the second my clothes made contact with the sheet, I gasped. They were wet. Completely wet.

Strange. Beyond strange. I got up quickly from the bed and went to turn on the light. I stood in front of the large mirror on the closet door and stared at myself. I was a wreck.

Aside from the fact that my clothes were soaked with water and I didn’t understand why, I noticed that the left epaulet of my official Diplomatic Corps jacket was completely ruined, torn right out of the seam. Yes, that was definitely going to hurt my paycheck. My left index finger had begun to throb violently, especially under the nail, which had taken on a bruised purple hue, as if I had caught it in a heavy door or a metal drawer. Of course, I didn’t remember how that happened either. My fuchsia-green eyes were swollen from crying, my cheeks looked sunburned, and my hair was a complete mess. Yet, in some strange way, that chaos suited me. What I loved most about my hair, besides its length that fell past my hips and its red-orange color like a rusty autumn leaf, was the fact that it had loose waves, being naturally wavy.

I changed into my nightgown after taking a hot shower, of course, and began to blow-dry my hair. When I finished, leaving just a few strands slightly damp, I turned back to the mirror. Unlike other shades, especially lighter ones, my hair changed color when wet: it became much darker, and that contrast between the damp strands and the dry ones looked divine under the bathroom light.

I poured myself a hot tea and crawled into bed. I was still desperately trying to gather the puzzle pieces and fill the black holes in my memory, but I felt as if something unseen was holding me back, blocking access to my own brain. I reached my hand toward the nightstand, about to lift the mug of tea to take a sip, when suddenly, one last wave of energy ground through my head. The pain was sharp in every single vein, making me feel once more like everything was about to explode, while my body began to vibrate violently. I couldn’t move. I closed my eyes, surrendering to the darkness, and

I FELT LIKE I WAS GOING TO FALL, OR THAT I HAD COLLAPSED ENTIRELY.]