[seasonal event] arise from the dust

Deimos It was odd to reminisce without ghosts brimming on the edge of his eyes; poignant little minstrels and sirens of primordial, arcane yesteryears, pressing in on his skull and instigating a refrain. But now the clouds held none of their whispers and unbidden growls, and he could breathe, could remember, worlds with dazzling, blending hues, heavens that never ended, summits with crowns and mountains with thrones, glacial walls keeping the rest of the earth at bay. Something worth guarding. Something worth protecting. What they’d find within Halo was anyone’s guess – the portal pages could only show so much – and the notion of hot springs, of an existence beneath its expanse, was a press of a dream, the soothing coil of an ambition. “We shall see.” He paused, not wanting to destroy the moment, the careful, plotting hopes, the faith in steadfast regions, but there were other things out there, other synapses and notions to deal with. “Your mother told me Zariah is there.” As if they couldn’t find bliss without another obstacle. As if they couldn’t fathom any sensation of enjoyment and contentment without another trial, another tribulation. Maybe she wouldn’t be. But all of them knew better. Mud-stained and dirty, but utterly indifferent to the way the sludge, silt, and dirt clung to his clothing, he listened again, eyes only flickering back over to her at the indication of festivals. “Illynx only had me guard those.” Not a grand participant, favoring the shadows, protecting and forging onward. “I found Fiat Lux pleasant.” He shrugged, but the winsome boundaries of his smile spoke of other things; flower crowns and silly, ridiculous, mischievous dances, confessions beneath the wake of foolishness, grateful, beatific reaches he’d never though he’d know or understand. Whether or not they’d find anything amidst the summits, dipped and delved into such natures, would remain to be seen again – the unknown’s casting shades. Out of sight and out of mind Make everything alright So let the sky and sea collide Just not in our lifetime