Court of Aether and Shadows (Crowned Monster Trilogy #1)

6. Echoes Of Forgotten Innocence

Echoes Of Forgotten Innocence

~SPARROW~

“ W hat a delightful morning,” I whisper in awe.

The crisp autumn air nipped at my cheeks as I set out on my usual trail, fallen leaves crunching beneath my running shoes.

My body felt strong, the lingering weakness from my injury finally fading into memory. Each breath filled my lungs with the scent of earth and decay, that peculiar fragrance that only comes with the changing of seasons.

I started at an easy pace, letting my muscles warm up gradually.

The forest around me was a riot of color — maples blazing scarlet, oaks burnished gold, and birches pale yellow against the evergreen backdrop of pines. Shafts of early morning sunlight pierced through the canopy, creating a dappled pattern on the forest floor that shifted and danced with each gust of wind.

As I ran, I let my mind wander, drinking in the beauty around me. A squirrel chattered indignantly as I passed, scampering up a nearby tree with its cheeks bulging with acorns. A flutter of wings caught my attention, and I glimpsed a flash of blue – a jay, perhaps, or a late-staying bluebird not yet departed for warmer climes.

The trail wound deeper into the woods, climbing steadily. My breath came faster now, muscles warming as I increased my pace.

Sweat began to bead on my forehead, quickly cooling in the chilled air. I welcomed the burn in my lungs, the steady rhythm of my feet against the earth.

Here, in this moment, I felt truly alive and free. No one could judge my every move or comment on the areas I lacked.

That seemed to be getting on my nerves as of late. Vincent's muttering complaints of little imperfections in my stance or movements. Marco boldly announced to anyone who’d listen and entertain his foolishness that I wasn’t as “valuable” as rumored.

Anyone else at the Underground who didn’t seem important to recall their names did enjoy whispering among their peers whenever I trailed away from sight. Just because I was away, at a distance, didn’t mean I couldn’t hear their comments.

The degrading sexual commentary was beginning to drive me mad.

What was with this world and its inability to acknowledge a powerful independent woman doing great things in a male-dominated environment? It was becoming a hindrance of ongoing mockery to be the chosen candidate of daily scrutiny, all because I was “too good” at what I had learned to do.

I wasn’t born into a world where I got the best professional lessons on how to shoot and kill. Everything was gained through trial and error, practice, and an endless craving to be better.

Do better.

Yet, these assholes couldn’t stop with the bickering on how I must have sold my body to get this far. That I’m fucking Vincent, or maybe enjoying a threesome thing with Marco and Liam in the loop.

Dirty work to be adding Marco into any equation. I’m sure he’d fuck up sex in some way to make it a cringe moment in the making.

Vincent was far too old and wasn’t even classified as attractive in my books, and Liam? Well, he was my best friend. Sure, we’ve had our close calls of lust, especially when I’ve had one too many drinks, but drunken kisses and hungover snuggles never lead to sweaty nights of lust and pleasure.

Jeez, at this rate, I get more action in my dreams.

Literally.

I have to laugh at that before shaking my head and concentrating on the path ahead.

As I crested a small hill, the forest opened up before me.

A vale spread out below, a patchwork of autumn colors interspersed with the silver ribbons of streams. In the distance, mountains rose, their peaks already dusted with the first snow of the season.

The sight was breathtaking; a reminder of the wild beauty that existed beyond the confines of the underground complex I called home.

I paused for a moment, hands on my knees as I caught my breath and drank in the view. A cool breeze caressed my skin, carrying with it the promise of winter to come.

As I stood there, poised between earth and sky, a strange feeling washed over me. It was as if the boundary between this world and another had grown thin, reality shimmering like heat haze on a summer day.

And then, without warning, I was somewhere else entirely like a vision from the past that suddenly emerged with no forewarning in its wake.

Snow crunched beneath my bare feet, but I felt no cold.

I was small – a child, no more than five or six years old. Pure white hair cascaded down my back, whipping around my face as I ran and giggled with wild abandon.

The world around me was a winter wonderland, trees laden with snow that sparkled like diamonds in the ethereal light. But this was no ordinary forest. The trees seemed to sing as I passed, their branches swaying in a wind I couldn't feel. Flowers of ice bloomed in my wake, delicate crystalline structures that chimed like bells.

I looked down at my arms, marveling at the intricate patterns that swirled across my skin. They glowed with an inner light, shifting and changing like living things.

As I laughed, the markings pulsed brighter, and the very air around me seemed to shimmer with joy.

A low growl from behind spurred me to run faster, but it was playful rather than threatening.

I glanced back to see an enormous wolf loping after me, its fur a deep midnight blue shot through with streaks of silver. It was easily twice my size, but in my child's mind, it was just another playmate.

"Can't catch me!" I called out, my voice high and clear, ringing through the crystal air like a bell.

The wolf's eyes, glowing amber, sparkled with mischief.

It put on a burst of speed, closing the distance between us. Just as it was about to overtake me, I darted to the side, ducking under a low-hanging branch.

Snow exploded around us as the wolf skidded to a halt, shaking its massive head in mock frustration. I doubled over with laughter, the sound causing nearby icicles to vibrate in harmony.

"Too slow!" I taunted, sticking out my tongue.

The wolf huffed, a sound suspiciously like laughter. Then it crouched down, tail wagging, clearly ready for another chase.

I took off running again, this time heading for a small frozen pond I could see through the trees. The wolf followed, its powerful strides eating up the distance between us. But I was quick and nimble, darting between trees and leaping over fallen logs with effortless grace.

As we ran, the forest seemed to come alive around us. Birds with feathers of frost and fire swooped overhead, their calls a crystalline chorus. Small creatures peered out from hollows and burrows – rabbits with fur that shimmered like moonlight, foxes with multiple tails that left trails of sparks in the snow.

I reached the edge of the pond and, without hesitation, stepped out onto its mirror-smooth surface. Instead of slipping, I glided across it as if on wings, my bare feet barely touching the ice. The wolf followed, its claws finding solid purpose where there should have been none.

We danced across the pond, a swirling pattern of child and beast, leaving intricate frost patterns in our wake. Joy bubbled up inside me, pure and overwhelming. I threw my arms wide, tipping my face to the sky, and let out a peal of laughter that rang through the entire forest.

The sound seemed to trigger something magical.

The very air around us began to glow, countless motes of light swirling into existence. They danced around us, responding to our movements, creating shapes and patterns that defied description.

Trees at the edge of the pond began to sway, their branches reaching toward us as if wanting to join in our play. The ice beneath our feet pulsed with light, each step sending ripples of color spreading outward. Even the mountains in the distance seemed to stir, their snowy peaks shimmering with an inner radiance.

It was a moment of perfect harmony, of union between child and nature, between the physical and the magical. In that instant, I felt connected to everything around me, as if the entire world was singing a song that only I could hear.

The wolf came to a stop beside me, its warm breath misting in the cold air. I reached out, burying my small hands in its thick fur.

It nuzzled me gently, a gesture of affection and protection.

"We should go back," I said, though I couldn't have said where 'back' was. "They'll be looking for us."

The wolf nodded, its amber eyes filled with an intelligence far beyond that of a normal animal. It crouched down, and I clambered onto its broad back, my fingers twining in its silver-streaked fur.

As we set off back through the forest, the magical atmosphere began to fade. The glowing motes of light winked out one by one, the singing of the trees faded to a whisper, and the ice flowers stopped blooming in our wake.

But the sense of wonder, of belonging, lingered. As if this - this magical realm of ice and light - was where I truly belonged…

The memory faded as abruptly as it had come, leaving me disoriented and gasping for breath.

What was that? When…why…

I blinked, trying to reconcile the snowy wonderland of my vision with the autumn forest around me. The vividness of the memory – if it was a memory at all – left me reeling.

There was something about seeing that vision — the daring assumption that could have been my past…my childhood — suddenly made me angry.

Mad that I couldn’t recall something so beautiful and mesmerizing?

Frustration that I was enduring all these odd changes but couldn’t put a finger on why this was all suddenly happening.

All of it felt suffocating to take in, and it took me a moment to realize that I was running again, my feet pounding against the leaf-strewn trail.

But something was different.

The world around me was a blur of color and motion, trees whipping past at a speed that shouldn't have been possible. My legs moved with inhuman swiftness, eating up the ground with grace and power I had never known.

A wild exhilaration filled me, not unlike the joy I had felt in my vision.

The wind rushed past my face, carrying with it a symphony of scents – loam and leaf mold, the musk of animals, the sharp tang of distant snow. I could hear everything – the rustle of leaves, the scurrying of small creatures, the distant cry of a hawk riding the thermals high above.

I ran faster and faster, reveling in this newfound strength and speed. The forest fell away behind me as the trail climbed higher into the mountains. Soon I was above the treeline, racing across alpine meadows where late-blooming wildflowers nodded in the wind.

The air grew thinner, but my breathing remained steady.

My muscles burned, but it was a pleasant ache, a reminder of the power flowing through my body. I felt as if I could run forever, could race the wind itself to the very top of the world.

It wasn't until I crested a final rise that I realized the danger I was in.

What the ? —

The trail ended abruptly at the edge of a cliff, a sheer drop of at least thirty feet to the jagged rocks below. I was moving too fast, and had too much momentum, there was no way I could stop myself from the inevitable.

My mind screamed at me to stop, but my body couldn't respond quickly enough.

A cry of terror tore from my throat as I felt myself starting to pitch forward over the edge. Time seemed to slow, each heartbeat an eternity as I teetered on the brink of disaster.

I caught a fleeting glimpse of the valley far below, painted in autumn splendor that now seemed a cruel mockery of the death that awaited me.

Just as I felt myself start to fall, a strong arm wrapped around my waist, stopping my abrupt descent and yanking me back from the precipice.

The sudden stop knocked the wind out of me, and I gasped for air as I was pulled against a solid chest.

For a moment, I hung there, my feet dangling over empty space. My heart pounded so hard I thought it might burst from my chest. Slowly, carefully, my rescuer pulled me back onto solid ground, despite my dead weight which must have made me weigh double.

They spun me around, and I looked up, expecting to see a stranger — perhaps another hiker who had been on the trail behind me.

Instead, I found myself staring into the familiar face of Liam, his blue eyes wide with a mixture of concern and relief.

"Jesus Christ, Sparrow!" he breathed, his arms still tight around me. "What the hell were you thinking? You nearly ran right off the fucking cliff!"

Liam? W-W-What is he doing here? How did he know I was here in this forest? Actually…he was sleeping when I left, wasn’t he? Or was he talking with Vincent about morning rounds and last night's madness on the streets?

I opened my mouth to respond, but no words came out.

My mind was reeling, trying to process everything that had just happened.

The childhood memory, the impossible speed at which I had been running, the near-fatal fall... it was all too much.

As the adrenaline began to fade, I became acutely aware of my body. My feet, which should have been protected by my running shoes, were bare and bleeding.

My clothes were torn in several places as if I had run through thorny underbrush at high speed. And the markings I had seen in my vision – delicate, swirling patterns – were faintly visible on my skin, already fading like the last remnants of a dream.

By the time Liam followed my gaze to acknowledge my dismantled appearance, the vivid markings on my flesh were long gone. All that’s left is scratches, bruising, and various patches of color distortion.

"I... I don't know," I finally managed to say, my voice shaky. "I was just running, and then... everything's a blur."

Okay. That sounded absurd. Even for me.

Liam's brow furrowed as he looked me over, taking in my disheveled state.

"Sparrow," he said slowly, "what happened to your shoes? And your clothes? You look like you've been through a war."

Nothing stops me from letting out of huff that makes it seem this is all hilarious. It’s not…but what the hell am I supposed to say in this predicament?

One minute I was just running, minding my own business, and suddenly I was running like a warrior through the forest, ready to dive off cliffs and face galactic aliens that had yet to appear from the skies.

Yup. I’m losing my fucking mind.

I looked down at my bare, bloodied feet, wiggling my toes against the rough stone.

"I don't know," I repeated, a note of panic creeping into my voice. "Liam, I don't understand what's happening to me." It’s true because how do I explain all of this shit?

Ever since I got shot with whatever hallucinating drug, everything has been weird as fuck. My dreams are more vivid. This constant teetering between the real world and the realms of my dreams. Thinning walls, barriers, or whatever dimension planes they speak of in fairytales. Now I’m having visions of myself as a child that I’ve forgotten for all these years and running beyond Olympic-worthy world records.

My silence had no choice but to worry Liam as his expression softened. He pulled me closer, enveloping me in a protective embrace.

"It's okay," he murmured, his hand rubbing soothing circles on my back. "You're safe now. We'll figure this out together, alright?"

This was the one thing I could never take for granted of when it came to Liam.

No matter how maddening a situation was, he’d never abandon me. It wouldn’t make sense to him, and he’d still assure me that whatever was happening, we’d tackle it and continue moving forward in our unpredictable life.

I nodded against his chest, allowing myself a moment of vulnerability as I melted in his grasp.

But even as I took comfort in Liam's presence, a part of me yearned for something – someone – else.

The memory of golden eyes and a voice like velvet whispered at the edges of my consciousness, a promise of answers to questions I didn't even know how to ask.

As Liam began to lead me carefully back down the trail, I couldn't shake the feeling that something fundamental had changed. The world around me seemed different somehow as if a veil had been partially lifted from my eyes. Colors were more vivid, scents more intense, and sounds clearer and richer.

And underneath it all, I felt a new awareness stirring.

A sense of power, ancient and wild, that both thrilled and terrified me.

The forest watched our descent in silence, but I could have sworn I felt eyes upon us – not malevolent, but curious and maybe even a little eager. As if the very trees and rocks and streams were holding their breath, waiting to see what I would do next.

I glanced back once as we re-entered the treeline.

For just a moment, I thought I saw a flash of midnight blue fur and glowing amber eyes in the shadows between the trees. But when I blinked, it was gone, leaving me to wonder if it had ever been there at all.

With each step back toward the world I knew, I felt the magic of the mountain fading. But something of it lingered within me, a spark of that other realm that refused to be extinguished.

Why do I feel like this is only the beginning? That something better awaits if I keep exploring…this? Whatever this is.

As we reached the trailhead, I took one last look at the mountain behind us.

"Thank you," I whispered, though I wasn't sure who or what I was thanking.

For the memory? For the power? For the glimpse of a world beyond my own?

“Hmm?” Liam asks, still holding my hand as if I’d slip away and run back the way I came. He was never clingy like this, but I guess I did worry him.

“Nothing,” I assure him with an added squeeze of his hand.

A warm breeze caressed my cheek, carrying with it the scent of winter roses and starlight. And for just a heartbeat, I could have sworn I heard a deep, familiar voice whisper back:

"Well done, Twinkling Songbird."