I was a poor boy; you were a bright light
I was a sinner and you were a snake
Brigade had not returned home immediately after dying.
He supposes, in a way, that has become a pattern for him. He had never returned to Tephra, after all, and after he had flung the chains of Loess from his back, he had never returned there either. Instead, he had taken up residence within the Sylvan forest—with no-one other than the sharp-tongued leader as even a faux friend. So perhaps it is strange that he considers the land eternally trapped within autumn to be his home but it’s the only place he feels he has ever chosen; even if the choice was partially coerced.
Still, he doesn’t return immediately upon waking. He takes his time to find some center of gravity—to learn the art of breathing again—before he takes to the skies and lands gently on the borders. It is comforting to take in the familiar scents and it’s a strange thought that it is, familiar, that is.
Even so, he does not have deep roots here. Does not know the land’s history—knows little of Beqannian history in general. Does not know the politics that sink into its soil or the sins that have been committed here in years past. To him, it is just the quiet forest where he has managed to carve out even the smallest of peace. The smallest of creature comforts and it pulls him back like gravity—even subconsciously.
After he lands, Brigade folds his auburn wings over his back and moves forward into the forest. His body still feels weak in so many ways, but he knows that the muscle and strength will return with time. Death does not loosen its grip on a man so quickly. When he sees the flash of salmon against the bark, he swings his antlered head up, stormy eyes narrowing slightly in thought and the realization that her scent is not one that is familiar to him. For so long, it was just him and Starsin—and, later, Lilian and Starsin’s brood.
But, then again, he has been dead for some time so who is he to say who is stranger?
Curious but hardly welcoming, he walks toward her, pausing only when he is several feet away. He is quiet for a moment as his stern features settle, his steely eyes studying her before he dips his head.
“Hello.”
Not the warmest of introductions but certainly not his worst.
shook like some old souls when our bones broke
swallowed the sickness, a fever, a flame
