The Akkaio tiger gave her a bouquet of charmflowers, claiming "
When the last flower dies, that will mean my love with you has extinguished." Among them, there was a special flower, the last one after the rest withered and died: one made of the finest glass, unbreakable.
And, one day, the last flower died.
~ ~ ~
The calm waters of the Irifon rivers reflected the shape of the Great Crystal. The so called Azure Sun was now glowing ever so faintly with a dim white light in the middle of the night, making its rough edges and facets clearly discernible to the intent observer. The patches of rice growing in the shores of the river rustled and waved with both the soft breeze coming through the passage nearby and the tireless search of a stray groffel, gobbling and chirping softly as he looked for a few worms to swallow whole, but most of the time settling down for just some grains of rice.
Down the stream, on the shore across the gobble village, where they slept inside their hide tents, some of them outside -probably due to a dispute with a partner or a friend, or just because there wasn't enough space inside the tents-, a campfire lit a small zone, the orange light reaching far enough to illuminate a sleeping rivnak at the base of a tree, and the factions of an Enkidukai sitting by it, while a pair of fishes were being cooked over the crackling and snapping flames. A fishing rod was stuck into the mud, near the water, with the line reaching up to the very middle of the river, near the tin rock.
The Clamod female wore a set of leather armor, treated a few times until it was supple enough to wrap around her shapes like a thick shirt, studded with chainmail rings that had a dull, milky look to them, rippling and pulsating a little with magical energy: it radiated from a few emeralds on her cleavage, shoulders, gloves, the sides of her knees, and ankles. She was hugging her knees, seated in front of the flames licking between the charred logs that lit her face, making the scar on her left eye even more noticeable.
One of her paws moved to her neck as she tilted her head back. The fingers touched a small golden chain, on which she tugged gently. The chain slid from underneath her chainmail shirt, pulling on a small goldn ring. Taking the chain off, she put the ring on her gloved paw and observed it. The engravings inside the band were clear:
Lurr'olo - Sabriel. For the first time in ages, she didn't feel the tears coming to her eyes.
Reaching into the bag nearby, the fenki took a small wooden bowl, which was probably used to hold some mixed nuts, while watching an event from the bleachers in the Arena. Without fear of getting burnt, she placed the bowl amidst the flames, and slowly let the ring and the chain slide into it. Many a time she found herself trying to reach and grab the bowl, gritting her teeth and biting her bottom lip, as the gold melted slowly into the improvised crucible.
With a claw, she carved a small mold in the shape of a (rather crude) Enkidukai head, eyes and muzzle included, into the hard dirt on the ground as the gold became liquid. Taking the wooden bowl, she carefully poured the molten metal into the makeshift bowl, letting it harden before digging it up with the tip of her claw. She stared at the small Enkidukai head on the paw, and the golden amulet seemed to look back. After caressing it with her thumb, she let it slip into her glyph pouch.
To never look at it. Ever again.
