Author: Shiloh Kyrie, Posted: Thu Oct 26, 2017 2:53 AM, Post Subject: The Wind Rises - Ascension [SOLO]

I had a dream where I was falling. Isn’t that something people usually have, at one point or another? In that dream I remember looking out of the window and seeing a strange place, where water flowed not downward, but to the sky. Those rivers rose to surround a city suspended in the clouds, but with an ocean where the heavens should be. I thought to myself of how odd it must be for a world that was inverted only to be held up by air. Several nights later, I found myself in the same dream. This time, I am flying on the Clephsydra through the sea of mist below the upturned city. As I stood at the helm with the airship’s wheel in my hands, I saw the pinnacle of that place as we passed. As the mist clouds part, they reveal tall spires, suspended around the inverted waterfalls. They too are inverted, as their bases emerge from the sky-ocean and the point of their roofs reach down. Then, it all fades away and I am left staring out at an unfamiliar landscape. Yet the most unusual thing, is how as I was falling I did not feel a single bit of fear.

“Captain, we are within range of the boundary of Railoch. Shall we continue the path of our flight, or change course?” The voice of a woman with alabaster skin and dark hair asked. Shiloh was sitting by a window staring out at the passing scenery absentmindedly. Half-distracted, she passively replied. “…Continue our course. We’re still far off from the border.” The woman blinked, a moment of hesitation indicating second thoughts, although no sign of distress showed on her face. Giving a slight bow, she answered. “Very well, captain. I will inform the pilot of your decision.”

When she was gone, Shiloh resumed gazing out at the sea of clouds occasionally broken by a flock of birds in their characteristic formation. For some reason, her mind was wandering today. No matter how she tried, it was as if there was something she was trying to remember but couldn’t. It as if she had a word on the tip of her tongue, only to have it slip through her fingers. It probably was due to the lack of sleep she had in the past couple of days. Trying to ignore the nagging feeling at the back of her mind only made it worse, and she couldn’t accomplish much. Erasmus had offered to take over as pilot today, giving her a rare moment by herself.

She must’ve dozed off while she was lost in her thoughts, as the skies were no longer clear when she came to. Everyone on deck was at work, and there was a nervous anxiety hanging in the air. Seeing she was awake, one of the automatons came over with an urgency in his gait. “Euripides, what’s going on? The ship’s shaking and rolling!” Euripides’ nervous pitch vibrated from his voice box: “It’s terrible captain—we were sailing along fine until a freak gale storm knocked us off course! Erasmus tried to fly against it, but the currents suddenly changed direction and sent us straight into Railoch!”

“Dear God…” Shiloh muttered before they were hit by a patch of turbulence. The Clephsydra was shaking violently and the ship’s walls were creaking as thunder and lightning flashed around them. Grabbing onto the railing, she was barely able to keep herself steady as the airship rocked back and forth. Euripides was hanging onto one of the tables bolted down to the floor, and soon the ship stabilized again. Catching her breath, she quickly made a beeline for the pilot’s cabin. “We need to turn the ship around!” She shouted over the booming thunder. The further they flew into Railoch the worse things would get, and if they were hit by lightning…

Pushing those thoughts away, she began grabbing at the side of the airship for a handhold when the Clephsydra began banking again. Unfortunately, the only thing she could get her hands on was a door latch, and when she felt the handle give she looked up to see it open in complete and utter horror. The sudden change in air pressure upon the door swinging open dragged her outside, sending her hurtling into free fall. The last thing she heard before leaving her airship was the sound of her own screams.

Shiloh was quickly gaining acceleration as she plummeted towards the lighting-scorched valley in the Himinn Pass. The intense force of the air beneath her body and the speed at which she was falling intertwined into an all-consuming terror. She soon reached a point where she was staring through the rain and flashes of lightning at the ground, steadily growing closer with every second. ‘This is it,’—she thought to herself. There was no way she could recover from this once she made impact.

‘I’m going to die.’

Then, while she was still coming to terms with her fate—it was as if time had slowed to a crawl. In that split second her senses were dulled; or was it the opposite? The pressure on her body from her rapid descent lifted, and instead of being forced backward a new sensation took its place. Shiloh was floating, gliding in the air—like a bird with the wind beneath her wings. A strange tranquility began to wash over her as she no longer struggled against the currents and her fear subsided. Her gaze focused ahead at the ground before her, and then she closed her eyes.

While distance between her and the ground grew shorter, as if in response to Shiloh’s presence it sprang up from below to receive her. It enveloped her, forming walls and arches out of stone while beams of metal burst forth like geysers released from a spring. Steel and stone intertwined as the once formless earth took shape into grand columns and ribbed vaults. Now turned over on her back, she watched wide-eyed as the small opening of sky shrank and disappeared upon the ceiling’s completion.

She was now lying on the floor of a great cathedral, just like the one she had seen long ago as a child from the back of a horse-drawn carriage. But in comparison, this one was grander. The high vaulted ceilings reached as far as the eye could see, and its vastness was overwhelming. Stunned speechless, she held her hand up to see if she was dreaming. Surely this couldn’t be real.

Wake up… Wake up, Shiloh. Arise and awaken, you who hath challenged fate and defied complacency. You have sought your own path, despite being given a hard lot. From henceforth, you shall be given a new name: Ruler of Onslaught and the Thundering Tempest—O Overseer of Luck and Misfortune.

The words of that voice echoed in her mind, leaving more questions than answers. As she rose from where she laid, she stared up at the sky as the sound of footsteps approached. “Captain! Are you alright?” Turning to look behind, she answered, still bewildered by it all. “…Yes, yes I am.”