Darkened Skye

[Ash]

Barsig sat in the corner, pushed all the way inside, as best he could, still gripping his arm. He was watching the mountain they were on drift by, the sun peaking through the cracks of the rock. His arm was still a mess, and it seemed he couldn’t muster up enough energy to heal it.. He just sat there, considering his options. A whole two of them. He lashed out in anger, throwing his left fist into the back wall of the cage, then winced and pulled it back.

Across from him, on the opposite side the the wagon sat Skye, still in just the cloak. Suddenly her clothing situation didn’t seem all that bad. She was watching him, and feeling helpless once more. Except.. She wasn’t. She knew exactly what she needed to do.

Skye lifted her body up on her feet again, feeling a hundred times heavier than she ever has.. She crossed the space between them casually, and then when she was in front of him, she kneeled so her knees were touching his leg. She reached out and touched the hand on the blistered arm, grabbing it gently. “Do it.”

“You’ll die.” He said, no patience.

“Better than both of us dying.” She tossed back, confidence in her voice. Only for it to fade. Silence on both sides. “Do it.”

Barsig’s hand was already pretty limp in her hand, but it went dead as she convinced him. He didn’t see defeat in her, nor did he see pity. He heard a hint of guilt, probably trying to make up for putting him in this situation. Which would have been enough for him to say no, except she was so willing and seemed genuine about wanting to save him. He wanted to argue, because the last thing he wanted was for someone else to sacrifice themselves for his sake. But he could argue with her until he was blue in the face, it wouldn’t change her mind.

He weakly took her by the left shoulder, and pulled her into his lap. “It's going to hurt, and it's going to be difficult to, but relax.” He said, but if he broke a fang on this one, he felt it would be appropriate. He cradled her with his right arm, so her feet dangled off his left leg. His hand comes up and brushes her hair off the right side of her neck, he pulled and tucked under his arm. “I’ll try to take as little as I can..” He said, as if it was for her, but he felt like it was for him.

His fingers traced her neck, she had really nice collar structure. He wrapped his left arm around her and pulled her in while he leaned in, his lips touched her neck and he followed his senses to her pulse point, where he opened his mouth and slowly sank his fangs thought her neck’s flesh. The moment he did he felt her blood burst into his mouth; it was hot, hot enough to burn his tongue.

Skye tensed up as soon as she felt his fangs penetrate her, and she immediately reached for his chest to brace herself. That’s when she heard him moan, it resonated so clearly with the feeling of relief that it hurt her heart.. She remembered his words at that time, and did her best to relax in his arms; her hand that went to brace herself fell to her belly instead. Skye closed her eyes and focused on breathing.

As he sucked on her neck, she tried to compare it to a hickie, but she had never actually experienced that, she just knew what it was. She also knew there would be no mark left on her, despite what it felt like. As well, these could very well be her last breaths. She had one really big regret, and that was leading him into the trap, and after that..

Well, as she sat there, counting down the minutes, she considered telling him she was actually thinking about kissing him after all. She couldn’t bring herself to, though, and not just because she was afraid to talk while he fed. But also because she couldn’t see the point of it. He’s probably already forgotten about it, and did she really want that confession to be the last thing she said?

Skye’s head was tilted back all the way, so that her throat was fully exposed. So when she opened her eyes for one more look, she saw over the cliff and down it. She recognized a town in the distance. She mumbled the name as she closed her eyes again, feeling really drained now; really, really tired..


Skye Jenkin has never had a harder time opening her eyes, but after swimming between life and death for 20 minutes, she finally peeled one lid back to look through a very foggy and blurry window. Everything felt heavy..

She struggled to move her arms, they felt like they no longer were hers to manipulate; heavy and numb. When she finally focused her vision she recognized Barsig’s shirt. Skye then realized why it was so difficult to move or even stay fully conscious, he was holding her like before. Every breath she was inhaling his warm scent, and with his arms around her it she was surrounded in his scented body heat further. She didn’t want it to end..

It took so much of her to move her arms, but she reached up to the middle of his back and gripped his shirt as tightly as she could, and pulled. “Bar...Sig..” Her voice whispered.

He pulled back to look at her, his eyes concerned and searching. “You're alive..” It was wasn't a question so much as it was him stating a truth. He sounded relieved.

Skye nodded weakly, then mouthed some words before finding the bars with her feet and began rocking the cage. Barsig pulled slightly away to look at what she was doing, but she pulled him back with as much force as she could.

She couldn't feel her muscles or the reaction of her actions but at some point between the moments of complete conscious and the unknown blackness and shadows off her mind, she managed to achieve her goal. The wagon, while intimidating and large, was unbalanced and frail. Either time of use or disuse it achieved a state just perfect enough to abuse. It merely rocked at first then it began to tilt, the edge eventually caught the cliff’s face and smacked it with enough force to tilt it further the other way. Using that momentum, the cage threw itself into the cliff again with such force that this time when it bounced back it finally tipped over completely, and then over the edge.

-

Barsig felt gravity vanish for a moment before it changed directions countless times. He was thrown from her, or she was torn from him, either way he felt her one minute and then nothing the next. The world spun around, he bounced off the floor - or was that the fee ceiling? - but the moment he touched the bars he held on for life.

Seconds must have passed but it felt like forever as they rolled down the mountain. He heard cracking wood and her body bouncing around, he would always look but every time he did up would change. In that moment he realized he was afraid. Not of dying, not for himself, for her safety. She was already on the brink of death, her heart beat was so weak.. Yet, he could still hear the faint thump among the shattering sounds of the giant cage breaking against the mountain and eventually the world below.

He was flung away as they landed, but by some twisted chance he was relatively unharmed. Scrapes and bruises. He was also on top of some debris he'd been clinging to. He felt the sun trying to burn him again, but with Skye's blood he was safe. His sense of smell jarred him from his gasping rest. He smelt blood. Lots of it.

He dragged himself to his feet, with fear in his eyes he looked around the crash site. How did he survive? And how was she ever supposed to? But he still whipped his neck around looking for her. Or what remained of her.

His own heart raced as he did, and picked up especially fast when he saw an arm clutching his cloak. He didn't even care about the piece of clothing he just wanted to get to her. He yanked away the pieces of wall that was on her, only to find the man that had threaten to rip out her tongue. His body wasn't moving, it was twisted all to hell with breaks and blood washed over him. Barsig couldn't help but think it smelt awful. He dropped the walls back onto the man, let this be his grave.

Barsig then heard the quickening beat of someone dying, of someone on the verge of tears.. His own heart stopped.

-

When he found her, Skye was starting at the bright blue atmosphere trying not to think about the setting pain in her chest or how breathing was the hardest thing to do at that moment. She gasped for air but could not inhale. She barely managed to exhale. She felt tears slip past her eyes despite what she had to say about it.

When she noticed him she panicked. She could hardly move, but her sights quickly turn to the mountain they had fallen from. She wheezed her words. “What are you… doing here still?” He looked as dumbfounded as she did at that moment. She looked back, thought she saw shadows moving up so high. “S-Save yourself.”

She didn't know it but those words haunted him on his worst days, and today was a pretty bad day as it were.. He dropped to his knees beside her, even as she was trying so hard to make him see that he had to leave.

“Hurry..” She pleaded reaching up with a blood covered hand, what little of it he'd left her now drained into her lungs and from large gashes in her body, so large that she was numb to them by now. Tears ran from her eyes as she tried to push him away, her hand had no strength, but she continued.

Until he took her hand in his. “Skye.. It's okay. They won't be able to make it down here in time to stop me. You've saved me.” He choked up a bit, then swallowed hard.

Skye watched him, and mimicked his emotions. Her worry melted into happiness, her throat tightened, and she started to cry. Her chest hurt even more and she grabbed her left side. She quickly found the metal bar that had broken during the crash only to impale her. It pierced her lung enough to kill her but slowly. It barely missed her heart. The gruesome discovery was apparent on her face as she groped the wound.

But Skye had come to terms with dying a while ago. “I'm sorry!” The words burst from her mouth, along with a mouth full of blood. He was quick to wipe it away. “I’m so sorry.. Please forgive me even though I know I don't deserve it.” She cringed, pain shooting through her. Her throat constricted around her words. “Please..”

Barsig was amazed that she still thought she needed his forgiveness after she saved him twice. He laughed at her before his smile faded. “You already had my forgiveness..”

Skye’s eyes remained in tears, but she laid her head back on the ground when she had an answer, her eyes staring at something in the far distance. When her mind cleared again, she felt the need to confess again. She weakly tried to argue with it, but seeing how she was most certainly going to die here among the rubble of her cage, she decided she had nothing better to say. “I lied to you..” She said, still fighting her throat for air and the ability to talk. “I was curious about your fangs.. But I was thinking about what it would be like to kiss you, also.” She admitted, her blood too busy spilling out to rush to her face. She felt colder, actually. “You’re very attractive, I couldn’t help it.. I did lie, though.”

The sudden confession confused Barsig, and more so when she began to admit her lies. When he remembered it, he couldn’t contain the chuckle that passed through his frown. He rubbed the hand, not bothered at all by the blood that had poured over it; nor was he affected by it at all. “Is that so?” He asked, slowly coming to terms with what he was about to do. “I have a question for you Skye.. What if there was a way to live, would you?”

Skye could just make out his touch, but only barely. She had no strength to move her fingers, and she was having a hard time finding motivation as well. She was having a hard time with a lot of things at the moment. She took as big of a breath as her lung would allow, she turned to his now murky form. She couldn’t see him, either because of so many tears in her eyes or because she was dying.. But she could still picture his handsome face. She tried to speak, but only coughed up more blood. She nodded instead, and kept nodding. Laying her head against the ground, and stopping for a moment.

Barsig could hear her heart slowing down, the end was near enough. Still holding her hand, he moved over her, to hover. He let her hand go to pick up her chin again. Her green eyes appeared once more, confused but soon focused. He knew she could see him. “I think I can finally make an exception.” He said, more to himself, and then leaned in and gave her that kiss she had wanted. He gave her his most passionate kiss, the deepest kiss he could, which was achieved fairly easily as he felt the blood in her mouth surround his fangs.

As he fulfilled her wish, he grabbed the iron beam that had pierced her chest, and with all the strength he could call upon, he ripped the spearing object from her. He heard her cry out in pain into his mouth, but he held her firmly in bliss. When he pulled his mouth from her’s she exhaled her last breath, and he felt the magic in her blood seep through his body and heal the most minor wounds. He stared at her for a moment before he picked himself up and got started. But first.. His cloak.