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We crawled from the depths of the earth, our eyes squeezed shut against the pale lights that filled a void of black far above our heads. The children coughed and cried, their voices muffled in my ringing ears while cold air wrapped it's clammy fingers around our foreign skin. My body glowed like a beacon on a vast ocean at night, illuminating not only myself, but the young women at my side. Where had the other Governess gone? Ghoulish eyes cast down on the yearlings as they sucked in air at such a rapid pace that it began to make my own chest hurt for them; there were only two of the three I had found. The young girls wheezed, reaching blindly toward me for comfort while they blinked away the sting of smoke. One sobbed for her mother, the other speaking in tongues which The Royals had never allowed me to learn. Tears dribbled from my milky eyes, tracing the delicate veins along my face until they fell to the earth, limp and lifeless. I inched toward the reaching noses, one of the twins pressing into me, rattling uncontrollably as she struggled to breathe between sobs, and the other hugging my withers with her long, slender neck.

Our world had fallen; it had crashed all around us in heaps of white marble and dark stone. The rivers of fire sloshed over their barricades, taking helpless lives with them one by one. The House, settled on the highest stone hill, shifted and groaned under it's own weight. Screams and cries filled the world around us, but still, The Red moved with swift grace, her cloak and golden jewelry glinting playfully with the surrounding fire. "The children!" She had screamed, her eyes finding me across the white walled room while smoke divided our path "Take them and run!" And I had to. I did whatever The Red asked of me. She was my Lady, our Lady.. how could I defy her word?

So I did.. I found the twins and the young boy, and the other Governess. We ran, unsure of where we were going, but away from the smog and the stench of burning flesh. The other Governess was breaking down, pleading to a God I had never heard of as we broke into the dark tunnels. It must have been in there that we had lost them.. I hadn't been paying attention, I just steered the girls away from harm. I had not done my job to the best of my ability.

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The days passed quickly in this above-ground world. A large ball of yellowed light floated through the void of what was now blue and wispy white space, but each day the yellow ball of light was replaced with a rusty circle that looked as if someone had taken a small bite out of it. The air was clean here, but the girls were weak and tired, their lungs still in shock by the amount of smoke they had inhaled. I watched helplessly as the older of the twins coughed until she would gag, her eyes constantly filled with tears. The youngest was silent unless she was clearing her throat or whispering into her dying sister's ear. Unfortunately, I am no Medic. Every time one of the beloved twins had sustained any injury, I would flee to the nearest Medicine Wing and drag the busy Doctor back with me to make sure they were okay. These two are my own.. I have raised them since birth.

We watched the yellow ball set several times before her lungs finally couldn't retain enough oxygen to keep her blood flowing steadily. We wrapped ourselves around one another in a small circle, my head rested on her rib cage and breast pressed against her hip, her sister's face buried in her chest to listen to her failing lungs. I tried my hardest to stay strong while they whispered to each other, weak smiles being passed from one another. She's so young.. too young to leave us just yet. But I could no longer hold my composure; they saw the tears break past white lined eyelids and they lost hope, too. Even after she had passed, we remained at her side for hours. It was a quiet, calm exit, but she knew she was loved and that was all that mattered. I would nudge the remaining sister every so often, scared for her own life as I watched the numbness fill her entire being.

She had lost a sister. I had lost a child.

I stared at the two and their dark, misshapen eyes that I had grown so fond of. How much longer would the youngest sister last?

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The crying never did stop. I would often find myself standing to the side, watching my remaining child eat, but seeing nothing. We were completely and hopelessly numb. We had nothing to say to each other, as compassion had reached its high while the three of us had lied together one last time. She was starting to worry about me, I could feel it. The two yearlings were the only thing I knew, and without them in this new world, I wasn't sure if I could survive. We were all so foreign to everything about this place, even the air still felt too thick with water. Was there even any life here besides the forests that stretched for miles either way?

It took four more rises of the yellow orb for the youngest to finally speak. "I'm going back home." She croaked, her throat thick with saliva as she choked back more tears. I knew I couldn't stop her, even while I tried to explain how there was nothing there. She wouldn't make it, but being their Governess, I could only warn. I was never allowed to show discipline. So I watched her leave.. she did leave me with a tender hug, though it didn't last nearly as long as I would have liked it to. I had to leave now, too. One last glance over my round shoulder made my heart feel as if it had shattered into hundreds of tiny fragments.

I was finally getting used to the yellow ball, but it still hurt my eyes when I opened them to a new day. Most of my time spent wandering aimlessly through the forest, I would stop and clip at my golden bracelet; it's the only thing I have left of my home. I hadn't had water since the morning my last daughter had left me.. Three days ago? How can I keep producing tears? My body is weak and numb to everything, I can barely feel the golden band as I press it into my flesh with the opposite foot. The rest of the day consisted of making myself eat and trying to control my breathing. I finally realized how badly I still smell of smoke of burnt hair; maybe that's keeping the predators away? Why else wouldn't they have taken down a single, distracted creature?

Finally, I lied down against a dark barked tree with vibrant green needles and strange brown cones that looked to be made of thin bark. The yellow ball began to set again and I watched with curious eyes. My dark body began to glow while the light slowly pulled away from the darkening void in the air. How full would the rusty ball be today? Would I even be able to see it past the white wisps? Silently, I awaited another lonely night where I would cry myself to sleep, and set my square jaw against the bark of the stubby tree.

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All at once there was life in the forest. While I stared absentmindedly at the orbiting rock as it slowly crept above our heads, I could suddenly feel the presence of another being. One round ear twitched accordingly, but I couldn't find it in myself to turn and face whatever had found me in the gloom of the setting yellow orb. It smelled of soil and fresh air with a lingering feminine aura, something so comforting, yet still so unfamiliar to me. And even though curiosity did not move me to look back at the creature (I had been taught better than that) her voice did; I thought I had caught something that I had understood, but I must have been mistaken, as she spilled an incoherent sentence into the cold air as if I should understand. She continued to press toward me, no more disturbed by the presence of a stranger than I had been. "I know you feeling." she finally said, shifting on her feet and folding down to the ground beside me.

Even though my brain argued with my heart, I wanted to welcome this woman to my side; I have never been one to deny a stranger's company, but the painful amount of grieving I had endured within the last week has worn a harsh groove in my soul. Drowsy eyes reached to the cream toned woman, searching for something beyond those beautiful eyes. My heart thudded heavily. The delicate, sweet appearance of this stranger was all I had ever wanted to be. Instead of mustering the energy for a response, I bobbed my head respectfully, the corners of my lips twitching upward for a moment. It was just now that I realized there was a similar glowing light cast over the pearl woman's coat, but it did not belong to me. "Hello, are you alright?” His body hidden below full wings, but he looked as if he had danced straight out of the black space above the trees, straight from the twinkling lights. "Manifestum est etiam quod non prorsus male oculi?" the stranger beside me answered. Maybe he would understand her tongues?

I sucked in a tight breath for a moment, ears both turning backward while I questioned myself. Am I alright? "No-" I began, shaking my head just softly enough to feel my neck muscles working. Why did these strangers care? Had I crossed over into a herd land by mistake? Milky eyes gazed up at the man with star dust on his body, finally noticing the falcon balancing on the hybrid's wing like it was his perch. I had only seen birds crafted from charred coal and fire in Urd, and they were all filthy scavengers. They would bite at each other over scraps left from fallen slaves. Their oily eyes and eerie screeches had haunted my dreams at a young age.

Two more women moved in, one after another, but these two looked nothing like my two newest acquaintances. This is such a strange world. One woman, soft white highlighted with a fantastic blue, bore only wings and bright eyes, while the other was an earthy color and was stripped of the extra appendages and protruding bones. She looked as if she had crawled from the rusty ball in the sky and painted with clay. ”Welcome to Helovia, miss. Is there anything I can do to be of assistance? If you have other needs, I’m sure the moon doctors back in my herd would be more than willing to attend to them.” the woman in blue offered. I shifted my vision around from face to face, but the reptilian creature with leather wings squawked, making my stomach twist uncomfortably. Now was not the time to question what the creature is, so I tightened my jaw and swallowed hard before I allowed my attention to move elsewhere. "I am an Earth Medic, previous Moon Doctor. If you require healing I am more than happy to offer aid. Though… I doubt that a broken heart can truly be healed by much - even with my magic."

Every one of them offered me so much more than just a welcoming smile, and all I could return was a tired, beaten grin. Helovia? Moon doctor? Earth Medic? I ran their names through my head, nodding at each one and waiting my turn - like I have been taught. Elsa, the blue painted woman, and her bird, Edgar. Resplendence, the clay woman, and her.. snake with legs and wings? What was it? Valiance? Now, it was my turn. "Thank you all, you're very generous." I began weakly, milky eyes reaching toward the man who looked like myself. "But you owe me nothing. I'm sorry if I intruded, I'm still not certain of where I am." I wanted to find my feet and leave my new acquaintances in peace, but I longed for their companionship.

My life in Urd was comfortable and rewarding.. only by pure luck. I had been plucked from my mother's side as soon as I was strong enough to work on my own, but before The Red rescued me, I was just simply another worker. We were near worthless under The Royals' eyes - ants crawling from the veins of their nest to collect for the Queen. But one day, she chose to take me under her wing. I would never be able to forget her coal black eyes as they settled on me; a glamorous red cloak draped over her lithe shoulders and flared out over her swollen pregnant belly. She was adorned in golden jewelry: hoops in her ears and nostrils, bracelets, a thick collar with ruby inlays. A gorgeous woman who I soon found to be very caring as well. She taught me to be the woman I am now.

I will forever cherish my relationship with The Red, as she gave me the two wonderful girls whom I cared for as if they were my own blood.

My jaw tightened again as I shook the cobwebs from my mind and focused once more on the pale blue accents on the Pegasus mare before me. She seemed so straight and no-nonsense.. a lot like The Red. "I'll be going." my voice cracked under stress and rushing emotions. Silently, I reached out to the woman who spoke a different language beside me, softly butting my dark lips on her nearest shoulder before I stood back up. It was a custom in Urd, a respectable touch between new friends. Surely they do the same here as well?

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"Speech here."
Ooc: Sorry for the long wait, I had a crazy Christmas-y couple of weeks!