Page 108 of Florescentia

His grip tightened, then a furrow of his brow.

The doors burst behind me, flying across the floor, debris hitting us.

I leaned up, a hand on the side of his face.

“Thank you,” I breathed, “and goodbye, for now.”

I threw the strap over my head, securing my satchel tightly on my shoulder.

“Stop!” he demanded. “What are you doing?” His tone changed, the anger making his human voice falter into his more monstrous one.

“Going to see him,” I said, turning toward the beast before us.

The thing was huge, looking vaguely like some sort of arthropod, but ever-shifting in shape. It screeched, three giant mouths full of sharp teeth.

It set several eyes on me, then charged. Its many legs scraped and slid against the wood, kicking up furniture and rugs, digging into the varnish of the floor.

Altair reached for me, but I ran head on.

The beast seemed to brace for another shriek—and that’s when I jumped.

It opened wide, the sound of the wail stinging my eardrums as I slipped past the teeth, tearing my sleeve on them before the mouth closed completely around me, and I was surrounded by darkness. Swallowed whole.

Chapter Thirty-One

The Nova

The air became heavy, thick.

Humidity precipitated until it was a dense mist, then turned to pure liquid.

Before my next breath, I was surrounded by water.

My arms thrashed and fingers tangled in foliage, the broken fibers tickling my skin, my face, catching in my hair.

Looking above, a dim light on a rippling surface. My dress was weighing me down. Small glowing items flicked past me within the water, leaving trailing lights behind them. The darkness was teeming with them, with life. I tore my outer skirts and blouse away, desperate to pierce the surface. My lungs tightened in anticipation, begging for a breath.

The breaking of the surface was dull in my clogged ears, the pressure popping the minute I emerged.

At first, it was dark. A vast expanse, the only light being a single bright spot in the sky. I wiped the water from my eyes, wading and feeling around for a shore. My hands brushed against what felt like grass. I balled my fists into it, pulling myself from the water.

My aching body deflated the minute I was out, rolling onto my back to look up.

The bright thing in the sky looked to be a moon. I couldn’t say for sure it was the one I knew; it was slightly different. It seemed to resemble the giant rock in the sky, with divots and craters. It was the finer details that gave it away, as if made from memory rather than from reference.

A weak shimmer by my head. The grass I lay on pulsed, a gentle blue light emitting from just the faintest touch. My markings matched the color; seemingly all stayed alight.

Like a spotlight introducing a stage, the rest of the scene gradually materialized. A willow tree of feathers waved in a nonexistent wind. The strange flowers I’d seen in my home cropped up along the water and tree. My skin tickled. The grass brushed back and forth, lapping at my arms and legs.

Critters formed, moving among the grass, hopping from tree branches or fluttering from flower to flower. A butterfly looped in the air above before smacking into my wet hair. I rescued it from the soggy strands. The poor thing flopped in my palm. It looked to have two differently patterned wings, like some sort of gynandromorph.

The heavy, wet petticoat dragged on the ground as I moved farther from the water, placing the creature down in the grass. It flapped wildly before grabbing hold of a flower stem, making itself comfortable as it stretched its dripping wings.

The feathery tree leaves waved above me, glowing against the empty sky.

I tugged the satchel strap over my head and emptied out the contents.

Wet books, a handheld camera, an eraser, one and a half pencils, my scarf, and my necklace.