There was a small knock at the door. Gabriella floated down to the ground before her other half could register the sound that entered his dreams. She was already awake, anxiety keeping her on the alert. At the door was the same hooded person. She took the letter that read: ‘Invitation for 1’ with her name flowery drawn in the bottom right. She understood wherever these crumbs led, no one could follow.

Her life was her own. Choices for her to make and she will ensure they were hers.

For the first time in their life that she was aware of she crawled into his bed and allowed him to unconsciously wrap her into himself like the security blanket he must outgrow. Her last gift. Blanketed in his warmth her eyes weighed down. Her body relaxed and she slept. Small snores only he could hear that added to the deepness of his own sleep.

Only a few hours passed before the cold woke Gabriella up. He was gone. He had tucked her in as he usually does if he gets up first and he doesn’t have the patience to bask in her beauty, occasionally adding a blanket. It could never make up for the warmth of another person or security of someone you can trust.

Gabriel was arguing with someone. “Why are you here?” he was trying desperately to whisper but his irritation couldn’t be bottled. The only other person that bother’s coming near their room aside from Seth is Sa’Rim. Gabriel’s’ servant. (Her own, Annamarie listens when told not bother.) Gabriella hasn’t meet Sa’Rim. She has heard his detached voice on the other side of doors or shuffling in the dark, but never his face. If she was leaving today she could not leave a simple mystery unseen.

“Brother.” She groaned pretending she was waking up. “What are you doing?”

“Nothing…packing.” The sounds of falling and scuffling then the slam of the door making his lies comically unbelievable. She rolled her eyes and slinked out of bed opening the door while her brother was distracted packing. Sometimes his wits did not match her own. Still standing on the other side, (Gabriel too late to stop her by time he realized) was a young man whose beauty rivaled her own in striking alone: Sharp jaw, sad lips, and eyes closed. She watched ink as deep as vantablack that normally covered his warm face in constant patterns retreat around his neck like a scar in front her. This was not what she expected, looking at him was like looking into a black hole. He kept pulling you in until there was nothing left. He slowly began to open his eyes. She held her breath, locked her knees in anticipation at the fluttering lashes.

“No!” Gabriel grabbed her in a twirl covering her eyes, but was too late. She had saw them. She had saw the small galaxies. “Leave!” Gabriel tried to kick the door, but Sa’Rim was already in.

“This is your vacuum. She takes. You give.” His voice was far away, talking to no one.

“Sh sh” Gabriel covered her ears like they were his own. “Shut up!” he was beyond anger. He just wanted to get away. He tossed a bag on his back, another over his shoulder, and covered her face with a shawl as he ran past Sa'Rim. Through his planned escape. Running, dragging Gabriella along through halls that seem to fold in on themselves as they raced to the nearest exit. As they passed the threshold either one of them has ever gone before, they slowed to a walking pace as uncertainty seep in. Why were they leaving?

They should turn back.

This is their home. Their family is here with everything they love and need. Why are they leaving this behind? They slowed to a stop. Gabriella dragged down the shawl to her neck tying it in place. She looked up to her own uneasiness reflected across her brother’s face. She almost regretted her decision, but he squeezed her hand cementing both their resolves. They were only a few meters from the house and every step was new and heavy. Everything was still and quiet allowing their thoughts to scream limitless.

Large dense tress blocked their path. Once they go through that would be it. They turned to say goodbye to their home of fifteen years the only thing covered in light and quickly met gaze of Alexander staring down at them from what they assume was his window since they’ve never been near his room let along knew there were rooms that faced this direction.

Gabriel pulled her forward, his chest pumped higher and higher as he fought though the same presence telling him to stop, turn back as she was. When they moved forward it was less like moving through trees but opening a door after walking through a crackless closet. They covered their eyes at the new sensation of dim light stung like a quick a stared down into the sun. Once their eyes adjusted they were greeted with a vast city beneath them. Although they could see people going about their daily lives: trading, teaching, laughing and running in the street it was uncomfortably quiet like straining to remember a memory correctly. Not even the birds in the sky squawked as glided by.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

They moved forward. Maybe, they were just too far away. The sight was still something to behold. They had never seen so many people or structures in their life time. They were equally excited to simply explore as the strange agitation dissipated into wonder and curiosity. Was this were their servants was from? Did King Victoriaon pass through here with Seth in tow? Why had they never gone here? Played here as children. So many questions passed through their head. There was a small cliff up ahead. Gabriel threw their bags, dropped low to the grown and slid down. Gabriella followed suite. “What now?” He dusted off the bags and grabbed her hand.

“Lets go.” She smiled and pulled him in the direction of large buildings and people. It didn’t take them long to reach the city. There was a gate with no guards’ only two large statues that looked similar to their father, Vessuillus with longer hair like they could be brothers towered over them. They walked through the gates no problem. The light dimmed past the gate, but they attributed to the waning day.

“Gavrill,” their father’s voice called. The both turned around. No one was there.

They may not remember; Gabriel and Gabriella was born as one Gavrill. Shortly after they unequally split, the smaller one was named Gabriel because it said nothing and seemed to have thought beyond that of a new born and the larger one cried until it turned purple, so although they were both sexless at that time they believed the one seeking attention should be named Gabriella. The larger baby cried until it was placed next to its sibling at which point it immediately calmed down gripping the smaller baby’s hand. Left alone for an hour and Vessuillus had a boy and a girl, but their names had to be swapped.

Gabriella stomach called their attention back to their mission. Gabriel laughed, that was the closest he’s seen her to being undignified. “Let’s find breakfast.” He eyed a stand of what looked like graciously decorated desserts in elaborate see through packaging, perfect for gifts. The walked over hand-in-hand most passersby paying them no mind even when they almost bumped into to a few. They reached the stall lead by a plain young women with unremarkable features and even less memorable white clothing. Gabriel pointed a two raspberry and chocolate rolls with eatable bows around them. “Also two of those,” he pointed to two long sausage wrapped in buttery spiral bread on a stick.

They were ignored. “Hey!” Gabriella spoke up. “Do you know who we are?”

The woman didn’t flinch as she boxed and presented more desserts on the shelves and neither did anyone around. Gabriella huffed, reached to take the cakes Gabriel pointed out. Her hand passed right through the cakes. She lost her balance from shock and fazed through the stall like tripping on air scraping her knee through her flimsy nightgown as she caught herself on her hands and knees. She sat up and followed her brother’s gaze to a nightmarish scene: decaying bodies, pieces of limbs without homes, pools of blood, and the buildings appeared to have barely scraped through a war.

“We should go back.” Gabriel was shaking talking more to himself than anyone else. “We have to leave. Come.” He lifted her to her feet like she was toddler and gripped her wrist in the way they came.

“Gavrill.”

“It’s Father!” he smiled delirious. “He can take us back. Everything can go back. We can even find a way to get Seth back, if you want. ”

Her dreams flashed through eyes. ‘He’s a monster. Father’s the monster.’ She thought. “Gabriel calm down. We can’t go back.”

“No!” he let go of her wrist as he tripped into a puddle of blood. “This was all for you. This is enough. Why are we even leaving? Look!” he gestured around them. “Outside is disgusting.” Ugly frustrated tears mixed in with the thick syrupy blood that covered him.

“Gavrill.”

“Father. We are here.”

“I will not go back.” As her resolve slipped out the scent of flowers and fruits grabbed her attention in the opposite direction where previously there was no scents or sounds, leading to a trail of flower petals and leaves dancing in the wind as to say follow me. “Go then!” fear turned into rage and he unknowingly gave her the greenlight to go and she did.

As much as he wanted to go back. The immediately regret of losing his other half took hold and he slowly trudge in the same direction although she had quickly bested him by several yards ahead out-of-sight.

“Gavrill- Gabriel?” Vessuillus appeared behind Gabriel as if they had been walking side-by-side the whole journey and there was a minor distraction along him to lose a couple of feet, along with Alex and Sa’Rim. “How?” Gabriel thought out loud.

“I am a Guide. It is my job.” Sa’Rim gave no answers Gabriel could understand. With his eyes open for a prolong period of time it looked to Gabriel like he didn’t belong in the group. Like he wasn’t physically there with them.

“Where is Lady Gabriella?”

Gabriel looked around where any trace of her was lost. “ I-I don’t know. She walked that direction.”

“I can find her.” Sa’Rim broke through the group steered the way.

Gabriella had followed the trail to a blinding portal half her height in diameter that was to be shrinking every five minutes. “What is this?” she looked the calming swirls of light that felt to her like a scar on the universe. How will this help me be free or give me knowledge? She thought. She walked up to it very carefully and with every step her step became larger as the cries of the spherical light cried out to her. A foot away a letter appeared. ‘Invitation for 1’ with her name flowery drawn in the bottom right. This was the end of her bread crumbs.

She didn’t know what any of this meant but she knew something new was on the other side. Something that she knew deep inside was her own free will. She was almost there.

“Gabriella! What’s that?” Her brother, her other half ran up to her.

“Freedom.”