"One Last Look"
Kyra Andros

As I stand before the Lake of Kalmeesha I look out at the sun as it sets. Every night it looks like this, a desolate, barren existence. The men in my life have been gone for almost a millennia now. For that entire time I have been alone in my realm. When Etheain went up against Troi to protect me he changed the course of history and saved my life forever.

But now I'm alone in this realm, lost in the tides of time, strewn across the white caps of the past. The only company I keep are my friends, and even they are kept at their distance these days. Tyla sits on the cliff above my home, she watches as I leave for work, and she's there when I return. Kale still cooks dinner for me, and April visits on occasion.

My world has faded into nothingness, the only existence I have now is living in the other Realms, living other's lives. Now, as I stand here the sun sets, kissing the horizon with such fire that it sets the ground aflame with color and passion. Tyla lays above me, her great claws stretched out toward the ground like million year old rocks.

Darkness falls over my tiny world, leaving it in silence and despair. I make my way across the river to my tree house. Sometimes, when I step within the heavy oak door I fall back into the days when Etheain used to beat me home, and have a fire waiting for when I stepped from the frigid air. He would drop a blanket around my shoulders, and lead me to a chair before the fire.

Sometimes I hear his voice inside the house, laughing with April or Kale. But when I open the door there is no one there, no one but me and my shadow. Sometimes, if I close my eyes as I hop across the river I can hear him whistling behind the house, gathering seasonings from the garden. Sometimes, I'll catch a voice on the wind, and I'll feel the familiar tingle run down my spine, I'll know he's there. His song echoes in my ears, a haunting trail of memories mingled with what used to be. But at the end of the day it's just me, and my shadow.

Today I don't step into an empty house, Kale is there, sitting on the countertop. I've known Kale for longer then forever. He and his wife Elva, live under a rock in my garden. Kale has been cooking for me since Etheain vanished, and Elva checks in on the housework almost every day. Every once in awhile, I'll hear them whispering about my health since Etheain left. Health, ha, I've never been sick. I don't need to eat, it's more of a luxury. When the Troika created me of the elements they forged me to never need replenishment, nor sleep. These are just routines I got into after all my years with Etheain. But for the past four thousand years or so I haven't really had an appetite.

Upstairs, I trudge, taking only a bite or two from the steaming plates before me. I hear Kale's worried squeak, and I realize that soon Elva will be calling on me to make sure I'm all right. In my loft I find my bed turned down, and I feel the loneliness overwhelm me once again. Getting onto my knees I check under the bed for pixies, not wanting any of their antics tonight. Etheain would always laugh at me for checking, and nothing he said would keep me from looking.

Sighing, I plop myself down on the cloud spun sheets and silken pillows. I can hardly believe that only a millennia ago I shared this bed with the only man I've ever loved. Where is Etheain now?

That question overtook me. Was he returned to the mortal realm, two thousand years after his birth? What kind of world would he be returned to? Did he remember me until the day he died, or did he forget me, pass me off as some phantom of a dream? Perhaps I would never find out, perhaps I would never know. I think I'd rather believe that he loved me and let go. I don't want him to suffer his loss as I suffer mine.

A part of me wants to slip between the sheets and let the problems of the day slip from me like water from the scales of dragons, and yet I am restless. Deciding against bed, I draw out my cloak from the closet and head downstairs once again. Kale glances up from the table, where he's organizing notes twice as big as him, but he doesn't speak.

The sweet scent of nightfall drifts to me as my feet carried me out along the fields. Soft clad moccasins pad through fragrant grasses, closing the distance between me and Nowhere. Stars twinkle above me, more then anyone could name, and each of them are watching me as I flee.

As I run I feel the eyes of the fey around me, watching my every move. They've been doing that since Etheain's disappearance. No one seems to think that I can handle the loneliness that was left in Etheain's stead. But then again, I am one of those people. Ever since he vanished I have felt lost within a storm, without a beacon of light to lessen the waves of sadness. The stars are the only friends I have, shining brightly in a world of dark and misery. But I must continue through the storm, for I am a lighthouse, and I must lead souls home.

Entering into my forest I fall to my knees beside my pool of enlightenment. Tears sting my eyes as I manage to choke out, "Etheain Meriwether, on the day of his demise."

The surface ripples, moving a soft fog over the silver waters. There, in the water I see the face I grew so fond of. But Etheain's dark hair has been replaced by a crown of silver, and his eyes shone with tired vivacity. The once taunt flesh that defined the noble brow and dashing cheeks has tattered and creased. But those sapphire eyes still hold within them the knowledge of a million realms, and glimmer of unspoken mystery, the air of insight, of magic.

I know him the moment I see him, the feeling grows tight in my chest. He would have been only twenty-one when he returned to the mortal realm. Did he marry? Sire children? Perhaps grandchildren?

There was someone holding his hand, and I can see her delicate fingers twisting themselves around in his hand. Softly, a voice came over the wind, a voice that sounded of bells and chimes. "Dad, what was it you told me when I was small. The Soulkeeper, tell me of that legend." she said, squeezing his hand.

A spark lit behind his eyes, and he began, "I remember when I first saw her. Hair, red as flame, eyes blue as ice, skin soft as roses. Her life had already been too long, but nothing in all the world could have stopped her from living it. She dedicated every moment to mortals, loving them, trusting them, keeping them safe. She was beautiful, a real angel. Not one of these flighty phantoms in movies and books, but a goddess in mortal form."

In a flash of pain, his hand spasmed, and he closed his eyes briefly. I force myself to focus, to remove the pain, but it was too strong. I felt his heart failing, and I watch as his eyes begin to droop.

"I'd give it all up, this life, this world, for one more look into her ice blue eyes." he whispered, staring up, almost directly at me. And in one last shaft of support I managed to diminish the pain. Those familiar eyes lifted up and his lips formed the words perfectly, "Thank-you, Kitten." Then his eyes locked on to mine and he smiled that perfect smile. He was gone.

It was only then that I looked at the woman beside him. Her face lifted toward heaven, and she whispered, "Take care of him, Kitty. He always loved you." And I was astonished to discover that she had fire red hair, ice blue eyes, and rose petal soft skin.

Silently, I move from the woods around me, and head slowly across the fey glimmered fields toward home. On the wind I hear his voice, and feel his eyes upon me. His song echoes in my ears, a haunting trail of memories mingled with what used to be. Hopping across the river, I find myself standing at my front door. No voices recoil from within the house. Now it really is just me and my shadow.