Child of Truth.

Kalina sits amongst the trees, bare skin reflecting the fiery burn of the sun above. She holds an apple in her hand, feeling the weight as it shifts and rolls across her palm. Closing her fingers around the moist skin, she raises it to her mouth and delicately takes a bite, relishing the cool juice and the feel of it against her lips.

In front of her sits another, kneeling with their hands upon their knees. While their form is human, it's unclear as to who or what they are exactly; their body is ethereal, a delicate mix of light and shadow. They watch one another closely, and it's minutes before a word is said.

“How do you know more of me than I of myself?” the girl asks. The other chuckles, a faint whisper amongst the breeze and chatter of animals.

“I'm a Watcher, young one,” they say. “I know of all things, of all worlds. I know you because I am you, just as I know your sister, and your father.”

“But I was unaware of them before now, and of my own self,” Kalina continues, moving to sit in the same way as the other. She leans forwards, curiosity peaking as she looks through the other, tilting her head this way and that, before pulling away again. “Why could I not remember? Why can I still not remember? And who are you exactly, Watcher?”

Another chuckle. “You're an interesting one, Child of Truth. Most hardly care about who they were, and focus on who they are �" does that not mean anything to you?”

“Of course it does!” she exclaims, astonished. Tutting, she plays with the grass underneath her legs, “but if I had a family before, then I must still have one now. Even if I won't be going back there, they were a big part of my life �" and I of their's. I think I deserve to know some things, right?”

The other stays quiet, watching Kalina as she fidgets on the floor. Placing an incorporeal hand upon hers, they watch as her eyes shine up to their face again; the hand upon her own feels like mist, and also of nothing.

“I'm sorry,” Kalina says, standing and wiping herself down. Although she can't see any defining features upon on the other's face, she feels that they are smiling as they, too, stand. With their hands intertwined, Kalina allows herself to walk behind the other, ignoring the tickle of the grass blades underneath the soles of her feet.

They walk for an hour, and then another, and soon she loses count. In this place, it's as if there is no concept of time, and she's surprised to find no pain in her limbs from the walk. Instead, Kalina focuses on her surroundings �" on the heat caressing her skin, on the slight wind rolling through her cropped hair, on the buzz of insects that zipped by her ears.

The pair walk, and Kalina's curiosity peaks as forest greenery fades away and replaces itself with the golden-browns of a desert. The sky darkens and stars replace the warmth of the sun. The girl shivers, drawing her arms around herself, and stops to admire the great vastness before her. 

"Where are we?" she asks. 

"We're nearly at the Monument," the other answers, taking a few steps away from their companion. Kalina watches them, silently delighting at how their form changes in the differing light of the stars; they're nearly visible in the evening glow, and Kalina decides that the other is almost definitely a female. 

The other looks behind them, gesturing for the onlooker to join their side. They point forwards as Kalina stands beside them, and the two of them scan the horizon before them. It takes a moment of straining her eyes against the growing darkness, but soon enough the girl sees what the other meant. 

A wondrous pyre in the distance reaches into the sky, and Kalina instantly recognises it as the Monument. The girl feels her eyes tear up at the sight before her, and her body wells with emotion at the immense beauty of the tower. Stark white against the black backdrop of the night, lights of pale blue and pink dance around the length, pulsing and shrinking into the walls. 

"I can feel them," she whispers, "and they're calling for me."

"So it is true," the other says, turning to face the trembling Kalina. "You are one of the chosen."

Wiping her cheeks with the palms of her hand, the girl reluctantly draws her gaze away from the Monument and gently touches the other on the arm. 

"Please take me there," she pleads gently. "Please take me home."