[Jessari]

((Just a note: I am not known for my fast replies! I will reply as quickly as possible, but it might be a day or two between responses. Thanks!!!))

It was night in the Wilt'no Desert. A full moon hung high in the sky, its pale light washing the color from the sea of sand. Not that there was any color to wash out. Not anymore.

Chayah sped through the desert, hands tight around the handlebars of her motorcycle. The gloves of her armor absorbed most of the vibration, but  there was enough to make her palms tingle. Her backside wasn't doing much better on that front. Her mind wasn't on her physical discomfort, however. She was too busy thinking of a night years ago, before she had turned into the kind of girl who wore armor, or rode a motorbike, or medicated before she could go to sleep.

Periodically, she would check the device that she had secured to her wrist. In theory, it was supposed to lead her to the 'color spot' in this desert, but it felt like it had been leading her in circles for hours. Finally, she shut the bike off, climbed from her seat, and stretched. The dot currently didn't look like it was too far away - perhaps it would stop dancing all over the GPS if she attempted to track it down on foot.

[Jessari]

Despite the sun having set some time ago, it was still quite warm. Chayah was aware of this only because of the glowing numbers displayed in the corner of her visor. The suit she wore kept her fully insulated against all but the more extreme temperatures. She was grateful for that, considering she could be out here awhile.

Between the weak light of the moon and the complete lack of color, Chayah found her eyes straining to distinguish details of her surroundings. She tried activating her helmet's night vision setting, but that only seemed to make it worse, and she soon turned it back off.

As she trudged along the spine of a large sand dune, she eyed the 'Color GPS', as she had decided to call it. Now that she had left the quickest, most convenient mode of transportation behind, the dot on the screen seemed to be remaining fairly stable. Go frikkin figure.

[Jessari]

Why was she even out here? It was a complicated question. Well, anything to do with this whole colorless situation Evelon was in was complicated, but it ran even deeper for Chayah. She had always been an energetic person, dressing in the brightest colors she could find, making her smoothie decisions based on which flavor sported the most vivid hue. Although it had been a while since she had felt that carefree, she would admit that food had lost what little appeal it had still held for her when dressed only in shades of grey.

But that wasn't what had sealed the deal and sent her speeding towards the nearest color zone. The real reason hit closer to home. It had hit her while she was at home.

[Jessari]

It had started off as a normal day, which nowadays consisted of Chayah waking late after a long night of insomnia followed by a short period of shallow, restless sleep. After groaning about the merciless brightness of the sun shining through her window, she had groped blindly for the picture frame sitting on the table at her bedside. It was the one piece of her heart she still possessed.

Her eyes opened, blinking in an attempt to clear her vision. When her vision did sharpen, she blinked again in confusion. The picture she held, the picture she considered more dear than her own life, the picture whose every detail she knew better than her own face in the mirror, had changed.

[Jessari]

She had taken the picture herself, with a rather pricey camera her sister had saved up and bought her for Christmas several years back. Chayah brushed her fingers unbelievingly against the glass of the frame. Her dearest Kom'rk smiled up at her. It was a rare thing, his smile, and she had almost squealed when she snapped the picture. It was like getting a clear photo of the Loch Ness monster or something.

Now, however, all the vivid colors were gone. His dark hair remained unchanged, but the earthy brown of his eyes, the richness of his tanned skin, gone. Focused on the photo, Chayah didn't even notice the colors had been sucked out of the rest of reality. Nothing mattered except the photo and the breaking of her heart.

[Jessari]

After everything that had happened, Chayah hadn't thought her heart could break any further. Apparently she had been wrong.

"No!" She cried. Then again, louder, "No!"

She tumbled out of bed, nearly falling as her feet tangled in the sheets. Picture frame still clutched tightly in both hands, Chayah paced frantic circles around her bedroom. Which god did she need to curse for this latest injustice? It didn't matter. Mentally she raged against them all, every single one. All of them were guilty in her eyes, of either committing the mountain of wrongs against her, or at the very least refusing to step in and help.

[Jessari]

And that was about the time her fist went through the window.

As Chayah now trudged through the colorless desert, she rubbed her knuckles of her right hand gently. They were still sore, bandaged beneath the armored gloves from the cuts the window pane had dealt her. She didn't regret it. It still hurt less than her heart. The photo, carefully removed from its frame, was safely stored beneath her chest plate, against her heart.

She was doing this for Kom'rk, for the sake of salvaging what little she had left of her hope and her heart. Others had flocked to the more temperate areas, but she hadn't the heart for heavily occupied areas. Besides, this desert held memories for her.

[Jessari]

This was where she had fully realized she had fallen in love with Kom'rk. It was funny, she had always thought she would fall somewhere glamorous, like a fancy ballroom or on a trip to an exotic location. That wasn't what fate had planned for her, however.

Kom'rk had brought her out here what seemed like forever ago, and had forced her to train with her powers. Looking back on the scared young kid she had been, it was kind of funny. Chayah had been terrified of using her pyro powers, but Kom'rk hadn't allowed her to remain afraid. He had pushed her, practically attacked her until the fire came flowing from her. That was when she had found herself more afraid of hurting him than of anything else. That was the moment when she had discovered controlling her powers was possible. That was the moment she discovered that she loved her soldier more than anything in the universe.

[Jessari]

A tear trickled down her face, chilled by the inner-armor A/C. Chayah sniffed, removing her helmet and clipping it to her waist. The dry heat blasted her face, drying the tears before they had a chance to reach her chin. It hurt too much, remembering, and a glance at her Color GPS showed her no closer than before to the only color in this area.

After a long moment, Chayah reached down to her waist and unclipped the small cylinder stored there. She brought it to her lips, placing a gentle kiss on its surface, then unscrewed the lid. At least she would accomplish one of her tasks here tonight.

"I love you, Kom'ika, and I always will."

And with that, she tilted the canister and let the wind carry Kom'rk's ashes away.

[Jessari]

A strange thing began to happen - as the ashes moved away from Chayah, the dot on the GPS screen began to move closer. From just over the ridge of the nearest sand dune came a red glow. Chayah watched, wonder in her eyes, momentarily forgetting the pain in her knuckles and her heart. It was the first color she had seen in weeks, and it was beautiful.

[imgright][/imgright]

A tiny figure appeared, floating toward her. Not floating, she realized, but flying, wings flapping so quickly they seemed almost invisible. When it reached her, it lit on her outstretched palm and looked expectantly up at her.

"Hello?" She said carefully, afraid of frightening the tiny thing off. There was no response. Within her chest, the tightness seemed to ease, and Chayah felt an odd sense of familiarity creep over her.

She knew what this being was. She had heard stories, but hadn't until this moment believed them to be true. Small beings that were born from the memories of lost loved ones, then bound themselves to the bereaved. "K-Kom'ika?" she stuttered, tears flowing afresh.

The spirit fluttered to eye level, catching one of her tears with its tiny hand. Chayah closed her eyes and sobbed, and for the first time in a long time, they were happy tears.

[Color Harvested]