Page 188 of Styx

Instead, as Perses slept beside me,

I fell into a troubled, strange sleep.

My body tensed with a certain fear,

something I could not name.

I was not surprised at the red sky

of my dream, the sign of warnings.

But what made my heart

beat like a drum within my chest

was from the red sky above,

I heard the cries of a thousand Gods.

The sound of adamantine clashing

against adamantine,

and loudest of all, I heard the sound

of thunder. Thunder that raged

as I watched ichor fall

like fire from the sky

into the churning seas below.

Perses Called for Me

At first, I thought it was part of my dream.

His voice was frayed with unease.

The way he said my name darkened

with an urgency I could not place.

My body went rigid as I felt huge hands

on my shoulders, shaking me awake,

and it was then that I realized,

this was not part of my prophetic dream.

My eyes flew open and I gazed

into Perses’s golden eyes,

wild with concern,

while mine were wild with confusion.