Desreal: III; and we have to live with the choices we make [Rainbringer's end]

The only thing greater than the skewbald's ability to forgive, is his ability to love and Aquila is perhaps his greatest love. This would all be fine and dandy if he actually believed Aquila needed forgiving for something. In his mind, she is exactly like Genesis, a picture of strength and glory with the slightest underlying of something dangerous just out of reach which is in part what drew him to her in the first place, and though when he finds her she is broken and barely there, she is still the most precious thing to him. It breaks his heart to see her looking so lost, so unsure of herself. His mind automatically fills in the worst things it can think of as soon as his brown eyes see her (images of Illuiette, broken and lifeless), convinces him that he could out live another love just like he did with Illuiette and he's not so strong that he can survive a loss like that again and make it back from the brink.

His brown eyes meet with blue and he instinctively reaches out to touch her, to be near her, reassure himself that she's still there, still breathing and still alright. He catches a flash of her true self hiding in there, banished from her own self by the shard and it hurts, his breath catching in his chest trying to remain strong - they need him to be the strong one again. And he knows he has to save her, regardless of whether the Rainbringer comes back to him afterwards, he has to free her this time - cannot hope she'll be freed some other way so he doesn't feel guilty about trying to save Saphira from slavery; Solira had needed its Queen to be free and he had put his heart second that time. That wouldn’t happen this time though.

"Don't turn away from me Aquila - never. We can face anything together. Nothing can ever be so bad." And he means it - even knowing what the shards drove her to do won't alter what he thinks of her or how he feels about her. She chose this path the first time to protect their family, their daughters and their son and god he loves her all the more for it. So brave, his girl, she's always been the braver of the two.

It'll be all too late when he realises what he's done - he'll be just another foolish but kind hearted and hopelessly in love boy who would sacrifice everything for his Aquila. But he wills it to appear - the Rainbringer hovering around him, clinging to him even (perhaps that should have warned him to think twice but he can be so stubborn) before it takes its physical form, the glowing ball of light once again and he brushes his muzzle against her lovingly before whispering gently to her, "You can be free love, take it."

And then a hoof repeatedly lands solidly down on the ball of light, shattering it before his horrified eyes, his desperate lunge not quick enough to stop it's destruction, light spilling out in all directions lighting up the sky in a fierce blaze of glory. It is only then that his eyes narrow at the creature before him, his confusion passes and he growls at the one creature he despises, "Elemmire." A twisted smirk appears on the face of his lover (it looks so wrong to him, marring her beautiful features into some ugly and sinister) and then he is face to face with the oracle herself. The poisons leach from her into him causing him to sink to the ground in dizziness and when he can finally look up as the sickness begins to fade, he finds she is long gone.

GUARDIAN OF THE RAINBRINGER
WATER III & LIGHTNING III