Legend of the OmeletWings - Chapter 15: Abandon
#15 of Legend of the OmeletWings
A/N - Made a slight addition to Summit's inner monologue, rewording the beginning of the following paragraph to flow from it better. No significant changes as far as context.
Embryo sat there at the entrance to the cave watching the Sun rise over the island dotted Ocean, listening to the sounds of the waves lapping upon the beach. Memories of her old life passed by her, memories of who she was before yesterday, now drowned out by the echoes of her screams, of her helpless cries for mercy as she bore the pain of laying an egg, overtaking these old memories as they sunk deep within the Ocean of her mind. Who she was before was gone. This, the memories of her pain, that's who she was now. Those were her screams she remembered, that had been her.
Embryo looked at the egg resting at her talons, rolling it gently back and forth across the ground. Maybe she should she make it. Or should she save it? If what Summit believed about dragonets were true, there was no risk of there being any in this one. Might as well prep it eventually.
Embryo's stomach turned sour at the thought of it. All that for this? Is this really what her village was willing to go through just for an Omelet. She'd always loved Omelets herself, and she figured deep down inside that she still did, but looking at the egg... this was her consolation for such suffering? And she was certain this wasn't the last one. It was just the girl dragon way.
Embryo had known it would happen this way, that it would be bad, but somehow she'd thought that once it was all over she would move on, forget about it, never again act like it'd happened. But that was not so. The pain was all gone, nothing but a fading memory to remember it by, but she still knew she'd been through something way beyond what she could stand, and even though it was no longer the present, she now knew it could happen to her. No matter how much she couldn't take it, no matter how much her very being was averted to the pain, it could take her all the same, overcome her without a bit of mercy no matter how much she needed it to stop, to just let up a little. It could happen to her, and it had, and that knowledge just dug deep within her core, to know that everything she was, everything she could stand, was hardly an obstacle, capable of being torn through with no regard for her personal being, all for a fate much stronger than herself. She now knew there was no relation between the threshold of what she could withstand and the threshold of what she could actually experience. Even though she'd already speculated similar concepts before talon, it was one thing to be aware of something in theory, and another entirely to have that something actually part of your own life experiences.
Her own... herself.
Summit found her there sitting, lonely, cold from the morning chill. As he approached her, his heart felt for her.
"Em? How are you doing today?"
She was silent as he came to sit down beside her. It felt weird to see her now, knowing of the certain aspects of her that he'd tried to reserve himself from until yesterday, but now knew was part of who she was, but he tried not to focus on that. She was here now as she was, and although he had now seen her differently, he was going to treat her with the same level of focusing-on-the-important-aspects-of-her as he always had.
After a moment's silence, Embryo finally spoke up, "Do you wonder what it's like to be me, as I am now?" Embryo asked. Without waiting for an answer, she continued, "A few days ago, I did. I couldn't fathom what it must be like to actually face what I've only ever heard other dragons scream through, I couldn't imagine how it could actually be me there, facing that experience instead. But now I do. For a while, I thought that maybe I could be an exception to the rule, that maybe I was never to know what that experience felt like... but that wasn't the case. Now I know that it doesn't matter who I am, the unfathomable can still happen to me, I am not an exception." Embryo looked at Summit. "But you are. You will never have to worry about Egg Laying and what it's like. You never will have to know what it's like to be me."
Summit looked at her, a deep sadness filling him. "Oh Em, I don't want this to come between us, I want to be close to you," Summit replied, "I want to share everything with you."
Embryo sighed, "There are some things we can never share, no matter how badly we want to." She looked down at her talons and they both went silent.
Finally, Summit spoke up, "Em, about our journey, if you're not up for it right now, we can rest here a few more days if you want. I don't want to rush you."
Embryo looked up at him, "That's just it. About there being things we could never share, perhaps this is one of them. Look Summit, I'm a girl, maybe my female body is just not cut out for long journeys like this."
Summit looked at her, "You can't be serious, we've already went over this. It was just your egg holding you back. Now that that's gone... Em, look at what you've done, look at all those places you've been. I've seen you, how you'll just stand there, feeling the air with each new place. Em, you love that. I know you do."
Embryo nodded slightly, "Yes." Her eyes glazed over with memory. "I used to rely on my senses, feel everything, take in the world, the sights, the sounds, just the feeling of being there, being alive... And it was beautiful." Embryo paused, coming back to the present, "But now, I think my senses have betrayed me."
"Em, don't say that. I know what you went through was hard, but it wasn't the end. You have more story to tell."
Embryo looked at him, begging him to understand. "Summit, don't you see? I didn't want to go through it but I did. And eventually I'll go through it again. This is who I am, I can't change it. I can never be anything but Egg Laying Embryo."
Summit could feel himself getting emotional. "I know, I know you didn't want it, but I just don't want it to be this way. I want you to be content and happy. I don't want it to be that the girl that I love more than anything has suffered so much more than I could bear to imagine."
Embryo went still. She looked at Summit in surprise, "You love me?"
Summit dipped his head, it was time to open up. "Yes. If I could be with any dragon on the planet for the rest of my life, I would choose you. I know we haven't known eachother for long, but there's just something that draws me toward you. I want to be with you, I'm certain of it. We could grow old together, start a family..."
Embryo gaze dropped, "Start a family..."
Instantly, Summit realized his mistake, "Em, I'm sorry..." Summit had always thought it would be cool to become a father, but he had never really before considered the physical strain he would be expecting on his partner in order for that to happen. Sure, he had heard that it was supposed to hurt to lay eggs, but it had always just been a tidbit to him, he'd never considered it to mean anything before. It was not until he heard the screams of agony and unceasing begging for mercy - screams that she herself had once been so concerned about giving out first hand - from the dragon he was becoming more and more sure was his one true love did he actually realize what it must mean to the individual to actually go through such a process. How'd he been so oblivious? And even then, the idea of starting a family with the one you loved was such a common concept that it wasn't until just now that he put two and two together that by wanting a family together, that suffering was essentially what he was asking of her.
Embryo looked at him, her heart resigned. "No, it's okay." Embryo bowed her head, "It's only natural that when a male wants an egg, he'll feel drawn towards a female to make it for him."
"Em, that's not the only reason for guys and girls to like eachother."
Em swallowed hard and looked at him, "Says the guy who fell in love with me just because I'm pretty."
Summit caught his breath, "No. I love you more than just because you're pretty," He stammered. "You're pretty, and you're..." Summit suddenly found himself at a loss for words. He searched desperately for something, anything to say. "And you, uh... you... experience things?"
"I experience things?" Embryo flustered, "Summit, listen to yourself. That means nothing."
"There's more to you than that, I know there is," Summit could feel desperate tears filling his eyes, "I'm just not good at expressing stuff."
"Summit, give it up," Embryo cried, "You thought I was pretty, and that drew you to me. These 'other things', you only saw them because your mind needed a way to justify your crush on me."
Summit was shaking his head. "No, that's not..."
Embryo knew Summit didn't want to hear this; she didn't want to do this to him. "It's not your fault, it's just instinct, you couldn't have seen me differently if you tried."
"Em, no..."
"But it's over Summit. I know you tried to see me for more than I am, I know you really tried, but... you can't."
"No Em, I won't-"
Embryo looked at him, cutting him off, fighting back the emotion welling in her. "No more, please." Embryo paused, holding back from her next words. "I think it's time that I return to the place where dragons accept themselves for what they really are."
Summit went still, the seriousness of the implication coming to him, "What do you mean?"
"Who was I kidding," Embryo said, "I am an OmeletWing through and through. I'll never be a SkyWing or... or anything else. I came to see the world to find out who I am, and now I know. It's time I be getting back. I'm sorry Summit, but this is goodbye."
Summit stared at her blankly. Embryo felt herself shaking with sadness. She looked down at her egg.
"Here," said Embryo, rolling the egg toward him, "I said I wanted to give you something nice. It's the best an OmeletWing can offer." She managed a weak smile, before breaking up again as she turned to leave, "My purpose."
And with that, she was out the cave entrance, flapping her wings in ascent. Summit chased after her. "No Embryo, please..."
But she was already off, the wind carrying her away into the distant sky.
"Em..."