The Calamity: Chapter 22

Morrigan came to slowly. It was like coming out of a drunken stupor without any sort of benefit. Blacking out and losing her memory of the entire previous night. She ran her hand through the grass beneath her and groaned. Her arms ached and her head was hurting. She felt far too light.

Her eye’s opened slowly a crack that let in the darkness as well as the orange light. It was so bright she shut her eyes again in frustration. Raising a hand to her face she covered her eyes as she looked at the ground. She saw her torn dress and her own blood and her heart began to pound. Adrenaline spiking her eyes went wide.

Forcing herself to her feet she stood for a second and then slumped against the tree and grunted. She reached toward her hip for her swords but she only felt their sheathes. No actual blade. Defenseless and lost to where she was. Panic entered her mind as she looked around quickly. Was she dead? Is this what the afterlife was? No. The sun was rising in the sky near her. It was behind a mountain range and chasing away the stars and the night. She was alive.

“Mori. Relax.”

She turned toward the voice, one so familiar to her and paused. Benidict walked toward her with Alistair at his good arm helping him walk. He had bandages around his head and his arm in a sling against his chest. His hip was empty of a weapon as well. His eyes look haunted and red but not the red of blood and battle but with tears.

He wasn’t cracking a smile or even hinting a joke. In reality he was just relieved that she was awake. He walked toward her slowly and stumbled on the grass. She caught him in her arms though he grunted as she moved his wounded arm. “Your bedside manor was always terrible. He’s much better”

The joke was forced as was the smile on his face. She helped him stand again and stared at him. “The Queen Ben. Where is she? Is she safe?”

Benidict looked at her and the exhaustion in his face, the pain still raw in his eyes told her everything she needed to know. She wobbled for a second and this time his arm kept her standing. She felt another hand on her back and knew it was Alistair’s. She reached for his forearm and gripped it tightly.

“She’s gone Mori. Our Queen is gone.” Benidict’s voice cracked as he said it. His head ducked down against her chest and she felt the tremor wrack through his body. “Our Queen. Walter. Our home. It’s all gone Mori. It’s gone!”

He gripped the front of her dress and she stared down at him with her own wounded expression. She wrapped her arm around his shoulder tightly and held him. She held him tightly because he was the last piece of home she left. And she cried.

She put her fingers into his short dark hair and glared into his scalp. She finally felt her legs just give out and sank to her knees. She held onto him like the rock that he was and he full out fell to the ground his legs not having the strength to support himself. Their tears came out in loud choked sobs at the ache that now rested deep within their hearts.

Alistair stared at these two, the man he’d just met who managed to catch his interest so strongly and the woman who he’d traveled with and was so much more than just a friend now. He slowly approached them and wrapped his arms around them tightly.

He couldn’t imagine what it was like to lose not just your home but everyone you knew, your culture and the one person who mattered the most in your life in one go. He couldn’t feel their loss but he could be there for them. He felt them shiver under his arms, he felt them shake at his touch but neither pulled away.

Vincent and Alison watched them from afar and Vincent felt guilty for seeing this. Like peeping on something intimate. He leaned against Blaze, his arms folded. Alison looked at him and her eyes still held a faint glow to them. Not quite as bright as before but they hadn’t died down to normal levels yet.

She came closer and then wrapped her arms around his chest tightly. She gripped the back of his shirt tightly and pressed her face against his stomach. He wrapped his arms around her and rested a hand on her own lightly. “We made it. Survived is the best word for it.”

“They lost so much Vince. They lost everything. We don’t even know if any one survived it.”

“I can’t help but imagine that the Queen saved at least a few of her people.” He said softly but he stared down at ground. “But thinking of losing the Free City. Of the people there. Lionel. Samuel. Monica. Boss. Shit. I couldn’t imagine that happening.”

He took a slow breath and looked up. Morrigan was walking toward them. She had her arms at her side and her eyes were hollow. Her face looked more tired than he’d ever seen them before.

He walked away from Alison and approached Morrigan slowly. She stopped in front of him. “It’s been a long time since we first met.” He said softly and she blinked. “I think you decked me right here.” He pointed near the spot between his nose and cheek.

She nodded. “You deserved it back then bandit. But you’ve been a friend to me since. Both of you have.” She looked at the ground for a moment. “My Queen would have liked you greatly.” She made a fist with both hands and she was shaking from just saying it.

Alison walked toward her and stared up at her. She reached for her hands and took them in her own. Morrigan stiffened again at the touch but looked at her. Alison’s eyes finally died down to normal and she squeezed.

“You’re our friend Morrigan. We’re going to be here for you.” Vincent nodded and Morrigan let out a dry laugh. She pulled her hand from Alison’s and wiped at her eyes slowly and then backed away.

“My Queen. She said that I would need allies. More than that she said I would need friends. That they would bring benefits that I couldn’t imagine. So, my friends. Thank you.”

Alison smiled brightly and then hugged her. She wasn’t expecting that and let out a choked sound but wrapped an arm around her. The Sanguiknight took a very slow breath and let it out just as slowly. “You and your brother. Are kind souls. You’ve changed Alison. Don’t lose that part of you.”

She looked at her shocked. Morrigan’s eyes were the same as they were before. No glow or magic behind it. She just looked at her with emerald eyes that were old and had seen much. The only eyes that were more weather were Morrigan’s queen’s and Vayne’s. Frowning slowly, she gave a short nod.

“So, what do we do now?” Vincent asked.

Benidict and Alistair joined them and they weren’t looking that much better than before. However, they both reached for Morrigan’s empty hands and she didn’t push them aside. On the contrary she took them both and squeezed them as her gaze focused on the ground beneath her feet.

“Where do we go?” Alison asked hesitantly. She scratched her back lightly and groaned as her fingers brushed against the brand on her back.

“We go back home,” Vincent touched Blaze’s side and stroked his back. He was glad that at the very least he had managed to survive all the bullshit of the past few months. He looked toward Morrigan and Benidict. “You guys too. The Free City doesn’t care where you came from. If you need a home we’ll welcome you.”

“That’s a kind offer. But how are we going to get there.” Benidict asked shaply. “Sorry. That came out more bitter than I intended.”

Vincent shook his head. “It’s fine.”

“He deserves most of it.” Alison said earning her a glare but she smiled at him regardless. As she looked toward Alistair who gave her a small smile. “Try calling Eaergo Morrigan.”

The knight started with a frown. “The horse won’t come. He likely died in the Calamity.”

Alison shook her head. “We don’t think so. Give it a try and trust us.”

She was hesitant and looked toward Alistair who gave her a slight nod. She frowned for a moment and Alistair stepped away from her. He walked toward Blaze and crouched. Wincing at the touch of the sword he picked it up. Walking back he flipped the blade around and held it toward her.

She stared at his hand that was bleeding slightly at the touch of the blade and she took it from him. The blade sang at her touch and she nodded in understanding. “I know. Our Queen is gone. We’re some of the last of our kind.” She whispered as the blade quieted at her words and touch. “But we will continue to do her bidding.”

Raising the sword to the sky she started to spin it in hand. She heard the whining of the sword and the song it made. After several seconds she doubted the appearance of the horse but she continued to move the weapon. And then suddenly she felt the surge of energy.

She turned and there he was at her side. The tired looking ancient horse. He looked at Morrigan and threw his head to the side. Morrigan stared at the horse in shock and with a shaking hand reached for his head. He was real. Cold but real. She stroked his muzzle slowly and pressed her forehead to his head.

The tears escaped her eyes long before she was ready for them and they stained her cheeks with a happiness. Never had she been so glad to see this horse before. “Well met Eaergo.” She whispered against the horse’s muzzle. “Well met.”

It was a week’s ride back to the Free City. When they were close to the city finally the air was different. Welcoming and warm. Alison looked at the sky seeing the sun greet her calmly. Her eyes gained a glow, seeing through her demon’s eyes and gasped. There was a shadow hovering over them. Nothing dangerous but it was over not just Blaze but over Eaergo as well.

She looked behind them, over her shoulder and gasped. For a second both her and her demon’s eyes overlapped. In the sky above, them was another shape flying on the air over them.

A woman completely wrapped in cloth from head to toe. Overlapping robes held tightly to her form but didn’t betray a single piece of skin. When she focused on her eyes they were glowing yellow orbs in a cowl of shadow. She stared into them and the woman didn’t notice her at first.

Then she looked down and met her eyes. She felt like she was staring into the sun itself, lost in the vastness. Floating through an endless expanse of gold that didn’t seem to have an end. She felt a tug on her back and shoulder. Shocked out of the gaze of whatever she was she gasped and felt sweat against her forehead.

“Alison. Hey you okay?”

She was struggling to breathe but gave a short nod. She ran her fingers through Blaze’s mane and gripped it lightly. She whispered quickly under her breath, “What was that? It was like the Queen but so much more. More than me. More than us.”

“There are things in this world that we don’t know about. I thought my kind were the highest life forms here. That you mages were the biggest threats to us. But to think there were more. There’s still things to learn about this world.”

“Maybe the Cerisan queen was only the beginning of what’s left in this world.”

“Hey what are you whispering about?”

Alison shook her head. “Nothing Vince. Just mumbling.” She smiled at him and stared at Blaze’s neck. Closing her eyes, she leaned into Vincent’s chest. But she still felt the shadow hovering over them, a presence she couldn’t truly place. It shook her but she wasn’t scared. She was excited.

By the time that the sun finally set they had crested a hill and there it was. The Free City in all its glory. The tents, the few towers and the wall itself. A perfect little secluded place for them to be free of the trappings of the Sanctum and the threats of the Norians.

Vincent stared at his home and his heart felt bigger. He took a deep breath and chuckled softly. He didn’t realize just how long it had been since he’d been home. To really be home. To kick off his boots and sit down and just relax in the dirt and watch the kids play while he ate fresh meat off the fire.

But he slowed and turned toward the newest refugees. Morrigan sitting in front, Alistair behind her and Benidict taking up the rear. The ghostly horse didn’t seem exhausted at all despite carrying three passengers.

“Welcome to the Free City. A home for the homeless,” Vincent said extending his arm. He frowned lightly, then smiled. “We’ll find you a tent. Find you some food.”

“This place is filthy. And open to the elements.” Bendicit scoffing. “And it’s filled with miscreants.”

“We don’t have much of a choice Ben.” Morrigan said.

Alistair turned to face him. He took his hand and squeezed it slightly. “Give it a chance. Its not the castle but its what’s on the inside that matters.”

Benidict looked at him then glanced at Morrigan. She gave him a guarded look. “As naïve and optimistic as he sounds, he’s taught me that some optimism isn’t a bad thing. Our Queen tried to teach me the same thing. So, at the very least we can try to turn this into our home.”

Benidict nodded his head slowly. “I don’t like much about this world. But I find myself liking you Alistair.” He took Alistair’s hand and gave it a light squeeze.

Morrigan found herself doing the same taking his hand in her own. “I like him as well.”