It Is All Over Now

Lief lay awake in his bed, staring aimlessly at the ceiling. No matter how hard he tried, sleep would not come to him. Every time he closed his eyes, images of the past few days flashed in his mind, like a sudden pulse of blinding light, jarring and painful. He had spent his day wandering in a daze. Despite all reasons for rejoicing, he had felt completely numb. Hours had swept past in a blur, and the voices of those who spoke to him had been nothing more than a dull and distant roaring in his ears. Now, his emotions seemed to be returning, slowly swelling inside of him, pressing against the walls of his chest and the inside of his skull, like a monstrous wave against a barrier that was bulging, threatening to break. He knew it would be most wise to surrender and let the emotions flow free, but he could not bring himself to do so.

Without warning, his heart began to thump wildly and he felt the sudden urge to flee to safety. He clambered out of bed and rushed out the door. Within moments, he found himself standing before a door, suddenly thankful that he had decided to spend the night in the palace with everyone else, rather than at the forge.

This is foolish, Lief chided himself, before knocking softly.

"Come in," a calm voice called from inside the room.

Lief opened the door with his shaking hand and slipped quietly into the room, which was illuminated dimly by glowing candlelight. Sharn, his mother, was sitting up in her bed, an open book resting in her lap. She looked at him with a concerned and loving gaze before patting the space beside her on the bed, inviting him to sit with her. As he did so, she put her arm around him, and Lief felt as though he were a child again.

"I do not tell you enough how proud I am of you," his mother whispered gently. "You have grown up so fast. You have carried burdens no one should have to bear, especially someone so young. You have accomplished more than your father ever thought you would have to. He would be proud of you too."

Lief felt his racing heart slow to a calm, steady rhythm. His anxious thoughts were washed away by the warmth of his mother's love. He rested his head against her shoulder.

Sharn smiled. "It is all over now," she told him calmly. "You can rest. You can be young and happy as you should be, as I have always wanted for you."

They sat together for a moment in silence, satisfied with the peace and comfort of each other's company. Lief knew now would be a wise time to let out whatever emotions were bottled up inside of him, but he still could not do it.

At last, he thanked his mother and bid her goodnight. Then, without fully understanding why, he began making his way outside, to the palace garden.

oOo

It did not surprise Doom that he could not sleep, but it certainly frustrated him. Surely, now that it was all over, his wakeful mind would grant him one night of peaceful rest. Instead, he lay wide awake. His mind pondered over the stream of trying events in his life, unable to fathom that, at last, his life was not weighed down by suffering and worry. Through the troubles of the previous days and nights, his thoughts and actions had been ruled completely by logic and necessity. He had thought about what needed to be done and done it. Now...

I could have lost everything, everything I have left.

The thought crashed into Doom's mind so heavily and abruptly that it shocked him, and he jolted up into a sitting position. No longer distracted by logic and necessity, no longer in a state of numb shock, he realised exactly what the past few days meant to him. Once again, the Enemy's plans had threatened the lives' of those he cared for. Lief, Sharn, many of his other trusted friends... and Jasmine.

His thoughts kept tumbling tempestuously. He could have lost Jasmine again, for good this time. He could have lost Lief, the boy he had sacrificed so much to keep safe. He could have lost Sharn, his dear friend.

Doom reflected on his actions throughout the day. He had insisted his friends and family stay at the palace purely for convenience, had he not? There was much to be done and having everyone in the one place made the work easier. Or had he done this simply because he wanted them near?

He felt the sudden urge to check on Jasmine, to see her face. Parental instinct, he told himself in an attempt to justify the feeling. But deep down, Doom knew he needed to see Jasmine just as much, perhaps even more, than she needed to see him.

oOo

A hideous beast with the faces of a snarling dog and savage bird, and a body writhing with razor-edged stingers, chased her until she could no longer run any further. She found herself in a room, the floor littered with dead, black birds. A haunting song roared in her ears, filling her with despair. She fled to another room, only to discover a more horrifying scene. Her friends, her family, lay motionless on the floor. As she began to scream, a mass of thick, black liquid consumed her, choking her.

Jasmine woke abruptly, the images from her nightmare still branded in her mind. Slowly, she sat up and swung her trembling legs over the edge of the bed. Her heart pounded wildly in her chest and with such force that each beat reverberated loud in her ears. She gripped the edge of the bed tightly with her shaking hands. Her nightmare seemed to have shocked away the uncomfortable numbness she had felt all day and replaced it with panic.

Suddenly, her bedroom door swung open. Startled, Jasmine gasped and jumped to her feet unsteadily. Seeing Doom's face emerging from the dark doorway, she sat back down, relieved. Doom looked at her with an expression of concern. Another emotion seemed to linger in his eyes, though Jasmine could not figure out what it was. Without uttering a word, he walked over and sat beside her on the bed. He hesitated for a moment, then gently rested a strong hand on her shoulder.

Though the gesture comforted her slightly, Jasmine still could not settle. Strange, jumbled emotions were being tossed around inside of her and she did not know what to do with them. Suddenly, she felt like a small child, confused and overwhelmed. As panic began to rise in her chest once more, she became overcome by the need to cling to something dependable, strong and safe. Thoughtlessly, she threw her arms around the man sitting beside her, around her father.

Doom did not move at first. Jasmine did not care. She did not care what he thought, or whether he returned the gesture or not. To her surprise, after a few brief moments, she felt two strong arms embrace her. Immediately, she felt safe.

"It is all over now," Doom said to her in a deep whisper.

When at last Jasmine broke away from the embrace, Doom rose and left her room silently. Jasmine scooped up Filli, who lay curled up wearily beside her pillow.

"Come on, Filli," she said softly. "I think some fresh air will do us good."

oOo

Barda sat alone in the palace kitchen, a glass of wine set on the table in front of him. Though he had wandered through the day in a half-dazed state, emotions now stirred inside of him. He did not wish to let them out. He reached for the glass on the table. As he grasped it, his hand began to tremble, causing drops of wine to spill out of the glass. He growled in frustration and slowly lowered it back onto the table.

The sound of approaching footsteps soon alerted Barda. He scanned the dark room until his eyes fell upon his guest.

"What brings you here at this hour, Lindal?" he asked with a smile.

Lindal shot him a withering glare. "I could ask you the same question, old bear," she countered as she pulled out a chair using her uninjured arm and sat down beside him. Silence hung between them for a moment, but Lindal soon broke it. "Talk to me," she said, half-ordering, half-pleading.

Barda looked at her, puzzled. "About what?"

Lindal rolled her eyes. "You do not have to mask your emotions from me," she told him, her dark eyes full of concern.

Nothing gets past her, Barda thought with both admiration and annoyance. He did not wish for his current emotions to be known by Lindal, not at this moment at least.

"I have no idea what you mean, Lindal," he declared with the most convincing false confidence he could muster. Beads of sweat began to form on his forehead. "I am fine. We saved Deltora. Everything is fine."

Lindal glared at him with one eyebrow raised. Then, she sighed and rose from her chair. "Very well," she said. "I will be in my room if you wish to see me."

Once Lindal was out of sight, Barda leaned his elbows on the table and rested his head in his hands. Sitting here is doing nothing for me, he thought at last. Perhaps a walk outside will clear my head.

oOo

As Lief made his way to the palace doors, he heard the sound of lightly treading feet behind him. He stopped and turned. Jasmine was approaching. When she neared, he reached out his hand for her instinctively. She took it, and together they wandered out into the glowing moonlight, down the palace steps and out into the lush, green garden. Filli chittered sleepily on Jasmine's shoulder, and Kree sat perched on the branch of a tall tree, watching over them as they walked.

They wandered quietly, until they noticed a figure looming in the distance. Lief froze. Jasmine gripped his hand tighter. As the figure ventured closer to them, they realised, with relief, that it was only Barda. The companions gravitated towards one another, until they stood facing each other in silence.

Lief gazed into the eyes of his friends. They seemed to tell a story, a story of loneliness, grief, and fear, of despair and determination, of courage and hope, and of loyalty, faith and love. It was the story everyone knew in part, and even more would come to know in time, but only they would ever know in full. Lief noticed their eyes start to glisten, and suddenly became aware of the tears welling up in his own eyes.

Then, at last, the waves of emotions they had all been suppressing and dismissing surged and crashed upon them. The three companions threw their arms around each other and fell to their knees, sobbing hard. They clung to each other desperately and allowed the overwhelming feelings of joy, sadness, relief and triumph to consume them. Tears streamed down Jasmine's cheeks as she held onto them, her family, with all her might. With his strong arms, Barda pulled his young friends, his children, as close to him as he possibly could.

Lief's heart swelled. There was so much he wanted to say to them. We did it... It was all worth it... I am so glad you are both alive... I will never forget all you have done for me... I am sorry... Thank you... Never leave me... I love you. But he could not. The words remained stuck in his throat and drowned by his sobs.

He swallowed forcefully and took a deep breath. Then, in a quivering voice, he managed to mumble a few short words.

"It is all over now."