~O~
XI
Adeline heard footsteps running toward her room and she gasped when the door was thrown open.
"Who is it?" she exclaimed. "Who's there?"
Aleida dropped the glowing sword, breathless. "Adeline!"
The woman bound to her chair squirmed with a stunned sound. "Aleida? Is it really you?" she exclaimed, when she felt arms thrown around her in an embrace. She hadn't quite expected that. "Oh! Oh... It is, isn't it? How is it possible? How have you returned?"
Aleida shook her head, parting. "I've come back and I must see Maria. Is she in the tower?"
Adeline sounded troubled now. "I don't know. She came to me moments ago and said she had to put an end to it." she explained. "Please, she sounded strange before she left. You must go up to see her. I fear..." She choked out a tearful sound. "I fear she may be doing something terrible!"
The other woman had a feeling she knew just what that meant. "I'll go. I'll go now!"
"Be careful, Aleida." Adeline pleaded, fingers tugging at her coat sleeve as much as she could. "Please... She is more fragile than she seems."
Aleida furrowed her brow. "Alright."
How the roles had changed; Adeline remembered how shy, frail and uncertain Aleida had seemed and it felt so long ago. Now she was walking into danger without even considering the consequences. She had returned to the Nightmare for Maria. That was proof enough that her love was real.
"I have missed you so." Adeline told her, a smile of relief in her voice.
Aleida smiled and nodded. She had missed them both. Then, she glanced over her shoulder, took her new sword and walked out of the room. Making her way up the steps toward the Clocktower felt as if it took an entire decade; she was running quickly to reach Maria, but she felt exhausted from her walk and her fight with Simon.
Still, she pressed on. Determined to reach her before she did something horrible...
No, she wouldn't think of that. She had to focus.
Once Aleida made it to the Clocktower, the air immediately chilled her to the bone. She stepped inside and was stunned to find the hands of the great clock had been folded downwards, revealing a pathway that led out into the nightmarish world. But it was different and gave her a new feeling she hadn't felt before. And the smell... Gods above, it reeked of death.
She carefully approached now, peering out into the pouring rain.
There was a canopy that led down into a watery path. Staring ahead, she noticed what looked like a small village in the distance. How strange, but the Hunter's Nightmare had never been normal.
Aleida stepped through and slipped on the canopy a little before she carefully made her way down into the wet path, landing hard onto two feet. Immediately, she heard a chanting of voices in her head; like a horrible, frightening humming sound.
She winced, dropped the sword and held her head in two hands in an effort to block out the sounds. Her eye throbbed painfully, crackling with energy. Roaring, swirling through her brain like the very storm around her.
"Stop it, stop it, stop it..." Aleida moaned.
Strangely enough, the pain subsided and the voices quieted down. Aleida opened her eyes, somewhat perplexed by this. Looking around her, she saw nothing out of the ordinary or threatening. She didn't think on it for long, picked up the sword and continued on.
As Aleida walked forward, she eventually saw a moving shape in ripped cloth staggering about, uttering soft words. Cautious, Aleida walked up to him, holding her sword close to her side.
"Hello?" she said. "Sir? Have you seen someone pass here?"
The man was hunched over, mumbling continuously as if she hadn't spoken to him. "Byrgenwerth... Byrgenwerth... Blasphemous murderers... Blood-crazed fiends..." he growled, between gurgles and snorts, "Atonement for the wretches...By the wrath of Mother Kos... Mercy for the poor, wizened child... Mercy, oh please..."
Aleida continued to implore. "Sir, please, I must - "
She cut herself off when she noticed his face now; twisted scales, hideous cracked teeth and blank, pale, lifeless eyes. He resembled less of a human and more of a fish.
He met her eyes now and he looked absolutely forlorn. "Lay the curse of blood upon them, and their children, and their children's children, for evermore." he murmured, continuing to speak as if she wasn't there. "Each wretched birth will plunge each child into a lifetime of misery. Mercy, for the poor, wizened child...Let the pungence of Kos cling, like a mother's devotion..."
"Kos..." Aleida pondered the name. "Mother Kos?"
He smiled at her now and a moment of awareness touched his face. He looked down and held out one hand, dripping with slime and water. Aleida hesitantly reached out and he held out his other hand, taking her wrist and turning it around so that her palm faced upwards.
Those fingertips touched Aleida's and immediately she was presented with a projection of the Hamlet before it had fallen to the Nightmare. It was filled with children, mothers and fathers fishing, singing, teaching... Such a sight to behold.
The man made sick snorting sounds, watching the scene unfold as well. Aleida noticed two ghostly apparitions of laughing children run passed her. She smiled sadly at the sight.
"Is this a memory?" she asked.
The man didn't answer her question, but murmured softly under his breath. "Curse here, curse there. A curse for he, and she, why care." He chanted it like a mantra, "A bottomless curse, a bottomless sea, source of all greatness, all things that be. Listen for the baneful chants. Weep with them, as one in trance. And weep with us, oh, weep with us..."
"I don't understand."
Aleida looked up when she noticed the apparition of a man running toward a tall figure who looked and dressed like the grotesque being holding her hand. He seemed excited about something and gestured toward the shoreline. The two men called several people with spears and they disappeared to seek out the source of interest.
The illusion changed, now taking form of a beach-side where Aleida noticed several figures bowing before a corpse that had washed up on shore. She had never seen such a thing before; a shape with glimmering blue scales as bright as the sun, fish-like spines, ribbons of what looked like hair...
"What is it?" she whispered, stunned.
"Mother Kos..." the man gurgled, "Listen for the baneful chants. A call to the bloodless, wherever they be. A call to the bloodless, wherever they be. Fix your ears, to hear our call."
This was once Kos, the God they worshiped. Aleida had been taken by her presence and somewhere, she heard a female voice whispering to her.
"Look and see!"
Aleida glanced up when the illusion changed; she could see shapes over the hillside, approaching the Hamlet armed with swords, shields, spears and other dangerous tools for killing. She squinted at the sight, making out unfamiliar faces. But one of them sunk her heart.
Maria.
She was standing beside an older man in a top hat and hunter's clothes. He wielded a dangerous scythe in both hands.
Aleida looked down at the Hamlet, then back up to the group of armed individuals who were clearly intent on slaughter. She moaned with anguish and shook her head, trying to deny the sight of what came next.
"No..." she whispered. "Wait, don't!"
She knew it was useless as the hunters were already making their way into the Hamlet, passing through her as the horrible memory unfolded. The man watched her with a grin of sharp teeth, delighting in her emotional anguish of what had happened.
Aleida could only stare, horrified as Hamlet villages were brutally massacred before her. She couldn't take her eyes away as several were decapitated, their skulls pried open for the Eyes on their brains. it was like watching a horror show unfold and she didn't want to see any more. Slowly shaking her head, her hands went to her face, but the man stopped her by seizing her wrists.
"LOOK!" he whispered jagged teeth close to her ear.
She saw it all; she saw the villagers pleading for mercy, dying at the hands of the hunters around them. She saw the blood spilled, the eyes rolling from their damaged skulls...
"Stop, please..." she begged, "No more."
The man merely laughed dryly. "'Stop, please. No more'." he mocked, in a cruel voice.
Aleida shook her head, anguished by the death around her. She saw Maria among them and shakily reached out to touch her shoulder, but the illusion dissipated in smoke, leaving her alone with the fish-like man.
"Scales are suffering, the grief of Kos." he whispered. "She wanders to make amends. She will find the fury of the Mother."
Aleida struggled to come to terms with what she'd witnessed. This was worse than she had imagined and she started to leave, but stopped when she noticed an illusion of Maria walking by, dragging her bloodied sword behind her. She furrowed her brow, followed the illusion as it walked toward a well. The man followed silently behind her, saying nothing.
The illusion of Maria stared down at the well before throwing her sword into it. Aleida looked stunned, watching as Maria slowly sank to the ground, staring down at her blood-soaked, shaking hands. A hunter approached her and shook her shoulder, but Maria didn't seem willing to talk.
Aleida sighed, as if releasing a heavy burden and sat down beside the illusion. "Oh, Maria..." she said, softly, despite the lack of response from what wasn't there. "Where do we go from here?"
O
Sounds of pain snapped Aleida out of her reverie.
She took her sword and jolted to her feet, making her way deeper into the Fishing Hamlet. It was composed of a wide market plaza surrounding a large well; a communal area filled with habitation huts, overlooked by a large lighthouse in the distance. It was decayed with coral sprouting everywhere. The man who had shown her the illusions had resumed his task of walking and chanting to himself.
Aleida followed the sounds toward a hut where she was stunned to see a fish man bleeding and lying on his side in a puddle of water. He had scales, slime covering most of his body, a crest of spines along his back and throat, ripped trousers and remnants of hair along his cheeks.
He looked to have been wounded by a sword, given the slash. She was cautious about approaching him, but he glanced down at the water's reflection and noticed Aleida within it.
Hissing a deep, rattling sound; he whirled on her, eyes pools of black and sharp teeth bared. Aleida jumped back somewhat and he smirked now, his eyes relaxing into peculiar, human-like brown.
"Did you smell the blood, doctor?" he hissed, in a strange accent.
Aleida blinked once. Twice. "Who... What are you?" she asked. "Who did that to you?"
The man chuckled thickly and didn't answer her question. "You can see me, love? The real me? The Mother blessed you. She has mercy even still for the damned."
"See you?" Aleida questioned. "What do you mean?"
"We appear as we really are to the enlightened," the man explained, through a groan of pain, "And you see us with all your sanity intact." A dry, wheezing laugh followed. "Mother must love you."
Aleida looked down at his wound; being closer to him allowed her to see that it was, in fact, a sword slash across his shoulder. She reached out to touch it with careful fingers. "Let me help you."
Surprisingly, he didn't argue with her, but bared those rows of sharp, dangerous teeth even so. It was like a trapped animal, being made to face a potential foe. She tore her coat a little along the ends and began to wrap up his shoulder with it. The man watched her, still hissing aggressively, but not attacking her either. His teeth continued to remain bared the entire time.
When Aleida was finished, she sighed and backed away. "Well, it's far from elegant. But it should stop your bleeding for now."
"Well, a good Samaritan. What a rare treat these days."
Aleida didn't want to bring up what had happened with the hunters. It seemed far from appropriate, but she understood where his remark had come from. She merely gave him a weak smile in response.
The man laughed now, rising to his feet. "Well then. You want to find the huntress? Follow me, then."
"How did you know?"
"Mother tells us everything."
Aleida wasn't so certain, but the fish man was walking off anyway without waiting for her to make a choice. He retrieved his spear and glanced briefly back at her, albeit hesitantly.
"What's your name?" Aleida asked, to ease the tense silence.
"Ahh, my name? Oh, it's hard to remember our names," he replied. He seemed to consider it for a while, jaw almost slack in thought before he glanced at her again. "I think my mother called me Edvin." He hissed with laughter. "Yes, Edvin. It's been too long, love. Forgive me. First thing to go is our human memories."
Aleida nodded in agreement. "I'm Aleida."
"Where do you hail from, Aleida?"
"A small town. Not unlike this one."
Edvin giggled, his scales shimmering with every movement. "I doubt that very much." he remarked. "You have corrupted fish people there as well?"
"You'd be surprised."
"Look around. Would I?"
Aleida chuckled weakly. "I suppose not."
Edvin laughed again, studied her up and down before he gestured for her to follow. The human and former human wandered side-by-side into the Nightmare and Aleida marveled at how intriguing, yet bizarre it felt.
Edvin began to hum a song to himself to ease the silence.
It was an old pirate song.
Come all you young sailormen, listen to me
I'll sing you a song of the fish in the sea,
and it's...
Windy weather boys, stormy weather, boys
When the wind blows we're all together, boys
Blow ye winds westerly, blow ye winds, blow
Jolly sou'wester, boys, steady she goes.
Up jumps the herring, the king of the sea,
Saying, 'All other fishes, now you follow me!'
and it's...
Aleida glanced down at him and grinned. She couldn't help it.
Edvin sung softly to himself before gesturing for her to sing with him. It took her a few tries, but she was able to follow along with the lyrics after all and they shared a pleasant moment of song as they made their journey.
O
Edvin led the way through the village, spear held out with the blade pointing forward. Several other fish people passed them without much acknowledgement. Aleida was troubled by the blank, dead stares from a few. Edvin shook his head, gesturing toward the lighthouse.
"Don't look at them." he whispered. "Don't make eye contact."
Aleida frowned down at him now. "Why are you helping me?"
"Mother knows best. Best of us all." Edvin told her. "Best not to anger mother. Her wrath is frightening. It's why we're here. Why they watch us."
"They?"
Edvin snickered and pointed up with one claw. Aleida glanced up and was stunned to see several spider-like shapes crouched on the huts and hills of the hamlet. They looked like Amygdala, but a few had tentacled mouths and many bulging eyes.
The creatures tracked their movement, heads slowly turning as the two made their way up the hillside toward the lighthouse. Though it seemed as if they saw them, they made no move to attack or do much of anything else. In fact, all they seemed interested in doing was watching. Aleida felt herself stripped bare before them and made an effort to keep her eyes to the ground. She didn't want to look at them.
Just then, a fish man stepped out from behind a rock, wielding a spear and flanked by two strange dogs that also resembled fish. Their teeth were sharp, their eyes wide and angry.
The man was different from Edvin; he was massive and wore a robe made up of mollusks and eyes. His lower jaw was extended outward with crooked teeth and one eye was missing from his head. He had webbed feet and fingers.
Aleida tensed, ready for an attack to come, but looked down, surprised when Edvin brandished his spear with an animal screech when the other fish man started to move toward her. The larger being seemed confused, took another step and Edvin brandished his spear once more, crouched low in front of Aleida. They seemed to share a peculiar conversation in their tongue; it consisted of clicks, hisses and chirps that almost appeared heated.
Aleida was worried and especially so when the dogs tried snapping at her heels. Edvin knocked one of them back with the end of his spear and it tumbled across the dirt. The larger fish man stared at Aleida with his good eye and she watched a human-like awareness cross his face before he begrudgingly stepped aside.
"Come on, then. He's fine now." Edvin whispered, swatting her backside with the end of her spear to get her to move. "Hurry up!"
"What did you tell him?"
"Nothin'. He knows what Mother wants. He ain't stupid. Well...THAT stupid."
Aleida followed him as they made their way toward the lighthouse. Several more fish people watched them, snarling softly, but doing nothing to approach this time.
"Mother is dead, her baby, taken."
"Do you hear it? A sealess void, the lair of beasts. Where the blood-crazed roam."
"Do you hear the sealess void? The lair of beasts, the blood-mad roam."
Aleida listened to the whispers from the fish people, unsure of what they meant, but she knew she would find out very soon once she found Maria.
"It's been too long since we've suffered," Edvin whispered, casting his gaze toward the moon, "She suffered for her sins. If Our Mother wills it so, then so it shall be."
"I see. So what must I do?" Aleida asked, "Where is Maria?"
"Last I saw her, she ran toward the beach where Mother resides. For a skilled huntress, I don't think she'd fare well against sheer numbers." Edvin replied, with a sigh.
"We keep going." Aleida said, firmly. "We must. For all of us."
Edvin glanced up at her, then smiled broadly. "Of course, of course. Mother knows best of us all. She saw you and spoke of you to us. You've become stronger and wiser for it, all the same. Bless Mother and bless you."
Aleida cast her worried gaze toward the beach. She didn't know what to expect.
She certainly didn't feel blessed.
O
Maria's hand dripped with blood.
She felt empty.
"Suicide, darling? Honestly, I didn't believe you'd try the same mistake twice."
She had been laying against a rock, watching the edge of the shoreline. Her blood was dripping from the puncture wound she'd received from the spear. It had taken her by surprise, but given how her mind felt clouded with loss, she hadn't seen the attack.
The illusion of her mother stood at the edge of the cliff, overlooking the ocean. A sigh of longing, followed by a chuckle that wasn't hers.
"Hm. Well, I suppose it's not the fate I had pictured for you..."
Meanwhile, Aleida and Edvin made their way through the lighthouse before she froze at the sound of a bell ringing in the distance. Confused, she froze and Edvin raised his head, scenting the air through his wide, flaring nostrils. His eyes widened and he looked toward the rooftops, just as a figure appeared in a mist of red.
Wearing the pelt of a beast.
Wielding a club that he punched through his chest, coating it in bloodied spikes.
He looked familiar to Aleida, but she couldn't place how. Edvin brandished his spear at the man and bared his teeth. "Brador's come to play."
"Brador?" Aleida asked, watching as the man dressed in a red haze approached them slowly, "Who's Brador?"
Edvin smiled up at her. "He preserves the secrets of the Nightmare from curious little ones like you. But you are here for another purpose. He will not hear me."
Aleida stood there, holding the glowing sword as she squared herself for a possible fight with this new foe. "What do we do?" she whispered.
"Run." Edvin told her. "I'll play with him for a while and keep him busy. You find the huntress."
"But..."
Edvin gave a low hyena laugh. "Don't worry about me, doctor. I'll be fine. You go."
"No, I can't let you I - "
Brador was charging for them and Aleida looked down at the sword. "Gods, how did he do this?" she cried, slapping at it with one hand.
Brador jumped into the air, weapon raised high over his head. Aleida grimaced, swung the sword with all her might toward him. It crackled with starry light and unleashed a wave of magic at him. It cleaved through the man, dissipating him into nothing but bloody raindrops.
Edvin watched with awe. "Well, that won't hold him off, but it was a lovely sight."
Aleida stared at him, stunned. "What? I killed him!"
"No, love. You just made him mad. He'll be back in a few minutes." Edvin told her. He turned to face her completely, slime dripping from his jaws. "You go now. Find her and don't worry about one little fish in the sea, yeah?"
True to what he said, the sound of a bell ringing filled the air and once more, Brador reappeared in a spray of red mist, weapon at the ready. Edvin gestured to Aleida to run.
"GO!" he shouted.
Aleida nodded and turned, running through the village. She hurried toward the beach and had a feeling that Maria would most likely be there.
O
Maria slowly made her way toward the edge of the cliff. She could feel the icy wind and rain pelting her cheeks and hear the whispers from the illusion of her mother, who stood there with a smile on her face and her arms behind her back. She waited for Maria to finally end it.
Meanwhile, Aleida was hurrying her way through the caverns calling Maria's name. She pushed her way through women with bodies of slugs, fishmen who tried to tear her to ribbons. Spurred on by her need to find Maria and survive, she was clawed at, bitten and struck.
Still, she rushed on.
Aleida had never been so strong. She had never thought of herself wielding a sword of Moonlight, rushing through a nightmarish realm of beasts to find the woman she loved. But she was here and willing to do whatever it took to prove herself.
She saw light at the end of the cave and much to her relief, spotted Maria at the end of the cliff. But her smile faded, replaced with horror when she noticed the woman raising her leg to leap off the edge.
"Maria, don't do it!" she cried.
Maria didn't hear her. She closed her eyes and sighed softly. It would be over...
"NO!" Aleida shouted.
Maria was hit full force by Aleida, who lunged into her and knocked her completely away from the edge of the cliff. Both women rolled across the grass for a moment and finally were still.
Aleida climbed on top of Maria, cupping her cheeks. "Maria? Maria, please..." she pleaded.
Maria seemed to be in a daze for a moment. She stared up at Aleida through heavy, lidded eyes, as if exhausted. Then, a breathless smile lit her face and she looked at the woman with a mixture of awe and confusion, holding Aleida's face in two hands.
"Aleida?" she gasped, fingers brushing Aleida's cheeks, as if she struggled to understand if the younger woman was real, "Are you here?"
Aleida nodded her head frantically, exhausted. "I'm here! Oh, Maria, I am!"
She felt arms hold her tightly and she shared a long, passionate kiss with the older woman; it was strong, exhibiting every ounce of desperation and relief to finally, finally be there in her arms again. Maria seemed unwilling to release her and that was just fine.
"Oh, Gods, forgive me," Aleida moaned, tearfully, "I couldn't go. I couldn't go back..."
Maria stared at her now, sighed and shut her eyes with something akin to reverence. To think the thought of never seeing Aleida again...
She held her close, listened to the soft crying from the other woman for a moment before parting and staring up at her. Her eyes fell to the sword and she looked amazed.
"What? How did you...?" Maria gasped, sitting up now.
Aleida shook her head. She glanced down briefly before focusing on Maria with firm resolve. "I know of the hamlet below and its inhabitants." she told her. "I know what was done to them."
Maria's eyes widened. She felt suddenly stripped bare before her. It was a new feeling of vulnerability that she had never felt before. Aleida's eyes were filled with confusion, sadness and many other emotions never before on her face. Aleida took her hand into hers.
"I know you grieve for what you've done," she continued, "I know your guilt, but sitting idly by is not how it should be fixed. I came back to help set you free from it just as you did for me. I've gotten stronger from all of my time here, from the things you've shown me. And I returned because I love you."
Maria looked stunned by the confession.
"I know you said those things because you felt it was in my best interest," Aleida said, with a sad smile, "But you were wrong. YOU are what is my best interest. And now, it's my turn to help you."
Maria was brought to her feet and Aleida winced, leaning on her sword a little. She was tired from the trip through the Nightmare. The older woman looked toward the horizon and she released a tired sound through her nose. She knew what had to be done.
O
The two women made their way toward the mouth of a cave that led to the beach. Aleida started to go through, but Maria had stopped, watching the cave with apprehension. Aleida looked back at her, took her hand and helped guide her through.
"Together." she assured her.
Maria shut her eyes, then looked down at Aleida. How had such a woman crossed her path? How had the roles changed so much?
Mother was wrong.
She did not die. I did not kill her.
On the beach rested the corpse of Mother Kos. Aleida was transfixed by the sight. She started forward, but Maria quickly took her wrist to stop her.
Aleida stopped, stared down at the hand that clutched her with unusual desperation. She met Maria's eyes and they looked at her with such anguish.
"Don't." Maria whispered.
"I must." Aleida told her, with a sad smile. "I must see."
Maria held her tightly for a few moment, resisting before eventually releasing her grip. Aleida made her way to the corpse of Kos; still as brilliant and glorious as she had been in life, without a doubt. She looked as if she had recently washed ashore, despite years of being deceased.
The throbbing was back in her head and Aleida winced, enduring whispers and anguished moans from a force unseen. She knelt down before the great form, lowered her head close to the human-like lips of Kos' mouth. Maria watched the sight from a distance with a grave look on her face.
Aleida rested her head across Kos and seemed to be listening for something before she glanced down at the swollen flesh of the creature's belly. Her eyes widened and she scrambled away from it as it begun to writhe.
She immediately made her way to Maria's side and they watched as something slowly slipped out from Kos' abdomen. Steam rose up and immediately, Aleida's nostrils were overpowered by the smell of birthing fluid and blood. But something was wrong; it smelled rotten, as if it had decayed in the sun for days.
Something gurgled, taking deep breaths and the two stared as a tall, skeletal humanoid rose from the smoking gore of Kos' insides. Its mouth was permanently fixed in a rictus grin and its skin was pasty blue.
A placenta was dragged behind it and Aleida couldn't take her eyes away from the sight.
The being seemed to ignore them, staring up at the sky mournfully.
When Aleida gasped, it suddenly looked back at them, black eyes a storm of wrath and anguish. Its features contorted in rage and it looked from Aleida to Maria, then lingered on Maria before letting out a high-pitched, frightening scream.
Finally, it ran toward them, dragging its placenta with it.
Maria pushed Aleida out of the way, moments as the creature lunged for her, placenta shifting into a blade, mere seconds as Maria's sword collided with it.
O
Aleida watched the fight between Maria and the larger being, uncertain of what to do. She felt utterly helpless, unable to do anything, despite knowing that this was Maria's goal.
"...End..."
The voice was there in her head again. It created a painful ache in her temples and she rubbed them with her hands before looking back at Kos' lifeless body. The whispers had come from her somehow. Aleida realized that perhaps she was still alive. Somehow.
"What?" she asked, kneeling down before the corpse.
"...For child..."
"...For us..."
"...Return to the sea..."
The creature swung its placenta and Maria ducked low to avoid it. Her swords struck its side, drawing a shriek of pain and rage from its lips. Every hit she made on it, flashes of memory filled her head.
Gehrman cutting the infant free from Kos' body.
Experimentation.
Pain.
So much pain.
The Orphan.
Without it's mother.
Fingers grabbed Maria's wrist that held her sword, forcing her arm back violently to snap her arm from its socket.
Maria screamed.
Aleida looked up sharply with horror. She immediately rushed toward the fight and Maria hissed with effort, looking toward her. Her eyes widened and she shook her head, grunting out in pain.
"STAY BACK!"
Aleida froze, watching with horror as Maria struggled for her sword with her good hand. The creature glared at her, snarling through slime and blood. Her sword split and she retrieved her dagger, bringing it up into the creature's chest with all the strength she possessed.
A sharp wail burst from its mouth and it tossed its head, releasing her arm and thrashing blood about; it sprayed Maria's face and she groaned, falling flat on her back. Aleida quickly rushed to her side and the creature staggered from them, clawing at its chest.
Aleida tried to help Maria stand and the woman struggled to her feet, arm hanging limply at her side. She hissed with effort and pain, starting toward the creature.
"Let us end it..." she whispered, eyes brimming.
She grasped the blade, forced it deeper into its chest. The gurgling scream that burst from its throat curdled Aleida's blood and she could only watch, stunned as it weakly grasped at Maria's cheeks, staining them with its blood. For a moment, they locked gazes and Maria's eyes widened with anguish.
Aleida didn't move. She didn't breathe.
"Forgive me..." Maria whispered, to the creature. "Be at peace."
She yanked her weapon free from its body and it collapsed with several gurgles and hisses. Maria dropped to her knees and Aleida quickly rushed to her side, catching her before she could collapse into the sand. She looked down at her arm and shook her head.
"Gods, your arm..." she moaned.
"It's...I think it's broken..."
A hissing sound filled the air and the two looked down at the dead creature, watching as its body dissipated into flecks of black dust that took shape of a phantom kneeling over Kos' body. It appeared to be weeping wordlessly and Maria immediately stood up.
"Maria, wait!" Aleida pleaded, "You're hurt."
"It isn't over..." Maria hissed, "I must slay it's shade. That is it's true shape."
She retrieved her fallen weapon and stalked toward the black shade. Aleida helped her when she limped too far to the right by balancing her against her shoulder.
The closer they got to the shade, the louder the voices in Aleida's head grew. She shut her eyes tightly, making an effort to ignore them; they spoke in exhausting sentences and so quickly that she could not make out what was being said.
But when Maria cut her weapon through it, the voices abruptly stopped and the shade dissipated into a cloud of black ash that was swept toward the horizon. They could only stare, amazed as the sun had begun to rise and the rain ceased to fall.
Aleida and Maria had both felt it.
Kos and Her child were finally at peace.
And now, so was Maria.
O
Note - Not over yet, one more chapter to go! Also, Edvin is okay, I promise. The song he sings is an except from "The Fish Of The Sea".
