Chapter 68
"I'm not a big fan of the destruction and hell magic has unleashed on Vesperia and these people." Taker admitted coolly. "And you all know this. I think magic, at best, is a tool, but one that shouldn't be relied on so heavily." As they had all seen lately with Abigail and Malcolm.
What those two didn't realize, or apparently didn't care to realize, was that magic had done more damage to people than it had helped them. All these people under his care didn't trust it when used so… heavily, he supposed, and with good reason. Superhuman armies, pregnancies that lasted less than half the time a normal one did, none of that was good and most of it had come from Malcolm. Malcolm may have been under duress, but it had come from his hands. Not that too many people were privy to that knowledge.
"And these people, these men, and women born of misused magic, are not like us, that is true, but that doesn't mean they don't deserve the same as we do. IF they aren't hostile or loyal to the DOV. Women, and any children, are to be afforded our protection. The men we'll deal with as we have too, but there will be NO innocents killed."
"Boss-"
"Steve," His eyes were staring through the open tent flaps, watching as Malcolm conversed with an obviously confused Abigail. "If we kill these people without cause… how are we any better than the DOV?"
They weren't.
Abigail frowned, listening to Malcolm, and rubbed her temples, feeling a headache coming on. She realized Mark blamed Malcolm for the magical babies and soldiers, but his life was on the line, along with Lily. He had to do what he could to protect her and they hadn't killed Lily until AFTER the serum was created.
"I'm leaving, Abigail. The Dominion is destroyed, mostly, and I've fulfilled my duty. I'm going back to Wonderful, grabbing Susie and taking her somewhere far away from here, where she won't be a burden to anyone." Malcolm couldn't believe the type of people his son had as his right hands. They were no different or better than the DOV, in his opinion. "I won't stand by and watch innocents be slaughtered simply because they are magically made. Magic isn't bad…"
Abigail frowned, not wanting him to go, but could see the determination in his eyes, his deep voice full of finality. There was no room for argument and maybe it would be best for Malcolm and Susie to start over. "Give Susie my best." She hugged him around the neck, sniffling. "Thank you for everything, Malcolm. Without you, the Dominion and Bray wouldn't be gone."
Nodding, he gave her a squeeze and was off, not bothering to say farewell to his magic-hating son. If only Glen were still alive, he thought wistfully, heading to the bike he had brought and fired it up, speeding away to head back to Wonderful.
At least Mark was alive, that was a weight off her shoulders, but after what Malcolm told her, Abigail didn't know how to feel about it and rubbed the back of her sore neck.
Well, that had gone well, Taker mused as he leaned back in his chair, drumming his fingers on the war table. Steve and Victoria had been dismissed and he could feel one hell of a headache coming on. Laying out points as to WHY they weren't SLAUGHTERING people had not been something he had anticipated doing with his people. People, humanity as a whole, was screwed. He bet Wyatt had known that deep down, and that's why he had cracked. Groaning, he pushed himself up out of the chair and stretched. Walking out of the tent to go see his woman, Taker would beg her forgiveness for having her carted off during the battle.
"Malcolm left," Abigail said by way of greeting, once he stepped inside the tent, her tone crisp and cool while sitting on the sleeping bag with her knees drawn up to her chest, freshly dressed. "Glad to see you're alive."
Taker sighed, expecting this type of reception from her, and slowly lowered himself in front of her, taking her hands in his. "I'm sorry, darlin'. I had to make sure you would keep your end of the deal we made. I had to protect you and the baby…" He reached out to caress her stomach, scooting closer to her. "Forgive me, Abbie, please…"
As much as she wanted to be mad at him and rage at him for what he did, Abigail was too relieved to see him alive and well. "You're an ass." She tossed her arms around his neck and breathed him in, closing her eyes to hide her tears. "I love you, Mark…"
"Whatever Malcolm told you isn't true, Abbie." Taker pulled back to look into her eyes, caressing her cheek with the back of his hand. "Steve and Victoria suggested the slaughtering, but I put a stop to it. You know I'd never do something like that, right?"
That made her feel a lot better and Abigail nodded, feeling his forehead rest against hers. "I knew you couldn't do something that barbaric. That's not who you are. You're Vesperia's hope, as I said from the beginning and I still fully believe it." The magic-hating was an issue, but they would work through it in time.
The castle was…in disarray, to put it mildly. Several soldiers were shot first and slaughtered, even with Luke Harper as their prisoner. Abigail wanted nothing more than to stab him through the heart the same way she did Bray, but…Mark wanted to use him to gain access to the castle. It worked to a point, but every single soldier was killed due to attacking first. That was their instinct, what they were trained to do, and they were murdered for it. Abigail's heart clenched painfully with each death, not wanting to see any more blood spilled in the name of the Dominion.
It was impossible though.
Once they were finally inside the castle, Abigail explained what each corridor lead to. They could hear screaming from a distance and she shuddered, knowing one of the women were being raped at that very moment. Abigail, along with Victoria and the women within Mark's group, made their way to where the women were kept with their children. All of them looked up simultaneously when the door opened to reveal Abigail instead of another soldier to cart them off for sex.
"Sister Abigail?"
"W-What's going on?"
"P-Please, no more…"
"It's alright, all of you are free. You can pack up your things and leave anytime you want. The Dominion is finished and you're no longer prisoners here. Bray Wyatt is dead."
A round of gasps and crying echoed back at Abigail and the crew. Taker stayed out the way, letting Abigail deal with the women, his eyes raking over the children, sorrow in those emerald orbs. Turning, he gestured for Steve and Victoria to follow him as they continued moving through the castle, hearing the sounds of screaming and his people calling for surrender.
"Once we've returned to Wonderful and settled all the survivors in, I'll want trailers sent this way… there's way too much here to be left."
Clothing, blankets, food… just so much here that could be distributed. Then there was that warehouse Abigail had mentioned once. People would be able to start over finally, rebuild towns, do whatever. He gestured the pair on, leaning back against a patch of wall, and closed his eyes.
"Sounds like a plan, boss." Steve couldn't believe how horrific shape these women were in, some of them nothing more than skin and bones.
"The boys are taken to a separate part of the castle at one month old," Abigail explained quietly, seeing all the babies with their mothers and had to take a deep, shuddering breath. "They are trained to…well, you saw what the soldiers did when we arrived."
Narrowing his eyes, Steve understood and began to leave to go track down the boys, when he heard his name call out.
"S-Stevie?"
He turned slowly, blue eyes widening at the sight of an older woman, probably around the age of 30, with platinum blonde hair and deep blue eyes…eyes that mirrored his. "L-Leslie?" His jaw dropped when she rose to her feet from the pillow she'd been settled on, a baby boy in her arms, tears streaming down her cheeks. "N-No, it can't be…my sister…"
"Your…sister?" Leslie was one of the older women here and helped run everything regarding the women and babies, a leader of the breeders, of sorts. "You know her?"
"S-Sister Abigail…is it true? Are we finally free of this place?"
"Just Abigail, or Abbie. You can call me Abbie, Leslie. And yes, you're all free. This is your brother?"
"Yes…we were separated when our town was attacked and…I thought he died…and apparently, he thought the same thing about me…" Leslie's eyes moved from the floor to the bald man and chewed her bottom lip nervously. "Stevie…"
"Jesus Christ!" Steve gasped out, wanting to take her into his arms, but he couldn't move. He felt frozen in place. He had tried talking Taker into outright slaughtering these people. And if Taker had been any less of a man, he would have agreed, and he would have slaughtered his own sister. "Fuck…"
Victoria rubbed Steve's back awkwardly, having a feeling she knew what was going through his mind. Seeing these women, and the babies… she was having a hard time dealing with herself right now too.
Abigail left Steve and Victoria to start making her way through the masses, none of the women moving. They were afraid this was a big trap because it'd happened before. Bray had 'tested' them by making them THINK they could be freed, only to punish those that tried to walk out. The cruelty these women had suffered at the hands of one man and his army…it was sickening. She turned to see Mark merely standing against the wall and knew he'd have to be the one to say or do something to ensure these women were safe. Walking over, she stood beside him and quietly explained why they were terrified, seeing every part of his body tense up.
"You have a way with people, Mark. That's why so many trust and believe in you. If you can't convince them to leave, I'm afraid they're going to stay here out of sheer fear because of what the Dominion did to them."
Inwardly sighing, he pushed away from the wall, ignoring the way his own people parted for him, and entered the room, taking them in. His eyes moved to the babies, spotting very few baby girls and he smiled. "May I?" He asked one terrified-looking woman, who was clutching one of those few baby girls to her chest. He watched as she, with trembling arms, very reluctantly passed over her daughter. No doubt expecting him to crush the infant's skull. "Well aren't you a perfect little darlin'." He cooed, bending down to brush his nose against that soft, sweet-smelling cheek. "What is her name?"
"She… she doesn't have one. We're…. we're not allowed…" She trailed off, looking to Sister Abigail helplessly.
Soft emerald eyes were now fastened on this tiny, fearful woman. "In your heart, you've whispered a name. Say it now."
When Abigail nodded her encouragement, the woman took a very deep breath. "Belinda, sir…"
"A beautiful name." He passed Belinda back to her waiting mother, a genuine smile on his lips before he surveyed the other women. "This is no test, no trap. Bray Wyatt and his Dominion are done. Wyatt is dead, and all those who have supported him have died with him." Minus Harper, who he had meant to give to Abigail since she had wanted him.
Leslie had watched this while cradling her own baby boy in her arms and, for the first time, saw relief cross each face her eyes laid on. "We can trust him." She spoke up, the women turning to look at her, some weary, others skeptical, but every woman respected her since she'd been one of the few that survived the longest. All boys…she'd had 6 of them…and something told her the ones who were taken away to be trained had died. "I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm ready to get the hell out of this place."
Abigail had also watched, feeling her heart twinge painfully as they all began filing out one by one, with their babies, and just the clothes on their backs. Bray really did treat them like livestock, not even affording them proper clothing. It was a miracle he allowed them to bathe once a day.
"My men, and women, are in the castle right now securing it. You all look like you need to eat." They were so skinny… how did they feed their babies? "Victoria, let Abigail take you to find clothing for them. They can't travel in those rags, they'll be exposed to the elements."
Abigail guided Victoria through the castle to the rooms, finding every piece of clothing she could for the women. When she arrived at what used to be her room, she took a deep shuddering breath and walked inside, her closet still the same. All white. No color, even her shoes were white. Victoria didn't question anything, just grabbed the clothing and shoes, socks, undergarments, whatever she could find. Abigail wasn't about to tell her who this room belonged to and simply looked around one final time before exiting, going to the next room. There wasn't a single scream echoing throughout the castle anymore, which sounded really strange to her ears. Once everything they could find was gathered, they took it back to the women, who were then bathed and clothed. The babies had everything they needed, it was the women that had suffered a great deal.
"What is this?" Steve had followed Taker as the man ambled throughout the castle. He eyed the bottle Taker was holding up, frowning. That looked… like some evil potion or something.
"The cabinet was labeled, this is the serum they were using to speed the pregnancies and then the children's growth." Taker moved aside, gesturing to the open cabinet. "Help me pour it out."
"Could be use-" Steve shut the hell up under the flash of acid in those eyes and moved to help.
It was time to undo his father's legacy to these people.
Turned out, Victoria's niece was also here among the women that were liberated. Her name was Kathy, they'd been separated when their town had been demolished by the DOV. Bray had destroyed so many lives, so many innocent people and it would take centuries or longer to put it all back together again. Abigail helped as much as she could, but a lot of the women were anxious and fearful at the sight of her, so she made herself scarce. Her room was the only option as Abigail went back to it, closing the door behind her and walked over to stare out the window.
This reminded her of when she first came here and saw this room. Bray had given it to her instantly because of how much she loved it. The view hadn't been appeasing until now and Abigail had no idea night had fallen. It'd been a long day; she was sure everyone was settling down and tomorrow they would start the trek home. She had to wonder how the hell they were going to bring all those women and children back to Wonderful since most of them came on bikes.
"Hey boss, remember how you said we should send trailers out here?"
"Vaguely." It had been a very long day.
"Come here, one of the boys from Nora's squad found uh, well, a garage." Steve led the way, twisting and turning throughout the castle that was now stationed with Wonderful's soldiers. People eating and resting, the trek back to Wonderful promising to be interesting. "Look."
"Are those… semis?"
"We can just do it all at once…"
