by Tony Johnson
The four-story building was on the side of the plaza Skyfire had not set up in flames. Upon coming to it, Steve found it locked, but Ty shot a powerful blast of lightning into it, disintegrating the door.
Running up the stairs of the apartment complex as fast as he could, Steve pushed past people coming out of their rooms as he made his way to the top floor.
“She’s in here!” a woman called to him from her doorway, directing him to where the Halfling archer had crashed through her roof and into her kitchen.
“Kari?” Steve fell to his knees beside her as she lay motionless, wondering if she was still alive. He almost had to turn away from the grotesque sight. One of her knees was dislocated, forcing her leg to bend at a disturbing angle, the side of her face was blistered from burns, and parts of her eyebrows and hair were singed. Worst of all, her entire forehead was rapidly swelling and bruising.
She’s gravely injured, Steve could tell. Only two signs of life stuck out to him. Her chest is still rising and falling, and she’s still clutching her bow.
“Kari!” Steve shouted her name, trying in vain to get her to wake up.
“She needs medical attention,” Ty said immediately upon coming into the room and seeing her condition.
“The temple down the street has an infirmary attached to it,” Shana reccomended through a shaking, traumatizd voice.
Gently, Steve pried the bow from Kari’s fingers, threw it over his shoulders, then scooped her up in his arms. “I’ll take her there.”
“We’ll come with you,” Ty offered.
“No, you guys should go help the injured. There’s going to be a lot of people that need help,” Steve said, looking out the window and seeing the host of aerial monsters flying away, having completed their attack. He gritted his teeth and shook his head. They got us again, he thought in anger, but was too encumbered with carrying Kari to let his frustrations out.
Following Steve back down the stairs, Ty called out as his brother headed off in the direction of the infirmary where Kari could be tended to by clerics, “We’ll come by and check in with you later.”
In the plaza, warriors who had survived inside the watchtower came out and surveyed the damage done by Skyfire. Similarly, civilians, hearing the warning horns and sounds of the attacking monsters throughout the city cease, came out of their homes to talk to each other.
“I need to go make sure my mom is safe,” Shana told Ty, beginning to head home.
“Wait,” Ty chased after her. “Are you okay?” he asked, knowing that seeing her mother’s rape in the vision and learning her father was Malorek, the Hooded Phantom, was not something one could lightly brush off.
“Yes,” Shana said in a way that made Ty knew she wasn’t okay but didn’t want to talk about it. “I need to go check on her.”
“Do you want me to come with you?”
“No, I think I just need some space.”
“Alright,” Ty gave up, letting her run off, realizing from personal experience that being alone might be what she needed to come to terms with the disturbing revelations. “Looks like it’s just you and me, Copper,” Ty patted his orange-furred friend. “Let’s do what Steve suggested and help those who need it.”
It was chaos at the temple’s infirmary when Steve arrived. The wounded were being brought in by their friends and family from all directions. Many of the injured were warriors being escorted in by their fellow brothers, some with injuries that even if they survived, would forever change how they lived their lives.
“Hang in there, Kari,” Steve whispered, seeing the amount of people in front of them that the frazzled clerics couldn’t direct fast enough.
The wait time is going to be too long. And I can’t physically keep holding Kari too much longer, Steve muttered to himself in frustration. He tried maneuvering through the crowd, pushing his way to the front, but the people in front of him were doing the same, trying to save their loved ones.
Two men, one trying to get help for his wife and the other trying to get help for his son, began arguing loudly over which one of them was supposed to be next.
One of the male clerics shouted from the front of the crowd to the middle where the two men fought and told them to stop, but then other people began yelling at the cleric to not worry about the arguers and to not waste time on those who were being impatient.
This is bringing out the worst in everyone, Steve thought, angry that the monsters had caused such pain, damage, stress, and anxiety.
“Steve,” someone called to him from somewhere in the crowd. Looking around, but finding no one, the voice called again, this time closer to his location. “Mr. Brightflame, over here!”
Turning, Steve saw Emma’s doula pushing her way towards him. She’s a cleric, she can help Kari!
The doula ignored people grabbing her for their attention as she beckoned Steve to follow her. She led him to the side of the crowd, where she looked over Kari and grimaced.
“Follow me,” she commanded, hurriedly heading towards the back rooms of the infirmary. “What happened to her?”
Quickly explaining the fall and her injuries during their brisk walk, the doula led Steve to a small room where another cleric was tending to three similarly unconscious individuals. In the corner, two bodies were covered by white sheets.
Setting Kari on one of the few open tables, the two clerics began working on one of their patients who started convulsing.
“You can’t be in here,” a third cleric came rushing in, pushing Steve out of the way. “Wait outside and we’ll come get you when we can.”
Upset about having to leave her side, but not wanting to be in the way of those needing medical attention, Steve walked outside and collapsed into a nearby chair.
Alazar, he prayed, I have to believe that you are behind the coincidences of this world. Thank you that Emma’s doula recognized me, so Kari didn’t have to wait long to get the help she needed. I know you know everything about your creations. And I know you allow certain things to happen for a reason and you don’t allow certain things to happen for a reason, but I pray that you preserve Kari’s life. I care about her.
Chapter 89
As Shana jogged home through the destruction of Casanovia, she couldn’t believe the amount of damage the aerial monsters had caused in only thirty minutes of attacking. Dead dragons, phoenixes, gryphons, and warbirds laid in the streets. Some of which were friendly with deceased warriors still strapped in their harnesses, others were enemy monsters, a few of which had riders of their own.
Heading in the opposite direction she was going, Shana passed a dark-skinned, tattoo-scalped Dwarf with a long, black beard, who she recognized as Ty’s friend Grizz.
He’s not wearing armor and he has no sweat or blood on his tunic, Shana angrily thought. Standing in his way, she prevented him from continuing. “We needed you, Dwarf.”
“Who are you?” he asked, annoyed his path was blocked. “Oh,” he vaguely recalled, “Weren’t you the girl who was with Ty in the tavern last night?” As Shana reeled back from the stench of alcohol on his breath, Grizz remembered another detail about the lavender-haired Human that stood before him. “Was that you in the vision? Your mom got raped and gave birth to you?”
Put off by the way he asked the question, Shana remained silent, refusing to answer it, so Grizz asked two follow up questions, “Are you one of us? Did you get an element?”
“Are you one of us?” Shana shot back. “Ty, Steve, Kari, and I were all out there when Casanovia came under attack, but we didn’t see you anywhere.”
Grizz began to stutter in response, but Shana cut him off before he had a chance to form the words he was trying to say, “What? Were you too drunk to even know what was going on? Look around!” Shana was now yelling, “We needed you!” Pushing the Dwarf out of her way, the Human began continuing home, but stopped when Grizz grabbed her arm and asked, “Where are the others?”
“Check the temple infi
rmary,” she broke out of his grasp by throwing his arm down, showing him she felt violated and uncomfortable that he laid hands on her. “Kari’s badly hurt. Maybe if Alazar had given your element to someone who wasn’t worthless, she wouldn’t be.”
“Mom!” Shana ran into her house, already happy to see that it was still standing and looked undamaged.
Leiana Latimer greeted her daughter at the door with a tight hug and a kiss on the cheek. “Are you hurt?” she asked, looking over her armored daughter, seeing dirt, sand, soot, and sweat, but no blood. Going from anxiety to relief, Ms. Latimer expressed her frustration before Shana could even get a word in.
“Why would you run out of the house like that? You left me here alone to worry without even telling me where you were going!”
“I should’ve told you. I’m sorry, but I knew you’d stop me if I went after Ty. I needed to help him and the others.”
“You inherited an elemental spirit, didn’t you?” Shana’s mom guessed, to which Shana confirmed verbally and then showed off her element of wind by sending a breeze through the house.
“So you’re one of the elect, huh?” Rather than looking proud of her daughter for being divinely chosen, Ms. Latimer seemed unhappy.
“What is it?” Shana asked, seeing tears in her mother’s eyes.
“I’m nervous for you is all,” she wiped her eyes before any tears had fallen. “I was a child during the Second Great War. I still remember hearing about how Draviakhan killed most of Alazar’s elect. Just because you’re elect doesn’t mean you’re immortal. I don’t want to lose you in this fight to reclaim the kingdom. You’re all I have in this world.”
“I’ll be careful. I don’t want to worry you,” Shana added, taking her mom’s hand and leading her to sit down on the nearby couch.
“Is the attack over, then? What’s it like out there?”
“It’s not good. The monsters left, but they accomplished what they set out to do. The warriors and a few of the densely populated areas of the city suffered massive damage.”
“Are Ty and Copper okay?”
“Yes, but another one of their friends was injured, a Halfling named Kari. She was taken to the infirmary, so I’ll head there in a little bit, but I wanted to come here and make sure you were safe.”
“I’m fine,” Ms. Latimer assured.
“I also wanted to talk to you about what happened to me during the attack,” Shana admitted. “Do you remember how I was telling you about that vivid dream I had a few days ago?”
“Yes.”
“Well, it turns out it was part of a collective vision that I can see along with the other elect. Together, they are, for the most part, playing a chronological story of a man named Malorek. He’s the man who is called the Hooded Phantom, the one who planned and led the attack on Celestial. We’ve been learning about the impact he’s had on all five of our lives.”
Shana paused for a moment to compose herself before broaching the difficult subject she wanted to address. “What I saw in the vision that accompanied my element was disturbing, and it may bring up some painful memories for you, but I need to ask you about it.”
“I think I already know what this is going to be about,” Ms. Latimer guessed, and immediately looked terrified.
“Mom,” Shana began to cry, struggling to imagine her mother in such a horrific situation, “before you moved here, were you sexually assaulted by a man in Celestial?”
“Yes,” Leiana took a full minute to answer Shana’s question and only did so after a long exhale from her lungs.
“And is that man my father?”
Ms. Latimer became so emotional, she couldn’t give an audible response, so she only nodded her head. “Please don’t be mad at me,” she squeezed her daughter’s hand.
“Mad at you?” Shana wiped away a cascade of her own tears. “Why would I be mad at you?”
“I’ve lied to you your whole life. I told you your father abandoned us. I didn’t want you to know how you were conceived.”
“I don’t blame you for not telling me. I can’t imagine what it was like to go through that.”
“I’d never wish it on anyone. It’s such a mental obstacle to heal from in the aftermath,” Leiana explained. “I never knew anything about my attacker. I told authorities and gave them the best description I could, but they never found him. I never knew if I’d run into him or if he was doing the same thing to others. Plus, I had to deal with this,” she pointed to the bald spot on the side of her head, which she usually tried to hide with her long, gray hair. “I used to be like you. I was so pretty,” she smiled, trying her best to lighten the mood somehow.
“You still are, mom,” Shana tried to encourage her.
“I swear what I went through and the stress I endured aged me. I was angry for so long, blaming myself for what happened, but I eventually realized it wasn’t my fault. And although it was the worst thing that’s ever happened to me, it turned out to give me you, the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”
“Did you ever think about not giving birth to me?” Shana asked, hinting at if her mom would’ve aborted the pregnancy.
“Never. Shana, I would’ve never done that. It goes against everything I believe. You were a life inside me. I firmly believed then and still believe now that Alazar has a plan for you. Even though what happened to me is a terrible thing, good can come out of it. It’s that way with anything pure that is marred by evil. To give into the idea that there’s no positive aspect to be found is to give evil the victory.
“I can’t believe it though,” Leiana cringed, “That he became the person Zebulon chose to give powers to so he could lead an army of monsters. I guess it makes sense though. The deceit, the manipulation. I’m glad you are nothing like that abominable man.”
“Me too,” Shana exasperated. “It sickens me that I am the product of a person capable of causing so much pain and destruction.” Then, asking her mother another question that was equally painful, Shana said, “There’s something else I am confused about. In my vision, when it was happening, you said, ‘Not again, Not again.’ Did someone hurt you another time, before Malorek?”
Leiana nodded, and again, her ashen face showed the pain of recalling the incident, but this time, her expression was more twisted and contorted at the memory.
Whatever it is, the first assault bothers her more than Malorek's.
“When I was fifteen a man attacked me in an alley and violated me. For that one, I was knocked unconscious through it all, so I didn’t have to experience the whole thing.”
Shana smashed her fist into the table, angry that even though her mother hadn’t been conscious, she still had to go through this ordeal more than once. “How could this happen to you twice?! You don't deserve to have been abused like that! You're the greatest woman I know.”
“Well, I didn’t let the man from the first time get away with it, that’s for sure,” Ms. Latimer, recalled with the slightest beam of pride. “After he finished, he got up and headed away. I came to, realized what happened, and got up. I grabbed a dagger I had on me, chased him down the alley, and stabbed him behind, right between the legs. I won't go into detail, but the blade cut him so badly, it prevented him from ever hurting someone that way again, let alone being able to conceive a child. As he cursed in pain and doubled over, I ran from that alley like my life depended on it.”
“Did you get pregnant from it?”
“No,” Leiana stated, almost before Shana had completed asking the question.
She’s lying, I can tell, but Shana didn’t press the issue. Instead of calling out her mother, she commended her, “You’re so strong! These events could've easily defeated you, but you didn't let them. I hope I have that kind of courage.”
“I already see it in you. All the time, actually. Whatever is going to happen now that you’re elect, I know you’ll persevere. Just please be careful. I love you so much.” Then, adding humor to the end of th
eir difficult conversation, Leiana suggested, “If you can, try to use the wind to blow all the enemies away. Then you don’t ever have to fight them.”
“I'll do my best,” Shana promised with a laugh.
“How about you head to the infirmary and wait with the others? I’ll make up some food for everyone and bring it by later.”
“Aww, mom, you don’t have to do that.”
“It’d be my honor to,” Ms. Latimer suggested.
“I’m sure it would be much appreciated,” Shana admitted. “I love you, mom,” she embraced her in a tight hug and exiting the house feeling even closer to her mother than even before.”
Chapter 90
“Shana told me what happened. How is she?” Grizz approached Steve after finding him in the infirmary.
Steve immediately shook his head and stood to confront the Dwarf. “I don’t know, but it’s not good. Where were you, Grizz? We were trying to protect innocent people from getting hurt in the attack and you were sleeping off your drunkenness. I know your family is dead, but-”
“Don’t talk about my family,” Grizz grabbed the warrior by the throat and pushed him against the wall. Then, seeing bodies rushed past them on gurneys, he released his grip and apologized.
“I’m sorry. I should’ve been there.”
“Everything okay here?” Ty cautiously came up to the two men, having seen their altercation as he and Copper dropped off another injured person they’d collected from out in the city.
“It was my fault,” Grizz answered, clutching his head and sitting down. Taking the seats on either side of him, Steve and Ty could tell Grizz was angry and disappointed in himself, but also that he wanted to forget his disappointment by having another drink.
“Why don't you stay here with us and wait until we hear the report on Kari's health?” Steve suggested.
Reminded of Kari and the fact he might’ve been able to prevent her injuries had he been present, Grizz started to get up, unable to face the guilt, but Steve and Ty each placed a hand on his shoulders to keep him seated.