He pushed further and came upon the people who had been condemned to this filth. Their bodies were wasted from exposure to radioactive water tainted with heavy elements. Their eyes were unseeing and watery, their skin translucent and sagging. They were alive, but only just, devolved into something savage and primal. He felt pity for them, especially the small children crawling amid the greasy muck.
They paid him no mind, more interested in fighting over piles of rubble as he crept through their huddled groups.
A rattle of bones snatched his attention, and he stared into the darkness, his magic illuminating the source. One of the tunnel dwellers stood in the center of his path, alone. They pointed at him with a wand of human thigh bone, the ends of the wand decorated with rocks and smaller fragments tied to the end by bits of woven hair. The being shook the object at him, charms clunking together, the sound bouncing down the tunnels.
Kanruo stared at the being, uncertain of what the gesture meant. Then, hesitantly, he opened his palms, showing he had no intention of fighting.
The being laughed, a sound mimicking a crowing bird as they brought their wand to the ground with a sharp crack.
“No magic left, only death,” they croaked at him, issuing a series of derisive shrieks. Their voice was indistinct, their gender abandoned as their body had wasted away. Once more, they slammed the bone down again and again, repeating the incantation in time with the rhythm.
“Only death! Only death! No magic left!”
Kanruo ground his teeth and moved around the screeching being. They did not lash out at him but continued to sing, howling at the top of their lungs. He gave a cautious glance over his shoulder. The being paid him no mind, continuing to bludgeon the ground.
“Kanruo!”
As they spoke his name, he whirled around, drawing his weapon.
The being sat, back to him, rocking and giggling maniacally.
He approached them warily. “What?” he hissed softly, his heart in his throat.
They giggled again. “No magic left, only death! Death! Death! Death!” Then they slammed the bone wand into the ground again.
Kanruo crouched and stared as they dissolved into giggles once more.
“You will die,” they tittered. “Follow this path and you will surely die.”
The being swung their bone wand around to point at him. “You will suffer. You will long for death’s kiss, and she will deny you.”
Kanruo huffed scornfully at their ramblings. “Like it matters.”
“Oh, but it will. It will,” the being assured him with a toothless smile. “No magic left, only death! Only death!”
He slowly backed away, a growing feeling of unease itching at the back of his neck. The obsidian pendant around his neck began to hum softly.
Run, little supernova!
The words reverberated inside his skull with such force that he jumped, eyes wide as he whipped around
Notia?
Run!
No, it was a memory, not a vision. The memory of her last words sent a lightning bolt coursing through his skull.
He pressed a hand to his forehead as the pressure compounded, forcing a harsh exhale from between clenched teeth.
Behind him, the being rattled their bone wand once more and cackled before blinking out of existence.
“No magic left . . .” The words bounced off the sunken walls, reverberating within his cranium. Kanruo sucked in a lungful of stagnant air. He had to keep moving.
He clung to the thread of magic that guided him through the oppressive darkness and stepped forward.
Loose dirt and gravel scattered underfoot as he pushed through cobwebs. He squeezed through cracks and gouges in the fossils of ruined buildings, wriggling through jagged chunks of cement and twisted metal.
He turned a corner and felt the ground sag under his feet, wet and boggy. It squished between his toes, a sulfuric odor emanating from the decay.
The supports around him creaked, and then with a snap the ground gave way and he was sent plummeting downward.
Kanruo tumbled down the channel. Stinking, sticky mud coated his body. The ichor stained his cloak and clung to his skin as he clawed at the goo.
He landed on his back with an “Oomph!” as he was ejected into a chasm, a mound of damp, spongy moss softening his fall.
As he worked to refill his lungs, he rubbed the filth off his face. He blinked at the view about him.
Blue.
A calming color.
He stared up at the ceiling of the cavern. Little glow worms hung in clusters over the dome. He lay there, mesmerized by spectacle, his breathing quieting.
Clean air, light and crisp. Fresh, moving air. He drank in several breaths, letting the sensation run through his nerves.
Slowly, he sat up, his hand clutching at the pendant around his neck as he gazed around the cavern. The stone was still warm, humming softly in response to his agitation.
A sob of relief left him and Kanruo doubled over. It had been a mistake to wander into the city still so raw and weak. But he’d had no choice.
Notia would have scolded him for such foolishness.
Notia . . . It had been her voice in the citadel and again in the tunnels. Reaching out to him from beyond the veil. Or had it all been a trick of his fractured mind?
Kanruo wailed, unable to endure the terrible possibility any longer. His long, agonized cries filled the space around him.
The little worms above were silent and unjudging as the witch wept.
When his tears had run dry, he brushed at his face. He focused on calming his breathing as he gazed at the cavern around him once more.
It was a world frozen in time. At his feet were the fractured remains of a tar-soaked street, the rusted skeletons of vehicles jumbled into a pileup. The gutters were lined with patches of fluorescent glowing fungi that crept out of the bashed in storefronts.
Ghosts of once-colorful murals and graffiti tags graced the crumbling brick walls. A red fluorescent sign for photo-to-hologram conversion dangled haphazardly from a leaning billboard atop its building. Shattered glass glistened like jewels.
A world lost in time, long forgotten. Did another city lay buried below? How many times had this spot been built over as humanity struggled forward?
He stood and made his way down the hill. His pendant was calm now, and he felt oddly bolstered by the energy of the place. It was soothing and full of life despite the lack of sun, even as the city above it marinated in poison.
Beetles and crickets scattered as he moved, their hard shells crystalline and clear, having no need for pigmentation in the deep underground. As they moved, little translucent lizards gave chase. They had only a pair of front legs, dressed in skins of warm pastel shades. Their eyeless heads were decorated with whiskers and frills that flowed out around them as they moved.
He crouched and offered his hand out to one as it stared up at him, unseeing. Its tongue flicked out, touching his flesh for a moment before it turned and scampered away with a splash.
Kanruo tilted his head curiously and put his hand where the lizard had escaped. His fingers met with cool water so clear it might as well have been glass. Little crawfish evaded him, their shells just as glassy as the bugs’, clear and crystalline. Silver minnows darted about like flashes of quicksilver.
A smile nudged its way onto his face. Life always found away. The goddess was good and the universe herself provided.
No doubt, the creatures in this ecosystem had struggled to survive, to reach this peaceful point in their evolution. But the goddess rewarded those who persevered in the face of strife. One day, he would rise above his attrition. These were his first steps.
He took another deep breath in, absorbing the energy around him.
"I’m so sorry, Notia, Alrik," he murmured softly. He had no business speaking their names, not after so many years of being tainted by the Void.
He slowly knelt before the crystal waters. "I beg for the guidance and wisdom of the crone
, the endurance and patience of the mother, and the strength and spirit of the maiden." His voice trembled as he pressed his forehead to the ground, the water lapping at his muddy hair.
He had rarely petitioned the moon goddess directly in the past, preferring to rely on his own abilities and magic. It would have been sacrilegious to treat her like a cosmic vending machine, trading prayers for blessings. But here in the secret world beneath Atlanta’s countless corpses, he was so alone and so afraid. He had nothing left.
He remained prostrated, head pressed to the dirt as magic and energy rushed around him. The blue glow intensified, burningly bright. He felt warmth surging through him, comforting him.
He knew if he raised his eyes he would not see anyone, but he had no need to. The goddess had welcomed him back. He could feel her dark blessing washing over him. And for a moment, he felt Notia’s arm around him once more.
I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you. I wasn’t strong enough.
“Notia,” Kanruo whispered.
My little supernova. You are my greatest blessing. I will always be with you.
He felt her spirit fade, quieting and falling behind the veil again. She really had been there, fighting to save him, even in death.
The Void still echoed. The terrible memories were still there. The violation had not left. And yet . . .
He drew breath in and then slowly released it. Each inhalation strengthened his connection to the universe and the goddess. The clutter in his mind was swept away as he became more grounded, his grasp on reality stabilizing.
Was this why the universe had brought him here?
What secrets lay in these forgotten streets? What treasures had been curated in this time capsule? Curiosity flared in him as he gazed upon the petrified world.
Kanruo glanced around the space once more. Hunger gnawed at his stomach, his physical needs pulling him back to reality. Whatever else was meant for him here, today was not the day to explore.
He had to keep moving.
About the Author
Feyra is a pansexual and polyamorous witch who resides somewhere in the southeastern United States with her cats and long time partner. When she isn't writing or wrangling code she can be found crafting jewelry.
etsy.com/shop/MoonlitBeading
Also by Feyra Silverlock
Coming Soon...
Ruined World: Alliance
Kanruo has escaped Volac, but who awaits him
within Atlanta's decay?
What further secrets will he uncover?
The Last Moon Witch Page 18