Emily's Saga

by Travis Bughi

  Emily’s ears perked. The first thing that interested her was that it seemed Mark had given her a compliment, and the second was a realization that Mark was right. That ogre’s reaction to the viking’s insults outside the tower proved it.

  “You said there was a second reason?” Emily pressed.

  “Yes, the second reason we’ve already discussed,” Mark continued. “Ichiro Katsu is coming. It may be within the next hour or the next month, I’m not sure, but rumors have come that he’s amassed a fleet of ships to transport his soldiers. Most think he’s headed for Juatwa, but some, including a couple of prominent leprechauns, are starting to think the same thoughts as me. I’ve been preparing as best I can, considering the wild stories I’m hearing. Some say Katsu has as few as a thousand men while others say he has tens of thousands. A few squads of knights can do nothing to defend a city of this size, so I’ve opened recruitment to anyone, and I mean that quite literally. Every hand that can wield a sword has a place now, though I am bleeding Lucifan dry trying to maintain such numbers. None are happy about the new taxes, but the people will be happier with lighter wallets than gutted stomachs.

  “The terrible part, though, is that none of it is enough. Katsu is building an army, that much is certain. This city has no walls or fortifications of any kind—the colossi, along with knights astride winged pegasi, were supposed to be all that was needed. Worse yet, we completely lack a navy. Again, none of it is enough. I’m at my wit’s end. I even paid Gavin to seek Ephron again for advice. The only thing I received back was this.”

  Mark reached into one of the drawers and withdrew a letter, which he handed to Emily. She accepted it after a moment’s hesitation. The message was short.

  Dear Sir Mark O’Conner,

  I am troubled by the news you’ve sent me, and I wish I could assist in some way. My only consolation is that you need not fear. Help will come. My brother saw sure to that.

  “It’s not signed,” Emily noted.

  Mark nodded. “He never signs. I would not have believed Gavin had found Ephron at all had he not returned a changed man. Changed for the worse, I’m afraid. Whatever semblance of honor he’d once had was cast aside when Ephron spared me. I’m almost glad Duncan wasn’t alive to see it. Those two were close.”

  Emily only heard patches of Mark’s last few words. Her mind was clouded with disbelief and regret. She wanted to deny everything she’d just heard. She wanted to wish away the entire conversation. She never should have spoken with him. She should have just killed him from the start.

  “I’ll speak with Gavin,” Emily said heavily. “I want to hear his side of this story. As for Ephron’s letter, he was right. Help has come.”

  Chapter 26

  When Emily emerged from the knights’ barracks, she could hardly remember being so glad to see the sun. Its warmth washed over her, removing the chill that had lingered in Mark’s presence, both mentally and physically. Behind her, Doles shouted some parting words she didn’t care to hear. She also didn’t care if he thought her rude for not responding. She couldn’t bring herself to feel much of anything.

  Her friends and family awaited her on the street outside—a mix of apprehension and urgency written on their faces—but Emily did not meet anyone’s gaze. She looked down until she’d swept past them.

  Abe spoke first. “Emily, what happened? Is he dead?”

  “I thought you were going to summon the,” Adelpha looked left and right at the crowds, “you know.”

  Emily found a small, darkened, unoccupied alley and ducked into it. They followed her until she stopped suddenly in the midst of it, still facing away and breathing hard.

  “Was he not there?” Nicholas asked. “You were in there for a while.”

  Emily braced for Takeo and Fritjof to make a comment, but neither did. Their silence helped her suppress the anger from her next words.

  “Sir Mark will live,” she said. “For now.”

  The backlash was instantaneous. A heavy sigh, a loud gasp, and a sharp breath made Emily’s teeth clench, but she was not surprised at them as much as she was furious at herself. She hated what she was doing, letting that monster live. He betrayed the angels, and death seemed the only fitting punishment. He deserved, in the truest sense, a grave colder than himself.

  Yet she was going to let him live because to bury him would be to bury Lucifan alongside him. If Gavin confirmed the story, then Mark had clearly turned over a new leaf. No amount of bitter resentment, burning hatred, or vengeful desire could cloud her vision on that matter. He deserved death, but circumstances would grant him life.

  And Emily wanted to forget it all.

  “Why?” Abe gaped. “How? How and why?”

  “You can’t let him live!” Adelpha yelled. “What did he say? What happened?”

  “I thought you said he killed the angels?” Fritjof spoke calmly.

  She couldn’t blame them. Their words made her decision all the harder, but with each passing moment her dedication grew stronger. She looked over her shoulder at them, eyes catching Takeo’s and noting his silence. Part of her wanted to smile at that, but she was too furious at herself to do so. For a moment, Emily channeled her mother and unleashed her anger on those around her.

  “He did kill them,” Emily said. “Not personally, but he helped, and the angels are dead, and nothing will bring them back. Nothing including his own death, just as Heliena’s death never brought back Chara. Damn do I hate this! Look at me, Adelpha. Look at me and say her name. She’s dead! Heliena’s been dead, and she’ll always be dead, right alongside Chara. I wanted justice, and I took it, and although the world is a better place for that wicked woman’s grave, Chara will not come back for it. I never should have killed Heliena for Chara, and I won’t kill Mark for the angels.”

  At the mention of Chara’s name, Adelpha denied Emily twice over by looking away and refusing to speak. Abe, Nicholas, and Fritjof had clamped up, standing rigid like statues. Takeo crossed his hands in front of him slowly and lowered his head.

  “I know this is hard to understand.” Emily spoke to them as much as she spoke to herself. “It will take a lot of explaining, but I have to make it brief for the moment. This isn’t about the angels. It never was, not ever. Quartus didn’t die so I could stop his siblings’ deaths or even avenge them. He didn’t even want me to avenge Chara. None of that—that revenge—saved anyone. Killing Mark in the name of Ephron’s kin won’t save anyone either. Making him suffer won’t do any good. He’s already repented. I spoke with him; I understand now, or at least I hope I do. What he’s doing is justified—No! Stop! Hear me out. You don’t think this is hard for me, too? Do you think I’m making this decision lightly? Me? Me who is only alive today thanks to an angel’s sacrifice? Do you not understand the guilt and debt I feel, that I’ve had to live with? I’m being entrusted with decisions that will kill or save people I’ll never know, and I have to be bigger than the little girl I once was. You of all people should understand this, Adelpha. I won’t and can’t be a slave to my emotions anymore. I’ll do what’s necessary because I’m the only one who can. That colossus out there will listen to no one but me. There’s an army coming, and this city will burn without a leader.

  “Mark is preparing this city for that invasion. To kill him now would be to condemn everyone. The angels are dead, along with the past, and along with all my petty feelings of morality and self-righteous guilt. I’m paying my debt to Quartus right now by forgiving when I must and protecting this city with what he gave me. Sir Mark will live. You may either accept my choice or not, and I won’t hold a grudge for either decision. I already know of one old friend who’s been broken by this, and I’ll forgive him, too, after I’ve given him this same, stern speech.”

  With their heads bowed like Takeo’s—despite every single one of them being taller than her—they all shrunk under her shadow in that darkened alley. She felt like she’d said too much, but also not enough. Her rant had drawn more than a few questioning
glances from out on the street, yet her words fell drastically short of what churned inside her. She knew they all had questions. She had questions, too. Understandably, they would want answers, but first they would have to accept her decision.

  She couldn’t keep treating them like equals, and it pained her to banish their opinions, but the burden she bore was too great. They would have to take care of themselves, and if they wanted to be with her, then they needed to know that she alone led.

  By Ephron, did it hurt.

  “Don’t you have something to say?” Adelpha grumbled at Takeo.

  “No,” Takeo answered without hesitation. “I am far from the prefect soul, and she already forgave me for this same crime. Why would I ever question her?”

  Emily’s lips twitched, a smile lurking behind her scowl.

  “And you wonder why I love him,” she said. “Now, I need to find Gavin. Did anyone hear where he went? I wasn’t listening when he told me.”

  “I know,” Takeo said. “Do you want me to take you to him?”

  “I don’t want to see him yet,” Emily answered, shaking her head. “I just want him at the docks tonight. Sir Mark and I had a long conversation, and the vampire wants to see for himself what I’ve brought. It’s also time the rest of you saw, and Gavin needs to see, too. I’m going to need all the help I can get, washed-up ex-knights included. Jabbar will be here soon.”

  * * *

  The sun was long buried by the time Sir Mark O’Conner finally came down to the docks accompanied by a squad of knights—some of whom Emily vaguely recognized—and she wondered if they had participated in Mark’s treasonous actions a few years ago. She held her tongue, though, even when she noticed the ogre among them. They came in silence, armed but not armored, which befitted the uneasy feeling that blanketed the night.

  It wasn’t the lack of people that gave off an eerie vibe. Lucifan had a history of being a dangerous place at night, so its citizens frequently locked themselves away along with the sun, leaving those of a nocturnal nature free to roam with little interference. Emily had often been among those skulking few, seeking empty streets and experiencing the atrocities that could occur when no one dared look outside their darkened windows. No, it wasn’t the lack of people that disturbed her at all, quite the opposite really. There were far too many, and in the form of protectors.

  For the past several months, Sir Mark had imposed a curfew on the city. It was another one of his preparations for the coming battle, which he could not actually reveal was coming for fear that the citizens would see him as delusional and unworthy of leadership. He needed obedience, and so he’d called for a curfew in the name of peace. By hiring so many ogres and setting them loose to patrol the streets both night and day, crime in the city had plummeted to a rarity previously thought unachievable. Most people now considered getting robbed on the Great Plains more likely than getting robbed in Lucifan, and so the people gave up an ounce of freedom for an ounce of safety.

  Emily didn’t entirely agree with that. She would never abide by such laws, but war changed many things.

  So the night was uneasy because Emily and the others had waited at the docks as ogres and knights patrolled the streets in droves. Many had challenged her, telling her to go home or to an inn, and she’d had to produce a slip of parchment signed by Sir Mark to send them on their way. After a while, so many had passed by that she no longer bothered folding up the paper at all. She kept it out and at the ready, occasionally nodding to those she saw twice.

  It irked Emily that Gavin had not arrived before Sir Mark did. This could be because Takeo had found him drinking mugs of ale with one hand and fondling a tavern girl with the other.

  “How is it that he can become more repulsive to me every time I hear about him?” Emily had sighed. “He makes me question how I could have ever been attracted to him.”

  “I’m only envious of his beard,” Takeo had admitted, scratching his chin. “I wish I could grow one that looked full like that. Mine just comes in straight and wispy, like an old man’s.”

  “You have better talents,” she replied. “Ones that don’t come from blood.”

  “Yes, but they tend to result in blood.”

  And then Sir Mark had arrived, accompanied by his entourage and looking both fiercely eager and hopelessly forlorn. Still dressed in an informal white tunic and brown breeches, he had a longsword at his hip, but no shield on his back. Emily was not surprised. She had yet to find a shield greater than immortality.

  The air chilled as he approached, and he sighed deeply as steam began to slip from Emily’s lips.

  “Good evening,” Sir Mark said and nodded to Emily and her companions. “Good to see you all again. Takeo, it’s been awhile.”

  Takeo nodded, but said nothing. Adelpha and Abe looked elsewhere. Mark didn’t appear offended.

  “I’m sorry, Emily,” he said. “I know you told me who traveled with you, but for some reason, I didn’t expect to see them here.”

  “They want to see, too.” Emily shrugged. “Did you expect me to come without them? Is it a problem they are here?”

  “I suppose not.” Mark waved. “It doesn’t matter where they are. If what you say is true, all within Lucifan who look out their windows this evening will see a miracle. Nearly a third of my army will see it for sure. Those who do not will see it soon when the battle comes. I must say, I’m partially relieved that it is not the real Ichiro Katsu we will be facing, but an imposter.”

  “You shouldn’t be,” Takeo said. “Jabbar is a rakshasa. His kind ruled Savara once, and his ruthlessness will make Katsu seem a child in comparison. He can appear to be anyone, and when shifted back to his true form, his strength will rival yours.”

  “He’s not immortal, though, right?” Mark asked, still confident. “I hope his fleet comes at night so I can meet him myself.”

  “No one is immortal,” Emily said, “only harder to kill. Jabbar is no different. Really, Mark, you need to listen to Takeo. If Jabbar met you, he’d find a way to kill you, probably by tearing your head from your shoulders with raw strength. A rakshasa is nothing to scoff at, not even for a vampire.”

  Mark swallowed and appeared resentful of Emily’s words. However, he did not argue. He just eyed her for a moment before looking up at the full moon.

  “This will be a good night for this,” he said, “bright moon with few clouds. We will be able to see clearly what you claim. Still though, it is nothing compared to the sun. What are we waiting for?”

  “Gavin.” Emily shrugged apologetically. “We’ll give him a few more moments. What do you mean the sun? I thought you haven’t seen its light for several years?”

  “Not in person, no, but one can dream. Pardon me for being romantic, but I never realized how much I loved the sun until I could no longer see her. I long for her as if she were a woman, and it pains me that I’ll never see her again. Of all the things that spurred my bouts of depression, the lack of the sun’s embrace was the most subtle. I tried to peak out at her once, but her kiss burned, blinding me before I could see her. It took several days to heal. Most wounds heal within hours, but not those from sunlight. She hates me, you see? The sun knows I’m a monster, so I’m forced to enjoy only the moon, for the moon does not care that I am a beast.”

  Emily, knowing it would be kind to disagree, felt an urge to contradict the old knight, to tell him he was not a monster, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it—too much of her agreed with him. His only saving grace was that he was a much needed monster.

  “You know,” Emily spoke softly, “that’s a full moon. Somewhere else in the world, there’s another beast looking up at that same moon, thinking about the monster she’s become. Oddly enough, she, too, was turned by a bite.”

  Mark’s eyes snapped to Emily, and she met the gaze.

  That’s right, she glared. You know full well what I’m talking about. You’re a monster in more than just skin, and you have other sins to repent.

  And then h
eavy footsteps distracted them, and everyone turned to see Gavin Shaw stumble into view from the shadows. He froze upon seeing so many, the apprehension apparent in his shocked face. Then he wavered, and Emily realized he was having trouble standing and glowered at him next.

  “We’ll discuss that at another time,” Mark said.

  “Agreed,” Emily said, still looking at Gavin. “Drunk, still? Are you serious?”

  “It helps with the pain,” he said, swaying. “I wasn’t too happy to hear you wanted to meet at the docks again. I needed some courage, the kind that comes in liquid form.”

  Emily had to bite her tongue. She wanted to berate him right then and there, and from everything she was seeing, it seemed he desperately needed it. However, now was not the time. There were too many watching, and his ego was too important to him. If she scolded him now, her words would fall on deaf and defensive ears. At best, he would sulk and grumble; at worst, he would leave, and she didn’t want him to leave. More than anyone else, he needed to see this, and she still needed to confirm Mark’s story.

  “I just hope you can see clearly,” she mumbled, but turned to the bay before he could reply. “Now, everyone, the moment you’ve all been waiting for.”

  Emily didn’t even have to close her eyes. The colossus was so close, and she’d touched it so often now, that she could reach out with her consciousness and pluck the magnificent statue at will. Wordlessly, soundlessly, she commanded it to rise.

  The slow, rolling waves that came across the bay shifted and trembled as a sudden and massive disturbance lurked beneath them and then broke apart when the crest of the colossus’ head breached the surface. The stone helmet met the air first, its silent appearance so at odds with the magnitude of its presence. Emily could hear those around her gasp, see them all step back involuntarily out of the corner of her eyes, and she smiled as the colossus continued to rise. Up it went, its full head clearing the waves, but nothing more. It was not tall enough.