On the far outskirts north of the city, a large and square double-story house held an orphanage. Unlike any other building I have seen thus far, a giant tree was growing right through the middle, like the house was built around it. I found it to be more like an abandoned house than any orphanage. It was empty, devoid of any children. The only signs of the people who once lived there were hanging on the walls.
In the open courtyard inside the house, a flower garden surrounded the tree that first puzzled me. The aroma of the flowers reminded me of the gardens back home. That tasteful smell was a breath of fresh air, the complete opposite of the bitter and dirty air of the city.
Tending to that garden, a tall and lanky man with curly brown hair and distractingly thick eyebrows jumped to his feet when Claire startled him. I’m introduced to him as Denzel. First as a friend of Claire’s but she corrected him that he’s only a useful puppy. I clue together that I have been here before when Denzel comments how much I’ve grown since he last saw me. Leaving me in this orphanage was one of the many options Claire considered while trying to figure out what to do with me.
“I got word from Earendel that you joined the Knights. I also used to be one, a few years back. I had to retire when one of my legs was cut off.” Denzel lifted one of his pant legs to show me his metal prosthetic leg. “Pretty neat, isn’t it? Claire wouldn’t let me have the end of it for being so careless. Don’t end up like me and be careful out there. But since Claire is your teacher, I’m sure you won’t ever end up like me. Everyone had their doubts if you should be in her c-”
“You talk too much,” Claire interrupted. “Earendel said you had something to tell me. What it is that he couldn’t?”
“Oh, I just needed an excuse to see Rae again. Oh, and to remind you what Balles surely asked of you.”
“Even in death he still manages a way to annoy me. No, I haven’t forgotten. Did you seriously call me just for that? Next time I want any new information about the Plaguebearers. Rae, we’re leaving.”
“Wait, did Earendel not clue you in? Well, I’m not surprised. He did say it wasn’t enough to get you involved. But before that, you should know that one of the king’s lackeys stopped by a couple of days ago looking for you. Said something about how pissed the king is and requested you see him. Something about what happened over in Eos and your involvement. I don’t know, I didn’t pay too much attention to the guy.”
“Do you think I care about that?”
“Of course not, but you will with what happened over in Gaia. Those little creeps were popping up over there for a while like how they did up in the north. Then some of the natives in their pilgrimage found one of their temples covered in wooden roots and vines. Lush life with nothing to support it. Sounds familiar? Inside they found one of the burial chambers broken into. What did they find inside, you ask? Nothing. And yet a few of the natives were killed. Attacked by one of those little creeps.”
“How long ago was this?”
“Couple months back.”
“Did Fahad deal with it?”
“Wouldn’t be much of a war chief if he couldn’t. And to add to the similarities with what happened up in the tundra, the monster’s body was being held together by wooden armor.”
“Why didn’t you lead with that?!”
“It ruins the fun.”
“That fool Earendel overestimates himself if he doesn’t believe the gravity of the situation. And what of the wood? Did Fahad fare any better in finding the cause?”
“Fahad couldn’t recognize the lifeblood that was used. The magic is new. He’s been trying to replicate it since. But it looks like you’re right, someone is making those damned creeps. First the tundra, then Gaia, and now it’s happening here. Any ideas what they’re looking for?”
“Contact and gather everyone, I’m going to hold a meeting. It’s time they all learn a few secrets I've been keeping.”
“Wouldn’t a few phone calls do? It’ll take months to bring everyone together in one room.”
“I need to get them prepared and ready. The calamity I feel that’s coming will be worse than anything that came before.”
I had no idea what they were talking about. I was new to this world; to this side of Claire’s life. I was just happy to be allowed to listen in, and excited to learn. From the little that I understood, I figured out that there was a villain. Someone who was harming the planet.
“I didn’t think you cared. Are you scared they’ll get in your way like when you accidentally killed-”
“Don’t talk about that! You weren’t there. You have no idea what happened! This isn’t that. Watch your tongue.”
Hearing the immediate shift in Claire’s tone was jarring. She wasn’t angry but was at the cusp of getting there. I was curious to know what Denzel was about to say that had gotten Claire upset. It just happened so suddenly. Another secret that was meant to be uncovered.
“Uh, forgive me. I wasn’t thinking.”
“Just gather the group. I’ll be staying in the city until then.”
“Our beds are open if you like. It’ll be nice to get to know more about our new little warrior.”
-
We left the orphanage and stayed in a hotel for the night. The room was the highest up in the building. I could see just how massive the capital city was. Far deep in the capital city, a palace just like how I imagined them to look stuck out like a sore thumb. A small peak for the type of world I expected to be born in. The palace was built in a different era, long ended by the rise of modern technology.
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Like the city below, this room was also magical. The press of a switch lit up the room without fail. Small holes on the walls blew cold air when Claire pressed a few buttons on the small box next to the light switch. Water came out of the bathroom’s showerhead with a pull of a handle. A metal box heated the frozen meals Claire bought in mere minutes and without fire. All of this looked like magic to me. There wasn’t a single thing that didn’t amaze me. But I wasn’t given the time to discover any other wonder the room held.
We shared a single bed large enough to sleep two more people. Claire couldn’t fall asleep, tossing and turning every few minutes which kept me up too. She was still too irritated by what Denzel mentioned. That irritation then turned into sadness, as if she was lost in thought. Something I haven’t seen from Claire.
“Why did you get mad at Denzel?”
“It’s nothing. Go to sleep.”
“Is there a bad guy you need to fight?”
“Yes.”
“Is this someone who is making monsters”
“I think so.”
There was always going to be a day when this plague was going to break free. It’s Claire's mission to be the one to kill it when it does. But the seal on the Plague has been weakening much faster than it naturally should. The increasing rate of the monsters appearing was accelerating it. Whoever was creating them knows just what it takes to force the mutation. They were setting them loose, in the hope that the destruction they do could create more, creating a domino effect.
“Where did The Plague come from? Did it fall from the sky? What even is it? Is it just a germ or a giant monster?”
“It’s been so long that I don’t remember. I don’t even remember why The Goddess couldn’t kill it. I’ll have to look it up whenever I go back to my library. I’m sure I wrote it down somewhere. All I do remember is that the Plague only exists to kill The Goddess.
“Who even is she?”
Claire lifted her arm and a small and clear sphere that slightly lit the room.
“The God of this earth and the planet herself.”
A God that is worshipped and revered by nearly every living creature. A Goddess that blesses us with her gifts. A God whose wars are waged over them. A God that people pray to when all is lost. A Goddess who grants us the cycle of life as her children. The internal essence of life everyone shares is but a piece of her blood. When we die, it returns to her to be given to a new life being born.
“So when I use magic, the essence that I use is gone forever?”
“Yes. Not only does it kill you, it also takes away her life.”
The plague does the same thing. It strips the energy out of the soul, leaving it unable to return to the planet. When the plague fell from the sky, it nearly wiped away all life. It’s the sole reason why Frie and Claire now exist. They’re here to stop another catastrophe like that from happening ever again. The world was also blessed with 3 gifts of the Goddess to help prevent a repeat of history
“The gifts of the Goddess? What are they?”
“One was broken into parts and shared with the world. It was supposed to give humanity a means to have clean and unlimited energy. Part of the reason the Plague spread so fast was because of their constant misuse of toxic energy that disturbed the steady flow of nature. To stop that from ever happening again, they were giving a perfect alternative. When it was discovered, the whole world broke out into an endless war over the right to horde it for themselves. Years and years of death for something that was desired to be used for power instead of peace.”
A war that engulfed the world in an endless conflict for thousands of years. One that was so viscously fought that it stagnated the growth of humanity for just as long. A pointless war. Even to this day, we still live and suffer from the consequences after it finally ended.
“It was foolish to think humanity would ever be so kind to come together as one.” Talking about this past put her further into sadness. She began to sound like she did something wrong and she was missing someone.
Listening to Claire talk put heavy bags under my eyes. I was struggling to stay awake. She’s never talked this much. Ever since Bellas’ death, Claire was more open to conversation. It was a welcome change as I thought she was starting to be less callous. Whatever Bellas said to her had been stuck in her mind.
“Is that gift how you use magic?”
“No, but the way it works is similar.”
“So how are you able to use yours?”
“That’s a secret.”
“Oh. okay…”
“I’m kidding, it’s another gift. If I tell you what it is now you’ll never stop asking me for it. I’ll share it with you eventually, but your body needs to mature and grow strong enough to handle it.”
“I have mastered patience.”
There was a moment of silence.
“Tell me, Rae. Why go through all this just to follow in my footsteps? You say you want to be a hero and go on your own adventures, but why? It isn’t as fun as you think it is. There’s no evil dragon to slay. No demon lord to stop. There’s only the poor lives that let their sadness and hatred consume them. You’re old now enough to start thinking about what you want to be when you grow up. There’s more to life than what you want.”
“But I want to protect others. The evil plague makes the animals suffer. Stopping their souls from returning back to the planet. I want to help them.”
“I didn’t teach you to have a kind heart. Yet you always been.”
“Is that bad?”
“No. I think that it’s wonderful. If everyone was like you, the world would be a happier place.”
“Are people that bad? All the animals in The Garden hide from me because they are afraid of me. Frie said it’s because people would kill them or force them to be slaves. He said that’s why there’s not many old dragons around anymore.”
“What do you think from what you’ve seen today?”
Even though I was now constantly around other people, I’ve only met and talked to a few. From what I observed, everyone who lived in the city seemed indifferent about what anyone else was doing. They were all strangers to each other, leaving everyone to do what they pleased as long as they weren’t bothered. But I never felt any malice from anyone. No one was out to purposely hurt one another. But this was only my first day of learning about this outside world. There were plenty of awful things hidden in the shadows behind a front of peace and tranquility yet to be discovered.
“I don’t know…what do you think?”
“You’ll figure it out when you're older. I’m not going to give you my answer, it’s not my place to tell you what to think.”
There was a long silence, a heavy one. And in that silence, I could feel that Claire was thinking about this question. It was as if she was emitting an aura that was filling the air with pressure. She told me what was going through her head that night years later. As powerful as a force of nature that she was, she was still prone to make mistakes. That entire night she was depressed by all the reminders of her failures.
“Rae. If you were immortal, what would you do with your endless time?”
“I would bring everyone together,” I said too sleepy to actually think about it. I just blurted what first came to my mind. I closed my eyes to blink but they stayed shut. The weight was just too heavy now. I became too drowsy to stay conscious for any second longer. But for whatever reason I held on, like my soul was telling me I needed to hear what Claire spoke next.
It felt more like a dream.
“Would that be your reason to live? Oh, little girl, that’s too naive.”
“Are you asleep?”
Claire exhaled slowly and said to herself, “I see so much of her in you. Oh, how long has it been? How much have I forgotten? Just how much longer do I have to suffer? Did you come into my life as an apology from The Goddess? Sweet Rae, you’re too good for this world. I would have loved to give birth to a daughter just like you.”