Sol

I tripped over a root for the umpteenth time as I dashed through the quieted woods. Melinde squealed as she was pulled off balance and nearly stabbed me through the throat as her arm flailed. Her lip quivered and her hair clung to the sweat on her chin and bottom lip when I looked back at her. Over her shoulder I could see the hounds gaining on us. Even though the Bone God had enhanced our strength we were unable to outrun the few that had slipped past Lasaro.

I gritted my teeth.

I didn’t want to run, I wanted to fight, but Melinde did not know how too. Why did the Bone God have to choose a weak housewife as champion instead of a warrior? Arno would have been a better choice, but instead he was stuck at home taking care of their son.

I scanned the trees around me before finding a gnarled oak with a low hanging branch. I dragged Melinde to the tree, lifted her at the waist and pushed her to the top of the low branch. She dropped the spear and looped her arms around the branch. Her body shook as she pulled her self the rest of the way. I grabbed the spear, shoved it into her reaching hand then pointed up. I mimed for her to climb higher. After nodding she followed my instruction.

I turned back just in time to catch a hound as it leapt toward my once exposed back. I cupped my right elbow with my left hand and squeezed until the beast stopped struggling. I could feel dozens of teeth worrying at my legs. I kicked out as I tossed the lip body to the side, but their grip could not be loosened.

Pain flowed up my legs like stabs of lightning as I reached for the nearest bloody head. I could see where a blade cut through part of its lip and snout. Had Lasaro tried to cut it down before it escaped?

I stabbed my thumb into its nearest eye. The beast ignored the pain and continued to gnaw on my calf. I pulled back my hand and punched it in the head with all my strength; it felt like hitting a stone wall. I felt my knuckles break under the force. My fingers went limp as pain shot through my arm up to the shoulder. There was no way I was doing that again with my left hand.

I closed my eyes and focused on the divine power within me. I could see the light of my glowing hair through the lids of my eyes. Branches scratched my arms, leaves tickled them as I grew. My hand continued to hurt even though I stood nearly equal to the canopy of the forest. I held my arm close to my chest as I looked at the growing pack of hounds at my feet. I could see their muzzles pulled back in silent snarls as they circled and lunged at my ankles. I began kicking them away until they fell back a few feet eyeing me.

I looked behind me and saw Melinde clinging to the same branch I had hoisted her to. I rolled my eyes. Why hadn’t she climbed higher?

She smiled weakly and waved at me.

Useless woman. She couldn’t fight, she couldn’t heal and yet she was the Bone God’s champion.

I felt the earth tremble beneath my feet and looked around for its source. To my right I could see a silver light pushing aside the tree branches as it steadily came toward us. I dropped into a defensive stance until I saw that it was Lasaro in his own giant form. His eyes had turned golden and his robes looked hewn from emeralds. In his left hand was “Cleave” which pulsed with a white light in its larger form.

Lasaro had a hard look on his face before it softened upon seeing me. He bowed and the hounds at his feet began to convulse and froth at the mouth. Their limbs twisted and jerked in an almost parody of dance while a yellow mist rose from their bodies.

I felt a chill go down my spine just as the tips of my fingers and toes began to tingle. My throat and eyes burned as the tingling increased until it felt like worms were burrowing underneath my skin. I looked through the tears falling from my eyes at my hands to make sure that there weren’t any creatures there, and found that my fingertips were turning a dark shade of purple.

The yellow mist thickened around us until it began a dense fog. I doubled over coughing. My lungs and throat felt raw as I struggled to breathe. I felt a hand on my shoulder then saw Lasaro pointing to my Grace. I pressed the fabric against my nose and was able to take a clean breath of air.

Melinde

I clung to the branch that Sol had pushed me up to. I was afraid to move any higher especially with the spear in my hand. I watched begin to fight off the feral dogs that had attacked us. It was weird to watch the fight in silence. No sound, not even the rushing of blood through my ears could be heard. Was this the power of the abomination that we were to face?

My heart beat so hard against my ribs that I thought it would take flight. I needed to help her, but I didn’t know what to do. I had no fighting skills. I always relied on Arno to protect me. Someone else was always protecting me. Why was I so useless? What could I do?

The branch shook beneath me and clung to it desperately as I began to slide off of it. The spear nearly slipped from my grasp, but glowed briefly and clung to my hand by some divine will of its own.

Was it possible that the spear hand a mind of its own? The Mistress had said that the weapons were created from her own body, did that mean I had to think of it less as of a tool and more as a familiar?

I saw the poisonous cloud rising from the dog’s bodies as they writhed on the forest floor. My hands and lips tingled as the cloud encompassed us and became thicker. I lost sight of the ground below me as the forest darkened and a chill caused my bones to ache while my stomach twisted and cramped.

I coughed and felt the pain of knives being stabbed through my throat. I touched my lips and my hand came away with blood on it. Soon even my hands became distorted as the cloud continued to thicken around me.

(Okay Fix, I don’t know if you can hear me, but I need your help), I said, though I couldn’t hear my voice. (Please help us!).

The spear trembled in my hands as I gripped it tighter. The trembling slowed until it became a rhythmic pulse that beat in time with my heart. Warmth flooded my body and soothed the burning in my lungs and pain in my throat. The poison cloud drew back from me I gasped and clean air filled my lungs.

The bubble of clean air grew bigger as a wind built up around me and began to spin in a small cyclone that caused the branches of the trees to toss wildly. I fell out of the tree and landed hard on my back. The wind continued to build as I slowly picked myself up, noticing as I did that I didn’t feel any pain.

A giant hand swooped down and picked me up by the back of my dress and lifted me into the air. I opened my mouth and screamed silently before I was dropped into an open palm that was as big as my dinner table. I glared at Sol as she stared down at me with silver eyes.

(Could you warn me next time before you pick me up?) I shouted at her. She shrugged her shoulders so I doubted that she could read my lips. I spit out the hair that tried to sneak its way further into my mouth as the wind continued to swirl around us and clear away the poison. I turned my attention to Lasaro as he lifted Cleave with both hands and slashed at the empty air in front of him.

All at once a roar filled my ears and I dropped Fix as I rushed to cover my now sensitive ears. Sol trembled beneath my knees, but didn’t let me fall.

Suddenly the wind stopped and a strange quiet filled my ears.

“What?” Sol said weakly.

“I can hear you!” I said excitedly. She ignored me and looked down at her feet. I followed her gaze and saw rotted piles of bones scattered around us. Did the miasma cause the rapid decomposition?

I felt my stomach curdle as the smell met my nose. I bit my lip to keep from vomiting.

“We should go now before more of these vile hounds arrive,” Lasaro said solemnly. “Eminence Sol and I should remain in our giant forms to make travel faster.”

“If we do that we lose our surprise advantage!” Sol cut in.

“We already lost our surprise advantage. The abomination knows we are here. Why else would these hounds attack and release miasma? As giants, walking will be our quickest method.”

“Are you sure you know Lemuete knows we’re here? The miasma has been affecting us since we left the sea. This could be a general defense!”

Lasaro pinched the bridge of his nose with his right hand while his left hung at his side holding Cleave. “We are short on time. Our Mistress is counting on us to complete this mission.”

“I know! You haven’t seen him though!” Sol’s hands moved wildly, and I fell on my face and wrapped my arms around her wrist, dropping Fix in the process.

“Careful, damn it!” I shouted. Sol knelt and let her hand hover just above the ground. I slid off her palm and picked up Fix from where it had fallen on the ground.

“Sorry,” she said quickly then straightened. “You both never saw him in his demon form, you never felt his power. Making us large targets will get us killed!”

“Standing here debating in giant form will get us killed!” I shouted up at them. They both looked down at me then began to shrink until they returned to their original sizes. “We need to make a decision soon. I personally do not want to be attacked by those dogs again.”

Our three ghostly companions surrounded us. 'Wow, it’s so nice to be able to hear again,' Ryaa said as he looked around us.

'Why are we arguing over travel?' Dorotea said. 'Eminence Lasaro is in charge, we should follow his choice.'

“Mother, you should be on my side!” Sol sounded outraged as she yelled.

'I am on your side, that doesn’t mean I always agree with you.'

“And why is he in charge?”

Dorotea held up her fist and began counting out points. 'One, he is a champion of our Mistress, two, he is an experienced warrior, and three, he wields Cleave.'

“What does a sword have to do with his ability to lead?”

'Our Mistress forged these weapons from her own divine body. Cleave is the most powerful; it has the ability to sever and bind. Fix immobilizes and heals.'

I lifted Fix up. Would I be able to use its powers when we faced the abomination? The thought of failure was scary. What if it didn’t work when we needed it most? What if I got too scared and ran away? I wasn’t as strong as a natural born Waterfolk. We had realized that quickly when they taught me how to swim.

How was I to compare to Lasaro or Sol? How was I to compare to the other handmaidens we had yet to meet?

Though Lasaro was eager to complete our task quickly, I felt Sol was right to take caution. Our biggest issue was transportation. If we wanted to follow Sol’s plan, we needed horses and maybe a cart. This required going to a town, and we all stood out with our clothes and hair. It would be dangerous, but it could be worth it. 

I didn’t know this area, but our ghost counterparts could scout for a decent town since they couldn’t do much else.

My eyes stung with unshed tears as I thought of Rolan and Arno back home. I hoped they were safe. I hoped that the demon did not find a way to attack them like he had the Waterfolk villages.

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“Everyone?” I said softly. They continued talking so I squared my feet and shoulders and took a deep breath. “Yo!” I shouted. They all flinched and looked at me. “W-we…should go with…Sol’s idea,” I began. “We don’t know for sure if the demon knows exactly where we are. I’m sure if he did he would send more than a pack of dogs after us.” My eyes dropped to the ground as I continued. “I think the spirits should find a town and then we can work on transportation from there.”

I stood in silence not meeting their eyes for a few moments, and then I felt a hand on my shoulder. I flinched. “Lady Melinde, are you sure of this?” Lasaro asked.

“I’m-m sure. I’m sure! If this plan doesn’t work, we’ll go with giant forms, though you’ll have to teach me how.”

“That’s fine, I can show you!” Sol said gently. I glanced at her face and saw that she looked relieved. I wonder what she had experienced when she met the demon. Was it the source of her nightly panics?

I adjusted my grip on Fix and looked at our small group. Would we be enough to defeat the demon? We hardly knew each other and yet we were expected to fight together. I wished that we had more time to train, to learn more about each other, but we wouldn’t get that time. We could only hope that the Mistress would grant us her power and protection.

I smiled weakly; it was funny that we had to trust in death to hope for life.

“Father, Ryaa, go find a town that is big enough to have horses to purchase. I traded with Lord Cadfael for local currency. I’ll need your help with bartering,” Lasaro said.

“You’re going alone?” Sol said in a harsh voice.

“I won’t be, I’ll have them with me. We only need one horse.”

“Why only one?” I asked.

“Waterfolk have higher stamina than Landwalkers.  We can easily outpace a horse over short and long distances with training.”

“I assume that you’ve had to do so?”

“Yes…”

"We should go together," I said firmly. "I don't think it's wise for you to only travel with spirits."

"I agree," Sol said as she glared at Lasaro.

"As you wish," Lasaro said with a bow of his head.

'Ryaa and I will leave now,' Lasaro’s father said. He bowed his head politely then floated to the north.

'See you soon!' Ryaa said cheerfully and followed after him.

I sat on the ground, the adrenaline in my body finally wearing off. “Whoo, I’m shaking,” I said as I looked at my trembling hands.

“It’s normal after a battle,” Lasaro replied.

“But I didn’t do any fighting.”

“Even so, the threat of death is enough to make even the hardiest warrior quiver.” He bent over and placed his right hand on my shoulder. “I’m glad you’re unhurt. Do you have a better grasp of your weapon’s power?”

I looked down at the spear, now dormant, in my hands. I didn’t have any understanding of my weapon. I felt like a child trying to wield his father’s sword, thrashing and stumbling in hope that I would somehow hit my target.

I sighed and shook my head. “No… I don’t know how to use it. How do you use Cleave?”

Lasaro knelt beside me while Sol walked a few steps away, I assumed to stand guard. The man placed Cleave on the mossy ground in front of me. “Cleave is like a talisman for part of the Mistress’s spirit. It’s semi sentient, but cannot act on its own. I direct my will towards it and it responds.”

“I tried speaking to Fix and I seemed to form some sort of connection.”

He smiled at me gently. “That’s good! Next, try praying to the Mistress to form a stronger connection to Fix.”

“T-thank you,” I said and clutched the spear closer to my chest. Hopefully his advice would prove useful.

Nearly two hours later the men returned with news of a town to our east that had several stables. Ryaa led us to a main road and we began to follow behind him. The uncharacteristic chill of the fall air caused me to shiver as the forest fell away to farmland. We passed dilapidated farms with yellow plants and gray soil.

A yellow haze filled the air around us and we kept our Grace over our nose to filter out the fouled air. My eyes darted between hills, homes, and barns looking for signs of life, but not even a fly rose to bother us.

“Ryaa, were there any people in the town?” I asked quietly.

'Yes, why?'

“Well look around us! Everything is sick, and I haven’t seen a single person or animal on this road!”

He looked at the ground dejectedly. 'I know… The town isn’t much better. Most of the people are in their homes.'

I picked up my pace. If most of the people were sick I had to do something. I couldn’t let them suffer in this miasma.

“Melinde?” Sol said.

“We have to hurry. If I can heal the people in the town they can help the ones out here.”

“How are you going to do that?”

“I… I’m not sure yet.”

“Do we really have the time to help? Shouldn’t defeating the demon cure this blight?” Lasaro said. I moved in front of the group and stopped in the middle of the road. They stopped just short of me. I stared at Lasaro sternly.

“You may be able to walk past people suffering, but I can’t.”

His eyes widened in surprise before his face became an emotionless mask. “Lady Melinde, the way to help these people is by completing our duty first. We will only slow ourselves down if we take the time to help every needful person that we come across. In fact, more people will become sick the longer we dally making our work as useless as digging a hole in quicksand.”

I slammed the butt of my spear into the dirt and sparks of light flew from the tip of its bladed tip. Sol flinched, but Lasaro remained stoic as he stared down at me. “Even so I can’t walk away from a problem that I see before me.”

“Whatever you decide to do in that town, it better not delay us. And know that we can’t help every town we pass.”

I felt a pressure in my chest and heat in my eyes as tears began to form. I wanted to help them all, but we didn’t have time. If only we did, but it was useless wondering about what we didn’t have. I needed to focus on what I needed to do and that was helping these people.

My grip tightened on my Grace as I continued to hold it over my nose. “I understand,” I said firmly.

We reached the town and my knees became weak from nervousness. The streets were empty and would have been quiet if not for the creaking of a gate that hadn’t been closed. We crossed the town without meeting a single person and walked up to the door of the stablemaster. Lasaro knocked. After several minutes of waiting he knocked again when there was no answer.

We heard wood scraping on wood then a click as the lock was released. The door swung open slowly and a gray moustached, balding man greeted us with a glare. “What do you want?” he wheezed as he leaned against the jamb.

“We wish to purchase a horse,” Lasaro said.

“Can’t, all sick,” the man said and then tried to close the door, but Lasaro placed his hand against it and held it open.

“What if my companion were able to heal your horses, would you sell to us then?”

“Look, I don’t know who you are, but we don’t deal in witchcraft here!” The man swung the door wide and tried to slam it, but Lasaro’s hand had not moved from its spot and caught the door without any movement. The man paled and backed away from the door, his eyes darting to a fireplace where a gun rested on two hooks.

“We know nothing of witchcraft, Stablemaster. We simply wish to purchase a horse.”

“No! Get out! How can I not think you’re witches with that white hair and freaky eyes.”

'I vote to steal the horse,' Ryaa said. Sol and her mother rolled their eyes.

“Hush,” I said to him then turned my attention back to the man who was slowly creeping backwards to his fireplace. “Now or never,” I said under my breath and held up Fix and pointed the tip toward the man. “FIX! HEAL!” I sent up a silent prayer as I did so.

The shaft of the spear began to pulse and the glyphs to glow as I continued to point it at the man. A warmth filled my body and I felt my muscles relax. I kept my attention on the old man and willed the warmth to fill him.

He stopped wheezing and slowly sank to the floor; his jaw slack and a content look on his face. The glyphs ceased their glow and the man shook himself before standing up. “What was that?” he asked cautiously.

I walked toward him slowly and knelt in front of him. “A blessing from our god. I can do the same for your horses.”

The man sat in silence for a few moments before sighing. “If you’re willing to heal the horses, can you heal my daughter first? She’s pregnant, it’s her first child… I’m worried that…that the child won’t make it.”

I looked back at Lasaro. He nodded to me. “Take me to her.”

The stablemaster’s daughter lay on a sweat soaked mattress in a tiny room only big enough for the bed and a chair that was pushed up to the side of the bed. Blankets covered the large swell of her belly, showing that she would give birth in a few weeks, if she lived.

Her husband occupied the chair. He sat hunched over her right hand while gripping it tightly in his own. He smelled sour and his clothes were wrinkled and reeked of bodily fluids. His breath came in heavy gasps that were nearly drowned out by the gasps of his wife’s irregular breathing.

Her skin was sallow and purplish bruises had formed around her eyes and the corners of her lips; her veins looked like the black branches of a tree. I wondered if her condition made her more susceptible to the miasma of the demon. Did these people know what was happening to them?

“Have any of you seen any strange clouds recently?” I asked.

“A few months ago, a strange dust storm blew in. It was after that we found the ground covered in dead insects. The birds flew away as well as the small animals. Crops got sick, then the larger animals and we got sick,” the stablemaster said.

“I see.”

The miasma had been spreading for a while. It was probably in the soil and water supply by now. I looked at the sleeve of my Grace. If I could purify the water supply, they would probably stand a better chance of overcoming the miasma. My healing the stablemaster was probably short term, but if I used my Grace in a well, any who drank from it regularly could get better.

“Take me to the kitchen.”

I stood over a pitcher of water and held the sleeve of my Grace over it. I took a pair of shears with my other hand and cut an inch-wide swathe from it. The fabric coiled in the water like a snake and settled at the bottom. I hoped what I had done would not be considered heresy by the Gentle God.

The water flashed with a white light for a brief moment. I blinked away the spots as I picked up the pitcher and carried it back to the bedroom. I poured the liquid in a clay cup and handed it to the husband. “Have her drink all of this,” I said.

He looked at it doubtfully then turned his gaze to his father-in-law. “How are we supposed to trust some strange witch that waltzes in here?” he said

“She’s not a witch, she’s a handmaiden.”

“Yeah? To what god.”

“The Mistress.”

The man froze and looked at me with fear and suspicion. “Why would Death care if we lived? How can I trust that you didn’t put some poison in this?”

The stablemaster grabbed the cup from the man’s hand and gulped it down before handing the empty cup back to me. “There! Now if Sara dies, she’ll not go alone. Happy?”

Cowed, the son-in-law nodded and I handed the cup back to him. He dribbled a little in his wife’s mouth. Her breathing became quieter and he became hesitant. “Keep going!” I said. He continued to trickle the water down her throat. Soon a change could be seen. The daughter’s skin lost its sallowness and gained a more olive tone. The black veins grayed then faded away completely. As the last drop past her lips, her eyes opened and she looked around the room.

“Father, why are you here?” the woman said. Her husband began to sob into the sheets. “What’s going on?”

“You’ve been in bed for two days, Sara. We thought we were going to lose you both,” the stablemaster said.

I stepped out of the room and allowed the three some privacy. The stablemaster later joined me in the kitchen.

“How can I thank you for what you’ve done?” he said.

I held up the pitcher. “Dump this in the town well. Tell people to only drink from the one that you pour this into. This should heal those already affected by the miasma and prevent your people from becoming infected by it again.”

“Yes, Sister.”

The stablemaster did as I told him and dumped the pitcher, cloth and all into the main town well. The dark hole filled with a white light for a brief moment then it faded, I looked down at the water and saw a silvery shimmer reminiscent of the Sparkling Sea. The stablemaster then drew water from the well and gave it to his horses.

One by one the sickly animals were led to a trough and drank the purified water. After twenty minutes all twelve horses were alert and eating as much food as their stomachs could handle.

“Will we be able to purchase a horse now?” Lasaro asked. He and the others had waited in the stablemaster’s residence while I went to see the daughter. His eyes looked tired as he stood in front of the older man.

“Yes, as promised. I’ll sell one for fifty silvers.”

“Only fifty?”

“After what you’ve done for my daughter it’s the least I can do.”

Lasaro held out his hand and the two shook. “You are most generous. Thank you,” he said.

“Like I said, the least I can do.”

The man was paid and Lasaro helped me into the saddle of our new horse. I patted his blonde mane and he leaned into my hand.

“Take good care of Light Foot. He’s a good boy and doesn’t spook easily,” the stablemaster said as he rubbed the steed’s nose. “I’ll miss you boy.” He kissed its nose and the horse huffed. “Where are you guys headed?”

“Naomi,” Sol said curtly. “Do you know if they’re experiencing the same sickness?”

“I don’t. Not much news has traveled here since most of us have been sick.”

“If you see any more dust clouds take cover. Make sure to wash everything in the clean well water,” I said.

“Thank you again,” the stablemaster said with a smile. I returned it. Hopefully the town would survive the demon’s blight and the Grace would keep the water pure.

We had traveled a little outside of the town before Sol broke the silence between us. “How did you cure the man’s daughter?”

“I-well, I used my Grace,” I said softly. “I c-cut away part of my sleeve and put it in some water and made her drink it.” I closed my eyes and tensed up, waiting for them to chastise me.

“Really? That’s amazing,” she said. She grabbed my left ankle and began to swing my foot in excitement. “Is that what you also put in the well?”

“Yes… will I be in trouble for that?”

“For what?” She cocked her head to the side and I felt my face heat as I grew more and more nervous. Hadn’t I done something terrible? Wasn’t there some Waterfolk law against the mutilation of the Grace? Had Sol been dropped on her head and forgotten a little detail like that or was I worrying over nothing?

“Didn’t I break a law? Commit a heresy against the Gentle God?”

“What?” Sol said, still sounding confused.

“Didn’t I do something wrong? I cut off a piece of my Grace!” I shouted the last part then covered my mouth.

“No, as far as I know the Gentle God never passed any restrictions on cutting or tearing our Grace,” Lasaro said. “Did you think there were?”

“Well, it was a gift from a god. What was I supposed to think?”

“I see your point,” he said, his eyes continuing to look forward as we continued down the road.

“May I see your sleeve?” Sol asked. She began swinging my foot again. Where had all of this energy come from? I immediately thought of Rolan and his hyper moments. They were tiring when they occurred, but created some of the fondest memories; like when he was four, he had snuck into the baker’s kitchen and ripped open a flour bag and danced in the ground powder. I had been mortified at the time, but now I could tease him about it.

I rolled back the sleeve of my dress, exposing my Grace then paused. My sleeve was longer; I couldn’t see the jagged the cut I had made by cutting it one handed. “My sleeve!”

“Yes, that’s a sleeve.”

I rolled my eyes. “No, that’s not what I mean. It’s healed?” I waved my arm in front of her face. Both Ryaa and Dorotea came closer to take a look. “See? I can’t even see the cut marks.”

“The Gentle God would develop a poor image if their gift was easily ruined,” Dorotea said. “I’m sure if you damage Fix that it would heal itself.”

“I suppose,” I replied. I touched my sleeve again. Was it possible that the Gentle God had always meant for the Grace to be shared?