As the fleet approached the source of the smoke, dread and confusion twisted through Theo's guts.
At first he couldn't quite figure out what he was looking at. It seemed like a giant black stain on the leeward side of a low, rolling hill, as if someone had splashed ink across the snow. But as he stared, he realized the darkness wasn't uniform. It was rough and patchy, thicker in some areas and lighter in others. As the skycraft came closer, the wind from their propellers stirred up great drifts of swirling black dust.
No, not dust. Ash. And it wasn't just the ash blowing in the wind. Dense clouds of smoke curled from the scorched ground, carrying with them the acrid stench of burning. Even high up as they were, the air began to blur and Theo's lungs tightened.
He squinted, forcing himself to focus through the billowing smoke. The scene was almost like an ink painting, stark black and white and shades of gray where the ash mixed with the slushy snow. But there were spots of fiery red as well, embers and weakly flickering flames shedding tiny cinders across the ground.
Wait. Some of the red patches seemed almost...wet.
Theo's chest seized. Now he realized they weren't just looking at flat ground: structures rose from the snow, tiny as toys beneath the skycraft. Though blanketed in soot, Theo realized they must be stone buildings. Houses.
"Holy...," Sam breathed next to him, her hands clamped over her mouth and eyes huge.
Theo's heart wouldn't stop racing. In all his time in Tielos, he'd never seen this level of devastation. Not even Mare could compare.
Did Zenith have something to do with this? Was he...responsible?
Nausea wrenched through his stomach, almost sending him to his knees. He had to grip the railing for support, sucking in desperate breaths to keep down the bile rising in his throat. No. Zenith would never, never. He'd betrayed the crew because, wrong as his reasons might have been, he had believed they didn't have the good of Tielos in mind. That righteousness of his might be cold and inhuman, but Theo had to believe it was the core of Zenith's being.
But...but if the people in that village had been demons....
Theo couldn't finish the thought. He didn't want to.
"Theo." Victor's touch on his arm snapped him back to reality. He gazed at Theo, face troubled. "Are you okay?"
Theo had to swallow a mouthful of bitter saliva before he trusted himself to speak. "I'm fine." His voice came out hoarse, but at least he managed to form words.
Victor didn't look convinced, but that was when Darian's voice drifted across the deck. Though quiet, it reverberated in the hush that had fallen over the crew. "Amaro. Take her in."
Amaro started. "You sure?"
"Yes," Darian said, still quiet, but with an edge of steely determination. "We can't just ignore this. Inform Gryseld too. I think she'll want to investigate herself. Meg, Lodo, Kress – "
"Wait," Sam called. "We're coming too."
"Us too!" Fia grabbed a startled Ryan by the arm.
"Fine, Sam and Ryllis. Fia and Ryan, you stay on board. I don't want too many people down there. We're only scouting, and it's best to be prepared in case whatever caused that decides to attack from the sky."
As she continued shouting instructions, gathering crew members around her, Theo watched without really paying attention. He felt like he was in a trance, the world slipping past him while he remained still. Only when Amaro began lowering the Blue Sky into a descent did Theo's senses return.
"Wait," he shouted, running over to Darian. "Let me come."
"Theo," Victor said, though he didn't follow. "Are you sure?"
Theo nodded at Victor, then faced Darian. "I can still help everyone with my spells. Please."
He tried his hardest to keep his voice level, betraying none of the terror and dread churning inside him. All he knew was he had to see it with his own eyes. If it had something, anything to do with Zenith....
He didn't know if Darian had seen something of his desperation, but her face softened a bit before she jerked her head into a nod. "All right."
Theo breathed out, but none of the tension unraveled from his muscles. Well, that was fine. He needed to stay as alert as possible, anyway.
~*~
In the silent village, every sound seemed uncomfortably loud. The breath hissing in Theo's lungs. The crunch of his footsteps through the ash and slush. Even his heartbeat, throbbing a desperate rhythm inside his chest.
Down here, the smoke gathered so thick Theo could barely see through it. Even the light of the globe-fish they had brought with them was weak and watery, barely penetrating the smoke, let alone the darkness of night.
Still, it was enough for Theo to keep track of his companions. Sam and Ryllis directly to his left, Kress, Meg and Lodo to the right, Darian and Gryseld leading, two pirates bringing up the rear. They all wore goggles and filtering masks, courtesy of Nevy. The air that flowed into Theo's lungs had a faint bitter tinge, but it was better than inhaling smoke.
He gripped his staff tight, palms sweaty beneath his gloves. The fire had melted much of the snow on the ground, turning it into a slushy mire. Rivulets of water trickled through the slush, carrying with them clumps of ash like silt in a river.
And not all the liquid was water. Theo stopped at a spot where blood flowed downhill from a stain on the ground, swirling and mixing with the gray ash. Some insane part of him almost found it beautiful.
"Theo." Sam's hand on his shoulder, her urgent voice hissing in his ear. "Come on."
Right, he couldn't get distracted. He turned back to the main group, only to see Gryseld fall still with a decisive thump of her tail. Its entire underside was coated with damp ash, but she didn't seem to care.
"Say," she said, her voice crisp and clear in the smoky air. "Doesn't something seem a little...off...about this whole situation?"
"Whatcha mean, Captain?" one of the pirates asked, but that was when Ryllis breathed in sharply.
"There's nobody around."
"That's right." Gryseld spread her arms to encompass the entire scene. "Peculiar, isn't it? This village must have been attacked for a reason. No marauder worth their salt would bother laying waste to an abandoned settlement. Yet there isn't a single soul in sight. Not even a body – and judging by the amount of blood, I'd expect to find at least a couple of bodies, if not many more."
She spoke about death so casually, with no hint of emotion aside from faint puzzlement. Then again, Theo supposed she was a pirate for a reason.
As for what he himself felt, he wasn't sure. He glanced at Sam, whose eyes were huge and quivering behind her goggles.
"Perhaps the villagers succeeded in escaping," Lodo said, though he didn't sound like he believed this.
"We'd see footprints if that was the case," Darian pointed out.
"Maybe...." Sam spoke up, her voice thin and quivering. "Maybe they're...in the houses? And they're too scared to come out?"
"Or the bodies are in the houses," Ryllis said roughly. Squeaking, Sam clamped her hands over her face.
"Let's check the houses," Darian said, brisk as ever. Without any preamble, she ducked through the door of the nearest building. Kress and Gryseld exchanged glances before squeezing in after her.
Theo turned to Sam, who was clutching her elbows and shivering. He needed to say something to comfort her, but what?
And before he could, Ryllis grabbed Sam's arm. Her touch was firm, but not without affection. "Let's go," she said.
Sam squirmed a little, and Theo almost thought she was going to try wrenching free, but then she went limp and jerked her head in a stiff nod. Seeming satisfied, Ryllis led her toward a nearby building. Hefting his staff, Theo followed.
Even so, he couldn't deny that his heart was pounding like it wanted to break free of his chest. As he stepped through the narrow entrance, he held his breath and braced himself for the worst.
Bits and pieces of the scene leaped out at him. Ash piled on the floor. Blackened lumps scattered helter-skelter. The only discernible feature that remained was a recessed pit in the center, which might have once held a hearth.
But there were no bodies. No people.
Slumping her shoulders, Sam let out a rattling breath. Theo supposed he was relieved too, but it barely registered beneath his confusion. If nobody was in the houses, then where had they gone?
Something on the wall caught his attention. He nodded at the globe-fish hovering over his shoulder, which obligingly splashed its light across the wall. A gasp escaped his throat – it was a smear of blood, still wet and glistening.
Then he heard a noise from the entrance, a wet shuffling like footsteps in slush. A shadow fell across the floor, blotting out the light.
That was all the warning Theo got before something lunged right at him.