*Warning (Gore)
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I sat in the cold, on the hard rock at the entrance of the abandoned temple cave of Wihacannon. Blue fireflies flew around in a circle of the cave's veneer, causing the cave to glow a nightlight color.
I gaze at the statues of broken gods that stand next to the pillars. The large statues of stone stare into nothing, their stone eyes an abyss.
The necklace was wet in my hands. The beads rattled as I played with its ruff rim. On the bridge, I leaped in the sea and swam deep. I found the necklace laying on a sea stone. When I got back to the surface I ran here. It was the only place I felt safe, isolated from everyone.
I stared at Papa's memorial from a distance. I wished he were here. He would have all the answers to my sufferings, he always did. I didn't know how long I stayed, but I knew it was late. I had no intentions of going back.
I shivered in the cold. I had discarded my red robe on the beach, and so I sat in a thin white robe that was wet from my dive and the moistures cave. My hair was no longer in the high bun the Ganga women put for me, it was laid out on my shoulder in twirling locs. The paint on my face was smudged, mostly because of the tears.
I held the necklace tightly in my hand. I recalled the time I was in Aiyi's house being treated after being pushed off the waterfall, Mari was with me throughout my entire recovery. Uncle Gumbos read us myths like Mita did before he was sent off to war. It was when our whole family was together, Papa, Mita, Uncle Gumbos, Kleo, everyone.
One night, Uncle Gumbos was at the docks with Aiyi. Mari decided to read me myths about her favorite god, the Goddess of Elves, Shivra. Mari promised me she would show me all of Shivra's landmarks in the far north, near Ambel, where the Kustalian river rests. She's never been there, but she's seen the drawings on maps, the number of waterfalls that tarried around the river, and the Ambelan forests.
She drew it for me on the wall, the outlines of the forest's trees with powdered coal and kiwi juice. I was sleepy, but I heard it. She made a promise to me that night. That she'd show me all of Kustal, all the high mountains, the rivers, the waterfalls, the cities, every borderline she said we'd visit. We could be secret huntresses, living in the high Ambelan woods, in our small rondavel, living a peaceful and quiet life. She told me we didn't have to just be village girls, that we could be so much more. I thought it was just one of our many false pursuits. But what a fool I was.
I held tight to the necklace, feeling the tears drop on the ruff ground, mixing in with the puddles. The streaks on my cheeks felt warm, gross, and painful. But they were the only comfort I had. "Liar..." I whispered. "Liar," I muttered. "Lia..." my voice broke.
I didn't know who I could be referring to. Whether it was Mari, Aiyi, Mita, Papa, or Gumbos, they all left me when I needed them, they were all liars.
I felt the woosh of the cave's curtain and quickly bought my head up, frightened. But when I saw who it was I felt all the rage deep inside me explode.
Aiyi walked inside, her sandals making small splashing sounds, she was not in her uniform, instead, she was in a regular robe like me, with a blanket covering her. She was shivering, and I widened my eyes when I saw the snow on her hair. "I had a feeling you were here," she whispered.
She sat on the rock in front of me, her face placid and unmoving. I couldn't tell whether she was mad or pitying me. But we sat in silence for a few moments, letting the blue fireflies pass by.
"In case you're wondering, Ragnus is fine. It wasn't anything serious, just a cut. A few stitches and he'll live. But in exchange for keeping your head intact, we have to move the wedding to next week."
I shuddered, feeling ants crawl all around me. I had just doomed Mari.
"Tonight was the first snowfall," she let out, not bothering to look at me. "I wonder what a wedding in the winter will be like. White roses, fur coats maybe."
"How could you," I snarled.
She sighed. "Mari volunteered to marry Ragus after overhearing a conversation between me and the Ganga women. I never forced Mari to do anything, I would never force her to do anything."
"But you allowed her," I snapped, not bothering to keep my temper in check. "How could allow her to make such a ridiculous decision? And how could you not tell me about it! How could you lie to my face—both of you, how can you do such a thing? How can you let her leave?"
I saw the sullen look on Aiyi's face, her strong demeanor was broken, not like how it was before. Right now she didn't look like a Ganga leader, but just an old widow. She breathed in, "I should've stopped her, but her mind was made."
"Then that means you didn't convince her well enough—"
"Zuri!" Aiyi's voice was stern, and it shut me up immediately. "Mari made her choice, and I will not intervene with her decisions. You shouldn't either."
I felt like screaming. "Is anyone not understanding what I was trying to prove? That was no future for Mari! A future without family, a future without a loving husband, a future with nothing but misery. That was no future," I cried, letting my feelings and tears drown me. "This isn't right," I choked. "This isn't what our parents wanted."
I rested my head on my knees, not bearing for Aiyi to see my tears. It wasn't until I felt her hand resting on my hair that I looked up. She stood in front of me, with tear-filled eyes, and a saddened expression. "Days before your Mita died," her voice strained, "she told me to raise you both freely, let you both choose your path in life. To grow old and be satisfied with the life you've lived, with the choices you've made. Not by the choices others made for you."
I try to smile. "She told me the same thing before," I cough. "But—"
"Mari made her choice, Zuri," she said. "It's time for you to make yours."
I breathed in, the smell of cold air filling my nose. I try not to choke out, or cry in Aiyi's arms, or run back to our rondavel to hug Mari tightly, to ask for forgiveness, to beg her to not leave, but what good would that do? She's made her decision, and there's nothing that's going to stop her.
Before I can say anything, Aiyi hugs me tightly. "Let's go home," she mutters.
I slowly nodded as tears streamed down my face. "Ok."
We both rose from the rock. Aiyi hugged me tightly as we walked out of the cave. I was still weeping in her arms, and Aiyi caressed my back, murmuring soft words.
"Do you think she will forgive me?" I asked.
Aiyi smiles. "You're her dada wu damu, why won't she forgive you."
I smile, feeling the tears in my eyes die off.
I hug Aiyi tight as we walk down the slopey rock hill and onto the sand. It's snowing, the first snowfall of the year. Mari and I would play in the snow at the entrance of the forest. But thinking about it, we most likely won't do that in the next snowfall.
I must ask for her forgiveness if I ever want to think about doing that again.
Aiyi suddenly stops, causing me to look at her in worry. Life had drained from her face, she was thirty times older, paler, and she looked scared. "What's the matter?" I ask.
I turned to where her eyes were planted at the village gates. When I saw the horror, I put my hand to my mouth. "Is that . . ." "It is," she whispered.
The village was on fire, clouds of black smoke floating toward the clouds. The moon was no longer seen, covered by the cloud of flame and smoke. Even with the cave far from the village, the screams of villagers could be heard.
Aiyi jumped off the rocky slope, her feet landing on the sand. It didn't take a second for her to run. I quickly pursued her, trying to keep up with her pace.
There was a loud boom from the gate, and I almost fell backward from the loudness. There were multiple explosions in the sea coming down to the coastal mountains. A fire had broken out from the forest afar, and I saw the waves crash on the coast like roaring monsters, steam erupting on the beach. "Where are the explosions coming from," I ask Aiyi. But she wasn't looking at me, her eyes were planted on the black sky, the small flakes coming from the heavens, the gray clouds that sparked lightning—but there, there was light. Circles of white light had formed in columns over the clouds, and as more explosions came from the sky, the more the creature could be seen.
A huge rectangular ship had morphed from the clouds, the invisible metal becoming more visible to the naked eye. It sank beneath the village like an oversized whale, hovering over the hill as more explosions came from its bottom, tube-like cannons shooting fire by fire at the village below it. "What is that thing!"
"It's a skyship, one that isn't Kustalian based."
I shivered in shock. "You don't mean—"
"It's Al Manian based. We're under attack."
We ran faster to the gates, passing by the multitudes of people running out of the village. Asklander soldiers were screaming orders, and I saw Aiyi run to a fellow woman, barking at her to go get her sword, I realized she was a Ganga woman. Aiyi gave me one final look before running off through the gates. "Find your sister," she mouthed.
Before I could even step foot inside the village, an asklander stood before me. "You need to go to the river, a ship is waiting there—!"
"My sister is still in there!" I shout. "I need to get her."
He was looking all around me, completely panicking at the large crowd escaping from the gates. He seems young, with ruff cut hair, tan skin, and blue eyes, a rookie by the likes of it.
"Please let me through," I pleaded. I tried to push past him, but he was strong.
He shakes his head ferociously. "Absolutely Not! You'll get killed, please just go to the river—"
"EVERYONE GET DOWN!" An asklander shouted from afar.
The air was thick, for a split second everything was quiet before the blasts of bullets had come from the air, tumbling toward us. It came down like a never-ending rain shower, the bullets piercing and sharp. All I heard were screams until the sound turned into endless booms and bursts.
I dropped to the ground, covering my ears with my hands as the sound became too loud. I felt piles of bodies on top of me. Huddling on the floor from the roaring sounds of gunfire and explosions.
I was leaning on the asklander's shoulder, my legs rested on a random person. Shouts were heard through the gunfire, asklanders telling people to "duck" or "fall".
When it was over, I was still on the sandy ground, covering my ears, and shuddering in terror. The moment I opened my eyes, I watched the lump of fallen bodies before me. Everything was burning, covered in red burning smoke. The ground was covered in black snow and ash. Shots were fired through people's bodies, one too many than the other. Villagers were screaming as they saw the aftermath of the massacre. Mothers holding their dead children, weeping. Friends cradling their lost friends. Neighbors staring at their neighbors' bloodied bodies.
I looked at the asklander next to me, by some miracle he survived, but he looked dead at the same time. He was in shock, his blue eyes wide at the mess before him, he was not moving, I didn't think he was breathing either. I moved away from him and realized my leg was resting on the villager. It was a woman, her robe was patterned with cherries, but her feathers were green. Her head was half decapitated, and her abdomen was filled with gun holes. She stared at nothing, her pupils swallowing her eyes whole.
I turned to the side and threw up painfully. It hurt like hell as if my whole gut was coming out of my mouth. I clenched hard on my stomach, trying to rid of the images in my head. When I pulled my hand away, I watched in horror at the blood that drenched it. I've been shot.
I tried standing up, feeling my stomach throb in pain. My once white robe was bathed in blood, ash, and dirt. Even though the bleeding and trauma, I had to move. I had to find Mari.
I eyed the asklander, who was staring out into the sand field of corpses, before running through the gates, jumping over fallen bodies.
It was dark and the smell of the heavy ash made my eyes water. I covered my nose and clenched the wound at my stomach. It took nothing but adrenaline to keep me going, the thought of Mari bleeding on the ground was enough to send me running up the slope, even with the gun wound.
The columns of stalls were destroyed, the stone and grassy floor eradicated, leaving wide holes and cracks on the ground. Everything was in flames, villagers' gates, their homes, even the tall reeds, all burning.
A boom hit one of the stalls not too far from me, and I quickly ran in the other direction, only to stop when another round of bullets from the ship was aimed at me. I clenched on the wound harder, sucking in the pain and forcing myself to climb up a nearby tree.
I used the strength in my feet, forcing my toes to dig in the trunk. I almost tripped on a branch but was able to reach the top.
I tried to see the view from here, and hopefully, our rondavel that was at the top of the hill. The view of the disaster was awful. Many villagers were at the beach, running towards the burning forest where the river was.
The village gates were in flames, and gunshots were raining towards the east of the village, where everything was mostly destroyed. At the top of the hill, most of the rondavels were intact, and I took that as a sign that Mari might be all right.
I smiled feeling confident, but right when I stepped on the lower branch, it made a crack, causing me to slip and start tumbling down the tree. I felt the air leave me when a stick hit my wound, making a scratching sound that made my ears disabled.
I landed on the ground, feeling another crack in my spine. The pain was unbearable, and I screamed so loud it felt as if my lungs were gonna burst. I choked on my tears. Feeling blood bubble out of my mouth. The pain I was feeling tormented, nothing like I'd ever experienced before. I couldn't tell whether I was dying or already a fallen corpse. Everything felt numb, nothing but the pain was sensible.
I stared into the vast sky, watching as holes from the ship started opening. My eyes widened when I saw figures fly out of the ships. They dived through the sky like piercing knives, their red garments being flagged like capes. There were dozens of them, all separating into different sections of the village. Rounds of explosions and gunshots come with them, like spark works of enchantresses.
I forced myself to get up, but I could do nothing but crawl, leaving bloodstain trails along with me. I saw a nearby destroyed stall, I forced myself to crawl all the way there. Hiding behind glass shards and broken wood.
My heart was beating so fast I thought it'd explode.
I couldn't tell what the figures were. Warriors maybe? They were not asklanders from the looks of it. I couldn't tell what the invasion was for. A surprise attack? Provocation to the Emperor? A planned attack? Has the contract between Pisok and Khrâng been terminated? Or did they even sign it in the first place? Maybe because of me?
The questions streaming through my head were like a river, flowing and pacing. This couldn't have been my fault, and I doubt the Khrângans would ever expect a disaster at this level, even those annoying military shinwa. But what if it was my fault? What if my outburst caused this? For all, I knew those shinwa could've taken my attack personally. But why kill everyone?
The sound of a boom hit close by, and I hunched as debris and rubble flew through my way. "Fuck," I hissed.
I bent low, opening the patch to my kit. I left my dagger at the bridge, and my sword was at home. But I doubt that'd be enough to fend off explosions and guns. Nothing but the necklace was in my kit. I was completely weak. Without a sword I'm nothing.
I cut the hem of my robe, all the way up to my knees. I folded it, tying it around my waist. I yelped at the discomfort.
The only hope I had was Aiyi. The last time I saw her, she was running up the slope like a madman, yelling orders at random people. She could be at the hill, Mari with her, or she could have fallen, a bleeding corpse in a graveyard. I tried to shake the image away.
Another boom hit and I'd officially lost my hearing. Everything sounded like a haze. My vision became a blur. I didn't think I had much time left. But until I became one of the many fallen corpses, I needed to find Mari.
I forced myself to get up, a painful sting zapping my whole body. I started limping through the rubble, trying not to step on glass pieces and wooden chips.
I turned the corner, now on the north slope road that was filled with withered reeds and stone walls.
I stopped in my tracks when I saw a little girl. Her pink robe was blooded, and her eye had a huge gash that went to her cheek. Her braids were in tangles, and her eyes were wide like they might burst from terror.
I slowly walked up to her, clenching my wound tighter so I could speak. "H-hey where's your family…"
She said nothing but stared at me. She turned to an open gate of a rondavel yard, beyond the stone walls I could see smoke.
I walked closer to the open gates. The home was burning, black smoke coming out of its windows. I saw a burning body laying on the steps and I quickly looked away.
I walked backward. "Let's go, y-you can come with me."
She shakes her head. "Iya is in there, I can't leave her."
I bite back the tears. "Iya's down the hill, with the rest of the villagers."
She shakes her head.
"Let's get y-you to safety, d-don't worry about Iya right now."
She frowns, her wide eyes narrowing. "Iya is in there! You have to go save her."
I bent down. "Shush. You're making noise," I whispered.
Footsteps could be heard from afar. Two figures come from a smoky distance, dressed in a red military uniform with capes. They had scarves over their heads that were rusted yellow.
I quickly bent down into the tall reeds dragging the little girl with me. I was panicking. I slowly walked away from them, pulling the girl with me. Those were warriors from a different country. An enemy-country.
I heard whispers. They were talking in Al Manian. They were walking closer, and I felt my grip on the girl tighten. But when I heard them say "bomb" I let go.
The child ran from me, running back to her home. The soldiers saw her, chasing her down and then grabbing her by the jaw and lifting her upwards. "Iya!" She screamed.
The warrior grabbing her asked the other warrior a question. I couldn't quite tell what it was. But when the warrior answered with a shake of his head, the other dropped her to the ground.
He took out a shiny black pistol and shot her, a loud bang erupting in the air.
I put my hand to my mouth, biting on my palm, forcing myself to not scream.
When I looked at her face again, she was wide-eyed like before, a bullet through her head.
I gagged at the sight.
The warriors were close, and they started walking toward me. I held in my breath, bending down into the reeds.
They were going to bomb the village, kill knows how many, and what would happen to me, to Mari, our future. I was going to die without even saying goodbye to her.
Tears started flowing down my cheeks. This was it for me. I let go of my wound, letting the gash bleed freely.
In a sudden swish, I felt a hand on my face, covering me with a light fabric. "Shush," they whispered slowly. And then all heard was nothing, and all I saw was darkness.