Crusade Across Worlds (44 page)

“Good,” Able answers. “He’s with the Healers
now.”

Reid looks at me. “Sampson wants to have a
discussion about what’s next, but he’s saving that for tomorrow,
after the funeral. Do you think you can hold out until then?”

“Hold out?”

“With questions. I know everyone is anxious
about what we do next. But I think for some,” he narrows his eyes
on me, “rest is most important.”

“I agree,” I lean back.

“You’re not hungry?” Able frowns. “I came to
see what I should bring you from the Dining Hall. Fallon, you
should eat.”

His words strike me deeper than they would
have before. Because I’m not just feeding myself anymore. I’m
feeding myself and…our child. Reid’s child.

My head rolls into a nod. “Maybe a small
bowl of Jiji.”

“One bowl of Jiji coming up!” Able rushes
from the room.

“Glad to see you have an appetite,” Reid
sits back on the bed next to me. His eyes flicker between mine, the
concern returning. “Sure you’re okay? You seemed a little spooked
there for a second.”

I could tell him. Right now. Just get it out
of the way and let the news sink in. But is that fair? When it’s so
early in the pregnancy? I don’t know much about this, but I’ve
heard you can lose a baby in the early stages and I couldn’t bear
the thought of telling Reid I was having his child only to lose it
to complications. I’ll tell him when I know more, when the Healers
look at me again. They’ll be able to give me more information about
the state of my condition. And then, when I have answers for Reid,
I’ll tell him.

I rub my cheek onto my uninjured shoulder.
“I’m just tired. It’s been a long couple of days, and the Healers
said that I need to take it easy. I’ve worn myself out…that’s
all.”

He knows I’m lying but he doesn’t press it.
Tucking whatever thought he has to the back of his mind, he nods.
“Okay.” He lightly brushes his lips against my forehead in a soft
kiss. “Then you’ll take it easy.”

Able enters the room with a bowl.

Both Rogues watch as I eat the entire
serving of pink mush and when I’m done, the corner of Reid’s mouth
perks up a bit. It looks like he wants to say something, but
doesn’t. Instead, he wipes a small spec of food from the corner of
my lip.

“All right,” Able says. “Now all we have to
do is get through tomorrow.”

“And after that,” Reid sighs, “everything
else.”

I slip a hand over my stomach and nod.

***

The sunshine feels good on my face.

After being cooped up in the FH so long, the
cool outside air is a much-welcomed break. I haven’t felt
comfortable like this in a while. Not since everything went
downhill at the invasion. We nearly froze to death on Larupip and
Arosin has a suffocating way about its heat. But this…walking the
Mybyncian shore…this this feels nice. Even if it is a prelude to
what comes next.

Sampson has been silent.

I’ve never seen him like this.

Reid said once Clarence and Jothkore were
brought to Mybyncia, Sampson had barely spoken a word. Not about
them or the Gifts or about anything relevant. And it’s been two
days. Reid doesn’t say it, but I think he’s worried. More than
worried. Sampson has never acted this way but again we’ve never
lost anything so crucial. Or anyone so close.

Clarence is gone.

Jothkore is gone.

Reuzkimpart has the Shadow Bag and the
Floating Ruby.

Things are the worst they have been.

“So how do we know there won’t be any
Vermix?” Walker trudges through the sand, arms tightly crossed at
his chest.

“We don’t,” Blovid shakes his head. The
Arizal Leader risks a glance to Sampson and then frowns at the
afternoon sun. “But Clarence and Jothkore both felt that Ellae was
their true home. It would be a dishonor to rest them anywhere else.
They belong there…with their families.”

“Where’s Qippert?” Pratt looks around. “And
Werzo? Aren’t they coming?”

“They are not well enough to travel.”

“How serious are the injuries?” Chancellor
Keller frowns. “I was under the impression they could at least
travel?”

Blovid exhales. “The Healers have decided
both injuries are too severe. It would put unnecessary pressure on
the bodies when they are trying to recover. They say it is not
worth the trip.”

Vix sighs. “Qippert will be upset he did not
attend. He will blame himself, I am sure of it.”

“There is only one to blame,” Sampson’s
words are barely audible. It’s the first thing I’ve heard him say
since Reid peeled me off of Clarence. And it must be the same for
the others because we all stare at him with surprise. Sampson
doesn’t go on. Instead, misery and guilt press into his features as
he turns away to face the glistening blue abyss.

Blovid lets out a deep breath. He glances
from the Fychu to Vix, and then focuses back on Keller. “We
appreciate your hospitality, chancellor. I do not expect we will
return much later than nightfall.”

“We all need time to mourn. Do so as you
must,” he nods once and starts to turn, his words trailing like an
afterthought. “Mybyncia has been no stranger to it.”

With this, the chancellor makes his way back
to the water while Blovid faces our small group. He tries for a
smile but settles in an understanding nod. “I guess it is
time.”

“Are Ehan and Norhra aware it is happening
today?” Vix asks.

“Yes. They are to meet us besides the Rinzal
Tree,” Blovid clears his throat. “I think it best we should do it
there.”

Sampson doesn’t comment, merely disappears.
With a sigh, Blovid follows. Vix glances over the rest of us and
then shoots straight into the bright blue sky. Now that I know I
can do it, we don’t need an able-bodied Dofinike to transport us
between worlds. That’s something I can take care of.

Wordlessly, Walker clasps Tucker by the
shoulder. The tribesman reaches out and does the same to Reid and
while Pratt takes Jace and Booker by the hands, Mae offers her free
one to the blonde Rogue. Able rests his chin on my shoulder and I
look at Reid. My rock. My fiancé. My soulmate. I lift my arm and he
threads his fingers with mine.

All connected.

All together…and ready to go back to where
it started.

Harrizel
…

The sparkling blue morphs into green
tongue-shaped leaves, dew-covered and shielding massive trunks with
roots the size of small boulders. Vines crisscross from tree to
tree and over fragments of broken walls, stretching and yearning as
though to reach one another. I’ve landed us just outside of Ellae,
on the outskirts of the small city. I’d had no idea what this place
really meant the last time I was here. How it would eventually
affect me. Because this is where Clarence lived for a time. This is
where he started his family. This is where he started my
origin.

“Fallon?” Blovid calls.

He’s out a few yards, standing with Sampson
and Vix under a massive tree in the middle of a clearing. Red, pink
and peach blossoms bloom on long, gossamer strands, the tresses
billowing with each delicate breeze, elegantly lifting and bowing
as the air swirls through. The Rinzal, birthplace of all Callixes.
It’s the tree of love, Sampson once told me, but now it holds a
different air. One of sadness and farewell. And deep, deep
longing.

Walker starts the trek over and one by one,
we all follow. When we’re within earshot of the three Dofinikes,
the tribesman looks around. “Where are we going to bury them?”

“We are not going to bury them. We are going
to burn them,” Blovid explains. “It is the Arizal ceremony of
releasing the soul from the trappings of the body. Escaping the
physical to enter the spiritual…” his voice grows quiet as he
points halfway between the Rinzal and the closest remains of
Ellae’s stone walls. “But it will most likely be there.”

“I will check the perimeter,” Vix takes off
in a sprint. She darts through the fauna and back into the remains,
the greenery shuffling behind her. I forget this was once her home
too. Just like it was Clarence’s. Just like it was Sampson’s. And
Jothkore’s and countless others. Granny Ruth even lived here for a
short while. So much life bloomed in this little escape that
Clarence and Sampson created for themselves. And now, only a few
remain from it. Vix circles back around. “I have no reason to
suspect enemies in these parts.”

“How about friends?” Ehan appears with his
sister. The two stand beneath the Rinzal Tree and while Ehan tries
for a smile, Norhra plainly refuses. Her golden eyes are red and
glassy and the corners of her mouth pinch down in an indelible
frown, as if they’ve been that way for hours.

“Friends are always welcome,” Blovid says.
He looks at Sampson but finds the Fychu with his head lowered, his
mind somewhere else entirely. The Arizal Leader clears his throat.
“I will collect the bodies, then.”

It only takes a moment after he disappears
for Blovid to reappear, first with Jothkore and then with Clarence.
Both bodies are laid side by side in the grass, halfway between the
Rinzal and the broken city’s remains. Crouching beside each, Vix
folds their arms over their chests and straightens the coils of
their beards. She stands back up and looks at Sampson. He doesn’t
notice.

“Sympse?

He lifts his head and glances down. Then
offers the tiniest nod.

Reid squeezes my hand and leads me to my
great-great-grandfather, the others following in a single line.
They sweep around and together we form a sort of semi-circle at
Clarence and Jothkore’s feet, Sampson taking his position across
from us, up by their heads. He frowns down, threading his fingers
together in front of him.

“It is time we begin,” he says so softly I
almost don’t hear him. A long, silent moment passes and I wonder if
Sampson will have the strength to do this. He looks like he might
fall over at any minute, like he’ll just crumble to the ground in
body-wracking sobs. Somehow he keeps himself standing. And
composed.

“In all my years,” he begins quietly, his
voice breaking with each word, “I never thought I would be the one
to deliver eulogies for friends I have known my entire life. I had
supposed my past errors would earn me the right to depart this
physical plane first. However…” he considers his thought with a
tilt of the head, confusion and grief reflecting in his blue eyes,
“…the Mother has plans for us all.

“Today we say goodbye to our dear friends,
two kind and benevolent spirits who have left us entirely too soon,
and with an insurmountable pain in our hearts.” Sampson’s eyes drop
to Clarence. They flicker quickly to Jothkore and then return again
to my great-great-grandfather. The corners of Sampson’s mouth pinch
down but he does his best to keep his lip from trembling.

“We do not know where you are, or when we
shall see one another again, but we know you are with the Mother,”
Sampson’s words shake, threatening to break at any moment, “and
that She will forever keep you safe and loved in Her holy embrace.
Today is not a farewell, but a celebration of your arrival unto the
gates of paradise. May you live in happiness,” his words fade into
whispers, “and peace, surrounded by those you love, for this day
and for all eternity.”

Sampson bows his head and closes his eyes,
his lids wavering briefly. Blovid, Vix, Ehan and Norhra do the same
as a long stretch of silence fills the air. They’re saying their
private farewells, I realize. I look to my great-great-grandfather.
I’m not really sure I have the strength to say goodbye to Clarence,
not after everything we’ve been through, not after everything I’ve
learned. But it’s now or never. And never is too long to go without
a goodbye.

I close my eyes.

Guess now’s as good as any time to tell you
you’re going to be a great-great-great-grandfather, Clarence.

Silence.

And before you ask, it’s Reid’s.

Not a great joke, I know, but I’m trying
here, okay? If anyone, I thought you’d appreciate it. Honestly I…I
don’t know what I’m going to do. I wish you were here to help me
through this. I wish you were here with me right now.

Why’d you have to do that, Clarence?
Why’d you have to push me out of the way? Look what happened. He
killed you. He killed you because of
me,
and I can never
undo that.
Tears fill my eyes, threatening to fall past my
tightly shut lids. But I clamp down, keeping them secure, keeping
them hidden inside.

I failed you.

I failed everyone.

I was supposed to kill Reuzkimpart,
Clarence. It was me—the prophecy was about
me
. I’m the one
to end this war…but I failed. I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t stop
him. And couldn’t save you.

I take a deep breath in and release it
again.

I don’t know how I’m going to do this. I
need you here. I need you to tell me what to do. You always tell me
what to do. You brought me into all of this. You can’t just leave
me here at the end. It isn’t fair. Please just…just tell me what to
do. Tell me what to do and that it’s going to be okay.

Silence
.

It’s going to be okay, right, Clarence?

Silence
.

Clarence?

I open my eyes and look down at my
great-great-grandfather, wishing that he’d answer me one last time,
wishing that he’d say one more thing to me. Just one. With an
aching desire to fling my arms around his body and force it from
him, I make myself stand still. I’ll never hear Clarence’s voice
again, and knowing that breaks my heart all over again. Someone
squeezes my hand. Reid kisses my temple and I let out a breath I
didn’t realize I was holding.

One by one, the others lift their heads.
Sampson is the last and when he finally does, he focuses solely on
the two fallen Arizals. He nods only once. “It is time.”