Harbinger (The Bleeding Worlds)

by Justus R. Stone

  Gwynn kicked into the sky. He flew upward, trying to keep distance between them. He came up over the building where the Gorgon and tear had been. Through the devastated roof he saw Fuyuko, still unconscious, and Pridament, injured, bleeding. He scanned for Elaios. She stood on street level, watching him.

  This is a game for her now. She’s humoring me.

  He touched down on the roof.

  “Gwynn? Did you beat her?” Pridament called.

  “No.” Gwynn sobbed. “She’s just toying with me now. I’m not fast enough. And anything I do she just heals right away.”

  “Take this.” Pridament threw the spear he had been holding up to Gwynn.

  In his hands, it hummed with age and history.

  “She won’t be able to heal any wound you make with that.” Pridament said.

  Gwynn swung the spear behind his back. He inched toward the edge of the roof. He yelled to the street below, “Are you coming, or are you going to wait and see the end of the world with me?” The words were ragged and torn.

  Elaios lifted off from the street at a leisurely pace.

  Gwynn waited—sweat dampening his brow. He couldn’t be off by even a second…

  Now.

  He swung the spear around and charged forward.

  It plunged deep into Elaios’ chest.

  Her eyes widened and blood spurt from her mouth.

  Gwynn pushed on. Up, over, and smashed her down onto the roof. He roared as he pushed so hard the ceiling collapsed and they fell to the level below.

  §

  Pridament cradled Elaios in his arms. Despite all she had become, he recalled a time when she had been a trusted adviser. Fanaticism had left her shattered.

  “Why Elaios? Why go to this?”

  Blood trickled from the corner of her mouth and her eyes dulled. “A new world. A better place. I’ve seen the future of this world. We need to change course.”

  “You said my son would bring on Ragnarok. Did you mean Gwynn?”

  Elaios coughed. “That is what I saw.”

  “But which Gwynn? I’m still searching for my son. This is this world’s Gwynn.”

  She gripped Pridament’s hand. “Two of them? No. Impossible. Fate’s hand would only have one.”

  “So then my Gwynn is dead.”

  “No. Alive. I’m sure.”

  “Then which one? Which Gwynn is the harbinger?”

  A moment passed without an answer. “Elaios?” The emptiness in her eyes meant she would never respond.

  “Gwynn,” Pridament said, “is the tear closed? Are we safe?”

  Gwynn hung his head. “The tear collapsed when we defeated the Gorgon. But…the vortex is still going. I thought if we closed the last tear it would stop.”

  Pridament coughed. A rattle in his chest infected his voice. “Guess we left it too long.”

  “So what now? We just wait and watch the world die?”

  Pain racked Pridament’s body. He’d been in this situation once before. He’d buried the guilt of running away long ago. He searched for an answer, but none came. Finally, defeated, he had to admit the truth. “I don’t know.”

  Gwynn looked up to where the swirling mass waited to devour the world. “It’s just a large tear, right?”

  “I guess.”

  “So a Script should be able to close it?”

  His gut twisted. He hesitated to answer. If Gwynn meant to do what he suspected, there had to be a way to stop him. He had already lost one son; he didn’t want to lose another. Yet the more he searched, it became clear no other answer existed. Would he burden this boy, no, man, with the same burdens and sins he shouldered? Sometimes, even defeat was preferable. He said, “In theory, I suppose a Script could close it.” Guilt stabbed his chest. He would lose Gwynn again. “But there’s no way of knowing if it’ll work. Even if it does,” Pridament’s voice cracked, “you might not survive it.”

  Gwynn remained silent, his gaze never falling from the sky above. After a minute had passed, he said, “You know, I never asked to be a hero.”

  “That’s what makes people heroes, they’re never asked. They just do everything they can when they need to.”

  Gwynn’s wings flexed. He crouched in preparation to bound out through the ceiling.

  “Gwynn.” Pridament yelled. “No matter what happens, remember there are people you need to come back to. Don’t lose yourself kid.”

  “Thanks.” Gwynn smiled. “I’ll do my best.”

  Gwynn kicked off and launched into the sky. For a brief moment, Pridament caught a glimpse of the mysterious girl, Adrastia. She gave him a faint smile and disappeared.

  Pridament dragged himself to the hole in the ceiling. Gwynn became an increasingly indistinct spot in the sky until cloud cover obscured him.

  Pridament waited, his heart pounding in his chest. A small part of him registered the arrival of the members of Suture, yet he refused to remove his attention from where he had lost sight of Gwynn.

  Seconds passed like hours. Time became a vile enemy, keeping all their fates secret.

  A bright flash.

  For the briefest of seconds, daylight exploded from the clouds. Pridament waited, searching the skies for Gwynn.

  28/ Closing Doors

  The doorbell rang.

  “I’ve got it.” Pridament called up the stairs.

  He opened the door to a man whose height and musculature cut an imposing figure.

  “Fath—”

  “Unless you preface that with ‘All’” the man said, his lone blue eye cold and piercing. “You will refrain from calling me that.”

  “You should know I’ll not call you that. You’re still just a man.”

  He rubbed his temple. “Perhaps I didn’t form humanity with my own hands, but I’ve shed enough blood and flesh to earn the title. After all, are two people who adopt a child and raise it to adulthood any less its parents? I don’t know who put us here, but He left and it’s been up to us to pick up the pieces.”

  “Fine, fine.” Pridament had no desire to listen to further ramblings. “Still, I’m not calling you that. What name do you go by now?”

  “Woten. And you are?”

  “Pridament. To what do we owe the honor?”

  Woten regarded Pridament for a few minutes. “You do know who is upstairs, do you not?”

  “If you mean your grandson and the sister of his mother, then yes, I know who they are.”

  “Is it so hard for you to accept I would check in on my grandson?”

  Pridament shook trying to keep control of his tone. “Since you didn’t check on your own son for over a century, yes, it’s hard for me to believe.”

  Woten’s expression softened. “If I recall, you were the one that left.

  Pridament tried to protest, but Woten waved aside any arguments

  “Regardless,” Woten said, “I have never abandoned my grandson. How do you think Jaimie found such a good job and this lovely, sold for less than market value, house? Why do you think Justinian was here in the first place?”

  “As it turns out, he was here to betray you.”

  Woten’s eyebrow rose. “You mean the seer? I knew of her power. After all, through her visions we first learned of Gwynn`s existence.”

  “Did you know he had assumed the role of her father? Have you been briefed on the whole story? Do you see that everything he did was based on the seer’s predictions and aimed at awakening Gwynn’s powers?”

  Woten’s voice rose. Not enough to rouse everyone else in the house, just enough to strike a familiar fear in Pridament. “I have been betrayed by one son and lost another to that same betrayal. Can I not grieve the loss of my adopted son without you marring his memory as well?”

  “I only hope you are being objective about what’s happened. Gwynn’s safety might depend on it.”

  “I’ve already told you, I have watched out for my grandson’s well–being from the moment I learned he existed.”

  “I’m glad to hear that.�
� Pridament said. “There’s one thing I would like to ask you.”

  “And you expect I’ll answer?”

  “It’s my hope. Gwynn told me Fuyuko told him the name of his veil weapon. Have you developed some generic code name for such a thing?”

  Woten probed Pridament with his single eye. “No such thing exists. We’ve come a long way, but certain laws are unbreakable.”

  “Then how did she know?”

  Woten sighed. “Well, I suppose when she’s recovered, we’ll have to ask her. I’m surprised you didn’t interrogate her earlier about it. You were never one for skirting an issue.”

  “There was no time. Besides, we needed her. I was afraid my usual…tactics, would turn her against us.”

  “My, my.” Woten made a tut–tut sound with his tongue against his teeth. “Perhaps I was wrong about the usefulness of living among normal humans. It’s taught you a certain care and control you lacked. You seem very attached to my grandson. Not far removed I assume?”

  “Maybe nine, almost ten, years.”

  “Hmmm.” Woten nodded. “Not far. Still, what brought you here?”

  “On the night our worlds split, the Gwynn of this world lost his parents. In my world, I lost my Gwynn. He fell through the Veil and I’ve been searching for him ever since.”

  “So how is my Gwynn?”

  Pridament chewed his lip. “Not sure. Caelum says that physically he’s fine, but the psychological trauma, who knows? Thank you though, for Caelum. He’s been a big help.”

  “He’s a good boy. Wish I had a dozen more like him. Especially now. I risk the entire North American branch being Veil drunk just to mend the worst of their injuries. We have to do it in shifts.”

  “What about Fuyuko’s recovery? How is she?” Pridament asked.

  “She had a piece of her soul shattered. Who knows? She hasn’t said a word since we lifted her out two days ago. My only Script won’t leave her side and I’ve lost three sons all while the world is plunging into chaos because people have learned monsters really exist. I don’t think any of us are making it out of this unscathed.”

  The sound of footsteps came from upstairs. Caelum appeared on the stairs. “He’s starting to wake up.” Caelum’s eyes widened. “Sir, I didn’t realize…”

  “It’s fine Caelum.” Woten said. “I understand you’ve been helpful.”

  “I’m glad to help, sir.”

  Pridament was already moving upstairs.

  To say Gwynn had wakened seemed a slight over–exaggeration. His eyes were open, but he’d not regained his senses. Jaimie sat by his bed. She’d only left his side for washroom breaks.

  A mountain of a young man with orange hair leaned against the far wall. The others called him Brandt. He’d refused to allow Caelum to remain alone.

  “Did we make it?” Gwynn groaned.

  Jaimie stroked Gwynn’s head. “Yes, Gwynn. It’s OK. We’re here.”

  Gwynn did a slow scan of the room. “Where’s Fuyuko?”

  Woten spoke up. “She’s been taken to Suture headquarters. I’m told she’ll be fine.”

  “Gwynn, this is your grandfather.” Pridament said in response to Gwynn’s questioning look.

  “I…”

  Woten held up his hands for Gwynn to remain silent. “It’s fine. We can talk at length another time. For now, just know that everyone is very proud of you and glad you seem to be doing well.”

  “I did it.” Gwynn’s eyelids and voice drooped. “Me. Huh, I saved the world.” And he slept once more.

  §

  Another three days passed before Gwynn was up and moving around. He still ached and found his memories of closing the vortex hazy.

  “So my grandfather.” He said to Pridament. The two sat alone in the living room. Gwynn had convinced Jaimie she should go back to work after her following his every movement for the past two days.

  Pridament’s gaze focused on some faraway point. “Yeah. I thought I’d have a chance to explain things a bit more before you met him. I noticed the two of you talking yesterday before he left. If you don’t mind me asking, what did he say to you?”

  “He invited me to join Suture.”

  “And what did you tell him?”

  Gwynn sighed. “I told him I wasn’t sure. I mean, I thought I should talk to you first.”

  “You know Gwynn, as much as I might have once been your father, you don’t owe me anything. In this world, you’ve lived without me for nine years. You’re your own man. What do you want?”

  “But that’s just the thing.” Gwynn got to his feet, his body restless. “I don’t know what to do. I’ve been watching the news. I prevented the world from being destroyed, but from what I see and what my grandfather told me, things aren’t exactly roses. There’s an increase in tears, and people turning to Taints. Curses are even attacking openly. It seems like there’s a lot of work that still needs to be done.”

  “So what’s holding you back?”

  Gwynn locked his eyes with Pridament’s. “You are. It’s clear to me you don’t want anything to do with Suture. So I wondered what you were doing.”

  Pridament rubbed the bridge of his nose. For a moment, he wouldn’t meet Gwynn’s eyes. He rose to his feet. “I’m leaving.”

  “What?”

  “Elaios wasn’t the only Fallen. To be honest, I don’t know how many there are. They work alone, so it could be months, maybe years, before they realize she’s dead. I need to start taking the fight to them. I need to be the one they’re hunting. Otherwise, they’ll descend on this world and they won’t stop coming until you’re dead and they’ve finished what Elaios started.”

  “Let me come with you.”

  “Gwynn, I can’t—”

  “Yes, you can.” Gwynn pleaded. “You need me. What are you going to do if you need a Script?”

  Pridament clasped Gwynn’s shoulders. “Listen to me. You’re not coming. I won’t need a Script, because I’m not going out there to save worlds, I’m going to keep them away from this one. I’m going out there to kill as many of them as I can find. This is no place for you Gwynn. The whole point is to keep them away from you, not make you a larger target. Besides, somewhere out there, my Gwynn is still lost. I found you. I’ll protect you, but I can’t forget him. I need to keep searching.”

  “When are you leaving?”

  Pridament released his hold on Gwynn. “Now. I only stayed to make sure you were okay.”

  “What about those things Elaios said about me being the end of the world? How am I supposed to deal with that?”

  “I ran away from myself for a long time because of what that woman said.” Pridament shook with bitter rage. “When I found out your mother was pregnant, I can’t begin to tell you how frightened I felt. Doctors had said your mother couldn’t conceive. We had never even considered it. When she got pregnant, she thought it was a miracle. I saw it as proof that fate would prove Elaios right. But when I saw you born, when I watched you grow into this amazing boy so full of decency, I knew she was wrong.”

  “Did you see what I did? What I became?”

  “You were who you needed to be. You did what you had to. Our actions and dreams define who we are. What you do with this life is determined by you Gwynn, not by the ramblings of some fallen prophet.”

  Gwynn collapsed on the sofa. His body felt untrustworthy, like it conspired against him. “There’s just so much I don’t understand. What about Adrastia? I keep seeing her and she’s always talking about some grand destiny.”

  “She is a mystery that you might never solve. When it comes to her, though, be careful. I know I told you she was just a vision you had made up, but I’ve seen her too.”

  “So what does that mean?” Gwynn asked.

  Pridament shook his head. “To be honest, I don’t know. For now, she’s helped you—even saved your life. Until that changes, I guess you roll with it. Eventually you’ll find the answer.”

  “I could use your help.”

  “I don�
�t have all the answers. Truth is, you’re going to have to find answers for yourself. You were right; I’m not a big fan of Suture. But that’s more about my family issues than it is Suture itself.” Pridament sighed. “Honestly? I think you should take your grandfather up on his offer.”

  “You mean join Suture?”

  “It’s a win from all points. You will be working with people who will train you on how to control your abilities, who will be equipped to help you find the answers you’re seeking. And at the same time, you can help to heal the world you saved.”

  “What about Jaimie?”

  “Gwynn,” Pridament said, “Jaimie has known you might be different from the day she took you in. Your grandfather told me that he helped get Jaimie on her feet. She’s had some knowledge of Suture for years. When I talked to her, she said she understood that soon you would go to Suture, because it would be the right place for you. It’s your decision. No one can force you and no one can make the decision for you.”

  “I just got used to having a father again.”

  “And I was proud to have a son. But this is for the best. I know where you are. I’ll find you again.” Pridament turned toward the back door. “Now come and say goodbye.”

  The two walked out into the backyard. A dull, grey winter afternoon sky greeted them. Their feet crunched on the light snow that had fallen.

  “You might want to look away; this can be kind of bright.”

  Gwynn threw his arms around Pridament. “Thank you. For everything.”

  “I’ll see you again. Soon.”

  Gwynn stepped back. Pridament gave a wave and a curtain of lightning engulfed him. Gwynn turned away. A moment past and the flash ceased.

  Pridament was gone.

  Returning to the house, Gwynn crashed onto the couch. He sat in silence for ten minutes, rolling around options in his head. He half–expected Adrastia to appear and tell him what he should do, but even she apparently decided to leave this up to him.

  He reached into his pant pocket and pulled out the plain black cell phone. Gwynn flipped it open and shut, passed it from hand to hand and finally popped it open again.

  A single button stared at him. His finger hovered over it.

  He drew a long breath. As he let it out slowly, he pressed the button.