Eluan Falls: A Whisper of Fate

by Dane G. Kroll

  A breath of wind blew past Paltro and the others. Paltro turned to look behind him, but nobody was there. Then he faced the alleyway once again.

  “Show yourself,” Paltro demanded again.

  “You smell sweet,” said the Blood Beauties. “Sweeter than others. You smell like her.”

  Paltro began to grow nervous. Sweat began to drip down his forehead. His only relief was the veil hiding that fact from the Blood Beauties.

  “Let us taste you,” proposed the Blood Beauties. “And we’ll give you anything you want. All the power you crave. This war can end tonight if you wanted.”

  “No,” said Paltro. He took a step back, but he never moved. He took another step back and it was the same result. He was still firmly in the alleyway.

  The Blood Beauties laughed at Paltro’s actions. “We’re not done.”

  Paltro’s desire to fight had vanished. He wanted nothing more than to escape and be rid of whatever was inside the alley. He tried to back away quickly, but every step felt wrong. His vision began to blur. He thought he was moving backward, but no matter how hard he ran or how fast he moved his legs he was still in the same spot of the alley.

  He turned to see Darden and Grifith in the same spot as well. They were trapped in the same predicament.

  Out of the shadows, the Blood Beauties emerged. They came from behind Paltro and the others. The three pale skinned women walked casually up to the three men. Their bare feet were bloodied and scarred from the rough terrain of the rubbled streets.

  Paltro tried to run away again. But this time his legs would not move. As hard as he tried he was unable to move an inch. The Blood Beauties were getting closer. They bypassed Darden and Grifith. All three of the women were on target to surround Paltro. The closer they got the clearer they became. Paltro could see the red stained teeth and chins each woman had. Their smiles were hollow, plastered on their faces to show their personal brand of violence.

  “Do you think he’s one of them?” one of the Blood Beauties asked.

  “Only one way to find out.”

  Paltro was unable to move any of his limbs. He felt the veil slipping off of his face and he was unable to stop it. Instinctively, Paltro closed his eyes. He turned to the darkness for his only salvation.

  Paltro was suddenly released from whatever grip the Blood Beauties had on him. He collapsed to the ground. He was weak, broken, now. Paltro was unprepared for the Blood Beauties and they had gotten the better of him. Now, they stood over him deciding what would be his fate.

  “We were hoping it would be Farrah coming to us,” said the Blood Beauties. “But you will have to do.”

  Paltro felt one of the women rub her fingers over his sweat drenched bald head. It started as simple petting then her grip tightened. She pulled Paltro’s head back causing him to stare straight up at the three women.

  Another Blood Beauty reached down. Her fingers began to invade Paltro’s mouth. He could taste her grubby fingers. One of her nails dug into his gums. Paltro tried to scream in pain, but the Blood Beauty’s hand prevented him from making a sound. Then with a sting of pain blood filled Paltro’s mouth as the Blood Beauty pulled away with her prize of one of his teeth.

  “Payment,” said the Blood Beauty.

  Then the third Blood Beauty tossed Grifith another flask of their usual supply.

  But they were not done with Paltro yet. Blood gushed out of his new wound in his mouth. The Blood Beauty bent down. Her face came up to his then she hungrily kissed Paltro. Her tongue broke into his mouth collecting the blood that his wound could not contain. As she pulled away she looked into Paltro’s eyes. Paltro was growing dizzy. His vision was blurry. He saw the Blood Beauty smile at him. Then she spit into his open mouth.

  “You will bring ruin to this city,” said the Blood Beauty. Then she got in closer once again. She wanted to whisper her last words to him. “And to your people. I can see it from your thoughts. Your home is beautiful. And we will feast like never before.”

  Then she threw Paltro’s head down toward the ground. He collapsed nearly passing out from his encounter with the Blood Beauties.

  Darden and Grifith were finally released. The Blood Beauties paid them no mind as they disappeared back into the shadows of the alley.

  “Paltro!” Grifith yelled. “I’m so sorry. So sorry. Are you okay?”

  “No, he’s not okay,” said Darden. “Get his arm. We have to get him up. We have to get out of here.”

  Darden tried to scramble to his feet with Paltro by his side. Paltro was a heavy man and Darden was having difficulty.

  Grifith rushed down to help Darden, but first he scooted over to the canister the Blood Beauties tossed him.

  “Leave it!” Darden shouted.

  Ignoring Darden, Grifith tucked the Tamor Blood into his jacket pocket then quickly went to help his friend.

  “No,” said Grifith. “I’m not letting Paltro go down for nothing. Whatever this is it’s still helping Farrah. We can’t deny that.”

  “We don’t know what it’s doing,” said Darden. “Look what they did to Paltro.”

  “It’ll still help!”

  “Just grab his arm,” said Darden. “We have to get out of here.”

  With that no other words were said. Darden and Grifith carried a bloody Paltro over their shoulders slowly through the streets of Myrus.

  Nobody stopped to help. Nobody showed their concern. Violence was all over, and no longer shocked the people. Myrus was turning its back on its own people.

  Chapter 67

  The Blood Beauties’ threat began to unfold starting with Paltro. The infection did not stop with their patient zero. The following days saw the spread of the new Tcher Touch across the entire city of Myrus. Almost overnight the path that Darden and Grifith took Paltro became the epicenter for the spread of the infection. Thousands of people were feeling the burn of the Tcher Touch. Quarantines were set up, but it was too late. Every day more infected revealed themselves.

  The everyday lives of Myrus had come to a halt. Garbage and waste was building up in the streets. Dead bodies were left outside homes. The most Seres could do was sacrifice a handful of soldiers to retrieve the bodies before they began to decay.

  And despite all of the chaos and the pain that was spreading through Myrus, the Senate House remained filled with just the most dedicated of Abigail’s followers. The few new faces that did come to Abigail for aid quickly received it. Abigail was able to rid her remaining followers’ bodies of the Tcher Touch.

  “Almost done,” Abigail said to her latest follower. It was getting harder to heal after each person. Abigail’s arcan was diminishing again.

  She would need another drink soon. Grifith was being stingy on his rations this time around. It was irritating Abigail, but she kept it to herself for the moment.

  Abigail felt that last bit of the infection fade away from the elderly woman’s body. The woman would be infection free, and then some. Abigail couldn’t help but heal the woman’s frail bones and aching muscles as well.

  “Oh, thank you so much,” said the elderly woman. “It is such a relief.”

  “You’re welcome,” said Abigail. “I’m glad you came to me.”

  “I’ve learned to trust my gut,” said the woman. “I think you’re one of the good ones.”

  “I’m trying,” said Abigail. Her words trailed off as she glanced over at the quieter Senate House.

  “They’ll come back,” comforted the old woman.

  “I’m not so sure,” said Abigail.

  “I was a young woman when Tcher first attacked,” said the woman. “I used to live up north. I had a daughter. We were outside when the army appeared over the hilltop. There was little we could do. We ran for the woods. We stayed hidden over night, watched our house get burned to the ground. Then we traveled south, hoping to get away from the war. But the battles kept following us. It was horrible.”

  “I’m sorry,” said Abigail.

  “But I don’t bla
me you,” said the woman. “You weren’t leading the armies. You weren’t in command. The Emperor says that was your grandfather. That wasn’t you.”

  “No, it wasn’t,” said Abigail in a hushed tone. Despite the nice words from the woman Abigail still felt to blame for much of Eluan’s troubles. She was at the center of so much chaos. Empires, armies, and more were fighting for Abigail and what she could stand for. It was a power that Abigail did not know how to wield.

  “I didn’t like my grandfather, either,” smirked the woman as she got to her feet. “Oh, I haven’t felt this good in years. What they said was true. You are a gifted healer.”

  The woman’s last words snapped Abigail back to the present moment. “Who said that?” Abigail asked.

  “Just people around the streets,” said the woman. “People are still talking. I told you, they’ll be back. It just takes time. People are scared. The bugs, this infection. They’ll come back.”

  Abigail couldn’t hold back her smile. It was a boost of confidence that others were talking about her, and spreading her good word.

  After the woman left, Abigail ventured out to the remains of the garden out back. The insects were beginning to dissipate a bit since their main food source was gone. Abigail no longer noticed them. She made her way down a stone path to one of the small storage houses that were scattered around the property.

  The storage house was now being used as a guesthouse. Abigail welcomed any follower to come to her to be healed, but one held out. Paltro did not want to be healed by Abigail. He insisted she stay away and he would separate himself from the others and deal with the situation himself. While Abigail honored his wishes it did not stop her from visiting him every day to check in on him and his condition.

  Paltro was in his bed. His body twitched and fidgeted every few seconds. Paltro was urged not to scratch any of the exposed areas of the Tcher Touch. It would only make the pain worse.

  Abigail smiled as she entered the quarantined home. It was rare to see Paltro out of his outlier garb. But even despite his bare clothing he still kept his face covered with a soft silk veil.

  Paltro was joined by Odessa and Grifith. They were there to give him company for a little bit and clean up the room. Grifith was amazed at how filthy one man could be.

  “Any better?” Abigail asked.

  “A little,” said Paltro through a new wave of pain coming up his back. Abigail believed his words less than he did.

  “I can feel the pain you are in,” said Abigail.

  “Stop that,” said Paltro. “Don’t use your arcan on me.”

  “What is bothering you?” Abigail asked. She could pry into his thoughts if she wanted. It wouldn’t be hard. Paltro was weak at the moment. He was vulnerable, but Abigail held back. She would not do that to a friend.

  “I just don’t want you wasting your powers on me,” said Paltro. “There are others that need your help.”

  “You need my help,” insisted Abigail.

  “I’m fine,” said Paltro.

  Abigail lowered her head. She knew Paltro wasn’t fine. He was in a lot of pain. The infection was spreading to his legs. It would be difficult to walk soon. He was only resting now, but soon he would be stuck in that bed.

  “Grifith, I’m going to need another drink,” said Abigail, trying to change the subject.

  Grifith hesitated his response. Finally, he said, “We’re out. The last of the Tamor Blood was used this morning.”

  “Oh,” said Abigail. “When will you have more ready?”

  Silence filled the room. Paltro stared at Grifith. Grifith glared back.

  “Is something wrong?” Odessa asked.

  “There won’t be anymore,” said Grifith without looking at Abigail.

  “Why?” Abigail asked.

  “I can’t get any more ingredients,” said Grifith.

  Abigail shot a glance at Paltro. She could sense his mood spike. It was obvious he was hiding something, and Abigail had had enough.

  “Tell me what is going on or I will go looking for it myself,” said Abigail with a stern voice.

  The sudden change in demeanor from Abigail grabbed the others’ attention. She had never threatened them with her arcan before.

  “I didn’t know,” said Grifith. “I didn’t know who I was dealing with.”

  Abigail did not say a word. She stared at Grifith and let him continue.

  “After Nikali came around I was desperate.”

  “What did you give Farrah?” Odessa interrupted.

  “I don’t know,” quivered Grifith. “I don’t know what it was. Maybe they did something to it. But I mixed it with my own Tamor Blood. It helped. It got Farrah back to her full strength.”

  “What were you getting?” Odessa demanded to know. “Who gave it to you?”

  “I don’t know,” said Grifith. “It was some women. Then… then they’d cut me.”

  Grifith pulled back his sleeve. He showed the others in the room his scars from his dealings with the Blood Beauties.

  “They’d drain a bit of blood out of me,” said Grifith.

  “Why?” Odessa asked.

  Grifith’s eyes began to tear up. “I don’t know. I couldn’t stop them. And it was helping. So I kept getting more.”

  “Oh,” said Abigail as she approached Grifith and put her arms around him for comfort. “What made you stop?” Abigail asked in a soft voice.

  “Paltro found out. He came with us the last time,” said Grifith.

  Upon hearing those words Odessa glared at Paltro. He hadn’t told her about their last expedition to the Myrus alley.

  “They attacked him. They took his blood. I think they gave him the Tcher Touch.”

  “We don’t know that,” said Paltro.

  “You were being reckless,” said Odessa. “Who are these women?”

  “I think it was them,” said Grifith. “The Blood Beauties. They found us.”

  Abigail tightened her grip around Grifith. He cried into her arms ashamed of what he had been doing. “This is all my fault,” he sobbed.

  “It’s going to be okay,” said Abigail. “We’ll figure this out.”

  She had to stay strong even with the anger and fury that was building inside of her. Grifith had been lying to her, but she couldn’t do anything about it at the moment. Most of all, she needed her team to remain strong. They couldn’t fall apart now, not when they were this vulnerable. The Blood Beauties could smell the blood in the water.

  “You have put us all at risk,” said Odessa. She had no reason to hold back. She knew her role was to protect Abigail, and sometimes that meant being her rage.

  “Both of you should have consulted with us about the situation,” continued Odessa. “Grifith, you should never have even gone to them in the first place. Whoever these women are they cannot be trusted. And Paltro, you should not have run into the situation without more information. I’m sure they have arcan. We saw what the Red Cast did to Seres’ army. We are not ready to fight an arcan enemy.”

  “When will we be ready?” asked Paltro. “We are hiding. We are always hiding. We will never win like that. All our enemies have to do is wait us out. I was trying to be proactive.”

  “And look where that go you,” said Odessa looking up and down at the bedridden Paltro.

  “I think it’s time to go,” said Abigail to Grifith. She kept her arm around Grifith and escorted him out of the small house. Abigail could feel the rage building in the room from Odessa. It would do them no good to remain in the area.

  Odessa waited for Abigail and Grifith to be gone before she unloaded her whole fuel of fury into Paltro. She was angry that Paltro had acted alone. She was angry that he had kept it a secret from her. Most of all she was upset at herself. No matter what she was still the commander and her soldiers’ failings were her own.

  “I’m sorry,” said Paltro before Odessa could get another word in.

  “You will be,” said Odessa.

  “But it’s not just the infect
ion,” said Paltro. “There’s more.”

  Odessa remained stone cold, waiting to hear what else could go wrong.

  “The Blood Beauties got into my head. They saw home,” said Paltro.

  Odessa’s grim face started to break down. Anger fizzled away into worry.

  “They tasted my blood,” said Paltro. “Now they want more. If they can’t get Farrah, they’ll go for the others.”

  “Do they know where it is?” Odessa asked.

  “If they got it from my thoughts then yes. They know where home is. I’m so sorry. I’ve put us all in danger.”

  Odessa huffed through deep breaths. Suddenly there were no more words to be said. They were running out of time.

  Chapter 68

  “Why is Myrus still standing?” Nikali asked the Royal Council. This was the third meeting that Nikali had made in a row. Quaet was the most astonished at Nikali’s change in devotion to the Eluan throne.

  Nikali had no outbursts. He was restrained and simply quiet since coming back into the fold of the Royal Council. Nikali’s question to the Council was the first time he had actively spoken since returning. It threw Quaet off a bit, as he was enjoying the quieter Nikali, but it was still an improvement.

  “We haven’t had reports from Myrus in quite some time,” said Quaet. “Perhaps you have heard something.”

  “No,” said Nikali. Despite the word having finally made it to Eluan that Nikali was in fact at Myrus, not once but several times, Nikali still did not openly admit he had been in two places at once.

  “Myrus should have given up by now,” said Nikali. “What else can we do?”

  “We can send the legions into the city,” suggested General Twell. “Seres cannot hope to defeat them.”

  Nikali rolled his eyes. “The Eluan army is gone.”

  “Excuse me?” Twell asked.

  “The Eluan army is dead,” said Nikali, putting the emphasis on dead. “They marched straight into it.”

  “How dare you?” muttered Twell.

  Nikali stared down Twell. The general did not speak out of turn any further. “We are not here to discuss the decisions of the Emperor. We are here to discuss what to do about our enemies. If Myrus is allowed to rally then they can attack the Capitol at any time.”