Page 38 of Sea of Stars

"You murdered my friend!"

"Well you asked me to. She asked me to, Augury," he added defensively. "Hmph. Stop poking me. Fine, fine. I'm sorry about your friend. You made me misunderstand the situation. Ouch, Augury! I mean, I misunderstood the situation."

I felt frozen. In that moment I felt like I was reliving every death I had ever seen. It felt like I had lost my parents and Jeremody all over again. The same gut-wrenching feeling of guilt and sadness. Even though Lyntel was a new friend, his death was a shock and hit me hard. I didn’t know how much time had passed, but eventually Dawn began crying and at last I let go of the bloody cloth. I closed the lids of Lyntel's still eyes and leaned over his body and kissed his forehead. Even though I knew he was gone, I whispered into his ear: "I'll find your wife. I'll reunite her with Dawn. I promise." When I moved away from his face I noticed that the strange sigil of the gear with the eye had been cut out of his leather armor. Through the hole I could see a crudely shaped outline of an owl, meant to look like the emblem Achates wore proudly on his tunic. The brand was a fresh wound, and must have been cut into his skin once the human sigil was removed. The humans that lay dead around us must have done this to him.

I had screamed for help. Achates was just trying to save me. It was a terrible accident, but it was my fault, not Achates. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Achates tiptoeing by me with his bow raised again.

"Stop, Achates! It's just his baby crying out."

"Those are some big babies if you ask me," he replied.

I looked up and noticed two men sitting back to back, bound with shackles. They had cuts and bruises, but did not look like they were in mortal danger. The smaller of the two was carrying Lyntel’s baby. I looked back at Lyntel's corpse and noticed the similar scrapes and bruises on his bare limbs. There were even some recent burn marks. All three of these men had been tortured.

"Who are you two, then?" Achates asked. He had an arrow in place and it was ready to fly at any second.

The smaller man carrying Dawn spoke: "I'm Garret and this is Trench. We're Lyntel's friends. We were coming to help the rightful divinare ruler. Well, you I guess then," Garret said as he looked at me. Trench nodded his head slowly. Garret turned and stared at Trench a little strangely. They may have both been friends with Lyntel but they didn't seem to especially like each other. Both of the strangers wore the same armor as Lyntel, with matching holes that revealed the bloody owl on their skin. The emblem on Garret must have been rather recent because it was smeared with blood. These humans that were on my side were thought of as traitors to their own race. It was my fault that their friend was dead.

Achates looked at me, with his bow still at the ready. I shook my head at him, until he lowered it. Slowly, I made my way over to the two humans and held out my hands for the baby. Garret gently placed Dawn in my arms, but she continued to cry. She was even bigger than I had remembered. I tottered awkwardly with the large baby on my hip and went back to her father’s body.

“Your father was the first knight of the new realm,” I whispered in her ear and hair. She kept crying but looked up at me with curiosity. I studied Dawn right back. Her hair seemed to dance slightly to my words, and I still wasn't sure what she used in order to hear. I was reminded again of my own parents’ deaths and wished I had more to remember them by. Before walking away, I saw something shiny around Lyntel’s neck. I reached out and unhinged the chain. “When you are older you will wear this in his honor,” I said.

I looked once more at Lyntel. I felt weak, and not just because Dawn was heavy. But I wanted to appear strong in front of these strange men. “Light the torches and send the fallen to the sky.”

“All of them?” Augury asked.

“I will not prevent anyone from reaching heaven’s doors,” I said, with my back turned to her. “And unlock Lyntel’s friends. They need rest. We’re leaving at dawn.” I couldn’t help but smile at baby Dawn, knowing that I was making the right choice.

Chapter 14

Drip drop, drip drop, drip drop. The air around me was sweltering hot. It was so dry that it was hard to breathe. As my breathing grew deep, a pain also began to grow. The pain pulsed with each gasp of air my lungs received. I wasn’t struggling to breathe because the air was dry. I couldn’t breathe because I was weak. My body suddenly felt cold. I was dying. I tried to look at my surroundings, but I couldn't see anything. Darkness engulfed me. Drip drop, drip drop, drip drop.

***

I sat straight up in bed, panting loudly. Dawn was sleeping soundly in a drawer I had layered with blankets. My scars were searing hot, singeing the tips of my fingers as I touched them. I stumbled out of bed. I fell forwards, but hands were there to catch me. I looked up and saw the taller human that had come with Lyntel looking down at me with a frown on his face. He scooped me up in his arms and placed me back on my bed, as if I was a child. I sat there and stared at him, wondering how long he'd been watching me sleep. His features were kind, but his dark eyes seemed to bore into mine.

“What did you see, princess?” he asked eagerly.

I shook my head. I hadn’t spoken to this man yet. I didn’t even remember his name. “It was just a bad dream.” After I said it, I hoped that I was speaking the truth. I tried to get off the bed, but the man reached out and put his hand on mine. I could feel mine shaking beneath his.

“What did you see?” he repeated. His voice was calm yet harsh at the same time.

I gulped, suddenly more terrified of the man before me than of my disturbing vision. This stranger was acting more eager than sincere. He seemed to be trying to pry information out of me. Hopefully without too much hesitation, I replied, “Just a nightmare, really. Nothing of importance, err, I’m sorry, what was your name again, sir?

The man kept his hand on mine. His grip was firm and I knew I was locked in place. “You can call me Trench,” he said slowly.

The name rolled off his tongue strangely, as if it was the first time he had said it. I moved my leg off the bed and with my toes I tried to reach the drawer that held the sleeping Dawn. I needed her to wake up and start crying. Augury or someone else in the house would hear her wails and come to check on the baby. I picked up the conversation to distract him from what I was doing. “So, where did you meet Lyntel?” I asked calmly.

With his free hand, Trench pointed in the direction of the village I had visited a few nights ago. “I live less than a day’s journey that way. But I grew up farther east.”

I tried to picture the maps. “As far east as Celeseth?” I asked, remembering the name of the human capital.

“Not quite, princess.”

“Well maybe one day it will be safe enough for all of us to visit together."

There was a slight smirk on his face. His expression reminded me of the crazy man from the tree.

I continued speaking: "But for now we should both get some rest, we leave early in the morning.” My toes had just wrapped around the side of the drawer when Trench seemed to notice what I was doing.

---