James Scotson - Planets Falling

I return fully to the Raven, letting the little bird return to its foraging. “Send in more troops,” I announce through the ship’s speaker. Ricard nods and a group of heavily armored men enter the rift carrying maces.

After a long hour, Thresh, Jonah, and about twenty men emerge from the seam, our troops prodding them forward. Eliza’s in Theo’s arms. Once the fighters have left the trough, Etch and I release the water and the hellish, swarming bubble and a few living corpses are swallowed by the lake.

I’m relieved to see Phineus and Silius in Theo’s care. I extend my mind to them and feel joy at the reunion.

“Ready to land?” Etch brings the Fuerst down.

“In a moment. I have one thing to do.” I leave my body. “Fromer, where are you? You can’t just leave that tentacled beast alone, away from its home.”

“Of course not.” His voice is so close that he could be sitting in the Raven with me. “Bring the Raven above the lake.”

I hover at about 200 meters and Fromer asks, “Can you see it yet?”

I look down, and between the yellow waves I see a blue planet with what looks like a tiny pinprick on its surface. “Lead your friend here.”

I reach out and experience the creature in its entirety. It has two grey, wise eyes, pink tentacles, and a giant beak. It whispers, “I’m the Kraken of old. Count on me, if you need me again.” It slips into the portal in the bottom of the lake and returns home.

The Raven lands softly on the coast. The prisoners are shackled, lying face down in the prickly grass. I rush through the hatch and there she is, still in Theo’s arms. Thresh yells, “Don’t trust her Eliza. I’m your mommy.” Bets hits Thresh in the head with her staff and the ragged woman in a tattered red dress falls silent.

My hands shake as I approach the impossibly beautiful but terribly filthy little girl. “Do you know who I am?”

Eliza tilts her head. “Where’s Magarat?”

“I don’t know. I’m so sorry this happened to you.”

“Mommy says that you’re all bad people. I want to go home with her, now.”

Theo pats her. “We can’t do that, Liza. I’m your Uncle Theo and this is your real mommy.” Theo begins walking with her to a small cart with a donkey.

Eliza struggles in his arms, bawling. “Momma, daddy. Don’t let them take me.” Theo sets her down in the cart and I join her. I feel wretched.

“Amy, you know this ain’t gonna be easy. I’m here to help you. Always.” Theo grabs my arm firmly.

As we clop into Yellow Stone, children and old folks gather to greet us. I stare at them, smiling tepidly. Eliza’s quiet again, scrunched in the back of the cart. A woman in a dirty dress stands at the side of the road amongst the villagers. Her skin’s darker than that of the others — obviously a foreigner. It takes me a second, but I recognize her as Magarat. “Theo, stop the cart.”

Magarat obviously does not see Eliza in the bottom of the cart but does see me. I must be a frightening sight, with my frazzled hair, wild eyes, shaking arms, and pale skin. She recedes into the crowd and is about to bolt away. “Wait, Magarat. Stop, please. I have Eliza with me. You’ve nothing to fear.”

She pauses, confused and terrified. Then she squints, tilting her head. “You’re the real mother, aren’t you?”

I nod anxiously. “She’s over here, in the cart. We need you.”

Magarat climbs up and Eliza clamps onto her, elated. “Shh, there, there girl. We’ve got a lot of explaining to do. Healing too.” Magarat looks up to me. “What happened to that woman? Is she dead?”

“No.”

Magarat panics. “We’ve got to hide, now.”

“It’s okay. We have her as prisoner.”

“She’ll escape, conjuring those demons to do her bidding.”

“Not if I have a choice in the matter.”

“We met, didn’t we?”

“Yes, Magarat. I was able to — occupy — Thresh for a moment. That’s when I asked you to kill her. It was a terrible thing to ask you to do. I’m so sorry I put you in that position.”

“I’d have gladly done it if I knew I could.”

We head to the city center and get some food into Eliza. Magarat cleans herself up and puts on a fresh dress. She’s a beautiful woman, even if she’s a little worn.

“Thanks so much for caring for Eliza,” I say, combing my hair.

“Didn’t have much say in the matter. That woman, she killed my husband and my little boy.” Her voice trails off.

“I’m so very sorry for you.”

“You’re like her, aren’t you?”

“What do you mean Magarat?”

“You’re able to control things, take possession. A terrible power you have.”

“Well, it’s not like I have much of a choice in the matter.” I pause gazing at my daughter who doesn’t know who I am. “Does Eliza show any of these abilities?”

Magarat does not answer. “Do you mind if I get some rest m’am? I’m dead tired.”

I nod as the haggard woman leaves me alone with my daughter. Eliza’s immediately concerned. “Where’s Magarat?”

“She went to get some sleep, sweetheart. Do you want to play?”

“Sure.”

I pull out a small doll that I borrowed from one of the neighbors. She eagerly takes the toy and begins talking to it in a language I don’t recognize. I suppose it’s similar to the gibberish I used when trying to escape Troll.

Theo appears. “How’re you faring?”

“We’ll manage. What of the prisoners?”

“They’re locked away. The sooner we dispatch Thresh, the better for all of us.”

“I’m having trouble with that. It’s one thing to kill her in battle. But to execute her in cold blood — that’s not something I’ve much of a stomach for.”

“You telling me that this woman who’s stolen your baby, killed most everyone you loved, and wants to destroy all that is right and clean should be spared? Not to mention that she could conjure more of those things from the lake? Did you fall off a horse and damage your head?”

“I pity her, Theo. The power’s destroyed her. The same could easily happen to me.”

He kneels down and tries to pet Eliza’s head. The girl will have none of that and scampers away into a corner. He steps back. “Amy, you are good. Your soul’s good. You’d never go foul like that. Thresh must die and soon, before we’re pickled again.”

The town square bell rings unexpectedly. “What’s going on?” This can only be bad.

Theo jolts to the door. “I’ll let you know as soon as I can.”

Eliza plays with her doll, her voice low, almost as if it is growling. “Eliza, what are you doing?”

She turns and looks at me with vacant eyes. “They’re coming to town.”

I open the window to hear shouting and scuffling in the streets. I stop one of the villagers whose dressed in light armor. “What’s the matter?”

“The dead. They’re rising from the lake.”

“You mean the soldiers from today’s battle?”

“No ma’am. All of them.”

The tradition of Yellow Stone is to bury their dead in the lake. They’ve been doing this presumably since the fall of the ancients. If he was being literal, that means a lot of dead people are approaching the city.

I’m experiencing a vivid recollection. Here I am alone with Eliza with my city under siege. The prize presumably is us. Perhaps Bets was right to suggest that we’re cursed. Thankfully, Theo arrives. He grabs his staff and says, “We need to get the girl to safety. The bodies are tearing at the fence line.”

“How’s that possible? I thought the fence was supposed to keep the fog out.”

“I don’t know why, but they’re doing it. Maybe it has something to do with Thresh being in the city.”

“She’s here, inside the walls?”