Colin Tabor - The Fall of Ossard

They removed Pedro’s chains, seeing me hug him now unbound and free. I whispered, “My husband, be at peace until we’re safely away. You’ll see more strange things before then, but you’ll just have to trust me.”

He nodded, “You have my trust.”

Before long we stood on the roof, the bodies of the Lord and Lady between our two groups with their shrouds being tugged by the predawn wind. The sky to the east had grown brighter, its grey daring to take on some colour; fresh golds, ambers, and reds, all bravely peaking through the smoke-haze that blanketed so much of the city.

Kurgar asked, “So, you’ll just go?”

I looked to him, and then turned back to the tragic view.

Much of the city lay hidden behind countless plumes of smoke. The fires feeding them set every district to flare, while about it all thrummed the roar of flames and the last rage of dying battles.

What a waste.

I stepped forward to the bodies. “We’ll leave in a moment.” And then knelt between them to draw back their shrouds.

Kurgar’s brow furrowed, his gaze intense.

I placed a hand on the breast of each body, it sitting over their hearts amidst congealed blood and opened flesh. The feel of it, chill and wet, was broken by the stiff texture of ruined clothes, and the arc and edge of smashed ribs.

Then I slipped into the celestial.

I searched for any sign of life; of fading embers or the sparks of souls.

Searching…

Normally, death would see a soul return to its god, but as they’d both been used to fuel ritual magic – something handled by mortal hands – the spending followed no natural or perfect path. I sought for something left over.

Seeking…

Like when stoking a fire with timber, often bits of bark and splinter would be left behind in a wood box or by a fire’s grate. It was for such a piece of soul-stuff that I now hunted.

And found!

Kurgar hissed.

I found a spark from each of them, the fading lights weak and wavering, and chased by a smothering dark. Without hesitation, I took them into my care, fed them, shielded them, and then washed them in a generous share of my own stolen power.

They blazed into life.

Forged!

Kurgar growled.

Having secured them, I crafted a shell for each and filled them with strength. Back in the real world, I pressed heavily on their clammy chests to feel jellied blood squirt and cracked bones shift.

Beginning at my palms, warmth came to their bodies. It was there that I focussed my power as I worked to drag the Lord and Lady back. Colour returned to their faces, them gasping as their backs arched, while their eyes opened wide to bulge with shock and pain.

Beside me, Pedro fell to his knees.

“Sleep,” I whispered.

Their breathing calmed as their eyes closed.

Kurgar snapped, “Get out of here! Get out of my city!”

I stood and looked to him, pulling Pedro up with me. I then waved Sef across, getting him to stand with us as my dear old friend held Maria.

Kurgar snarled, “Go! Get out! Take your damned family and be gone!”

Exhausted, I said, “As agreed.”

Surprisingly, Kurgar’s anger was quick to fade, his scowl melting into a grim smile. “Not Sef, though. Our deal was only for your family.”

Sef paled.

I said, “He comes with us!”

Kurgar shook his head. “No he doesn’t, he’s not family – and there’s more to it than that.” He looked to Seig Manheim. “Go on, make your demands.”

Seig stepped forward. “Sef Vaugen of Kaumhurst, formerly a priest of Kave, and marked in that service, you cannot leave.”

Sef’s shoulders slumped.

“He must be free to go!” I insisted.

Seig said, “No, this is a matter between Sef and Kave. He must remain as his divine mark demands, for that is part of his punishment.”

“Punishment?” I asked, wondering if it had anything to do with me.

Sef turned, his face bleak. “My soul and service are promised to Kave.”

“You can go back on that – I’ll protect you.”

Seig called out, “Tell her your truth!”

And Sef cursed under his breath. “I can’t go, I’m sorry.” His tears began to flow as he handed Maria to my husband; she was sobbing too.

I begged, “Please Sef, come with us. If you stay here you’ll die!”

And Seig growled again, “Tell her!”

Sef swallowed as he wiped away tears. “I can’t leave because I’m marked, and must follow that mark’s conditions.”

“Who marked you?”

Seig bellowed, “Tell her, Sef, the coward of Kaumhurst!”

“What’s he talking about?”

My old friend shook his head in frustration. “My mark’s not from a rival god, but Kave himself. I’ve been damned for turning from battle, for choosing not to fight to the death…” And then his jaw froze, despite him staring at me as though he had more to tell.

Watching him, I could see the muscles of his jaw and neck spasm, while his eyes seemed to plead with me to be heard.

I could feel it, there was more to his tale. Sorcery hung about him to hold him back – the same kind of casting that ensnared me at my first meeting with Pedro.

He took a step towards Kurgar, but turned to look at me. “Go Juvela, I’ll deal with my penance and find a way to join you.”

“No, Sef!”

Seig called out, “Yield to your mark!”

Sef winced. “Go, while you have your family!”

“Sef!”

“Go, Juvela, find your place in things. I’ll see you again.”

Seig growled, “Get here!”

And with one last whispered goodbye he did.

Kurgar laughed. “Not all goes to plan, does it? Now get out of my city!”

I stretched out my hands, taking the opportunity to bless Sef’s soul and build a bond from it to me.

We would see each other again.

And then we rose into the smoke-heavy air, it giving way to the colours of sunrise. Pedro held Maria, as I used my power to lift his parents and us from the rooftop, and head towards the Newbank Gate.

Kurgar yelled, “You’ve stolen from the bloodline. I’ll have to kill eight others to make up for it. You’ve the blood of innocents on your hands!”

His words sickened me, but I couldn’t change what I’d done. In the end, I’d just have to make sure that bringing back Lord and Lady Liberigo was worth it.

Please, Schoperde…

Soon we’d be out of the city and safe beyond its walls. The following days would see us out of the valley and seeking shelter at Marco’s ruins. In that time I’d have much to consider: Could I somehow contact Dorloth and enlist her aid? I also had to be ready for Felmaradis, face my grandmother, and find a way to help both Marco and Sef.

And what of Schoperde; could she really be dead?

The Mother Goddess, Life, is, and always has been. It needs to be understood that she was long before anything else could be. Trying to fathom where she came from or how she came to be is beyond our mortal minds, as is such an understanding of her partner, Death.

She is the mother of all life, of this world and others, and even the gods who reign over them. Nonetheless, she needed a partner in bringing such bounty into being, and she found it in her opposite, Death.

He agreed to work with her, to labour with her, and love her. A union that saw the universe born. It took that union, his seed and her bloom, to fill it with the magic of their offspring.

But, for all his toil, Death demanded a price: That all of her creations would eventually come home to him.

One day Life will run short of the seed her partner gave. In the meantime, she brings more life to the worlds she has woven, and Death reaps the harvest it returns.