“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?”
“They brought her to the jail. I thought you understood that.”
“I need you to take me, us, there now.”
We run into the street and find our passage blocked by a bloated, animated body missing part of its head. I barely recognize it as Wenn. It croaks, “Daughter.”
“Wenn, my brother, what has that witch done to you?” Theo’s face is fish-belly white.
The body advances. “Need daughter. So sorry.” His clothes are tattered and soaked.
I fall to my knees sobbing. “Theo, kill him. Release him from this hell.”
I cover Eliza’s eyes while Theo takes a staff and beats the remainder of Wenn’s head into a mash. Wenn drops with a wet thud.
More bodies appear in the streets. Some are recently dead from the battle, others are nothing more than slick strands of sinew and bones. Theo knocks them out of our way as we rush to the jail compound. We arrive to find no guards and a dead soldier trying to grab keys and release Thresh from her cell.
Thresh is so frail. She looks as if she hasn’t eaten in weeks. “So, Amy Marksman. We meet again and flesh to flesh. You look hearty.” She peers over my shoulder. “Eliza sweetheart, are you well?”
The girl beams and runs to the bars. “Mommy? Why you in a cage?”
“Those mean people locked me up, honey. Run and hide, now.”
Before we can react, Eliza bolts down the dark hallway, littered with dozens of cells and passages. Theo yells, “Liza, come back here. We’re good. Please?”
“Let her hide, Theo. I don’t want her to see what is about to happen.”
Thresh chuckles. “Amy, face it. You’re going to lose. I’m drawing them to me. I can feel them killing men, women, and children right now, in the gilded city. Delicious. And they’re doing it for me and for you.”
“Thresh, you’ve no idea how much I’ve grown while you’ve stagnated in your hatred and petulance. You don’t deserve the abilities you have. I pity you. It’s time for you to go.” I feel myself entering the tunnel and I’m on the other side of the bars looking at me. I make sure that Thresh is still conscious and surprised while I force her hands over her nose and mouth. She struggles weakly for air as her vision blurs and turns grey. The last image she sees is of me staring at her with disgust
Chapter 62 – Institute Meets Earth
A veil has lifted from Yellow Stone. People are happier and colors seem brighter. The wicked smell of the lake has abated.
This happiness and relief did not emerge immediately after the emancipation. We spent the first few days after the battle disposing of the revered dead, who unfortunately were littered by Thresh across all the streets and walls of the town. Most of the bodies were returned to the lake. I burned Thresh’s body and sent her ashes into cold, empty space via the Raven. Her lover Jonah will rot in jail for the remainder of his days. He’s quite insane, preaching continuously about the fall of the unrighteous and the rise of the damned.
In these peaceful days, the brown ooze no longer appears, although I know the danger is still there. Without a magnet like Thresh, nothing draws it out of the portal. But the others still watch without eyes hungrily from beyond. I see them when I fly the Raven over the lake when continuing my daily lessons from Fromer. I’ll learn to stop them soon, I hope. Fromer keeps telling me to be patient.
Once we’re certain the immediate danger is gone, Etch and I travel south and west to the mountain lodge at Yosemite to retrieve our friends. We land both ships in a grassy meadow downhill of the building. I marvel at how quickly the scars of the spring battle with Thresh have healed. Samuel greets us with a bottle of ripe cider. “Where’ve you been?” He’s beaming and a little drunk.
“Oh Samuel, if you only knew.” I hug him, noticing that his beard’s much longer and that he’s much lighter.
We walk to the lodge where Grey and Gorian hold Ferris, who’s grown into a curious and mobile toddler. She’s an interesting mix of her parents and would be a great companion to Eliza, if Eliza ever bursts through her shell. There are four copies of Iggy roaming the grounds rather than one now. The only difference is that Iggy’s slightly greyer and moves slowly. Sam greets us with his artificial voice. I swear he’s become more personable — likely a result of much tweaking by Gorian. The last person to greet us is father. He’s aged precipitously while we’ve been away. He seems vacant, lost in his thoughts.
We sit by a roaring fire, the heat still welcome in the cool summer night in the mountains, discussing the events that occurred and those that might follow. “So, you all will join us at Yellow Stone?” I ask.