Chapter Fifty
1059 Words
“Why are we here?”
Gloriah was not sure how to respond to the enquiry, yet it was her duty to pass along the information she had gathered from the fountain. Her lithe fingers were cold from shock, and her eyes were filled with terror. She cussed her abilities once more, hoping the gods would have mercy and rip them off her.
“Child, do you expect us to sit idly by while you summon your tongue?”
“Careful Joseph, lest you want to antagonize our last remaining seer…”
“Still, haven’t we given her enough time to collect herself? She should be feeding us with vital information right now!”
“Do not listen to Joseph child, you take your time…”
Gloriah darted her eyes between Joseph and Clarissa. The two were a formidable couple; they came second in command after the Mother Healer.
“May I speak to Mother Healer?”
Clarissa’s eyebrows furrowed as she pinched the bridge of her nose. Mother Healer had not come into contact with anyone else for a long time. She had retreated to her cave and demanded solitude. Naturally, Clarissa had taken over as she was her granddaughter but she had never quite been a leader because of the mere existence of the Great Mother.
“Listen to me, child, it is either you speak to us, or you do not speak at all, forever…”
Clarissa rolled her eyes. Her husband was like a beast who could not kill; all growl but not bite.
“I believe this is too important…Mother Healer needs to hear this…”
Clarissa was growing weary of this; it was as if she had not been leading their tribe for the past five seasons. Where had Mother Healer been when she needed to protect their haven from being discovered by humans? Where had Mother Healer been when the magical realm had threatened to wage war against the healers?
“You will tell me what you saw, and you will tell me now, or I promise you the repercussions will scar you for eternity…”
Gloriah had never seen Clarissa’s dark side, but she had heard of her ruthlessness when pushed. Was she willing to be fed to the beasts for information that wasn’t hers to keep?
“My patience is running thin, Clarissa perhaps she did not see anything when she went to the fountain as she claims-“
“Quiet Joseph!”
Joseph’s head hanged lowly as he twiddled his fingers. He was as devoted to his wife as he was devoted to his position. Power meant to respect, and ever since his union with Clarissa, the tribe had begun showing him the respect he felt he deserved.
“I saw…I saw…”
“Louder child…”
Gloriah swallowed back the metallic taste forming in her tongue. Her anxiety was peaking; she could feel herself hyperventilating.
“The war will bring humans and mages alike to our homes. They will demand that we cannot give because we did not administer it, and our failure, their failure will cause chaos and havoc. Our banished tribe will fall, mages will fall, man will fall. There is no alternative ending, the Armageddon is upon us…”
Clarissa, who had paled entirely, moved her hand slowly towards that of her husband’s. Once their hands were entwined, she squeezed her husband’s palm, causing him immense pain. Joseph bit the inner parts of his cheeks and when that trick failed, he bit his own tongue till it bled.
“The prophecy…you mean to say that the prophecy… Joseph, this cannot be, I have fought hard to keep us alive, I have made deals with them so as to keep us safe…”
“Hush now, love. Leave us, child…”
Gloriah, free from the binding information she had kept, turned to leave, her heart heavier than it had been when she had entered Clarissa’s chambers. Had Clarissa caused all this? According to the scrolls, healers had escaped forming their own magic tribe after both man and mage began using them for their own benefit. Trading potions and potency was forbidden. It had been made clear that their spells were only desired for evil. Gloriah swallowed back the huge lump in her throat. The fountain had not lied; this was the end after all.
“Did you hear her? Did you hear her Joseph?”
Like everyone else in the tribe, Joseph was aware of the prophecy and the dire consequences that came along with it.
“Gloriah was right, I cannot handle this on my own…It is time to awaken her, it is time to wake up grandmother-“
“No!”
“What? What is wrong with you? Can’t you see? We need her guidance; we need to find a way to survive!”
“What if I told you that I know that the prophecy cannot come to pass…”
Clarissa paused, her eyes glittering with panic and trepidation.
“What do you mean, Joseph…”
“I mean to say that how can gods simply wipe out-“
“That is not what you meant Joseph, healers can detect lies, remember? What are you hiding?”
Joseph wiped his forehead with the back of his hand as he stepped away from his wife. He couldn’t tell her. He couldn’t risk it. The shame, the pointing fingers. He just couldn’t.
“I am so sorry Clarissa…”
Clarissa, exhausted from all the interrogating games she had played that day, grabbed a wandering leaf from the chamber and squeezed the juice into her palm. She then held it out to Joseph, who scrambled towards the wall, his lips trembling.
“Tell me the truth!”
Joseph was weighing his odds when Gloriah dashed back into Clarissa’s chambers with a quailing expression on her face.
“Clarissa, I think you both need to see this…”
“What could possibly be more important right now?”
“Mages and a human, on our land…”
- Writer
