GREY

Emroth's End

Emroth was a safe haven for every being born with the infernal mark. An infernal being any person who descended from the Marked, the product of the union of demons and humans. They bore the infernal mark, or the devil’s spore as the holy kingdoms preferred to call it. Like the fallen heavenly beings, infernals inherited the power to manipulate elements and a special ability. However, the more one used that power, the more their demonic side took over, hence most infernals were regarded as violent and evil.

Since the use of infernal magic was forbidden in Emroth, the village was the only place where infernals lived normal lives as humans. Emroth was situated eighty miles north west of the citadel of Egnir, where the witch-empress Feonna sat on the holy throne. A nexal orb veiled the valley in which the village was located from the eyes of men, and only an infernal’s vision could find it without the help of a tracking spell. Even then, no magic had overwhelmed the power that the orb possessed.

Emroth was not a utopia by any means, but it had one gift that any other kingdom within the continent lacked: peace. The economy was small and limited, for the infernals lived through healing portion sales and supervised trades with foreign kingdoms, hunting and seasonal small scale farming. The inhabitants of Emroth had utilized the lushness of surrounding mountains to build cottages and treehouses, pens and stables out of living wood. They even erected a temple, where young infernals were taught how to control their power.

Grey's cottage was built on a hillock in the village periphery, a good distance away from the rest of the homesteads. The old man had constructed it carefully with pine logs four decades ago, back when his body used to be more than just skin and bones. The pines had aged gracefully, protected from the effects of natural elements by interweaving climbers that made thick walls of beautiful white and purple blossoms.

Within Grey's house was a creature that he had kept hidden from everyone except the old village healer. Following the night of their return, Grey had seen it fit to introduce his abomination to his disciples. Exposed to the outside, s***h and Sight looked at it with a mixture of awe and hatred. The morning sun rays lost their radiant amber glow when they came in contact with the creature's pale skin. It sat on a wooden chair, witnessing the brightness of day for the first time in sixty years.

The creature was a human female. She was so thin anyone could count her ribs under the light silk dress she wore. Her face was gaunt yet fair; her hair flew in silky raven wisps at the mercy of a mountainside breeze. Her eyes were shut; her muscles did not move. She did not breathe. s***h's keen ears could not hear the beating of her heart, yet she knew the human was not dead.

Before the human was a low stone altar that had been crudely constructed by a reluctant s***h. On it was the priestess that they had found at the uncharted territory battlefield. Her wrists and ankles were tied, her mouth gagged. Grey held a dagger in one hand, a small codex in the other. Sight fastened a golden pendant around the thin human's neck. An oval, emerald gem rested between her breasts, pulsing faintly in response to the sun's radiance. The two disciples stood back and waited apprehensively. Grey had not spoken a word about what he was trying to do, then again, he barely told anyone about his schemes.

The priestess opened her eyes. She attempted to move and failed. Her eyes widened. She had no strength to scream or struggle through her restrains. Grey paid her no heed.

"This feels abrupt," Grey said, looking at s***h, who undoubtedly had a few thousand questions that needed answering. "I found this girl in the royal chambers six decades ago. Her mother's last wish was to give her daughter a chance to live. She was never alive to begin with, so I promised I'd give her life. All these years I've searched for a way to make that possible. A codex of animation, the gemstone of resurrection, and a pure soul imbued with holy power. Awakening her has its price. A spark, which is soul energy, is required to perform the ritual."

"You mean apart from the poor priestess, someone else has to die also?" s***h asked. "And to awaken one person? Humans have shunned us since forever. What makes this one special? And who are you going to sacrifice for this... this thing? I'm not going to be part of this madness."

"Her name is Lyana. She is not different from any of us. And the person who wields the codex of animation at the time of evocation is the candidate," Grey answered patiently. "I haven't been much of a friend to you both. It's something I would've liked to change if I had more time. If she manages to awaken, please show her mercy. She is a newborn, even though her body is grown, and she knows nothing of this world."

"Grey?" Sight started. She averted her eye to the ground. "What if this fails?"

The old man chuckled. "You can mourn and burn what is left."

Grey dragged the dagger's sharp edge across the priestess' throat in a quick, fluid motion. The cut made the priestess jerk backwards sharply, arching her spine in pain. Her weak moan was muffled by the gag in her mouth. Grey opened the codex and read the animation spell.

Leu vanith, es the vanthre.

The priestess' body froze still. Blood spurted out of her neck in pulsing sprays. Sight closed her eye and whimpered silently to herself.

Seo vo' le cus, von este, von este. Evere som es onre sabit oui a loui, reveur akt se voum!

A strong wind whirled around Grey’s body. A string of light pierced out of the dead priestess’s chest and snaked through the air towards the emerald gem on the human. The stone absorbed the light and glowed brighter.

Revere, exeli.

The wind whirled faster around Grey. Green particles emerged from his robe and made a spiraling pattern that engulfed the human from head to toe. The wind grew stronger. Sight and s***h were hurled off the hill before any of them could react. The altar disintegrated. The priestess’s body was swept away, along with Grey’s cottage and everything that was stored within.

The turbulence intensified as the last particles vanished into the human’s body. Grey watched as the codex wilted in his hand. Everything calmed. His job was done. He heard s***h and Sight’s footsteps running up the hill. There was a part of him that wanted to stay with them. However, he needed not suffer more. He had earned his rest. After a slow, heavy sigh, Grey released his hold on the world of the living. He fell, never to rise again.

Slash ran like she had never done before. She saw Grey falling on his face just as she reached the summit. She did not understand her emotion. All she had ever wanted since she joined Grey was the old man’s death. She wanted to feel happy and triumphant, but all she felt was a hollowness that she could not fathom. The human who sat on the chair remained still, but her body started changing.

Where her skin had been pallid and wrinkled, it started tightening and glowing. Her features rejuvenated; her body became stronger. A new aura settled upon her, one that brimmed with life and power.

Sight, who caught up a few seconds later, stood beside s***h and took in rushed breaths. She saw it. She had seen it before, how Grey would lose his life. She had wanted to convince him to avoid what he had done, but she was too scared of him. Why then, did she feel shallow now that the old man was gone? The only good deed Grey had ever done for her was saving her life, but after that, he had just used her to reach this end. He didn’t even care to explain why this was so important to him.

“Grey…” Sight started.

“Pathetic old man,” s***h cursed. “A burial is too good for him. We’ll throw his wretched body in the river.”

“But…”

“Did he ever mean anything to you, Sight? He never bothered calling you by name. We were just his slaves, and he used us to accomplish... this.”

She pointed a detested finger at the seated form and spat. She wanted to kill the human, she could not help it. She drew her sword, visualizing how she’d s*******r her prey, savoring it…

“Seer Abitha,” a village guard emerged from one of the paths that came up to Grey’s cottage. He took a knee before the two women. “I am sorry to interrupt, but this could not wait. We are under attack. The Holy Knights of Aegia have surrounded the village.”

Sight felt her skin contracting with shock, her heart beating faster. She had not seen anything beyond Grey’s death. Had someone crippled her sight, or had the enemy hidden themselves from her gaze? Either way, it was too late to act now. Without Grey, they had no chance of winning against the might of Aegia. And why had they attacked specifically the moment Grey was dead? Did the old man plan this all along?

“Sight!” s***h shook Abitha from her thoughts. “We need to evacuate the villagers. I will rally our troops to buy you and the others some time to escape. You still have your key to the tunnel, right?”

Abitha felt for her locket and nodded.

“Then go! We don’t have much time.”

“What about…”

“Don’t pretend like you care so much,” s***h growled. She beckoned the guard to follow her. “We’ll mobilize at once.”

“Thalia,” Abitha called out after s***h. “Please don’t die.”