009 Those Who Watch the Sky - 09
09 – Children Cursed by the Sky 6
The catastrophic night wore on,
but for Link, Elliot, and Squawk escape from the worst of it finally seemed to be
at hand. Before them, leading their group through the woods the harpy Melody
ran with her knees to her chest with simple flicks of her ankles. Following her
as closely as possible was Squawk huffing and puffing for air compared to Link
and Elliot who brought up the rear and gave the group a triangle formation.
Much better control of their breathing as Link and Elliot had however they
definitely looked the worse for wear than their nāti friend, both of them coated
in the copper blue blood of the Foreigners and Elliot’s own
red blood mingling with it though his own bleeding had long since ceased.
Close as the end of the night
seemed to the group it was still one fraught with danger. As they ran
encumbered with their own exhaustion and carried forward only by adrenaline
they eventually escaped from where the wood still burned brightly with the
flames that ravaged it and once more exposed themselves to the abominations of
flesh, fang, and claw that they knew to be the Foreigners. In the growing
darkness Melody’s claws and the swords of Link
and Elliot flashed rending Foreigner flesh and thickening the coat of blood
that they wore. Desperate as they were to escape the night and stay alive in
the darkness of the wood with the fire falling far behind them, they failed to
notice that not all of their foes were of flesh and fang and claw. The vile
parasites had begun infecting the wood itself and turning the flora and fauna
both into monsters that desired only to kill the group of four.
The wood would offer threat and
protection both to the four for little longer as their desperate flight
eventually lead them to thinner and thinner woodlands as they neared the
typically more barren lands of the face of Icarus. In such open spaces they
would surely be fully exposed to the horrors that fell from the sky and out of
the clouds of dust, smoke, and ash that night, but they pressed on just as
surely as their exhaustion sapped their strength and adrenaline born of fear
kept them running. Adrenaline however could also be born of hope and the first
signs of daybreak appeared in the skies off to the children’s left
revealing that that smoke and dust that filled the sky did not go on forever.
“Look!”
Speaking up Link drew the group’s
attention to her and in turn towards the sky to the southwest where her gaze
fell. Some distance ahead of them and well into the sky where it belonged, the
massive technological impossibility that had scrapped their home away as the
sun set the night before loomed above. The vertically stretched ovoid that
served as a city to the Foreigners cast a shadow before them as much as it did
behind them, but with the first ray’s of daylight reflecting off of
its plant engulfed metal exterior it somehow seemed softer and less malicious
than the devastation it left in its wake implied.
“Idiotic thing! Why couldn’t it
stay that high to begin with?!”
Screeching vehemently Squawk
shook Link’s scabbard at the Foreigner city
having become aware of it. The city, bar some lights that could be seen
twinkling within even from the ground, showed no signs of life with which to
respond to Squawk’s vitriol filled complaint and
simply continued its slow ascent back into the sky as it continued its trip
south. There was no point in wasting further energy on it and so high in the
sky it was becoming harder and harder to believe that it was the source of the
troubles that befell the four of them that night.
“I wonder why it descended…”
Less hateful of the Foreigner
City than Squawk, Elliot looked upon it with curiosity. Naturally the ancient
city had no answer for him but Squawk was glad to speak up in the Foreigners’
stead.
“Because the Foreigners hate us,
that’s why! Surely the way you two
idiots have always dreamed about going off on adventures and harassing the
merchants that passed through Cross have heard the stories of the fools who
incited the wraith of the Foreigners.”
“You mean the fall of Lucir,
right?”
“That’s
right, the people that defied the Cardinal Church and tried to build a nation
inviting the wraith of the Foreigners again on to all of mankind. What type of
idiots would ignore the Foreigners razing the face of Icarus some five hundred
years ago?”
Link had no answer for the
question that Squawk asked her in response to her answer and she fell into
thoughtful silence. Elliot glanced worriedly in her direction but felt he too
could not answer that question. Raised in a town in which the Cardinal Church had
deployed a lone nun to serve as their primary educator and the lone Sa·B·er
that defended their town also being affiliated with them assured that their
values were well instilled in him. Those values included technology being
sparsely used beyond quality of life aspects such as plumbing and sewage along
with electrical lighting, heating and cooling, and radio communication. All
else was left to be handled only by those approved of by the Cardinal Church
lest mankind in its hubris again invite the fury of the Foreigners upon them.
“You don’t
suppose it’s because of the machine
sentries do you?”
“Why would it be the machine
sentries? Father had permission from the Cardinal Church to repair them and
ready them to protect the town since Cliff was the only Sa·B·er in
Cross and we never really had a militia. I’m more likely to guess that that
Sa·B·er in red was responsible.”
“You’re
blaming a total stranger now who you know nothing about. Truly you are an idiot
Link!”
Link pouted fiercely in Squawk’s
direction but as the nāti was keeping his eyes ahead on
Melody it was a wasted look. Noticing that they had put some distance between
them and the wood and that the turned up shelves of earth they had been running
through now gave them a fair view of the burning forest behind them Link turned
her own attention to the harpy.
“Hey, Melody! How much longer
until we catch up with Cliff?”
“Huh? Well we’re at
a cliff now ~♪”
“Eh~!”
Made aware of the geographical change ahead of them Link,
Elliot, and Squawk came to a jumbled stop. Staring back at the group behind her
with a smile Melody laughed at the three of them as they fell over themselves.
“You’re as much of an idiot as these two and I should have
expected it!”
“Don’t call Melody an idiot!”
Not taking kindly to Squawk’s bellyaching Link drove her
fist into his head before joining Melody at the cliff edge. She was shortly
joined by Elliot and Squawk clutching at the top of his head and the three of
them were astound by what they say.
The basin that the town of Cross
had rested in was as a small hole compared to the ripples of cliffs and rocky
shelves that rolled out before them. Jagged and unforgiving it could not even
be determined if the freshly churned earth as pushed up by the Foreigner city’s
recent contact with the face of Icarus was safe to traverse. More telling
however was that there was no sign of the metal corridor that Melody had spoke
of that had led the group this far and Squawk was quick to voice his noticing
of this detail.
“I knew we couldn’t trust
this accursed beast! Tell me, do either of you idiots see any sign of an escape
shaft from the plant?!”
“Shut up Squawk, I’m
looking.”
Much as Link spoke harshly
towards Squawk she could not deny that there was no sign of the corridor in
question. Elliot seemed to be of the same mind but took his concerns directly
to Melody.
“Perhaps we misstepped due to the
land being upturned by the Foreigner city?”
“What are you talking about
Elliot? ~♪ Sure I made sure to avoid the
metal people but once we were clear of the woods I took us right back on track
~♪”
“I don’t
think that bird brain of yours understands what the idiot is saying; there isn’t any
sign of the escape shaft!”
“Well not from there silly ~♪ Most
of it was already torn up and falling in on itself so it probably was buried
already ~♪”
“Buried⁈”
With a word Melody chased away
the hope that had been keeping the others going all through the night and well
into the early morning. She did not understand the despair that the three of
them were suddenly expressing however and tilted her head curiously.
“Is something wrong?”
“Of course something is wrong you
idiotic beast! We’ve been running through the
night desperate to find the only other survivors of this horrifying experience
only to discover that they were likely buried alive!”
“I don’t get
it… Is that supposed to be a joke
because it doesn’t seem very funny…”
Squawk was likely to blow his
top but Elliot placed a disapproving hand on his shoulder and shook his head.
Turning his own crestfallen smile onto Melody he tried to come to terms with
their situation.
“If only it were a joke Melody,
but hearing that the tunnel has been buried…”
“Ah, ha, ha, ha, ha ~♪ Are
you sure you’re not trying to tell a joke
because they look fine to me ~♪”
Looking back out over the cliff
into the terrifying ripples of earth and rock that awaited them below Melody
smiled quite sure of herself. Elliot and Squawk could not wrap their tired
minds around what the harpy spoke of as they too looked out and only saw the desolate
upturned earth. Link however suddenly had a realization and her eyes lit up.
“Which way Melody?”
“They’re
right over there Link ~♪”
Nodding her head to indicate
where she was looking Melody gladly answered Link’s query. Stepping up to the edge
of the cliff and cupping her hands to her mouth as best she could while still
holding her sword Link conjured up all of her strength and yelled out as loud
as she could.
“CLI~FF! SISTE~R! WAI~T! WE’RE
COMING UP FROM BEHIND YOU!”
Having spent the last of the
strength that she had, Link stumbled back and would have fallen had Elliot not
caught her. Grateful as she was the confused look on his face pleaded for an
explanation and Link smiled for him.
“Elliot, it’s
Melody here. Her eyes are so much better than ours of course she could see them
when we couldn’t.”
“Of course!”
Enlivened by Link’s
explanation Elliot shifted to shout out over the cliff himself.
“SISTER! CLIFF! IT’S
REALLY US!”
A heavy sigh interrupted the
good cheer of Link and Elliot as Squawk shook his head at the both of them.
“Honestly you amateurs, if they
really are out there they won’t hear such paltry screams.”
Squawk’s
boasting was not just for show and as the nāti cupped his hands to his beak
Link and Elliot were forced to cover their ears. Melody was not so fortunate to
have hands with which to protect her long ears and yelped out in pain, though
her voice was buried under Squawk’s mighty shout.
“YOU TWO SELFISH IDIOTS‼ WHAT DO YOU THINK
YOU’RE DOING LEAVING ME AND THE TWO IDIOTS BEHIND?‼ AND DON’T THINK YOU CAN GET AWAY EITHER‼I DON’T KNOW HOW
WE’RE GOING TO CATCH UP YET BUT THESE TWO IDIOTS HAVE A PET HARPY WHO CAN SEE
YOU FROM HERE AND ALREADY TRACKED YOU THROUGH THE NIGHT‼”
Lowering her hands
from her ears Link looked at Squawk tentatively and smiled awkwardly.
“That was
something else Squawk. Where did you learn to shout like that?”
“Learn?! Don’t
make me laugh Link! I’m a natural born master of course!”
Folding his arms
as best he could while still holding onto Link’s scabbard Squawk offered Link a
proud harrumph. Lowering his own hands from his ears Elliot donned an unsure
smile of his own as he looked at the proud nāti. Melody having to experience
the full might of Squawk’s impressive shout was herself laughing even as she
complained about the experience.
“Ah, ha, ha, ha,
ha! ~♪ My ears are ringing and I can’t hear
anything else ~♪ –⁈ Oh~!” Look! ~♪ Look! ~♪ What’s that⁈ ~♪”
At Melody’s
surprise and insistence Link, Elliot, and Squawk turned their attention once
more out beyond the edge of the cliff and were rewarded for their decision.
“Ha! Look at that, they heard one
of us at least!”
“More likely than not it was
Squawk.”
“Of course it was. Like either of
you idiots could possibly have shouted so magnificently.”
Having reason to
smile earnestly again the group looked out over the broken land that awaited
them and welcomed the sight of the flare rising up into the sky in competition
with the rising sun.
~ The night had at last past.
For those of us who had survived it should have been a release.
Though we had survived there was still much grief that awaited us.
The Foreigner City did not only wipe out just a small town from the face of Icarus.
Our emotions and will to survive would yet be tested more in the days ahead.
What we so conveniently ignored as we fled for lives and fought to survive.
The Foreigners wrought not just destruction but also despair.
We had survived, but the Foreigners’ curse was already upon us… ~
For those of us who had survived it should have been a release.
Though we had survived there was still much grief that awaited us.
The Foreigner City did not only wipe out just a small town from the face of Icarus.
Our emotions and will to survive would yet be tested more in the days ahead.
What we so conveniently ignored as we fled for lives and fought to survive.
The Foreigners wrought not just destruction but also despair.
We had survived, but the Foreigners’ curse was already upon us… ~
Copyright © 2019 Joshua D Tarwater
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