Amentia

Chapter 53 - Time to leave

"You have got to be kidding me," said Meira in an almost mocking manner as she arrived to the scene with Almar, Ruvyn and Omylia.

"Mei, I love you, but if you say another word in that tone, I swear I will leave you," said Almar in the most tired voice. He was not happy with who his girlfriend was becoming under these circumstances. They'd been together for almost thirty years and she'd never been this kind of insensitive before; he didn't think he had it in her. It was a sad disappointment to find out she did. He was exhausted.

Almar's words froze Meira in place and she did not speak again.

"I'll carry her back," he said then, giving his nahe to Adam and the shovel to Meira.

Almar picked up the sleeping Nati with care and ease, mentally hoping this was the last time he'd have to carry the limp body of someone he cared about. He wasn't sure how many more times he could do this without breaking down.

The rest of the way back to the caravan was walked in absolute silence. Everyone was still emotional from the burial and now Nati had fallen under the mysterious spell that possessed this world. Running into her collapsed body on the ground was too frightening an image after what they'd all been through in the last few days. It was no surprise to Anna, though, that Nati had succumbed to it, given how chaotic her melody had been sounding recently. She had hoped it was a chaos that meant Nati was on the verge of a breakthrough, but it seemed it wasn't. She turned her head to look at Meiko, who was walking with her eyes focused on Nati's figure in Almar's arms and had the resolute expression on her face that came with her sense of duty. Clearly she was already getting mentally ready to wake Nati up immediately.

"You rest first," Anna said to Meiko once Nati was placed on her bed. Meiko hadn't even said anything, but of course Anna knew.

Meiko couldn't argue. It had been a very long day for her, both her energy and her spirit were exhausted; trying to help Nati in her state wouldn't be of any use to either of them.

The second morning was easier. The burial had helped a great deal to lighten the weight of the loss. It hadn't given them a full closure, because that never comes, but it had given them a bit of consolation. Maylin was okay now; it was all over for her. The remnants of her essence were traveling through the earth, hopefully to breathe life into something new in time. Zoe was surprisingly comforted by this; she thought maybe if she focused enough she'd be able to feel Maylin moving below her feet, or perhaps one day she'd run into a plant or tree that had her spirit in it, reuniting them in a sort of poetic way. It was weird: she was almost sure that this would happen, that someday there'd be a part of nature that had a piece of Maylin in it. She could almost say it was a fact.

She stepped outside to breathe in the morning air and shifted her feet carefully to find Maylin's grave in the distance. Her body was almost fully absorbed into the earth now. Moving her feet again, she returned to her standing place. She was wary of running into dark spots in the ground, so she made sure to move slowly and through clear spaces. She didn't want to let that thing consume her again. She'd learned her lesson and she'd be patient in trying to find what she'd been looking for. She had rushed before, probably because this entity was already influencing her, and it had only sunk her deeper in. It would not happen again. She'd find the place where this thing was going and she'd do it the right way, not the fast way. No shortcuts or obscure alleys; they hadn't even been useful anyway. Even being fully attuned to it, she still hadn't found where it was going, so she might as well do it the safe way.

Surprising everyone, Ruvyn and Az went into town together and left Almar in charge while they were gone. It wasn't common for both of them to be away and leave the caravan unattended, but they wanted to find out for themselves what state everything was in, given that news bulletins weren't going around at the moment. So they took a casual but extremely cautious stroll around Ehlevit with their ears attentive to any interesting conversations. Asking creatures directly wouldn't be of much help unless they went to the really gossipy ones, but those weren't always reliable sources. So they walked and occasionally sat down on a bench or leaned against a tree or stopped at a window display.