Prophetess

Chapter 7: Esdras Shrouded

Chapter 7: Esdras Shrouded

Sorry for the long wait but I'm back!! I've been working on this chapter for weeks trying to get every detail right

WARNING: Slight sexual references, with hints of provocative content: PG-13.

The road is submerged in deep night. I scramble in the jet black darkness, falling over stones in the crumbling street. I spot the little patch of white up ahead. The smallest speck, only a tiny white dot, and I hear a soft trilling voice calling more desperately for help. I try to approach running as fast as I can, and again see a small white bean glowing in the grass.

"Make way for Prophetess Arella! Clear the way for the revered chosen one of the Most High God!"

Arella followed the procession making its way through the streets of the still raging festival. She and Cas had to stay in town an extra two days so he could recover and heal properly. He had slept through most of that time, while Arella had pondered for hours what it all might mean. The necklace, the disguises, the sheer randomness of it all. Was it really the Wretch? Or some radical group trying to scare her? Or some psychotic monster trying to cause chaos? What did the gift itself mean? And why on earth would he sign it, if it was really him?

The town Orders had attempted to destroy the necklace, smashing it to pieces before burning it down to molten metal and mixing it into the trash heaps to be taken as far as possible and dumped out. Cas had insisted, as it could have killed anyone who touched it even if it was securely wrapped. The power of the darkness was an unknown science, an imprecise and taboo topic that most people either couldn't or refused to research in more depth. It was something the general population tended to just ignore, it was easy to pretend that the black snakes, the graffiti in red paint, the gangs around the country, that it was all just coincidences, human error, or bad luck.

In Esdras, it seemed that the attempted assassination was only a momentary blip on their celebrations. Today was the last day of the festival, as Cas had insisted they would leave at first light the next morning. Arella had quickly agreed, she was ready to leave this place and find the "white bean" she kept seeing in her dreams. Every time she was awakened before it was revealed to her, and the pull she felt to find or save the poor creature grew stronger every day. It gave her a headache trying to piece everything together and make sense of what had happened. Could it all be connected?

Arella rode on top of a large, strange beast at the front of the procession, Cas close behind on the same type of creature. The twin monarchs of Esdras had gifted two young enfields to them as yet another token of their gratitude and respect, and--she suspected--to try and smooth things over with the Lord. This was a great blessing, it meant that she and Cas wouldn't have to walk from city to city, and because the enfields were quick and nimble creatures they could easily find their own food, as well as provide another front of protection. They were hybrids of an ancient, mythical breed that had only just been rediscovered and reborn in Europe. The enfield she rode had the body of a large red fox, the back legs of a white wolf, huge white and brown eagle's wings, and a long white peacock's tail trailing elegantly behind him. The ancestors of these enfields had also had the front legs of an eagle, but modern technology blended their DNA with that of a horse to enlarge the beasts and to make them faster runners as well as stronger flyers. Both males clopped along on the paving stones, antsy for a run, but these two were docile and clearly well trained to obey the human voice and touch.

Cas's was similar, but with dark brown wolves legs and a speckled brown and white bird's tail. The long eagle's wings had been tucked back close to the torso, but they were known to be equal to or sometimes greater than the span of the enfield's body. Muchie and Shadow each had their own small sidecar attached, and Arella wanted to keep the cat as close as possible in case of another incident. The voice had been silent since the assassination attempt, leaving her feeling stranded and confused. She tried to force herself not to circle back.