“What are you saying, Temir?”
“I’m going to light the whole village on fire, Gaea. They will have their pyre. I don’t care how long it takes me.”
“Let me help you.” She drew her eyebrows together and lifted her hand to my arm. Not to spirit us away but in comfort. Something in the small gesture only hardened my determination to do the right thing. Their souls needed to be released to the Ether.
I nodded as I walked past her and started down the steep snowy hill. I lost my footing several times, skidding down the ice as I went, but eventually, I stood amongst the dead.
“How are we going to do this?” she asked.
“I’ll have to move them together. You look through the homes and see if you can find any survivors or anything to start the fire.”
I didn’t find a single child as I worked my way through the fallen. I was grateful for that small mercy as I moved them. Most of the fae had corralled into the middle of the village, so I carefully added the others, one by one. I lifted a female with a sword in her back, and once I laid her down, I removed the violation to her body. Another male was too heavy for me to lift, and though I tried to move him cautiously, I had to drag him across the ground, atop the others.
“Temir!” Gaea shouted from a doorstep.
I jerked my head to her, and tears stung my eyes as I took in a single survivor. One short, old, gray-haired female stood wrapped in blankets beside Gaea. I took a step but then looked down and remembered I was covered in the blood of her family and friends.
“You may come, boy.” She dipped her chin and waited.
I hesitantly closed the gap and watched as the female stared into the pile of bodies I had made. Her eyes misted over, and she shook as she held a hand out to me. “Take me to them.”
I grasped her hand, and we took small deliberate steps until we stood before them. “My son,” she whispered, pointing.
“I’m so sorry.” There were no proper words to bring her comfort.
She reached into her blankets and pulled out a knife. She held it up to me, and I looked at her, tilting my head to the side.
“I’ve spent my life hiding from that wretched king and the others,” she said. “My parents had the sense to realize I would have been collected. I will light my son’s funeral pyre, but you will kill me when I am done. My entire life has died today.”
“But we could hide you. Protect you,” Gaea answered.
“And are you hidden and protected, girl? Are you safe from this?” she asked, indicating the massacre.
Gaea looked to the ground.
“I do not wish to see the world grow darker or more dangerous. It is the only thing I ask.” She pushed the knife toward me, but I didn’t take it.
I understood those words on a raw level. I knew what she meant, and although Gaea would not have agreed, I did. I nodded.
She turned to the villagers—to her son, her family, her friends—and lifted her fragile hands. I watched as she cast her magic forward and the entire village was engorged with flames, apart from a small circle around the three of us that remained safe. Gaea stood so close her arm brushed mine.
Life could have been taken from us at any moment: sitting in a room with King Autus, living in his castle, dining at his table. Every second of it was dangerous. These could be our bodies burning. We were far guiltier of treason than they were. But in this unfair world, with broken promises and unanswered prayers, we lived and they didn’t, and that was the most unjust thing I could imagine. I had no idea why King Autus got to play a God and the rest of us were only cannon fodder, but Alewyn had once again failed us all.
We waited as the flames died down, and we stood in the center of a pile of ashes. The female began to whisper, and we joined her.
“Into lightness and darkness, into shadows and mist, may you rest for eternity. Over the mountains and beneath the sea, let your spirit find peace. May nature keep your soul, the wind hold your memories, the river bless your spirit, and the fire carry you away.”
Finally, she turned to me and once again held the knife out. “I am ready.” She dropped the blankets that covered her.
“Are you sure?” Gaea asked, tears slipping down her somber face.
“I will not be like you, girl. I’ve not lived my life according to his plans, and the longer you stay there, you only fool yourself. This world will never heal. I’ll take my fire to the grave.”
I took the knife and my hands began to shake. Could I do this? I looked to Gaea, but she only turned her back to me.
The female covered my trembling hands with her own. “Have peace, boy. This is my will and will not sit on your soul. I beg of you, send me to the gods. Let me find peace at last.”
I nodded, feeling a calm wash over me. I would do this. For her. She would not be Autus’ causality. She would die on her own terms. The knife slipped between her ribs. She smiled as she looked up to me while I laid her gently to the ground and held her until only her still body remained.
