Chapter 091:

Cetina’s body felt numb. Numb was not strong enough to describe how empty she felt inside. She barely felt anything. The wind, the sun, leaves brushing against her face…nothing. Never could she have imagined that everything could have gone wrong so quickly. Firstly, her injury in a battle with hideous creatures, their very blood had permanently burned, disfigured and blinded her left eye. And now…

A flicker of orange fire caught her numbed vision. Only then did her legs start to feel weak.

A giant funeral pyre burned in front of her. Her fathers. That thought alone brought another tear to her eyes, one that she could barely afford. Her eyes were red and raw while her throat felt like knives had carved through the flesh.

Everything after finding her father had been a complete blur. She remembered very little, other than being dragged around quite a bit by Verona, Kal and Anton. A man wearing a red sash had spoken to them at length, several words were directed at her but she didn’t register them. Her mind was swirling around her pain. She did not recall what happened after that but, by the afternoon, they had somehow arranged a funeral pyre for her father. There was a mention of money somewhere but she did not care. She was like a ghost. Her father, as a follower of the Church of the Holy Father, would have wanted to be buried in the ground. But in Graterious only nobles were allowed to do such a thing. People like her father had to settle for fire. It was the best she could hope for.

Duran had been wrapped in many layers of cloth before being placed onto the large pyre. She vaguely remembered Anton saying that her last memories of Duran should not be so horrid. Those were empty words. There was no way she could forget what she saw. Her father, the person she loved the most, had been torn apart, his flesh had been rendered down to the bone and…his crotch…

Another parcel of bile threatened to enter her throat. She force it back down. Numbed as she was she barely felt the burning sensation in her mouth.

Slowly she began to notice her hearing had returned. Rather, she had the mental strength to care once again. She looked at the pyre but heard nothing except the roar of the flame. Seeing his wrapped body burn through the flame, every part of what was once the honourable man she knew disappear into smoke and ash drained the strength in her body. Her knees buckled and she collapsed to the ground. Again. Her hands fell limp beside her legs as she stared at the fire.

What do I do now? Everyone I know is dead, a witch or hundreds of miles away…And would kill me the moment they saw me. And now there’s just me…Alone…What do I do?

She had no answer as she continued to stare into the flame.

Some time passed before she heard something approaching from behind. She willed her head to turn back. Normally it would have turned enough but she had yet to get used to her wound. She waited until the source came closer. Anton emerged, his head hung low as he slowly dragged his feet through the dry grass, and slowly approached her.

For a moment anger flashed through her mind but it quickly dissipated. Even in her numbed state, she knew it was stupid to hold such thoughts. He had helped her immensely since they had met and saved her…in more ways than one. She knew that he must have tried to save him, he had saved her without obligation, and that he would not have given up. Her…Step mother, or stepsister, must have done something to him so that not even Anton nor Kal could heal him. Was it the same thing that had turned the guards into those smoke soldiers? She had no idea. They might have been talking about it but at the time she did not care.

Anton shuffled through the grass before stopping at her side. She peered up and saw that he looked incredibly awkward. He had absolutely no idea what to say or what to do. Though, what could he really say?

Finally, he coughed and slowly sat beside her. He said nothing for some time, slowly rubbing his legs as he watched the fire.

“It’s…It’s been…” He trailed off, not knowing what words to speak.

“Yeah,” Cetina mumbled back, the first word she had spoken in some time. “It’s been shit.”

Usually she refrained from swearing but right now she did not care.

“Seems like everything has turned for the worst since we arrived in your life.”

It almost elicited a smile from Cetina. “It has. Almost…”

She shuffled her legs out from underneath so she could sit more comfortably on her rear. Anton continued to stare into the flame while Cetina looked behind her. About thirty feet away Verona and Kal stood silently with their horses in tow. They too were staring at the pyre, at least she was sure Kal was. It was impossible to tell what Kal was thinking beneath her mask. And for a Beast-kin to come here…

She shook her head and dispelled such thoughts. It did not matter now, not when she looked back and the realisation that her father was dead washed over her. Another wave of tears fell from her eyes. The pyre had burned down halfway by the time Anton spoke again.

“What…What will you do now?” He looked towards her and said nothing, searching in her eye for an answer.

Cetina shook her head. “I don’t know. I have nowhere to go. My family is dead and everyone else wants me dead.”

“Back in Bebbezzar?”

Cetina nodded. “Yes. I don’t know why my father’s brother chased him out but…” She shook her head. She did not know why she was speaking of such things, perhaps it was better than thinking of the reality that lay before her.

“I can’t go back. Not to Thessos or back to Porswea. I…I can’t think of that place, even look at it, without thinking of…what happened.”

Anton slowly nodded. “Well, we aren’t going to stay any longer either. Stories of witches are already spreading throughout the city and mobs are forming. Though it seems like most are just using it as an excuse to start looting,. That city watch Captain told us to leave before things got serious. It shouldn’t last more than a few days before they calm down on their own.”

Cetina looked beyond the pyre and at Porswea. There seemed to be a little more smoke than normal. Her heart began to pound as memories flooded back.

Anything…Anything but thinking about that place.

“Where are you going then?” She asked.

Anton shuffled slightly. “We’re heading to Rusaddir, and then to Seocuria. A city called Danafra.”

Cetina frowned as she looked back to Kal, then back to Anton. “Why? Why head to that place…You aren’t going to sell…”

Anton shook his head. “The opposite. To buy.”

Cetina could not help the hint of a smile. “I didn’t think you as a slaver. After what I’ve seen of that place…”

“We’ll be pretending to be buying slaves but we’ll be freeing them. As many and as often as we can.”

“That…How?”

“What do you mean?”

Cetina felt a frown form on her face. “You don’t look like salvers. Are you just planning to walk in and buy them?”

Anton scratched his cheek. “We’re going to be working on the plan from here on in. Now that we’ve got a ship, minus the crew, we can move onto the next stage.”

Cetina frowned deeply. “And how do you expect to find a good crew that’s not going to throw you overboard after robbing you of your gold? And how do you expect to convince someone in the capital that you are a legitimate slave owner?”

“I…I suppose the plan was to improvise and use gold to smooth over anything that goes wrong.”

“That’s…That’s a terrible plan.”

Anton smiled. “It’s the best we’ve got right now. Unless you’ve got a better one.”

A strange thought grew in her mind, a thought that might give her direction. She felt her mouth move on its own. “I’m sure that you mean well, but none of you know how Seocuria works.” She looked at Kal. “While Kal would know what it’s like on the inside you don’t know how the owners operate. I do. I told you that we…” she suppressed a sniffle. “Traded them. I know how it’s done and what prices to expect.”

Anton nodded. “Alright. Any idea about a captain and crew for our ship?”

Cetina pulled at a loose section of her yellow clothes. Only then did she realise that her gloves were still covered in blood.

“A…Anyone that sees my clothes will know that I’m from Bebbezzar. And that I must know something of haggling.”

“Do you?”

“I…I do.” She coughed. “I’ve seen enough of it to know what it means. They state a price that’s too high. I say a lower number and you end up with a number in the middle.”

“That’s…That could work. Money isn’t a problem for us.” Anton shuffled his legs as part of the pyre began to collapse in on itself. “So…Well, I don’t mean to impose, but you could come with us, if you wish. Bandits and who knows what infests the lands between here and our destination. We could always use an extra pair of hands on our journey. So…Do you want to come with us?”

Cetina looked to the pyre. Most of the flames had died down and hot embers remained, covered in a thick layer of ash and charred coals.

“Please give me a moment.”

Anton nodded and left. Cetina looked blankly into the fires.

Should I go? I don’t have anything to lose. If it keeps me moving and stops me thinking about…this, then I probably should go. Who knows what will happen, much more than if I stay here.

A hand brushed against her hip, and the empty wine flask still attached to her belt.

I might need to fix that soon.

Cetina gritted her teeth and stood up. “I’m sorry I couldn’t save you, father. I’m sorry that I watched you fall under their control and did nothing. And I’m sorry that I cannot bury you like you would have wanted.”

She bowed her head once before turning away from the pyre and walking towards the only three people she could trust in the world. Verona nudged Anton’s side. Both smiled warmly while Kal’s mask continued to hide her emotion while her body showed the same warmth.

When she stopped she saw four horses, including the horse gifted to her by her father. Had they already made a decision to bring her with them? A tiny smile crept over the corner of her mouth.

“I don’t know what I want to do.” She began. “But I’ll come with you for now. Even if it’s just to get away from here. I can’t go back to that city.”

“Sure.” Verona smiled wildly, something she did whenever she was very excited. “It should be about fifteen or so day’s hard riding and then we get to see the ocean. I wonder what it smells like. I’ve always wondered...”

Cetina smiled at Verona’s innocence and wonder at something so simple. Doubly so coming from someone so powerful. Though, she knew she was anything but innocent.

“The salt in the air makes your hair really stiff.” Kal looked at her. “And…other things. It can get uncomfortable. It also makes iron rust very quickly.”

“Huh.”

Cetina nodded. “Well…Shall we go?”

“You don’t want to wait a bit longer?” Anton asked.

Cetina looked back to the pyre and shook her head. “No. I don’t think I’ve got any more tears left in me. I’m as ready as I’m going to be.”

“Hang on.” Anton moved to his horse. “We have something for you…Something that I’m sure your father would have wanted for you to have.”

Cetina waited until Anton brought out a small bag, which looked quite heavy and handed it to Cetina. She threw up a brow but he said nothing. When she opened it she gasped at the sight. Gold and jewels, sizes she did not know existed, nearly burst out from the bag.

“What?” she scarcely believed what she saw. “It was only a few coins last time…”

“We found these inside…the building.” Anton began. “And now they’re yours. They belong to you now, to do with as you please.”

“I…” she held up a large diamond. “I can’t believe this.” She smiled warmly at them. “Thank you. I…I’ll think about what I want to do with this.”

Anton nodded. “Good. By the way, do you happen to know what’s inside this?”

He showed her a small metal box. She had never seen it before.

“No. Sorry.”

“Shame. Your father pointed to this and the jewels just before he passed away.” Anton frowned at the box. “And we can’t open it.” He gently shook the box. “It sounds like there’s something inside. Unless you have the key we’ll have to find someone that knows how to lock-pick. That might be a little difficult in this world. Most locks are pretty simple.”

“What?”

Something flickered over Anton’s face. “Never mind. I just don’t think it’s going to be something that a lot of people know.” He placed the box into a pack on his horse. “Oh…These packs have been magically protected, so you can’t open it without your skin turning blue. We’ll change that when we’ve got a spare moment. We can make you one if you want.”

“Sure.” Cetina clapped her hands. “We should probably get moving soon otherwise we’ll be here all day.”

“We’re ready to go as soon as you are,” Kal said quietly.

Cetina nodded. “I am ready.”

“We’ll stop just before dusk.” Anton began. “Get more supplies from the nearest city and figure out where to go from there. Stop at an Inn with a proper bed. Does that sound like a plan?”

They mounted their horses while Cetina took one final look at the pyre. Duran would not want her to wait around his grave forever. He would want for her to live her life. She scrunched her fists, put the bag into a pack on her horse and mounted with a single jump. Verona helped her swing her leg over properly.

Cetina waved for them to go first. When they filed out she shook her head, not truly believing that she would be following these three strange people on some ludicrous plan to buy and free slaves and send them…somewhere. They had yet to reveal that part of their plan. She did not take one final look back at Porswea, there was nothing left behind her. Only ruin and death. Now there was only forward. As she whipped the reins her empty wine flask bounced against her hip. When they stopped she would get another. Maybe two. Maybe even three.