Chapter 32

Between the healers ministrations and Katarina’s ravenous appetite, her recovery was miraculous.

"Are you certain you shouldn’t be resting, Katarina?" Araya asked hesitantly, and Katarina chuckled. "I slept for eleven days, Araya. I think I’ve done enough of that." She replied, and then smiled. "Right now I’m famished." She picked up her spoon and took a few bites of the rich broth.

"Katarina, as much as I enjoy your company, there is something that takes precedence." Araya was saying. "Something that I fear will upset you." She added.

Katarina ran her hands along her gun thoughtfully. It seemed to pulse in her hand, feeding her strength. On the low table in front of her was a bowl of soup that steamed gently.

"All right." She replied simply. "But I want to eat after this."

Araya nodded. "Eat as much as you like. Don’t hold back." She urged, and Katarina grinned.

"Well then, I’ll take you up on that offer." She replied. "I’ll have a roast. Pig or sheep or cow or deer I don’t care. Just a big pile of meat. A mountain of fried potatoes, and drown it all in an ocean of gravy." She urged greedily. "Some cooked greens. Biscuits. A couple chickens would be great, too." She added lustily. "By the Goddess, I can’t believe how hungry I am." She urged, and Araya laughed, but got up to fulfill the Witch Hunter’s request.

"You remember Lissa?" Araya asked as she gave her order to Merry. Lissa herself stood off to the size, a sealed envelope in her hands, her face downcast.

"The one that we talked about?" Katarina asked, and Araya nodded. "Just the one." She confirmed.

Katarina glanced over and raised her eyebrow at the girl.

"Ahh, the one that needs to prepare for a lifetime of disappointment." Katarina replied lazily, and Araya snorted a laughter.

Araya led the girl over, who presented Katarina with a sealed letter. She blinked as a surge of adrenaline jumped through her body, dousing her heart.

The girl held out the letter. Bound in a wide maroon ribbon and sealed with the Shield of the Defender. Katarina’s hand trembled when she took it, and that in and of itself was an oddity. She’d never felt like this when receiving assignments, never felt like an avalanche was poised above her, ready to crush her underneath. A strange thought knifed through her heart; a feeling of confused deja vu and predestination.

She broke the seal and read the contents. She skimmed through the usual pleasantries, formal acknowledgement of status, and invocation of authorities, and her eyes fell on the name that was listed as her target. Alsabet Pavlenko. Her heart seized in her chest, the avalanche fell. All the world seemed to drop out from underneath Katarina. A roaring sound filled her ears and her heart slammed against her ribcage as if trying to break free. Alsabet, her sister.

"I had a vision of this before." She murmured, surprised at herself for how calm she was. Araya raised an eyebrow curiously. Katarina looked up at Lissa and Araya. "Well? What does Lissa have to do with this nightmare?" She asked, and Araya gestured at the other woman. "It arrived for you after your second request." She continued, "Lissa was supposed to deliver it to you, but didn’t. She thought she could get you into trouble if she didn’t deliver it." She paused, and then added, "If she had delivered it on time, you would not have gone into the Prayer Closet." after a moment she added, "You would not have died."

Katarina rolled her eyes and looked up at the choir girl. "Did you know that obstructing a Witch Hunter is a capital offense?" She asked, and Lissa gave her a puzzled look.

Araya sighed. "It’s a crime, Lissa." She explained, "and you could die for it."

Lissa shook her head frantically in terror. "I didn’t! Not really! I tried to deliver it, really!"

Katarina rolled her eyes at this. "Let’s not fuck around, Lissa." She accused. "You knew what you were doing. You knew what you were doing, you knew it was wrong, and you did it. Maybe you didn’t know that you would be arrested. Maybe you didn’t know that the punishment for breaking that rule is death. But you knew it was wrong." Her voice was the voice of judgement, the voice of finality.

"Y-Yes." Lissa admitted finally. "Please forgive me." She apologized in a rush.

Katarina glanced at Araya, who shook her head and raised her hands, absolving herself from participating.

"I could kill you right now, you know." Katarina remarked. "Shoot you in the head. Maybe grab my sword and cut off your head. Slit your throat, whatever." She offered, Lissa growing more distressed with each pronouncement. "If I were truly a hateful, spiteful bitch like you seem to think, I could even take knife and carve out the life you carry in your belly." Horror flashed across her face and she covered her belly with her hands protectively.

Katarina rolled her eyes at this. "I’m not a bitch at all, Lissa." She remarked. "But you broke the law, and you do need to be punished. Run and tell the Bishop what you’ve done. Ask for forgiveness, and if you’re lucky, he won’t sentence you to die."

"That was surprisingly... merciful." Araya remarked as Lissa scrambled for the door. Katarina picked up her soup bowl and gulped it down quickly.

"Well, there’s a lot of reasons." Katarina replied absently.

"Oh?" Araya asked with a challenging smile. "A lot? Name three." She dared.

Katarina nodded easily. "One, I was hungry and my soup was getting cold. I just wanted to get rid of her so I could eat." She laughed embarrassedly. "I hope this hunger fades soon."

Araya nodded and seated herself at the table, ladling more soup into Katarina’s bowl.

"Two, killing her would have made a mess." Katarina added. "I don’t think you’d be happy with blood and brains and all that all over your apartment."

"No, I wouldn’t be happy with that at all, Katarina." Araya replied darkly, and Katarina smiled at her.

"The third reason is I dreamed about getting this assignment. I knew it was going to happen." She replied, unable to keep bitterness from her voice.

"Who is it you’ve been assigned to hunt, Katarina?" Araya asked, and Katarina passed the envelope over.

"My sister." Katarina whispered.

Araya frowned a little, her eyebrows coming together. "Your sister?" She asked. "Oh. Oh my." She covered her mouth with her sleeves and lowered her gaze.

"I grieve for you, Katarina."

Katarina’s lip trembled. She felt everything tearing loose inside her while she stolidly kept her expression calm. Her thoughts whirled about. She let the letter drop to the low table and grabbed the edge of the table tightly, struggling to regain control. Her jaw clenched. Her hands tightened on the table’s edge painfully. Everything was spinning out of control.

"Are... are you going to throw my table?" Araya asked worriedly. She tried to smile. "I don’t mind. Please don’t hit me with it though."

Katarina remembered a scene from her childhood- She’d just started her Witch Hunter classes and one of her classmates had learned Katarina’s sister was a mage. He’d immediately seized the opportunity to torment her, and in response she’d broken the boy’s nose. As she relived that memory, she realized that in some indefinable way she had been preparing for this her entire life. Just like that, everything seemed to fall into place. Her emotions subsided. She forced herself to unclench her jaw.

"I-" She whispered tightly, and shook her head. "She has made her decision. I have my duty." She said in a stronger voice, and released the edge of the table. Araya could see the impression her grip had made on the soft wood of the table, shallow indentations left from her fingertips. Araya shuddered. Katarina was very strong.

Araya leaned over and reached towards Katarina’s hand. Araya’s mother was one of the six Lady Cardinals in Darnell. Moreover, Yuriko denied her daughter nothing. If Araya were to ask her to re-assign this job to some other Witch Hunter, she could spare Katarina this enormous pain. She could- She was about to offer her help, when a vision flashed across her eyes that was so potent it felt like a physical blow to the chest. She fell back, panting and shuddering. She could not. She dared not. Tears flowed down her face.

"Araya?" Katarina said, troubled. Araya moved around the table and buried her face in the other woman’s bosom and sobbed. "Katarina!" She sobbed. "I’m so sorry! Please forgive me, I’m so sorry!" She shook, sobbing and crying. Katarina, confused, held the diminutive seer and rocked her.

After her tears stopped and her sobs turned to sniffles, Katarina pushed her back. The front of Katarina’s vest was wet from Araya’s tears.

"Thank you, Araya." Katarina said softly. "I’m touched, truly touched that you care so much." She said. Araya nodded dumbly. She couldn’t say anything to the other woman. She wanted to. She blinked owlishly, and then essayed a smile. "when you see my mother Yuriko in Darnell, please send her my love." She said softly.

Katarina raised an eyebrow. "I had not intended on going to Darnell, Araya." Araya shook her head. "I’m sure you will get there eventually. Yuriko is one of the Lady Cardinals of the Book. Do not feel pressured to deliver my message, there is no rush. I do not mind if it takes months or years for something so trivial." She laughed a little embarrassedly. "Besides, if it were so important, I have but to dispatch a letter and she would know in minutes, thanks to our mages. Just relay it when it is convenient."

Katarina nodded, wondering if this was some predestined future the Diviner had seen.

Araya reached out and picked up the letter and examined it.

"Alsabet..." She whispered. "I know this name. I remember seeing some document somewhere about her..." She mused, and glanced up at Katarina. "Would you like me to provide it to you?" Katarina sighed and nodded wearily. "Yes please."

"Of course." Araya got up and moved to her low desk and began sorting papers. She selected a couple, and returned to the table where Katarina sat staring off into space.

"Here you are. There isn’t much here, it’s just a mention that Alsabet was working in Norn, assigned there by the Church. I hope this helps."

Katarina examined the documents she was presented. Although the focus wasn’t specific to mages, it did make mention of resource allocation, and Alsabet had been assigned the task of accounting of some magical materials that were earmarked for the Miskatonic.

She nodded slowly, already considering.

"I should head to Norn, then."

"Will you be leaving now?" Araya asked, and Katarina nodded.

"I’ll miss you, Katarina." Araya replied sadly, and summoned her servants. She needed to send her own missives.

Once Katarina reclaimed her horse and arranged her belongings, she pointed her horse south, and rode slowly out of Aston, towards Norn.