2. Raea
Raea
Once again, we find ourselves in the Oris Kingdom and here without any announcement.
It takes some convincing from the Regils and pilot to turn off our tracking and every system that could trace us.
Our pilot, Captain Oktavious, only grunts, taking in the blood and the tattered gown I am holding together.
With a sigh, he puts the entire transport into incognito, essentially erasing us from every map and tower, and losing non-essential power.
After some convincing that I am okay, we leave the flight deck.
I remain with Ryker and watch as he, Aksel, and Rune suit up after clearing the ship.
The bodies of our people will be buried, but the bodies of the demon creatures—I shudder thinking of them—need to be disposed of.
Finding no trace of shadows or whispering mist, they declare the ship cleared and then enter the foyer where the ramp is open.
Ryker shoots the creature twice more to make sure it is indeed dead, then lifts it by the ankle.
Rune helps by grabbing the clawed hands, and together they swing the corpse out the back.
Ryker closes the ramp. As the room pressurizes, oxygen fills the space allowing them to remove their helmets and the lockdown doors slide open. I leave them to deal with the other bodies and make my way to the medical bay.
The medical bay is a shock to my system. Blood and gore fill my nostrils, cries of pain echoing before I’m even in the room. There are two emergency beds and a cot, all three full, and others have made makeshift beds on the floor.
I spot Mera first. She sits with Aza on the floor, who tends to a bleeding Zhel who has a deep cut from one of the talons down her left bicep, but otherwise looks unscathed.
Aza has a large bump on her head, and when she turns, I notice a black eye.
Mera catches my gaze and offers a small, reassuring smile.
She too is covered in blood, but I realize it isn’t hers.
Bo stands over the bed in the last bay, his jaw tense. When I approach, I notice Leif. Six perfect claw lines gouged deep into his chest. Leif is alive, but every breath is shallow.
“Is he sedated?” I ask.
Bo sighs, rubbing a hand over his stubble. “For now. Thank you, Princess.”
I nod and venture to the next bed, where one of the maids lies. A row of those razor-sharp teeth has taken a chunk of her neck.
I turn, find a waste basket, and vomit.
I can taste and smell the tangy iron of blood in the air, mixed with the demons’ acrid, rotten scent. I realize I am covered in both, but seeing her wounds…
Anneli appears beside me with a warm towel and some water. “Princess Raea,” she says softly. “Please, let me help get you cleaned up.”
My gaze settles on her. She is unscathed, smiling, her long red hair matted, but I can see faint traces of tears that have since dried. Her clothing is rumpled and blood-stained at the hem.
I need what she is offering, so I throw my arms around her and thank her. Not for me, but for her bringing a calming presence to everyone else here.
She hesitates a moment before wrapping her arms around me.
After a hug we both desperately need, I ask her to put me to work and not worry about me. After I see everyone, bandage wounds, and help one of the guards with more water bags, Ryker finds me.
“Soraea,” Ryker says, approaching me. His eyes track down to my wounds, bandaged now, before they lift again. “C’mon.”
I can’t tell if he is upset about my wounds, or angry with me. He leads me to my room upstairs in the royal suite, and when the door clicks shut, he tears away what remains of my gown. The fabric crumples to the floor, leaving me in my underthings and corset.
He taps on the black material. “This thing has saved your life.” He frowns. “I might agree with your parents. Though I would prefer a whole body cast.” Ryker’s gaze lifts to mine, and he smiles.
The whoosh of air that leaves me turns into a soft laugh.
“I’m sorry,” he murmurs, his hand cupping my cheek as I lean into it. “I couldn’t wake up, but I heard everything. I couldn’t—” An unnameable emotion crosses his features. “I couldn’t save you, couldn’t protect you, and I’m so sorry.”
I silence him with my lips, kissing him with a slow, reverent kiss. In my mind, he doesn’t need to apologize. He has done nothing wrong. I know what those shadows and mist are capable of. Together, they are a toxic combination.
He kisses me slowly, every movement lingering like it might be his last chance. And maybe he is right to do so. Either of us could have died today.
When he finally pulls back, there are tears in his eyes. “I love you, Soraea.”
I nod, bringing our foreheads together. “It might be the absolute worst time to say this, but after today, I don’t want to die having never told you that I—”
His lips crash into mine, silencing me. “I know,” he whispers.
“If you still want to say it later when we’ve slept and cleaned up and figured out where to go from here, say it then.
But right now, emotions are high, and Raea, you don’t have to say it because I already know.
I feel it, I see it, I get to experience it. ”
My eyes well with tears before I kiss him again, tears falling between us as the words remain unspoken.
We find a clearing in the trees just before sunrise. With my wounds freshly bandaged and treated for infection, we all agree to set up a temporary camp.
The air here is crisp, a light wind tickling the tops of the trees, making them sway. The stars blink out one by one as the pink of dawn creeps across the sky.
None of us have acknowledged what we’re doing with the bodies of our friends yet, but I know we have to bury them. I only wish we could do it at home. It feels unfair that their loved ones will never truly know what happened to them. They’ll never have a place to visit and say their goodbyes.
There’s a cave not far from the palace island on Kyrr where we lay those closest to us to rest. Each person is placed inside a box set into the cavern walls and sealed with a nameplate.
Candles and seating are scattered throughout for visitors.
In the villages, they often have a plot of land designated for burial.
Here, Kuron and the others will be buried beneath these trees.
At least their view is spectacular. The water is a dark green and surrounded by lush trees and a trickling stream.
These are my people, so I take responsibility for finding their resting spots to ensure they’ll be undisturbed. My hope is that by now, they’ve all crossed into the aether—their souls having been found prepared.
I hope they’ve not been sent to sit in the endless expanse of darkness and cold of hell called the Umbrith—forced to watch those in the upper aether, Celestium, who are healed, warm, and safe. Those in Umbrith, the lower aether, are forced to see, but never experience.
I shudder at the thought.
Ezra and Ryker stay close, but let me have time to think, to breathe, to grieve.
I find a hill not far from the transport where a grassy knoll is struggling out its existence in this cold, but there nonetheless. It has a perfect view of the sunrise and the water to the left.
My eyes sting knowing how many graves we will have to dig.
One of the communications pilots suggests we could always burn them.
I would never.
The scattering of ashes is beautiful, yes, but it goes against nature.
We are taught from a young age that we are born of the soil and shall return to it. A complete cycle. The energies gifted to us at birth will then be returned and reused for another life. This is how it’s been done since the beginning.
I glance over my shoulder and say to neither in particular, “Here. I want to bury them here.”
Both men nod.
I turn back around, stumbling until my legs give out and I fold in on myself. There’s blood still caked around my nails as I dig them into the frozen ground.
I should have told Kuron how much he means to me. I should tell the others.
I want to tell Ryker, but he’s right, like always.
I do love him, I know that, but if he’s willing to wait, then I know exactly when and where I want to tell him.
That is, if we can ever get home.
Is this what war will do to us? Is this what we’re up against?
My anxiety and stress reach a tipping point, and a moment later, I’m retching. The thought of returning to the transport makes me physically ill. There’s blood everywhere. Black blood, red blood. What color blood do Fae and Elven bleed?
I collapse, curling into a ball, letting the weight carry me into unconsciousness.
The sun has moved across the sky by the time I awake. My face, hair, and even my nails are clean. My head pounds when I sit up.
“Hey,” Ry says from across the room. He’s on his tablet, sprawled out on the sofa in our quarters on the transport. He sets it down, rubbing at his eyes before crossing the room to me. “How are you feeling?”
“Terrible,” I mutter.
He hands me water and presses a kiss to my forehead.
“Let’s get you dressed. We can get this over with and get you back to bed.
After a good night's sleep, we can tackle the plan tomorrow.” I nod, sipping the water.
My neck feels worse now, and I’m sore all over.
He kneels before me, holding open my pants as I step into them.
His fingers leave trails of energy and goosebumps as he slides them up my legs and over my hips. I shiver in response. He wraps me in a thick cloak, then takes my hand. The iridescent colors of our Bond wrap around me, soothing some of my anxiety.
We find Mera, Aza, Maya, Cassia, and Kaes already kneeling beside ten corpses wrapped in cloth sheets, faces exposed beneath scattered flowers and spices. Candles are lit around the space, and I can’t help but choke on a sob.
Kuron looks so peaceful. I’ve never seen him like this. Even as a little girl, I’d sneak up on him when I thought he had fallen asleep outside or at the waterfalls where we used to jump. I’d crawl toward him, holding my breath, only for one eye to crack open and a smile across his face.
“You’ll never catch me asleep, little one,” he’d say with tenderness.
I’d promise him that one day I would.
And now, as he lies there, I want to laugh through my tears and yell, “Gotcha.” But more than that, I just want his eyes to open. I want this to be a joke. I want him to have just been asleep.
“Shall we begin?” Captain Oktavious asks as he steps into the room.
Ryker looks at me, asking if I’m ready.
No, I think, but I answer, “Yes.”
The ladies sing the song of death, the rite for safe travels to the lands of the aether.
From soil you came, to soil return,
The aether calls, the heavens yearn.
So rest now, soul, your journey’s done,
You join the moon, the stars, the sun.
We all join the final stanza. Through my tears, the song comes out breathless, but Ryker holds my trembling body, and Mera wipes her eyes. A moment later, the white cloth is draped over Kuron's face, then drawn down over his body and tied at his feet.
“I didn’t know all of their names,” I whisper through the lump in my throat. “They served my family, and yet—”
“It’s okay, love,” Ryker says. “When all of this is over, I will go with you, and we can tell their families together, okay?”
I look up into his eyes and see the clarity in them. I nod, turning back to the ten. Ezra and Rune begin to lift Kuron. Ryker kisses my forehead and leaves me to join them.
We follow the procession up the hill in silence, the wind carrying away our quiet sniffles.
At the graves, I kiss Kuron’s head once more. “I pray you find rest,” I whisper, “and thank you for serving me so faithfully. I love you, even if I never said it.” I run my hand over the knot above his hands and then nod toward Ezra.
Ryker jumps into the open grave and lowers Kuron down. In a very unprincess-like move, I run for the forest, dropping to my knees behind a tree as I finally let go of the tears I’ve been holding back.
Sobs rack my body while the pressure in my chest finally breaks.