BwA: Chapter 9: Oblivion

 "Are you alright?" Asked Zazael's echoing voice. Lieutenant Leord's tent was large, not as large as Quarrion's but it was two rooms divided by a curtain. Severah lay sleeping in a cot in one room as Xandria was flipping through Severah's journal. One of Quarrion's men paced around the tent.

"Where the hell have you been?" Xandria asked, suddenly realizing she had missed him in his absence. She was up from the chair she'd been sitting in and raised her hand to strike Zazael across the face but he caught her wrist.

"I am sorry. I was... Called away for another task." She jerked her hand from his.

"I want to see Ralael," Xandria said firmly.

"No."

"If you're worried about my sanity, don't be. It's Severah's you should be concerned about," Xandria held the journal up to him, open. Sketched on the page in what looked like red ink was a hole, with tentacles covered in eyes, some had grabbed people, pulling them back to the hole, other tentacles were tearing people to bits. The page opposite it were the words 'WE ARE DAMNED,' written repeatedly. Xandria turned the page, it showed people dismembered, disemboweled, on pikes, being eaten by creatures only described as demons. The page next to it was, 'THERE IS NO HOPE,' written over and over again. She turned the page once more. No more sketches but two pages were filled with, 'WE ARE ALL DEAD.' "It's not red ink, it's blood. Now send me to Ralael." Her voice was hard.

"Close your eyes," Zazael instructed. She did. He placed his hands on her shoulders, leaned down, and kissed her. Xandria struggled at first, eyes opening wide, she beat weakly at Zazael's armored chest. Her eyes closed and she fell limp in his arms. "Aaaarg!" He fell to his knees, nearly dropping her. Ghaemo's corruption had traveled up his arm, he could feel it like fire on his skin, painful and burning. Any use of his angel magics made it spread faster as if it fed on him. As it moved over his shoulder and towards the wing on his back, he felt the wing sag and then perk back up. His head was suddenly filled with images of Xandria, but he was beating her, raping her, tying her up, whipping her to hear her scream. He laid her down on a rug that covered the ground. One of the feathers from Zazael's wing had snuck from under the cloth and curled around Xandria's wrist. The feather was blood red, it took all the will Zazael had to force the feather to release her. A red blistering burn was on her wrist where it had touched her.

After so many trips to Oblivion, Xandria was very familiar and on this visit, oddly at ease in the black nothingness. There was no up, no down, no light, not even a sense of her body. As her consciousness drifted along, she could feel the tug at her sanity, and for once she wasn't afraid. The idea of not having any cares, any responsibility was suddenly welcome to her. Rather than fight the insanity that frayed her mind, she began to embrace it. She gave a giggle. She was beginning to feel drunk and euphoric.

"Sing a song of sixpence," she began.

"No! Fylfawen!" Ralael's voice echoed in concern around her. Light burst into her view. The angel Ralael hovered before her, but unlike the warm glow he normally radiated, he was as brilliant as the sun. Xandria squinted and reached for him.

"There you are, lover. Where have you been hiding?" She spoke in a sing-song voice. Ralael took her into his arms.

"Fylfawen."

"Hrm?" She asked moving her hands to the belt about his waist, he jerked as she managed to place her hand into his pants. He removed her hand and she pouted. "Don't you want me?" She suddenly was rubbing her breasts with her hands. Ralael held her by the wrists.

"Why are you here?"

"To see you of course," she replied in the same sing-song voice dotted with giggles. Her eyes were glazed over. She leaned forward trying to kiss him. He dodged the kiss.

"Fylfawen your mind is unraveling, I can feel it."

"Isn't it wonderful!" She released herself from him and began to dance and twirl in front of him.

"This is the last time you'll be able to come here," Ralael said to her, but she seemed to ignore him and appeared to be plucking petals from a flower only she could see.

"He loves me. He loves me not."

"Fylfawen, I'm sending you back."

"No! Please let me stay with you! I don't want to go back!" She stamped her foot like a little girl would.

"Darkness is about to spread upon the world. My brother will need your help to stop it."

"Zazael," Xandria whispered the name. Her eyes flickered back to sanity before returning to their far away look.

"You need to save him. Love. Him." Ralael seemed to grow even brighter, the sun would have been dim in comparison. "I love you." There was a burst of white light about her, she had to shield her eyes from it. When she lowered her hands, the far away look was gone, her eyes clear and bright. They filled with tears as the only thing that remained of Ralael was his armor and it quickly faded into darkness.

"Xandria! You need to wake up!" She was suddenly slapped and Xandria jolted awake. Her time in Oblivion had normally seemed like a dream but this time it was a crisp memory. Severah was picking herself up from the floor. Xandria had struck her, knocking her down.

"I'm sorry," Xandria quickly apologized. Severah's face was healed and she had dressed, this time in a brown skirt and plain white blouse. "How long have I been out?"

"Days, Xandria. You were found on the floor of the tent, clutching this." Severah handed Xandria a long red feather. It twitched a moment on its own.

"Zazael!" Xandria suddenly understood.

"I've not seen him since he left us on the road."

"We have to find him," Xandria said quickly.

"There is something more important happening right now," Severah said as Xandria was quickly dressing.

"There is nothing more important than Zazael," Xandria said and flung back the tent flap to see a large company of men on horseback riding up the hill. They carried not the banner of the Holy Order but one of the banners of the royal houses. A red goat on a black field. Sitting on a much better mount than Xandria's nag next to the lead rider was Ynysu dressed in finery that he had not been in before.

"That is what I've been trying to tell you. Ynysu and Suor are the adopted brothers-in-law of Baron Gedstru. When Quarrion wouldn't punish you for killing Suor, Ynysu ran to his sister, who in return told her husband."

"This is a problem." Xandria pulled her sword ready to fight them, but lowered it when a dozen crossbows were aimed at her, including one in Ynysu's hands.

"You are under arrest for the murder of Suor Tinmur. You will be given a fair trial once we reach Clayaire," said the captain of Gedstru's guard. Xandria dropped her sword on the ground and raised her hands. She would be no use to Zazael if she was shot dead. There was a twang as a cross bow loosed and Xandria stepped aside, the bolt slicing the flesh of her cheek and being lost somewhere in the tent behind her. It had been Ynysu's crossbow and the captain of the guard gave the young man a long hard look before dismounting and removing shackles from his saddlebags.

"You will suffer the fate of your brother," Xandria spat in Ynysu's direction. She didn't like the grin on his face.