Sub Terra: Et Reditus

Thirty-Two

Daniel

Following Caldwell's instructions, I tried to make it back to the house as soon as I could. That meant I would have to move carefully, so I could observe anything that was suspicious. I didn't have the power to stop something like the Sapphire King, but I could at least prevent people from getting hurt by it, or worse, even.

The normally bustling streets were quiet and calm. Eerily calm. The activity in Ait Benhaddou had died down ever since the first deaths caused by the Sapphire King were discovered. I couldn't imagine too many people being outside after that.

I was a bit nervous, having never dealt with something so dangerous before, but I had my gun with me. I didn't think it would do much damage to it, but it helped me feel more grounded.

I moved past the very center of the village, and looked left, right, and below me. The fact that the village was built on the side of a hill helped me get a good visual on its entirety. Nothing unusual. I heard chatter in the distance, but there were people everywhere, obviously in buildings, so this didn't concern me. But it was what was above me that caught my attention.

From the old granary that was at the very top of the hill that the village was situated on, I could see a a strong, amber light being emitted from its tiny windows. I also heard screams. This wasn't normal at all.

I ran towards the granary, as fast as I could, and I could see the source of the screams. Just outside the building, I could see three kids cowering together. Two boys and a girl. None of them looked to be more than five or six years old. They must've been playing over there, then came across something they weren't supposed to.

"Hey, aller!" Go, I said, using a French word that Gus taught me. They didn't move. They were terrified.

I heard loud crumbling sounds from the granary. It was going to collapse. I had to make a move.

Using my atypical strength, I propelled myself higher up the hill. The kids were about 30 meters away, but I found myself in front of them in less than three seconds. I grabbed them all, and made a beeline for the lowest areas of the village. Right above us, the remains of the granary started to fall to pieces and make their way down the hill. A few houses were going to be destroyed, but I couldn't do anything about that. All I could do was worry about the three children in my arms.

I kept running and running, not completely sure where I was supposed to take the kids, but I quite literally bumped into someone who might've.

"D-Devi? What are you doing with that suitcase?"

"This is Connor's stuff. He can't risk leaving the hospital right now, so he asked me to bring him his clothing for the trip to Bantu. You know we're going to leave soon, right?"

"Of- of course I do. I'm on my way to tell Gus and Nadia about it. But that's not my concern right now."

I put the kids down and helped them back onto their feet. They were still frightened, but at least they were quiet now.

"Something was going on up there," I said, pointing at the location where the granary once stood. "I was able to get these kids away from there, but I don't know where to take-

"I know. I saw it all happen. That was just... ugh, you know what? I'll deal with those kids."

She crouched down to their level and brought them closer to her. She began to talk to them in a mix of their native languages. I stood by until they were done speaking.

"Daniel, these kids... they're orphans. Their parents were all killed by the Sapphire King."

I found myself looking into the eyes of the smallest child  - one of the boys. They seemed... void. Like something inside of them had been taken away. I promised myself that I would get some sort of justice, for them, their parents and everyone else who had lost their lives due to the Sapphire King.

I gave Devi a look of acknowledgement.

"I'm going to take these kids to the hospital. They can get help there." Devi said.

I set off in the direction of our house. I noticed some young men standing in front of their houses and buildings with old-looking guns. They gave me looks of acknowledgement as I passed by them. Maybe, this village wasn't so helpless after all. There were people ready to give up their lives so that no one else got hurt. That warmed me up a bit.

I was able to remember one of them. He approached me with a smile.

"Daniel," Masoud asked. "I was able to get some of the townspeople to guard the village with me. What should we do?" he asked me.

"Um... are you sure you should be asking me that?" I asked with confusion.

"Of course. Dr. Caldwell is leading the effort here, but he said that if he wasn't available, we should come to you. So, tell us what to do. We're ready."

"Right," I said, thinking of myself as dumb to have asked a question like that.  I wasn't sure why Caldwell would've given me a responsibility like that, but I guess I was just that capable. "If you see anything out of the ordinary, don't hesitate to go after it. And don't do it alone. Make sure at least two other people are with you. That goes for everyone here. Take any survivors to the hospital. Common sense, right? Just help other people out and keep each other safe while doing it."

"Got it. We'll do that. Thank you," Masoud said warmly. "I lost a good friend of mine yesterday from that-- that thing, so I knew what I had to do, but I wasn't sure how to go about it. You just made me feel a lot more confident. Thank you, again."

I gave him a lopsided smile.

"You couldn't do anything about your friend, I know... but now, you need to make sure no one else ends up like them. Good luck." I said. I jogged up ahead until I was just out of sight of him and his group.

I pulled out my screen. I turned it on and went to my Messages app, and tapped Gus' name. Then, I began to type.

Gonna be at the house in a couple minutes, got something important to tell u