Nameless Ghoul

Firing Squad

By the time Itzal had got back to the Abbey and into Secondo’s study, a panic attack had blindsided him. He paced back and forth. Couldn’t breathe. His chest ached, skin covered in a cold sheen of sweat.

Secondo had anticipated this happening through the summoning bond before he arrived, as Quinn was already there waiting.

The big, blonde ghoul tried his best to calm him, sending powerful soothing magic, but Itzal fought it.

His brain flashed up all the worst-case scenarios, one after another, and he couldn’t shut it off. He wasn't even sure where and when he was. The scenarios in his head mixed with events from the past, and his thoughts spiralled out of control.

Secondo watched for a while, patiently giving him space to work through it, but eventually, he sighed impatiently and came to stand in front of Itzal.

“That is ENOUGH!" he said firmly. "You will snap out of this right now!!”

His stern words hit like a slap to the face.

Itzal jumped back, meeting his gaze with wide, frightened eyes. He prepared for the physical manifestation of his Master’s anger.

But the shock pierced through the churning fog of panic, and Itzal finally came to his senses.

Secondo had admonished him, not Santos. There would be no physical punishment for this.

Quinn’s magic gradually penetrated the panic, and Itzal let it in, allowing the other ghoul to soothe him. He slumped onto one of the sofas and took a deep, grounding breath. He rested his elbows on his knees, head in his hands as he tried to calm the tremors that ran through his body.

“Are you back?” Secondo snapped. Itzal glanced up, nodding. “Good. Because now you will listen. What did we discuss just the other day?”

Itzal stared at him blankly, and Secondo continued.

“We discussed the possibility that Santos could still be out there. And what did we decide?”

Itzal took a deep breath shrugging his shoulders. That earned him a scowl from Secondo.

“We decided,” he said, enunciating every word carefully, “that you and Sunshine should not leave the Abbey until we knew for sure what we were dealing with. You both agreed to this. Am I correct?”

Itzal met his gaze and nodded.

“We did. But...”

“No! Do not say but... There is no but... You agreed it was for the best. Then you blatantly disregard my wishes, and those of Sunshine and the other ghouls, by going off after an unknown threat on your own, with no backup from the Clergy.”

Itzal sighed a shaky breath, staring at his lap.

“I know. It was stupid,” he admitted. “I wasn’t thinking straight.”

“Air tells me it was the witch. Santos’ witch," Secondo said, his voice becoming weary. "Tell me what happened, Itzal.”

Right then? Itzal couldn’t form the words, so he sent the memory directly to Secondo, who shook his head, cursing under his breath in Italian.

“This is a mess. He must have added fail-safes into the binding spell as we feared. So we broke the bond, at least, but he had a contingency plan in place all along.”

Secondo wandered over to his desk and sat, rubbing the bridge of his nose between his finger and thumb.

Quinn handed Itzal a bottle of water, and perched at the other end of the sofa.