The Tears of Aurora

Hurried Departure

Aurora awoke with a start.

"Igor!" she shouted.

"Frrt?"

"You were there, weren't you? What is the name of the sorceress?"

"Malbeth, frrt," he assured her.

"So it's true. It was not a dream."

She threw the comforter to the foot of the bed and shook her sisters.

"Get up! We have to leave."

"What time is it?" mumbled Vivian.

Aurora grabbed her dress, slipped it on in one movement, and started in again.

"Wake up! Get moving!"

"We're going to leave," yawned Mariann. "Real soon. It's too early. Let me sleep a little longer...."

Aurora got on top of her and took her head in her hands.

"Mariann! Mariann. Look at me. Open your eyes. Look at me!"

Her elder sister slowly batted her eyelids. The image of the little blond fairy stabilized. Her steel blue eyes were riveted on her in some invisible communication. She read the panic on her sister's face.

"Viv... Vivian, get up," whispered Mariann. "I think we have to go."

They dressed in haste, left the room without making any noise. Mariann did not like leaving like a thief, but Aurora was pressing them so hard that they had no choice. With their shoes slipped on, they pushed open the door and rushed down the stairs.

"Aurora, are you going to explain what is going on?"

"Once we're on the road," she promised.

Once outside, a desolate sight stopped them in their tracks. Even Aurora momentarily forgot the urgency of the situation. She brought her hand to her mouth in horror. Day had barely broken and was spreading an orange light across boat carcasses floating in the sea, scraping the pier at the mercy of the waves. On the banks, debris of every kind was piled up on the wet pavement. It was no longer a port, but a cemetery. In spite of the early hour, some people had come down to see the extent of the catastrophe, mainly sailors. Among the planks of wood, the boards of composite, the pieces of plastic broken off hulls, they were searching for the name plates of their boats. They were grieving, shaking their heads, devastated as if from the death of someone dear. Aurora thought with despair about Mr. Svenson. He who had turned his eyes away from the storm. How would he react this morning upon finding his trawler disappeared? She touched her pouch.

"I... I... I didn't mean..."

Vivian quickly nudged her.

"Come on. Let's not stay here."

They went running up the main street. Bit by bit, Aurora related her trip to the gates of the citadel, her encounter with Malbeth. And especially the one with Manchesto. She did not stop giving fearful glances up to the sky, fearing that he might drop down on top of them. Mariann and Vivian took in the information without really knowing how to react. Aurora always told such fantastic things. Usually, they believed them easily. But that their little sister might be responsible for the appearance of a malevolent entity, they had a little trouble accepting that. It seemed so unreal. Mariann tried to reassure herself.

"At any rate, we had planned to leave, right?"

In the end, it mattered little why they were leaving the city. The storm had passed, they had nothing more to do there. Their parents were certainly terribly worried.