The Aeterna Empire

Book 2.24 - Everything Will be Alright, Son

Salty, icy water slashed over Aelius from above. He shoved his hand into his mouth to keep from squealing, and to silence his clattering teeth. He brought his knees up to his chest and focused on breathing as quietly as he could. Every breath, every frightened heartbeat he felt in his chest, was a sign he was still alive.

The ship swayed and creaked defiantly as the storm raged and waves tossed and turned the craft. Rain beat down on the deck in almost equal quantity to the waves descending across its bow. Up and down it went, and the single light they had, a small lantern hanging from the ceiling, swung with it cascading shadows across the occupants defeated faces.

The room Aelius was in took up half the lower deck and was filled to bursting with people of all kinds, young or old, man or woman, but only of one blood: Kes-Blood.

Aelius was not one who could quantify the complexity of the political and diplomatic failures across the world that lead to Kes' fall; He was not one to understand the simplicity of a driven conqueror; and his vision of the world did not take into account his enemies laying in wait for the moment of weakness, nor who would qualify as his enemy. Yet even so in his gut he felt surrounded by wolves wishing to tear him to shreds, and that those wolves had been around him all this time hidden and ready to pounce. How else could it be that within days of the sun bringing its hand down on the capital that raiders, slavers, and aliens had filled his home, knew every hiding place, and dragged them all out to be cast out in shame, as if they were waiting for the opportunity and knew them so intimately so as to expose every weakness? How did they know? Had the sun itself told them?

As if in answer to its judgement, even the sun hid its eye in shame and hadn't looked on them in days. In its place something else had taken over, something dark, and the seas were turbulent and the sailors spoke of dark things moving in the water akin to dragons at times and at other times krakens. They saw great whirlpools where light came from and he heard the fearful cries of the men who had lost track of their position and wondered if they were now even over mountains.

The cold settled in and their teeth clattered anew. They huddled together and clutched their soaking torn blankets tighter. The creaking of the ship and crashing waves were appended by coughing, and it drew Aelius' attention that a few did not stop.

Aelius stepped up on shaky legs and grabbed the dismal excuse for a lantern swinging in the middle of the room. He fell on people time and time, but no one had the will to complain. His land-legs could not keep up with the swaying, but he carefully kept the lantern high to not shatter it. Eventually he found the source of the coughing fits and found a young woman a good decade ahead of him. He could barely make her out, what with her haphazard, grimy appearance and sickly color. Her eyes were unfocused and turned away from the flickering flame as if the tiniest light burned. The movement only made her cough harder until she was making sounds deep from her chest he did not recognize.

"She's sick. Help me get her up!" Aelius said through clattering teeth.

Despite his request, no one moved, no one so much as turned to look. All their faces had become blank and empty, devoid of eyes and mouths or any other features. Aelius reached down and grabbed her from under her shoulder. Lifting with his legs, he managed to get her up onto her own feet until she collapsed on his shoulder and together they trudged towards the door. She was as weak and docile as a baby lamb, either unable or unwilling to gather the wits to care about her pride. When they made it, he gently lowered her and sat her by the door.

Surged with strength of purpose, the cold wetness dimmed and a fire burned in his skin. He fixed his jaw, slammed on the door, and yelled, "We need a doctor! Someone is sick!"

The raging storm violently threw the ship and knocked him down, but he jumped up and continued. Every time he yelled, something louder interrupted. He refused to give up and kept going until his voice broke and his gums cracked and bled. His hands grew sore and splinters and bruises met his knuckles.