Of Immortal Make

A Messenger Arrives: Part 3

She grabbed his hands, putting his right palm against the wall. 

"Okay, this is going to be easy! Just don't stop touching this wall and keep following me. It's a straight shot, and it's not far."

She turned and let go of his hand, feeling a moment of reluctance from his fingers. Before long, her eyes had adjusted even better than the last time she was down here. She could make out the shape of the path and the arched, earthen ceiling a half-foot above her head, reinforced every so often with old, splintering planks. A full-grown adult would have to crouch to make it through here without knocking themselves out on the rare rogue tree root.

The air in the tunnel, brisk and bracing compared to the air above, had a refreshing dewiness to it, and every now and again she felt the squirm of an earthworm beneath her bare feet. Nature lives throughout the Colony after all, she thought. She liked the feel of it all, but knew her friend wasn't having nearly as nice of a time.

"Hey, Theo, you know what would make a nice distraction for you?" She looked over her shoulder, grinning into the darkness. "Talking about girls."

He groaned in annoyance, and she knew it was working.

"Aw, come on. Who's that girl that lives next door to you? The one who's a year older?"

A pause. "Daisy," he finally muttered.

"That's her! Pretty Daisy with her pretty yellow hair!" Nadiya giggled. "Have you worked up the courage to talk to her yet? It's obvious you think she's cute."

"I don't—" he started and huffed. "It doesn't matter."

"Why?"

"She's sick," he replied, and Nadiya's back went cold.

"Sick... like, how sick?"

"Last week a Patroller came by and said to stay inside. There were Patrollers at all our neighbors' houses, too, masks over their faces and blocking anyone from coming outside. Me and Ma watched the Healers take Daisy away. She was being carried on a board between two of 'em under a blanket, but you could see the yellow stains on the cloth."

"Oh... that sick."

"Yeah. That sick."

Nadiya flushed, kicking herself for asking about Daisy of all people, not that she could have known the girl had caught the Weeping Blight. The highly contagious affliction came with a high fever, skin yellowed by a sticky, acrid secretion, and a stream of mucus from the eyes. It also came on fast, and only specialized Healers were permitted to be near the sick to ease their suffering into the Shadow. 

The Healers that Theo had seen were taking Daisy to her deathbed within the quarantine wing of the Research Tower.

They fell back into silence, and it didn't take long for Nadiya to spot a patch of dimly lit tunnel ahead. "Um, you alright?" she called behind her. He grunted, clearly anxious to be out of the dark. "Good news, I see the opening. That wasn't so bad, eh?" she continued, trying to ease back into their plan.

The pair walked into the light. Above them, the small circular opening of the well framed the sky, which had become bright orange in their time below ground, a spattering of clouds painting a streak across the otherwise rich, solid color. An old, though stable—stable-ish, she thought—iron ladder was staked into the stone wall leading to freedom above.

Nadiya gripped the bottom rung and pulled herself up a half-step before turning to look at Theo, whose eyes were fixed not on the ladder, but down the tunnel opposite the way they had come. "Do you know where it ends?" he asked.

She stepped off the ladder, which creaked in protest, and walked to him, eyes squinting into the darkness. In it, she saw more of the same, with the tunnel turning sharply to the left and disappearing out of sight. "There's some more paths that branch out, but I dunno where it all ends," she responded. "Maybe wherever the water for this well used to come from." She pulled on his sleeve and nodded toward the latter. "C'mon. We can see the gate from up here."

They climbed, careful to avoid rungs that seemed too rusted to support their weight, and she peeked her head out from the stone lip of the well. Confirming no one was around, the two clambered over the rim and sprawled onto the sparse grass, Theo allowing himself one more moment of drama by thanking "the Light for its sweet relief from the Shadow below!" Nadiya scoffed and jammed a finger between his ribs.

The hill was close enough to the wall that she could spot Patrollers at their posts up above. Their focus, for now, was on the approaching party outside the Colony rather than where two preteens crouched their way to a large boulder at the peak of the hill.

Carefully, they leaned around to watch the commotion at the North Gate.

Far below, Nadiya could make out her father astride Jasmine, his dapple-gray mare. He was speaking to a Hunter, who was explaining something dramatic, his arms waving as he charaded the event. From afar, Nadiya recognized the imposing form of Commander Tristin standing beside him, tall and rigid as a pillar, her usual jeer nowhere in sight.

A horn sounded from atop the wall and three men began pushing on the giant winch that opened the tremendous iron gate, which slowly parted with the echoing creak of under-oiled hinges. Through it came two-dozen mounted men and women who were talking excitedly amongst themselves, shaking hands and raising victorious fists as they crossed the threshold. Her father sat still, watching intently as the parade made its way in.

"What do ya think they caught?" Theo asked, unable to contain himself. "I've always wanted to see a siren, but I guess one wouldn't last outside water long enough to make it back here." 

Nadiya didn't respond, instead sitting fixated on the open gate and the dark, towering mass of trees beyond.

The Wild.

"I guess whatever it is, it's gone feral," he continued, fidgeting with his hands. "Unless they actually found one that's only just turned."

Nadiya watched the mounted party, now noticing that not all were cheering. Most, in fact, appeared to be nursing triaged wounds, with a handful immediately turning west in the direction of the closest infirmary. She also noticed, with a knot in her gut, three riderless horses being led by one Hunter, with bundles wrapped in bloodstained cloth strapped to their agitated horses' backs. 

If Commander Tristin was here, that means this was the Omega Unit.

And they were in tatters.

Theo must have noticed, too. She heard his breath catch in his throat and, as though only just remembering she wasn't alone, laid a hand on his arm, knowing what his mind had just re-lived.

Through the dense trees emerged a carriage led by two massive draft horses, hobbling along the dirt path. Nadiya watched intently as it entered the Colony. In the back of the carriage, the thick iron bars of a cage were bent and scarred where they showed from beneath a heavy sheet.

Her father and Ansel dismounted from their horses—handing the reins to the messenger, who was all too happy to stand back—and approached the cage. By now, curious onlookers were emerging from the barracks along the wall on either side of the gate. The whole world seemed to hold its breath as Commander Tristin reached up, gripped the edge of the sheet, and deftly swept it away.

Inside, the entirety of the cage was filled top to bottom with the most beautiful silver feathers Nadiya had ever seen, each tipped with dark gray. Though many were, she noticed, also stained dark red where arrows had pierced them in flight.

Theo gripped her shoulder and gave her a shake. "Nadiya," he choked. "By the Light..."

Her father stepped closer, speaking to the trapped creature. Nadiya desperately wished she could make out his words. It was then that the wings folded themselves back just enough to reveal their owner beneath.

She frowned. Wings of an eagle, she could recall in her father's voice.

A harpy.

The most dangerous—and intelligent—of the chimaera.

A harpy in Windrich.

Her stomach churned.