Beyond the Void

Chapter 29, Only small embers

ANDREW

One moon and two tens since the Mark of the Other One blossomed.

Anna and Andrew did not have much choice but to brave the blizzard. After two nights under the boughs of ancient trees, they were now approaching another city as the blizzard was giving way. This one was much larger than the first one. Trees were sparse and young here. The forest, for the first time, had disappeared.

All around the area were large impact craters. Andrew and Anna had to navigate through a maze of uneven terrain. A shallower path of snow headed straight for the city gate. It was closed. And damaged and bent in places, but the gate still stood where it was supposed to. At first glance, there was no obvious way in.

Andrew and Anna stopped at a small grove near the massive city gate. Andrew knelt down and he could feel Anna's concerned gaze on him.

"I'm fine." Andrew reassured her.

He felt like death, but considering the situation, he had held up much better than he had thought he would. His arm was in a sling so he would not move his shoulder too much. The wounds were constantly throbbing with pain. There was no sign of them being infected. The fever and minor inflammation were the worst of the consequences for now.

"How do we get in?" Anna had squatted next to him and held her arm on his shoulder.

"In? I mean, maybe they were around here, maybe they didn't go inside the city." It did not seem a good idea to rush forward without being sure where the others had gone.

"Can't you tell? And shouldn't we find a place for the night?"

"I know where they were." Andrew started angrily but halted. He knew exactly where they had been. Anna had taken her arm off of his shoulder and was visibly offended. "I'm sorry."

He closed his eyes and started looking around. No, this was wrong. He would not find them like this. He did not need to see what was here, but what had once been. Andrew opened his eyes and let his gaze wander all over the city wall.

There was a pile of yarn all over the place. Small bits and pieces of different kinds of string littered the place. Woven into a colossal mess that was impossible to untangle. Nevertheless, they were there too, bits of Eric and Jess and Becca and Robert and all of them.

Andrew was not looking at the wall anymore. His vision had blurred and faint lights danced in front of his eyes. As soon as he realised that, he lost concentration. The pile of yarn still obvious in his mind, but a massive mess. A sudden flash of pain ran through the back of his head and left arm.

"They were here." He mumbled. He tried to concentrate once more on the small bits of Eric he had found, but the pain in his nape was unbearable. He tried to massage it. "They were right here. And they found a way inside. The entrance shouldn't be too far from here."

"Do you need to rest?" Anna was visibly shivering.

"No." Andrew was surprised at his own answer. "I'm a little better. Somehow." His face broke into a crooked smile.

"Good. I do not want to push you too hard, but I am cold as ice. Can we move, so we do not freeze to death here? At least the blizzard is stopping."

"Let's start by the gate." Despite his confidence, Andrew needed a moment to get going. As he stood up, a wave of nausea and weakness ran through him.

Two massive doors stood in their way, as tall as the city walls. Far larger than what Andrew had ever seen back home. He estimated their height to be over 30 metres. There was no way that thing could open. There had to be a smaller gate inside it, and the rest was decoration.