The Forsaken Hero
Chapter 398: Sacrifices

Chapter 398: Sacrifices

I drifted through dreams, nightmares, and visions for what felt like an eternity. They flicked from battles between the hordes and humanity, important war councils, and hidden whispers between conspirators. It was impossible to memorize it all, or even weed out the illusions from prophecies, but I witnessed and remembered as much as possible. We were at war now, and anything I could learn would be of help.

The final scene found me floating in Brithlite’s luxurious throne room. Alverin sat upon his throne, surrounded by councilors and advisors. They discussed something in low, hushed whispers but fell silent as the doors opened and a beautiful young woman strode through. She had flowing golden hair and was dressed in a striking red dress with a low neckline and a short, shimmering skirt. The silken fabric was thin and sheer, scandalously clinging to her curves and leaving nothing to the imagination.

My entire soul shuddered with dread as I recognized the provocatively dressed woman, if not the confidence she walked with. Her beautiful eyes lacked the innocence and vivacity of when last I saw her, but no matter how desperately I tried to deny it, they were the same.

My fears were confirmed momentarily when Alverin smiled and extended a welcoming hand to the golden-haired beauty. "Ah, my dear Elise. I trust your evening was most enjoyable?"

Elise giggled and practically skipped across the throne room, giving a slight curtsey before unceremoniously plopping herself in Alverin’s lap. The contrast between his cruel eyes, graying hair, and her vibrant youth and flowing golden curls was almost sickening, leaving my spectating soul in anger and disgust.

"Truly delightful," She said, snuggling against his chest. One of her delicate hands rose to caress his chin, playing with his short, trimmed beard. "I’ve ever enjoyed the company of the noble ladies of your court. Their pets were most amusing this time. It’s hard to believe I ever thought it was weird."

He chuckled and wrapped one arm around her shoulders while the other crept salaciously up her thigh, creeping an inch or two beneath her already short skirt. "Do not feel ashamed of your thoughts made in ignorance, my golden princess. All that matters now is that you understand the truth."

She nodded. "Thank you, my king. I believe you said you had some news to share with me?"

Alverin’s smile faded, and he took on a look of distraughtness. "Indeed. It is with a heavy heart that I inform you that your fiancée, my beloved son, has fallen at the hands of the demon hordes in the north. He was part of a valiant effort to destroy the filthy traitors allowing the demons to ravage our lands. We had every reason to think it would succeed, but..."

"What...?" Elise’s eyes widened, and she suppressed a gasp with her hand. "But he...he said he’d come back."

"Sometimes, things don’t go as planned," Alverin replied. He cupped her cheek and lifted her face to his, pressing his lips on her forehead in a fatherly kiss. "I’m sorry, I truly am."

A single tear trickled down Elise’s cheek, but she quickly brushed away. "I-it’s alright, it’s the truth after all. What can we do but accept it? Besides, I still have you, right?"

He smiled warmly and tilted her chin a little further, kissing her again. This time on the lips, and it was anything but fatherly. Elise closed her eyes and leaned into the kiss, practically melting in his arms.

"That’s right," Alverin murmured, breaking away. "Now, is there something you would ask of me? Anything to help you through this hardship?"

Elise brightened immediately, becoming the person she was when she entered, save for a tinge of sorrow hidden in her eyes. "Oh, my lord, it wouldn’t be proper, but...I suppose I am no longer betrothed, correct? In that case..." she giggled, plucking at the hem of her skirt with a bashful smile. "We don’t have to hide it anymore. No one can protest if I’m not engaged, right?"

The nobles and advisors gathered around them exchanged glances, but it was clear Alverin and Elise were in their own world, ignorant of everything else. At least, Elise was. Alverin was a cunning bastard. This was probably a political move in his eyes, somehow.

"I’ve never cared what anyone else thinks. How can their words possibly compare to your cute little moans, or the way you call my name between the sheets?" Alverin asked, giving her a squeeze and then standing.

She squeaked in surprise and wrapped her arms around his neck, and her legs straddled his waist as he carried her away. The vision distorted and faded, but I caught a glimpse of a bedroom through the waiting doorway.

"Be gentle, my lord," Elise’s voice echoed in my mind, fading with the dream, "Or not. I want you inside me either way!"

I awoke with a start, sitting up before I had my bearings. The pain answered immediately, but I embraced it with barely a whimper, letting the agony of the sunpurge wash away the horrid memories of my vision. But no matter how much my soul ached or my body burned, nothing could sear the dreadful sight from my mind. My dear friend, in the very minute she learned of her beloved betrothed’s death, had begged to be ravaged and raped by a monster. There were no words to describe it, no anger hot enough, so despair dark enough.

"Xiviyah!" Elinore’s voice was a welcome distraction from the pain, both in my heart and flesh. Her hands were on me instantly, easing me back onto the cot. "What are you thinking? Take it easy and lay down; I’ll have some water brought in a moment."

She turned and said something over her shoulder, and I heard Sarra’s voice in response. My throat was dry and cracked, but...how could something like that matter? The tent, my wounds, Elinore’s kindness...how could any of this matter?

Even after laying me back, Elinore’s arms didn’t leave. "That’s it, take it easy," she murmured, smoothing an errant strand of crimson hair behind my ear. "It’s okay to cry; just let it all out. I know it was hard for you."

She didn’t even know, and yet...I listened. After a few seconds, I finally gained control of the emotions rampaging in my heart. Elinore breathed a sigh of relief as I relaxed and let her hold me. It didn’t take long for a sob to build up in my throat, or for tears to overflow.

I wept in Elinore’s arms for a few minutes, until a small hand closed around mine and a soft, tentative voice filtered through my tears.

"Starlight?"

I stiffened and looked up, blinking away tears, and my sobs turned to wet sniffles. "S-sari?"

She returned my gaze without flinching. Her hazel eyes had slit feline pupils with tiny strands of mana interwoven between the vibrant colors of her irises. They were clear and sharp, nothing like the dull, lifeless eyes of a slave, though the childlike spark and innocence had vanished.

"What are you doing here?" I asked as she squeezed my hand. "You should be recovering!"

Elinore huffed lightly, giving me a slight rebuke. "You’re hardly in a position to say that right now, don’t you think? Sari’s been a model patient and is currently in much better shape than you. And after I told you to avoid fights or casting spells, too."

She eased back on the embrace, letting me rest entirely on the cot again. The absence of her warmth left me shivering, and my tail curled anxiously in the sheets. Sari must have noticed because she reached out with her other hand and lightly touched the tip of my tail. I tensed at the touch and my tail stiffened, but gingerly relaxed as she stroked the feathery ridges with soft, comforting motions. My tail was incredibly sensitive, more so than my horns, and I’d never had anyone try to touch it. Well, except for the inquisitors, who had tortured and hurt me in every way short of defiling my purity.

I grimaced at the pain of those memories, and my tail nearly twitched out of Sari’s hand. Her grip suddenly tightened, sending a tingle racing up my tail as she refused to let go.

"It’s okay, you don’t have to be scared anymore," Sari said, frowning at me. "Just let me pet you."

I nearly protested, saying that’s what Fable was for, but that only made me aware of his absence. The last I had seen of him was at the battle before Victor separated us and took me hostage. And where was Korra or the others of the Star Guard? I half expected Orion to open the flap and shake his head at my tendency to get injured, and then offer a small smile and–

It was a scene that was so real that I felt it was actually happening for a moment. But the fragments of my memories of the end of our battle, before I passed out, shuddered, filling me with dread.

Elinore hadn’t known about Elise. I suspected Bethiv knew of her situation and perhaps a few of the other high-ranking members of the Last Light Company who had been enslaved, but Elinore had been with us the whole time. So why had she comforted me like she knew what I had lost? If she wasn’t talking about Elise, then who–

"Oh," I whispered. Tears gathered in my eyes again, but I blinked them away and stared at Elinore, desperate for her to deny it. That head shake hadn’t meant anything, right?

"Where’s Orion? He...he made it, didn’t he?"

For the first time, I noticed that her eyes were wet and red from crying. She bit her lip, a surprisingly girlish gesture from the woman, and shook her head.

My fail limp in Sari’s grasp, refusing to twitch no matter how she tried to pet it. I just couldn’t feel it anymore.

"And Jenna?" I whispered hoarsely.

.Elinore hesitated a second, then nodded. "Thanks to what you did, she lasted long enough for me to get to her. Not that I can approve; you nearly killed yourself, but I won’t argue your judgment call. She’s alive, after all."

I exhaled heavily and sat back, torn between relief and grief. Luxxa was alive, but Orion...

If he hadn’t attacked Victor, I would have been taken to the Divine Throne and executed. He had died because of me, just like Aurle.

Just as I was about to accept that thought and sink into the darkness, guilt, and despair, something caught my mind. A short, flickering memory of Orion with his hand on my head, comforting me like I was a child. He had fought beside me at the ice gate and protected me from the Grand Inquisitor and every threat we faced since then.

He had told me he would die for me. There was no uncertainty when he said it. Not because of me, but for me. And that wasn’t even right, either. He hadn’t died. He was killed.

For the first time, I understood the words of Aurle, whispered to me on the night she Byron killed her. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, reciting them in my mind. It wasn’t my fault. None of it was.

But that didn’t mean I was absolved of all responsibility. Their souls were saved in the cycle of reincarnation, but they had paid for my life with their blood. I didn’t have to shoulder their weight, for it was freely given, but I couldn’t forget them. Their memories and mission remained with me; I would see it through. I would live, smile, and continue to learn how to love.

And I would avenge them.