Chapter 54: Chapter 53: Of Purpose

Gabrielle could still remember it vividly, how light filtered in golden, beautiful rays in Arcadia. Hidden deep within the woods, far away from Doggenband and anything the girl had ever known before; wooden carts of so many colours curled around a huge pyre made to honor the spirit of the departed Mother Moon, first of the Gods and last to abandon Jericho to search for better pastures beyond the stars. As more and more demihumans arrived at their secret gathering point, the place seemed to expand further around the circle of carts, with wooden towers erected for safety and farmlands for food.

 

It was beautiful, a little piece of the tranquil heaven that Gabi had always been promised in many stories, but the elves insisted that the little camp did not do any justice to the ancient capital of the same name, and Gabi couldn’t really even imagine the beauty of that fabled city even with the many tales she had to hear every afternoon during the daily feast.

 

Or, well, it wasn’t really a feast. It was more of a meager meal. The humble harvest of their tiny farms and whatever they could scavenge in the forest, curated and cooked in such a way that they could squeeze every bit of nutrition from whatever ingredients they could gather.

 

The first thing that Gabi had learned from her new friends during the years that she spent with them was how obsessed they were with the past. About their deeds of great glory, of their ancient lost magicks, their cities and, most of all, their seemingly everlasting beauty. The little girl would only nod and listen, memorizing the many tales the elves were so eager to share with her and Baraqiel.

 

In dreams she still saw that child, smiling brighter than she had ever seen before, always so eager to participate in more conversations with the elves, to study their lore, to retell it to Gabrielle during the starry nights…

 

In dreams she could still remember those placid days, when all she had to worry about was working on the farm and waiting for “The Sign” those demihumans needed to finally leave for the promised land.

 

In dreams… she could still see the scars on Baraqiel’s weakened body, never fully healing. And she could perfectly remember who was to blame for them, for each and every scar, every marking, every stigma on both Baraqiel’s and her own frame.

 

As her memories turned to nightmares, and her bliss soon spoiled into rotting, searing pain, Gabrielle could still feel this burning feeling pushing deep within her heart, pumping so hard she could even notice how it hit the walls of her chest, violent and eager. Hungry… but Gabi wasn’t sure what it wanted, really.

 

Everything turned to complete, unspeakable darkness, bright green eyes staring from within.

 

Gabrielle had to remind herself that it was over, that the man was dead and would never return, and yet something deep within knew the truth. Knew that her work was still not done.

 

The Demiurge lived on.

 

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As the redheaded witch opened her eyes, the fire was still raging in front of her. Gabrielle had expected it to die down by the time the first morning lights broke into the sky, and yet here it was! Still on, with a big rabbit skewered by a stick, spit roasting over its flames.

 

Where was she? Why was she so tired?

 

The fire, she remembered it well. She remembered rain, and pain all over her weakened body. A caravan, an easy job gone wrong, and then… that blonde girl. Recollection finally hit Gabrielle as she looked around herself: She had fallen asleep sitting, hiding between two crooked trees. There were no signs of Luci.

 

 Aching from the uncomfortable position, and ignoring that fact as it was her habit, Gabi got right back up and stretched until her bones popped back into proper posture. Her eyes were now staring intently at that delicious, unseasoned rabbit still charring over the flames. How did the flame keep on? The heatstone had probably broken already, so there was no source of heat for the flimsy sticks to burn…

She was about to kneel and properly check the pyre with her hand when the lancer returned, another worked, skinned rabbit on her hands.

 

“Ah, you live! For a second I thought you would just sleep over.” Lucrece sat right across the fire, setting her new catch to cook. “Feel free to grab that one, it must be ready for biting by now. Sorry if it is a bit tasteless though? Those bastards on the cart took my spices with them…”

 

Gabrielle blinked and looked between the cooking rabbit and the blonde, a little unsure. She had been offered food before, only to be asked for money or favors soon after, what if this was another trap? But that unseasoned meat was very, very appetizing. It wasn’t potato soup, but it was certainly a good second option! 

 

“I don’t have any money.” The witch immediately said, looking back at Lucrece while this one huffed. This had to be her first act of charity in who knows how long and people still accused her of greed! Outrageous!

 

Although, and Lucrece had to admit this, if circumstances had been different, Gabi would be completely correct to assume she’d have to pay for a piece of what Luci hunted.

 

“This one's on me. Consider it my way to say thank you.” The blonde lancer shrugged. “Clumsy or not, I’d probably be much worse for wear without you there.”

 

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As soon as she had been given the authorization, Gabrielle grabbed the cooking rabbit and dug her teeth into it, feeling the unevenly cooked meat. It was far from perfect, but she didn’t really mind as long as the meat she bit into wasn’t outright raw. Raw food gets you sick, even Gabi knew so much.

 

“Hah, bleeding saints! Someone was eager. Thanks for waiting, I guess?” Luci let out a little cackle, stretching her arms and keeping a close eye on her own rabbit. “I’d have left it a bit longer in the fire if I were you but, to each their own.”

 

Gabrielle kept quiet, biting down on her meal and cleaning the fragile, thin rabbit bones of all the meat she could, sometimes even breaking them down to suckle on the thin layer of marrow inside. Lucrece tried her best not to recoil at that, simply shaking her head and making sure her food was cooking properly.

 

“So, Gabi.” It still felt a bit off to simply call the girl by her first name, but there weren’t many other options now, were they? “Are you going somewhere now? Or will you just return the way we came..? Honestly, I have no idea where we ended up.”

 

That was a wonderful question. Gabrielle stopped eating for a second, licking her own lips as her brain raced, for she was suddenly remembered of her target. Shadows were gathering all over Jericho, a vision came back to Gabi’s mind, as vivid as the first time she saw it: flames spreading all over the continent like a sick, burning wind, all coming from tornados standing so tall into the skies that firmament itself looked afraid of breaking into pieces.

 

The witch pulled out a rolled-up piece of paper from under her clothes: A map of Jericho, beautifully written in special ink, with several spots marked with exes, most of which had been encircled as well with a piece of coal.

 

“I must reach…” She started, checking her route to the last crossed spot on her list. “... Caen.”

 

“Ah, right. That’s why you got that job, huh?” 

 

Lucrece had to stop for a moment there, and think. She was going to Caen as well, so it would be the natural thing to simply ask if they could venture the rest of the way together. But this witch was nothing but trouble and the lancer could see it from kilometers away! Going the same way would be an invitation for things to go awry, and Luci was someone who deeply appreciated her stability.

 

But again, seeing how lost this girl was, how her face refused to show the emotions her eyes flared with… it all was way too similar to an old friend. A little boy Luci used to be tasked with, back in the days before everything went to hell. Oh Pietro. A tiny little creature of black hair and smart eyes, despite his slow demeanor.

 

He had been the only other person stupid enough to give a shit about Luci and her father when the raiders attacked.

 

Lucrece pushed that memory deep into the suppressed corner of her mind where it belonged, before letting out a deep sigh. Despite her best efforts, she was still a sentimental person.

 

“I am aiming for Caen as well.” She confessed. “How about we walk there together?”

 

Gabrielle narrowed her eyes. This person was being way too nice, in a way that reminded her of Baraqiel and the elves… but she could also see the hunger for coin in Luci’s eyes, a trait she had learned to avoid the hard way. 

 

“No, thank you.”

 

The blond huffed, the world was giving her a chance to simply disengage and leave things at that, and yet she insisted.

 

“Come on. We’ll fare better if we are together, right? And besides… I…” Here the lancer needed to take a moment to properly word her ideas. “... You stood with me instead of running away or playing dead. I feel like I owe you a little help in return.”

 

Gabrielle finished her rabbit and slowly stood back up, shaking her head negatively before walking out of their shelter without another word. Lucrece simply stared for a moment, watching as the redhead went away… and sighed.

 

Once again, she could simply leave things like that and let the girl go out and get killed by herself. But the memory of Pietro pushed Lucrece back on her feet.

 

“Wait!” She said, trotting over to the other girl. “Come on… isn’t there a way I can make you reconsider? These trails are dangerous for someone on their own!”

The witch stopped in her tracks, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. So much insistence, why?

 

Why did this girl have to make it difficult?

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