Page 131 of Firebird

Chapter 50 - Earthquake

Metheus

My surroundings shook with ferocity. I could hear rattling all over, but I could not see anything. My memories had hurtled me to the past. However, yesterday, and the day before it, was hazy.

I remembered being a boy of twelve again. It was strange how I seemed to be watching the scene from afar. It was almost like it was not me that I was seeing, but someone else – from a different life. Then, I was eighteen summers old, camping with my closest friends and witnessing the fireball across the sea.

It must have been a large one for us to see from the northern tip of Arrowspear. The explosion was brief, though, as if it was a fire that burst out of control but was soon drenched in calming water.

It was gone. I tried to grasp its meaning, and connect it to something more recent. I struggled. Then, there they were – the last few words I heard. It sounded something like “I love you,” but I could not be sure. It seemed to come from underneath, drowned by water. I recalled the coldness of my body, the rigidity of my limbs.

Then, the earth shook again. Finally, I was able to open my eyes and sit up from – from my bed. I could not remember how I got there.

Then, the fire and the whispers came together to remind me who had been there. Her caresses came back to me, urging me to wake up from a nightmare.

Luella.

Where was she? The palace seemed about to crumble, perhaps bury us all alive. Leevar’s face flashed before my mind’s eye. I had to witness him being hurled against the wall again. There was blood. Could he have survived that?

Still weak, I rose from the bed. My legs trembled. I could tell I had not used them in days. I had to find Luella and find out what was happening in Prozeus. The storm and the massacre of the Seers were only precursors to something more. The Ninurta’s attack and Leevar’s death would not be the end of it all.

“Metheus.”

It was my sister’s gentle voice. What was she doing in my room?

“Rowali,” I croaked.

When I focused my eyes on where she was, I saw that other people were in my room. I was not surprised to see Fuza there. After all, she was Rowali’s nurse. However, Samara and Francilia were there, too. Fear gripped my chest.

“Where is Luella? Why are you all here instead of with her?”

“Your Majesty, she asked us to stay with you. She did not want to leave you here alone. You were so weak that she thought that if she left even for a short time, you will – you will die,” Francilia cried.

“What is happening? What is this shaking that I feel? Where is Luella?” I asked again.

“She is in the Great Hall, Your Majesty, addressing your people. Aruna said that the Queen should assure the people that you are alive and getting better.”

“Well, I am alive and better. Let me go downstairs. I want to see what is happening.”

“Are you strong enough, Metheus?” asked Rowali.

“Yes. I will be fine. I had been stripped of strength, but I seem to feel better.”

“It was Luella. She may not know it, but she had been feeding you with her warmth throughout the three days she stayed here in the room,” Samara said.

I noticed that the Seer’s eyes were red-rimmed. Her features were that of someone who had gone through a harrowing experience.

Leevar was dead.

“Do you mean that I was able to absorb some of the heat unconsciously?” I asked.

“It seems so. Luella was getting frustrated, thinking that you needed to be awake for it to work. But here you are.”

“I am sorry about Leevar,” I said with some caution.

“Thank you, Your Majesty,” Samara gave a slight nod. She was a strong woman, but even strong women found themselves floundering when it came to lost love. I recalled my mother’s absentmindedness during her last few years. My father loved her, but he was also not honest with her. I realized that she had been willing to accept Ari, but he was not.

Could it be why Ari wanted my father – our father – dead instead of me?

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