Chapter 18

Arden didn’t like to wear black dresses, or any dresses at all for that matter. Even so, she felt the need to show respect to Charlie at her funeral. She and Corinne, now in pants and a tank top, were leaving Charlie’s graveside. How does that woman manage to change that fast. Jack and Raven looked the worst out of the three who had exerted so much power. Nova used her powers constantly to be numb, so she looked better in that regard.

Arden had some wounds of her own, not the supernatural type, but bullets and a few slashes of a machete. She’d request a child of Aevala to heal herself, but they’d exerted themselves just healing Nova, Raven and Jack. Even then, some pain never truly leaves. Arden, in her very limited time spent with demigods, had never seen such an extreme use of power. From what she’d heard, even the other demigods hadn’t. Giant clouds of Darkness, Cold, and silence had befallen the war zone that was the mall, and chaos had broken out.

“Arden,” Corinne asked aloud, causing her to nearly jump out of her skin.

“Hey, sorry Corinne. I’m not used to the Nythrana spike.” The spike in question was a spikeblade, granting her the ability to almost hear. It wasn’t the same as hearing, as she simply understood what was being said in her mind.

“You probably won’t get used to it for a while.” Corinne chuckled.

“I was only given it two days ago. Plus the constant bleeding, it awful.” Two days before, 2 days after Charlie’s death. These are hard times. Granted, the world has fallen after all. The blade itself was fashioned with an alloy of Adamantium and Steel. It gave little power, and little consequence, but helped her maneuver social settings easier, she’d begun to isolate herself less.

“Do you like it, though?”

“Has its benefits.” Arden wiped blood from her nose. “That’s just not one of them.”

Corinne nodded, walking not toward the truck they’d arrived in, instead toward the carnage that was the main camp. Charlie had been buried by her favorite tree, toward the end of the woods, so the children of Arex had cleared all the bodies, men and maw, for the funeral.

The rest of the camp was absolutely covered in blood and gore. Jack had already deemed it impossible to rebuild and relocate, just due to the collective memory of the fall, and just how bad it had gotten. As Corinne and Arden walked, she made mental note of the gore. Blood trails, limbs rotting on the pathways, cabins destroyed, and bodies littered around like macabre decoration. Halloween, but real.

After leaving the main camp area, Corinne spoke again, “I’m planning on going with some others to the mall, and clear it of the dead. Wanna come?”

Arden shrugged, “Got nothing better to do.”

Corinne raised an eyebrow and smiled slightly. “In a dress?”

Arden looked down, considering. “Didn’t think of that. I do have clothes in my backpack in the truck, though, I’ll just change on the way.” Arden wiped a glob of blood from her upper lip once more. “I’m gonna go deaf for a while. The spike would be best for group settings.”

“Sounds good,” Corinne signed, rounding the front grill of the truck, and starting the engine.

They took Dixie 129 down fifteen miles or so, before taking the wrong way exit onto the loop, to the west. They hadn’t thought of a good way to clear the hundreds or thousands of cars from the road. It was a three lane, chock-full. Arden couldn’t fathom just the sheer volume of metal just out there covering the asphalt.

The demigods were still learning about the Adamantium and manufacturing the ring and spikeblades. They’d only had the stuff for a couple weeks, but so far had learned how to imbue power without the presence of a particular demigod. Blood achieved the same effect. Just a few milliliters per blade. All donated consensually, of course.

Having rounded the loop, now on Atlanta highway, Corinne pulled the truck into the Georgia Square mall parking lot. Mortal and Maw alike were littered throughout, Corinne had even run a couple over by the time they got to the loading dock. The conflict had ended outside, ending with one man’s head on a pike.

Several other cars and trucks entered the parking lot, following a similar but less bloody path through the carnage. Mostly members of House Arex.

After entering the mall, the stench wasn’t quite as bad as she would have expected. The children of Arex began to pull the bodies from the halls, while Corinne and Arden headed straight for the food court. She hadn’t known Charlie too well prior to the events at the mall. They’d talked occasionally, but Arden didn’t feel they were in any way friends. However, the memory of her death would forever stick in Arden’s mind. She had used her telekinesis power to launch herself up toward the top floor, freeing Hunter and Alaina. After jumping down, she’d been shot in the face, so she crashed into a heap. Blood pooling.

Raven, Jack, and Nova exploded with power like nobody had ever seen. After several seconds of silence and the deep darkness and cold, it began to lift, revealing the trio dashing around, and slaughtering everyone. The mortals had been stunned by the power displayed, and weren’t hard to kill after that. Arden and Corinne and then split off the main group, killing smaller groups here and there.

Seeing the carnage brought the memory back. But now she was safe, no battle, no pain, no loss. Just her and Corinne.

Jack sat atop the Costco warehouse, dangling his feet off the edge. He felt numb, alone, after what unfolded in the mall just 3 days before. Charlie had been his lifelong friend, since both their childhoods. Now she’s gone. He was trying not to show the grief he felt inside, on his face, but it wasn’t easy. He felt he needed space. But every time he rounded a corner or entered a room or a car, he half expected to see Charlie’s red hair. The lovely, bubbly girl he’d loved dearly, even before they were in a relationship.

Jack heard footsteps behind him, but didn’t turn to see who it was. If I’m to be killed, let it be fast. He prayed, to the void above the world. Raven sat down just a couple feet away from him, and matched his seating position. The two watched the cars below for a time, before Raven pulled out a pack of cigarettes. The box read, ‘Marlboro.’ Not the United brand he was used to seeing from her. These were older, not made in Dixie since before the secession war. They were sold in the north, but hard to get over the border. Those things really can kill. Maybe the dead gods are granting me death after all.

Raven’s jet black hair was tied into small tight braids, similar to Charlie’s before her death. Everything else about her was the same. Torn off hoodie sleeves, ripped dark jeans. Still the two were so similar. She lit one, then held the pack out toward him, one higher than the others. He thought for a moment, but slid down next to her, and took one. Raven didn’t look at him, but used hers to light his.

The two sat in silence for a time, watching as people returned from their old camp, and the mall. Some hauled fallen demigods or mortals, others raided the old Ironsoul camp, returning with lost items. After an hour of silence, and when Arden’s truck returned from the mall, Raven broke the silence.

“Jack, I miss her.” Jack saw a drop hit the pack of cigarettes in her hand. Raven looked toward him, more tears following the first, ruining her light makeup.

“I miss her too.” Jack said quietly, pulling Raven closer. She laid her head on his shoulder as he wrapped a comforting hand around her back. After releasing her, Jack continued to smoke. The cigarettes reeked like death, but the nicotine they gave him brought Jack some much-needed clarity.

“Raven,” Jack began, slipping a ring off his left ring finger. He had two rings, his, a gift from Charlie, and the one he had given to Charlie. “This belonged to Charlie, I just can’t…” He said, breath catching.

“I’ll bear it for you.” Raven smiled softly, accepting the ring and sliding onto her own ring finger. “We both lost someone we loved.” After a few more minutes of silence, Jack stood, helping Raven to her feet, and the pair left the rooftop.

Jack and Raven went their separate ways, Jack to Cass about supplies, and Raven to Corinne and Arden. “Cass.” Jack nodded to the young man.

“Jack.” Cass replied, weilding his ever present clipboard. “So we are okay in regular fuel right now, but we are a bit concerned on power infrastructure and food.”

“There are solar panels on alot of the houses in Statham.” Corinne commented, splitting off from Raven and Arden, walking over to the guys. The other two girls followed.

“They’d be great if we could get them here.” Cass said, making a note.

“Let’s go there, we can scavenge for other shit as well.” Raven said, gesturing to everyone there.

“Someone needs to lead though.” Jack said, “Cass, you and Hunter will stay in lead. Raven, Corinne, Arden and I will go to Statham. We’ll need ladders, a good truck, fuel, and a trailer.”

“On it. Give me a few minutes.” Cass replied, scurrying away.

“Work for you girls?” Jack asked, nodding to the others.

“I need a break anyway.” Raven said, glancing at Jack. We both do.

“Works for us.” Arden said aloud.

“Good. Let’s all make packs. I’ll make an announcement to the rest of camp. We’ll leave at like 2pm.” Jack said, dismissing them.

“Ah. I see you survived the assault.” A strange feminine voice spoke. It wasn’t one Jack was familiar with. He whirled, summoning a blade, which appeared right at the creatures neck.

Arden jumped back first, then the others. They all summoned blades of their own, and soon the odd humanoid was surrounded in demigods and mortals alike.

“What, the fuck, are you?” Jack demanded.

“I am Karthas, an Umbrir. You have legends about us. Keepers, Travelers, Originators.”

Ah. “They went extinct centuries ago.”

The female chuckled. Her skin, or scales rather, were white, like bleach. They bled into darker shades at her back, and purple on her four wings. Otherwise she looked almost human with her grass green eyes. She wore low cut jeans, and a tee shirt that was a bit small on her frame. Like a teen girl.

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Hunter asked, standing defensively in front of Alaina.

“It’s mythology.” Nova said, folding her wings behind her. She dismissed her blades, and approached the creature, watching carefully.

“My race are the Umbrir. One of the original races from the origin planet. Kaela. Few of my kind are old enough to remember before the shattering. Now we primarily reside on Xav or Terradine.”

“I don’t think I understand any of this.” Alaina said, stepping beside Hunter.

“What is your business?” Nova asked, dropping her monotone.

“Information, guidance.” The creature, Karthas, was a female, Jack could tell by the shape of her, not unlike a normal girl. Her voice was gravely, and oddly accented. It was like she was trying not to cut every word off.

“Stand down.” Jack said, which gained a nod from Nova.

“Wonderful. I’ll be quick. The northern demigods, Mythborn you call them, have moved south, at the behest of one of my kind. He betrayed us, and seeks dominance over this planet.”

“Over, the planet?” Alaina asked, sounding disoriented.

“Mythology seems to have died I see.” Karthas chuckled. “Yes. Vekka seeks to dominate earth. Now I have business on Xav to get to. Prepare yourselves. I am sure Kal, or another of my kind will be along at some point. We all have different roles, so you might see several different Umbrir.”

“How do you travel?” Jack felt the words slip out. It isn’t that fucking important.

“Runestones and Adamantium. You will learn more in time. I must be going.” With that, she was gone.

19 Harvest