Chapter 12: Catching a Blessing

I mindlessly pander towards the altar. The shades of red, blue and green paint my face as I approach through the crowd flooding the seats of the chapel. An old man in white stands beside Angela holding a novel with odd scripture. He welcomes me on the platform and looks towards the eager crowd. Cynthia hovers beside me quietly.

"Today, citizens of Aelia, the hero Darwin has accepted to give a blessing to miss Angela's baby." He croaks.

"For hundreds of years is has been believed that a child blessed by a hero will grow to live a long and prosperous life. Today, for little Violet is no exception."

Angela beams in my direction, placing her baby in my arms. "I would like to give a special word to hero Darwin as my precious girl might not have been here today if it weren't for his selflessness. Times in Aelia have been difficult as of late and there's nothing more we would all love to see than the wretched demon kind defeated. Our lives shall carry out in peace!" She announces to the crowd who begins to clap softly.

Baby Violet kicks her feet happily at the noise. The chaplain rests a light hand on my brawny shoulder.

"Come, my faithful citizens, let the goddess of order accept this blessing from the hero." He chimes, raising a hand to the sky. Order? I've heard people here bring up Order before but I never understood she was some sort of god to the population.

"Go on young hero, the goddess is listening." He whispers to me, a pale ray of light shimmers through the peak of the stained glass onto where we stand. I pause, unsure of what to do.

"Oh goddess Order-" I hesitantly begin, "Let my courage and strength be passed to this child in her life. Let her spirit be guided in the holy footsteps of Order herself." I continue, attempting to make something sensical come out of my mouth. "Let the wind be the wings to her possibilities, let her become a blessing to this town."

The crowd bursts out in uproar and sobs of joy.

"The goddess has accepted the hero's blessing!" The chaplain exclaims. He lifts up a small crest of woven flowers and places it over the baby's head. He then looks up towards me.

"You have done a truly noble thing hero Darwin." He pauses. "You have rejuvenated this town with a blossom of hope."

I peer down at baby Violet who is wrapping her fingers around the flower petals curiously. I smile and hand her back to Angela who is shaking in excitement.

"I really can't thank you enough." She squeaks, coddling her child close. Cynthia watches Violet with much interest as I turn to greet the excitable crowd jostling in front of us. The doors creak open and the daylight trickles in along with handfuls of other people.

"It's truthfully been an honor Angela, I hope little Violet has a wonderful life here in Intercaeleus." I say light-heartedly as I stare into the sea of people.

"Kill, Darwin Bright. You will be most powerful." An ominous voice whispers. I spin around on my heels, Cynthia gives me a look of concern as she notices my disturbed expression. I shake it out of my head, I must be hallucinating. Though, I'm pretty sure I got a decent sleep last night.

"Kill them. You will be most powerful." It says again, more aggressively. I feel a dark coursing through my veins as a heavy, looming pressure seizes in my joints. The urge to grab my sword and slash through the crowd grows stronger as the seconds pass by.

"No. What the hell?" I grunt, fighting to take control of my body through the pressure as I begin to lumber step by step towards the doors.

"Kill them. Kill them all." The voice taunts me, spiraling around my head like a flock of hungry vultures.

"Hero Darwin!" People from the crowd greet me as I stagger by like an injured stag, too far lost in the Hysteria of the ceremony to realize my struggle. I push past them quickly out the door into the sunlight. The streets are filled with even more people bustling as they carry out their daily habits. I need to get away from them. I turn my head, ignoring the voices pounding at my ears as best as I can. I dash into the alleyway behind the church, my hand now clutching the hilt of my sword as the pressure only grows stronger against my will.

"Get out of my head!" I scream, pulling my sword out and slamming it against the brick walls of the alleyway. My grip won't loosen.

"Kill. Then I'll be satisfied." It whispers menacingly, I flail around, my fingers not loosening around the hilt. I slide down against the wall, squeezing my eyes shut.

"Darwin?" a gentle voice enters my ear against the grating demands.

"Marcia!" I yell blindly in my disorientation.

"Darwin what's wrong?"

"I want to go home- I want to see you.."

"Darwin?"

My eyes snap open as I can make out a figure standing over me. I rise to my feet as I feel my consciousness losing control of my body. All I can do is watch.

"Stop!" I scream "This isn't me, run!" my throat breaks as I watch myself draw my blade like the creature the night before. A single blow with the intention to kill. I feel my arms slide down like a guillotine. I close my eyes inside my head, I can't watch myself any longer.

I feel a resistance on my blade. I force it downwards and I hear a yelping. I can see the metal glow brightly in white below my fingertips. Suddenly I feel a wave of relief wash over me and I begin to regain control of myself. The feeling of the weight of the sword in my hands shocks me, it feels lighter than before. I look down before me and my eyes widen in shock.

Cynthia. My sword inches from her face as she sobs, her arms shaking, hands dripping in her own blood as it trickles town and stains her coat. Between her palms is my blade, she had blocked the fatal blow.

I drop my sword and fall to me knees. She inhales shakily, pushing herself up on her knees as she outstretches a bloodied hand in my direction.

"Get away from me." I breathe in disbelief. "It's not safe to be around me."

"What happened to you?" She mutters, wiping her wetted cheeks.

"Someone... No, something kept telling me to kill. Then when I refused it possessed me and I became a passenger in my own body." I murmur monotonously.

"Has this happened before?"

"Yes, when I fought the assassin. Though, it wasn't nearly as strong and I was able to break out of it on my own."

Cynthia swallows hard, parts of her golden hair are soaked in crimson. "We can try and investigate more when we get somewhere private, it's not safe for us to be out here with it." She looks around before getting to her feet. "I know somewhere we can go, just keep that thing hidden." She motions to the sword before hiding her own bloodied hands under her coat.

I reluctantly pick up the blade which feels no different than normal and slide it onto my belt. Guilt rises in my chest as I step over the bloodstains littering the alleyway floor.