Chapter 33: Bloodshed

"I am becoming a tyrant, threatening in place of convincing. Unstable instead of steadying.

I am suited to the shadows, to the art of knives and bloodshed and coups, to poisoned words and poisoned cups. I never expected to rise so high as the throne. And I fear that I am utterly unsuited to the task." —Holly Black, The Queen of Nothing (The Folk of the Air, #3)

"Some soldiers wear silk robes, have pearly white teeth, and engage in handshakes instead of bloodshed." —Nick Oliveri, The Conjurer (Stories of Shadow and Flame Book 2)

"There's no progress without bloodshed..." —Tamuna Tsertsvadze, Gift of the Fox

***

Panic ruled over the remaining Balmackians who were now afraid for their lives as the earthquake and the heavy storm simultaneously struck the island.

"Are we all gonna die?!"

"Nooo! I don't wanna die! Mom! Save m-me!"

Trees began falling down everywhere in the forest and in the mountains while earthquakes buried the dead causing cracks in the ground. Slowly, like a hungry island yearning for more blood and dead bodies, the earthquake intensified.

Xenia and the others had to put a stop to their digging after being immediately drenched in the rain.

"We have to hurry and take their bodies—?!"

A huge crack in the ground opened up, swallowing the four dead bodies lined beside each other, and Xenia and Volcom could not do anything but scream as they extended their hand while Arlan and Thaniel prevented them from falling down the fissure.

"D-Don't let them go, Arlan!"

"Xenia! We have to keep going! The breaks on the ground keep widening!"

No matter how fast they run, they could barely maintain their balance as the groundbreaking earthquake continuously tries to sweep them off their feet.

"Fuck!"

Volcom cursed at the top of his lungs. He really let out one hell of a frustrated helpless yelp when he just stood there, unable to even give his dead wife and kids a proper burial. All four bodies fell into the abyss of nothingness, whose depth was literally unknown to all of them.

"I've failed to do something for my family, again!"

A drenched expression of frustration washed over Volcom's face as he bathed in the purling sound of the heavy rain. Even if he repeatedly screams and yells for all eternity, he doubts that the Balmackians and the Sulten Tribe would hear his far cry.

And gradually, the four men unsteadily became witness to the sweeping horrendous wind that decided to destroy the last essence of the memory holder. Their house.

Falling and flying trees coincidentally repeatedly crashed onto their house, which drastically turned it into smithereens and a pile of huge logs.

Salvation did not exist under the cataclysmic phenomenon. They might have survived the fire and the heavy rain last time but not today. Whatever or whoever was causing the storm and the earthquake left nothing for the Balmackians to go back to.

"Oh, look out!"

Everywhere around was getting more dangerous as each second passed by. Trees would miraculously and suddenly fall in their direction while the fissures on the ground expanded to the whole country.

Many have already lost their lives, and this cataclysm added more deaths to the poll, eventually lowering the number of Balmackians left on the island.

"Come on, follow me!"

Volcom was not running around during the earthquake and the heavy rain resumed. Xenia instantly picked up on what his father was doing, avoiding the fissures and predicting where the cracks would appear and lead.

However, maintaining a steady posture was hard. They were pressured by the earthquake, proving to be more dangerous than the heavy rain. All of them have to be extremely cautious with every step they make while under stress.

They were used to traveling around the forest and the woods, through the uneven and steep slopes. They would explore however they wanted and have fun themselves while foraging for dinner.

Still, their greatest obstacle was the fissures and the sudden aftershocks that would occasionally occur, catching them off-guard every now and then.

"Uh-oh..."

Xenia placed his right foot where it should not belong, a slightly slanted path that opened up to a crack had him slipping. Water flows and splashes all over his face as both of his hands are clutched tightly on the edge of the ground while he hangs between the fissure.

"Where's Xenia?!"

Thaniel noticed when Xenia's presence suddenly disappeared. They had to stop and go back to where they came from and found Xenia on the other end of the fissure. The gap they would need to leap to reach the other side was around two meters.

The struggling image of his son put Volcom in distress.

"The stream is preventing him from getting back up! At this rate, he will fall!"

"We have to do something!"

Looking around, Arlan thought of finding a rope or whatever resilient object or sturdy wood they could use to help Xenia.

"Son! Don't ever remove your grip on the edge! I swear I will help you, so just hold still!"

"The ground is still shaky! I can't stop thinking he'd fall!"

"Ugh! This is not the time to be feeling pessimistic, Thaniel! Use it for something good instead!"

While the three of them were sick worried, paranoid, and eager to help Xenia, a tremulous concussion finally swept them off their feet.

"Guh!"

And before the three of them fell on the ground, simultaneously, a deafening thunderstrike hits the mountain and Xenia lost his grip on the edge of the crack.

All they could do was extend their hands as they bear witness to Xenia disappearing in their eyes when the kid descended down the crack.

Hurriedly, they all peered through the darkness as their voices echoed deep down the fissure.

"Xenia! Xenia!!!"

Arlan and Thaniel saw Volcom slowly lose his mind. He was wailing like a kid, gritting his teeth in utter anger while slamming his fists on the dumped earth.

"AHHHHHHHHHH!!!"

The grief of a father, a husband, and a lone man who just lost everything weighs heavier than both Arlan and Thaniel could have imagined.

"Why?! Why did I have to lose everything?! I should have never accepted the gift! It's more of a curse than a fucking present! I'm giving it back now, so please... please just give back my family."

~