Chapter 15A: Lamentation at the Precipice

Chapter Fifteen

I once lived this life like a loner lost in the limelight, locked to lament a life I never sought. Countless men would kill for a fraction of my might, but this unmatched power is something I did not want. All we ever wanted was a quiet life beneath the stars, but we were cursed in such a way that peace could never quite be ours. I did not embark on this path for some sick fantasy of power, despite that there are countless souls I know I must devour. It was the stars which crossed me and cursed me to perdition; they forced their way between us and put me in this position. Each crime I must commit could cause a weaker man contrition, but I instead ignore the consequence and declare it in remission. I will let no force in this world take her from me, even if we must devour everyone just for a shot at being free. The others in this world are just factors in equations, and I can crush them all at once with no considerations.

Aeliana and I dressed in cloaks as we entered the crowd, camouflaging with other pedestrians because of the cool weather. Claire stood a short distance behind us, determined to assist us in our lurid quest for her own gain. She assured me that if she constructs a fourth of the giant Array, then she will receive a fourth of the total quintessence – not a fourth of the victims. In this way, she could cover the cost to revitalize her son while I would still inherit the lives of the countless victims. The identity of the underworld healer no longer mattered; I would devour him when I devoured everyone else in Bones City.

Even while we were blocks away, we could see that hordes of people had already congregated on the beach. The shadows of walking people danced in the light of small bonfires onshore. The quiet chatter of countless voices carried across the night. Starlight illuminated a multitude of shadows pouring toward the beach from all directions. But just as the plague slowly settled in my bones and strangled the strength from my soul, I had suspected that people would postpone or cancel the sea gathering in fear of sickness.

But the city leaders were adamant that this event would continue as scheduled as a showing of pride for Bones City. Despite that the perilous plague could spread like wildfire through the masses, people resolved to show themselves as upstanding members of the community. To not attend was to discard one’s own social standing entirely. Basic safety was rebranded as an act of cowardice, and this could not have possibly worked better in my favor. Had the people actually trusted their instincts, our sickness would have killed us before we could ever kill them. The city leaders had compared their bravery to that of the ancient heroes celebrated by the people, but even those long-lost heroes had also lost their lives as a consequence of their bravery. History would simply repeat itself in their reflection.

A city leader announced from a stand near the starlit sea, “We are so glad to see so many citizens celebrate being free! Let us not forget the heroes who wrestled with the shadows to give us this chance. Do not let yourselves forget that all this world was once plagued by demons who would strike with fire from the sky. Entire cities were wiped from the world in a single night by these monsters. But the heroes of our city laid down their lives to fight back. We only have a place to stand because of their sacrifice! Let us remember their bravery and give it new life inside ourselves.”

Enthusiastic cheers echoed across the crowd of gathering citizens. Humored voices shouted along as if anyone could truly delude themselves into honoring an alleged sacrifice from countless years past. I have to believe that on some level, everyone at that gathering knew the reality that the long-lost heroes had no effect on our lives as we knew it. This was nothing more than a concession to tradition or a thinly-veiled excuse to make appearances. Perhaps my cynicism was summoned by the fact that I shared the same power as the demons who fought these heroes, so perhaps I aligned myself with the demons as if it made us family in some way. Regardless of the reason, that ancient battle would repeat itself on this celebratory night by the sea. The people would cry out with valor as if they had the strength to change anything, but in the end they would be devoured by a darkness that is cursed to care only about its sole ambition. At least in that way, it is true that history repeats itself. At the very least, I was determined to ensure that it would.

I had spent days deducing the design and running calculations to ensure that this would work. Many people understand in their heads that a straight line becomes curved when projected upon a curved surface, but very few understand the formulation. I wasted hours just on reverse engineering and then verifying the length of this world’s radius. In between bouts of sickness or caring for Aeliana as she suffered hers, I spent the better part of my time adjusting every line and curve in the Array of Black Fire to compensate for invisible curvature. From there, it was simply a matter of packaging the information so that Claire and Aeliana could understand how to draw their sections of the Array.

Aeliana had slept behind me for days while I deduced the calculations necessary to complete the Array. During this time, we both fought to suppress the symptoms of sickness, but we could feel ourselves lose the fight as the plague pierced into our bones. She had it much worse than me, and I startled her awake several times as she slept when it sounded like she stopped breathing altogether. I couldn’t even admit to myself at the time how close I had come to losing her. When I shook her from sleep for the second time, she asked me why I chose to let Claire take part in our tremendous Array. I explained that at first it was a matter of completion; we simply needed someone else equally immoral to draw a portion of the Array during the short time we had to work while the world froze. But at the same time, I also confessed that the real reason was that Claire had a power which served as a failsafe. We would grant her the fuel to use her power, and then I would kill her with black fire in case I needed to use it for myself. It was no different than fattening up an animal before a feast.

The final question concerned the creation of the inscription itself. If the underworld healer saw the enormous Array when he stepped onto the beach, he would take his family and run; he might even warn other walkers as they wandered into the trap. I intended instead to inscribe the Array beneath their feet once the celebration began. By the time fireworks would ordinarily enliven the sky with a barrage of fiery color, only three sets of eyes would remain to watch.

Almost as if the power in her soul were forged to allow this, Aeliana had become the cornerstone of my design. When we witnessed her power for the first time, we realized that she simply froze time itself so that we could wander a world rendered motionless, untouchable by our actions and decisions. We could not move or strike anything in that state; we could only pass by. At least, this was my interpretation when we witnessed her weapon for the first time. But now with the passage of time, I realized I had overlooked an obtrusive omission. We could still affect the ground beneath our feet, and this was proven in the way we could still walk and propel ourselves forward; we could not push off the ground if it could not push back. This meant that Aeliana and the world itself were bound in a pact forged by her power. Even in that timeless state, we could still exert our will upon the world as long as it only affected the surface of this long-dead star. I must admit that on some level I believed this to be an act of providence which served as proof that destiny itself had designed us for each other. Why else would her power serve no other practical purpose than to set the stage for our Array?

There are still 2 more parts to this chaoter.