Red Twilight the Weaver chapter 22

Chapter 22:

Elec

The Colossus Warwing takes Corn, Ownlog, and Rodney high above the cloud-line into the near-freezing atmosphere, the sky burns orange above the clouds. "Corn the Weaver and Corn's mate. I would like to ask you a question."

"I'm not a Weaver." Corn calls down from Warwing's back "and who do you think is my mate?"

"The only person on my back that could be. That little chew toy you call Rodney."

"What did you want to ask?" Corn yells over the burning wind.

"Which makes a better story: one that never ends, or one that gets retold forever?" Warwing ask.

"stories change with the passage of years to reflect changing thought and ideas of those hearing them. So, a naturally better story is one reimagined by everyone that hears it." Rodney throws down his thoughts.

"We love the things we love because we understand them. That is why we repeat ourselves as often as we do. It reinforces a collective experience. Everyone knows the core of our historical parchments. 'Wolves run and the red flower' acts as the foundation of our bible our own time before time. 'the ride' is our yardstick for good and evil and how we understand what makes them different."

Warwing bobs her head in understanding "the birds of Winterskiss have a holy book too. Stories of hero and monster, and a holy women from Underdark that rises. Her touch kills monsters and mends broken bones, she walks on water and fire and dresses in a shroud made of blood. We pretend she is like us, a bird, but she is not, she is like you, a mouse of Graywall Keep. Maybe that is how we deal with what we don't fully understand. We change the story to meet our need. Make them more relatable by making them more of ourselves. Are you a Gaia worshiper?"

"I am a follower of Kari, if I am a follower of anything. Rodney is a snake worshiper, and I don't know about Ownlog."

"Snakes, Birds, Trees, I wonder, might they all be the same thing? Maybe your Kari and my Gaia are the same creatures. One god with many faces. I want to find god. Whatever its name is and I want to ask 'what forth are we responsible for?' My people once were artist, but now we spend most of our time fighting over a pile of bones where we believe the undying mother was born atop."

"why fight over bones?"

"the bones are holy. Whoever roost atop the bones will be empowered by and protected by our virgin mother for so long as that sit atop it."

Rodney looks down to Warwing "if she is virgin then how is she your mother?"

"she is our holy mother. All eggs laid belong to her for she is the hatchling of Gaia herself. She slept one day at the foot of a river, and the water washed across her loins, and where the water dripped from her thighs eggs formed from stone, then all the birds of the earth leaped fourth therefrom."

Corn takes in the story "so all birds are formed from dirt and water?"

"Why not? All mice are forged from clay. It's the same story" Ownlog express and Rodney translates.

"I have children thank you very much. Let me tell you I didn't forge mine out of clay."

Rodney smiles and pats her on the tail, "really where did you get yours?"

Corn snorts not sure if that was a playful jest or ignorant regurgitation. Warwing then pipes up "I laid a virgin egg when I was three years old, I then laid three more after rubbing my tail against a boy at a fest two years later. The first never hatched, the others did. I bet if I mated I would lay a lot more."

Ownlog bashfully whispers through Rodney "you rubbed tails and laid three eggs?"

"well, he might have touched my… but we didn't… and if his… and my… we all know what mating means. I didn't do it. He was touching me for only a second. It was an accident; we were from different families. We weren't even to be talking, we were just kid, and I wanted to know… then he wanted to know…. But it was fun."

Rodney looks to Warwing, he climbs up to touch her on the noise "wise man once told me, if it isn't fun to sin, then you're not sinning right."

"Eat my tail feathers, poet." Warwing curses at him.

"I can promise you I will do no such thing. I haven't even looked at your tail feathers."

"why not?" Warwing flushes her tail dropping into the clouds, she pulls her wings in then snaps them out slowing herself to map the area. Her eyes roll back then widen "oh…" being the only sound to leave her beak as she is thinking.

Corn looks to her "so what did you do with your unexpected eggs?"

"I gave them to my mother; she never asked any question. I pretend they're my siblings."

"And the father?" Corn asks.

"I told him about it. We are planning to keep this under wraps until the war is over, assuming it ever ends."

"I love this story. Can I have it?" Corn asks

"when you write down the story I want my name recorded as Liz the 4th, 22end queen of Winterskiss."

"why?" Corn asks.

"I think the name Liz sounds better in your tongue then Warwing." Warwing points with her beak. "There it is, the summit of Elec is there." Warwing lands atop the mountain. "I'll wait here. I don't think what lies ahead was meant for me."

Rodney tips his nose in the air sniffing about Ownlog stands beside him growling "What do you smell." She asks.

"dead fish, cinnamon and butter, maybe a hint of garlic with a splash of vinegar, and black magic, what about you Ownlog?" Rodney explains.

She pulls her hooked swords from her back "battle, blood, old and sour staining this place with evil. Souls were lost here, and the dead come back looking for what they left behind. Rodney steady your blade and ready your magic Hades awaits." Ownlog bares he fangs lusting for the fight.

As the team dives into the abyss at the pick of Elec, quickly they find the cold heat of the mountain has locked in the scent of death. Corn grips her gut with one hand and her muzzle with the other struggling to hold herself up after taking the first whiff of unsanctified air. Rodney bites his tongue swallowing hard. Ownlog growls and breaths deeply of the sour earth Ownlog mumbles "just like home."

Corn and Rodney spend a moment nearly carrying each other, Rodney hacks "what is down here again?"

"A stone of healing. It will be protected by those who failed to find it in the past." Corn recaps

"we have nearly died three times so far; maybe the stone was never meant to be found." Rodney mumbles.

"I am ready for death. If you are not, I understand. Go with Warwing." Corn hardens her resolve as she looks for the path onward

"you have a family waiting for you..." Rodney protest

"and they will be protected. If I do not find the stone, you will go to Graywall and tell them I fought bravely, I have many daughters also: Salt, Butter, Garlic, Cream, Mint, maybe if I don't come back one of them will make you happy and you them." Corn envisions the worst.

"I fight by your side. Your children deserve a mother. Draw your bow." Rodney collects his emotions

"Thank you, Grate and Powerful Rodney." Corn set her hand on his nose then touches her muzzle to his.

Much of the inside of Elec seems to be coated in smooth steel; strange inscriptions adorn the walls and phrases mostly worn written in Huma mark the passages. Corn tries reading some of it but has little luck understanding the meanings "Hi, Volt." She points out one passage "In, Fire, Star." She points to another as they find a vertical shaft leading down the caverns. "In, Ploy, Own, Lee, Main, Ice." She points at the next phrase she can see.

"when we get back to Graywall Keep, you and I should go to the school; I'll help you study, become a real Weaver." Rodney encourages Corn.

Corn points at one last sign "three triangles. That is the symbol of the healing stone." Corn moves to the door.

Rodney sniffs about then call "Stop! Red powder."

Ownlog looks to him as does Corn "Red Powder?"

"Corn, shoot your bow at that door. "Rodney orders, Corn nods walking backward, she lifts her bow and fires an arrow. The arrow burst into flames and fire spills from the door momentarily after being struck. Corn hides under her cape and Rodney pulls his arms over his face "my sister and I use red powder in a number of our spells, a small amount of it flashes if struck, a lot of it, on the other hand, makes that happen."

Once the smoke clears the room starts to fill with eyeless winged Kobolts. Ownlog barks and runs at them she, slashes and stabs her way into the fray. The monsters scattered dazed and confused that the blast didn't kill and cook their food all at once. With the loss of only a hand full of allies, one monster finds a stone in his pocket that flashes with a blinding white light. The lot flee from the Darkling knight.

Ownlog slashes and claws fiercely at the air for some time still looking for the monsters.

Corn knees on one of the fallen monsters looking at it. She looks back to the others "this isn't a ghost."

Rodney joins her "well it is no kobolt."

"I think this used to be an Unpine." Corn strip the monster looking it over more closely: long ears that it can flatten along its back, a fuzzy prehensile tail, a pouch on its belly, and mostly flat teeth.

Ownlog ask "Unpine"

"Tree kobolts, they were like us years and years ago. They left to upper-world some hundred generations ago. They grow wings and carry their young in these pouches on their stomachs. The only thing wrong is the eyes. The eyes are big and round, on the sides of the head, they only eat tree nut. they are like fruit bats."

Rodney looks to her "I think these have a different delicacy in mind."

Corn nods "we are lucky to have Ownlog here, or that might have gone... most, unfortunately."

The team walks into the collapsed room on past the door. There they find a thin platform leading to a large and hallow room with pillars seemingly a hundred feet tall made of steel and water growing from the floor. Ownlog looks at Rodney after removing her mask understanding they are far enough underground that she can see again "this place was built by the Huma, what was it for do you think?"

Rodney shrugs, "some holy place I think, why else have all the divine writing." He then turns to Corn "Where would the healing stone be?"

Corn looks over the side of the walkway down into the pits of the room. "Down there I think."

The track down is slow and laborious, without the help of one another the climb might be impossible, rusted wall, crumbling floor, and an unexplainable burst of fire and water slow their advance to a crawl in some places to say nothing of the threat the returning Unpine provide.

In the deepest depths, Ownlog growls to let the party know she can see movement in the darkness. Now kobolts are creatures of the night to be sure, their eyes well adapted to low light, but here the dark is well below low to the point of near absences, Ownlog, on the other hand, can see clearer here than in full light, this is what she was bred for.

Ownlog waves Corn and Rodney to stop as she lies on her belly like a lizard and crawls along the ground, she crawls on one wall from there and hangs off of it hidden from view.

Ownlog crawls in ever-so-slightly closer fallowing the shadows in the deep.

A raspy voice can be heard speaking "...the three of you have been taken by the fever! You are no longer like us, and by the law of 'Maleficarum,' you are to be sent into the deep with all those who have had the fever before you. May you find peace there amongst the bones. Your name and estate will be given to your next of blood. Artemis takes pity on your soul." Three Unpine in chains are being led by four away from a mess of caves. The ones with chains have fur of mono-color those without have spots on their face and wings.

Two walk calmly but one cries out in plea "I cannot be sent out with the ferals! I am heavy with young!"

The preacher consoles the frantic one "you have lost your spots, in but a short time you will lose your speech, and the hunger will come. If you stay here, you may bring harm to your lover or another. You must leave today."

A second escort grips her by one arm whispering softly with her "Father is right my sister. All that can be done now is for you to take a walk and pray for Artemis to protect your children." He pats the long pole on his hip with a sharp spearing point on one end and a hefty cudgel on the other "or we bless you now."

"Please Brother; let me see Malic, let me birth my litter in the city at the very least."

The preacher steps between them "if you had told someone when you lost your spots that might have been a possibility. But you lied and hide. Not I; or your Brother, or even Bishop Malic can do anything to help you now."

Boiling with rage Ownlog hisses, she leaps from her hiding place and sinks her fangs into the preacher. He falls to the ground without making a sound as his windpipe is crushed on contact, the two silently waiting prisoners run off panicked, the pregnant women falls into a sitting position terrified. the other guards jump away reaching for weapons unclear as to what is attacking them.

Ownlog stands with a roar once the preacher has bled out, she takes her swords in her hands tightly and throws back her blood-soaked hair she steps into the guard nearest to her gripping his hammer with her blades and twist it from his grip then runs one edge across his stomach spilling its contents. The second catches both swords to his brachial plexus tie-ins forcing him to open his hands and fall to his knees, Ownlog then jabs the butt of her swords into his clavicle crippling him.

The one called Brother is armed and ready for Ownlog, Ownlog holds her blades to her sides snarling, fangs bared. Brother steps in for a counter-offensive thrusting the spearhead of his weapon. Ownlog thrust both arms in to catch the spear one land near the tip the other at the butt of the spear, she twists her hips after pinning the weapon splintering it in her grip.

Brother steps in again calling onto the heavens "Hail Artemis!" he throws a hook punch at Ownlog who meets his attack with an elbow guard shattering his hand on her elbow. Ownlog then reverses the attack throwing a secondary elbow crushing Brother's elbow in return, finishing with a wing like downwards ark Ownlog stabs him twice in the shoulders toppling him in one swift string of strikes.

Ownlog looks to the expecting mother crawling away from her, Ownlog commands her "Run home. Hide your babies from these monsters."

The young women scattered to her feet and ran back to the town screaming. Ownlog stomps on the arm of one of the dead and carves it asunder; she brings it up to her lips rending the flesh from bone.

Rodney and Corn come running hearing the commotion, Rodney calls ahead "what on earth is going on?"

Ownlog explains to him "the Unpine out there are feral these one are healthy, Some fever. A man, Bishop Malic, is in charge. He punishes the sick by sending them out there; they are Artemis worshipers."

Rodney looks at the arm hanging form Ownlog's mouth "what are you eating?"

"Meat." She starts to walk into town "we will ask the Bishop why he doesn't use this healing stone on his subjects."

"Please stop eating people. It is unnerving." Rodney chases after her.

***

The sister Ownlog had spared tells everyone in her path a demon is coming to punish them for their sins the pious denizens of Elec are quick to look for the beast. shrine-keepers, faith menders, and hunters take to the streets in force to face the holy messenger. Even the bishop's ear is bent and curiosity peeked, never have the holy ones sent an envoy to this corner of nowhere.

The three travelers are tracked down quickly and put at spear-point. Ownlog grins hungrily for battle. Rodney holds her back as the army of Unpine gathers. Corn glances from side to side whispering to herself more so than anything "these ones, they still have eyes."

The Bishop finds them and the crowd parts for him, the women called Sister at his side. Malic is a Goliath next to his subjects standing 10% above everyone, his whiskers swing around his waist and his eyebrows have grown long and thick partly hiding his eyes, he covers himself in several folds of dark fabrics covering his frail body.

Malic reminds Ownlog of her owner and she jabs one arm backward pushing Rodney away she steps in to attack Malic but is blocked by a wall of spears. Corn grads Rodney frantically asking "what should we do?"

Rodney holds his hands up to his chest "we give up."

Malic looks the team over "these are not divine messengers. These are pilgrims. Bring them to the temple. Bring rice water, chocolate, and young women to entertain our guests. We are overdue for some clean blood around here. As for the darkling fit her with some armlets and a caller let's keep her teeth in her mouth. I'm in no mood to have my neck ripped out today." Malic points back the way he came as he gives directions.

***

The three of them are stripped of their traveling garbs and given red and black tunics then offered gifts of silver rings to wear on their wrist and tails. Their hair is dipped in oil to clean it, and soothing ointment is rubbed onto their sores to dress and treat them before they are brought to the Bishops dining table. Rodney whispers with Corn "Ownlog killed and devoured at least four Unpine on our way here, and we are still being treated like nobles?"

Once at the table Malic looks them up and down his eyes lock on Corn briefly "I'm sorry I couldn't tell you where a lady when we were outside. Could I fetch you a lad to serve you?"

Not understanding the words used Corn looks to Rodney for advice. Rodney looks back to Malic "maybe later in the evening. First, I think we should cool our heels, drink some water and taste the local flavors you have presented us with."

"Bishop, what has happened to this town since our fathers left?" Corn cuts in.

"Not one for pleasantries I see." Malic adds in

"That's not what I meant. This place is nicer then I was led to believe, but with all this talk of illness it is worse than I would have hoped." Corn explains no small amount of fear in her voice.

"When your tribe left, tales of ghost and demons littering these halls spread far and wide. A secular division of my people came here looking to reclaim this place from the monster only to find none. Quickly we claimed this place as our new home and in no time, we started to grow. The magic that you once told of still in the air let us age slowly and have more children per litter than in years passed. For a dozen generations all was finer then we had dreamed It could be. But in the last years, our numbers have halved. We started growing old and ill. Not a one of my children lived to see a single gray hair on their head. Then youthful mating pairs started losing their fur, and their eyes fell from their skulls. After that sick children, it is claimed, began eating the well to heal their ailment. Now we are building these walls to lock us in and everyone else out. No pilgrims travel the old roads anymore." Malic tells the tale of Elec as it is today.

"The magic turned on you just as it had our father. That is terrible." Corn expresses.

"Some of my brothers think it is because our blood is growing stale, there are too few families of pilgrims immigrating here to satisfy the gods that protect us." Malic goes on

"Do you keep genealogy charts? Do you know who's whose father? If there where per say only twelve men fathering a hundred children every generation that would invoke genetic sterilization and your resistance to infection would deplete, somewhat." Rodney explains.

"Where are you from where a man would dare ask a woman who she has bread with?" Malic looks repulsed.

Rodney lowers his head with a light smirk "much farther away then you have traveled I would wager."

"Let us not talk of such unpleasant things at such a joyful time" Malic claps his hands and a team of minstrels' trot into the room followed by a group of dancers, "I notice that you let your heifer walk around with a blade, and frankly better dressed than your partner."

Rodney holds his hands out in protest as Ownlog slaps her hands down on the table angrily "Corn and I aren't partners, we are friends, and Ownlog isn't our slave."

Malic ducks his head in shame "I'm sorry then, we are quite close to a Darkling kingdom, and it is common knowledge that girls of Ownlog's age are used as…"

Rodney stops him as Ownlog threating jumps to her feet "I know. But Ownlog is free."

Corn jumps into the conversation hoping to dispel the mounting tempers "Bishop, it is my understanding that you have a magic healing stone left by the Huma here, do you not?"

Malic nods "in the reflecting pool down yonder. Not but a short sprint from here."

"can you not use it to heal your families ailments?" Corn asks

"to drink the lime water in which it sits should have cured the ill by itself. None have ever claimed otherwise. It is as you are told, the magic is gone, At least for us." Malic melts into his chair folding his hands over his chest.

"then may I have it?" Corn asks

"when the Huma would move the healing stones they used a number of sanctified chest to hide it, I happen to have one. Let us say I trade it to you for…" he freezes a time looking them up and down. A dancer sits alongside Rodney and rubs one hand down his back then playful grabs his tail, Rodney jumps up to his feet with a surprised squeal. Malic smiles "For Rodney."

Corn looks upset looking first to Rodney then to Malic as if pondering the possibility then she shakes her head. Rodney looks to the Unpine that is holding his tail; the girl takes his tail in her mouth playfully biting it. "…and why do we need the sanctified chest?"

"the healing stone is blanketed in fire that you cannot see or feel, it cannot be doused by water or sand, but to set a bare hand on it will burn the skin from your bone, even if you can't see it."

"I can't pay that price."

"Then you." Malic waves at Corn "A boy would be more valuable but a girl..."

"no!" Corn shouts

"what else do you have to trade?" Malic holds out his arms awaiting an offer.

"what about a bit of Magesight ripped from the body of a living dragon?"

"you have a dragon calling stone?" Malic looks interested

"I do," Corn stands up, she takes the tooth of the great wolf she had fought from around her neck and speaks to it. "I need you." She whispers to the tooth.

A giant wolf carved of stone covered in flowers and moss fades into the room. Malic falls from his chair looking up at the beast that could likely swallow him whole.

"Gentle Mother Corn, master of the red flower, you have called, and I have come, what is your wish?"

"this place was once protected by the ancient power but now it is gone. can you heal this place?" Corn asks.

"This place was not protected by the ancient power, it was cursed by Huma magic, I can give you the real ancient power." The wolf explains.

Malic regains his footing, "that is… something. Great hound what form will the ancient power take?"

"if it is the will of the Mother Corn I will give you my shed skins, you will paper the walls of a single room with it and that which you place in that room I will protect with my shadow. Any who disturbed that place without whispering the Kari prayer I will steal the shadow of, and they will be marked as a sinner to be shamed freely, and their face they will never see in glass again."

Malic folds his hands "and how long will this magic last?"

"I am ten thousand years old and I expect to live another hundred thousand. Should you offer me a fruitful madden as a sacrifice perhaps I can make the deal even sweeter."

Corn stops him "I don't want to hear about any sacrifices. No one needs to die like that."

The wolf smirks and its eyes burn "if you only understood the word sacrifice the way I do you might feel differently. Skin is not the only part of yourself you can sell to a petty god. Nor is it the only part we are interested in."

Corn looks to the Bishop "even without the sacrifice I am still offering you nearly endless protection from him" she points at the wolf "for a fading magic stone. Do you except? Magic for magic."

Malic rolls his finger together thinking "that might be worth more than what I first ask for."

Corn nods "then fetch me the stone and we will be on our way." Snobbishly Corn huffs.

***

Warwing roost atop the spire awaiting the return of her company, as she is sitting, she dreams of her home and family. In her youth Warwing lived in an honorable household, her uncle was a respectful member of the Winterskiss republic. The republic was slow to act but never did they let a family go hungry. Things changed after a mighty storm sent half the city tumbling into the ocean.

Many families and many tribes fled after that. Then Warwing, who was then called Elizibata, and her twin brother, then called Caligulis now more often called Caligula, watched as the republic came to an end. Angry people commanded that Winterskiss be restored to glory, but that could not be done. What was claimed by the sea can never be restored.

But the worst of it was yet to come, the totem animal of Winterskiss disappeared, the mighty Three-Horned Ox, it was the holiest of the beast. From the three-horned ox came much of their years bounty, and with its loss, many of the families left, an army of fifty-five thousand wings dwindled down to less than six hundred. Warwing's uncle Septemberus lost an arm in a barroom fight at the same party she conceived her eggs.

A bloody conflict broke out between the reaming tribes. Winterskiss stares down its last days, the loss of their totem promising to end their culture outright. Caligulis offers a solution to Septemberus, exploit his executive power, with the republic failing, sign over all power to a single family, charge protecting the union to them. There is nothing left to lose.

It is a bold idea, not since the declaration of their nation has one family had so much responsibility. Septemberus is crowned the keeper of the republic; he appoints each of the remaining families a new name and title. Feeling the change in the wind Septemberus' recent compatriot protest the move by cutting off their wings and throwing themselves from the parapet of the grand cathedral.

Drowning in sorrow for what has happened Septemberus fills himself with apple vinegar until falling into an unwaking sleep. Caligula takes the crown from his uncle naming himself the first pharaoh of Winterskiss; he names Elizabata as his queen then builds a monument to his Uncle calling him their new god. Every family thereafter is charged with stripping the countryside for food.

Bring back all you can carry, and if you cannot find "one's fair share" Caligula would have one punished. The first offense he rips off one's tail, and should one fail again before their tail has regrown next they lose a wing, and that will not grow back. Should you be incompetent enough to upset the pharaoh three times, they are put in the ground with the old republic, ritualistically thrown from the parapets.

This leads to unrest even the pharaohs most trusted friends start whispering about changing management. But there is a dived in spite of his cruelty some praise Caligula for doing what the republic failed to. Food is in abundances once more. Caligula grows ever more selfish and starts courting women that are not his and killing men that challenge his entitlement.

Warwing can do little but watch as her twin grows ever more demonic. Elizabata conspires with those that dream of bringing back the republic. Caligula sees her treachery but cannot bring himself to disfigure her as he has so many others and sends her out as a hunter instead.

Elizabata thought to herself at that point. If the mighty Weaver that had brought her back from the dead as a child were still around she could fend off the monsters in her twin brothers heart making him kind and loving again. Yes, that is what Warwing thought when she saw Mother Corn. Maybe Corn can do for Caligula what Jessica had done for her.

***

Corn calls up through the hole in the mountain to Warwing as the sun sets "Warwing, we have the magic stone. Bring us back to Graywall Keep."

Warwing sticks her head in the hole helping the lot of them out. She places the three on her back and jumps into the air. "Have no fear; you will be home before sunrise. So did you dispel the ghost?"

Corn shakes her head "No, no ghost, only Unpine."

"I was expecting something bigger." Warwing floats above the clouds