Page 113 of Beneath the Veil of Tides
Just trying to keep us alive.
His words calmed me slightly, even more when Noctis’s hands gripped around the face of the commander of the group. Light filtered around his grasp, and the stern, furious commander shifted almost instantly. His face dropped in confusion, and then, he fell to his knees, arms outstretched and flapping like a—.
Seagull,Noctis answered mentally, a small lilt to his words.I’ve been saving souls for weeks.
Noctis swapped the commander's soul with the soul of a seagull.
The group the commander puppeteered snapped into confusion themselves. Raveeka followed in his wake as the soldiers under the commander regained their wits.
“Run,” she demanded quietly, and the soldiers obliged. Their feet dug into the sandy ground and desperately delivered them away from the onslaught.
The left flank of the Oceanwrought line struggled to maintain their stance, soldiers falling behind. Zahara and Calvin used the advantage to slip into the hoard, blades in hand and bound two children by their arms, scooping them out back to me.
The young children were ravenous, writhing against the rope binds that held them in one place. I took the blades from their tiny hands and bent down to talk to them while Calvin and Zahara continued safely retrieving children from battle.
“I know you’re in there, because she’s controlled me before, too,” I confided, but the children only snarled back. “We will save you and give your bodies back. Trust us. No one will ever hurt you again.”
Silver lined the eyes of the frail girl, but they continued fighting against the restraints. They tried so hard to be freed… to fight even when it was against their will. They couldn’t cut the tether the Ocean Mother held tight to.
Children were brought to me, and I told them all the same thing.
“No one will ever hurt you again.”
When the mass of children was confined in safety, they turned to pull in the women, elderly, and as many of the innocent lives that were forced to fight trapped within their own bodies that they could pull alive.
Many of the villagers swarmed between the sea of battle—some on the ground not breathing, their eyes staring off into nothingness. They worked to retrieve each villager, but the fight was brutal. Calvin and Zahara returned each time with more injuries, gashes and blood pouring around their bodies, running with limps. Raven swooped in many times to protect their backs,but even then, they couldn’t keep up with the slaughter that occurred in the open land.
Noctis, Jun, and Raveeka had nearly reached the next commander toward the mid-left flank when the battlefield darkened. In an instant, storm clouds blocked all light. A lightning strike slammed into the frontlines of the Oceanwrought Bound soldiers, sending many flying backwards and crashing into the ground dead from both sides.
I felt the moment Noctis flinched at the strike.
Are you okay?I asked, but he hesitated to respond.Are you okay, Noctis?
Yes. The weather feels… familiar.
How? Should we prepare for something else?
The Terraguard soldiers around Noctis and Raveeka stopped mid-battle as if their next steps were timed and practiced. And we were all about to witness a show. The ground beneath their feet ruptured, splitting into a fault where hordes of golden Oricaans crawled from the depths. I counted up to thirty creatures, like spiders stepping from the dark cracks in the ground.
Oceanwrought soldiers pummeled in the Oricaan’s wake. It was all going wrong. We were supposed to stop the commanders quickly enough and evacuate the Oceanwrought captives before their blood covered the ground. Now, their blood mixed with the heavy rain that began to fall from the clouds above. Then, we could face the Ocean Mother and see an end to all the pain.
Except it was all going to shit.
I continued working with Zahara and Calvin to pull the children around the hill before we continued with the women and elderly, ensuring the young kids couldn’t see the slaughter that happened below. The bonds dug into their skin as they fought against them like animals.
The land shook at each step the gilded beasts took. I couldn’t conceal the crunching noise of bone beneath the creature’s feet, nor could I block that sound for the children.
Noctis, Jun, and Raveeka continued to purge through the Oceanwrought forces, only inflicting harm to the ones that bore the depth’s crest in armor. They reached the second commander, muddling his mind as the god switched his soul with the next seagull he kept in his reserve.
The flank the general commanded fell into confusion, and under Raveeka’s order, fled from the battle.
“If we can get Raveeka up here,” Zahara breathed, barely able to speak, “we can have her order the children to sleep until it’s all over.”
I relayed the information to Noctis.
On our way.
Raveeka, Noctis, and Jun turned and made their way out of the clearing they’d created. They crashed behind the hill in exhaustion, pulling the helms from their heads.
