No matter which direction I looked, there was someone wounded, or those carrying someone who was. We trudged through the trees, retreating toward Torolf as fast as we could, what with so many unable to move on their own.
So many more beaten down and defeated by the frontline being overrun. By the innocents slaughtered at the fortress. Many got out, but only because those warriors left behind gave their lives so they could live. The army that had been growing strong enough to make a final push against Baladon was brought low. We hadn’t even reached the fortress, but found those who escaped running for their lives. Baladon had destroyed it, brought the mountain down on whoever remained inside.
Now we walked to the only place we could think of that might be safe—Mori’s home in the stone maze.
She tripped, and I steadied her, hating to see her eyes so lacking in light. The ritual and the fight had taken much from her. Her bandaged hands were wrapped around my arm, holding onto me as tightly as I held onto her.
“Almost there,” she whispered, more I thought to bolster herself than me.
“You’ll need to rest when we get there, recover your strength,” I insisted.
“Once we tend to all the wounded, I will. But my realm won’t keep him out,” she told me, glancing around worriedly. “He’ll come for us before long.”
“We’ll worry about that when he does.”
It was a small victory, but with the portal sealed for good, Baladon would be weakened. He might have hurt us, but we took out a decent chunk of his army. If nothing else, Baladon knew just how strong we were. And that we were not going down easily.
The forests near Torolf were full and green, filled with life. Mori led the way into the trees toward where the seam to her world resided. The opening lit up as she neared, and she lifted her hands, wincing as she tried to open it wider, until I gave her what strength I had. The seam opened into an arched doorway, and all those remaining walked through. Their eyes were unfocused and lifeless. What little hope we’d managed to stir was disappearing, and if we weren’t careful, we’d lose it all together.
The six of us were the last through the entrance, then Mori shut the seam behind her.
“We’ll need to place guards right outside the entrance, as well as just within. To give us some warning at least,” she said quietly.
“I’ll find some volunteers,” Craig said, as he and Kate walked deeper into the maze.
Mori had lit the path leading to the temple for the others. There were many wounded to tend to, and we made that our first priority. A group walked back toward the entrance to keep an eye out and soon Mori’s temple—which had completely rebuilt itself since our last trip here—was filled from one end to the other. Several fires were started, and the people flowed out of the temple into the maze, taking up residence where they could.
The hours rushed by in a blur. I longed to sit down and close my eyes, but there were too many needing aid. Or a comforting hand to hold as they came to grips with the atrocities they’d witnessed. Bear and Danielle, countless others had been lost in this last battle, and everyone felt the loss deeply. I saw Sabella crying at one point as Tristan hugged her, neither saying a word. I was weary of trying to think of ways to cheer up those around me. Of ways to remind them there was still hope.
But really, what hope was there? The abyss was closed, but how many had we lost in the process? The war had to end… it had to end, before there was no one left to fight for.
A warm breeze blew across my neck, and I turned in time to see Mori motioning to me from the maze’s entrance. I got up and followed her through the maze, knowing where we headed after a few turns. She led us off the main path toward the waterfall and the healing waters that flowed from it. Once we were alone, she sank to the grass and stared blankly ahead.
“Mori, what happened out there, at the portal?”
“I closed it,” she replied emotionless.
“No, there was more happening, I saw your face. You were so frightened, but your eyes were pure white. Were you seeing something?”
Her hands dug into the grass at her sides as a single tear slipped down her cheek. “I saw everyone dead. Every last person dead and the realms burning. There was nothing left and you… you blamed me.”
“It wasn’t real.”
“I know, it was the darkness from the abyss, but those images don’t just go away easily, you know? I keep seeing your dead body when I close my eyes now. It’s too much. When does it end? When? I don’t think I can keep doing this.”
Her face fell into her hands, and her shoulders shook as she broke down. I scooted closer and drew her close, holding and soothing her the best I could. The sound of the waterfall called to me and an idea formed in my mind. Nothing could make what happened magically go away, but those were healing waters, and Mori right then needed her strength back. I picked her up, somehow managing to get to my feet and as she asked what I was doing, I grinned and jumped into the water with her in my arms.
She sputtered and laughed as we bobbed in the water, splashing each other. Before long, her light became pure again, and my aches and pains eased as the water washed over me.
“We need to bring everyone else here,” she decided. “If nothing else, it’ll heal their wounds faster.”
“Once you’re healed, we will,” I promised, slicing through the water to reach her.
We enjoyed the serenity for a few more minutes, then both of us stepped out, our clothes soaked, but feeling like we might survive another night. I caught her hand when we reached the stone archway and kissed her, not sure when we’d get another moment alone. Hand in hand, we walked back to the temple and in small groups, brought everyone to the stream to wash and heal. A few appeared skeptical, but once the water washed over them, their faces relaxed, and they left the stream with new light in their eyes.
The last four to enter were Tristan and Sabella, and Craig and Kate.
“This was here the first time?” Tristan looked around.
“It was dried out thanks to Baladon, but this is what the maze always looked like, prior to his arrival,” Mori explained. “Get in, the water is always perfect.”
One by one they did, and Mori and I joined them. We stayed in there for a long while, talking about anything but Baladon and the war, pretending that we were just normal newlyweds and not the six destined to take on a god hellbent on destroying the world.