The Gathering (80 page)

Rona laughed and playfully clapped her hands together.
 
Blaylock lifted his hand and motioned to the end of the hall.
 
On the other side of the room, flush against the long table, white drapes hung over a large object.
 
Coeli could see that there were brown and red stains on them.
 
She furrowed her brow and started to move forward, but the Horde guard held her back.
 
Blaylock smiled and waved his hand.
 
The guard released her and Blaylock gently took Coeli's arm, moving her along the side of the table, followed by Brollen and Rona.

"Any idea what it is?"

Coeli kept her face rigid, as she was terrified to see what was behind the stained cloth.
 
Blaylock continued to smile and placed his thumb and index finger on his chin.
 
He began to slow their footsteps, heavy and deliberate.

"I wonder…"

When they had reached the end of the table, Blaylock again raised his arm and then dropped it like someone starting a drag race and when he did, the drapes fell away.

"Voila!!
 
I love it!!!"

The room erupted in applause and cheering.
 
For behind the curtains there were three crosses and hung upon the crosses were Tanner, Sam and Alia.
 

Coeli stood staring, her heart beating wildly in her chest; she began to feel dizzy.
 
She felt herself straining against Blaylock’s hold.
 
They had been savagely beaten.
 
Coeli felt the tears as they rolled down her face.
 
Rona squealed in delight to see her former matriarch hanging and bleeding.

"Fantastic!!
 
You're an artist, Tommy!!"

"I am, aren't I?"

Blaylock raised his eyebrows and smiled at his masterpiece, while Brollen sneered and folded his arms.

Alia was barely conscious as she hung limply from the middle cross.
 
The black and purple bruises on her face were starting to yellow and there were tracks of dried and coagulated blood that appeared on her body and face as crimson flowed slowly from her forehead.
 
The amulet, black like charcoal, still hung around her neck, pressed into her charred flesh.
 

Sam was unconscious, hanging forward.
 
His face was swollen and purple and there were small cuts on his cheeks and lips.
 
His long ginger hair was matted with blood and falling in his face.
 
Tanner was awake, but could barely see.
 
His face was bruised and swollen.
 
His eyes were like tiny slits in a grayish blue balloon, but he could hear everything.
 
He struggled to free himself but it was in vain.
 
Ropes had been tied around their wrists and Coeli could see where they had begun to dig into their skin, much like the spikes in their hands.

Blaylock was now laughing and dragged Coeli over to see his prisoners, but more importantly he wanted his prisoners to see her.
 
He wanted Alia Stark to see his power firsthand.

"Beautiful, isn't it?”

He turned and nodded at the crowd, who cheered on cue.
 
He laughed again and turned back around.

"Too bad all this artistry is wasted on trash like these three, huh?"

Coeli struck at him with her free hand.
 
He blocked it easily and grabbed her around the throat, pulling her next to his face.
 
His breath was hot against her face as she struggled under his chokehold.

"You'll be fun, won't you?
 
I knew it the minute I saw you."

Coeli continued to struggle and Blaylock looked at her with a cocked head and then he looked at Alia who had regained consciousness.
 
The fury began to build inside her as she saw Blaylock touching her daughter.

"Hello, Mommy!
 
You're awake?
 
How are we feeling?"

Alia stared at him, her breathing strong and precise.

"Well, since you're awake now, we wanted to show you something… wait, the boyfriend's still out.
 
Wake him up!"

One of the Hordesmen walked over with a bucket of water and threw it in Sam's face.
 
He sputtered and groaned, coughing up pink water, the matted, blood-soaked hair clung to his face.
 
He looked up and saw Coeli.
 
Blaylock held her by her throat, laughing.
 
Sam shook the hair out of his face and looked at them.
 
He fought past the metallic taste of blood on his tongue and the fire in his muscles and he forgot his pain.
 
The only thing he felt now was rage.

"Let her go!"

The room once again erupted in laughter and cheers as Blaylock pushed Coeli to Brollen.
 
He jumped up on the table and stood directly in front of Sam.

"She is a sweet piece of meat, isn't she?"

Sam spit in Blaylock's face.
 
Blaylock smiled and wiped it off, tossing it to the floor.
 
As he flicked the last remnants from his fingers, he clenched his hand into a fist and hit Sam full force in the stomach.
 
Tears ran down Sam's face, but he made no sound.
 

"Tough guy."

Blaylock smiled and grabbed Sam by his hair and held his head still as he whispered in his ear.

"When we're done with her, she won't remember your name, Kid."

Blaylock slammed Sam's head back against the wood, the pain shot through his skull like knives.
 
Sam lifted his throbbing head and looked at Coeli.
 
It wasn't
her own
fear he saw, but the pain that was being inflicted on them, the ones she loved.
 
Brollen, who held a steady hand in Coeli's hair, licked the side of her face as Blaylock laughed and turned to Rona, motioning for her to take a turn.
 

Rona jumped onto the table and marched over to Alia.
 
She stood before Alia coyly and then punched her in the face.
 
Alia's head recoiled as blood slowly trickled from her nose as she returned Rona’s gaze.
 
Rona snarled at her.

“You have no idea how much I hate you.”

Alia continued to stare at Rona.

"Ask me if I care."

Rona's grin faltered, then her eyes narrowed.

“So, did Alisha burn up nice and good on that hill?
 
How about Chris?
 
I would imagine it was quite a fire out there.
 
What about Merganser?
 
Tommy laid him out good, didn't he?
 
Too bad we couldn't get some hardware into Sean, but then that's something to look forward to, huh?”

Alia’s blood raged, but she remained still as Rona continued.

“Serious stuff that poison, old magic.
 
You know I thought they were better fighters than that, turning their backs on me… that was pretty fucking stupid.
 
But then you're pretty fucking stupid aren't you?
 
You ate it all up, hook, line and sinker.
 
I was never married, I wasn't alone, and I was a plant.
 
The Master sent me to destroy you, Stupid Cow."

Tanner pulled against his ropes.

"Shut your mouth, Bitch!!"

Rona laughed and backhanded him as Blaylock and Brollen chuckled.
 
Coeli stared at Rona, her mouth open.

"You killed my sister?
 
You killed Alisha?
 
You killed my brother…Chris?"

Rona continued to grin as she looked at Coeli.

"Oh, yeah, you were outside the walls when that went down, weren't you?
 
Yeah, I killed Alisha.
 
Chris, I can only assume, but probably yeah."

Coeli began to sob as she looked at her mother.
 
Unable to suppress her sorrow anymore, hot tears slid down Alia's cheeks.
 
The tears rolled down her neck and landed on the amulet.
 
It sizzled and the salty tears continued to flow over the ashy metal as tiny wisps of white smoke rose upward.
 
Unnoticed by any of them, a tiny glimmer of silver appeared on the black metal.
 
Tanner continued to struggle against the ropes, but slowed as his crying took over.

“You're all so pathetic!!
 
The whole thing went according to plan… like clockwork.
 
Albion played into the Master's plan like a puppy… the priest… your children," Rona yelled.

Rona leaned into Alia, placing her hands on either side of her head.
 
They were nose-to-nose and Alia slowed her breathing.
 
She could smell Rona, her sweat and spicy perfume.
 
Rona smiled and looked at Alia, her voice not rising above whisper.

"Everything she wanted to give to you, it now belongs to him.
 
In a few hours it'll be the Mourning Moon and you'll be done.
 
I cannot fucking wait!"

Rona's eyes gleamed with an evil light that made Alia's blood rage, but she still remained unmoving.
 
Rona pushed herself back and turned to walk off the table as Blaylock laughed.
 
Rona stepped down to the floor next to where Brollen was holding Coeli by the hair.
 
Rona smoothed out her dress and smiled sweetly at Coeli, whose breathing intensified.
 
She stood staring at Rona, unmoving.
 
Then Rona lifted her head and blew Coeli a kiss.
 
Coeli, despite having her hair held by Brollen, pulled back her arm and punched Rona full force in the face.
 
Coeli's fist connected with Rona's nose as tissue and sinew snapped under the force.
 
Blood poured out of Rona's nose as she fell back against the table.
 

"Ugh, Bitch!"

Rona got up and went to hit Coeli, but Blaylock grabbed her hand mid-air.

"Sorry, Rona."

"She broke my nose, Tommy!!"

Blaylock nodded and smiled.

"Yeah, it looks like she did.
 
I didn't expect that."

Brollen shrugged as he smiled.

"It's a good look for you."

Rona sneered at Brollen

"Shut up, Gary!!"

Then she turned back to Blaylock and pointed to her face and dress.

"SHE BROKE MY NOSE!"

"So go fix it.
 
You're not touching her until I've broken her and that's gonna be a while, so go on, fuck off!!"

"UURRRGGHH!"

Rona stomped off towards the kitchen and as she did, Blaylock stepped on the bench and walked back towards the crosses.
 
He moved slowly and deliberately towards Alia's cross, then he leaned against the wood, his left arm supporting his head.

"You women are so volatile.
 
I think that's why I love you…and hate you… all so very much."

Then he pointed at Coeli.

"She's pretty this one, but then again you have more, don't you?
 
All young, all beautiful… well, all except for one."