Chapter 18
Shadows Fade again reflected on how odd white folk could be as she and Eleanor Naismith walked through the white band; a sensible band would have moved on to somewhere less dangerous, somewhere they wouldn’t face constant assault. But not the white folk. They were a people of permanence who develop strong, unnatural attachments to particular plots of land… so much so that their individual squares become more important than the infinite world beyond them.
Shadows Fade understood fighting to protect what was yours, but not claiming such small parts of the world and being willing to die for them.
Nor could she understand why the white folk would’ve treated Godly Claw with terror had she been present, for that matter. Their connection remained so she could feel the wolf stalking the outskirts of the band, laying low and gathering information, but the warrior keenly felt her companion’s absence; Godly Claw was a part of her. Her hand or her eye would have been missed just as much.
“What a poor place this is,” Eleanor Naismith whispered under her breath, interrupting Shadows Fade’s thoughts.
She cast a glance across at Eleanor Naismith. This was a girl she could not trust. It wasn’t so much that she knew Shadows Fade’s language, or that she acted so superior without having tasted real combat, but the way she acted around the Wanting Man that gave the warrior pause; as though she had plans for him beyond what Resistance wanted. And her attitude in general was rotten.
“All permanent dwellings are poor,” Shadows Fade replied.
The white girl sniffed. “Crucifix doesn’t make a convincing argument against that. This place… it is less than a real town.”
Shadows Fade couldn’t disagree; even her band were more numerous, had more connections with the world and better living conditions and they suffered from the white folk’s oppression. But this band had been standing firm, albeit stupidly, before a host of dark spirits so it was only natural they would be in such a dire condition.
Realization struck her like a blow; this was what her people feared they would become if they joined her hunts. Because they did not fight, did not see that the dark spirits could be banished, they thought action might incite a never-ending war that would reduce them to nothingness and squalor. The Elders, wearied by decades of facing the dark spirits, were fearful of becoming like this band.
What surprised Shadows Fade most was that the squalor and fear in the eyes of those white folk who dared scuttle out in the open made her understand her Elders’ fears.
“We should concentrate on gathering information,” the warrior said. She doubted the white girl knew enough of her people’s language to tell how shaken she was by feeling empathy for the cowards in her band.
Eleanor Naismith shrugged. “That makes sense. The quicker we kill these things, the quicker we can get out of here.”
Shadows Fade examined the white girl’s face to see if she truly meant that. She did. The warrior turned away, her face smeared with disgust; it wasn’t the sooner they could protect these people or the more likely they would be to save her friend but the quicker she could get away from a situation she deemed below her. It took a special kind of person to face dark spirits and still hold such disdain for normal people.
She held her views as she and Eleanor Naismith walked amongst the white band’s alien and permanent structures, all immovable clay, wood and glass. Even with holes riddling their hides, the buildings were frightful and encompassing. Though their customs and way of thinking perplexed her, it was that the white folk choose to live in such horrid places and lock themselves away from the world that she could truly not understand.
And because she couldn’t understand them, she couldn’t trust them. Not one of them. Of course, the Wanting Man was a different matter…
The warrior felt Godly Claw begin stalking round the band to provide a full picture of its weaknesses, and so concentrated on examining the buildings for anything which might help her protect them. After all, that was the reason she’d given Eleanor Naismith for them to take this walk.
The band were quiet as nervous prey as they went down every street, examined all sides of each structure. Desperation tinted the air like perfume, so strong it left its sour tang on her teeth.
Seeing the damage done to the band’s buildings taught her little though; there were no consistent patterns or markings, no one direction the attackers always came from and no clue as to what manner of dark spirits they were. All she learned was that the monstrosities had frequently grown bored and visited idle destruction on the white band’s homes.
Still, Shadows Fade judged that attacks were most likely to come from the north, where tall, looming hills provided good vantage points over the band for bows or guns and enough cover that a hundred careful warriors could approach without being seen or heard. She would ask Eleanor Naismith to convey this to the Wanting Man later.
“Well, this achieved nothing,” the white girl said when they had completed a full patrol of the band. She turned to the chapel and began heading back.“A complete waste of time, I feel.”
Shadows Fade might have agreed if information was why she’d invited her to survey the band; taking Eleanor Naismith away from the Wanting Man and the Father was, as her absence could only simplify whatever matter they had to discuss.
Thinking of the Father, she too turned to his chapel and the odd sight of her people’s sigils standing alongside those of the white folk. She looked forward to examining those walls in detail once they’d defeated the dark spirit host; that this band had survived for so long meant the Father’s wards had to be strong. Hopefully she could learn from his imaginative work, perhaps enough to add a new tattoo to her collection.
Shadows Fade realized Eleanor Naismith was now looking at her, as though expecting confirmation this was a waste of her precious time. “It is better that we find nothing than miss something,” she said.
The white girl rolled her eyes. “You’re probably right
Godly Claw then surprised the warrior by issuing a series of excited barks. These were not true sounds but inarticulate psychic bursts that existed only in her mind; the wolf had found something important, something that she must show Shadows Fade or tell her directly.
The barking ‘sounded’ like it came from the north. Godly Claw would await her there.
“I’m going to see Godly Claw,” she told Eleanor Naismith.
“What for?”
“She has found something. I wish to see what,” Shadows Fade said, making her tone obviously dismissive; she had had enough of the white girl, wanted to spend time with her Spirit Wolf.
Eleanor Naismith looked up at the dull sky, apparently measuring the time. Most of the day still remained. She loudly smacked her lips before saying “I suppose I’ll come with you. I’ll just required some water first.”
So the one time she denied herself something was when Shadows Fade wanted rid of her? How irksome. Still, it would be best for the Wanting Man if Eleanor Naismith did not return prematurely so the warrior would bear it.
“Godly Claw is this way,” she said, pointing away from the chapel. Bear it she might but she wasn’t going to wait for Eleanor Naismith to quench her thirst first. “There’s no sense doubling back on ourselves.”
The white girl looked at the chapel and then out to where Shadows Fade had pointed. “You’re right. The water can wait.”
“This way then.”
As they ventured to where Godly Claw would meet them, dark clouds spread their silent black wings overhead. A cool but foul wind played with Shadows Fade’s hair, teasing her with the promise of a storm. These were dark portents, ones the warrior would remember to brood upon later.
“What could it have found?” Eleanor Naismith asked.
“I’ll find out shortly,” Shadows Fade responded.
They found Godly Claw lying under the shade of a thin tree, her normal blue colouration dulled so she would blend in better. The tree’s trunk was black, desiccated and withered, and it emitted a rotten stink that easily masked Godly Claw’s musk; the land’s corruption had only killed the plant rather than corrupting it.
Godly Claw didn’t get up when they approached but she visibly reflected Shadows Fade’s annoyance; her blue predator’s eyes narrowed and her fur bristled.
“I hope it found something useful,” Eleanor Naismith said.
Shadows Fade didn’t reply but instead knelt beside her companion and rekindled the flame of their bond with a gentle stroke. Godly Claw smiled and pushed back against her hand, bringing them together as one again.
The information she’d gathered then roared into Shadows Fade’s mind; around the band, multiple dark circles had been carved into the earth with blunt blades, ritual sites with residual magical energy in their burnt offerings. That suggested the dark spirit host were not a standing army but one gathered from the spirit world every night. As such, they could attack the band from any direction, which explained why the attacks had seemingly come from all angles. There were more ritual sites to the north-west, though, which confirmed that was the most likely attacking point.
Puzzlingly, there were untainted human scents amongst the stench of magical corruption. Three, none of them her people, men. They usually stayed in a pack and could always be found in the densest stenches. But how could they possibly smell like normal people and still be involved in these rituals?
“There are men amongst the monstrosities,” Shadows Fade said. Her eyes were closed but she knew Eleanor Naismith would be waiting for an answer. And perhaps she wanted to share her shock. “Unsullied men.”
“Oh, is that all? How disappointing… The Father said something about harriers. That is probably who he meant.”
“You didn’t think to tell me this?”
“It didn’t seem important.”
Shadows Fade frowned; that was a blatant and poor quality lie. Why though? Maybe all highborn white folk were like this, capricious and odd, claiming sovereignty over facts and people as well as land. Shadows Fade had certainly not encountered someone like her before and she was glad of that.
Godly Claw growled, mimicking her annoyance once more. Though her eyes remained closed, Shadows Fade reached out with perfect awareness of where the wolf was and stroked her.
Then she concentrated on her new knowledge; she knew a lot more about the area now, enough that she and Godly Claw could operate alone as part of any plan the Wanting Man wanted to form. Useful as this information would be, it wasn’t enough to warrant Godly Claw calling her out here.
Shadows Fade shifted through the wolf’s memories like a hunter moving through tall grass until she found the reason why; Godly Claw had detected something strange and powerful stored in the chapel. Panic and animal fear tinted the memory, which helped it stand out but also obscured its meaning. It didn’t help that Spirit Animals were unable to process things the same way a human would and so the smell and taste this object left in the air had been unintelligible to Godly Claw.
After some close scrutiny, Shadows Fade realised the wolf had sensed Soul Waters, a great power taken directly from the core of a person’s being. Somehow the Soul Waters had a hint of That Which Sins in their aura, which was ludicrous enough that she double-checked this with Godly Claw. But the wolf confirmed that was true.
That explained why these Soul Waters held more power than any Shadows Fade had ever known… which in turn explained why dark spirits were closing in; they would be drawn to such power like flies to a corpse, unable to resist that much strength. The mystery lay in why the corrupted Soul Waters were in the hands of a holy man like the Father…
If she were with any other person, Shadows Fade would now be planning on seizing the Soul Waters. But the Wanting Man would be able to detect them as well as Godly Claw and so would act accordingly.
If not, Resistance would guide him.
“Anything else?” Eleanor Naismith asked. She idly smacked her lips again. Such an impatient girl.
Shadows Fade opened her eyes and stood. “Only the lay of the land,” she said. If Eleanor could hoard the truth then so could she. “But that is a lot and useful.”
If Eleanor Naismith noticed the deception, she didn’t show it. Instead, she looked around them, taking in the horizon. “Just think, they’re out there; the fiends of the Badlands. Waiting for us. Ready for us.”
Was that another white folk thing, stating the obvious? Or was Eleanor Naismith wanting to get something from Shadows Fade? She couldn’t tell. So she simply ignored the girl and looked down at Godly Claw.
“We must separate again, though not for long,” she thought to the wolf. “I believe that I shall come for you tonight and we will hunt.”
Godly Claw stood, loosened their bond like it were a shawl, then ran into the desert. Shadows Fade watched her go. It hurt to do so, a dull ache in her heart.
“Do you think you’ll fight alongside her tonight?” Eleanor Naismith asked. She stepped into Shadows Fade’s line of sight to steal her attention but she would get no such thing. Godly Claw had the warrior’s full concentration until she had disappeared behind an outcrop of rock and was definitely gone.
“Shadows Fade?” the girl prompted.
“I think so,” she said. Her eyes remained fixed on the outcrop. “You white folk tend to be uncomfortable in the presence of my people’s powers so this band probably won’t want me or Godly Claw near their chapel.”
Eleanor Naismith put a hand on her shoulder. Every instinct in Shadows Fade told her to stab at it. “It’s a real shame, the way those kinds of people treat you. There should be more tolerance in the world.”
“There should be more of many things,” Shadows Fade replied, astonished at the girl’s lack of self-awareness.
“True,” Eleanor Naismith said, nodding as though she’d heard ancient wisdom from a chieftain. “That is very true.” Then her tone and stance changed and she seemed bored. “Come on, let’s get back.”
Shadows Fade followed her. Tonight would be interesting, if only because she might learn more about Eleanor Naismith. Though she were looking forward to to roaming her lands once more, it might almost be a shame to miss seeing how the girl fought, how she reacted when faced with the dark spirits of the Three.
Almost a shame but not really. Helping this band was important but the warrior would rather do so whilst maintaining her own work. And launching surprise attacks on those helping the dark spirits or picking the creatures off before they got into town would achieve just that.
Shadows Fade and Eleanor Naismith walked back to the chapel. In the distance, Godly Claw howled her readiness.