An angel’s road to hell

43. Of baths, meals and a little bit of elves

Cassandra Pendragon

The bath was located a floor above the stone chamber. It was a medium sized, circular room, full of vapour and the scent of soap. Flame less lanterns provided light and four round washtubs filled the interior. A cleverly designed arrangement of pipes delivered warm water directly from the large furnaces below and a small stove in the corner kept the air warm. Wooden tiles covered the floor, the walls and the ceiling. They shimmered slightly, the coating that prevented them from rotting away in the moisture made their surface reflective.

The ship had three levels, the stone chamber and auxiliary machines took up most of the lowest level, the bath, storage and a smithy were located in the middle and the cabins, where I had woken up, as well as a common room were directly below the deck. Xorlosh had led us to the stairs I had seen before, pointing out the door to his cabin on the way so we would be able to find it later on, and down to the second level. The stairs led on but we had entered the second floor through another wooden double door. In contrast to the living quarters, the second level didn’t have a central walkway, instead a short corridor led to a circular room somewhere beneath the first mainmast. Three closed doors led to the bath, the storage and the smithy respectively. Xorlosh had shown us the entry to the bath and had promised that we’d find fresh garments as soon as we were finished. He had left us afterwards with Mordred, both had been intent on sampling the aforementioned mead while they waited. We had stripped down quickly, putting our torn clothes on one side and the possessions we wanted to keep on the other. It had been a depressingly small heap.

Now we were all soaking in separate tubs, slightly salted warm water and exquisite soap had done wonders for our mood. We hadn’t talked much until now, we had simply relished in the calm atmosphere and the relaxing water.

“So, Aspera and Astra, elves. How did they…” I hesitated to finish my sentence, but then again, we couldn’t avoid talking about our home forever. “…get here? What have I missed?” There wasn’t enough light to judge the expression on my mom’s and Ahri’s faces but it took them a while to answer. Surprisingly it was my mom who spoke up.

“When we… when we fought our way to Greta’s cavern and arrived in the garden, a group of elves suddenly joined us. We hadn’t noticed them before but from one moment to the next, 4 of them attacked the cursed and fought their way towards us. The other members of their tribe had been either lost to the curse or had been killed by the maddened kitsune and elves. Even though it was easier for the elves to resist, it hadn’t been tailored towards them after all, still most of them had succumbed. They joined forces with us and I must say, an enraged elf in battle is a sight to behold. With four more spell casters Ahri managed to channel enough energy into an illusion that covered most of the garden around Greta’s cave to imitate…well, you. A really scary version of you. But maybe she should tell that part of the story herself.”

“Right, umm, parts of what happened are a bit blurry, I wasn’t in my right mind, but as far as I know, you’re the only angel the emperor knows about and I wanted to keep it that way. So I used illusions to bring some of my memories from your past to life. I added your tails to images of Lucifer and had you assault the cavern. A little magic here and there to imitate the effects of your wings on the surroundings and some cursed that got in the way and it became a rather convincing act of heavenly retribution. The emperor thought so, too. It didn’t take long for him to initiate the second part, I didn’t even need to have you enter the cave. As soon as you came rushing down from the sky and incinerated 10 of the cursed with your wings instantly, courtesy to the combined energies of the elves and your family, he panicked. The practitioners among us felt it the very moment the curse started to change and we fled as fast as we could. When your image disappeared, the kitsune immediately came rushing from the cave but it was too late. The second stage was already sucking them dry and they collapsed before they took more than a few steps.” She sighed heavily and continued quietly.

“We weren’t fast enough, 2 of the elves and 23 dwarfs couldn’t make it to the ships in time and were incinerated when a wave of fire rolled out from beneath Boseiju. The rest of us managed to climb onboard one of the two vessels...” I thought I heard tears in her voice when she fell silent. My mom took over for her and narrated what had happened afterwards.

“Ahri fell unconscious the moment she gained the deck and the dwarfs took her down below. You dropped from the sky not 2 minutes later. When you broke down we sailed away from the still burning island as fast as the winds would carry us. I wasn’t in my right mind back then, to be honest I still don’t know if I am now, and Xorlosh made most of the decisions afterwards. We split up, the other ship is heading towards Arthur and his people while we are following the human scum who took the children with them. The dwarfs managed to somehow tag their vessel and we have been close behind them ever since. I…I wasn’t exactly receptive while you were unconscious so I don’t know where we are headed, I suppose that’s one of the things Xorlosh wants to talk about.” Her voice trailed off before but I heard the question in her inflection. They both wanted to know what had happened to me and Greta. I wasn’t keen on reliving those moments again, but at least now I wasn’t alone. Quietly I started to speak and told my story. The only part I left out was that I had intended to take the risk myself without Greta’s protection. I made it seem like she had decided to use my transcendent power during our mind link and had taken me by surprise.

Sometime while I was talking I had started to cry again but I pushed through, it felt good, liberating, to speak about it. Like the others were sharing in my burden and I didn’t have to carry it alone anymore. The memories still consumed me, but now I felt detached, like it had happened to someone else. They still were vivid enough that I didn’t hear Ahri and my mom move, but I surely felt it when they both hugged me. We all broke down then and there, even Ahri couldn’t keep up her facade, but the tears were cleansing. We experienced a form of catharsis that allowed us to start accepting what had happened. The grief, guilt, pain and anger were still there, but they didn’t feel all encompassing anymore.

When the dam had been broken, we also started talking about our fears, the guilt we all carried and about the dead. About my father, Adam, Eva, the friends we had lost and the ones we had never met. Between sobs we told stories and little anecdotes about the departed and wallowed in memories of our home. It wasn’t enough to eradicate the sense of loss but we felt more lighthearted afterwards.

The water had long been getting cold before we scrambled out of the bath. My mom opened the door and checked if someone was outside before she gestured for us to follow her. In the dim light I saw her skin had become all wrinkly but to my surprise, Ahri’s and my own were still perfectly smooth. New clothes had been laid out for us in the central room and we quickly shrugged into them. They were uniform sets of black trousers and dark blue shirts woven from a soft fabric I didn’t recognise. It felt smooth and cool on my skin but I was convinced it would keep me warm as well, as heavy as it felt around my shoulders. Sturdy boots completed the outfit.

“Wow, this feels amazing. I wonder what kind of cloth they used and where they got it from.” My mom was a lot more vocal about the garments than I was. “We should try to get our hands on some of it, we are utterly broke at the moment and I’m sure this would make for an excellent trade in the right circles.” Okay, maybe it wasn’t the garments. That wily woman was already planning on making money. If I hadn’t been stuck halfway into my shirt, I would have hugged her again.

“Which reminds me,” she continued, “we have to ask if the dwarfs have anything we could maybe buy for a loan. We will free the missing kids and then we’ll have quite a lot of mouths to feed. Somehow we have to gather the resources.”

“I wouldn’t worry too much about it,” Ahri interjected, “The other ship will soon meet Arthur and I’m convinced he won’t mind helping us out out one bit. I’m quite sure he’ll even invite us all to stay with him at his new place.”

“That would solve most of our immediate problems.” I said. “But we still have to free the children. Do you think the dwarfs are willing to help us again? After everything they have already done?”

My mom replied: “I’m sure of it. It was a matter of fact for Xorlosh to pursue the kidnappers. I bet they would even be insulted if we didn’t ask them to come along.”

“Well then, let’s meet our gracious host. Right now we are mostly speculating, since we are decently dressed again, why don’t we ask him directly?” Cheeks rosy from the bath and in a much improved mood we climbed the stairs back up and headed for the cabin Xorlosh had pointed out. My mom knocked politely and we entered after a deep “come in” had been heard from within.

The cabin was a little larger than the ones I had seen before. It filled the left side of the stern and had two windows opposite the door. A hammock was slung from two pillars on my left side, a large chest had been stowed under it. The wall to the right was covered with a wardrobe and an open shelf that contained countless maps. Some printed, some handwritten from what I could see. Under the shelf a familiar crossbow and armour leaned against the wall.

A huge oaken table filled the centre of the room, large enough to easily accommodate 8 chairs. Mordred and Xorlosh were sitting at the table, a large map served as a table cloth and I saw bread, ham, bacon, salt meat, tomatoes, pickled cucumbers and a vast array of cheese evenly distributed between them. Two large mugs with a honey coloured liquid were already half empty. Mordred was chewing and Xorlosh dragged deeply on a pipe he had just lit when we had entered. The fragrant tabac reminded me of burning vanilla and old leather.

Xorlosh sat at the head of the table, my brother to his left. On his right side, two tall and slim women occupied the seats closest to him. They both appeared to be in their early twenties but I knew the real age of elves wouldn’t show on their faces. One had raven black hair, similar to mine and deep amethyst eyes. Her long and pointed ears split her hair which flowed over her shoulders and nearly reached the ground. She wore a light robe of forest green that was cut on the side. Sturdy boots and black leggings peak out from under it. She wore a belt with a slim, white staff and a couple of small bags attached to it.

The other sported short, blonde hair and deep green eyes, not as entrancing as Ahri’s, I thought to myself. She had the same build as the black haired one, lithe and willowy, but she was dressed in silvery scale armour that clung to her figure and I saw a short dagger protruding from her belt. A long spear leaned beside her chair and a black cloak flowed down her back and covered part of her armour.

Minor gashes and tears marred most of their clothes and the armour had recently been polished and presumably repaired but they appeared collected and attentive. A friendly smiled formed on their faces when they saw us.

“Ah, ladies, take a seat. I can’t offer wine or complicatedly prepared food, but what you see before you is all yours. Gimme a moment and I’ll find some more mugs so we can dine properly.” Xorlosh had already gotten up while he spoke and shuffled over to the wardrobe while we took our seats. A moment later I heard a gurgling sound when he filled three more tankards from a small barrel he had hidden in the depth of his abode. He placed them before us, took his seat again, raised his own and said:

“To the ones we have lost, may they never be forgotten!”

“To the ones we have lost,” we echoed. For the next couple of seconds the silence was only interrupted by swallowing sounds. The elves had joined the toast with their melodic voices but they didn’t drink. The mead tasted good, though, slightly spicy but still sweet enough to slither down the throat smoothly. I wasn’t used to alcoholic beverages so I tried to take only small sips but I enjoyed it very much and before I knew it, half of it was gone. Warmth was spreading from my middle and I already felt slightly tipsy. Another thing I enjoyed very much.

“Ah, now, I’m not the biggest fan of diluting the joys of a good meal with heavy talk so let’s eat first before we decide how we’ll proceed. But that reminds me,” he turned to the elves, “you haven’t met Cassandra yet. A quick introduction, then. Aspera, Astra, meet Cassandra, Helena’s daughter and one of the few real angels if I got that right.” I curtsied in their direction. “Cassandra, meet Aspera”, he pointed at the blonde elf, “and Astra.” Both of them smiled at me sincerely but on closer inspection I saw the harsh lines of worry and grief around their mouths. “They are comrades in arms and have become good friends of mine. Let’s save the rest for later, tuck in and enjoy.” We were all famished and complied energetically. Like he had said, the food was simple but everything was fresh and of high quality. Especially the bread stuck out to me. The dough had been mixed with nuts and fruits and it went really well with some of the richer cheese. I even liked the salted meats, a dish I usually wasn’t too fond of, sliced thinly and mixed with pickled cucumbers and some bread.

For half an hour we were busy devouring every last crumb on the table and Mordred and Xorlosh made sure to flush every bite down with a generous gulp of mead. If I had tried to keep up I would have passed out after 5 minutes. Consequentially my brother’s face was red and I thought his speech had become slightly slurry but our dwarven host was still as steady as a rock, even though he was already deep into his 4th tankard if I hadn’t miscounted. A dwarven constitution was no joke.

We didn’t talk much aside from the necessities when sharing a meal until the last slice of bread and bits of cheese were gone. With a content sigh Xorlosh relit his pipe and white vapour started to fill the cabin before it was sucked out of the opened window. He filled our cups one more time and sat back down.

“Now, I think it’s time to talk about what happened and what we are going to do. Maybe it’d be for the best if I started with what we have done in the last two days and where we are headed.”