Chapter 83: Whispers in the Ashes
The village did not greet them with open arms.
Children were ushered indoors, shutters slammed closed, and cold eyes followed Elara, Ariella, and Percy as they made their way past the charred remains of what once was a thriving home. Whispers chased them like shadows.
"That's them."
"Everywhere they go, death follows."
"They bring curses."
Elara kept her head high, but her fingers trembled slightly as she gripped the edge of her cloak. Percy limped beside her, still recovering from the relic's shockwave. Ariella walked behind them, her face unreadable, as though she'd turned her emotions to stone.
They returned to Ariella's home—or what was left of it. Only a corner remained standing. Uncle Jonathan had arranged for them to stay in a small, untouched house at the edge of the village, away from most of the others.
That night, Uncle Jonathan visited, bringing supplies and an attempt at comfort. He didn't mention the stares or the burned door someone had nailed shut behind them earlier. But his eyes betrayed him. Something was wrong.
"You need to rest," he said, laying out fresh blankets. "I'll talk to the others. I'll make them understand."
Elara gave him a weary smile. "Thank you for believing in us."
He nodded but didn't stay long. There was tension in his shoulders, a weight he didn't share.
As soon as he was gone, Ariella turned toward the window. "He's the only one. The rest want us gone."
Percy winced as he sat down. "Let them talk. We know what we're doing."
"Do we?" she snapped. "We destroyed that relic, and now something worse is coming. What if the villagers are right? What if we're the ones making it worse?"
Elara crossed her arms, her voice low but firm. "We didn't choose any of this. We're trying to stop it."
Ariella didn't respond. Instead, she walked outside into the night air. Elara moved to follow, but Percy held her back. "Let her be," he murmured. "She just lost everything."
---
That same evening, while Uncle Jonathan prepared to appeal to the Council of Elders, the rest of them met in secret—without him.
They gathered inside the old meeting hut, far from the girls' shelter. Torches flickered on the mud walls, casting long shadows across hardened faces.
"She's dangerous," one of them said of Ariella. "There's something in her eyes now. Something cold."
"They all carry that magic. Maybe it's cursed," muttered another. "First the Shrouded One, now this?"
"We should exile them before they bring the whole village down."
"But what about Uncle Jonathan?" a younger elder asked.
"We don't tell him," said the oldest among them. "He's too soft-hearted. He's blind to what they've become. Tomorrow, we vote. Quietly. The village will decide."
---
The next morning brought grey skies and brittle air. Elara, Ariella, and Percy headed toward the crevice once more, hoping the Queens had answers.
Hand in hand, they summoned the same magic that had once brought visions. Mist swirled around them, thick and cold. Moments later, the Blue and White Queens emerged, their expressions heavy.
"You've done what we could not," said the Blue Queen, her voice gentle.
"But something else was released when you destroyed the relic," added the White Queen. "Something ancient. Its presence is already leaking into this world."
"We need to know what it is," Elara said.
"We don't yet understand its full nature," the Blue Queen admitted. "It was sealed long ago, before even our time. But its essence... it spreads."
"The villagers—" Percy began, "They're turning against us. One of them might already be affected. We saw black veins on a man near the granary. He was speaking in tongues, like something else was inside him."
The White Queen nodded solemnly. "The seal you broke was one of many. Laxman wants them all broken. That was just the beginning."
"Then we need to find a way to reseal them," Ariella said, stepping forward. "Before whatever's in there is fully released."
The Queens began to fade. "You must act quickly. If even one more is broken, the force inside may no longer need a vessel—it may take form."
---
When they returned to the village, another blow had struck.
Ariella's father and grandmother had been forced out of their home. The door had been boarded shut, their belongings thrown out onto the street. Elara's parents had faced the same treatment. The villagers had turned on anyone connected to the girls.
They found them all gathered beneath an old tree near the village's edge, clutching blankets and food bundles. Elara ran to her mother, tears brimming.
"We didn't think it would come to this," her father said softly. "But they've decided you're cursed. And we're guilty by blood."
Ariella's grandmother, usually so proud, sat with her head lowered. "Let them fear me," she murmured. "I've outlived worse. But I won't leave you."
The trio helped their families settle in a secluded spot deeper into the woods. Uncle Jonathan visited them there too, bearing what little he could carry.
"They've stopped listening to me," he admitted, eyes hollow. "They're planning something."
---
By the second evening, the tension had become unbearable. Another villager collapsed in the square, veins blackened and eyes rolled back. She shrieked a single word before passing out:
"Laxman."
Fear spread like wildfire. That night, the secret elders met again.
"We're out of time," one said.
"The corruption is inside the village. They haven't cured it."
"It's been nearly three days. He said they had three days."
"If Jonathan won't lead us, then we go ourselves. We take the deal. We save whoever we can."
There were murmurs of agreement.
"We'll give it till dawn. Then we go."
That night the queens appeared to the girls, exchanged a look heavy with sorrow before fading back into the swirling mist.
"You must return to the place where the seals were first forged," the Blue Queen whispered, her voice echoing in their minds. "There, you will find the means to mend what has been broken. Time is short—if the darkness spreads further, it may claim more than just this village."
Ariella nodded, determination flaring in her eyes. "We won't let it spread."
Elara reached for her friends hand, the weight of their task settling around them like a cloak. "We'll find a way."
As the last light of the Queens' presence disappeared, the three stood silent for a moment, the cold wind carrying the scent of ash and loss.
"We have to leave at dawn," Elara said quietly. "Before the village falls deeper into fear."
Percy looked at them both, his usual confidence tempered by exhaustion. "This next step… it won't be easy."
But neither girl wavered.
That night, beneath the restless stars, they packed what little they could carry. Their eyes met one last time before stepping out of the fragile safety of the village—heading back toward the forgotten ruins where hope and danger intertwined.
The journey had only just begun.