Salvation

It was becoming harder to breathe. Within the darkness, Wretch and Burden were still clawing and biting to stay on the surface while thousands below them changed and died and yelled and wept. Wretch shoved her elbow into the throat of one she could not see, but could feel as it pulled on her fur without abandon, trying to position itself above her. Burden had slipped under once, and resurfaced holding a clump of hair that she did not remember taking.

“Sooooooooollllll!!!!!” Wretch cried out.

Above them, Grief arrived in the vault chambers, followed by snaking billows of dirty wind that were continuing to rip the building into chunks. A few remaining acolytes saw her enter, and they rose from their safe places behind great stones, hoping to stop her from proceeding any further. As soon as they released their grip on the stones, their small bodies were swept up in the howling winds and slammed into one another. Currents wrapped around them and twisted, and their torsos interlaced with each other before snapping and falling limp.

Grief was large enough to endure. She reached the center of the room and saw the massive vault covering was waiting, closed and secretive. That didn’t stop her from being able to hear what was happening inside. Even though it was muted by stone and depth, she could make out the unmistakable sounds of laughing.

“Oh no, Burden? Wretch?” she shouted.

Deep below, Wretch heard the god’s voice just as another wave of frantic fingers and claws grabbed onto her body.

“We’re here! Help! Please!” Wretch screamed out to the darkness as she felt Burden being pulled away from her.

Grief scanned the room for any sort of clue. Half the space had been ripped from its mounts, revealing scaffolding and structural beams that were all but forgotten to time. Within the metal veins, she could see several mechanisms bending and leading to the vault door. Tracing them with her eyes led her to a lever on the nearby wall.

“Hurry!!” Wretch cried.

Grief rushed to the wall and yanked the lever down, hoping it would help and not harm them. To her great relief, the door began to open. Down in the darkness, Wretch, Burden, and the ones who were still living all looked up in relief as faint firelight and white energy winds offered them visibility. The god of grief appeared in the opening, silhouetted against the brightness, antlers wide and glowing eyes cold.

A pale, shaking hand extended down to them, large and safe. But it wasn’t enough. Her arm was not long enough to reach them. Paws and hands and tendrils of all manner of horrified mortals clamoured for her and she could not help but realize that none had ever reached out for the embrace of Grief so fully. It was ironic that they still could not touch her.

Her hips shifted forward, pushing her to the edge as far as she could go while still keeping balance. Contortions sent her arm as far down as it could go, and she could hear Wretch and Burden crying, but it still wasn’t enough. Waves of laughter rose like horns heralding something ugly and unhumored.

Then the wall exploded behind her and the beast was there, still fighting with Sol, but somewhat tamed.

“Give me your legs!” the beast growled as it crawled behind her.

“Not this again,” Grief cried as she braced for fighting him off while trying to save the little ones.

Orange flashed white and Sol grabbed her ankles, hoisting her into the air over the massive opening.

“SOoooooOOollll?!” Grief yelped, unsure of what was occurring.

“Sol?!” Wretch gasped in relief.

He was there for her. He was there. He was there. He was there. 

Up above, Grief was looking back at the being that was lifting her ankles over her head.

“I will hooooooold y-yoouuu over the opening. G-Get the littttttle ones!” Sol groaned from within the beast, which was currently trying to force his gaze to look between his sister’s thighs while her shortened dress hung upside down.

“Caaaaan you noooot?” Sol spat at the beast.

“I could, but I don’t want to,” the mouths replied.

The beast relinquished its grotesqueness long enough for Sol to guide Grief to the opening and lower her down. Now, she could reach the little ones.

“To me, beautiful acolytes,” Grief sighed as she held out both hands.

The two sisters climbed in, along with a few other frantic bodies. One was beginning to mutate, and Wretch kicked it with all of her force, sending it falling back into the darkness below.

“Who else is left?” Grief asked.

“I… I don’t think many are,” Wretch sighed.

Another being began to flinch and chuckle, and Grief shook her hand to throw it down into the vault.

For a moment, the beast disappeared, and shame washed over Sol once again.

“This is your fault, yet again, Lightbringer,” the beast mocked.

“You led them to the fire. You got them captured. You are nothing more than a failure,” it laughed.

Sol couldn’t challenge. All he could do was raise Grief and the little ones back to the safety of the floor. The winds began to fade from exhaustion, leaving them in the empty vacuum of still white light. Wretch closed her eyes to avoid the brightness, but not before catching a glimpse of the beastly transformation that was holding them.

“Sol?” she whimpered.

Seeing him gave her both comfort and a heavy sense of concern. His smile seemed unwell, but as he twitched against himself, she felt his familiar, dampened radiance.

“I… I ammmm heeeere,” he said.