The Reader - Chapter 25

Chapter 25

Apparently the other carriages didn’t take as kindly to turning around just to follow a hunch of some weird prince who had spent his life in a coma. So they rode a little further until they reached a small village on the very top of a mountain - or so it seemed. 

The village was small but since Faroshin was more of a rebel faction the people promised not to turn them in. Baelle was offering a high reward for Emmeline and her friends. 

Newt had made jokes about being less gold than Beckett, and Emmeline was worth the most. He told her that he would pay all the gold in the world for her, which caused a fake vomit from Beckett and an “awe” from Clara. They obviously had different opinions on love. 

Emmeline and her friends were able to bathe and the villagers provided them warmer clothing at no cost. 

The bath was the best one Emmeline had ever taken. They had a small bathhouse (it was the only building that could have warm water due to a Waelian outcast), and it had even tinier, private rooms in the back. 

Clara had asked Emmeline if she needed any help, but the Reader was too proud to accept it. The water was extremely warm when Emmeline finally dipped her body in. She scrubbed her skin raw, surprised by how much crusted blood came off. A small scar marked where she had stabbed herself with the pen. 

When Emmeline was clean she pulled on a heavy cloth dress and leggings, her boots thicker and her cloak far longer than normal. 

The ragtag mixture of people from Layene’s Tower Ruins regrouped in the village’s unused hotel. The manager was glad to see customers, and he happily lit a fire in the sitting room. 

There were about forty of them that had managed to escape the soldiers on the way to Viridi. There were about five children, as well as an assortment of teens, men and women. The rest of the tower ruins had returned home and hadn’t been heard from since. Titus had been deemed the “leader” of the group due to the fact that the Elders hadn’t been spotted since the raid on the tower ruins. However, a new grove of trees was growing in the middle of the town. 

“You can’t be serious,” Titus was saying, shaking his head. 

“Listen, you would do the same for any of the circus performers,” Newt argued. “Beckett isn’t normal - the chances that Coral and Forrest are actually at the bunker are pretty high. Worst case we don’t find them and lose a few days. What else do you need us for?” 

“I don’t see why Coral and Forrest are so important,” Mac sighed. He had to wear a sling due to his injuries during the battle at the castle. “They’re just teens.” 

“Forrest is a good swordsman, and Coral has her Blessing,” Clara pointed out. “Besides, if we’re fighting Baelle we need every man we can get.” 

“Coral had a Blessing, Titus crossed his arms. “You said that she swore no harm would come to Forrest - and if they were captured by the Silver Kingdom there’s a good chance Coral no longer has her Blessing.” 

“It’ll only take a few days,” Emmeline spoke up. She had been keeping mostly quiet, afraid that if she talked someone else would ask her about what had happened with Baelle. She didn’t want to talk about her death, Emmeline still felt uncomfortable with the experience. Did it show that Dixral favorited her, or would Emmeline have to pay for it later on? “We’ll keep a low profile and come right back here.” 

“Who is we?” Lena asked, finally speaking up as well. The woman had been overcome with grief and Emmeline wondered if maybe she knew about Wiley in addition to her boyfriend. “You can’t take too many of us with you - it’s risky just sending a few.” 

“It’ll be the four of us,” Newt explained. “Beckett, Emmeline, Clara, and I. We’ve worked together before, and I’m sure that we can all fit in one of the carriages.” 

“What about a driver?” Titus asked. “And you’ll need supplies as well.” 

“We’ll pack lightly,” Emmeline decided. “Just enough food for a week - the journey should take about five or six days, and we’ll pack extra just in case. As for a driver, I’m sure we can figure out how to drive ourselves.” 

“Fine,” Titus decided at last. He raised his hands to silence any outraged cries from the small crowd. “But if you don’t return in a week I’m sending a small team after you.” 

“Aww, Titus actually cares about us,” Clara commented with a smile. 

“No,” Titus growled. “Emmeline said that she Wrote only her and Beckett can kill Baelle. That means we need them alive or there’s no hope.” 

“Why not just leave one of them here?” Midnight interrupted. 

“That’s out of the question,” Emmeline said, crossing her arms. “We’ll head out as soon as we pack and we’ll be back soon. Meanwhile, you should look for more rebel factions. Send out messengers to find anyone you can. We need to be prepared to fight demigoddesses and loyalists alike.” 

“Consider it done,” Titus nodded. 

“It’s time for an adventure!” Beckett shouted, pumping his fist into the air. 

“Do you need any help packing?” Newt asked, standing in the doorway to Emmeline and Clara’s room. The girls had decided to bunk together in order to save room for families who actually needed it. 

“Clara went to fetch some spare cloaks, but I think besides that we’re ready,” Emmeline said, closing her trunk. It was almost empty, only a few changes of clothing and some nonperishable food tucked inside. She tied the sack on her bed, which was filled with the rest of her food and her canteen - refillable by magic. 

She hefted her sack over her shoulder and gripped her trunk tightly in the other hand, staggering under the weight. Despite her best efforts to recover quickly, Emmeline was still a bit weaker than normal due to her brush with death. 

“Here, let me take that,” Newt offered, pulling the trunk from Emmeline’s grip. “Need me to carry you as well, or are you up to walking to the carriage?” 

Emmeline rolled her eyes. “I’m better now, thanks. Besides, you’re one to talk.” She gestured to the scab that had formed on his forehead as well as the small scars on his arms where the tiny cuts had been. 

Together, Newt and Emmeline carried the remainder of the supplies and loaded them onto the back of the carriage. It was a slightly larger one than what they had ridden in before, with room for bedding in the back as well as some storage and actual places to stand and relax. Void and Rusty Bob were harnessed to the front of the carriage. 

“You sure you know how to drive?” Emmeline asked as Newt climbed into the driver’s seat of the carriage. He tucked his golden hair into the nit cap from Lena, his gloved hands grasping the reins tightly. 

“Sure,” Newt said with a shrug. “And if I don’t, it’s never too late to learn.” 

“If we crash…” Emmeline warned, but it was an empty threat. Newt knew it too, so he leapt down from the seat and wrapped an arm around Emmeline’s shoulder. 

“If we crash I’ll take full responsibility,” he assured her. “But I think Void and Rusty Bob are too smart for that. At least by driving it means I don’t have to deal with Beckett the whole time.” 

“I’ll send him up if he’s too obnoxious,” Emmeline laughed. 

“Hey, are you guys going to get moving or do I have to add an extra two weeks to your scheduled journey?” Titus called out, appearing in front of them, the falling snow melting on his shoulders. 

“We’re leaving, we’re leaving,” Emmeline sighed, pulling away from Newt and stepping closer to Titus. “Thanks for letting us do this. It means a lot to me.” 

“If it means I can finally get Newt to stop glaring at me, it’s worth it,” Titus laughed. 

Emmeline spun around to see Newt leaning against the carriage, brooding, arms crossed. She laughed too and Newt blushed. 

“Stay safe, don’t let Baelle kill you,” Titus said at last. “Not again.” 

Emmeline smiled uncomfortably. “Same with you.” 

She turned around and climbed into the carriage where Beckett and Clara were waiting. She peeled off her cloak and hung it on a hook by the door, shaking the snow off of her boots. 

Snow fell heavily in front of the window and Emmeline saw the scene outside begin to move. The carriage was leaving. Beckett and Clara stood and went to the opposite window, waving at all of the smiling villagers. 

Emmeline took a seat, propping her feet up on the table and leaning into the cushioned seat, sighing with relief. 

Clara took a seat across from her and pushed her feet off of the table. “Emmeline! You should be a proper lady,” Clara scoffed, a smile playing on her face. “That means no feet on the table.” 

“I suppose a proper lady doesn’t carry weapons either,” Emmeline smiled. “Well good news then, I’m unarmed.” 

Clara frowned. “You probably shouldn’t be. If the carriage is attacked our attackers won’t wait for you to pull weapons out of the trunk.” Emmeline sighed, knowing Clara was right. But she didn’t want to pull over the carriage to get her daggers out of the trunk. 

Emmeline recalled how she had formed the black sword out of thin air back in Viridi. She pictured the blade growing in her hand and she felt weight materialize in her palm. Clara gasped and Emmeline opened her eyes, discovering an inky sword in her hand as well as an assortment of black daggers strewn across the table. 

“That’s awesome!” Beckett exclaimed. “I wonder if I could do that too!” 

As Emmeline collected her new daggers as well as a quiver and bow that had appeared on the couch beside her, Beckett scrunched up his face. 

Emmeline watched in amazement as silvery and green light began to flash and lying on the table were two knives and two swords, two green and two silver. Beckett smiled as he pocketed them, winking at Clara. “Now I can protect you even better.” 

Clara groaned and Emmeline and Beckett laughed. 

It seemed that the ride wouldn’t feel quite so long as Emmeline had first thought.

It seemed that the only peace of mind Emmeline could get was while volunteering to drive the carriage for the night. Newt was frozen and exhausted by the time they stopped for a bathroom break (even though Beckett had been asking for hours). 

Emmeline volunteered to drive for the night, and Newt showed her the basics before getting some sleep in the carriage. 

Although Emmeline was tired she wasn’t quite exhausted enough to sleep. Thoughts kept bouncing around in her head, keeping her eyes wide open. Void and Rusty Bob were relatively easy to control so Emmeline didn't have to focus too hard on which direction they were going. 

Their book from Ibenily had been taken by the soldiers when Emmeline, Newt, and Beckett were captured. But the previous night Beckett had found a new copy on the end of his bed, complete with a tiny red bow. 

Emmeline kept thinking of what she had seen when she died and how Dixral had decided to let her live anyways. Why had the Goddess done that? Emmeline understood that it was up to her or Beckett to finally defeat Baelle, but Dixral could’ve just given Beckett some invisibility or something. 

Not to mention the fact that Baelle didn’t seem scared of her at all. It was unnerving to think how Emmeline’s nemesis wasn’t scared of her. To be honest, Emmeline knew she wasn’t the type of person to be considered a threat in the first place. 

But Emmeline reminded herself that she was willing to do whatever it took to finally end Baelle. She had been the one to risk her life and actually die just so Baelle couldn’t win. 

Strength, bravery, intelligence, beauty - none of that mattered. 

Determination and passion could make a person willing to do anything - and that was frightening. 

Someone whistled from inside the carriage and Emmeline flicked the reins until Void and Rusty Bob slowed to a stop. The carriage door popped open and Beckett climbed out, bolting as quick as he could behind a tree. 

Emmeline plugged her ears as Beckett took care of his business. Finally, he returned to the carriage but instead of hopping in the back he climbed into the seat with Emmeline. 

“What are you doing?” Emmeline asked him, scooting over so he could have a place to sit. “You should stay in the carriage and get some sleep in case we get attacked. I’m sure Clara appreciates your company.” 

Beckett shrugged. “She’s asleep, but I figured I can keep you awake for a bit.” 

Emmeline sighed. She knew Beckett wasn’t going to leave her alone any time soon. She flicked the reins again and the horses began to trot. 

“So, how’s your night been going?” Beckett asked, clasping his hands in his lap. 

Emmeline sent him a sidelong glance. She didn’t really want to talk, she had been fine consumed by her thoughts. But she didn’t want to seem rude by declining his offer. After all, Beckett was losing sleep for her. “I’m fine, thanks.” 

Beckett raised an eyebrow. “You’re a good liar, I’ll give you that.” He waited to see if she would respond but Emmeline grit her teeth and ignored him. “I actually wanted to talk to you about something.” He waited to see if she would acknowledge him in any way, but Emmeline kept her eyes on the road. She knew what he wanted to talk about. 

“Seriously, Beck,” Emmeline groaned. “I don’t want to talk about it …” 

“I don’t want to discuss your death, I’m not going to pity you about it,” Beckett said bitterly, which surprised Emmeline. 

One, because he was normally a happy person. And two, because she assumed everyone wanted to know how she had lived. Despite her loathing of the experience, it was part of Emmeline and she couldn’t just forget it. 

“Then what do you want to talk about?” Emmeline asked, the tension leaving her shoulders. 

“I’m glad you asked,” Beckett smiled and Emmeline sighed. She had walked straight into that one. “You said that you Wrote it so only me or you can kill Baelle. Is that really true or…” 

“It’s true,” Emmeline confessed. “I wanted to make it so we killed her, but it didn’t work out. So yes, you or I will kill her. But I don’t know what that means for the rest of us.” 

Beckett nodded. “I was wondering - technically if you Write one person it could change everyone else, right? So if you Read me again, do you think my future would have changed? Or would it stay the same?” 

Emmeline thought for a moment. “I suppose one Writing could do a lot of damage. But I’m not sure I really want to Read people again. Or Write, for that matter.” 

Beckett shrugged. “I guess I should’ve been expecting that,” he sighed. 

“Oh,” Emmeline gasped. “You still wanted me to Write you, didn’t you?” 

Beckett shrugged again, but it was half-hearted. “I thought that maybe you could, I don’t know, give me a normal life. Or make all of us invincible. Wouldn’t that be helpful?” 

“A person can only be Written once,” Emmeline said. “So if I Wrote you and made a mistake or Wrote you to be invincible you would never be able to change that. Besides, your past is what makes you unique.” 

“I don’t really have a past,” Beckett protested. “Everyone else is right. I spent most of my life in a coma, I didn’t live like other people did. I don’t have normal memories.” 

Emmeline wrapped an arm around his shoulder. Beckett had grown to be her younger brother in a way. It was odd to think he had been born over a century ago, and to think he was a prince at all. 

“When this is over, we’ll make some real memories,” Emmeline promised. 

“For real?” Beckett asked in disbelief. He seemed happy for a moment but then his face fell again. “I would love to, Echo, but once Baelle is dead I’ll have to be a king. It’s my duty, just like your duty is to Read and Write people.” 

“I wish that wasn’t my duty,” Emmeline said softly. “I would trade anything to be normal like the others.” 

“Really? I’ve always thought it would be better to be a Reader than to be some long lost prince. I wish I was normal like the others too,” Beckett sighed. “I guess you and I are more alike than we’d like to admit.” 

Emmeline laughed. “You have a better sense of humor.” 

“You really think so?” Beckett grinned, and Emmeline regretted ever saying that. 

“Listen, I’m the last Reader. You’re the last heir to the throne.” Emmeline wasn’t quite sure where she was going with the little pep talk, but as long as Beckett didn’t give up hope it was worth it. “There has to be some sort of power in that.” 

“We both have magic,” Beckett pointed out. “That's something.” 

“More than others,” Emmeline shrugged. “We have each other. And Clara and Newt and Coral and Forrest.” 

“Some people have Newt more than others,” Beckett laughed with a wink and Emmeline shoved him, causing the carriage to veer off track. Emmeline quickly righted it, glaring at Beckett. 

“What is that supposed to mean?” Emmeline asked, feeling a blush rise to her cheeks. 

Beckett sighed. “You seriously think I didn’t hear the whole ‘I killed for you, I died for you, I’m not leaving you,’ thing? Puh-lease, I heard everything. I know everything.”

“The prince knows all,” Emmeline said, thoroughly embarrassed and also a bit ashamed that she hadn’t hidden it better. “What are you, a spy or something? People have this thing called privacy, you know.” 

“What’s that?” Beckett asked with a smile. “Never heard of it.” 

Emmeline laughed. It felt good to laugh after a whole lot of … bad? She wasn’t sure that “bad” was the right term, but it fit well enough. 

“You know, my offer of good memories still holds,” Emmeline said. “If you want it once all of this is over. When Baelle is gone and we all live happily ever after.” She snorted at the ridiculousness of the situation. 

“It would be my honor to fight by your side, milady,” Beckett said, holding his head high. “As for your offer, I accept.” 

Emmeline smiled. It would be nice to have some good memories for once.