Evelyn Earth Part 26

Everyone was looking at us. It could have been simply because we were the only thing to look at in a 3km radius, but I gathered that it was most likely because of me—me and my reckless actions. I straightened up, but let Sebastian’s hands rest on my forearms. I was still too unsteady to stand on my own and I felt like the slightest breeze could send me sideways, spilling me into the water and washing me away.

“I’m sorry” I said slowly. I didn’t know what else to say. Not only had I destroyed the docks, but I had put an end to the camp that Old Mal had started, the camp where we all had a safe slice of private safety, until now.

Sebastian’s men didn’t seem the least bit fazed. After all, this place had meant nothing to them, just a one night stop over on their journey to wherever it is they’re heading. They had probably already seen Sebastian in action before and known what all this meant. I doubted that my tiny group of survivors would even be able to comprehend what had just happened.

Marla looked furious, her whole body was visibly tensed and if it weren’t for Toya’s desperate grabbing at her arm I’m sure she would have lunged at me, for all the good it would have done her. Even in my disoriented state I could have sent out a bolt of darkness that would have devoured her whole.

 Mal was still slumped on the ground and looked the most traumatised. A silent dejected trauma always seemed worse to me than the hysterical trauma that Toya was exhibiting. Old Mal had lived around this area most of his life and in one glorious moment his home went up in black flames leaving nothing behind.

Owen didn’t look up once, not even when I had apologised. His gaze was steadfastly pinned to the ground where his knees were making wet indentations in the soft mud.

“When I woke up I was completely powered up” whispered Sebastian in my ear, “I felt like I was at my peak and when I sent out the energy I could feel the web that the Mother had shown me…shown us. It connects all of us Evs. I could see two maybe three others scattered around. Not close, but close enough to stand out. I saw you straight away, and I don’t even know how to explain it. You were glowing so bright it almost blinded me.”

                I nodded in understanding. He moved his hand to the side of my face and lifted my chin up so that I was looking into his eyes.

                “You looked like you were going to blow up you were so bright. I went to find you, but first I told the lads to gather up all your people and get farther back onto solid ground. Call it intuition” he shrugged and smiled, “but I thought you might turn that self-implosion into a huge clean sweep.”

                “Thank you” I muttered. I was still shell shocked. All I wanted to do was snap out of this fog and be able to explain myself, to tell my friends that I hadn’t meant to hurt them, or to wipe out their homes.

A few more seconds passed and no matter the amount of will power I implemented nothing changed, my mind was still like a fragmented piece of glass, capturing illuminating moments here and there, but letting some of the important stuff slip through the cracks. I must have stayed in between the cracks for two long because when my eyes focussed again Sebastian was speaking.

                “Alright, boys we’re going into the city. We’ve got to find a place to settle into, hunt around for some breakfast because I’m bloody starving and let things cool down a tad, yeah? As for the rest of you” he looked at Marla, Toya, Mal and Owen in turn, “it would be best if you came with us, no need to scamper around on your own. In either case the big boy has no choice he’s along for the ride until we can clear some things up.” With that he looked down at me and raised an eyebrow as if asking “is that okay with you.”

“I’m not going anywhere with you abominations!” Old Mal suddenly yelled out startling all of us. “Freaks! That’s what you are, freaks of nature, shouldn’t be fit to be alive. Swallowed up the poor boy’s body, well I won’t let you have mine!” He shuddered as he spoke his hands balling into trembling fists that swayed in front of him; unable to strike and unable to hang still.

“Fins” I moaned, clutching at Sebastian’s hand.

“He was dead anyways, his body has gone back into the Earth, where it was meant to be. No need to get all fucking holy hell on us old man. Do we look like abominations to you?” Sebastian raised his right arm and flashed Old Mal a wide toothed grin to which he got a gob of spit in return. It landed at his feet without a sound, but Sebastian’s eyes darkened. I had used up the power surge that the Mother had bestowed upon us, but Sebastian must still be harbouring it inside himself. It wouldn’t do for them to see another outburst so soon after mine.

I stepped out in front of him.

“We won’t force you to come” I began quietly, “all I’m going to say is that I didn’t mean anyone any harm. I…I’m sorry Fins is gone, but Se…Snow” I quickly corrected myself, “is right, his body is with the Earth now. That’s what you see around you now, pure Earth. What I did, I did out of anger and because we received a divine message. It sent both me and Snow into a spiral of power that I chose not to control. I can’t promise you that it won’t happen again, but I can promise that I would never willingly turn on you.”

“We will come” said Toya softly, gulping down the excesses of her tear whilst looking at Marla.

“Only because it is better to be next to you fools, in the eye of the storm rather than out there” she nodded her head in the direction of empty space, “where nothing is safe.” I understood her logic completely and let my gratitude show on my face. Marla was a hard woman, but a smart one. She knew how to live life out here in no man’s land, she knew how to survive and I admired that.   

Old Mal heaved himself up off the ground and simply turned his back on us. Toya tried to pull him back, coax him with words of reason and friendship, but he would have none of it. In his eyes we were the spawn of the devil; things to be despised, from a distance.

                We watched him as he stumbled away, Toya still distressed that he would not stay. She would have probably run after him if Marla didn’t pull her back. She knew that he would be lost and didn’t want her sister in the same boat.

Once Old Mal was gone I turned to Owen. It looked like he was struggling with his defiant vow of silence and his ability to talk Old Mal out of leaving. It looked like his pride got the better of him. I had no idea how to approach him.

                “Why is he tied up?” I asked Sebastian.

                “When I went to find you he intercepted me. He saw me go dark and he flipped out. I put him to the ground and I got Gerard to bind him up so he wouldn’t scratch an eye out” he said the last bit with disdain. Owen was weak in his eyes and he didn’t try and hide it. In defiance Owen turned his yellow eyes onto him with as much scorn as he could manage, but didn’t say a word.

                “Let’s go” Sebastian said and blindly and numbly we all followed. I walked beside him at the front while Gerard, Izwan, Trevor and Sloan stomped behind us. Gerard kept Owen slightly in front of him just in case he tried to run.

He wouldn’t talk the whole way into the city. We walked for a long time past burnt out cars and debris from buildings. I had no doubts that we had been living a sheltered life these past three months. Hardly any of the chaos that we walked past now had touched us in the docks.

We moved cautiously from shadows of buildings to awnings always keeping something between us and open spaces. None of us wanted to be seen and an altercation with scavengers was the last thing any of us needed.

 We were all wary of foes jumping out at us from concealed hiding places, what we weren’t prepared for was the torrid mass of darkness that loomed before us when we skirted around an overturned tram.

                I stared into it with the same intent fascination that I had looked into the darkness within ‘Harbour Town’. It had engulfed the base of the ME building on the corner of Latrobe and Elisabeth Street, but hadn’t brought the structure down.

                “It’s the train system” I said, “the darkness must have targeted the electrical lines that run underground. Half of the city loop is like a subway” I explained to Sebastian who looked perplexed.

                “Is it large?” he asked.

                “Do you even have to ask? It’s a fucking train line that spans most of the city, of course it’s large.” And then I understood why he had asked; if it was a large mass of power than it would be quite an acquisition for an Earth warrior. He had said it himself, that there was no other way to gain more power unless you took in more of the Mother’s vengeance. He must have done so already, making me the weaker one out of the both of us. For some reason this triggered a deep jealousy within me. I wanted to be the greatest of the Mother’s warriors. I needed to be the greatest

Before he could make a move I placed my hand on his back and shot out a bolt of energy, the same way I had done to Owen only with more force, my energy wouldn’t permanently hurt him, but it could incapacitate him for the few moments that I needed.

His power would be too slow to react in the face of my own and in any case I didn’t give him the chance to recover. I lunged for the mass of darkness and ran headfirst into its depths and into the depths of Melbourne Central Station.