Original Stories Fan Fiction / Realism Fan Fiction ❯ Aqua ❯ Soul Sickness ( Chapter 13 )

Chapter Thirteen

Soul Sickness

 

 

Aqua rolled over onto her side and retched up what little she had had to eat that day. It had been an entirely too eventful day for her tastes. After the Forest Guardian had left them, Cota had tried to argue with the younger children that she was dangerous, but even Cora, his twin as she found out later, overruled him saying that their Forest Guardian had deemed her worthy of entry to their forest.

 

Later, she found that Cora rarely ever spoke out against her brother due to the fact that he was older and one of their villages most formidable warriors. Aqua had been introduced to the others of the small, close-knit village and had had to shake hands with each and every older adult that wanted to meet with her. She had noticed that there were no old people, everyone was at least under the age of thirty.

 

She had later been lodged with one of the village council members. She was one of the oldest villagers and looked to be almost in her late twenties and had the kindest face that Aqua had ever seen. The only problem was that in the middle of the day, Aqua's sprained ankle had begun to fracture from all the weight that she had been putting on it throughout the day.

 

Aqua had successfully ignored the pain for the most part, but then the sprain had become a fracture from the stress put upon it. The woman that she was staying with had seen to it that she was as comfortable as possible and had sat with her until she had fallen asleep. Now, hours later, Aqua woke up to find her ankle wrapped and feeling sicker than she ever had before in her life.

 

The door to her room swung open to reveal Cota. He looked at her with a look of pure disgust. “Auntie, she's made a mess,” he called over his shoulder. When he looked back at their guest, he saw that she had rolled onto her other side and was completely ignoring his presence.

 

“Hey, don't ignore me,” he snapped. When Aqua made no response, he strolled over to her bed, carefully avoiding the vomit, and grabbed her shoulder, only to receive a sharp pain in his arm. He yelped and pulled back in surprise, stepping in the vomit and going down like a felled tree just as Auntie walked in.

 

Aqua turned over on her side and stared coldly down at him. “You are an idiot who can't even tell what's behind him, even if it's only vomit,” she said even more coldly. The one Cota had called Auntie started chuckling as Cota turned as red as a radish. They both turned their attention to her as she said, “I can't help it. I've raised Cota since he was born and I've never seen him look so flustered or embarrassed before.”

 

The corners of Aqua's mouth lifted in a brief smile before she doubled over and retched again. Cota's face was pulled into a grimace as he scurried away from the projectiles. Aqua wiped the slime away from her mouth and turned her back to the two in the room with her.

 

Auntie sighed and said, “Looks like you've caught our annual virus. Cota, go fetch some water from the river and some rags from over the fire.”

 

Cota grudgingly obeyed his aunt's wishes and left the room. Auntie bent over Aqua and felt her forehead. Aqua shook the hand away, not liking the feeling of someone else's warm skin against her cold, clammy skin. Auntie gave another depressed sigh and sat down on the edge of the bed. “It's not the annual virus. It's the Soul Sickness,” she said sadly.

 

Aqua lifted her eyes to the older woman's and was about to ask something when she continued, “This isn't your run of the mill cold or virus since it not only attacks the body, but also the soul. Every year, the older and younger people of our village come down with it, and only the strong of spirit may survive. Not many pull through since the children are young and the old have been weakened through their years of life.

 

“It hadn't attacked any of us yet this year, so we were hoping that it had finally broken from the deadly cycle and we could have a peaceful year without having to bury our sons and daughters or mothers and fathers. But now as I look upon your face, I know that this deadly cycle will never end until we are entirely wiped out.” Tears leaked down her cheeks as she spoke. Aqua turned back over without so much as a word and was soon asleep, although horrifying nightmares disturbed her sleep.

* * *

 

She woke later in a cold sweat to find Cora bent over her, a hint of sympathy escaping from her eyes. She turned her head away as Cora bent down to place a rag on her feverish head.

 

It might have been the Soul Sickness, but she thought she saw eyes looming out at her from the shadows in the corners. Whispers escaped from unseen lips, “…join us soon…”, “…last long…”, “…weakened soul…”, and “…tasty morsel…”

 

She blinked slowly at them and they stared back. Sleep overcame her again and nightmares tormented her broken rest. Screams distantly sounded…Tears flowed like rain…Blood ran in rivers…Once lush hills were reduced to ghost lands…Long forgotten bones blew to dust…Once great cities reduced to ashes…Beautiful forests were set afire and burned to the ground…Maddening laughter sounded near her ear…Red eyes suddenly loomed frighteningly close…

 

Aqua's eyes snapped wide open as she screamed in terror. A fit so strong seized her that her limbs began to thrash about so wildly the she threw the covers off and Auntie, Cora, and Cota all had to grab her and hold her down in order to keep her from hurting herself. By the time her fit had passed, her auburn hair was plastered to her face and neck and her clothes were completely soaked through with sweat. Her head rolled back and forth in fever and pain.

 

Sleep did nothing for her now. It brought none of the relief that it should have. Her dreams were invaded by those frightening red eyes and that maddening laughter so close to her ear that she could have sworn that it was right next to her. The shadow shapes loomed closer every time she opened her eyes. She was convinced that she was going to die and that there was nothing she could do about it, but that didn't keep her from fighting.

 

* * *

 

Cora sat beside Aqua as she slept, after hours of tossing and turning. She turned her eyes sadly to Auntie and said, “I don't think she'll make it.” Even though she had started out disliking the girl that she now sat beside, three straight days of nothing but caring for her had bred sympathy and concern, the like of which she had never felt before.

 

“Hush, child. Don't talk like that. We have to believe that this child is strong enough to make it through,” Auntie chided her gently. “The others of the council have already been informed of her condition. This has got to be the worst case that we've ever seen, but if we give up on her, then she will die for sure and then her soul will be lost for all eternity, never to find its way back again.”

 

“But none of the usual medicines are working for her,” came Cota's voice. He walked in from the darkening landscape, wiping his hands on a dry piece of cloth that he discarded by the door. “The Sickness has overcome everything we've given her and her body rejects any food we try to give her. Face it, Auntie, there's nothing we can do for her,” he said flatly.

 

Even though he usually agreed with his twin on everything, he couldn't help but dislike the girl more and more as his twin paid her more mind than her own brother. He couldn't help but feel jealous of the girl, even though she was sick and hadn't asked for Cora's attention.

 

Auntie got to her feet and brushed some non-existing dirt off her faded, worn pants before she seemingly glided over to Cota and slapped him with all the force she could muster without seriously doing injury to the boy. Cota's head snapped t the side from the force of the slap and tears came to his eyes from the sting that remained in his cheek.

 

“Don't you dare ever say that again, you spoiled brat. You've always gotten what you've wanted up till now, but this time, we are going to worry about someone else's well being, is that understood?” she asked harshly. Her black eyes sparkled dangerously, daring Cota to defy her.

 

Cota swiftly nodded before turning away from his aunt's slim figure and marching back out the door. Once he was out of sight, he broke into a run and ran as far as his legs would carry him before he collapsed in a heap and let a string of fluent curses out. Aqua's coming had changed so much that had once been set in his life.

 

Cora never used to care about others like this. Sure she would chip in during planting season as needed, but never would she take care of the sick as she was now. She had always steered clear of those with the Soul Sickness, had always avoided those huts that held the poor souls who would soon be departing from their world, never to be seen nor heard from again.

 

Auntie had always been kind towards those with the Sickness, so her taking care of the newcomer was no surprise. What was surprising was that she had struck him when he had announced that there was no hope for the girl. It irked him to no end that she had chosen Aqua over him, the nephew that she had raised since she was but ten.

 

* * *

 

Aqua was so drenched in sweat by the time that morning came that her clothes were plastered to her body. She shook from cold, hunger, and fear. Anything she was given, she couldn't hold down for the life of her, not that she tried very hard.

 

The shadowy eyes seemed to loom ever closer the more time that passed. Those eyes no longer frightened her, though they had never been what scared her. It was the laughter that scared her the most, it loomed everywhere now. Every now and then, she thought she saw the flick of a blacker than night cloak right out of her line of vision.

 

Red eyes loomed before her face, ever closer now. Aqua screamed as pain shot through her body, the like of which she had never felt before. Her eye pupils dilated until only the black of her eyes could be seen. Her breathing became shallow and irregular as her pulse sped up, but weakened at the same time. She could feel the heat beginning to leave her body. I'm going to die and there's nothing I can do about it, was her only lucid thought.

 

* * *