Lone Blind Star - Chapter 5: All-encompassing Liberation
All the fear is burned away in the night. Cecilia and Ingram rally the village against the creature.
Morning light filtered through the trees casting a golden glow across the room as Cecilia wiped her neck with a damp cloth. Ingram leaned against the doorframe, watching her with a concerned scowl on his face.
"If you have something to say, you might as well spit it out," she said playfully.
"You got a plan?" he asked, arms crossed over his chest.
"I do," she replied, wringing out the cloth. "And I'll tell you, but first, could you go around the village and see who wants to help?"
"Sure thing," Ingram said, nodding. His leather boots thudded against the wooden floor as he strode away, leaving Cecilia alone.
Ingram trudged through the village, gathering volunteers. While everyone wanted to help, few were willing to put themselves directly in harm's way. Those who did crowded outside the clinic, chatting amongst themselves. Cecilia eventually came out and they introduced themselves to her.
There was Benicio, who was a friend of the woodcutter that died; Charlotte, the local smith; Astor, an older but sturdy man who managed the general store; and Fidel, the village mayor.
After being told the plan, each volunteer coordinated a group of villagers in setting up a part of the trap. They quickly gathered flammable material, built flammable barriers, and strategically placed everything around the village plaza.
Cecilia watched as Ingram, despite his injury, helped the villagers wherever he could. For someone who initially didn’t want to help, he certainly was going above and beyond. She couldn’t help but admire his dedication as he aligned the heavy log walls with precision, though a flicker of concern tugged at her heart.
At dusk, Benicio, Charlotte, and Ingram ventured into the forest, making noise to lure the creature to them. The shadows cast by their torches made sinister shapes that played with the shadows of the trees, sending shivers down their spines. The air was eerily quiet.
“Let’s split up,” Benicio suggested. “We’ll cover more ground that way.”
The other two agreed and each went their own way, banging pots and pans and shouting and screaming. Their cacophony echoed through the trees so loudly few of those back in the village heard them.
As night marched on, hope faded—until a groaning sound caused Benicio to turn towards the darkness.
"Here! It’s over here!" he yelled, frantically pointing as the creature stepped out of the shadows, its grotesque form illuminated by the dancing light. Benicio's yell echoed through the forest, a desperate plea for help that reverberated through the air like a screeching owl.
Ingram and Charlotte charged to his side, their hearts pounding with every step. This was it, Ingram thought, their chance to end the nightmare had come.
As they reached Benicio, they found the grotesque creature looming over him, its twisted form highlighted by their torches.
“Benicio!” Charlotte shouted and took a thoughtless step forward.
“Wait!” Ingram tried to warn her but the creature had already closed the distance. It lunged for her but Charlotte saw it coming and ducked, sliding through its arms and between its legs. She grabbed Benicio, yanking him to his feet. They looked back at Ingram, the creature between them.
“Ingram?” Charlotte called. The creature looked back and forth at them before finally focusing on the pistol Ingram had drawn—it recognized it from before.
“Go on,” Ingram said. “Get to safety. I’ll be takin’ care of this.”
Charlotted nodded assuredly before helping Benicio escape in the opposite direction.
Ingram grinned at the creature as it stood to its full height as if trying to intimidate him. He noticed some superficial burns along the creature’s skin and smirked. “Good to know it’s you. Remember me?” He slowly sighted his gun at the creature and pulled the trigger.
Back at the village plaza, Cecilia walked around nervously with her arms crossed.
“You'll dig yourself a hole in the ground if you keep that up,” Fidel commented.
Cecilia spun around to face the mayor. “Where are they?” she cried.
“Relax,” Astor said. “There’s been no word, but we shouldn’t be jumping to conclusions.”
“I see something!” someone shouted and everyone turned their focus on the two figures that emerged from the forest. “It’s Charlotte and Benicio!”
Cecilia’s blood ran cold. Where was Ingram? Fidel gently rested a hand on her shoulder and she flinched away from him, her eyes wide. He knew exactly what she was thinking.
“He’s strong. He’ll be okay,” he said.
As Charlotte and Benicio drew closer to the gathered villagers, it became more obvious that one of them was hurt. “Doctor Rhodes, please help Benicio!” Charlotte begged.
“Of course!” the doctor replied. “Lay him down back here.”
Cecilia beelined after them. She waited impatiently for Charlotte to help Benicio onto a cot before grabbing the smith’s sleeve. “Where’s Ingram?” she said, her voice steely.
“Whoa, there, Miss. Calm down. He was fine when I left him,” Charlotte said, hiding her building guilt.
“So you did leave him,” Cecilia accused. “Where is he?”
“Got no idea, to be honest. He told me to take Benicio and run.”
Cecilia took a breath to reply but the sound of a gunshot pierced through the air. She froze as everyone went quiet, straining to hear anything else. More gunshots in rapidfire succession. She had no doubt that that was Ingram. She shared a knowing look with Mayor Fidel, who nodded. “It’s coming. Into positions, everyone!” she shouted over the crowd.
A few agonizing minutes later, Ingram came sprinting out of the forest, clutching his aching side and his face glistening with sweat. Seconds behind him was the screeching creature, its grotesque limbs dangling as it chased after him. He entered the village plaza and dove through the small gate that had opened for him.
“Shut it and light the fires!” he yelled and the villagers ignited the barrier. The entire plaza went up in flames, trapping the creature and encasing it in a terrible heat.
The creature howled, its screams cutting through the air a thousand times worse than nails against a chalkboard. It thrashed violently, testing the barrier, but recoiled in pain each time it touched the flames. Cecilia's heart clenched as she watched, fearing it might escape. The barrier itself wasn’t that sturdy, after all. If it had the ability to, it could simply leap over the fire.
“Don’t do it.”
Cecilia jumped at the sound of Ingram’s breathy voice next to her. “How did you know?” she asked with a sad smile.
He smiled back, more genuine than her own. “I’d like to think I know how you operate by now,” he replied and turned his gaze to the creature. “That fire magic is your crutch—it’s powerful, but is the cost worth it?”
“I would like to think it is.”
“Then, here.” He held out his arm where a deep gash along his upper arm bloomed fresh blood. The sight of it immediately caused her to worry.
She grabbed his arm, said, “We need to get you looked at!” and then looked around for the doctor.
Ingram gently pulled his arm out of her grasp and said, “No, use me. Use my blood this time.”
“Ugh.”
“Hah! You’ve got nothin’ to say to that, do ya?”
“Come here.” Cecilia took him by the hand and approached the flames. She collected some of his blood and drew the ancient insignia for fire onto the cobblestone plaza ground. With a deep breath, she placed her hands on either side of the insignia and spoke magic into the air. The bloody symbol briefly shimmered before instantly evaporating into the air. As if a match were struck, the creature immediately went up in flames like an impromptu pyre. It screamed louder than ever before.
For nearly an hour, the creature wailed in agony. Its cries of pain and terror clawed at the sanity of those within earshot. Even the toughest of the villagers found themselves shaken by the sounds it made, their faces etched with lines of discomfort and fear.
"Return to your homes," Cecilia urged, her concern for them visible on her face. "Stay inside until the fire has burned itself out."
As the villagers reluctantly departed, Cecilia could not tear her eyes away from the writhing monster. It dawned on her that this creature, whatever it was, was made up of people. As the creature cried, were they in pain, too? Or had their minds already faded due to their tortuous existence? Duty demanded that she bear witness to the outcome of her actions, but a part of her wanted to look away from the horror before her. She perched on a nearby barrel, her heels dug in atop the metal band. Despite the fire's warmth, a chill crept up her spine as she considered the possibility of the creature's resurrection. It’s wretched, charred corpse rising in her mind’s eye. She shivered.
"Was this the right thing to do?" Cecilia wondered, the weight of her conscience pressing down on her.
Beside her, Ingram watched in silence, his own thoughts almost unreadable behind a mask of stoicism. "Sunshine," Ingram said softly, "you did good."
Cecilia nodded slowly, choosing to believe in his words.
"You really plannin’ on standin’ guard all night out here?"
She gave a little nod, swallowing hard. "I have to make sure it's dead."
Ingram opened his mouth to try and disuade her but changed his mind. Instead, he turned on his heel and disappeared behind her.
Loneliness began to creep into Cecilia's heart, but Ingram quickly returned with foldable chairs. Setting them down near her, he gestured for her to join him. "No sense in being uncomfortable while we wait," he said.
She smiled gratefully and settled into the chair beside him. “Where did you get these?”
“Fidel said we could borrow them,” he replied nonchalantly.
As they sat together, watching the fire crackle and hiss, Ingram sighed. "Ya know, I wasn' sure your plan would work." He glanced at her, his expression somber. "Still don't, if I'm bein’ honest. What if the creature comes back to life after the fire burns out?"
Cecilia wrapped herself in her own embrace. "Then we'll burn it again. And if that still doesn't work, I'll cut it up into a million pieces myself."
Ingram whistled, clearly impressed. "Damn, Sunshine. You're somethin’ else," he teased. He shook his head, admiration flickering across his face. "I'm proud of you."
Warmth bloomed within her chest and she couldn't help but blush at his praise. She averted her gaze, focusing on the fire as it continued to consume the creature.
The black capped chickadee's early morning song jolted Cecilia awake, her eyes snapping open. Her heart pounded as she realized she had fallen asleep. Her gaze swept the plaza, taking in the smoldering remnants of the creature near its center and felt relief wash over her. The blanket draped over her shoulders offered a comforting warmth, and she knew instinctively that Ingram was the one to cover her.
She turned to look behind her and spotted him not far away. He was talking with the mayor and a group of villagers. As she watched, he caught sight of her and waved before excusing himself and making his way over.
"Hey, you’re finally awake," he said. "How’re ya feelin’?"
"Fine. What happened?" She rubbed the sleep from her eyes, still feeling slightly disoriented.
"Well, you fell asleep," he said, a sly grin playing on his lips, "while I stayed up all night and made sure our friend here burned properly."
"Are you okay to drive?" Cecilia asked, frowning at the thought of him being sleep deprived. “I heard it’s not good to drive while sleep deprived.”
"Sunshine, I'm more than okay," he drawled, chuckling. "In my line of work, it's not unusual to stay up for two nights and a day on solo stakeouts—or waitin’ for the right moment to strike." His laughter died abruptly, and he glanced away, realizing he'd shared too much. "Anyway, it's time for us to get goin’."
Cecilia didn’t understand his sudden change in demeanor but went with it. She nodded and stood, her legs shaking with a little numbness. "Can I say goodbye to everyone before we go?"
"Go ahead but make it quick," Ingram replied, his lopsided smile returning. He adjusted the blanket to wrap around her shoulders and added, "We got some stuff from the villagers, too, so I’ll make sure it’s all packed up."
Cecilia smiled gratefully and thanked him before heading off towards the group of villagers from earlier. Ingram watched her go, his gaze lingering on her retreating form.