“Shh, listen.”
Oriana frowned, furrowing her brow as utter silence surrounded them. It always did in the forest; she had made it that way. “I don’t hear anything,” she finally offered, trying to understand what he was doing.
"Exactly." He spun, taking a step toward her. "You created this place, this forest of moving trees and mist, with no sound, no life, no joy. You designed a place of fear and heartache for the people of that town, a place they don't understand and are too afraid of even stepping foot in, too terrified to travel through and find out that there is a whole big, beautiful world out there for them. Forests full of singing birds, chirping frogs, and scurrying rodents jumping from branch to branch. Vast oceans they have never even seen. A world that has so immeasurably surpassed them in advancements that they would be lost if they ever got the chance to see it." His nostrils flared, practically blowing steam.
“I–I did it for them, to protect them. To protect all of Svakland. It was the only way.”
“By trapping them like caged dogs? You have stolen their lives, kept them hidden in this dark place, kept them scared. You are no better than the Gods you hate. You have been careless and selfish,” he spat, the full extent of his ire dripping from every word. “And for what? Because you don’t love your life? You can’t handle taking ownership of what you are? You are weak Oriana, goddess of enchantment and bloodlust. You are not worthy of these people or this world. They would have been far better off without you and your kind. You should have stayed with the Gods where you belonged.” Garren turned from her then and began stalking back toward Sardorf.
“Better off?” Oriana yelled to his retreating form with a scoff. “Tell that to the thousands of innocent lives spread far and wide throughout the cosmos. If my father had succeeded, if he had used me as a pawn in his schemes, this entire world would be gone, annihilated in the blink of an eye all because Anthes thinks it to be worthless in the grand cosmos. The next time you judge me for doing what I thought was right, think on that. You and all of these people would no longer exist, Garren, if not for me. You know nothing of the Gods or of me.”
She watched as he paused and began to turn his head but stopped short, tensed his shoulders, and walked away from her. All she could do was stare at his retreating form, chest rising and falling with heavy breaths of both anger and of sadness, because as much as she hated to admit it, some of what he had said was true.
She had trapped these people, forcing them into a far different life than what they could have had if it were not for her. But the worst part was, she had never thought of another option, had never even tried to figure out another way and save these people from herself, from this life of solitude altogether.
But her bloodlust needed to be satiated. If she could have held it prisoner somewhere there was no life, no one to sate its hunger; she would have gladly done it. But it needed to feed, and it would have eventually made it out of whatever confines she had put it in, just as it did on the eve of every blood moon. The curse wouldn’t allow for it to be trapped completely.
Would it have been better to let it roam wild throughout all of Svakland or stay trapped within one small town? And what Garren didn’t know was that the town’s people of Sardorf fought back. They had created traps and diversions to fool the monster, to slow its feast.
Secluding the demon in one town versus an entire continent was the lesser of two evils, was it not? The vastness of the forest she had built and the town within kept her bloodlust contained so that when it was able to break free, it returned to the closest forms of life it could find–in Sardorf.
Oriana didn’t dare follow Garren back into town. He had made it abundantly clear how he felt about her and what she had done all these years.
She was far better off staying away from the town until the final blood moon came at the end of the month. Tomorrow, she would go to Haldis in the early morning and say goodbye to her dear old friend for the last time.
20
Garren
1st day of the Twelfth Month, 1774
Garren was ablaze with feeling as his heart and mind warred with one another like charging beasts.
In the short time he had known Oriana, his connection with her had grown to insurmountable heights, reaching a point where he could scarcely imagine his life without her. The very thought of losing her had his palms sweating and his chest aching.
He had been harsh, possibly even cruel, with his words to her. But his mind was having a hard time accepting what she had done, the torment she had subjected these innocent lives to. Locking them away, keeping them from living fully, all because she didn’t wish to be what she was, a goddess. He needed space. He needed time away from her to cool the fire burning through him, scorching the earth beneath him with each heavy step.
As Garren made his way through the Phantom Wood, he couldn’t help but notice how clear it was. Oriana had no doubt made it so, allowing him to see the path in front that led back to the town.
He barked a mirthless laugh. She could have done this for the people of Sardorf all along. She could have given them free access in and out of the forest, bringing the enchantment back just for that one evening every month when the full moon reigned overhead.
But no, she hadn’t allowed them an ounce of freedom. She had stolen their entire lives without even a thought for them, only for herself. He stood by what he had told her. She was no better than any of the Gods she hated so much. She was just like her brother and her father. None of them cared for anything other than themselves, and they would do whatever it took to achieve their own wishes.
Garren marched his way back to Haldis’s, still seething with anger.
Upon entering the inviting place he had called home these past weeks, he was greeted with the scent of roasted meat and herbs. His stomach grumbled in response, reminding him that it had been an entire day since he last ate, a day full of draining pursuits–both physical and mental.
“I was beginning to think you hadn’t made it out of your fight with that beast.” Haldis was in her usual spot by the fire. “And then when the full moon came and still you had not come out of the forest…well, I feared the worst.”
Garren’s nostrils flared. “You’ve known. This entire time, I’ve been searching for answers, countless hours spent trying to understand this place, and you’ve known everything.”
“They were not my stories to tell. Ultimately, she had to be the one to tell you, in her own time.” Haldis set aside her knitting to look up at him. “Come sit by the fire and have yourself some stew.”
Garren sighed, some of the tension in his neck and shoulders easing as he joined the elderly woman by the fire.
He served himself a bowl of the hearty meal, practically inhaling it before returning for another helping and settling into the chair beside her.
“How are you so calm about all this?” he finally asked.
