Five Things That Might Have Happened On the Night Following the Eclipse
Title: Five Things That Might Have Happened On the Night Following the Eclipse
Author: r_grayjoy
Characters: Cain, Glitch, Raw, DG, Azkadellia, & Ahamo in various combinations (one Cain/Glitch)
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 2,770
Summary: A series of five unconnected ficlets all taking place in or near Azkadellia's tower on the night following the end of the miniseries.
Author's Notes: A couple of weeks ago, Demilo's Wagon on IJ issued the drabble prompt "Azkadellia's tower." I couldn't seem to write a drabble for it to save my life; everything I started to write tried to grow on me. Eventually I took several of my false starts and half-formed ideas, and turned them into this.
Five Things That Might Have Happened On the Night Following the Eclipse
1.
The hall was packed to the brim with people, all reveling in the end of the Sorceress' reign. At one end of the room, a long table held enough food to feed an army, and wine flowed like water. At the other end, there was music, dancing, and raucous laughter. There would be time for quieter reflection and remembrance later; tonight was for celebration.
As he walked though the crowd, Ahamo spotted his wife and daughters speaking with several friends, both new and old… and apart from it all, a man in a long coat and a wide-brimmed hat leaned against the far wall in a casual pose and observed the goings on. With his past as a tin man, his ties to the former resistance, and his friendship with DG, Ahamo knew that this man would be important in the rebuilding and reshaping of the O.Z. -- whether he realized it yet or not. Ahamo made his way over directly.
Stepping up beside Cain, Ahamo said, "Wyatt Cain, isn't it? I believe I heard that you were once a tin man."
"That's right," Cain replied with a slight incline of his head. He projected an air of authority and standoffishness; clearly he was a hard man to get to know. Yet DG had won his trust in only a few short days. Ahamo wondered what it would take for him to do the same.
Careful to keep his smile friendly and his tone inviting, Ahamo remarked, "Your experience and skill must have been a great help to DG on her journey."
"We all did our part," was Cain's curt reply. It was difficult to tell whether he was being modest or simply tight-lipped. Likely it was a good deal of both.
"I should apologize for leaving you to the Longcoats back in the Realm of the Unwanted," Ahamo said. "I had to get DG out of there safely, and I couldn't risk sticking around to help you."
"In your position, I suppose I'd have done the same," Cain conceded. "You didn't know the rest of us, and were under no obligation to help."
Leaning in closer, Ahamo allowed his expression to become more earnest and his voice to drop. "Despite what you might believe, it's not my nature or habit to hand good people over to Longcoats. There were plans set into motion many years ago that needed to come to fruition at all costs. Some things are more important than our immediate desires."
Cain didn't reply, but his eyes slid to the far corner of the room where his son stood speaking with a small circle of people. It took tremendous effort on Ahamo's part to keep his own gaze fixed on Cain and prevent it from traveling to his family as he said, "We've both made great sacrifices, Wyatt Cain."
When Cain turned to look at Ahamo again, Ahamo thought he saw the ice in Cain's eyes crack ever so slightly. After a tense moment, Cain asked, "Aren't you mad as hell that you missed so much of DG's life?"
"I regret that I was unable to watch her grow into the beautiful woman she's become," Ahamo replied carefully. "But I'm thankful for the opportunity to spend time with her now, and I'm very much looking forward to getting to know her."
Cain looked to his son once more, seemed to consider Ahamo's words, and nodded slowly. Good; he understood. "Our enemies may have stolen our past, but that can't be changed," Ahamo said. "What's important is that the future belongs to us now."
2.
As Glitch awkwardly made his way through the darkness, he thought that he would never understand why the gods had seen fit to give the O.Z. two suns but only one moon to see by. Cautiously, he lifted a low-hanging branch out of his path and successfully ducked beneath it, only to be tripped up a moment later by an unseen root. Cursing under his breath, he righted himself, then froze in place upon spotting a figure a short distance away.
"Who's there?" Glitch called out.
"Glitch? It's Raw," came a familiar, low voice.
Glitch let out the breath he'd been holding. "Oh. Raw. Good. For a minute I thought you might be a stray Longcoat that the resistance missed."
The figure moved nearer until Glitch could see the moonlight glinting in Raw's eyes. "No," Raw said, sounding amused, "definitely not a Longcoat."
"So, what are you doing out here?" Glitch asked.
Raw glanced in the direction of the tower and shrugged. "Already spent enough time in that place."
"Yeah," Glitch agreed. He didn't even know how many annuals Raw had been held captive in Azkadellia's dungeons. It made sense that he would have no desire to spend any more time in the tower than necessary, even if it was no longer in Azkadellia's hands. Glitch shared the sentiment in an odd way. His marbles had been stolen from him here, taken prisoner and forced to do Azkadellia's bidding against his will or even his knowledge. Glitch was less than enthusiastic about the place as well. "I know."
Raw's only response was to smile at Glitch in that way that said he understood.
Glitch was struck then by his friend's quiet intelligence and depth of compassion. Raw was easy to overlook, yet Glitch thought his solid presence was one of the things that had held their group together over the past week. Without thinking, Glitch said, "I'm glad you're here."
Raw smiled again, more broadly this time, and placed one hand on Glitch's shoulder. "Come. There is a celebration. Food. Drink. Music. We can return to the tower in the morning."
As Raw steered him through the woods, Glitch decided that it was much easier to find one's way through the darkness when there was a Viewer at one's side. Who needed moons?
3.
"Ambrose."
The queen's former advisor stood in the brain room, gazing at the oddly illuminated tank as though all of life's answers were contained within. In a way, Cain supposed they were.
"Ambrose?"
Still no response. It was clear that, despite the proximity of his brain, the man's thoughts were a million miles away.
"Glitch."
Cain spoke the name quietly but firmly, and at last Glitch started and wheeled around, seemingly jerked back to reality.
Glitch blinked a few times before focusing on Cain's face. "Oh. Cain," he said, giving a nervous, humorless little laugh. "I was just…" Apparently having no way to complete the sentence, Glitch tailed off and looked down at the floor guiltily.
"I knew you'd be here," Cain said.
"Am I that predictable?"
"No. Not usually."
"Well. That's good to know. I'd hate to be boring," Glitch said. He smiled lopsidedly and tried to appear unperturbed, but the slight catch in his voice gave him away.
Moving closer to Glitch, Cain said, "Hey. It's not going anywhere. It's been safe and sound in here for annuals. It's not gonna disappear tonight."
Glitch shook his head. "It's not that. Well, it's not just that. Although I am a little afraid to let it out of my sight, I suppose."
"Then what?" Cain asked.
Looking back to the glass tank, Glitch sighed. "I spent the last decade trying to find my marbles and get my life back. I have everything I wanted, right? The Sorceress is defeated, the Queen is back in power, I have my memories again -- or I will have. So…" Glitch turned to face Cain again and shrugged, "what now?"
Cain met Glitch's gaze and held it. "I know one thing. You might have found your past here, but your future isn't in this room."
"Yeah? Then where is it?"
With a slight shrug, Cain replied, "Wherever you want it to be."
"Anywhere I want?" Glitch asked, the ghost of an impish smile tugging at his lips.
"I imagine so."
Glitch shifted his stance, moving in slightly closer to Cain until Cain could feel Glitch's body heat and see the mingled hesitation and mischief that flashed in Glitch's eyes. "If it's alright with you," Glitch said, "I think I'd like to start looking for it in your room."
Grinning down at Glitch, Cain decided right then and there that Glitch's plan was perfectly fine with him.
4.
How she'd endured the evening, Azkadellia would never know.
She'd spent it with her newly reunited family and their closest allies, feeling frightened, out of place, and on guard the entire time. Every minute she'd half expected someone to accuse her of malice and duplicity, to say that her remorse was nothing more than a thin veneer. No one had, but no one had truly treated her as though she were one of them, either. It was clear that it would take considerable time and effort to fully win their trust.
Nonetheless, she'd stayed until everyone else had grown weary and retired for the night. And then Azkadellia hadn't been able to get away fast enough. She hadn't gone to bed, though. There was far too much on her mind to allow for peaceful sleep, so instead she found herself wandering the halls of the tower out of old habit.
Lost in though, Azkadellia rounded a corner and came unexpectedly face to face with the Viewer that had befriended DG. Gasping in surprise, Azkadellia stumbled back a few feet.
"…Azkadellia?" the Viewer asked, appearing somewhat taken aback by the encounter himself.
He was tall and proud and fierce-looking, and Azkadellia was suddenly very aware of the lateness of the hour and the fact that they were quite alone in this remote corridor. Still, she quickly recovered her poise, pulled herself up to her full height, and acknowledged coolly, "Your name is Raw, I believe?"
"Yes," Raw said, then cocked his head to the side and studied Azkadellia silently.
It was unnerving, to say the least. He gazed at her as though he could see right through her flesh and straight down to her tainted core. His hands twitched, and Azkadellia wondered if Raw itched to strike her, to choke her, to rid the O.Z. of her influence entirely. She was hardly defenseless of course, but the full extent and control of her magic without the witch's influence had yet to be tested, and even magic wasn't always a defense against sheer brute force and strength of will.
"Are you going to hurt me?" Azkadellia asked, feeling strangely detached from the scene.
This time Raw shook his head, and Azkadellia thought she saw a hint of a smile cross his features. Peculiar.
"Why not?" Azkadellia pressed. "My Longcoats and Alchemists must have hurt dozens of your kind. You were a slave in my dungeons yourself." It was less than wise to goad him, she knew, yet she couldn't seem to stop. Perhaps it was wrong, but it felt good to not play the part of the penitent little girl desperate for forgiveness and acceptance, to embrace blame and face whatever punishment the Viewer chose to dole out.
"Not yours," Raw said.
Azkadellia blinked, confused. "What?"
Before Azkadellia could even sense an attack coming, Raw lunged forward and grabbed her hand. She tried to pull away, but he held fast. "Not yours," he repeated after a moment, and Azkadellia looked up to meet his gaze. "The Longcoats. The dungeons. Not yours."
"But--" Azkadellia began, not entirely certain what she was protesting.
"They belonged to the witch. The witch is gone," Raw said softly.
Azkadellia realized then that Raw's expression was gentle, his tone genuine. He meant what he was saying, and he might very well be the only one who truly believed Azkadellia was no longer the Sorceress. A prickling had started behind Azkadellia's eyes, and she reached up with her free hand to swipe at the moisture forming on her cheek. "What if she comes back?" she asked, her voice suddenly small and young.
"Then we will stand together against her."
Raw sounded so sincere that Azkadellia couldn't help but believe him. She didn't know if he could truly protect her if the witch returned, much less shield her from her own inner turmoil, but right here, right now, Azkadellia felt inexplicably safe with Raw beside her. It was strange that she'd initially taken him to be a fierce, vengeful beast, but now, only a few minutes later, saw him as quite the opposite. Yet Azkadellia of all people was well aware that appearances could be deceiving.
5.
Cain couldn't sleep.
After everything that had happened in the past week, he should be passing out cold at the first opportunity. Yet when he'd laid in bed in a safe, quiet place at last, sleep wouldn't come. So instead he was wandering the darkened corridors of the west tower, mulling over the events of the evening.
As soon as the eclipse had ended, everyone on both sides of the battle had known that Azkadellia had lost. It had been as obvious as the suns in the sky. Disheartened, most of Azkadellia's supporters had surrendered, and it hadn't taken long for the resistance to secure the tower.
When it was all over, DG had gone to reacquaint herself with her family, Raw had wandered off to find Kalm and free the rest of his people, and Glitch… who knew where Glitch had gone. Cain had left in search of his son, and, upon finding Jeb a bit bloody but very much alive, had joined the resistance in celebrating their victory and honoring the dead. It had been a hell of a party. Cain had returned to the tower well past nightfall, thoroughly drained.
And still he couldn't sleep.
Abruptly, Cain spotted light coming from an open doorway further down the hall and, wondering who else could be up at this hour, moved in for a closer look. The doorway, Cain found, led into a small parlor. The source of the light was a fire that blazed cheerfully in the hearth and created irregular shadows that danced across the features of the room's sole occupant. DG sat on an overstuffed sofa, one leg tucked up beneath her, chewing on her thumb nail and staring into the flames.
Cain cleared his throat to announce his presence. DG instantly looked up and squinted into the darkened entryway. "Hello?" she called.
Stepping into the light, Cain said, "Heya kid. What're you doing up?"
"Mmf. I couldn't sleep," DG replied. "I guess I have too much to think about; my brain won't shut off."
"I know the feeling," Cain said, taking a seat in the armchair across from DG.
"You know, it's funny," DG continued. "We just spent the past week racing madly across the O.Z. We've been captured by Longcoats, pursued by Papay, mobbed by mobats… We should be completely exhausted and ready to sleep for a week!"
Cain only grinned, amused by how closely DG's words matched his own thoughts.
"DG?" A new voice came from the doorway, and a moment later Raw stepped into the room. "Cain."
"Hey, Raw," DG greeted. "Are you all right?"
Raw shrugged. "Couldn't sleep."
"Yeah, us either," DG said.
"Might as well have a seat," Cain said, and, as Raw settled himself on the opposite end of the sofa from DG, Cain found himself grinning again.
"How's Kalm?" DG asked Raw.
"Kalm is well. He was freed before the alchemists could do any permanent harm. He is with our people now."
DG smiled. "I'm glad."
"Hello? Uhm. Raw? DG?"
Cain turned his head toward the doorway. "Glitch?" he said, before he could remember to call his friend 'Ambrose'.
"Hi all," Glitch said, moving toward them with a sheepish expression. "I, uh--"
"Couldn't sleep," four voices said in unison.
Flashing a bright grin to the assembled group, Glitch asked, "So is this a private party, or can anyone join?"
"Come on in," Cain answered. "Welcome to the first nightly meeting of the O.Z. Insomniacs Club."
Glitch flopped into the chair across from Raw, and the four fell into easy, spirited conversation.
As the night wore on, Cain was overcome with a peculiar sense that all was as it should be. They'd all suffered losses and undergone changes, and there was annuals of work to be done. But the witch was gone, the Queen had regained her throne, Jeb was alive, and at the end of the day, Cain was here with DG, Glitch, and Raw. They'd only known each other a week, yet somehow an undeniable bond had sprung up between them. As long as it remained, Cain didn't think he'd have trouble sleeping again.
Author: r_grayjoy
Characters: Cain, Glitch, Raw, DG, Azkadellia, & Ahamo in various combinations (one Cain/Glitch)
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 2,770
Summary: A series of five unconnected ficlets all taking place in or near Azkadellia's tower on the night following the end of the miniseries.
Author's Notes: A couple of weeks ago, Demilo's Wagon on IJ issued the drabble prompt "Azkadellia's tower." I couldn't seem to write a drabble for it to save my life; everything I started to write tried to grow on me. Eventually I took several of my false starts and half-formed ideas, and turned them into this.
Five Things That Might Have Happened On the Night Following the Eclipse
1.
The hall was packed to the brim with people, all reveling in the end of the Sorceress' reign. At one end of the room, a long table held enough food to feed an army, and wine flowed like water. At the other end, there was music, dancing, and raucous laughter. There would be time for quieter reflection and remembrance later; tonight was for celebration.
As he walked though the crowd, Ahamo spotted his wife and daughters speaking with several friends, both new and old… and apart from it all, a man in a long coat and a wide-brimmed hat leaned against the far wall in a casual pose and observed the goings on. With his past as a tin man, his ties to the former resistance, and his friendship with DG, Ahamo knew that this man would be important in the rebuilding and reshaping of the O.Z. -- whether he realized it yet or not. Ahamo made his way over directly.
Stepping up beside Cain, Ahamo said, "Wyatt Cain, isn't it? I believe I heard that you were once a tin man."
"That's right," Cain replied with a slight incline of his head. He projected an air of authority and standoffishness; clearly he was a hard man to get to know. Yet DG had won his trust in only a few short days. Ahamo wondered what it would take for him to do the same.
Careful to keep his smile friendly and his tone inviting, Ahamo remarked, "Your experience and skill must have been a great help to DG on her journey."
"We all did our part," was Cain's curt reply. It was difficult to tell whether he was being modest or simply tight-lipped. Likely it was a good deal of both.
"I should apologize for leaving you to the Longcoats back in the Realm of the Unwanted," Ahamo said. "I had to get DG out of there safely, and I couldn't risk sticking around to help you."
"In your position, I suppose I'd have done the same," Cain conceded. "You didn't know the rest of us, and were under no obligation to help."
Leaning in closer, Ahamo allowed his expression to become more earnest and his voice to drop. "Despite what you might believe, it's not my nature or habit to hand good people over to Longcoats. There were plans set into motion many years ago that needed to come to fruition at all costs. Some things are more important than our immediate desires."
Cain didn't reply, but his eyes slid to the far corner of the room where his son stood speaking with a small circle of people. It took tremendous effort on Ahamo's part to keep his own gaze fixed on Cain and prevent it from traveling to his family as he said, "We've both made great sacrifices, Wyatt Cain."
When Cain turned to look at Ahamo again, Ahamo thought he saw the ice in Cain's eyes crack ever so slightly. After a tense moment, Cain asked, "Aren't you mad as hell that you missed so much of DG's life?"
"I regret that I was unable to watch her grow into the beautiful woman she's become," Ahamo replied carefully. "But I'm thankful for the opportunity to spend time with her now, and I'm very much looking forward to getting to know her."
Cain looked to his son once more, seemed to consider Ahamo's words, and nodded slowly. Good; he understood. "Our enemies may have stolen our past, but that can't be changed," Ahamo said. "What's important is that the future belongs to us now."
2.
As Glitch awkwardly made his way through the darkness, he thought that he would never understand why the gods had seen fit to give the O.Z. two suns but only one moon to see by. Cautiously, he lifted a low-hanging branch out of his path and successfully ducked beneath it, only to be tripped up a moment later by an unseen root. Cursing under his breath, he righted himself, then froze in place upon spotting a figure a short distance away.
"Who's there?" Glitch called out.
"Glitch? It's Raw," came a familiar, low voice.
Glitch let out the breath he'd been holding. "Oh. Raw. Good. For a minute I thought you might be a stray Longcoat that the resistance missed."
The figure moved nearer until Glitch could see the moonlight glinting in Raw's eyes. "No," Raw said, sounding amused, "definitely not a Longcoat."
"So, what are you doing out here?" Glitch asked.
Raw glanced in the direction of the tower and shrugged. "Already spent enough time in that place."
"Yeah," Glitch agreed. He didn't even know how many annuals Raw had been held captive in Azkadellia's dungeons. It made sense that he would have no desire to spend any more time in the tower than necessary, even if it was no longer in Azkadellia's hands. Glitch shared the sentiment in an odd way. His marbles had been stolen from him here, taken prisoner and forced to do Azkadellia's bidding against his will or even his knowledge. Glitch was less than enthusiastic about the place as well. "I know."
Raw's only response was to smile at Glitch in that way that said he understood.
Glitch was struck then by his friend's quiet intelligence and depth of compassion. Raw was easy to overlook, yet Glitch thought his solid presence was one of the things that had held their group together over the past week. Without thinking, Glitch said, "I'm glad you're here."
Raw smiled again, more broadly this time, and placed one hand on Glitch's shoulder. "Come. There is a celebration. Food. Drink. Music. We can return to the tower in the morning."
As Raw steered him through the woods, Glitch decided that it was much easier to find one's way through the darkness when there was a Viewer at one's side. Who needed moons?
3.
"Ambrose."
The queen's former advisor stood in the brain room, gazing at the oddly illuminated tank as though all of life's answers were contained within. In a way, Cain supposed they were.
"Ambrose?"
Still no response. It was clear that, despite the proximity of his brain, the man's thoughts were a million miles away.
"Glitch."
Cain spoke the name quietly but firmly, and at last Glitch started and wheeled around, seemingly jerked back to reality.
Glitch blinked a few times before focusing on Cain's face. "Oh. Cain," he said, giving a nervous, humorless little laugh. "I was just…" Apparently having no way to complete the sentence, Glitch tailed off and looked down at the floor guiltily.
"I knew you'd be here," Cain said.
"Am I that predictable?"
"No. Not usually."
"Well. That's good to know. I'd hate to be boring," Glitch said. He smiled lopsidedly and tried to appear unperturbed, but the slight catch in his voice gave him away.
Moving closer to Glitch, Cain said, "Hey. It's not going anywhere. It's been safe and sound in here for annuals. It's not gonna disappear tonight."
Glitch shook his head. "It's not that. Well, it's not just that. Although I am a little afraid to let it out of my sight, I suppose."
"Then what?" Cain asked.
Looking back to the glass tank, Glitch sighed. "I spent the last decade trying to find my marbles and get my life back. I have everything I wanted, right? The Sorceress is defeated, the Queen is back in power, I have my memories again -- or I will have. So…" Glitch turned to face Cain again and shrugged, "what now?"
Cain met Glitch's gaze and held it. "I know one thing. You might have found your past here, but your future isn't in this room."
"Yeah? Then where is it?"
With a slight shrug, Cain replied, "Wherever you want it to be."
"Anywhere I want?" Glitch asked, the ghost of an impish smile tugging at his lips.
"I imagine so."
Glitch shifted his stance, moving in slightly closer to Cain until Cain could feel Glitch's body heat and see the mingled hesitation and mischief that flashed in Glitch's eyes. "If it's alright with you," Glitch said, "I think I'd like to start looking for it in your room."
Grinning down at Glitch, Cain decided right then and there that Glitch's plan was perfectly fine with him.
4.
How she'd endured the evening, Azkadellia would never know.
She'd spent it with her newly reunited family and their closest allies, feeling frightened, out of place, and on guard the entire time. Every minute she'd half expected someone to accuse her of malice and duplicity, to say that her remorse was nothing more than a thin veneer. No one had, but no one had truly treated her as though she were one of them, either. It was clear that it would take considerable time and effort to fully win their trust.
Nonetheless, she'd stayed until everyone else had grown weary and retired for the night. And then Azkadellia hadn't been able to get away fast enough. She hadn't gone to bed, though. There was far too much on her mind to allow for peaceful sleep, so instead she found herself wandering the halls of the tower out of old habit.
Lost in though, Azkadellia rounded a corner and came unexpectedly face to face with the Viewer that had befriended DG. Gasping in surprise, Azkadellia stumbled back a few feet.
"…Azkadellia?" the Viewer asked, appearing somewhat taken aback by the encounter himself.
He was tall and proud and fierce-looking, and Azkadellia was suddenly very aware of the lateness of the hour and the fact that they were quite alone in this remote corridor. Still, she quickly recovered her poise, pulled herself up to her full height, and acknowledged coolly, "Your name is Raw, I believe?"
"Yes," Raw said, then cocked his head to the side and studied Azkadellia silently.
It was unnerving, to say the least. He gazed at her as though he could see right through her flesh and straight down to her tainted core. His hands twitched, and Azkadellia wondered if Raw itched to strike her, to choke her, to rid the O.Z. of her influence entirely. She was hardly defenseless of course, but the full extent and control of her magic without the witch's influence had yet to be tested, and even magic wasn't always a defense against sheer brute force and strength of will.
"Are you going to hurt me?" Azkadellia asked, feeling strangely detached from the scene.
This time Raw shook his head, and Azkadellia thought she saw a hint of a smile cross his features. Peculiar.
"Why not?" Azkadellia pressed. "My Longcoats and Alchemists must have hurt dozens of your kind. You were a slave in my dungeons yourself." It was less than wise to goad him, she knew, yet she couldn't seem to stop. Perhaps it was wrong, but it felt good to not play the part of the penitent little girl desperate for forgiveness and acceptance, to embrace blame and face whatever punishment the Viewer chose to dole out.
"Not yours," Raw said.
Azkadellia blinked, confused. "What?"
Before Azkadellia could even sense an attack coming, Raw lunged forward and grabbed her hand. She tried to pull away, but he held fast. "Not yours," he repeated after a moment, and Azkadellia looked up to meet his gaze. "The Longcoats. The dungeons. Not yours."
"But--" Azkadellia began, not entirely certain what she was protesting.
"They belonged to the witch. The witch is gone," Raw said softly.
Azkadellia realized then that Raw's expression was gentle, his tone genuine. He meant what he was saying, and he might very well be the only one who truly believed Azkadellia was no longer the Sorceress. A prickling had started behind Azkadellia's eyes, and she reached up with her free hand to swipe at the moisture forming on her cheek. "What if she comes back?" she asked, her voice suddenly small and young.
"Then we will stand together against her."
Raw sounded so sincere that Azkadellia couldn't help but believe him. She didn't know if he could truly protect her if the witch returned, much less shield her from her own inner turmoil, but right here, right now, Azkadellia felt inexplicably safe with Raw beside her. It was strange that she'd initially taken him to be a fierce, vengeful beast, but now, only a few minutes later, saw him as quite the opposite. Yet Azkadellia of all people was well aware that appearances could be deceiving.
5.
Cain couldn't sleep.
After everything that had happened in the past week, he should be passing out cold at the first opportunity. Yet when he'd laid in bed in a safe, quiet place at last, sleep wouldn't come. So instead he was wandering the darkened corridors of the west tower, mulling over the events of the evening.
As soon as the eclipse had ended, everyone on both sides of the battle had known that Azkadellia had lost. It had been as obvious as the suns in the sky. Disheartened, most of Azkadellia's supporters had surrendered, and it hadn't taken long for the resistance to secure the tower.
When it was all over, DG had gone to reacquaint herself with her family, Raw had wandered off to find Kalm and free the rest of his people, and Glitch… who knew where Glitch had gone. Cain had left in search of his son, and, upon finding Jeb a bit bloody but very much alive, had joined the resistance in celebrating their victory and honoring the dead. It had been a hell of a party. Cain had returned to the tower well past nightfall, thoroughly drained.
And still he couldn't sleep.
Abruptly, Cain spotted light coming from an open doorway further down the hall and, wondering who else could be up at this hour, moved in for a closer look. The doorway, Cain found, led into a small parlor. The source of the light was a fire that blazed cheerfully in the hearth and created irregular shadows that danced across the features of the room's sole occupant. DG sat on an overstuffed sofa, one leg tucked up beneath her, chewing on her thumb nail and staring into the flames.
Cain cleared his throat to announce his presence. DG instantly looked up and squinted into the darkened entryway. "Hello?" she called.
Stepping into the light, Cain said, "Heya kid. What're you doing up?"
"Mmf. I couldn't sleep," DG replied. "I guess I have too much to think about; my brain won't shut off."
"I know the feeling," Cain said, taking a seat in the armchair across from DG.
"You know, it's funny," DG continued. "We just spent the past week racing madly across the O.Z. We've been captured by Longcoats, pursued by Papay, mobbed by mobats… We should be completely exhausted and ready to sleep for a week!"
Cain only grinned, amused by how closely DG's words matched his own thoughts.
"DG?" A new voice came from the doorway, and a moment later Raw stepped into the room. "Cain."
"Hey, Raw," DG greeted. "Are you all right?"
Raw shrugged. "Couldn't sleep."
"Yeah, us either," DG said.
"Might as well have a seat," Cain said, and, as Raw settled himself on the opposite end of the sofa from DG, Cain found himself grinning again.
"How's Kalm?" DG asked Raw.
"Kalm is well. He was freed before the alchemists could do any permanent harm. He is with our people now."
DG smiled. "I'm glad."
"Hello? Uhm. Raw? DG?"
Cain turned his head toward the doorway. "Glitch?" he said, before he could remember to call his friend 'Ambrose'.
"Hi all," Glitch said, moving toward them with a sheepish expression. "I, uh--"
"Couldn't sleep," four voices said in unison.
Flashing a bright grin to the assembled group, Glitch asked, "So is this a private party, or can anyone join?"
"Come on in," Cain answered. "Welcome to the first nightly meeting of the O.Z. Insomniacs Club."
Glitch flopped into the chair across from Raw, and the four fell into easy, spirited conversation.
As the night wore on, Cain was overcome with a peculiar sense that all was as it should be. They'd all suffered losses and undergone changes, and there was annuals of work to be done. But the witch was gone, the Queen had regained her throne, Jeb was alive, and at the end of the day, Cain was here with DG, Glitch, and Raw. They'd only known each other a week, yet somehow an undeniable bond had sprung up between them. As long as it remained, Cain didn't think he'd have trouble sleeping again.