Bloodlines of Archaea I. Afira
Leaving the Night of the Summer Solstice

The village was in ruins and countless funerals had been held, Tao was now in the hospital and I was still paralyzed, but the first battle was won. Maktu had agreed to run the island while we were away, or at least until Tao could stand. Everything was in order to leave and the sky was bright once more, but for some reason we stayed as long as we could, that is until Maktu had come to my bed in the town hospital and told me that we would need to leave today, the day of the summer solstice. “Why?” I had asked.

“The Shadows will be the weakest today, and the village will be the most hopeful,” he said, taking my hand and pulling me out of bed. I could stand for a moment before I collapsed once more, my excitement rushing away.

I had agreed to this. “We will leave at twilight,” I said, hoping I would be able to walk by then. At such point, Akuma walked into the room, bringing my favorite soup. No matter how thoughtful this was, his constant pestering bothered me, but I couldn’t let it show, so I thanked him and tried to eat it the best I could with my unmoving body. Maktu left the room with a smile, leaving Akuma and I alone.

Akuma laughed and began to pour the warm liquid down my throat, doing his best not to spill the boiling hot soup on me. Not that it mattered, I couldn’t feel it even if he had.

After he was done, he returned the bowl to the kitchen. He returned shortly with the rest of the heroes, who each greeted me, solemnly apologizing for not helping.

I laughed. “It’s fine,” I said. “You were a little busy.”

They each smiled at the thought of what they had been doing while I was stuck. The conversation eventually shifted to who had the best cuts from the battle, laughter and memories filled the room. I jumped in by saying, “hey, you all may have better cuts, but at least you can move your arms,” I said. Everyone paused for a moment, before agreeing that I won. I laughed at this.

The rest of the day went on this way, each of us crowded in the small room, filtering in and out once in a while for food and restroom breaks. After Hatya had shyly asked if I had to use the bathroom, I giggled and responded with, “probably, but I wouldn’t know,” Hatya then exploded in a guilty laugh, before leaving to grab a snack from the kitchen.

Throughout the day, I had attempted to stand and walk around, each time getting a little farther, but still falling eventually.

When the summer solstice festivities had begun, my bed was moved to the courtyard, where I could enjoy the festival with my fellow heroes. Maktu had been right, the village was hopeful during this time.

Fireworks exploded and people cheered. The festival was just beginning when it was time to leave. “We have to go,” I whispered to Akuma. I had managed to walk over to the long table of food, but needed to lean on it the moment I reached my destination. Akuma nodded, walking away to tell the rest of the heroes the news.

When they had each been gathered at the dock, we began boarding our large boat which had been stocked full of both food and water. The boat was more complicated than the one we normally sailed, but I had hope that Akuma and I could rely on the one time we had sailed this beautifully crafted ship with huge sails. Excitement flooded through my veins as I looked up, taking in its hand-carved wonder. Akuma stood next to me, marveling at its beauty. Onde walked up behind us, “it’s just a boat, you guys, come on.”

I rolled my eyes. “This is not just a boat, this is a ship,” I said.

“The ship of ships,” finished Akuma.

“I’m naming her Maofa,” I said distantly.

Onde seemed genuinely confused. “Alright,” he said moving around us and boarding the “boat.”

Once everyone had boarded Maofa, Akuma and I stood for one more moment to admire her beauty before boarding. “Alright, come on, Afi,” Akuma said. “Let’s get going.”

I nodded, taking one last glance at Maofa. “Maybe you’re-” my last few words were interrupted by a gigantic explosion, too big to be a firework. I jumped and looked back, utterly terrified. Akuma did the same. I gasped at the scene. The entire village had erupted in fire. The shadow creatures rained from the sky. I screamed and ran towards the village the best I could, tripping and falling but getting back up to continue running.

Akuma ran faster than I, coming closer and grabbing my arm. “Afi, stop,” he said firmly.

“Akuma, there are people dying.”

“Afi you’re going to get yourself killed.”

“But those are my people,” I said, falling to the ground. “I’m their queen.”

Akuma took me by the arm and lifted me to my feet, holding me in place at my shoulders with his strong hands. “Afi, you can’t always play hero,” he said and at that, another huge explosion erupted from the village.