Embers of the Lost
Chapter 16: Mokai Omamake

After bidding farewell to one another, Lily watched Quinn, Axel and Misha vanish into the distance.

“So, how are we going to hunt down a legend not many have ever seen?” Kiki asked.

“With a lot of luck probably.”

“We don’t get much of that.”

Lily chortled at the comment and nodded, Kiki had a point.

“When we escaped Mythanissiam and ended up on the beach, I thought I saw it.” Lily admitted.

“What?! Why didn’t you say something?”

“It’s a legend, I thought I was hallucinating.” Lily defended. “I thought I had resigned myself to death and so I was seeing Death’s horse waiting for me.”

“And now you actually have resigned yourself to die, you think you’ll be able to replace it?” Kiki asked bluntly.

“What? I’m not…”

“Lily.” Kiki fluttered up to hover in front of her as she curled her lip. “You’ve just waged war on at least two races. You know we aren’t going to survive this.”

Kiki’s green eyes met Lily’s steadily until Lily couldn’t hold her gaze any longer and looked away. “I know I’ve signed your life to this too, I’m sorry Kiki.”

“I haven’t once argued against it? I just want to make sure that you know what you are doing and are ok with it.”

Lily smiled softly at the sentiment.

“Everything has felt hollow since Oscar died.” Kiki continued. “I want the Byrne’s to suffer or fail at the very least. I want mum and dad to be safe. I want Dia to be free of her father. I want Xalina and Tanith to be able to have their freedom as well as their relationship. I don’t want everyone to live in fear of others like you have.” Kiki butted her head gently against Lily’s forehead. “I am by your side, one hundred percent of the way, until the day we can’t go on any more. I will fight as best as I can and help every moment that I’m able.”

“Ki…”

“You are so strong Lil, and I am so proud that I get to be your companion. I know Oscar felt the same.” Kiki needed to stop. If she didn’t, Lily was certainly going to burst into tears over the words that were considerably kinder than the ones living in her own head. “I just ask… that I get to scratch Finnigan’s face plenty before we turn him into a mouse.”

Lily couldn’t stop the bark of laughter that left her as she watched the mischievous aura come back to Kiki who wiggled her eyebrows and flew back down to the floor with her head held high.

“Deal?”

“Deal.”

Lily bumped her forehead against Kiki’s with a small smile lingering on her lips.

“So, we start at the caves and work our way inland?” Kiki concluded as she slunk around Lily’s shoulders and draped over one ready for the walk she obviously wasn’t joining.

“And anyone we see, we scare,” Lily agreed, finally taking a step off the patch of surviving greenery in her environment. Bluebells sprouted in wake of her feet, her magic instinctively trying to replenish the home she knew. She was tired though, and after a few minutes, the flowers stopped following her and faded into the distance.

“We can help with that.”

Lily jumped at the rough, gravelly voice that growled through the charred world around her. Looking around, she spotted a skull looking back at her from a bundle of matted fur and debris. A wolf muzzle and face in skull form, furry ears flicking lazily above it showing she wasn’t hallucinating. Orange eyes looked out from where there should have been hollow darkness and watched Lily with pinpoint focus.

“The Macellavir?” She whispered bemused.

“Not quite.” The beast spoke, drawing itself to its feet and stretching. The pile of fur and debris, it surmised, was the other two Lily had seen, and she ended up being watched by another two skulls; the deer was just as off putting as the wolves. “Though, we are Death. Mokai Omamake to be precise.”

Lily couldn’t stop the instinctive step back she took as the beast closed the distance between them. She could feel the chill of lifelessness radiating off it. She was certain that if the ground beneath it hadn’t been charred so badly, the beast would be leaving behind a dead footprint with each step.

“If you are Death, why would you help me stop a war?” Lily’s voice cracked.

The wolfen beast sat in front of her, tall enough that its muzzle was level with her chest and the fluffy of its fur made it a bulk to get past.

“Tell me,” It started. “What do you think ‘death’ is, fairy?”

Was that a trick question? Lily’s eyebrow raised as she glanced at Kiki. Her mind went back to Oscar, and to those who had died in the fire she had set. Guilt and misery surrounded her heart as she answered.

“The end.”

“Of one life, but it’s also the start of another.” The beast explained. “Souls don’t die, they spend their time in a spirit world created and run by the gods of beginnings and endings.”

“Gods?” Lily queried. Was this like the fables that ancient non-magic humans believed had control over their lives?

“Well, that’s what they call themselves. They liked the word.” The beast shrugged its shoulders as one of the others behind laughed lightly. “They are merely beings who help manage the balance of the world, though usually they are arrogant and annoying because they think they are important.”

“Death,” it continued, “is merely the movement of your soul away from the body it’s currently in. We,” it motioned towards the other two behind it who were closing in to join the conversation. “Are merely guides who watch over those close to death and help them move from this life to the spirit world.”

Lily stood motionless for a moment with her mind attempting to catch up. Managing the balance of the world? If they’d never stopped the war, did that mean it just wasn’t big enough to upset the balance? What even was ‘balance’? Balance between what??

“So, you’re here to guide me to my death?”

“No.”

“To help with the balance of the world?”

“No.”

“Then… what does this have to do with me?”

“Nothing. You freed us, therefore we owe you a debt.”

Rolling her eyes, Lily shook her head. “Why couldn’t you have just said that?!” The beast in front of her merely shrugged in response, gaining a small groan from the female. As if she needed more things to think about at this point in time! Though, she had to admit that having deathly companions around her would help with the image she was going to have to create.

“Weren’t there five of you?” It was posed as a question, but Lily would never forget how many had been there to tear Cyrus to pieces after they were freed.

“They went home.”

“Ok.” She said after realising she wasn’t getting any elaboration on that response, “If you are Death, you must know where the Morequacor is?”

“Why would we?” The second lupine beast spoke, a touch of femininity to the growl.

“Because it’s Death’s horse?”

The cervine beast snorted in derision. “It is not. That thing was once a unicorn that’s been mutilated by a parasitic abomination created by the gods.”

Oh, this was all just too much. Lily hung her head forward and closed her eyes. “It’s still the next part of my plan so I need to replace it.”

“Then maybe you are marked for death.” The original beast spoke again. “Everyone who has dabbled with that creature has died. Cyrus would have done as well if he wasn’t elongating his life and cheating death.”

“Well, he’s dead now because of the power he used.” The second lupine beast snarled, causing a sickening shiver to run down Lily’s spine at the memory. She never wanted to witness something like that again.

“If you do come with me, no more killing people… ok?” Her voice almost faltered at the orange eyes that settled on her. Who was she to tell death what to do? Still, she straightened her back to show her determination that her word was something she wanted to stick to.

“You think you can tell us what to do?” The cervine beast challenged.

“I don’t imagine I could tell anyone what to do,” Lily mumbled. “I’m asking you. Please. I want to replace a way that doesn’t cost any more lives.”

“So naive,” Cervine grumbled.

“Yes, but I think they’d like her.” The first chortled, gaining a shrug from the second lupine beast.

“They would.”

Who was ‘they’? It didn’t matter. Lily had too much to think about already, and right now she needed to keep moving. She wasn’t sure how long she had left before this war was supposed to start, but having destroyed the fairies’ home, it could theoretically start at any moment.

Lily needed to establish herself as the priority to stop.

“Ok?” She repeated, trying to keep herself looking confident in front of the horrific creatures. They surveyed her for a moment before nodding. Releasing a breath Lily did not realise she had been holding, she let herself relax a little. “Do you have names I can call you by?”

“Shi.” The original and slightly larger of the two lupine beasts replied.

“Savu.” The cervine beast informed.

“Marana.” The second lupine beast said.

Nodding along with the names while trying to commit them to memory, Lily smiled softly. “Well, it’s… nice to meet you all. I’m Lily, this is Kiki.”

“Lily is a symbol of purity… you want to be evil, you are not to be pure.” Marana informed her as they trotted closer and walked around her. “You should think about another name. Like, Rosa Black like the black roses of death?”

“I don’t really want to change my name.” Lily hesitated.

“It would be more for the stories that you want people to tell. If you grew black roses wherever you had been it would become an ominous tell that villainy had been around and that would help spread rumours and fear.” Shi explained.

“That’s not a bad idea.” Kiki chimed in. “It would allow you to leave a mark without having to make huge scenes at times.”

“Make them believe you could be right behind them and they would never even know.” Savu added.

Lily nodded slowly at the idea. Any and all little tricks and illusions that helped her seem worse than she was were certainly worth trying. Especially if she left behind those black roses whenever she destroyed a location or took a Byrne out of the community.

“Ok. Black roses I can do.” Lily finally agreed. “Ki, can you catch up with Axel and the others and let them know to add that symbol into the stories. Say there were black roses in the fires I’ve set, things like that.”

Kiki nodded. “I’ll meet you at the caves?”

“I wouldn’t carry on without you.” Lily leaned forward to kiss the feline’s nose before she flew off to replace Axel and the others. Lily turned back to the Mokai. “We should travel in plain sight but at a distance so the witches can spot us but not reach us.”

“Yes. And you should ride me.” Savu motioned to their back. “You’ll look like you are in command of a steed of death while flanked by two deathly hounds.”

“That would be an intimidating sight…” Lily mused. “Is it suitable for me to be on your back though?”

Savu snorted in laughter. “You are far too polite to be a villain.” Lily flushed in embarrassment. Savu walked in front of her and motioned towards their back, signalling Lily to jump up. Awkwardly, and none too gracefully, she leaped up to flop over the creature’s back before swinging a leg over and righting herself. Savu was considerably taller than Axel or Quinn had been and Lily could confirm that she felt more intimidating already being able to look down at others through the large set of antlers protruding from the top of Savu’s skull.

Adjusting herself a little, Lily held out a hand towards the ground and focused until black roses began to pop up through the dead undergrowth. She continued until there was a small patch of them reaching back to the trails of bluebells. If anyone came to investigate, they would see the obvious change where she had walked. Hopefully that would fuel the belief that she had changed and become darker as well.