Chapter Thirty-Seven: Silver Wounds Don’t Heal

I stared up into the rafters of the pine wood stave church. The batlike immortal assassin dropped from the belfry towards us. The immortal’s wings spread like a vast leather cloak, slowing the creature’s descent. It aimed massive claws on its toes at me as it dropped towards us. I could hear cries of alarm from the priests. Somebody was yelling my name. I shifted my weight and felt the dirt sliding under my feet. I had forgotten that stave churches had dirt floors. I tried to steady myself and failed. I was too unsteady after so many visions and so much trauma. I wobbled in place, unable to dodge without falling over. 

I realized that I was about to die. I didn’t want to die. I liked my new life. But what could I do? I had no way of stopping an immortal in combat. I couldn’t dodge, couldn’t even maintain my balance. Fiona and Vincent had been captured and couldn’t help me. I was going to die. 

Lynn hammered into my right hip and knocked us both out of the downward path of the assassin. I had forgotten that Lynn had a mystic sixth sense that defended her from danger. Could she extend it to others? Or was she just acting on instinct? We crashed to the hard packed dirt as the immortal carved huge gashes into the dirt where we had been. The assassin turned and swept a wing towards us. Lynn rolled out of the way, but the buffeting wing caught me and sent me tumbling across the ground. 

I tried to gather my senses and rally myself. But I wasn’t sure what to do. I had a single clasp knife. I was weak as water. And I wasn’t much of a fighter. Lynn could defend herself, but couldn’t fight. Amy was able to defend herself somewhat. But, like me, she had only a dagger. Laila and Ada had daggers as well, but I knew little about their combat abilities. 

My clasp knife was plated in silver. Which meant it could injure or kill the immortal, at least in theory. Amy’s knife was likewise silvered. I didn’t know if Ada or Laila’s had silver on their blades. 

I struggled to my feet as the immortal turned to face me. 

“You have been a thorn in my lord’s side for long enough, witch!” The assassin said.

“You realize that I can’t run?” I said. “That means all I can do is take you with me when you attack.”

I brandished my clasp dagger.

“You think that little thing is going to stop me?”

“I think silver wounds don’t heal.” I answered. 

The immortal reappraised the dagger in my hand, eyes narrowing. One thing I had learned about immortals is that they grew used to their immortality. They didn’t like to risk injuries that they couldn’t heal. 

The immortal sprang into the air, wings beating hard. It dodged a lunge from Amy as she charged at the immortal from behind. I wobbled in place. The assassin repositioned itself and prepared to lunge down at Amy. For her part, Amy skidded to a halt and spun back to face the immortal. I took a halting step forward, hoping to distract the assassin. 

I heard Ada yell, and then her dagger punched a hole in the immortal’s left wing. The assassin lost control of its upward motion and rolled to the left, away from us. The immortal touched down and reoriented itself. But I noticed the wing was already healing. Ada’s dagger had not been silver then. 

The assassin snarled and stalked towards me with great striding steps. I swung my dagger in a wide cut. The immortal kicked out and knocked me on my back. I couldn’t tell if I had landed my blow. I scrambled backward on my elbows. The assassin planted a clawed foot on my chest and stopped me cold. 

“No more games. Now you die.” 

The immortal’s wings shrank, and proper hands grew in their place. The rest of the assassin’s form retained its bat-like appearance. The immortal drew a heavy rondel dagger from its belt. It aimed the dagger at my face and raised the weapon in both hands. 

I had been right before. I was going to die. 

The assassin cackled, and then sputtered. The spiked bottom end of a silver crozier staff punched through the immortal from behind. I looked and saw the bishop standing behind the assassin, staff clutched in both hands. 

“Nobody violates the sanctity of my church. Nobody.” The Bishop’s face was set like granite. 

The wound boiled and sizzled and steamed. The immortal screamed and spasmed. And then it went limp and collapsed on me. I rolled to the side to avoid the point of the crozier. The corpse of the immortal slid down the crozier pole towards me. I pulled myself out from underneath the body and met the bishop’s eyes.

“Thank you.”

“You have sanctuary. Your protection is my sacred duty.”

“But if they are willing to violate sanctuary. We are in real trouble.” I said. 

The bishop nodded. “We all are in danger now.”

“Your excellency! They have a battering ram!”

“Bar the door!” I hollered. Then I turned back to the bishop. “You can bar the door, can’t you?”

“Bar the door!” The bishop yelled.

Priests ran back and forth. They slotted heavy pine bars into metal hooks. Seconds later something began pounding on the doors from outside. 

“Now, we’re really locked in.” Lynn said.

“How do we reach Leon like this?” Amy asked.

“We could surrender.” I said. “They’ll put us in the same prison as Leon.”

“But then we would be trapped and they’d get away with everything and declare war on Ys.” Lynn said. 

“Then these abusive monsters would wing.” Ada added.

“Okay. I could turn myself in.” I said. “Then you could do something out here. And I could cure Leon.”

“And get executed.” Lynn said. “I’m not letting my best friend sacrifice herself for the greater good.”

“You did it.” I said.

“And now I know better. We are not sacrificing an innocent for the sake of the country.”

“I’m a lot of things. But I’m not an innocent. Just because I didn’t do this thing in particular doesn’t make me innocent.”

The battering ram pounded against the front door. 

The bishop looked at me. “Whatever you plan to do, you must do it soon. That door will not hold.”