Dolis spotted the first signs of carnage near the riverbed, drops of blood slowly inching their way into the river. The land was scorched from what must've been a campfire gone wrong, and scraps of makeshift tents lay in the tree's shade. He followed the trail into the river, despite the stench of blood raising the hair on his neck, the sensation that death was near growing.
Not far from the other side of the river was a broken carriage and a body propped up against a tree beside it. The carriage wheels had been broken, presumably from the river itself or the large stones that nestled in the riverbed. A horse was still attached to the carriage, the only living thing remained from the wreck, but it too hadn't gone unscathed. A gash was along the mare's side, the wound leaving the earth beneath her stained red.
Given the broken carriage and reigns, she hadn't been able to run off, only aggravated her wound with the ropes around her torso. On the other side of the carriage rested another body, crushed under the weight of the cabin.
She would unlikely survive much longer, even with Thova's assistance.
He unsheathed his blade, feeling the thrum of Dulo's blood as it felt the powerful blade in his hands. In moments like this, Dolis could contain enough energy, especially when there were no angry humans like before. A wounded animal was more forgiving and receptive to a god-like Dolis.
He made his way in front of the creature, letting the mare see his figure. It thrashed once in its ropes, a soft sound of pain before going still. Her eyes settled on the blade in Dolis' hands, snorting as if expecting what was to come.
Dolis extended his free hand out, touching the gentle creature's cheeks. It was soft and warm, velvety in the way he imagined those precious flowers atop the council felt like. His hands stroked her chestnut coat before working along the side of her neck. Satisfied grunts escaped her, probably the only gentle hands she's felt since the carriage riders, and her owner had perished in the river crossing. Judging by her matted mane and protruding hip bones, Dolis might have been the first set of gentle hands in her entire life.
The irony of a god of destruction being the only source of gentleness a mare has known tugged on Dolis' heart. She had not deserved to be treated so poorly nor deserved a fate as tragic as this.
The mare wrapped her head around, leaning against Dolis' shoulder before stretching her neck out as if accepting the fate of Dolis' blade. He thought of sparing her, searching for his sister to heal the animal, possibly with Dauna's aid. But the wound was too grave for the creature, and the mare was aware of it too. Putting her out of her misery was the best chance at peace.
"I am sorry," Dolis said, running his hand against the mare's neck again before placing it on her cheek. "You deserved more."
She grunted one last time before Dolis raised his blade. He shut his eyes, not bearing the sight of watching her soul leave her physical form. Her body crumpled with a sickening crunch.
Dolis gave her a proper burial, first stripped her of the cart's restraints, wincing at the hidden wounds the ropes had inflicted. He didn't have the strength to move her as far as he wanted from the cart, but he kicked away any of the mortal's belongings nearest to her. He found a few offerings nearby and gave her a proper send-off to Xiros' realm.
He hoped she'd find a peaceful afterlife to roam around.
☙❦❧
It wasn't long before Dolis found more traces of carnage. The horse and carriage were mild in comparison to the things he discovered. The earth was stained red, puddles now crimson red. The air was stale and devoid of any life. Even the plants didn't appear to have much life in them either, stripped or trampled bare.
Dolis knew he must be on the right track in finding Terah's tree. The heaps of corpses and fallen weapons were a sign of a struggle, the mortal's descent into chaos over finding the tree. It was impossible to guess how many had perished here, and those piles of bodies only increased as he ventured further.
And then, he spotted Terah's tree.
To say it was massive was an understatement. It towered over him that it seemed as tall as the highest peaks in Estruela. And yet, much of its branches dropped low enough that a mortal of average height could easily reach. How he couldn't have spotted it from the gardens in the council seemed impossible. He imagined that had he been here first, it would've been the most beautiful thing in all of Estruela.
His heart ached at seeing what this sacred place had turned into.
Barren and as dull as the plants he had passed, the tree looked on the verge of decay, portions of its exposed roots and lower trunk hollowed out. The mortals and gods that had first appeared might have wreaked havoc, attempting to claim the most beautiful leaf for themselves and ruining the other's chances.
At the top of the tree, its leaves had been stripped bare. But as Dolis inspected the tree, he spotted something flicker despite there being no trace of wind.
A lone leaf.
He sucked in a breath, wondering how despite this bloody chaos, something so delicate could survive. His feet struggled through the mess of blood and mangled bodies, nearly tripping over spilled organs and torn appendages. If it hadn't been for that slightest glimpse of hope at the sight of the leaf, Dolis would have gagged. There were far too many fallen mortals to send a proper send-off, let alone count them among the dismembered and unrecognizable faces. He only hoped they'd somehow find a way to Xiros' realm.
His pitch black coat became heavier as he traversed the littered ground, soaking up the blood of hundreds, if not thousands of mortals as he made the trek towards the low-hanging branch. How nobody had plucked it or managed to knock it off the tree, Dolis was bewildered.
As he navigated between piles of bodies and avoided the swords stuck in the earth, Dolis reached out to touch the leaf. It was a foolish mistake, believing that anything good would come of a destruction god touching such a fragile thing.
Before his fingers could even graze it, the stem broke free as if giving up. Dolis watched it gracefully fall with an antagonizing breath, swaying in the wind like an intricate dance. He feared even attempting to catch it until he remembered the bloody floor. He swiftly bent down, extending his hand out, and watched as it landed in his palm, just a hair above the puddle of blood.
He held the leaf as if it had been the baby bird, holding his breath as if it would disintegrate it if he so much breathed. Half of it had already weathered away, yellow and brown curling the leaf into a shape that no longer resembled a heart. If anything, it looked like a withered heart, shriveled and on the verge of collapse at any moment—much like how Dolis was beginning to feel.
There was no control over his destruction or way of preventing the cataclysmic effects of the curse that raged through the Estruelan forests. Whatever slither of hope Daelia had offered, it vanished as quickly as the souls laid to rest beneath Terah's tree.
A pang of guilt at how many souls were most likely at his father's doorsteps was enough for Dolis to wish he had never participated at all. He should've heeded the warnings and fears from the beginning and stayed far clear from the forests.
It had not been worth the risk at all.
The mortals had been right; he was a cursed fool, after all.
Dolis' sword had been lost during his trek amongst the rubble of corpses and blood. Despite his blade being a comforting crutch for Dolis to lean on in these circumstances, he was sure his hand would burn at the feeling of a blade, knowing that despite these pools of blood not stemming from his own hands, the burden and guilt remained. Dulo's blood spared no sympathy, almost heightening the bloodlust here long before Dolis emerged.
How many of these needless deaths had resulted from the curse, Dolis wondered. Would the death count be only a fraction if he hadn't entered the forests? How many of their cries had fallen onto Dolis' deaf ears?
He whirled around, turning to see who had Forla on their side to remain alive amongst the carnage. If they had managed to survive, they might have been brave enough to guard the most beautiful heart-shaped leaf and earned themselves the title of Daelia's courtship. Surely, not all had met such a cruel end.
But as his eyes settled on a form near the foot of the tree, Dolis stumbled back, nearly tripping over a limb. There stood Daelia, donned in all white, his hair flowing in the slowly building wind. His robe was clean from the blood that pooled on the soil as if he had appeared from thin air.
Dolis grimaced as he approached, specks of red beginning to mar his white attire. Red didn't suit him, Dolis thought. And certainly not in this shade.
The weathered leaf remained in the palm of Dolis' hand, nearly on the verge of disintegrating, but he loosened his hold on it. He thought of letting it fall into the puddle of blood beneath him, but something told Dolis that he didn't want the blood to stain anything else, even if the leaf had seen better days. He brought his hands behind his back, watching as Daelia took step after step in his direction, the splatters of blood traveling up his gown.
Dolis hated it; Daelia didn't deserve to be in a place so filthy.
"You've made it," Daelia said, his smile growing. He was within arm's reach of Dolis but halted as Dolis took several steps back.
Dolis could not meet his gaze, though. The overwhelming guilt consumed him as his eyes trailed to the fallen mortals around them. "At what cost?"
Daelia slowly nodded, looking down as if acknowledging the wreckage for the first time. "I admit, this is not what I had intended. It pains me to see our beloved mortals fall to ruin like this."
"It's not your fault to bear."
"Is it not?" Daelia turned to glance up at the barren tree. "I announced the contest."
Dolis wished to say so many things but couldn't. It was true that Daelia had opened the invitation, but it had never been intended to be sent out to the mortals as well.
"It is the curse that led them to chaos. Had I not been here, the outcome may have been less violent." Upon Daelia's narrowed eyes, Dolis added, "the fault lies with me and the wretched curse."
"Mortals may be unpredictable, but they are greedy by nature." Daelia pursed his lips. "It was their own undoing that led them to this, not yours."
Dolis had no words, despite the urge to correct him.
"You possess one of the leaves." It was a statement.
Dolis had never been good at hiding things. Tempted to let it fall to the earth, he forcibly held it between them. "Sadly, yes."
Daelia half-smiled before extending his hand out. "May I?"
Dolis looked at him incredulously. They both could see that the leaf was far beyond admiring and appreciating. Barely a sliver of its verdant green remained. And yet, Daelia looked at the leaf in awe. He carefully lifted it from Dolis' palm, inspecting its battered and weathered edges as if it was a work of art.
When Daelia smiled, Dolis felt the faintest flutter in his chest. He knew he shouldn't; he should have squashed the feeling inside, but the content look was a rare sight. For a second, it made the stench and sight of chaos around them disappear.
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