Peace of the Nightingale

Part 9 of the Nightingale Saga

It’s still not my original character, that belongs to the Top Games game “Evony; The King’s Return,” a game of world building, strategy and, yes, puzzle solving like the ads say. If any actual credit is given, give it to them by playing the game.  I get no compensation for it except for telling a good story.

Night looked down again, still not sure.  She didn’t feel good, didn’t even feel much of anything except the pain.

What was going on now? This didn’t feel right.  Sure, she’d been shot, stabbed, broken, beheaded, dropped, tortured, boiled alive that one time and even drawn and quartered and it always felt good.  And dying always brought such a sense of euphoria and giddiness that she usually enjoyed it.

So how come this bullet hurt?

The Royal Thieves, as they were called in legend, had been together around 3300 years at that point, doing so much good with as much mischief as they could get away with. They’d helped out so many people that would, otherwise, have not been helped.

But a random mugging, someone who just needed a little bit of help, all went south.

The man wore a balaclava, covering his face, as he held the gun to her and Nell and Duke, demanding money or jewelry.  Experience told Night that it was a powerful gun, but she and the others didn’t really mind. They’d been killed so many times it was old hat.  Still, they had enough, so they gladly gave the guy what he asked for before Duke decided to challenge him.

He stood in front of him, telling him that he didn’t have to do this, not like a coward.  The man raised his gun, demanding that Duke repeat what he said.  Duke did so before grabbing the gun, trying to get it away from him when it went off…

…And Nightingale was hit. She felt the pain right away as her body flew backwards and she held her hand below her left breast, where she felt the bullet hit.  Pain, actual pain.

And she felt that sticky wetness as her blood started coming out, her gasping as she knew something was wrong, something had changed.

And she was now in the hospital, barely able to listen as Nell and Duke argued with the doctors about what to do.  No, they didn’t know her blood type, they had to be very careful.  Their blood was special, kind of toxic to normal humans. But she had a suspicion that there’d be nothing they could do to try and refill her blood.

Was she going delirious? It had never happened before, but they strapped a mask to her face, one that pumped oxygen into her lungs to try and keep her breathing.  As they finished, she heard something and thought she’d seen something. “Hello Night.”

It was the voice she dreamed of almost every night, the voice of the only man she ever truly fell in love with, the only one she’d ever wanted to give her heart to unquestioningly. “Eagle?”

Was he a ghost, an angel? Was he a delusion brought on by blood loss?  Whatever he was, he smiled at her with those eyes of his. “What’s going on?”

He sighed, a look of sorrow crossing his face. “You’re dying Night.”

That didn’t make sense. “But it doesn’t feel the same.”

He looked into her eyes and it came so clear. “There’s apparently a limit as to how long Dragon Kissed Immortals can last.  Your limit has run out.”

She shook her head, not believing it. “No, it can’t be.”

As he reached up to gently touch her hair, he smiled at her again. “It is my friend.  3320 years since you were kissed by the dragon, and your time is finally up.”

Night felt herself getting lighter for a moment. “So much more that can be done.”

Eagle smiled at her, shaking his head. “Look at all that you have done.  Look at all the lives you have changed over the Millenia.  Sure, when life treated you unfairly while you were still Korynne, you could’ve gone on a vengeful spree.  You could’ve become something far darker, but you didn’t. You chose to help people.  You chose to make the world a better place. Sure, your actions weren’t exactly legal, but you never focused solely on yourself.”

Night stopped for a moment. The name rang a bell.  Somewhere she felt it within herself. “Korynne?”

Eagle just kept smiling at her as she felt herself getting lighter. “You remember, don’t you.  That’s your proper name, your birth name.”

Knowing, suddenly, that she could, she sat up.  No mask, no pain. “So, what happens now?”

He sighed, offering a hand for her to get up. “Now, you move on.  You’ve done a lot of good, so you’ve earned the reward that you’re getting.”

She took his hand and stood, suddenly realizing something as she looked behind as alarms started going off. “Holy crap.”

It was her, or her body, still lying in bed.  That stupid mask was still on her face, but she couldn’t feel it anymore.  She couldn’t feel any pain anymore.

Instead, she felt so light, so free.  She felt as if she were a breath on the wind. “So, I’m…”

Eagle nodded and Korynne watched. “Are they going to try and bring me back?”

Eagle sighed. “I won’t lie to you Night.  If you want to go back, you can, but it will be very painful and you won’t be able to sing anymore.  You won’t be able to do what you used to do.  But, if you want to come with me, you’ll be free of all that, not ever having to deal with anything in the world ever again.”

He reached out a hand as she thought about it.  No, he was the love of her life, the only one that she ever wanted to be with.  Now she finally could.

She took his hand and he led her thought the hospital rooms to where Nell and Duke were waiting, pacing, wanting to know what was going on.  She waited, listening. “I’m telling you, something’s changed Duke.”

Duke sighed. “Yes, and I don’t know what to do about it.  Gale was always the smart one, the one who could figure this stuff out.”

Nell laughed for a moment. “Do you remember how bad you wanted her when we first teamed up?”

Duke laughed at that memory. “Hey, she’s a very beautiful woman.  Any guy would be crazy not to want her, but she’s so much more.  She’s so much smarter, so much better than just a pretty face.”

Night leaned in as they got quiet again, almost as if they knew.  She whispered to them, not knowing if they’d hear her. “You guys were the best family a girl could ever want.  Keep up the good work you two.  I love you.”

She pulled away just as the doctor came in, a somber look on his face.  She didn’t know how her friends would handle the news but had to send one last thought to them. “Remember me.  I’ll be with you always.”

As she took Eagle’s hand again she felt a great rush, a pull towards something.  She looked, feeling that great sense of joy, as a bright light seemed to be accelerating her faster than she ever thought she’d go.

Faces flashed past her as she went, faces from so long ago, both before the fall of the kingdoms and after, faces of people she’d helped.

What was waiting for her as she flew to the next great adventure?