Beneath the depths Orion’s Birth’s rising column of air still pulsed upward but its flow was lessening now.
Sift urged Illala, who was cradling Equilious, and Evanshade toward it.
“I can’t go with you,” Evanshade was telling Illala. “I would never be able to survive without legs. I only caught up with you again, after my escape from Malistour, to tell you I am alive and that I will always love you.”
Tears flowed from Illala’s eyes into the ocean, her face pale with sadness. “And what of our son? He has a tailfin. What makes you sure I am not bringing him to his death? We should stay behind with you.”
“Your God will find a way for him to live.” Evanshade caressed her hand as they swam closer to the rising currents of air.
Malistour and his warriors swept across the ocean floor close by and would soon be upon them.
“Evanshade!” Malistour boomed. “Traitor! Your heathen friends may have escaped but you will not find yourself so lucky!”
Sift float directly by the air currents now. “Come quickly, Illala!” he called to her. “Death is upon us! We must go in to the air column!”
She wouldn’t listen to him, still arguing with Evanshade and trying to convince him to come with her.
“Illala!” Sift called to her close by. She didn’t turn her head. Did she hear him?
Within seconds Malistour would be upon them. He charged like a massive whale toward their diminished rank of four.
Sift instinctively grabbed Illala’s arm and pulled her toward the rising column of air with Equilious. Illala squirmed against his strength to free herself of his grasp, but soon he was in the column of air itself and tried to pull her in with him.
Sift’s body shot upward in the air currents. Just as he did so, Illala broke free of his hand’s grasp and swam back to Evanshade’s side.
“Go!” Evanshade told her. “I love you! If I can, I’ll try and find a way to you someday! Take our child to freedom! His life is more important than yours or mine!”
Malistour was almost upon them now and Evanshade lifted Sift’s discarded trident from the sand below them in Orion’s Birth.
Malistour careened into him and they locked tridents in combat. Evanshade was being pushed slowly back. “Go!” he screamed to Illala. “I don’t know how much longer I can hold him off!”
Venge swept around Malistour, out of the massive group of warriors following him, and spun for where Illala was.
“I love you!” Illala called to Evanshade before swimming into the rising air and escaping Venge’s thrusting trident. She rose quickly in the air with Equilious tucked close to her chest. In seconds she was out of sight in the air column above Orion’s Birth.
“Flee, legged-whore!” Venge called after her before turning and running Evanshade through his back. The tips of Venge’s trident protruded from Evanshade’s chest. Globules of blood wafted in the water’s currents up from them.
Evanshade curled over in pain, and as he did so, Venge’s trident twisted at his insides. “AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!” he screamed.
Malistour laughed heinously. “To see your death is almost worth their escape,” he bellowed, and all the warriors of Sangfoul joined in laughing and mocking Evanshade. “Let him join his friends!” Malistour instructed Venge.
Venge’s tongue licked the tips of his fanged teeth as he swayed Evanshade into the massive flowing currents of air on the trident’s prongs.
Both Venge and Malistour held the trident down so they wouldn’t lose it or Evanshade’s body in the rising air, and watched as blood spewed up from Evanshade’s pores, spraying up in the air.
Evanshade was unconscious now and his flesh ripped from the muscle beneath it. The air seemed a crimson red hue as his blood and guts spewed up about it.
And so it was that Equilious’s birth into the world of air would come in a bath of his father’s blood.