The Last Princess - Chapter 13 (Patreon)

Luz drops like a rock, crashing to the floor and a heap of armor and blood. Penny yelps, her heart leaping in her chest at the sight and sound.

“Luz!” She cries while she rushes to her friend’s side. She’s heedless of the corpse that used to be the chief focus of her nightmares, the terror of the town. The shock of Luz actually accomplishing what so many before her failed to do so is lost on her at this moment. She falls to her knees next to the fallen warrior. “Hey, hey… I've got you.” She says, while she gingerly rolls Luz onto her back.

“Oh… Penny?” Luz mumbles, her eyes are glassy and unfocused. The woman chuckles like she's drunk and finally looks directly at her, “When did you get here?”

“Luz? What's wrong?” Penny asks. She's frowning down at her friend, only now aware of something wet and warm on her hands. She pulls one away and sees red. “Oh! Luz! You're bleeding! What do I do?”

“We should get goin’!” Luz says, “I killed the piggie pig!” Penny bites her lip, shifting her legs before whining.

“Luz, this is serious. I don't know any healing spells.” Penny answers, “You're in trouble!”

“Nahhhh, I'm Luz Noceda. Captain of the Royal Guard!” Luz declares, “I don't get innn trouble.” Penny is checking Luz over while she rants. There's no wounds on her neck, which is good, because otherwise she'd be… Penny's stomach turns at the thought.

“Ohhh I'm no good at this! Claire was the healer.” Penny shouts, clenching her jaw.

“Psssh I'm fine. Don’t worry about me, I’m fine. I have to be fine. I gotta find the Princess.” Penny ignores Luz's mumbling, she's losing blood and clearly out of it. What would Claire do? Penny sits in the silence, save for Luz’s nonsense words. Motes of dust float through sun beams cutting through cracks in the hall. She looks around, at the tired old room, at the shattered furniture, at the massive corpse of Grimhammer. There’s no one to help her. It's like a cold hand gripping on her heart. Her ears twitch when Luz gasps raggedly.

She shakes herself, and stares at the floor, then thinks silently for a moment. Then it hits her like a bolt of lightning. She smacks her forehead.

“OF COURSE! Grimhammer captured Claire!! She's gotta be here somewhere. If she's not, you know...”

“If she's not dead? I hope she’s not.” Luz asks. Penny looks at her when the woman sniffles. “My wife is dead. My other spouse too.”

“I'm sorry to hear that Luz. We've all lost so much, it’s not fair.” Penny says. Then she shuffles, planting her feet on the ground. “Okay, up you get.” She slips her arms underneath Luz’s, then cradles her head just in case, and finally lifts with all her might.

Luz is HEAVY. Though that might be because she's wearing full steel armor, carrying several swords too. Not to mention how she's tall and muscular. Not now, she needs to focus now. Luz is in trouble.

“Luz, are you able to stand?”

“Yep!” Luz chirps, swinging her legs and standing up herself easily. A thrill runs down Penny's spine like a swarm of spiders. The back of Luz's armor is badly dented, there are huge gashes torn right into the metal. Blood. There’s too much blood. Her fear evaporates when her friend/mentor sways like a tree in a storm. Penny's got her in a flash, catching the older woman under her arm before she can fall.

“There we go. Let’s-” She pauses as her throat tightens up and her stomach lurches. “Let's get going.” To her endless relief, she notices Luz holding a hand to her midsection as they leave the chamber.

“Gotta keep pressure on Penny, help.” Luz says so seriously and so matter of factly that she can’t help but listen. “Piggie got me good here.” Penny chuckles weakly, half leading and half dragging Luz back out of the dining hall.

“Where do you think Grimhammer keeps, er, kept his prisoners?” Penny asks, keeping her eyes peeled on the dark hallway in front of them. Her mind jumps at every minor difference in the shadows, at every mundane sound outside and inside the fort. The stink is even worse than it was when she rushed in, it sticks to  the inside of her nose and stays there. In any other circumstance she’d gag.

“In the dungeon, silly.” Luz says.

“Right. And…” She pauses and looks at the upcoming intersection, “…where would I find that?”

“Go left.” Luz answers with an authority that doesn’t really assuage Penny’s worries, but then, what other choice does she have? What is she supposed to do, wander around until Luz bleeds out? “All these forts have a similar construction, with their own intricacies of course, but by and large it’s easy to find where you’re going once you know where you are.” Luz explains, as if she can feel Penny’s skepticism.

“You seem to know an awful lot about all this for a failed officer.” Penny notes while mostly dragging Luz along. She wonders if Luz is recovering her lucidity, until the warrior barks out a laugh.

“Pfffff, I lied, I passed with flying colors.” Luz says, “I was Captain of the Royal Guard you know.” Ah, back to the rambling. The leftward hall leads straight on for far enough that it disappears into the gloom. The silence presses in around her, and Penny feels an irrational fear claw up the back of her neck as they go. Each footstep, punctuated by Luz’s unsteady ones. Both echo painfully loud in her ears. She can't take it, so she decides to indulge the delusion just a little.

“Royal Guard huh? Sounds fancy.” She says while they delve deeper into this long dead fortress surrounded by the inevitable decay of time. Even here, mosses and fungi manage to grow despite the darkness.

“Mhmmm, Lord Alador knighted me on the first eve of the Fallen Star. Some deemed it an ill omen.” Luz falls silent for a moment just as they reach what would initially appear to be a deep, yawning black void in front of them. “I suppose they were right.” She finishes.

“The dungeon?” Penny offers, and she hears a hum beside her, before another slight pause blankets the hall.

“Penny? I'm sorry.” Luz mumbles, “I shouldn't have lied to you about who I am.” Penny takes the first step hesitantly, afraid that it'll somehow crumble, sending her and Luz tumbling to their possible deaths. Of course the sturdy, if badly worn, stone holds firmly, and she has a moment to breathe.

And think.

“It's alright. I understand why you would keep that for me, I mean after all if you really are the captain of the royal guard… didn't you die and the battle of bonesborough?” She's humoring Luz, she's mostly focused on not losing her footing as they descend the long and shallow staircase into the pitch black.

“Lemme.” Luz says, and Penny feels resistance against her guidance. She stops, just on the edge of the last dregs of light from the world above. Luz fumbles with one hand, the other planted firmly on her gut. She pulls something out, but in the dim light Penny can't quite make out what it is.

Quite suddenly, the small wooden chip and Luz's hand glows with a strange symbol. Penny yelps as the wood curls up on itself, consumed by the glow of the mark. A ball of light ignites, searing through the darkness in an instant. The walls of the staircase are lined with rusted braziers, each one houses a skull in varying degrees of decay. Some are faded and cracked, and a few are very very fresh. Penny whimpers, and Luz grumbles.

“Demons.” Luz spits, wrapping an arm around her again. Penny leads the way, doing her best not to tremble at the sight of a particularly bloodied skull. “They're a scourge Penny, a warping of the Titan’s love.”

They slowly trudge down each step, that little ball of beautiful light floating slightly in front of them without either of them moving it.

“Mom always told me that demons used to be people.” Penny muses, She can remember her mother's words as clear as day. It's as if she's sitting in the meadow with her listening to her tales right now.

“Demons were misguided souls who took more than they should have from the Titan.” Mother once told her as Penny sat in her lap. She had been as content as could be listening to the fanciful tales of valor and might and magic.

“You can take from the Titan?” Penny asked, and her mother's face fell still for a moment. For whatever reason, Penny's attention had been drawn in that moment to the deep scar on mom's cheek, running straight off the edge of her face to a missing chunk of her ear.

“Yes dearheart, though one buys such a power with a great pain.”

“They're twisted by their sin.” Luz mumbles, “Driven to their worst impulses by the horror of what they did.”

Penny staggers slightly, her boot meeting stone earlier than she expected. They're at the end of the staircase, and their light casts a glow on only some of the vast antechamber before them. Great cages of iron loom over her, rusted and sagging from their own weight.

“This must be the dungeon.” She says before she swallows a mouthful of spit. “HELLO!? Is anyone there?” She calls out, her voice echoing off the walls and crashing back into a nearly unintelligible noise.

“Who's there??” Someone calls back, “Where's Grimhammer?”

“It's DEAD!” Luz shouts, “We kiiiilled it dead!” She giggles, and Penny draws her lips into a tight line as she hoists her partner up.

“It's Penny! And a friend.” She answers, peering into the gloom that even their little light struggles to penetrate.

“Penny!? Grimhammer's dead?!?! Come here! We're in the back.” The woman calls, her voice is wavering, yet clear, like a small silver bell. Penny's heart soars. She starts moving to the back, stumbling over something crunchy that she doesn't have the courage to look down at.

Everything about this room is absolutely filthy, though thankfully it lacks any demon excrement. Don't shit where you store your food, she's supposes.

An excited murmur rises from the back of the room, and only a few moments later she can see them. Her friends, neighbors, and a woman who's blonde hair is streaked with a few strands of gray. She has a youthful face, but there are tired lines on it already. She wears her usual dresses, though this one is tattered and dirty. Her gray eyes are keen, and alert.

“CLAIRE! OH THANK YOU TITAN!!” Penny shouts, “We're going to get you out of there, you have to help me. Luz, rather, my friend here, was badly hurt battling Grimhammer.” The half a dozen other town folk fall silent, one small girl that is all curled up in her father's lap.

“She slew the demon?” Claire asks, “Then there's no time for the tale. He is truly dead?”

“I saw him fall with my own two eyes.” Penny replies instantly. Claire nods, then rises to her feet, her legs shaking as she does so. She flattens her ruined dress out, and then extends her arms out of downward angle. “I didn't want to risk this in case he caught us.” she explains.

Then she draws a circle.

And the lock glows brightly… and then bursts into a few chunks. Penny scoots out of the way as Claire throws the door open and rushes to their side.

“Where are her worst wounds?” The town elder asks. Penny hems and haws, an icy hand gripping her heart.

“My stomach. Got hit bad there.” Luz offers, “I was sloppy, wouldn't have gotten hit by it back in the day. Guess that's what happens when you've been dead for 20 years.” Penny winces as her companion giggles stupidly. The townsfolk are all murmuring, but Claire just shrugs.

“Set her down gently on her back Penny, then keep pressure on the wound while I work.” Claire orders, dropping to her knees and sweeping broken bones out of the way with a hand. Penny does as she's told.

“Penny…” Luz mumbles, “You didn't stay outside.” Penny laughs, but her cheeks are already wet.

“Sorry Luz, I'll do better next time.” She manages to choke out. Luz smiles, then closes her eyes. For an absolutely terrifying moment, Penny thinks she's gone. Then she sighs.

“I'm the one who’s sorry, I lied.” Luz says, opening her eyes to stare vacantly at the ceiling. “I lied about who I am.”

“It's okay.” Penny reassures her. Her heart leaps unpleasantly every time Luz yelps or whimpers as Claire palpates her chest and ribs. The older woman stares at Luz, her eyes darting all over the warrior.

“It's so strange.” The woman says softly, “You very much remind me of…” Luz looks up at Claire curiously, not breaking eye contact until she coughs wetly. “It can’t be…” Claire murmurs, staring down with wide eyes and a slightly slack jaw. Penny has known Claire her entire life, she was always helping Mom with everything, and she swore an oath when Mom died to protect the town they had built.

It suddenly strikes her that she's known this woman forever, but she knows almost nothing about her. Nothing about her previous life, before the world ended. She knew Claire served in the Royal Guard under mom, but, other than that, nothing. Penny looks down at the woman who stumbled into town a few days ago and has already changed her life. “Luz?” Claire asks, “Is it really you?”

“Whoozat?” Luz slurs, giggling a little while squinting up at her. “Do I know you?” Luz was rambling on the way here, rambling about being the Captain of the Guard, rambling about how she failed the late princess of a lost kingdom. She couldn't have been telling the truth, could she? It’s. That’s not possible, Mom said she was the only guard to survive.

“Penny, keep pressure on her stomach.” Claire barks. Penny blinks, presses in harder. “She's lost a lot of blood, so we’re going to need a lot of magic.” Right, Luz is still possibly dying. The thought has an icy grip squeezing at her heart, Luz is… well, she’s Luz, she's come suddenly into her life, and Penny is sick of seeing people disappear to never come back.

Claire closes her eyes, she brings her hands together in a simple prayer to the Titan. It takes a minute, but even Penny can feel it slowly building. Like a very slight breeze washes through the dank prison chambers. A surge from deep within the earth, answering Claire’s silent calls. Even Luz falls silent, her brown eyes flitting around. They fall on her own, and Penny’s heart aches ever so slightly. Then Claire’s hands glow brightly, light coils around her arms in twisting bands.

Under normal circumstances, Penny loves watching magic. She always loved it when Mom wove protective wards around town, when the then much younger Claire healed her scraped knees as a child. Now? She’s all nerves and barely restrained tears. She keeps the pressure on, pushing as hard as she can on Luz’s gaping wound.

“Come on Luz.” She mutters, “You’re not done yet.” Claire’s hand grazes her own, slipping under to take her place. Penny lifts her hands up, staring at the bright red, feeling the warmth of Luz slip away.

“P-enny?” Luz mumbles, reaching feebly for her. Penny takes Luz’s hand and squeezes tight. They stare into each other’s eyes again, and the light of Claire’s magic spreads. Beams burst through her fingers, and for a single fleeting instant… Penny can see her. See her as she truly is, she can see the splendid silver trimmed armor, the proud glance, the fire in her eye. The Royal purple mark of the Blights on her cloak.

“I'm right here Luz.” Penny gasps, taking Luz's hand in her own bloody ones. “I'm right here.” Somehow, some way she knows it's true. Everything her friend has said in her bloodloss induced delusion is true.

Claire falls silent for a moment, then stands back up and turns to address the townsfolk. “These two have saved us, and ended Grimhammer’s reign of terror. Let us go now, home is waiting.”

“Three cheers for Captain Luz!” A man shouts, and the little congregation hurrahs along with his lead. Penny doesn't shout, she's staring at her friend.

“Penny? I'm so… sorry…” Luz's eyes lose focus, and roll up into her head as she falls slack in Penny's arms.

“Luz?!” She cries out, but before she can despair she feels a warm hand on her.

“She's fine Penny, just exhausted.” Claire reassures her, “Come now, let's get her home.”