C2 The Last He

“What?”

Henry felt his heart rate increase with each passing moment. The world felt duller as he started trying to catch his breath. She was lying. She had to be. His mind drifted back to the weeks and months he had spent after the plague, trying to find someone, but all he could find were those mindless brutes, and a world filled with nothing but ash. He had thought about it before now, but he never thought it was true. Always be optimistic, he always told himself, even when it seemed dire, and somehow he always found a way to pull through.

What was he supposed to do now?

His chest got tighter and tighter, and he was finding it hard to breathe. He clutched his chest, trying to get himself under control. Calm down, there are no monsters here. It's just you. Calm down. Call down. Calm-”

“Are you alright?” The soft-spoken voice of the woman he had saved cut through his thoughts, and he looked up at her, temporarily forgetting everything. He hadn't noticed them before, but she had strange eyes. They were a deep shade of green, or at least one of them was. The other was pure white, but had some remnants of green in them, like it gsd been bleached. Henry didn't know what to make of it, but he thought it was pretty. He took a deep breath.

“What do you think?” He replied, and she lowered her head, “I'm sorry, I just asked out of concern.” she said, and Henry smiled. “Its fine.” He said, and then shrugged. “well, not really, but there's really nothing I can do about it.” He looked back the way he came and sighed “I'm more worried about those ladies that were fighting with you. With that power, they could probably wipe out a horde by themselves.” The woman shook her head, and sat up properly. “Using too much of Gaia’s power takes a toll on them, so they'll retreat soon.” Henry looked up at her, relief washibg iver hus features. “That's great then.” He said, and stood. He stretched his hand out and winced in pain. His shoulder was still messed up.

“I'll probably go patch myself up now. “ He said, turning away. “No need, I'll just do it for you.” The lady said, walking up to him, and placed her hand on his shoulder. “What are you..?” Henry started before feeling…something. He couldn't describe exactly what he felt, except that it wasn't painful in the slightest. It was like someone had poured cool water into his arm, turned it to mush and then reformed it completely. “What the…” he said, feeling the last of the pain leave his body. He turned back to her, and finally noticed that the burns on her body were all gone. It was like she wasn't even harmed just a few hours ago.

“Gaia, huh?” He said, flexing his arm. It felt good as new. “Sounds like magic to me.” The women opened her mouth to speak and Henry raised a hand. “Yeah, yeah, I know, I don't need another lecture…” he paused, as if remembering something important. “Right. What is your name?” He asked, realising that he had been speaking to her all this time without knowing her name. She didn't seem to mind, raising a hand above her head. “My given name is Kamilah” She said seriously.

“Given name?” Henry asked, curiosly, and she nodded. “It's my Mystic name. The Matron gives us all a name.” She said with a hint of nostalgia, making Henry feel a bit bad . He tried to change the topic, stumbling over his words. “R…right. So what's your real name?” Kamilah seemed lost for a second before speaking.

“I don't know.” She said quietly, her eyes lost in thought. “I don't remember anything before the sisterhood.”

Great job, dumbass , Henry thought as he almost smacked his forehead on impulse. Kamilah seemed to notice his expression, and smiled. “There's no need to feel bad. I will return to the sisterhood eventually, once I find the truth.” She said and looked up at him with fierce eyes. “Finding you, the last man, is just the beginning.”

Henry felt an involuntary shiver run down his spine at her words, but it quickly passed. She was right. He also wanted answers as well, and meeting her could be the start of him finding real, tangible answers. He grinned. “Yeah, well, I have a ton of questions as well. The plague. Do you know what caused it?”

Kamilah's gaze drifted towards the desolate cityscape, her smile fading. "The Sickness," she began, her voice low, "it started subtle, nothing out of the ordinary. But then..." she shuddered, her hand clenching into a fist. "The violence came. Men contorted, their eyes turning a milky white. They became... rabid."

Henry's breath hitched. "Rabid? Like animals?"

Kamilah nodded, a haunted look in her eyes. "Worse. They retained a flicker of intelligence, a primal hunger for..." she trailed off, her voice thick with emotion.

"For flesh," Henry finished grimly, a cold dread settling in his stomach.

She looked at him, a single tear tracing a path down her cheek. "Yes. They turned on everyone. It was... monstrous. The Sisterhood tried to contain it, but the infection spread like wildfire."

Henry's mind reeled, trying to grasp the unimaginable horror she described. "But the women? Why are you...?"

"Immune," Kamilah said, her voice regaining some strength. "We were always different. Stronger, some might say. The Sickness twisted men, but for us, it was different. It awakened something latent within us."

"What kind of something?" Henry asked.

Kamilah met his gaze, her eyes blazing with an inner fire. "I just healed your hand,” she said.

Henry looked over at her. “Wait, does that mean that…you're infected?” He asked and she shook her head. No, we were protected by Gaia. We don't know why, but the Matron thinks it's because man was the one to bring this calamity on himself.

“So, what, I'm protected by Gaia?” Henry asked, his head pounding. He could feel a headache building up the more he spoke. This was too much to wrap his head around in one day.

“I think so. It's the only way you could survive being infected.” Kamilah replied.

Henry felt like everything was coming down around him, way too fast for him to understand. “What is going on, really?” Henry muttered as he buried his face in his palms. “A plague, magic? I'm the last man? What is going on?” He asked, feeling more and more stressed out.

“We'll find out more. I promise.” Kamilah said, stretching out a hand to comfort him, but she stopped just shy of his skin. What am I doing?” she thought, pulling her hand away. She wasn't one to comfort others, but something about him made her feel safe.

A clatter just outside the room caused the both of them to stop in their tracks. Kamilah looked over at the dark window, her hands retreating to her sides, and a small orb of fire ignited in her palms. “Are you expecting anyone?” She asked, and Henry shook this head, his hands reaching for his bow and quiver.

Their heartbeats echoed in the tense silence, punctuated by the rhythmic creak of the old house settling.

"It could be scavengers," Henry whispered, his voice barely audible. "Though they wouldn't be bold enough to approach at night."

Kamilah nodded, her fiery orb casting flickering shadows on the dusty floor. "Perhaps another straggler from the forest beyond. Lost and seeking shelter."

The doorknob rattled again, a persistent jiggling that sent shivers down Henry's spine.

"Or," he said, his voice tight, "it could be one of Them."

The mention of the infected hung heavy in the air. The ravenous, twisted creatures that once were men were the stuff of nightmares. Just the thought of their cold, milky eyes and guttural moans sent a surge of adrenaline through him.

Kamilah's lips formed a grim line. "We should check it out. But cautiously."

With a silent nod, they crept towards the door, their movements slow and deliberate. Henry pressed his ear against the rough wood, straining to hear any sounds from the other side.

"Silence," he mouthed to Kamilah, his hand tightening around the hilt of his hunting knife.

Kamilah extinguished her fiery orb, plunging them into complete darkness. She reached into a pouch at her hip and retrieved a handful of what looked like pebbles. With a flick of her wrist, they erupted in a soft, bioluminescent glow, casting an eerie blue light on their faces.

Taking a deep breath, Henry reached for the doorknob. His hand trembled slightly, the weight of what he might find on the other side, a heavy burden.

"Ready?" Kamilah whispered, her voice barely a murmur.

Henry nodded and leaned forward, pulling an arrow from his quiver. The door opened silently, something Henry had made sure of, so as to not attract any creatures to his place. He was glad of it now. He peeked out of the room and looked out the hallway for the source of sound. There was nothing, save for the fallen chairs. He looked back into the room at Kamilah and shook his head. “I don't see anything.” He started, but she raised a hand, her eyes closed. “I can feel two lifeforms here. They're close.” Henry felt even more stressed now, his grip tightening on the bow as he looked back out the room. His eyes caught something hiding behind a table in the distance and he raised his weapon, pulling the string back. He took a few tentative steps forward as his mind raced, trying to find possible counters to what was hiding behind that table.

Wouldn't it attack if it was a monster?

The thought hit him with a jolt and he stopped. The plagued men didn't hide, they fought, and no matter what, they never ran. This wasn't one of them. Henry lowered his bow and took a deep breath, walking over to the table. “What are you doing?” Kamilah asked in a hushed tone, but loud enough that Henry could hear him. She had seen what he could do, so what was he letting his guard down now? She watched intently as he walked over to the other side of the room. He stopped and looked down. The wild eyes of a child met his, and at once he saw. He jumped back, just as the child thrust forward, trying to attack him, but he was quick enough to stop her.

“Get away from me!” she yelled, swinging wildly, but she was slow, slow enough that Henry could see her attacks coming from a mile away. He dodged and raised his hands, trying to show that he was not a threat. “Hey, it's okay, it's fine. I don't want to hurt you.” The child faltered for a few seconds before attacking again, this time slower. “Stay away from me!” She said again, pushing Henry back. She yelled and lunged forward, but in a flash, Kamilah appeared behind her, knocking her out with a single hit.

“I had that.” He said, turning to Kamilah.

“Clearly, but I was losing patience.” She said, looking over his shoulder.

“What…” Henry started, but quickly stopped, turning to see she was heading back to where he had found the child. “What are you doing?” Henry asked and caught up with her after carrying the child on his shoulder. “Remember I said there were two lifeforms.” She said, bending down to pull off the tarp. There was another child. She looked identical to the other child. Twins, Henry thought as he watched Kamilah pick up the other child.

“Today's really weird,” Henry said as they returned to the room. “I haven't seen a human for years, and just today I've met a witch and twins, one of which is really good at using a knife.”

Kamilah dropped the child and turned to him. “I'm sure you'll see weirder things as time passes.” She said, walking over to him. She placed her hand on his chest without warning, and he felt his heart rate triple in seconds.

“What…are you..?” The question caught up in his throat.

“I need to check something.” She said as her white eye suddenly glowed. He felt a white-hot pain in his chest as his entire field of vision went blank.

“I want to see if you're fit for Gaia.” She muttered.