Chapter 156 Lament for the Dead
Costa Lunas.
People began making their way to the castle before the dawn bell rang. Some arrived in carriages or on wooden chairs carried by strong boys. Most walked, as it was the only way they could travel. Messengers had spread the news through the streets, markets, and inns. By the previous night, the city, with its nearly eighty thousand inhabitants, knew that Queen Olivia was on the throne, and those with relatives in the army or who worked at the castle could go and look for them among the dead.
As the sun touched the field strewn with corpses, the queen, the count of war, and a large escort of royal guards began to pass through the ranks of dead knights, soldiers, and militiamen. Noble families, merchants, and common folk witnessed the procession. The young woman stopped next to each body and placed a large gold coin with the relief image of one or another king of the past on each chest. Strong servants carried sacks of coins and handed them one by one to the count so that he, in turn, could deliver them to the queen after each corpse.
The exhausted Sisters of Shadow visited each family to offer them comfort in their grief. Soldiers were stationed in each area to protect the occasion from anyone who might interrupt the ritual. Servants from the castle and numerous noble houses helped the families search for their relatives in the training grounds or, if they were lucky, in the healing chambers of the castle or quarters of the servants..
When the queen found herself in an area where there were no families, she whispered: Count, all men smell of vinegar.
Esteban: Yes. The Sisters use vinegar and salt to preserve the bodies for a few days until they can be buried or burned. The autumn weather helps a lot. In summer, the smell of this field would be almost unbearable.
Olivia: I try not to cry. I want to appear strong for my people.
Esteban: You are doing very well, my queen. It is something difficult for one as young as you.
The queen suppressed her emotions until she had finished with the bodies of the knights and soldiers of the noble houses. But when she began placing coins on the chests of the royal guards and militia, she recognized familiar faces among some of them. Royal guards Raúl and Mateo lay side by side. They had sacrificed their lives to give the queen time to escape. The queen, knelt in her elegant gown, unmoved by the soggy earth. She placed a coin on each of their chests. She wept as if gazing upon the pale faces of her brothers. The count placed a hand on her shoulder with concern. In that moment, she was not the queen. She was a weeping girl, whom the man longed to embrace and tell that everything was alright.
Olivia spoke through tears: They were some of the first people who treated me as if I were important. They were some of the first people who died for me.
In several areas, parents, relatives, and friends wept over the bodies of their loved ones. In their grief, they were almost equal in position for a short time.
A Sister of Shadow: Was he your brother?
A young woman crying: No. Dante was my intended. We were engaged to be married next year. He became a captain before...this.
Alicia to Juana: He was a brave boy. He saved me from the herald.
Juana, with tears in her eyes: Yes. Pedro told me that his parents were imprisoned for being spies for the herald. Count Octavio ordered his execution for belonging to the royal militia.
The two sisters hugged each other and wept for the death of a boy who had been a victim of abuse by evil men.
Above a dark-skinned man with a face that was kind, even in death, were an Air Knight, his mother, and his sisters.
Hernando: Papa, I am going to miss your stew and your jokes.
The women wept for a good man who fought for a better future for them.
Hernando: When the war is over, I will be able to take care of us. Everything will be alright.
Clemente, Elicio, Luis, and each member of the family of the nest lay in a special area. Many people passed by to see the famous priest and rider. The riders who were not with any family members mourned for their family of the air.
Danilo: These brave men defended our nest until the very last moment. If they had not delayed the soldiers, the queen and many more would have died.
Corsino: We swore to defend the castle with our lives. It is strange that we say those words. But they did their duty, and that pig hanged them.
Volker stood behind Chara, holding her close. She cried after each person spoke. These fifteen-year-olds were among the first to show her respect. She could see their faces in her mind from the day she received her wings.
Floriano: We must fly for them. If we do not save the nest, their deaths will be in vain.
Little Bonita placed flowers on the chest of each of her siblings and uncles of the family of the air. She remembered the death of her father and knew the pain of grief. The joy of reuniting with her new father was overshadowed by the tears of her mother for her sons of choice.
Nestor: They fulfilled their duty with honor. Every day, until the very last. Some call us heroes. Sometimes, heroes die. But their memory will never die.
A woman from a northern tribe lay upon a wool blanket and looked as if she were still alive. The son of Raisa knelt beside her with some of his friends. His hair was just like hers. In his hand, he held the exquisite brush, a proud gift for his mother. Tears streamed from his eyes.
Antonio: She would be proud of you, Yegor the Wolf. Your father will be proud too when he returns.
Yegor: I do not know if he is in the army that is going to fight against the queen or not. I hope not. But if he is a traitor to the queen, he must die.
The queen finally reached the place where the dead servants lay. Most had died in accidents or at the hands of cruel men who took advantage of the battle to rape and murder women and girls.
She had cried many times for the Monika alone in her rooms. She often thought of killing the count for the execution of the only mother she had ever known.
The queen watched as families performed their mourning rites. All her relatives by blood were dead. She knelt beside the woman who had been hanged simply for being her servant. She leaned over her and wept without shame. The only person who had shown her love was gone.
Olivia uttered a word she had never said in her own language: Mama, I am sorry.