Chapter 97: 97-My Mate Is Dying.
Clementine:
I knew I was taking a big risk carrying a baby as I walked back, but we had to pass this road to reach the station. I fed the baby a few times on the way, and by then, the sun was right above us. It wasn’t too hot, just pleasant weather since it was usually cold here. As I got closer to the village, I fed the baby again. I even changed his diaper so he would keep sleeping. I thought hard about what might have happened last night when the squadmates were attacked while holding babies. The only reason I could think of was that maybe the babies were crying, which caught the fleshmingos’ attention.
When I got back to the village, I froze. My heart pounded when I saw the squadmates from last night, two of them torn apart and dead on the road.
"That means Yorick couldn’t keep them safe inside the shop," Mint said, making my heart skip a beat. The last time I was here, I saw Yorick trying to get them inside and lock the door, but if they were outside now, it meant the fleshmingos had broken in. Tears ran down my face as I looked around.
"We have to find him," I said, rushing toward the shop.
"Be careful, Clementine," she warned, "the fleshmingos might still be inside," but I didn’t listen. I just knew my mate was out there. He had to be alive since I didn’t feel any pain in my heart. I looked inside, and it was a disaster, blood splattered everywhere. I sniffled and covered my mouth because I almost gagged. Somehow, the baby woke up too. I hugged him quickly and stepped outside, then hurried down the road again. There were many houses, and if I sneaked inside, I had more chances of running into the fleshmingos than my mates.
"Do you see that?" Mint said, pointing to the sky. I looked up and saw a purple fog in the distance.
"That means the train is coming," I said, confused. They were bringing the train so quickly, probably for the crusaders who had already secured the babies.
"Then we should go board the train, we already have the baby," Mint suggested.
But I took a step back as I contemplated her words.
"I don’t know, Mint. What about Yorick, Haiden, and Troy? They’re still here," I said, swallowing hard while staring at the sky.
"What if they’re not? Remember, Yorick had a baby. What if he took him to the station to leave? What if Troy and Haiden also found babies?" she argued. Then I realized it was more likely to find someone and get information at the station than to just stand here worrying.
"Or if someone else is at the station, we could give them the baby and stay behind to look for Yorick and the others," I suggested. I could tell she didn’t like the idea much because her first priority was my safety. But after thinking it over, she seemed to agree that at least it was worth considering.
It felt strange. I knew she cared for her mates, but she was hesitant too, just like me.
I started walking quickly toward the train station. Of course, this wasn’t the only road to get there, there was one through the woods and probably others. So, I didn’t know how many people were heading to the train at the same time.
Nearing the station, I finally began to see Crusaders. I held the baby tightly, worried someone might snatch him from my arms. Many of them had babies too, but a few were badly injured, even the Crusaders. I looked around, trying to recognize faces, but my mind stayed focused on my mates. Once I got to the station, I started getting pushed and shoved as everyone rushed forward. I heard someone shout that the baby was dying and they needed to board the train. Then I heard others say they weren’t doing it for the baby but so they wouldn’t have to come back. Suddenly, a hand grabbed me and pulled me aside to save me from the crowd. The blue squad was going wild, pushing people out of the way to reach the train as if it would leave without them. I figured it was less about the train leaving and more about someone grabbing the baby. My first reaction was to hug the baby closer, thinking someone might try to take him from me.
Once I was safe on the side, my eyes grew wide in shock when I saw Yorick and Haiden in front of me.
"You two are okay?" I asked, smiling widely.
But it didn’t seem to land well. Haiden looked at Yorick and then back at me, holding a baby girl.
"I’m glad you have the baby. We can board the train now," Haiden said. I noticed Yorick was badly hurt, blood was oozing from his wounds.
"Wait, Yorick, are you alright?" I reached out, checking him.
"The baby is fine," he whispered, barely able to speak. I looked down at the baby in his arms and realized the baby wasn’t fine. The baby was dead.
"Yorick, the baby isn’t breathing," I said, and Haiden quickly turned away.
Yorick could barely stand. I had no idea how serious his injuries were, but the visible wounds scared me. He had a large cut on his neck like the fleshmingos had tried to slit it. Then he dropped to his knees, still holding the baby.
"I’m trying to find the hospital," he said, his voice barely audible but he seemed to be in a trauma.
I couldn’t believe he had survived such a brutal attack. While the others died, he managed to run away. His wounds showed he fought hard and barely escaped alive. He was in terrible shape. Haiden hadn’t looked at him closely until now, maybe they had only met moments before they grabbed him.
"He’s not going to make it," someone said as they passed by, glancing over our shoulders at Yorick. I grimaced at the commenter and looked back at Haiden.
"They’ll send him back the minute we land," Haiden mumbled.
I watched Yorick hold onto the dead baby. I could not think about Yorick coming back here. He would die. He was too stunned to talk and lost blood fast. With wounds like that, there was no way he could even transition.
"Haiden, you need to take him to the carriage," I whispered. He nodded, and I took the baby from Haiden.
Haiden helped Yorick put one arm over his shoulder, then silently gestured at the baby to show me that Yorick wasn’t leaving him, even though the baby had turned blue.
"Yorick, the baby is dead," he said, but Yorick shook his head. This mission had left everyone with a broken heart and we were boarding a train with one dead baby and two missing crusaders with no idea where Troy might be.