2

  I let the shadows of the thin corridors consume me. Despite the opulence of the surroundings, an undercurrent of danger lingered in the air, a reminder that even within the walls of Mournridge Den, no one is ever, truly safe.

  The world was a black hole and the only sound you could hear was the blood that dripped from my neck, each drop falling quietly on the ground. The blade shimmered in the dark and for a moment, it all seemed so peaceful. Only after was I aware of the arms holding me.

  ?Who are you?” I managed after contemplating whether I should try moving or not. Her voice was husky with a strong accent and it echoed through the room as she spoke.

  ?Someone you might consider useful.”

  ?Who are you?” I asked again, this time a little louder. She scoffed and loosened her grip, leaving little craters on my arms. The dagger seemed uneasy in my hand.

  ?I'm not here to fight,” She stepped back, ?You do know what useful means, don’t you?”

  I turned. She flashed her teeth at me as if she were going to eat me whole.

  ?Who are you?” I asked for the third time. No answer. ?What do you want from me?”

  ?I've come to give, not to take.”

  She stepped aside in the shadows and she let them consume her as they did me. On the floor, shone ever so brightly, nothing other than a head. Spider Lily’s.

  She was long gone before I could align my thoughts. The sun was already up. There was no blood to be soon, no head.

  The mountains’ gates opened once more.

  ?~ [?] ~?

  The door from the Mother's chamber was slightly open, smoke and hushed words were coming out from the inside as I stepped closer. There was a familiar voice that accompanied the Mothers'. It was her.

  ?The deed is done, Mother. Now I excpect to be given the details you swore to give.”

  ?Patience, child. Everything will come in time.”

  The woman’s voice aggravated. ?I have been patient. You promised to tell me.”

  ?It is one of us, but I cannot tell you more.”

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  There was silence and then she answered. ?Mother, I'm afraid someone just stopped by,” She opened the door and smiled as she met my eyes. ?Please, come in.”

  I could have sworn I heard her chuckle under her breath. She knew I’d been there the entire time. Mother, on another hand, did not. It took her just a few seconds to regain herself, enough to read the terrified expression painted all over her face.

  ?I wasn't expecting you.” She turned to face the girl who silently welcomed her side. Tall and only made of muscle, her face young but her body much older. She grinned. The feeling was fervor, there were shivers in my arms, my arms she strongly gripped not too long ago.

  ?Why won't you show her around, Red Bird.” Although it sounded like a question, it was a command, a reminder that as long as she was ruling, the head on the floor of my chamber could have easily been mine.

  ?Yes, Mother, certainly.” I left the room quietly and the girl followed me outside. The door closed behind us and I could still hear the Mothers’ nervous stomps around the room.

  ?What were you doing in my room?”

  The girl blinked, puzzled. ?What are you talking about?”

  Her tone seemed sincere. Something in me wanted to trust her words, so I did.

  ?You should start with your name.”

  She smiled, sunlight washing her silver hair. ?Esmeray.”

  I stopped and turned around to face her, so close I could feel her heartbeat. Esmeray was calm and steady, I envied that. She followed me through the entire den, I only spoke when it was needed. She spoke nearly the entire time and I foolishly wanted to hear more.

  ?~ [?] ~?

  ?How long have you been an assassin for?” Esmeray was leaning against the wall, peeling an apple with her dagger. Her eyes were on me, studying me head to toe.

  ?Three years this fall. Whatever it is you’re looking for, I do not have the answer.”

  She bit on the apple, there was not even half of it left.

  ?Why are you here?” The words escaped my mouth before I could think. Esmeray grinned at me.

  ?To join you.”

  I attempted a smile. ?That’s not the truth, is it?” I closed the distance and took a bite from the remaining of the apple. For a moment longer than necessary, we stood there, twin ghosts trapped in each other's gravity, pretending the world was not burning outside these walls.

  She smiled. I did not.

  I simply turned away, clutching the taste of sweetness I would never admit had touched me.

  ?You did say you do not have the answer, why doesn’t mine suffice?” There was a wildness in her that flashed in her eyes, blemished, beautiful and bored.

  ?Leave, I have to train.”

  ?As you wish.” She curtsied mockingly.

  ?~ [?] ~?

  The punching bag ripped, and as the brown grains that filled it dripped on the floor, I remembered her eyes. They were slightly lighter than the color of the grains, sweet and woody like cinnamon. A voice from behind teared my thoughts apart, as one would make room through a crowd.

  ?Mother is asking for you.” The man was tall and covered with blood, he had fresh scars on his arms.

  He limped away. Blood was dripping through his shirt, on his body and then to the ground, leaving a trail.

  ?Red Bird. One of our dens was attacked today, there were barely any survivors.” Mother exhaled. ?A Crimson did this. I’ve been told he is rather pale with blue eyes. I want you to bring him here, dead or alive.”

  My eyes narrowed, we haven’t met since that night in the woods, it couldn’t have been him. She rose from her chair.

  ?Find him and send his soul to the Valley of Sins.”

  I felt my vision blur, I staggered, supporting myself against the nearest wall.

  ?Whose base is he in?” Was all I managed to ask.

  ?Vaelens.” She said, the name sour on her tongue.

  Vaelen is the leader of the Crimson Base, any man under his command is as strong as one of us. Just what did the Wraith do to end up there? I straightened my back. ?I request permission to go alone.”

  ?As you wish.”

  I sometimes saw him in my dreams, his gaze sharp, piercing through me. I should have never let him go that night, not alive at least. I despised missing his presence more than I did him being around me. I spoke to him under my breath, the way children pray to gods that never answer.

  Some nights, I heard him laugh.

  Some nights, I knew it was only the wind.