3

  ?Red Bird?” Esmeray was leaning against the doorframe. I turned, almost faster than I wanted to. I never hear her come. She wore an assassins’ attire, pure and white.

  ?What are you doing here?”

  ?Came to notify you that I’ve received permission to lead our brothers to the enemy base while you hunt for the one who did us dirty.” She smiled sweetly like an innocent kid asking for candy.

  I looked up so that our eyes could meet.

  ?You are no assassin.”

  Her smile didn’t fade. ?And yet we both know I could kill three of our best brothers with one blow.”

  ?Cyclops will lead.”

  ?Oh. I’ve heard the story, how he fought bravely and lost an eye to the Crimson rats. That’s where he got his nickname from, isn’t it?”

  I tried to read her face but as always, there was nothing in her eyes.

  ?Yes, it is.”

  She grinned as she pulled out a pair of eyes. ?Evidently, I could not know who it was that did that to him so I just picked a victim. You should have been there, his wailing could have scared all the crows in the Valley. Mother accompanied me, she will tell you it was this suit I wore. As you can see, white as snow.”

  I pulled out my dagger.

  ?Give me your hand.”

  There was no fear or pain in her eyes as I cut her.

  ?What are you doing?”

  ?This is the way, let it drip to the ground. Once we’re done go to the Valley and pray for him.”

  ?~ [?] ~?

  The inn looked just as it did the last time we left it, promising. As if we could live inside it and be happy, as if everything would disappear and we could sit by the window forever.

  ?It’s been a while.”

  I didn’t have to turn to know it was him, his shadow grew over me and I could feel his breath resting on my shoulder. He wore the red suit of the Crimson Base, it was the color of the sunset.

  ?Shall we walk?”

  I followed him outside. I knew that if I were to sit at that table with him I’d never leave.

  He looked the same, still as beautiful as the snow from three years ago. We walked in silence for a while. He spoke first, he always did.

  ?I’ve heard you were sent to kill me, Red Bird.”

  ?So were you.”

  His soul and mine are the same, he hides in me, I in him. Not yet dead, still we rot.

  ?But I will not, I swore it. At your mothers’ grave.”

  I met his gaze, his eyes seemed frozen in time, he was sincere.

  ?I made no promises.” I said.

  ?How do you plan to kill me? Slaughter me like you did your father?”

  ?Mournridge Den does not use ways unfaithful to the Valley. Is it true you work for him?” I asked.

  He grinned sheepishly. ?He found me when I was no one, he made me who I am now. I’d do anything for him, for my family.”

  ?But you refuse to kill me.”

  No answer.

  ?And yet here you are, telling me about oaths with the blood of my brothers still fresh on your hands.”

  His face was blank and if I wouldn’t have known him I would have said he felt nothing. Maybe he didn’t.

  ?I did not know, I swear it,” He said. ?I will never touch you, or your family again.”

  I stopped, my arms shaking just slightly. ?My brothers must have found your base by now and it is burning, Wraith.”

  “Well then, should we go see my gift from you together, Red Bird?”

  The ashes sprinkled through the air like fireworks, the smoke filled the room and my lungs. There was nothing left of their base and yet there were no bodies to be seen. Not a single living, or dead, soul. Not even mine or the Wraiths.

  ?Beautiful, isn’t it?” The ash turned his hair gray and I could hear his breathing getting shallow.

  ?Yes.” I admitted, but my eyes were on him.

  ?You started this, you know? Killed my brothers and one of thems’ son.”

  ?I killed them and it cost me the life of my sister.”

  For the first time he threw his head back and laughed, mockingly, a guttural laugh. ?How did your sister die?” He asked, gazing towards the burning pieces of wood, once tables and chairs, I believed.

  ?By her own.” I didn’t say more and I didn’t need to. He smiled.

  ?Where’s your precious father now?” I found myself asking.

  ?You think he’d be here? He is salient to us. We would never put his life at risk.”

  ?Mother would never abandon us, it is the way of the Valley.”

  ?A king does not fight his own battles, that’s what soldiers are for.” Was all he said in return.

  As we walked away, I couldn’t tell if he noticed my prayer for their souls but I could swear I saw the tug at the corner of his lips as I spilled my own blood.

  This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  ?How did you end up like this?” I asked, not being able to hold it in.

  ?A Crimson?” He smiled.

  Yes, I wanted to say, but instead I said,

  ?Alone.”

  His eyes darted towards me for a second, then he looked ahead. The trees were starting to bloom and as the wind blew, petals flew around like lost words. The birds flew in the spring sky, moving slowly, as if they were erasing the clouds.

  ?I’m with you now, am I not?”

  I didn’t answer, he knew that’s not what I meant.

  ?It pains me to live without you. Maybe I should kill you.” He continued, softly taking my hand in his. I did not resist it. But when I looked down, there was no shadow.

  Only my own.

  We parted silently as always. This time, both of us expecting to cross paths again.

  ?~ [?] ~?

  When I got back, thoughts erupted in my head like lava from a vulcano and then they turned to snow. I don’t remember how long I trained for, but as I washed myself I enjoyed every bit of pain I felt. Icy delusions cold on my skin. Sore muscles and bloody knuckles.

  An hour later, I was told to go see Mother.

  ?I presume Esmeray has made her position here clear. I witnessed it, her suit is pure.” Mother said, her gaze focused on the letter she had just received.

  I kept my eyes on hers, I could not let her daunt me. ?She proved herself worthy of the mission.”

  ?Yes, she did. Yet here it says she did not leave the enemy base unharmed.” Mother added.

  ?What happened?” I looked away.

  Mother smiled wickedly ?An eye for an eye. The Valley works in mysterious ways.”

  I said nothing.

  ?What about the man?” The Mother raised her eyes to meet mine, but mine were attached to the ground.

  ?He will not harm us again.”

  ?Dead?” She asked.

  I shook my head.

  ?Tell Esmeray I want her here. You are dismissed.”

  The corridor was getting thinner, I felt my vision blur. I nearly fell but someone caught me.

  ?Are you feeling alright?”

  Esmeray. I stepped back, away from her grip. She had a bandage covering her face, a little red painting it.

  ?Mother is asking for you.”

  ?What for?”

  ?No trouble of mine, sister.” I tried to walk away but stumbled against the wall. She attempted a smile but winced and covered the hole where her eye had been.

  ?You should get some rest.”

  As she walked away the corridor went black, last thing I remembered was the loud thud as my head met the ground.

  ?~ [?] ~?

  As I opened my eyes, the room was spinning and all I could feel was the vomit going down my throat. My name echoed in the air, first in a soft voice than louder.

  “Red Bird.” Esmeray was sitting on the bed at my feet. I knew there was no way I could get up so I resorted to supporting myself on my elbows.

  “What are you doing here?”

  “I found you unconscious.”

  I touched my forehead, it was ice-cold.

  “What are you doing here?” I asked again, this time trying not to sound like a dying dog. Esmeray stood up and gave me half a smile.

  “I was just checking to see if you’re dying.”

  “And am I?”

  “No.”

  She turned to leave but stopped in the doorframe.

  “What happened to the man?”

  The thought that I let him live made me retch. Perchance it was painted all over my face as Esmeray didn’t wait for an answer.

  “Mother gave us a mission. Mercer will be joining us.”

  Mercer was one of the oldest members of Mournridge Den. He’s served Mother and the Valley of Sins for fifteen years.

  “What’s the mission?”

  Esmeray grinned. “We caught a deceiver.”

  The house looked beautiful, painted white with blue windows. For a second, I wanted to stop and take it all in, but that part was long buried. The real me wanted to burn it down.

  Mercer was standing next to me, “They are mine.”

  Esmeray pulled out her dagger, “You have no right to order us, brother.”

  “That’s enough, Esmeray. Mercer will draw the first blood.”

  “That is not the way.”

  I stepped closer, our breaths were one in the cold air. “What do you know of the way? Question me again and you’ll join the dead of the Valley.”

  Esmeray hid her knife back in the shadows. Our brother was already at the door, he knocked. A woman answered the door, her eyes red and puffy. A little girl was hiding behind her skirt. The woman had long blonde hair and a thin waist. Her eyes met mine and instead of fear, her eyes were full of hope.

  “Are you friends of my husbands’? He hasn’t come home yet. He promised he would. It’s our little ones’ birthday today.”

  Mercer stepped closer to her. “Would you mind letting us in? I’m afraid we should talk, Susanne.”

  For a second, a small change appeared in her expression. “Oh, where are my manners? Yes, of course.” She stepped aside, letting us enter before closing the door. She bent down to face the little girl. “My love, will you go upstairs for me?”

  “But when will father come? I wanted,” She started tearing up. “I wanted to show him the cake we made.”

  “We will show him tomorrow, what do you say?”

  The little girl nodded.

  “Now be a good girl and go. Go play the violin. You promised to exercise.”

  The girl rushed upstairs.

  “Well, we have a lot to catch up on. Don’t we?”

  “I will be quick,” Mercer explained. “Your husband won’t be returning home. He prayed to the Valley of Sins yet he wore the Crimson suit.”

  Her lips began to tremble, her blue eyes were clouds full of rain.

  “I beg you, don’t hurt my daughter.”

  “And what are we supposed to do with her? Raise her?”

  Tears started running down on her face.

  “My sister, she will take her.”

  Esmeray stood up from the couch. “We can’t do that. We can’t possibly trust her.”

  “Sit.” I ordered. “Where do we find her?”

  The woman looked at me, thanking me with her eyes.

  “She works at The Old Inn.”

  Mercer threw a dagger in her heart and no blood touched his suit. Somewhere in the distance, violin was playing.

  ?~ [?] ~?

  The little girl was sound asleep in my arms as we reached The Old Inn. Esmeray was the first to talk. After all, she was not known for her silence.

  “What will you tell the girl?”

  Mercer didn’t take his eyes off the door as he answered. “Nothing.”

  “She is just a little girl, what will she do without her mother?”

  “We cannot wash away the blood from our hands, Esmeray. The deed is done. If it consoles you, it was I that made her an orphan, not you.”

  “The woman was innocent.”

  “No one is innocent. She was aware of her husbands’ false-hearted doings. I swore to him that I will make him suffer and that’s what I did.”

  I was already used to the warmth of the body pressed to mine as we entered. An older woman, resembling the girls’ mother was serving two men playing cards.

  Her eyes fell on the girl still sleeping in my arms. “Follow me.” Was all she said.

  I turned to Esmeray. “Take the girl, if anything happens you kill her.” The young woman froze for a second, as if she didn’t understand my words. She nodded.

  The woman pointed to a dark green couch.

  “Take a seat.”

  We were served nothing.

  “Where’s my sister?”

  “My brothers’ should have taken her body by now. She will be buried in pieces along her traitor husband.” Said Mercer.

  The woman dug her nails in her palm. “Why?”

  “Your brother-in-law has betrayed the Valley. I swore to make him suffer.”

  “Spare me the childish need to make men suffer. Why did you kill my sister?” For the first time, since I’ve known him, Mercer smiled.

  “You know better than anyone I could not let her live.”

  “And why is that?” She was smiling too, but it was only to mock him.

  “It is the way. You know that.”

  “And what do you suggest I do? Make my nieces whole life a lie?”

  “Wouldn’t be far from yours, Bella.”

  As I heard her name I knew why she seemed so familiar, she was Belladonna, once an assassin who prayed to the Valley. Rumour has it she spilled blood on her suit so she could leave Mournride Den, all for peace she was never given.

  She pulled out a dagger from the inside of her boot. “If I won’t kill you, the Crimsons will.”

  Assassins that prayed to the Valley never changed, no matter how much blood they spilled on their suits, no matter how much they prayed to their pretender god Alyster.

  I looked at Esmeray, her fingers steady around the dagger handle as she held it against the sleeping girls’ throat.

  “Do it.”

  Belladonna loosened her grip around the dagger handle. “Don’t!”

  I could feel the cold metal of my dagger against the skin of my palm. I threw it before I could think, the dagger piercing her shoulder. There was no scream, just the sound her dagger made as it fell on the carpet.

  “I have plenty more, if you wish for your niece to live, you will behave.” I said.

  Her eyes were burning mad. By the time she reached for the blade tied to her thigh, mine was in her right eye. There was a scream this time, but not hers. The little girl woke up, wide eyed.

  “Esmeray, why is the girl alive still?”

  Esmeray’s face betrayed her steady grip.

  Belladonna fell to her knees.

  “Don’t.” She was crying tears of blood. “She’s all I have left, please.”

  Mercer threw his dagger right through Esmeray’s fingers and into the girls’ chest as Belladonna dragged her own through his.

  Relief hit Esmeray’s face, yet it was not for the girl it was for herself. She could not have killed her and I failed to see it.

  The girl was dead. It gave me immense pleasure. I no longer had to feel her warm body pressed against mine, no longer had to linger for more. I threw my third dagger and it stopped in the woman’s heart.

  I bent down and pulled the daggers out of her crimson corpse.

  “Disappointing. I heard she was one of the best.”

  Esmeray’s eyes fell on Mercers’ body. She rushed to his aid.

  “Disappointing? A half-dead woman nearly took out our brother and you find it disappointing?”

  “I have six more daggers, the next time you hesitate to execute my order you join them on the floor.”

  “It is forbidden to kill your kin.” Was all she said.

  I did not reply, for she was right, but all I could think of was how Belladonna was once one of us and how effortless it was for Mercer to end her.