Long Night of Solace

[Rowgen]

              Danothil hovered in his parents' quarters. Images of the night's events flickered before his mind's eye, while his eyes in this world stared out into nothing. The two dim lanterns blinked in the dark room and cast a green sheen over his cheeks, though apart from them there was no light in the room. He glided over to a window and opened it, leaning on the sill with both hands. His lungs sucked greedily of the night air, till he made a face and quickly closed the window as an icy coldness filled his chest, near his heart. Perhaps he didn't feel as well as he'd let on, but his parents were none the wiser. He spent a moment to contemplate whether telling them that the wound, although it was sealed and the bleeding had stopped, still bothered him. He frowned as he decided that it would be a matter for the physicians. His parents needed no more sorrows this night.

              His eyes stung and he turned his gaze away reflexively. Vrandiel. Her name came uninvited and invaded his mind. Vrandiel. He tried to push it out of his mind again, but the sight of her body, covered by the bloodstained drape, followed the name. Her face swam before him in the night, distorted by the tears that welled up in his eyes. Who would think to harm her? Who could be so cruel? He protested, anger rising within him. She had no enemies — she was innocent — who would commit such an atrocity? He was seething, and for a moment he inanely imagined the tears steam from his cheeks, even though they didn't. She wasn't the target — how could she be? — the attack was meant for me. Seregon was not without enemies. Of course — his mother had married his father for that very reason — the attack had to be meant for him, but somehow it had failed. He recalled that he had awoken from the voice of the assassin. The familiar voice. He couldn't make a connection to where he knew it from, but he remembered what the voice had been repeating. 'Nononono...' A woman, regretful. He had thought it was Vrandiel at first, but he had soon realized she was not. Before he had registered the rest of what she said, she had sunk a blade into his chest. The rest was blurred. He couldn't recall how or when he'd fallen unconscious, but he hadn't been awake when his mother had found him.

              He was so tired. So tired, and the ache in his chest didn't relent. The hole she left behind would take long time to heal, he reckoned. He was so tired. 'Get yourself some rest, boy.' His father had said. Turning around in the room and looking to the bed, standing there so still and clean, he was tempted to obey. Yes, perhaps he would wake up from this nightmare, he found himself thinking hopefully. He quickly scolded himself for such nonsense. 'You are acting like a child.' He murmured, as he lay down in the bed and looked up to the roof. Unsurprisingly, the roof was not staring back down at him. Perhaps there yet remained some sense to this world.

[Psycho]

One... Two... Three... She counted off within her head. Each number brought along the sound of metal grinding against stone. She brought slowly the edge of her blade in slow methodical strikes against the smooth stone platter, before drawing it back, examining its sheen. A masterful craft, perfect for her hand... And a mere month ago, the very bane of her dreams. A sword. Her own sword, crafted by her brother. Anat silently looked her blade in hand, her gloved grip softly tightening on its hilt before she let her mind sink away in thought. The Dead Scar lay ahead, she thought. Filled with empty memories of the past, brought back as twisted parodies of the living. She hated the undead. She truly did, the same hate that stemmed from a pure fear, from the wish to cease their existence and know that she would never have to share the same reality with them... But at those moments, her gloved hand tightened around the grip of her blade, her brow furrowing.

That hate, was nothing in comparison to the hate she felt towards them.

Monsters, she thought to herself. Former shells of creatures, looking like her... But they were hollow, filled with worms. And when she would kill them, those worms would spill... And she would stomp each and every one of them until the very memory of these creatures was to be erased. She tried controlling her anger, her hatred as best she could, but the more she struggled the more she found herself drifting into it, her teeth gritting and her hands clenching around the hilt of her sword. Monsters. Demons. They took an innocent life... And from Danothil, none the less. What kind of a soulless creature takes the life of a defenseless woman, ruins the life of another, for a petty feud? Was it for money? She thought to herself as she suddenly swung sideways to the air with a harsh tug, her motion smooth and deadly as she huffed out with the effort.

None of it mattered. The damage was done, and no matter what she would do, Danothil has gained his lost. It is not fair. She said once in her mind. For the good to suffer. It is not fair. For a life lost because of the greed of another. Another harsh swing and the blunt side of her sword tapped gently against her shoulder, the blade facing upwards with the bend of her arms. For them, there would be mercy. For these monsters. There would only be reckoning. But not by his hand. She paused her next strike halfway through.

Danothil...

The word seeped out her lips as her frown loosened. What did she feel about him? Anat couldn't tell. She paused and loosened her stance, exhaling deeply as she lowered her blade. It's true she found him very handsome, and without a doubt appealing to her, but he was noble and she was commoner... But to see him like that, it brought her a hate she never felt before. He was almost sobbing, like a child trying its best to look strong infront of his parents.

Innocent. He was innocent too.

Anat looked ahead, a single straw dummy stood amid the blackened ground at its border to Eversong, peering to Anat with an eyeless gaze. I'll never be able to be close to him. She thought bitterly. So I won't be. But I'll help him. She looked up to the doll, and with a quick slice, brought the blade all across the chest of the dummy, cutting deeply into its abdomen. Straw spilled out slowly and wafted in the wind.

I will become his reckoning.

[Zhaei]

A jolly humming emanated from the private quarters of Monteveir Viel'thadonis. The thick oak door creaked open and the hasty clunk, clunk of footsteps quickly drowned out the jovial tune. Navigating his way into the workshop, the young servant knocked but once and made no pause before entering.

What? Are you sure?

The night had taken a turn for worse for Lord Viel'thadonis, but the sprightly noble was not one to sleep on his problems. Jumping from his simple chair and darting to the colossal dresser on the far wall of his laboratory, he began to rummage through countless scrolls and parchments until settling on a particular dusty little text buried deep within the confines of the oaken chiffonier.

His desk was illuminated by nothing but a lone candle. That was not a problem for the engineer. Flashes of sparks, ripples of temporal magic and the shine of ensorcelled crystals illumined the workshop as he worked, his artificer goggles granting him otherworldly sight.

A little over an hour passed. Exasperated but satisfied, the Engineer reclined with his freshly built invention in hand. Placing it carefully down on his desk, he cleared some space and grabbed a small roll of parchment. Instructing a quill to write for him, he voiced his thoughts and the letter was written.

My friend, Lord Seregon.

Great tragedy has befallen you this day, but it is your turn not to study the shadows but to turn to the Sun. I am no stranger to loss, and in my long life I have faced many situations like this. It was with the guiding hand of my sanguine family that I overcame them; a place I have taken just as many times. Rest calmly in the knowledge that your sorrow shall soon make way for new happiness.

Feel free to keep the bird. It will ferry your message to whoever you would wish it and makes a fantastic ornament if it breaks should you no longer require it.

Signature. No, not the word you useless excuse for an enchanted quill! Signature. Oh, come here you bl

Monteveir Viel'thadonis
Monty!

Tap, tap, tap knocks the bird on the window..

[Kirabo]

A day earlier,
one hour after midnight...

Taelynn was roaming the yard of the Seregon Spire, an activity she'd grown
used to after doing it so many times. She needed to get acquainted with the territory of her next prey, after all. Her nervousness was greater than usual, though. It was the day on which the assassination was to take place. Concealed in the nearby brushes, she was observing the happenings inside the tower in her own secrecy until the time was right. "Alright. Time to move." She flashed out of existence.

A crackle of arcane, and she slipped through time and space, escaping the grasp of the physical for a split-second. She reappeared on top of the Spire, her appearance more fitting of a widow than anything else. "Deep breaths, Taelynn. You can do this" The dark colors of black and maroon, which were completely patching up every inch of her skin, perfectly complimented her elegance and gracefulness in movement as she descended the eave of the tower's roof. She hopped off the rim of the roof, and descended with a fall as slow as a feather onto the balcony. "As quiet as the night, as quick as the wind. Just stay calm." Sneaking on and about, she couldn't help but feel a dose of discomfort. She knew who her target was; more specifically - she knew which family he was a valuable part of. "It is an Elf, not unlike any other. There is no need to panic whatsoever. ...But what if?" Fighting the chills coasting down her spine, she descended to the lower floor.

She found the spire's bedroom, consequently assuming that Danothil was asleep there. She took a deep breath which she held in for a few seconds, her eyes closed for the duration. "I can not do this." Reaching for something from the leather waist bag she had on, she opened her eyes, slowly breathing out. She felt her heart beating as if her whole body was quaking, following the rhythmical pulse of blood flowing through her veins. "I do not think that I can do this. What if the Disruptor does not work? No. It will work. Otherwise, I will hunt the Goblin down and slay him in the slowest possible manner that I can think of in the rage-driven chaos I find myself in at that time." What she pulled out was an Arcane Disruptor, a magical item capable of disabling weak Arcane-powered objects in a close vicinity. Paying the price of some mana and focus, she activated the crystal which in turn shut all the Arcane lights at the top of the tower off. This caused a complete blackout, and absolute darkness enveloped the top of the Seregon tower. "I can do this. I know I can. The Goblin will live. Now, I must redirect my mind from pesky green creatures and onto my target. I feel such low willpower right now. Is that normal? I truly hope so."

She started making her way into the room slowly. After a flex of her fingers, her vision was guided by a weak divination charm, just enough for her to see the room she's in for a split-second and not emit enough light to be noticed. "There's my prey. All I have to do now is get close, close enough for my blade to do its work. I must not use arcane, for that will narrow the search for the assassin down a noticeable amount. Anybody with even a speck of wit would look for magi after an event of an arcane bolt murder. I do not want that." She licked her lips nervously, moving towards the bed where she saw her target. Drawing her blade off her thigh, she climbed onto the bed. She ticked another divination charm off, enough to determine that the target was lying on their stomach.

Taelynn slid her hand in between the pillow and the Elf's mouth, pulling back with her right hand while using her left to slip her dirk through her target's back, just above the fourth rib. With a soft spin of her wrist, she cut the aorta straight off. After she was certain there was no reaction, she let go of her victim's mouth and pulled the blade out of their heart. Her muscle tension decreased slightly as she huffed a stream of air in relief. In doing so, she activated her third divination charm for the night, looking at the body while turning it onto its back. "What is this...? What is this?! Is this some cheap game?! Oh no. Oh dear Light, no. No! How did this happen? I must be mistaken, my eyes must be playing tricks on me! No!" She started voicing her thoughts in terror, while moving from the crouching position she was in into a sitting one.

"No, no, no, no, no. Impossible."

"Vrandiel?"

The divination charm she had active intensified, and she could now see what she'd done. She killed the wrong person. She killed an innocent. Danothil was seated on a chair behind her, half awoken by Taelynn's babbling, talking to her. "By the Light... What do I do now?! How could I have made such a mindless mistake? This is bad. Very bad. I must struggle. I can fix this."

"It's okay, honey. I'm just feheeling a bit coho-"

Her voice cracked. She hastily got onto her feet and leaped onto the chair Danothil was on, jerking her knife into his chest, just to the left of the sternum. The blade swam through his lungs and into the middle of his heart. With the guidance of the assassin's hand, it traversed counter-clockwise, slicing through a good part of the Elf's heart and left lung. She tried pulling the dagger out, but it was lodged in. She felt Danothil's right hand pawing weakly for her own. It caused her to panic, therefore making her react. She raised her left leg towards her target's face, kicking him against the chair and herself off of it. She managed to keep her blade within her grasp.

Her landing was blunt and stiff, causing her to clumsily fall onto her back. "He is not dead. I missed the atrium. He will live. But she... How could I have done something this stupid? I am not a shallow-minded person. This was a mistake of haste, not wit. Should I get up and finish it? I can not, the Disruptor will stop functioning in three seconds. That is not enough time. Not to mention that the whole tower is most probably alarmed. Will he be able to track me down? No, I left no trace of my presence. Or did I? This is a very bad situation you have gotten yourself into, Taelynn... No. I can not finish him off. I can not believe myself for doing this, but I will have to run and hide, for what may quite possibly be a very long time, waging from several ages to... well, eternity! For such a careless mistake... This is the price I get to pay now. It is only justice. What will Coren think? Without doubt, our potential alliance will not be happening due to my mishap. How did I manage to do such a bad thing?! I have to run. Right now." After a short pause, she managed to push herself onto her feet and head for the door, giving the chaos left behind her one last peek before leaping off the spire's balcony and into the void of the night.

The Disruptor's effect wore off; light embraced the tower yet again.