Shadow Of Death

A Vrahen

I knew that I was lying in a patch of sunlight by the sweltering warmth on my back.
I breathed in the dust on the floor and pressed my cheek to it .
It was blissfully cool.
I lied there quietly without moving because I knew that trying to escape was hopeless. My feet and hands were bound tightly with brass cords. Even if I somehow managed to unclasp the cords ,the long black robe worn by me would hamper my movements and I would never be able to escape.
It was just like Tanmi used say, with a pensive expression on her tattooed face " when death gets coming there's no escaping it, Miren."
They would kill me for I was one of the Vrahen.
The most dangerous society in the world.

A society of assassins. I was born to kill and they were born to despise me 

Heavy footsteps sounded outside the door, a chain rattled , some things creaked and then the door opened . The man, the slayer was here. I closed my eyes though. He was here.

He was going to kill me. Kill death in flesh.
"Stara."  My dear sister's name echoed in my mind. 

But something was wrong. 

The footsteps were not heavy but lithe like a warrior's, slayers were not warriors. The man who ever he was came closer and instead of breaking my neck , he scooped me up from the waist, hoisted me on his shoulder and whistled in a strange voice. There were more footsteps and a boom.

"Too much explosive. Again ." The rescuer muttered in a young voice.
"Too much, too little it is all the same ." Another young voice answered as the rescuer walked and then suddenly jumped in to the air. Warm desert air filled my lungs as we descended towards the ground.

The fall was surprisingly smooth and I landed upon the chest of my rescuer. This was my chance.

My feet weren't bound so I jumped into a standing position and kicked the man in his side. He moved away just in time and grasped my waist again to hoist me but I twisted into the air and fell to the ground but before I could run away the rescuer punched me into the stomach and pinned me down. But I didn't stop struggling and flailed.

"Hey Li , help me rescue this damsel in distress." The boy called out as he sat on my legs.
I kicked him in the face for calling me a damsel and in distress all the same. Hell hath no fury as a Vrahen angered.

'The only distressed damsel I see here is you , Wil." Said a humorous voice as the new person (probably the explosive one ) bound my feet with deft movements and the two boys carried me inside a room after a jiggling of keys and turning of locks.
I contemplated the surroundings and realised that the room was dark lit with only a lamp somewhere in the periphery.

Suddenly with a whoosh my veil  was pulled off. My eyes analysed the room. It was a dungeon, with a single oil lamp hanging in a nearby corner. The walls were covered with crates. My eyes immediately searched for exits. Two solemn announcements broke my thought of line.

"It is a Vrahen."
"She is a Vrahen. "

I turned towards my rescuers. I wasn't expecting something but their appearances were shocking. They were not Vrahen , no blood red hair, no maroon eyes , no pale skin and no tattoos. They were tall slim muscular. Their on the edge yet graceful stance told me that they were warriors but they weren't the king's soldier in orange and grey uniforms but wearing black robes belonging to slayers that were too large for their bodies. Through the dim light I could judge that one of them had grey eyes  and blonde hair whereas the other had dark hair with startling violet eyes. He was a mravin . A manipulator of sights and in some cases minds. They looked about as old as me.

I judged that the mravin was called Li and the blonde was Wil.

" Are you sure we got the right person?"  Li asked the Wild boy as both of them analysed me.
"Kolk said something about a mark. A mark on the neck." Wil said and pushed my head back so that they could look for the mark, I jerked my head forward but his grip was strong and I had not eaten for days. "There are a lot of marks on he , she is a Vrahen , they have marks for all sorts of things. "  Li observed as  Wil grazed my neck with his warm fingers.
"There. You see that ? It's like a birthmark. That blue thing." He said to the other, talking about the miniscule navy blue design, shaped like a drop with intricate designs. It was indeed my birth mark but, Tanmi said that birth marks were not like this. It was something else.
"What is this thing?"

"It's none of your business, you insolent bastard." I replied coldly.

Before they could say anything else, shouts erupted from outside.
" The wall has been blown off ! The Vrahen has escaped!!"

"Time to go ." Li said flatly as both of them removed the too big robes to reveal padded black gear and weapon belts. They were expecting a fight. 
"Should we change here?" Wil asked Li. " No we will do it outside the establishment. Cover her up ."
Despite myself I let out a harsh laugh " You think you can escape the strongest prison establishment of the south and escape when I , A Vrahen couldn't ? " To which Wil cheekily replied " Have some faith in us beautiful , We will out before you know ." and winked. The courage of him.

He quickly dumped the veil on my head hoisted me up and exited the dungeon room from a small door followed by Li. The sandstone corridors were dingy sparsely lighted and thankfully, empty. The boys seemed to know their way around the place and took many turns before we encountered actual guards.
" Halt. Who are you and what are you doing here ?" A harsh voice  with a  southern accent  asked.
" We are taking this prisoner for burial . We are with Lord Daren ." Li replied smoothly in the same accent  as I acted dead. This wasn't the first time I was feigning death.
"We want to see the corpse." Another voice said. "It is protocol to do so." Said a different voice.
Three soldiers.
A moment of silence passed, during which I was sure the boys exchanged glances.
"Sure." Replied Li.
"Do your thing or we all die ." Wil murmured as he unhoisted my body and set me on the floor .
"Remove the veil."
As the veil got removed I opened my eyes to see three shocked soldiers. One of them opened his mouth but I kicked him in the stomach as the boys killed the other two easily , before they could react. Warm blood sprayed over me and the walls.

"we need to make it quick . They will know about us soon." Wil said as he hoisted me again and this time they broke into a run.
After many twists and turns we finally made it outside.
Not much light. It was probably filtering from foliage covering the roof.
"Halt ! Who are you and what is your business ?" A wheezy voice said.

A young boy feeling braver than he should.

"I am Maksim , my brother Heron and our dear sister Sorcha. We were here to see Lord Daren for some business." Li lied smoothly . "Why is your sister unconscious?" The boy asked
"She fainted because of the heat. She is very delicate ." Wil replied promptly. I was going to kick his ass for this.

"We need to kill him." I hissed in Wil's ear as Li narrated  some imaginary story to the boy.

"Kill him, we can't afford to leave behind a trail." I hissed again and he completely ignored me. 

A moment of silence passed after which the boy opened the gate and my eyes were blinded with sunlight filtering through the veil.