Youth

#36 - A Moth-Eaten Rag

Exiting Nyais' apartment, [Y/n] was quick to take note of the surroundings.  A painting of a man with cropped grey-ish black hair wearing a long black trench coat was nailed to the wall opposite Nyais' door, a fancy golden frame with beautiful engravings surrounding the flattering work of art.  Underneath the painting was a golden plaque — it read:

ASRIN
To commemorate your victory against the centaurs.  An exceptional spy and warrior.

Upon closer inspection, this 'Asrin' person seemed oddly familiar, though she was sure she'd never met him before.  She shook her head and took one last note of the painting for reference, before making her way down the hallway once more.  An exit.  No doubt one would be heavily guarded... but maybe she could slip past?  You never know until you find it, [Y/n] concluded.  And so she kept walking, on high alert for any more footsteps though thankfully hearing none.  Despite what some might suspect, it seemed that vampires rested through the night just as humans do.  Or perhaps these halls were just usually quiet.

[Y/n] turned a corner in hopes that it would lead to somewhere useful.  Only moments later did she hear a voice in the distance from Nyais' apartment.  She froze.

"What do you mean she's not here?!" Laion snapped and the sound of someone being pinned against a door ensued.  A low muffled response followed which [Y/n] was too far away to make out, but she could only guess the speaker was the doctor she'd seen moments before.  A thud sounded and then a pained groan, though not from Rayne as [Y/n] had expected.  Laion seemed to be in pain.  Though worry for him caused her movements to tense, [Y/n] couldn't afford to care.  She pushed her empathy to the back of her mind and continued moving.

Had Rayne just helped her?  Maybe so.  Or maybe he was just curing his own boredom.  [Y/n] didn't plan to stick around and find out.

Her pace had picked up now.  She kept glancing to the walls, noting the faces on the portraits she walked past, though she figured she was less likely to remember the names than the images so she didn't bother with them. 

"You!" an unfamiliar voice sounded.  [Y/n] froze once more and turned around to face her newest obstacle, a man with caramel brown hair and soft hazel eyes, though his gaze was fixed in a serious and confused cast.  "You're that human.  What are you doing here?" he questioned.

"I- I-" [Y/n] stuttered.  She couldn't just say she was trying to escape, could she? Though it seemed she wouldn't have to as this man seemed to understand fully at the lack of information she gave.

    "I'd be quick if I were you. I've met those kids..." he tailed off, seeming to shudder. Was this guy...? Was he letting her go? He turned around and began to walk the way he had been walking before and [Y/n] couldn't help but whisper-yell out to him desperately.

    "Wait! Wait, please," [Y/n] said quickly. He turned, his expression surprisingly apologetic. "C-can you tell me where the exit to this place is?" she asked.

    "No," he said darkly, "I saw what those kids did to Nyais. I don't fancy being next," he muttered, though his gaze was soft and sympathetic. "Good luck." And with that, he walked away. [Y/n] considered chasing after him again, but if he feared the boys that much... she wouldn't be surprised if he'd take her to them just to get in their good graces. But, if this man was here, then surely he was an elite? If she remembered correctly, you had to fight your way into being an elite. The boys only lived where they did because of her and Nyais — technically they should be with the, um... was it workers? She couldn't remember exactly.

    [Y/n] hung her head and quietly made her way into a new hallway, walking down it with hurried steps, though as light on her feet as she could be. She knew she couldn't run — she didn't want to draw attention to herself and vampires had heightened senses. God, if one of the boys had hearing like Nyais', she would've been found long ago. She shuddered at the concept.