"I need you to think back carefully. This could change everything. Are you sure that it was her?" Madin's gaze never broke with hers.
"Yes," Jai-Jai said a little louder than a whisper. "How many people do you know with violet eyes?"
Madin tapped his cane against the floor, each hit harder than the last. "Will she tell Them?"
"Esme hasn't yet. If they knew I was here, this city would already be ash."
The vampire paced. "Good, this is good. Is she still here?"
"Probably. But we won't find Esme."
Placing his hands on either side of Jai-Jai, his cane dug into her shoulder. "Do you think," Madin tightened his grip, "they were behind my Tamira's..."
The girl didn't speak, her eyes answering the question - no.
For a split moment, Jai-Jai saw the vampire for what he truly was. The lines in his face sunk deeper, his skin lost all color, and his hair thinned. A skeleton stood before her, leaving only the remains of his soul — a lonely, man mourning another loved one lost to the sands of time.
"So, it was the humans," The skeleton whispered as his face morphed back into the man that it was. Letting go, Madin moved towards the door. "I am going to collect my grandaughter. When I come back, I would rather you not be here. We can talk in the morning."
Madin shut the door quietly, leaving Jai-Jai behind, feeling more alone than ever. The candle flames swayed as they dimmed, before raising up, leaving scorch marks on the ceiling.
"Finally," a voice called. "You're alone."The human crawled through the window and charged towards her. The doomed soul pulled two daggers out and stabbed her – one, a near-miss next to her heart, the other in her gut. "A traitor to the human race. Die!" The intruder cackled, gleefully watching her eyes flutter as they shut.
Pulling back his weapons, he looked puzzled. Shattered blades lay fallen at their feet. A hand grabbed his neck, forcing him to look up. The eyes of a demon stared back, one excited to kill their prey.
"I'm not in the mood to deal with foolish mortals." Flames reflected in her eyes. "I'll make this quick."
His smile faded once he felt the burning. It started in his gut, faint warmth spreading upwards. The temperature increased, sweat dripped down his face as his blood boil inside his veins. Choking, he attempted to pry Jai-Jai's fingers away, but her body was emanating heat. When the skin on his fingers started to blister, he had to let go and looked up at his killer. Her skin looked almost transparent; an iridescent glimmer was shining through.
"Sh..she lied," he gasped, "You aren't human."
"No. We're not."
His body dropped as the candle flames extinguish, their wicks burned to the last centimeter. The only source of light in the room was the fireplace casting a spotlight on the body. Breathing heavily, Jai-Jai dropped her shaking hands by her side.
A present from sister dearest? Said her inner voice. She always did enjoy pushing our buttons.
The door opened behind her. Madin lay the sleeping child gently down on the duvet. "What have you done?" Madin's harsh whisper cut through the room.
Jai-Jai's insides felt like they were painfully twisting together. Her appearance, however, was calm and collected. "Esme's way of announcing her arrival. This is maybe the..." Seventh. "Seventh time she's tried to kill me." Jai-Jai shrugged. "At this point, I think it's her way of showing affection."
Gliding across the room, Madin rubbed his temples as he surveyed the body. "You don't make anything easy do you?"
Looking over her shoulder, she stared at Mara, who moaned as she turned over to snuggle deeper in the pillows. At that moment, Jai-Jai didn't care about what was going to happen. She was tired. Tired of planning, tired of scheming, and especially tired of having her most inner-self sealed.
The faint sound of a door clicking shut nearby grabbed her attention. "Did you hear something?"
Madin grunted a no as he wrapped the body in a tablecloth, unceremoniously throwing it over his shoulder. "When you first came into my home I promised you my life. I didn't promise my family's souls. Now please leave before you wake up Mara."
"I know." The door closed softly behind the gardener. I'm sorry.
Sleep did not come easy that night. Tossing and turning Jai-Jai kept replaying the past several days' happenings in her head. After many failed attempts Jai-Jai accepted the fact that she wouldn't be getting any sleep that night. Pacing around her bedroom, Jai-Jai thought her time would be better spent preparing for the journey ahead. Fumbling around in her desk drawer, she pulled out a stack of files. The left corner of each stamped with bolded names –
TWIG MARCELIS; RHISTEL CUILLIN; ALANIS CUILLIN; KRANEIA.
Madin had insisted that she not go into this mission blindsided about her companions. The world was at war, and Jai-Jai didn't have the time to investigate them herself before leaving.
While Twig's file was little more than a page, the twin's records were longer than Jai-Jai had anticipated. Although they hailed from a small town, their backstory was less than uninteresting. The elven crown had taken an interest in them from a young age due to the unusual elemental gifts they possessed. Although Rhistel and Alanis had barely turned nineteen, both girls were laden with honors from King Scail of Alba.
Turning the page over Jai-Jai briefly scanned over the rest of their files. She made a mental note to be extra cautious around Twig. She'd had noticed the elves gawking at her when she first arrived, and although they seemed to take center stage and were the most interested in the human, Jai-Jai never trusted the quiet ones.
Her caretakers' words rattled inside her head, so clearly it was almost as if they were there with her. Sometimes it felt like she'd never left. It's always the quiet ones you must look out for, Jesmine-Elya. They hear everything. See all. Like snakes they blend into their surroundings, slithering past unsuspecting victims, attacking when you least expect.
Being the only one who appeared human anywhere in her travels made her singled out, the only attention she got was others treating her like a novelty item. Amusing for the first few minutes, forgotten after the next. This pleased Jai-Jai, a lot. She'd grown up surrounded by people. There had been a few times that she'd been truly alone and Jai-Jai was hesitant to give up the small freedoms she had now.
Shuffling through the papers, she looked for Kraneias file. Blowing hair out of her face, Jai-Jai smiled. If only her caretakers could see her now. Grass stains on her clothes from working in a garden, hair in a loose braid, planning to travel. The tightly wound hair and itchy clothing were all things she would never miss. And if luck would have it, would never have to wear again.
The dryad's file was heftier because Kraneia's life expanded across generations.
"A dogtree who sprouted at the end of the Old World. Blessed by the Gods of old for her bravery," Jai-Jai read aloud, her fingers running under the sentence, "Possesses the ability to detach herself from her host tree and roam free."
Which must mean even if her tree dies, she'll live. Jai-Jai's inner voice spoke up.
"It doesn't affect us, so who cares? I don't even know why Madin went through the trouble of scribing these for us. There isn't anything pertinent to the case in here."
There must be something in these files that we're missing.
"I've looked through them several times now, and I don't see anything."
Keep them with you just in case.
Frustrated at her apparent dead end, Jai-Jai shoved the files to the bottom of her bag. Beads of sweat pricked at her forehead, and she realized how hot her room had become. Opening the window, a gush of damp cold air rushed in. Jai-Jai folded her arms and leaned out. Not looking at anything specifically, she enjoyed the quiet before the storm.
It wasn't long before the sky began to lighten, wakening the world with its flashy array of colors. In the small town behind the castle, Jai-Jai spotted several smoke tufts floating from chimneys as the inhabitants of the houses awoke. The faint smell of freshly baked bread wafted towards her nostrils from the kitchen window below. Her stomach growled, but Jai-Jai did not move.
Someone knocked softly on her door, but she didn't answer. It went silent for thirty seconds before whoever it was knocked again, this time harder.
"Come in," Jai-Jai called.
She turned to see a dwarf walked into the room, immediately taking his hat off his head and bowing graciously.
"Human," he started, "all have gathered for departure in the courtyard below."
Out of the corner of her eye, Jai-Jai spotted familiar blue hair stood next to a bald someone. She could see three out of her five companions.
"Where is Sen? I don't see him."
"Why Sir Madin's boy has been in the library for almost a day now. Hasn't left even to eat."
"What is he doing in there?" Jai-Jai was curious as to what could keep Sen's focus for so long.
The dwarf looked up with surprise. "Why Master Sen is the youngest member of the Historians. Only those with truly dedicated minds are even considered, and of those even less are accepted into their fold."
"So he's part of an old society for history buffs? Sounds boring."
"That old society has been in charge of keeping the history of the world. All secrets may are within their doors, which I daresay is not boring. It's not a secret that Sen is one such blessed being. He joined almost a hundred and thirty years ago."
Jai-Jai looked away. "I knew that. I just think spending eternity documenting history is less than interesting."
The dwarf's bushy eyebrows scrunched together, and he grumbled at her to hurry to meet the others. Jai-Jai almost laughed when she heard him muttering to himself about the shallow mindedness of humans as he waddled away.
Trudging slowly through the halls, she gazed outside. Looking downwards, her new companions were now all gathering in the courtyard below. Adjusting the satchels hanging over their shoulders, the group stood in silence; only Rhistel paced as she smoked.
Almost dropping her bag when she exited the building, Jai-Jai saw the others mounting their horses. Her shoulders slumped, and she had half a mind to give up already and go back to bed. She'd forgotten there was no other form of transport around this horrid city.
Sen, having finally left the library, trotted up next to her and held a hand down. She gave him a confused look.
"We have a truce. And there's no time to teach you to ride."
Despite how much Jai-Jai didn't want to ride with him, she knew he was right.
Both looked uncomfortable as he took her hand into his. As he was lifting Jai-Jai onto the horse, the sound of bare feet running on stone grew louder.
"Wait!" a high pitched voice yelled out.
Mara bent over to catch her breath before she grabbed onto her friend, clinging with all her might. Her eyes brimming with tears.
Jumping down from his steed, Sen knelt next to the child and took her into his arms. Neither spoke as they hugged each other.
"Please come back," Mara whispered.
"I will."
"And don't kill my friend."
"That I can't promise."
Jai-Jai rolled her eyes, and Mara braved a small smile before hitting her uncle's shoulder.
"See you later, Tiny." Jai-Jai ruffled the child's hair.
Moving out of Sen's grasp, Mara stood as tall as she could make herself. "If you don't come back," she pointed an accusatory finger, "I will spend the rest of my very, very long life hunting you down."
Jai-Jai couldn't help but smile. "I'm sure you will."
"Find who killed my mother. Bring them back alive. I want to see their face when my grandfather tears them limb from limb." The steely look in the child's eyes showed she was not jesting.
"I will try my best," said Jai-Jai, and Rhistel called out for the final two to hurry up. Her horse banged its hind leg on the cobblestones as the massive gates opened for the travelers.
With the help of the vampire, Jai-Jai climbed onto the horse. Looking down at the child, she saw Mara's bottom lip quiver, the threat of tears nearer than ever. From the gates, she heard shouts of joy. The townsfolk had gathered to give the party a send-off. A strange tension of hope mixed with fear crowded the travelers as the horses started to trot — the castle windows and corridors filled with the faces of the high council members and servant. However, the expression they carried was one of anxiety and doubt. They knew what was at stake and how easily this plan could go up in flames.
Looking back on last time Jai-Jai spotted Madin taking a stand next to his grandchild. He nodded towards her, but no smile touched his face. Mara took his hand as the gates shut behind them.
The tension between the members of the odd group was almost palpable. All had a firm understanding that they might never see their families again. But it was too late to turn back now. The dice were thrown, the game set, and it was impossible to stop what had begun.