Little announcement! storyteler1000 is writing a story in the AAD universe, like a fanfic off of this fanfic? Either way, make sure to check it out!
TW~Mentions of physical abuse and alcoholism
Hour 1 of traveling to the Dunmer Kingdom
Ruy sat on Ricin's back, struggling with his wings.
"This feels dumb, I have wings, I should be able to fly myself," Ruy mumbled. Ricin purred in disinterest.
"Okay, but my dad couldn't teach me to open my wings in time! I needed to go!"
Another grumble from Ricin.
"So maybe I was a little impulsive with getting the hell out. So what?!" Ruy argued.
Ricin didn't deign a response, most likely think why his companion is making him truck around Ruy in the first place.
Ruy ran his hands down his face.
"And now I am talking to a dragon." Ruy sucked on his teeth, "Maybe I really have gone off the deep end."
Hour 2
"Do you think that she really loves me? Cause', right listen to this, like three years ago she wouldn't have minded breaking my nose! But now she is so happy, and I have fallen in love with her somewhere along the timeline, and now we are trying to hold this secret relationship where no one knows about but us and it is entirely surreal and-"
Ricin shut Ruy's ranting up with a tail to the face.
Hour 3
"Are we thereeeee yeeeeeetttt?" Ruy complained. Ricin roared at him, which did little more than confuse him.
"Is that a yes or a no?"
Hour 4
"I spy with my little eye, something.... blue." Ruy started.
Ricin glared at the blue sky, the only thing in sight, and glared at Ruy, his wings flapping a bit faster and wondering how his companion fell in love with this idiot.
Hour 5
"Right but, when you really think about it, the chicken came before- hey, Hey, WOAH!" Ruy gripped onto Ricin's scales as he plummeted, the wind ripping at the and nearly pulled Ruy of Ricin's back. He had no idea how Sophie managed to still hold on during these drops, the feeling of his stomach in his throat was not one he enjoyed. Ricin growled with joy as they plummeted. They soon broke through the cloud cover and towards a pine tree surrounded the field below. They whistled towards the ground, Ruy leaning as close to Ricin in an effort not to get blown off. Just as they were about to crash into the ground, Ricin pulled out his wings, soaring them to fly against the grass and land, rocks and dirt splaying around them.
Ruy pulled away from Ricin panting, his hair a mess, and his wings splayed on the saddle.
"A little bit of warning would have been nice." Ruy snapped. Ricin purred, stretching out his wings. Ruy slipped off the saddle, glaring at his surroundings.
A field, with no Dunmer kingdom insight. It looked like it may be on the edge of Wampanoag territory. The tall pine trees and yellowish-green grass, a running rocky river nearby with a few elk here and there that surprisingly didn't run when Ricin landed.
"This is where Sophie entered the Kingdom?" Ruy muttered to himself. Ricin rolled around in the tall grass, purring and cooeing and just generally being a dork. Ruy pressed his wings close behind him as he explored, trying to figure it out.
Until a hole emptied out from behind him.
Ruy slid his hidden blades out of his gauntlets, Ricin snapping to attention and curling around him protectively, just like he does with Sophie. The hole emptied and poured out into a cavern below him, and two winged figures sped out of it. Ruy held the blades protectively around his face, his stance ready for a fight.
It was the two head spies from his father's court.
"What are you two doing out here-"
"Ruy!" A voice called from the cavern, a woman shot out of the cave, massive feathered wings flapping behind her. She landed outside with a shuddering boom, before swiping aside the hairs covering her face.
"Sarai?" Ruy asked, sliding his blades back into his gauntlets. Queen Sarai rushed forward, wrapping Ruy up in a hug.
"Oh gods, when everyone came home, but you weren't with them, Doreah said you were fine, but I was so worried!" Sarai sobbed, hugging Ruy so tight she might have broken a rib. She finally put Ruy down, and placed her hands on his shoulders.
"Are you hurt? Have you been eating well? Are the Assassins okay? Is Amalia okay?"
"Everything is fine, Sarai, I promise." Ruy smiled.
"What are you doing here?" Sarai asked.
"I need you guys to do something for me," Ruy answered.
Sarai glanced at the two spies around her.
"Of course, follow us," Sarai said, flapping her wings.
Ruy glanced at his wings, barely able to flap them. Sarai noticed.
"Oh, yes, of course. Here, we will take the long way down." Sarai chuckled, holding out her hand. Ruy took her hand and didn't even get the chance to scream as Sarai swung him into the hole before jumping in after him.
Sophie stared at the Inalian Embassy in the distance from a window in the barracks, nervously plucking out a few eyelashes. The Inalian Senate was probably already residing there, waiting for the meeting like the other Vatarian leaders. Her hand stopped midway on her third plucking, gently pulled down so Sophie could see the little lashes on her fingers.
Gods, she hasn't done this in years.
Maybe Thavma was just delusional, her dead sister couldn't be the murderer, she just couldn't.
"Amalia," A stern voice called behind her. She turned around to meet the eyes of the head doctor. Her skin was a delicate light brown, but her hair was a peculiar shade of bright white. She also wore... was that elven clothing?
"Are you an elf?" Sophie asked suddenly.
She smiled, waving off the question, "No, no, I did, however, pretend to be one and get into medical school there. The Vatarian medical schools just weren't what I was looking for. While I was there, I grew accustomed to fashion and still wear every now and then." She answered. She surprisingly held her right hand over her heart, giving Sophie a small bow, the Inalian salute.
"I am Peseshet Fuykanya, the head doctor of the barracks in the Emerald district. I am also a certified army doctor." She introduced. Sophie's natural polygot powers fixed the pieces of the name into place for her. Peseshet, Egypintat version of a physician or doctor.
"Fukanya? That is quite a mouthful," Sophie dipped her head, "I'm Mentore Amalia Hera Morretti, of Inalia. If we are doing the full names thing." Sophie introduced.
Fukanya laughed, "Quite. Just call me Lapis, it has been my nickname for a while now." She chuckled.
"Of course. So, how is Thavma doing?" Sophie asked. Lapis sighed, twirling her pen in her fingers.
"She is better, she is coming out of her sedated state and is calm again. I am afraid, however, that I simply can't let you see her again." Lapis explained.
"That is not possible. Thavma may be our ticket to finding Cynna and stopping all of this. Thavma also mentioned a He, and we are worried he may be a partner of Cynna. We need to talk to her."
"We can't risk another freakout like earlier, Amalia. She is bandaged up, but that type of exertion can undo the stitches, bandaging, increase the blood loss, it just isn't healthy for her right now."
"She calmed down whenever I spoke to her of Inalia. If I speak to her in our native language and show her images of it, maybe she will remain calm? We just need information, and we need it desperately." Sophie begged. Lapis bit her pink lips, glancing inside the medical room.
"Fine. But you make it quick, and if my patient gets riled up again, I'm throwing all of you on your asses." Lapis snapped. Sophie gave her a quick smile and quickly re-entered the room.
Thavma was lying down, her eyes glazed but her breathing back to normal.
"Thavma?" Sophie whispered. Thavma slowly turned to Sophie, a gentle smile on her cheeks.
"*Salve, Amalia," Thavma whispered.
"How are you feeling?" Sophie asked in Inalian.
Thavma looked up at the ceiling, then at her bandaged arms and stomach.
"Better. I'm sorry about before, I... I don't know what came over me." Thavma answered in Inalian. Keep the conversation calm and friendly, use the culture they share between them to keep her calm and on topic.
"It is no problem," Sophie answered, sitting in the wooden chair beside her cot. Thavma was quiet, and Sophie wondered how to ask her questions without her freaking out.
"Do you miss him?" Thavma asked suddenly, yet her voice was a quiet breath.
"Who?"
Thavma turned to look at Sophie, a smile on her face.
Ah.
"Yeah, I miss my dad a lot," Sophie answered, tucking a strand of blond hair that fell out of her ponytail behind her ear. Thavma didn't move, there were no harsh movements or freaking out, but her eyes got a wispy look to them.
"No one really knew who he was until that Black Armored man unveiled him. The amazing Assassin Mentore, the King of the Assassins. I was never outside much, but from what I knew about him, he just seemed like a kind-hearted man trying to raise his daughter." Thavma eyes tore into Sophie's, "What was that like?"
"What do you mean, Thavma?"
Thavma shook her head, almost like it took her entire body to do it.
"To have a father that cared?" Thavma asked quietly. Sophie's heart stuttered, not really knowing what to say.
"Does yours not?"
Thavma tensed, her eyes darkening, "I know the Morretti family used to be Inalian Nobles. Until your father was born. Born with brown eyes, unheard of, everyone said. Yet they kept him, your grandparents kept your father, they lost their noble status, their home in Renisanca... for what?"
"For their love of my father," Sophie responded. Thavma chuckled at that, her eyes tearing.
"I would've gotten thrown on my ass if it came between the Firenze Nobility."
"Is that why Cynna rebelled? She didn't like the nobility position of the Firenze house?"
"Yes, and no. But you never answered my question. What was it like, to grow up in the Morretti house?" Thavma asked. Sophie looked down, trying to scramble together the pieces of her childhood.
"It was... free." Sophie decided. Thavma's eyes brightened at that.
"My father felt like I always came first. He would always come home from contracts and go straight to me. He would pick me up in his arms and spin me around, telling me how much of a hassle I am, even if he had a big smile on his face." Sophie looked at Thavma, smiling, "He would take my brother and me, even Mansi and Nour if their adoptive parents allowed it, on these adventures. We would travel all around the world. We got a few more bumps and scratches, my father insisted that it added character and wore us in. Maria protested all the time about how scratched up we returned. He was a bit strict and sometimes intimidating, but to me, he was the biggest teddy bear."
Thavma sat up a bit in her bed.
"He taught me about the history of Inalia, our culture. I was immersed in love, music, dancing, reading, anything, and everything. He never forced it on me, but instead grew my fascination with it and learned with me." Sophie laughed, "You know that big tower right next to the Temple of Kynareth in Renisanca? That was my climbing practice when I was little. At least twice a month, we would find a way to sneak up there, and we would look at the stars. He would read to me and tell me about his great adventures." Sophie didn't realize tears were slipping down her cheeks, "It made me want to have my own adventures. To grow older and take over the guild as well, become a master Assassin. I wanted to help and learn, just like he did. My father was a smart man, but he always knew that there could be more that can be learned." Sophie pursed her lips, looking down at her clenched hands in her lap.
"Whenever I think about that day, the Fall of Inalia. How he looked at me with so much... sorrow in his eyes." Sophie couldn't finish, instead wiping the tears from her face and biting her lip. Thavma eyes shone, however, and she chuckled.
"He inspired you." She smiled.
Sophie laughed, "Yeah, that is putting it lightly."
"My sister was the one who inspired me," Thavma admitted.
"Herate or Cynna?"
"Both. Cynna was always cold and demanding, she hated our parents. She protected Herate and me with a burning passion. But I knew that she wanted to be free, just like you were. I think we all wanted that. Herate knows how to maneuver out of the house, she often just peruses the Inalian countryside or the inner depths of Renisanca." Thavma sighed, "I never dared to follow."
Sophie leaned forward.
"Do your parents hurt you?" Sophie asked. Thavma stayed quiet, not nodding nor shaking her head. Sophie bit her lip, and she leaned forward.
"Thavma, what happened to Cynna?"
Thavma was quiet, her hands shaking, and Sophie was worried she was going to freak out again, but she just quietly mumbled, "I should have known it was too good to be true."
"What was?"
Thavma leaned back, looking out the window.
"When the Neverseen took over Inalia during the Fall of Inalia, my father kissed their boots enough so that the Firenze house managed to stay in their good graces. My mother was always quiet, broken, and was never really there in the house. She was there, but not as a person, as a hollow shell. We all knew our mother was forced into this marriage with our father, and though she loved us, she just wasted away and never stood up for anything. My father was always so strict, militant, not like your father, who was just protective and wanting the best for you. My father wants what is best for him and the family name. His reputation and money are the only things that cause his stone-cold heart to beat." Thavma took a shaky breath.
"Cynna," Thavma choked on her name, "Was the eldest of us. A brightly burning fire that protected what she loved fiercely. She sometimes came off as rude to us, but hse didn't mean it. She was the one who taught Herate to sneak out of the house, but I never followed. Herate called me a coward about it sometimes, but Cynna never pushed me on it. Herate was always quite innocent on her outings from what I knew, Cynna, not so much. She would get involved with the rabble of the lower class, drinking with them and stealing, bedding whoever she wished. I think it was her way of having some control over her life. On one of her outings, she met him."
"He?"
Thavma's hands shook as she whispered his name, spitting it out like it was foul to speak.
"Proteus. Proteus Esposita."
Oh, gods.
Proteus was a name Sophie knew well. Vincenzo Esposita, the man that killed Sophie's grandparents and almost killed her father and Maria, came from an extremely successful family in Inalia, the Esposita Noble family. Vincenzo is the public pride of the family, holding a place on the Senate and slowly taking over Inalia. His younger brother Proteus was bathing in his family riches and the women in the Brothel. Proteus was a pale man, dark hair like his elder brother. He had the built and sculpted face of the family, the straight and authoritative nose being the main part of his face.
The Espostita pretend they get their wealth through their logging business they run in the mountain ranges surrounding Inalia, but they also were making money through Proteus's criminal investments and jobs. Proteus was a heavy investor in the Undergrounds, the place Sophie brawled in when she was tight for cash. Sophie knew how many illegal deals and criminals were rotting down there, but at the time, she didn't care. One time Proteus tried to make a move on Sophie when she was doing a couple of rounds in the ring, not recognizing her as a Morretti through his lusted haze, trying to grope her and suggested after her fight that they should get out of there.
Sophie punched him in the nose.
Proteus was one of the high targets in their contracts in the guild, but no one has ever gotten anything incriminating on him or even gotten close enough to him to take him out. The Espostia had eyes everywhere and covered their tracks remarkably.
"She didn't know his reputation, Amalia. We were barely let outside, and when Cynna drunkenly stumbled into the Undergrounds after hearing rumors and this man approaching her, she was won over. He was handsome and said all of the right things! I remember she snuck back in that night, she was dreamingly babbling to us about him, making it seem like he was a knight in shining armor coming to save her."
Thavma continued, "Every time Cynna snuck out after that, it was less for her freedom, and more to see him. He would ask her to steal things for him, to lie for him, to even do..." Thavma trailed off, "He is a pig. And Cynna fell right into his trap, doing all of it without a blink of an eye. Herate mostly stayed quiet whenever he was brought up, but I tried to protest her about him. I didn't know who he truly was, but what he was making her didn't sit right with me, but she never listened. I'm sure Mother knew what was happening, but she never did anything, like normal. Father luckily remained clueless, until...." Thavma turned slightly pink.
Sophie was taking notes in her head, storing it all away with her photographic memory.
"Until?" Sophie pressured.
"Around the time that you arrived in Inalia three years ago, if that timeline is correct, we all went on a trip to check on some of our mines in the mountain range. Cynna stayed back to keep an eye on the house. Herate and I knew what that meant. The trip finished early, however, and we came home to," Thavma cleared her throat, turning even pinker, "We found her and Proteus in bed, our house robbed of all of its goods."
Sophie made a noise that sounded like a squawking seagull, her hands covering her mouth and her ears turning pink. How embarrassing.
"Cynna had a similar reaction." Thavma chuckled. Her face dropped slightly, "Proteus, not so much. He was a smug bastard as he forced his clothes on and was kicked out of the house, like taking my sister's, Uhm, you know, wasn't a big deal. But, oh, Amalia, the hellfire my father spit at Cynna after that. It turned out one of the criminal organizations Proteus was in line with was targeting the house. While Proteus, uh, distracted my sister, the thugs came in and robbed the house of every little thing." Thavma sighed. Sophie didn't even hear the smallest rumor of the Firenze house being targeted, even though she was barely a few days into Inalia when all of this went down. Granted, the guild wasn't established properly yet, and no one knew Sophie was alive.
"Our beachside mansion has been in the family for years, and we are all very proud of it. So the fact that it was robbed..." Sophie has heard rumors of the Firenze mansion, and she knew people often thought it was built by the gods.
"My father is an angry man, but that day, he practically raised hell itself. I locked Herate and me away in our bedrooms, my hands over Herate's ears as they fought. The screaming still haunts me. Our mother didn't leave her room either, having the entire liquor cabinet locked in there with her. Cynna tried to explain herself, tried to explain that she had no idea that the house was going to be robbed and that she and Proteus were simply in love." Thavma laughed, a bitter cold laugh.
"Love, such a wonderful yet deceiving thing, especially when it is one-sided."
Thavma looked up, holding back her tears.
"I was watching through the lock hole of our room, Herate shaking in my lap. But then I watched as my father raised a hand to strike her," tears dripped out of Thavma's eyes.
"It was so dumb, but I was always so passive with my father, and this was the one time where I couldn't stand by. I didn't condone what Cynna was doing, but she was young as we all were, and all she really wanted was to be free. I sprinted out of my room, and pushed my father into the threshold, yelled at Cynna to run. Cynna sprinted out the front door into the night, not looking back. I ran back into my room, locked it, and waited as my father's screaming seized." Thavma finally looked at Sophie, tears staining her eyes.
"And I never saw Cynna again. My father covered everything up, pretended like Cynna was sick and in the hospital whenever anybody asked about her. Cynna's name was forbidden, we pretended like she never existed after that night. My mother tried to comfort us about it, but she didn't do much, just going back to the bottle. But after years past, I soon got used to it. Herate sometimes still sneaks out every now and then, but is much more vigilant and gets home pretty early. I just bury myself in being the perfect noble daughter, protecting my sister and polishing our family image." Thavma sighed, her hands beginning to shake again. Sophie gently took her pale hands in her sun-kissed ones, rubbing her palms.
"Until Cynna showed up on my balcony a year ago." Thavma hiccuped. Sophie's thumbs faltered for a second, the shock sinking in.
"She was thinner, her eyes were so dark, her beauty and raging fire were still there but dulled. It was a warm night, but she still wore a tattered wool cloak that covered her face. She told me that she has found a way for us to be free, both Herate and me and that we just needed to follow her. I told her to get lost, I would not allow Herate and I to make the same mistakes she did. Cynna told me that, yes, in her youth, she was impulsive, but she was older now, and she had a solution to everything. I asked her what it was," Thavma chuckled, leaning forward and clutching Sophie's hand tighter.
"You will never believe this, Amalia. She wanted us to join the Neverseen!"
Sophie's heart stopped.
"What?" Sophie whispered, her voice barely intelligible. Thavma laughed, leaning back in her cot.
"I know, right?! The bloody Neverseen, the ones who caused so much damage and enslaved all of Inalia for years! She explained to me that they have this experiment they are doing and that she already signed up to be one of her participants. And shot her down, telling her I never wanted to see her again. She didn't seem angry, just... disappointed. Just as she was about to sneak away, she asked me about Proteus, asking if he still loved her. I'm not proud of what I said, even though it was true, but I was angry at her and said it impulsively."
"I told her that the minute she was gone, Proteus moved on with some other girl to do his bidding, that his heart deserves to be stone then to be any sort of redeemed. She just went quiet before escaping. That was the night before she was found dead next to the docks. My family played the heartbroken sisters and parents, my father insisting she must have gotten out of the hospital and somehow gotten to close to the water for her sickly body to handle. But as my father was spinning a sob tale and my sister and I were just mourning to the side, my mother just walked up behind Herate and me and whispered, "That is no daughter of mine."
Sophie froze.
"We had the same reaction, and we asked her to explain. She just whispered to not make it obvious, but to look at her neck. When Cynna was little, she accidentally got burned by the fireplace poker by one of the handmaidens, and it left a small scar underneath her ear. When Herate and I looked at her, no scar was under her ear, no sign of a burn at all."
"The death was faked? By who?" Sophie pressed.
"The Neverseen," Thavma answered, her hand tightening around Sophie's.
"I wanted answers, Amalia. There was little I could do while I was trapped in my house with my father, but I kept notes, hearing rumors, and documenting them, Herate insisted that we just leave it alone though. But then, about three days ago, I managed to convince my father that I wanted to go on a trip to Egypitnat to spread the word of the Firenze Digging Corporation. He was thrilled, told me to start packing that day. In all reality, I heard rumor of a Neverseen smuggler in Egypitnat named Kartek. I knew that she was one of the names that was mentioned to me when Cynna was trying to propose the whole running away to join the Neverseen plot. I knew I left father in a good mood, and Herate would be okay without me." Cynna blew out a breath.
"This morning, I was at her house. I came the night before, asking about Cynna. Kartek was only smuggling goods for the Neverseen, illegal goods in Egypitnat that the Neverseen thought the could profit off of. She had to smuggle, she was a single mother, and she had a rare case of Calciaone, a bone disease that caused her bones to get brittle and extremely painful, and she had to buy expensive medicinal herbs to get by."
Sophie's mind flashed back to watching Kartek purchase the herbs from that one vendor on the street, the vendor telling Sophie that she goes out of her way to get some pretty rare herbs for this lady who buys them routinely.
"The one problem was, she needed to pick them up today, but she had to make a drop off of goods at a cave just outside the Emerald district. I asked her about Cynna, and she told me that she knew Cynna was a part of the Egypitnat smuggling group. Kartek knew the Egypitnat group had another project going, a science experiment. That got my attention, knowing that Cynna was apart of some experiment, and I had to check it out. I told Kartek that I would make the drop off for her while she got her medicinal herbs. She told me that the Neverseen are really wary, and Kartek was already on this ice because she lost a few papers a couple of weeks back. But I insisted, and she agreed. This morning I stopped by to pick up the cargo and took the back alley streets towards where the cave was. I was so determined, I knew deep in my heart that somewhere in this cave was my sister." Thavma sighed, shaking her head.
"I dropped off the cargo, surprisingly with little trouble. I told the Neverseen that Kartik was sick, and she needed to pick up medicine. I lied, telling them I believed that I was delivering tea for a makeshift hospital within the cave. I played dumb, and they let me go with little words, taking in the cargo. I fear to know what exactly what I was transporting, but I didn't care. Once I walked away, I did a u-turn and snuck into the cave. I am no stealth master like the Assassins, but I do know how to act. You have to in my family, a broken wounded family, a happy and cheerful one in the eyes of the public. I found a throwaway Neverseen cloak, donned it, and managed to act my way through the cave. The entire time I was looking for any sign of Cynna. And then I stumbled across what this experiment really was." Thavma's eyes darkened.
"It was unlike anything I have ever seen, Amalia. These cages lined the cave walls, with tubes and wires running through them all. Within the steel cages were... gods, they were beasts, yet not. They had hands and were shaped like you and me, but their veins turned black, their voices hoarse..." Thavma sobbed.
"Across these cages, was another set of steel pens. But they didn't hold the same beasts, they held Mirthless. Medirasa, Horoa, Scylla, and so many more. I have only read about Mirthless, but seeing them in person nearly made me blow my cover. The Mirthless were connected to the cages and people across from them by cables and machinery." Thavma put a hand to her mouth, sobbing, "It was like they were forcing them together, making them one."
"They already have pulled through with the infusing plans," Sophie muttered to herself. The poison that was in the wounds of the victims, the long claws, the murderous bloodletting...
"How do you know Cynna is the murderer?" Sophie demanded. Thavma swallowed.
"One of the Neverseen noticed me, asked me about my cloak. I made up some lie, but they just glared at me before telling me that their friend was just killed in the cloak, and they threw it out. He would recognize it anywhere." Thavma blew out another breath, "He sounded the alarm as I sprinted out of the cave, weaving through everyone. I made it out of the mouth of the cave and sprinted back to Kartek's house to tell her what I found. But as I was a few blocks away from Kartek's home, somebody grabbed me by my hair and dragged me into the alley. It was a tall woman, maybe 7 feet. They looked like one of the ruined people in the cells. Mangled fingers, blackened teeth, enhanced everything. But this woman... snakes. She had snaked instead of hair. They hissed and seethed at me as she cornered me. I screamed for help, but nobody heard me, we were too secluded. I begged them to let me go, and I finally looked the woman in the eyes." Thavma stiffened, staring at Sophie.
"And my very own eyes stared back at me."
Oh, gods... Cynna.
"The blue in her eyes was starting to slowly change to green, which I think means she wasn't done with her transformation yet. But she was farther along than the others in the cells in the cave. She had none of her previous fire, replaced with a stone heart. Just like Medirasas, the minute I looked into her eyes, I was paralyzed with fear. I couldn't run, I couldn't move. Her fingers dripped with the same poison that the Medirasa has in their fangs. I was going to die by my sister's hands." Thavma sobbed, putting her head in her hands. No, they were too close to getting it all out of her, Thavma could not break down now.
"You don't need to tell me about the pain, thavma, about the attack. Where did Cynna go? Did she say anything about hurting anybody else?"
Thavma spoke through hiccuped sobs, "Nothing about hurting anybody else," Thavma gasped, looking up at Sophie with her teary eyes "But she did mention going back! I'm going to have to guess back to the cave!" Thavma explained.
Boom. They have Cynna.
"Thavma, give me exact instructions to where the cave is," Sophie demanded, standing up. Thavma recounted everything entirely, giving her precise directions.
"Thank you, Madam Firenze," Sophie spoke, quickly walking out of the medical bay.
"Morretti?" Thavma called out. Sophie turned on her heel.
Thavma's face was hard, even though tears dripped down her cheeks.
"Bring my sister, my real sister, home," Thavma begged.
Sophie swallowed. "I'll try."
Sophie sprinted out of the medical bay, down the stairs and to the main hall. She approached the head of the Guard in a frenzy.
"I want all of your able-bodied men out in the field now. I have a specific location that I need a good half of your men need to be at. The rest I want setting up a perimeter around the city, no one goes into the outer areas of any districts, especially the Emerald district. The city is going to be on lockdown until this raid is complete. I have two allies here now that are going to be present at the raid, but we are the ones who are going to be apprehending the suspect. How much time do you need to assemble your men?"
The Captain blinked at her, "Listen, we can't do that unless we have proper evidence-"
"Don't give me that evidence bullshit, I just got a whole ass confession from the woman upstairs who is a first-hand witness and victim! So let me ask again, how long do you need?!" Sophie snapped.
"About 30 minutes to get the raid team ready, and about 40 minutes to get the perimeter set up." The Captain said.
Sophie gave the Captain the same description of the cave that Thavma had given her, describing the in-depth route towards it.
"Get moving! I will have my comrades and I move in early to scope out the area and hopefully get an early grab at the suspect." Sophie explained, backing towards the exit. Sophie launched down the steps, where Mansi and Alexios were waiting. She heard the Captain standing in shock, not really knowing what to do. Sophie groaned, and sprinted back up the steps, slamming open the doors.
"GET OFF YOUR ASSES AND MOVE!" Sophie roared. Everyone ran to start the preparations, Sophie slamming the doors behind her and running down the steps.
"What the hell happened?"
"What just happened is that we found not only our murderer but their hideout and accomplices."
"And your sure about this? How can we know this isn't some random bull Thavma is pulling?"
"It is the only lead we have, Mansi, let's go!"
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