CHAPTER 3

I am navigating the streets back to our hideout along with everyone else in the crew. No, we didn’t leave together in a big crowd. That’s stupid. Instead, we left in pairs all taking a different route at different intervals to stagger our arrival time.

*I can’t believe we made that much!* Ryul - the door boy - my one and only friend in this high-class band of thieves excitedly signed his hands as we made a turn inside the Labyrinth of mazes.

Thankfully, I was paired with Ryul to head back to our hideout. If it were anybody else, I would have been stuck painfully listening to a one sided conversation as the other person would drone on about how excited they are to have succeeded.

In fact, I feel like the crew didn’t even play a big part in the scam. The one with a major role was Calira who acted as our Matriarch. The rest of the crew barely interacted with our guests. Then again, I suppose servants of a household wouldn’t interact beyond the initial greetings. Considering the risk that accompanied us should we be caught, it stands to reason lowly thieves like us should be excited.

Yet I just cannot help but have a foreboding feeling.

*-nd the way you acted was perfect! Did you see the tears forming in the poor girl’s eyes when she heard your story? She definitely fell for your story! Oh and the way her eyes bulged when sh-*

*Do you trust me?* I quickly interrupted his depiction of the events. Obviously, I saw it all, I was the one who helped put these events in motion. I had to fight the urge to roll my eyes at such a question.

*Of course, I do* he replied whilst looking at me confused for a slight moment, unsure of why I brought up such an issue.

*I’m leaving the crew this cycle. Will you come with me?* I asked hesitantly.

Leaving a thieves crew and joining a new one isn’t uncommon. Personally, I’ve left and joined numerous amounts of different crews over the years. However, it is rare to leave such a high-class thieves crew being run by Calira.

*Why are you doing this? We just stole a huge amount of money. With this we are definitely uncontested within the Capital.*

*We were found out* I cut him off before he has a chance to list his reasons.

*Lady Yuna’s guard… she makes me feel nervous…* Just recalling the scene at the end of the negotiation when I met eyes with the guard. Her eyes conveyed a sense of mischief, a sense of control as if the whole deal was a funny game to her.

*So... You are saying that we were found out because you think her guard is scary…* Ryul gave me a deadpanned look full of scepticism. Frankly, I can’t exactly blame him.

*I thought you trust me?* I asked back.

A look of hesitation flashed across Ryul’s face. He began signing with his hand, forming half words and stopping. Only to attempt to sign another word before stopping again. A vicious cycle.

Seeing this hesitation, a pang reverberated in my chest. The pain slightly hurt, yet I know I have to push onward. *Do you remember the time we avoided the Chronos Brotherhood? If I didn’t call for a retreat, you and I would be both be dead. How about the Swiftshade crew? Who saved your ass because you forgot to keep watch over your sector?!* I noticed my hand was signing erratically at this point. Thankfully I noticed before I started speaking in a frenzy.

I closed my eyes partly to keep it hidden from Ryul but also partly to attempt to stop the slight tears in which are forming.

*... Do you trust me Ryul?* I asked one final time.

*Yes*. This time, there was no hesitation in his words.

*Then we leave as soon as we gather our belongings. With the celebration, nobody should notice our escape* I declared.

Back at the hideout, everybody is celebrating. The main entrance wasn’t even guarded. Looks like Ryul and I were one of the last few to return.

Turning around I look into Ryul’s eyes and gave him one final nod before heading off to my bedroom to collect my meagre belongings.

“Synthia!” A Drow man comes over and pats me on the shoulder.

My heart rate starts to pick up. Did they find out already? We only just arrived. How did they know?

“Good work out there, you did well!” Oh, he's just congratulating me.

I give him a nervous smile as I'm trying to calm my heart rate.

Unfortunately for me, the shouting caught the attention of some other Drow nearby as they walk over and commend me on my acting.

I anxiously give them all a smile and a nod whilst my eyes dart around looking for an escape route.

*I’m sorry, I'm a bit tired from the job so I'm going to head to my room first* I meekly signed while walking away with my head down so I don't make eye contact and prompt another conversation.

“Ah yes, we understand! Go get some rest, you deserve it after all” the crowd begins to laugh and cheer as they head back toward their celebrations.

I didn’t even bother trying to collect my part of the reward from the scam. What if it somehow gets tracked back to me? There’s no point needlessly taking such a risk. Rather be safe than sorry.

Although now that I think about it, where do we go after we leave? Join another crew? I’ve been living as a thief for as long as I can remember. Maybe I should go join a house as a guard or something. Perhaps Ryul has some contacts from before he joined Calira’s crew. Or maybe Ryul and I could eventually start our own crew. We make a pretty good team after all.

Regardless, the short term goal is to leave the Capital first.

I quickly get changed into more appropriate clothes. A formal dress is not the kind of attire you would want to be wearing while possibly running for your life. My few spares of clothing go in the bag along with my meagre savings I accumulated over the years and I’m good to go.

I hurriedly head toward the exit to meet with Ryul at our rendezvous point, however, I’m met with a sight which stops me cold in my tracks. In the main room instead of celebrating over barrels of alcohol, everybody is standing in a formation blocking off the main corridor leading to the exit. Some of the crew members are wobbling on their feet. Clearly, the alcohol is affecting them somewhat. Shame, it's hard to miss their hostility with their weapons all drawn.

In the centre of the room was Calira, still dressed in her prideful Matriarch attire from the scam whilst wearing her trademark predatory smile.

“You didn’t think I would let you leave just like that did you?” Calira calmly said in her usual seductive voice. Even without looking at the crew with their weapons drawn, I could hear the underlying threat in her voice.

I was too in stunned to even respond. How did they know? Less than a quarter of a candle mark has passed since I returned. I only decided to leave within the Labyrinth of Alleys while I was talking... with Ryul.

“Did you forget little Synthia? All the things I did for you?” Slowly, Calira approached me. The sound of her footsteps clacking against the rocky ground resounded throughout the hideout.

“Did you forget Synthia, that I paid off that debt before you came”

“Did you forget?!

I.

Own.

You.”

A fierce slap to my face sent me out of my thoughts and sprawling to the ground. I was so much in shock that I could barely even register the pain.

Ryul was the only person I told about the plan. Why? We've been partnered up for jobs so many times. We made such a great team. I trusted him. I thought he trusted me as well.

“Did you forget? You belong to me!” Calira continued to speak, except this time there's a hint of madness within her words.

A kick to my stomach. Now my body is knocking over tables and chairs.

That hit knocked the breath out of me. I can’t breathe properly. My lungs are desperately attempting to bring in new air, yet the pain is too much. Whether it’s the pain from being physically hurt by Calira or the pain of betrayal. I couldn’t tell.

A clicking of Calira’s tongue could be heard as she once again approached me while I’m gasping for breath on the floor. “Little Synthia… You may be good at what you do. But you are easily replaceable”

This time a fierce kick to my chin sends my head violently hitting the ground.

The room became blurry. My eyes can only just stay open. I can barely make out Calira’s figure as she continues to physically abuse my body. I’m desperately trying to move out of the way. To draw my dagger. To somehow fight back. To survive.

Ryul.

My eyes noticed a quick glimpse of the one I thought of as a friend. The man who set things in motion. Perhaps I should be hating Calira, since she is the one hurting me. However, i feel as if it’s Ryul who hurt me the most. Ryul is the one responsible for this heart wrenching pain.

The pain of trust being broken.

A sharp discomfort on my thigh caused my body to jerk and spasm. Looking down I see the handle of a dagger buried into my leg.

My mouth opens in a silent scream. I’m sure if I didn’t lose my vocal chords, I would be screaming so loudly even Thralls could find us. Instead all that comes out are silent tear drops from my eyes.

I guess this is where it ends huh?

I’ve had a short life, I guess I just wasn’t good enough.

‘Don’t make a decision you may regret’, I’m sorry Sister. It looks like I screwed up.

Another sharp pain pierces my left hand as an additional dagger has made it into my body during Calira’s frenzy. I can’t even control my body anymore as it seems to naturally curl up with my free hand tightening in on itself into a tight fist.

I turn my head and look at Ryul one more time. Hopefully, my eyes can convey one last final question to him. Why?

Our eyes meet. His copper red eyes glow with fear and pity. Shortly after he averts his gaze and looks down to the ground.

So that's how it is.

I close my eyes as I’m now mentally ready for whatever Calira has in her twisted mind.

Sis.

I’m so sorry.

Calira continues to torture me with her daggers. Cuts are made all along my arms. My legs. My body.

For some reason, I can barely feel any pain anymore. My whole body feels as if it’s numb. The whole world begins to fade before my eyes.

As I await my death I can vaguely make out Calira’s wild screams.

Oh? The sounds of clanking metal. Is she sharpening a new sword?

More screaming. Oddly, not from Calira. Rather it came from one of the crew members.

More sounds of clanking metal. Is this a coup?

For Aiur’s sake, can’t I just die in peace?

My eyes slowly blink open to see why my impending doom hasn’t came. Shades of black and white appear as the room slowly enters my vision. The candles must have died out at some point, which explains the lack of colours since darkvision is evidently at work.

Previously, there were numerous members all standing there menacingly as Calira was torturing me. Now, they’re all laying on the ground. Some are pinned to the wall with an arrow or two jutting out from their bodies. Others have disfigured limbs. A hand or leg could be seen not too far from the permanently disabled Drow.

Calira herself has her stomach cut open with some of her intestines falling out.

What the hell happened here?

Did I pass out at some point? It wasn't that long since I closed my eyes.

Then I saw her.

The person of my fears. The reason I wanted to quit Calira’s crew.

Lady Yuna’s Guard.

Standing there in the middle of the massacre, she was wearing a black cloak with red accents along the inner vest with studded buckles equipped with a multitude of sheathed knives and a long sash along her waist.

The black and red markings could only mean one thing.

An Abyssal Sister.

The Abyssal Sisters are the elite of the elites. Cold-blooded killers who keep order within our society. A separate existence from the army. A separate existence from the court. An entity which cannot be controlled yet instead controls everything from the shadows. It is known that they work independently and have authority only under the Queen herself.

When I was a child, I was told that if you were unlucky enough to have an Abyssal Sister sent after you, don’t even bother with having hope of living anymore.

I couldn’t help but chuckle to myself despite the terrible situation. It all makes sense now, the instinctual fear I first felt, the mischief in her eyes, the suspicion. Lady Yuna’s guard was actually an Abyssal Sister, most likely undercover for a job or something. Possibly even sent out for Calira’s crew personally, just required the evidence.

I look death in the eye as she slowly approaches me. Her short sword dripping with blood which splashes onto the ground with every step she takes.

Now standing directly over me, I couldn’t help myself but give her the most heart warming smile I could muster. It’s the only way I can give her my thanks for killing the venomous snake and for ending this farce, especially since my hands have no more energy to even move let alone have a conversation.

Surprisingly, she withdraws a small green vial from her sachet. With a pop, the cork falls to the ground and she baby feeds me the potion as she gently lifts my head up from the ground.

It tastes like moss. Smooth yet full of dirt. The taste of rock is stuck on my tongue as my body begins to be filled with warmth. Before my very eyes, the recent wounds in which Calira gave me began to heal.

“Come” the Abyssal Sister ordered. She then turns around and heads down the main corridor to the exit of our hideout without even a second glance at the rubbish she left behind.

Slowly, I stood on my feet and gave it a few hops to test it out. Good. Everything seems to be working fine.

Before I could even make it to the exit, I stop straight in my tracks.

Ryul.

He is all bloody, laying on the ground with his arm cut off not too far away from him. The rise and fall of his chest show he is still alive, albeit barely.

I walk over to him while picking up a random dagger submerged in someone’s pool of blood.

He opens his eyes and an expression of shock fills his face as he recognises me.

A look of fear appears as his eyes begin his trademark nervous look around the room. “I’m sorry… You were right… I should have known… You were always right… I should have known th-”

Blood begins to spray out of his mouth as he goes into another coughing fit in an attempt to stop himself from choking.

I crouch down in front of him.

I stare into his copper red eyes.

One last time.

I raise my dagger and,

Brutally plunge it in his neck.

I’m sorry Sister.

Yes, I should have known.