CHAPTER 4

Lifelessly I follow the Abyssal Sister as she leads me away from Calira’s now deceased crew.

I don't even bother thinking about why I was saved. They could possibly torture me for more information for all I care. The pain in my chest hurts too much, I would willingly accept an end if it puts me out of my misery.

I was so foolish. So stupid. If I just left straight after the scam, I wouldn’t have gotten captured by Calira. In the end, I got taken away by something much worst. An Abyssal Sister. Although, I’m not currently being treated as a prisoner. Who knows how long this will last.

Thoughts of my elder sister sprung up in my mind as I reminisce about the lessons she gave me in the past. Sure she was a little crazy, but at the same time, she was always on the look out for my well-being.

She taught me how to survive, how to use the shadows to my advantage, how to be a Drow.

I couldn't help but smile as I remember her advice don't make a decision you will regret.

I still constantly hear her voice in my head, reminding me, guiding me.

Yet I still manage to fuck up.

“We’re here” a cold voice broke me out of my thoughts. Looking up I see the Abyssal Sister extending her finger onto the cold rock wall.

With a click, the stone opens up like a jigsaw puzzle, moving piece by piece to reveal a dark stairway leading further underground.

A piece of cloth flies at my face as my instinct kicks in by automatically catching it with my hands.

“Oh and wear this”. An amused grin is plastered all over the Abyssal Sister’s face as my brows slightly furrow.

What is the point of wearing a blindfold when you led me all the way to this secret entrance?

With a shrug, I place the blindfold over my eyes and do as I'm told.

The Abyssal Sister grabs my arm and walks me down the cold steps into the unknown.

The echoes of footsteps resounded through the rocky cavern. My sharp ears pick up on the echo even as it travels a far distance away.

784…

785…

786…

Pain. Pain flaring from the back of my head and I am forced to stumble down the stairs only to crash into the wall at a bend in the path.

“Stop counting the steps” the cold voice commanded.

Damn it, how did she know what I was doing?

I attempted to get up off the floor, but the hit must have been harder than I thought because I couldn’t tell the difference between up and down and stumbled with my face hitting the floor once more.

Internally I swore and cursed every single word in my head when a hand gripped my arm and seemingly pulled me up to my feet. Afterwards, the Abyssal Sister’s other hand grabs my shoulder and I have spun around in circles.

“Follow”. A simple command given by the Abyssal Sister as she had to hold my body so I don’t fall down from being too dizzy.

Following the lead of the Sister with her dragging me along, I once again walked down the stairs to whatever destination she had planned.

How did I even get in this mess? It’s not like I did anyth-

A sharp pain near the knee on the side that the Abyssal Sister was walking on brought me out of my mental thoughts and also caused me to stumble onto the ground - again.

“Don’t do that again.”

Despite the blindfold, I could hear the amusement in her voice. That bitch, I bet she’s smirking right at me.

Eventually, the never ending stairway stopped descending and I was now being dragged along a flat path.

The echoing of the footsteps aren’t as frequent, yet the sound is still discernable which indicates that we are in some sort of enclosed room.

Stopping in the middle of this room, the Sister took off the blindfold from my face. A scene of many candles lined the floor along the wall caused me to blink a few times before my eyes once again adapted to the lighting of the room.

I was standing in the middle of an engraved triangle in the ground. Around me, the room was empty. There was no furniture, no objects of torture surrounding me. Just me standing in the triangle. The Sister that brought me down seemingly standing attentively against the wall to the side while carefully watching my every move.

Looking back to the front of the room, I am shocked once again from the sudden appearance of yet another Abyssal Sister. Except this one in front of me has golden trimmings along the edges of her armour and long sash.

Gold. The markings of an Elder.

Black hair. A sign that a Drow has lived many cycles. Judging from the hair in which started with a small portion starting from the roots is black and fading into a silver gradient, this is a young elder.

The silence is unnerving. It feels like the Elder is simply judging me with her scrutinising gaze. I begin to shift from one side of my feet to the other as I have no clue to what I'm supposed to do.

“Strip” commanded the young Elder in front of me.

Huh? Did I hear her right?

“Strip” she commanded once again with clear irritation in her voice. Obviously, she doesn't like telling things twice.

Anxiously I begin to undress. I didn't even realise how much dried blood is staining the surface. Not to mention all the rips and shreds from Calira. I must look terrible. No wonder she told me to strip.

To the side, the previous Guard of Lady Yuna is holding a straw basket. Wordlessly, I chuck the ruined clothing away.

After doing what I was told, both Sisters were standing there, staring at me. The Elder inspects me from top to bottom, her eyes roaming everywhere as she paces in circles around me. The air on my now exposed skin makes me shiver as I lean on one foot to the other as I silently endure the inspection.

“Hidden weapons?” The Elder asked.

Needless to say, she's not asking me to keep it in the presence of two Abyssal Sisters. Not like it would help much anyway.

I take out my hairpin which doubles as a hidden dagger. Without it, my hair falls down in a cascading manner down my back. I run my hand through it and find all sorts of knots, tangles and dried blood. I really need a bath.

If the Elder’s goal is to make me depressed by making me feel dirty, she has definitely succeeded.

I gently throw the dagger into the basket atop my dirty torn clothes.

The Elder in front of me simply raises an eyebrow as she glances the weapon.

Yes, I only have one hidden weapon. I'm only a poor thief after all. What did you expect? I didn't even bother holding myself as I gave her an eye roll.

“Do you know why you're here?” Asked the elder in a soft voice.

*Because I was part of Calira’s crew?* I asked although I knew that's not the right answer. If it was Calira’s crew they were interested in, they would have taken Calira captive. Not me.

At my answer, the elder simply narrows her eyes. “Try again” she commanded.

Yeah, she is not amused.

*The Abyssal Sisters want to use my life and blood as a sacrifice and eat my flesh off my bones?*

“Pfffft” a spray of spit escapes Lady Yuna’s former guard as she chuckles at my answer.

The Elder herself simply furrows her brows as she gives a reprimanding glance at the other Abyssal Sister.

Okay, maybe my sarcasm is getting the better of me. To be fair, I conducted a scam against a noble household, got tortured by my now dead boss, got betrayed by a friend, got taken captive by the Abyssal Sisters - who are essentially monsters in bedtime stories and oh, did I mention the torture? It's been a long cycle and the last thing I want to do is get interrogated whilst standing around all naked and exposed.

I shake my head and rub my eyes whilst signing with the other *I’m not here because of Calira, I'm not here because you want to eat me - those are just children stories… right?* both Sisters remain impassive at my rhetorical question.

I try to recall all the stories I was told by my elder sister when I was younger. The stories themselves were always over exaggerated. In fact, I had a suspicion that over time, the storyteller would add in their own personal horrors just to scare kids.

Wait...

*Is this somehow related to my elder sister?*

Worry begins to set in as I think of all the debts my elder sister accumulated.

“What can you tell me about your elder sister?” The young Elder promptly asked.

*She… She’s not a bad Drow. She is kind and strong. She taught me how to survive. I don’t know where she is right now.* Yes, she taught me how to survive before she went all crazy. I don’t know what happened. One cycle she was a caring elder sister, the next she started getting erratically protective to the point where she abused me ‘for my own good’.

Bringing up memories of my elder sister is always a sore topic. Fearfully, my gaze stays focused on the ground as I begin to re-live the pain I went through. My sister was crazy. A lunatic. A psychotic, demented Drow. Yet I love her. Nobody could ever replace her.

“We’re not interested in your elder sister. We're interested in you Synthia” the Abyssal Elder finally answered my question.

*Me? Are you trying to recruit me or something? That's ridiculous. You sure there's no blood sacrifice ritual involved?* I asked incredulously.

Yes! Finally, the Abyssal Elder showed an amused grin. It's the first time she has made a facial expression of any sort.

*No way. You're serious about recruiting me, aren't you?*

Instead of answering me, the Abyssal Elder begins pacing up and down the room, seemingly in thought on how much to reveal. For a few short moments, the all that could be heard was the sound of her leather boots echoing within the room. “You may not know this, but we’ve been testing you” she started “...testing you for many years now”.

*What do you mean?* I asked *I’ve never even met another Abyssal Sister before, let alone been tested by one*

A chuckle from the side of the room interrupted our conversation. Turning around I see Lady Yuna’s former guard standing there with an amused expression on her face. I’m starting to think the amused look is the standard face she wears all the time.

Lady Yuna’s former guard opens her mouth to speak “The Chronos Brotherhood, the Swiftshade Crew, the Syndicate, the Moonsend group…”

My brows scrunch up as I recognise the names being listed. In the past, all the close-calls. The dangerous last minute moments. The high-risk encounters.

It can’t be. No…

My eyes open up at the revelation revealed to me.

*You were the ones responsible. You controlled everything. Pulled all the strings from the shadows. You had everything in the palm of your hand, didn’t you?* Anger wells up in my chest. All those times I nearly died. It was all their fault. I stare at the Elder, carefully gauging her reaction.

Instead of giving me a heartfelt apology, the Abyssal Elder chuckles and slowly claps her hand. “Yes, good work! You figured it out! That’s right, we pulled all the strings. You have been chosen little Synthia. This is a privilege granted to only a few and now, here you are.”

“Now...” the Abyssal Elder begins to trail off as she looks straight into my eyes and her face becomes serious “Are you willing to join us? Are you willing to become one with the Sisterhood?”

For the past few years, I have left many crews behind in an attempt to join something better. I kept repeatedly joining and leaving different places until I made it into Calira’s crew - a relatively high-class band of thieves in comparison to the others. Now, right in front of me is yet another invitation. An opportunity to join another crew.

‘Don’t make decisions you may regret[’

That’s right. I won’t regret this next decision. Besides, who doesn’t want a chance to become part of a children’s story told to kids as they sleep?

“Great! I can see the determination in your eyes Synthia. I’m glad you’ve officially made your decision. But first, there are still two more trials you need to overcome. Accomplish this and you will be welcomed among the Sisterhood” the Elder smiled whilst gracefully turning around. “Come now, follow me”.

The Elder walks to the wall where all the candles are placed and another secret passage opens up.

I hurriedly follow after my new Elder as the former Lady Yuna’s former guard follows behind.

“Now, the trials are quite simple. You are almost guaranteed to succeed in both. However, it is a necessity that every Sister has to go through. Think of it as a coming of age ceremony, except for new recruits”. The Elder continues to explain as we seemingly make our way down a set of stairs and turns within the rocky corridor.

I wonder where we are going. Maybe the uniform room to get me fitted in new clothes?

We stop at a set of ceremonial double doors made out of polished wood. The Elder turns around and gives me a serious look.

“Are you ready?” She asks inquisitively.

I look behind me and notice Lady Yuna’s former guard still looking at me with that amused expression of hers. For some reason, seeing that constant smirk on her face makes me irritated.

Turning back to the front, I give the Elder a nod.

With that, the ceremonial double doors swing open wide to reveal a sight which makes me stop in awe.

Revealed before me is a grand long hall which would put the main room within Calira’s hideout to shame. Countless Abyssal Sisters lined up in an orderly fashion on two sides leaving a small path in the middle of the hall. The floor is made from a strange black marble with faint outlines of a purple fire moving within giving the grand hall a blue-violet hue. The room is lit up with numerous candles trailing up to a familiar altar and a Priestess of Aiur standing slightly above the rest of the members.

A voice behind me breaks me out of my stupor as the Elder softly begins her explanation “the first trial, is a ceremony to rid you of your darkest fears. For in the darkness, you should not be afraid. For instead of fear, you will instead bring the pain”

I froze when my ears registered the words ‘darkest fears’. I realise now why the set up at the altar looks so familiar. My elder sister once tried to carry out a similar ceremony.

It ended miserably.

No way am I going through that again. I shake my head once, twice. I don’t want to be part of the Sisterhood anymore. My legs begin to back up. I try to turn around but a hand fiercely grips my shoulder.

Looking over I see Lady Yuna’s former guard holding me in place.

“Don’t worry, this time it will work out” the Abyssal Elder tries to reassure me, but it only makes me more frantic.

My heart rate begins to pick up as I search around the room. My eyes dart everywhere looking for an escape, yet all I could make out is a room filled with unified Sisterhood staring at me.

Lady Yuna’s former guard grabs me by my other shoulder and slowly drags me toward the altar.

The ceremony my older sister carried out is the scariest moment in my entire life. Scarier than all the life threatening situations I’ve experienced as a thief combined. Scary because it represents the beginning of a change. The ceremony signifies the beginning of my elder sister’s change. The beginning of her insanity.

I am forcefully dragged and laying down on the altar where three other Abyssal Sisters and Lady Yuna’s former guard each forcefully held down one of my limbs. The strength of a lowly thief like me is no match for a fully trained elite.

I try to flail my arms. I can’t overpower them. I need to escape. I need to run.

My face is wet with snot and tears.

I don’t want this.

Not again.

As my futile struggle against four Abyssal Sisters continues, I glance at the Priestess of Aiur and see in the process of raising the ceremonial dagger with two hands into the air. Her mouth moves in a silent chant as the dagger begins to shine with a bright white light.

The Abyssal Elder’s voice continues to resound within the hall.

“For in the darkness, you shall have no fear,

For you will have your Sisters with you until the end.

With the Sisterhood, you will begin to trust.

You will have no more demons, but us”

The dagger in the priestess’s hand is now shining so brightly that even a blind Drow could see the light in their sleep. Yet my eyes are frozen in terror as the dagger comes plunging into my throat.

With one swift motion, the Priestess pulls the dagger out of my neck and with it a spray of blood.

I’m overcome with pain as my body jerks and spasms. Accompanying the pain is also a warmth which gathers at my throat.

For the first time in many years, a scream of pain resounded from my mouth, as loud cries of sorrow echo within the hall.

My vision darkens and the room becomes blurry.

I quickly lose consciousness, but not before hearing a finishing chant from every member of the Sisterhood within the hall.

“No more demons, but us.”