Adept Story, Chapter Two

Chapter 2 is complete. This story does not have a title yet, so I will refer to it from now on as "The Adept Story". Yes, that sounds lame, but it's not the title. So, here it is. Enjoy. Hopefully Chapter 3 will be completed by the end of the week.


CHAPTER TWO

When Siona arrived at the manor, she could see that the woman had already entered the grounds. The front gate, made of iron bars, was smashed inward, a gaping hole in the center.

Cautiously, Siona stepped through the opening, making sure not to cut herself on the jagged metal ends. An ornate cobblestone walk extended toward the entrance to the manor itself, running between two rows of cultivated shrubbery. A line of lanterns suspended from tall metal poles stood on either side of the walk. Trees and other greenery were planted throughout the yard. It was a stark contrast to the quarters Siona was used to living in.

Her nose wrinkled as a stench washed over her. Dead guards lay scattered along the path. The mysterious woman had made short work of them in the two hours it had taken Siona to reach the manor. Surprisingly, she did not feel any sadness for these men. They had been people, true, but they had been the ones who had oppressed her and her fellows. They would have been the ones who murdered in the morning, if she had not been saved.

She stepped around the bodies, breathing through her mouth and holding her nose. As indifferent as she was to the situation, she still did not like the scent of corpses. Fortunately, they were fresh, else Siona would have gagged from the smell.

She crept toward the door, wondering where exactly the woman had gone. She wanted to thank her savior, and aide her in freeing the rest of the orphan workers. It would not be right to simply leave them behind, unsure of their fate. It was night, and most of them would be asleep by now; they would not know what had transpired unless Siona told them.

A shout came from above, and Siona looked up, trying to identify where it had come from. A window on the third story shattered, a large form falling through. Siona yelped and scurried out of the way, barely avoiding the glass shards. The body crashed to the cobblestones a moment later.

Siona moved to the man, knowing he was already dead. A black knife, the handle and blade made from a single piece of metal, protruded from the man’s chest. Siona glanced toward the window, and thought she caught a glimpse of a cloaked form gazing down at her.

Determined, Siona gripped the handle and yanked the knife out of the man. Drops of blood fell on her trousers, but she did not mind. She wiped the blood from the knife on the man’s shirt, and then moved to the door. Like the metal gate, the thick wooden doors had been blasted through, little more than chunks of wood hanging from the hinges. Siona pushed her way inside.

The interior was lit by several lanterns, casting shadows across the floor. A rich, golden rug extended from the doorway to a large staircase across the room. The walls were a deep red, and several paintings depicting past lords and ladies hung between doors and lantern rungs.

Siona was taken aback by the lavishness of the room. She had never seen such beauty. It was such a waste of wealth. Siona clenched her fists, the knife pushing into her palm. She was furious at the lord of the plantation. He could have easily spared money to give the orphans better lives, but instead chose to enslave them.

She did not understand. There were only a handful of orphanages throughout Alandon, and most of those had to be hidden from prying eyes, lest they be sold out to a noble. Any one of the noble houses, even the minor ones, could fund a dozen orphanages, where they would actually be cared for.

She approached the staircase and gripped the rail, using it as a support to ascend. Despite the excitement of the situation, she still was exhausted from the day’s work. When she reached the top, her legs ached. She did not stop, though; she needed to find that woman.

She stood on a landing that ran around the edge of the room. She began walking toward a spiral staircase at the other end of the hallway, passing even more doors. What did they need all those doors for? She had never been in a house like this, but it seemed like a waste of space.

A light appeared on the staircase in front of her, accompanying a pair of voices. Her heart racing, Siona opened the closest door and darted inside, closing it most of the way. The voices drew nearer.

“Where could she have gone?” the first voice asked.

“Not sure,” replied the second one. “The manor isn’t all that big; there aren’t many places to hide.”

“Well, obviously she’s alluded us so far,” the first said. “It’s giving me chills. You saw what she did to the men outside.”

“It’s a scare tactic, Nem,” the second answered. “Once all the guards awoke, she probably realized that she was in over her head. She might not even be here anymore, for all we know.”

Siona frowned. The woman had seemed so determined; she could not have just disappeared. On top of that, Siona had seen her only minutes before, on the third story. No, she was not gone.

She simply was not allowing herself to be seen.

“I don’t think so, Jaren,” Nem asserted. “She’s an Adept. They don’t give up that easily.”

They continued on down the walkway. Siona held her breath as they passed the door she was hiding behind. In the weak light, they did not notice the partially opened door.

Siona watched as the guards rounded the corner and descended to the first floor. Carefully, she crept out from her hiding spot and resumed travelling toward the staircase at the end of the hall. Several lanterns lit the stairwell. Siona was glad for their light; she did not want to be caught alone, especially in the dark.

She reached the third floor and came into a hallway that extended to either side and around the corner. Siona stopped. She did not know which way would be safe. If any of the guards caught her, she would be killed on sight.

As if reacting to her thoughts, four guards rounded the corner to her left, nearest her. They saw her and paused, unsure what one of the workers was doing in the manner. Not waiting around, Siona fled in the other direction.

“After her!” one of the guards shouted, kicking the whole group into motion.

Why did I come here? Siona thought, panicked. I should have just gone back to my bed and forgotten this whole incident. In seconds, she felt one of the guards grabbing for her shirt. She tugged it forward, holding the excess in her hands. She dodged around the corner, breathing frantically. The hallway ahead of her was dark.

A figure detached itself from the shadows, knocking into the lead guard. The figure pushed the guard down and spun around, throwing out its hands. Two objects struck two guards in the neck, knocking them to the ground. The one in the back hesitated, allowing the figure to pounce on him. A hand darted toward his neck, and he fell.

Siona turned to her savior, only to find herself being shoved backward into the wall. The figure pushed back its hood, revealing a woman’s face.

“What are you doing?” she hissed.

Siona tried to think of something to say, but her mind was locked up. Had she simply traded one enemy for another?

“You should have stayed back there and gone to bed,” the woman said angrily. “If you had not shown up, I wouldn’t have had to save you again.”

“I’m sorry,” Siona croaked, unsure what to tell the woman.

She gasped as she felt herself rise, her feet leaving the floor. She looked at the woman, and froze. On the front of her shirt, a strange, alien symbol had appeared, as if drawn with light.

“What…is that?” she stammered.

The woman’s eyebrows shot up. “You can see it?” she demanded.

“Yes,” Siona mumbled, unsure of what “it” was.

The woman stood transfixed for a moment. “What’s your name, girl?” she asked. Her tone had become softer, more polite.

“Siona,” she managed. Hovering a foot above the floor was becoming increasing disorienting.

“Hmm,” the woman said, tapping her chin with a finger. “Could she really…?” She trailed off, realizing that she had begun thinking aloud. She locked eyes with Siona, and without any movement, the symbol disappeared from Siona’s shirt, dropping her to the ground.

“I’m Raven,” the woman said, offering a hand to help Siona up. Siona merely gazed up at her, petrified by her sudden change in attitude.

“It’s okay,” Raven said reassuringly. “I won’t hurt you. You…startled me is all.” Without waiting for an answer, she gripped Siona’s hand and pulled her to her feet. “We need to leave this place. I’ve already taken care of Lord Irawen.”

Siona stopped, drawing in a sharp breath. “He’s dead?”

“Yes, I believe I said that,” Raven replied.

Tears began to trickle down Siona’s cheeks. The man who had seen to her capture, allowed his men to abuse her and her companions, and had nearly taken her to his bed that night, was dead. She threw her arms around Raven’s neck.

“Thank you,” she cried.

Raven pushed her away. “You sure are a weepy girl,” she asserted.

“Not usually,” Siona muttered. In fact, she could not recall when she had last cried, for any reason. Now, overwhelming happiness washed over her.

At last, she regained control of herself. She dried her eyes and cheeks with a sleeve. “What about the others, though?” she asked. “What will happen to them now?”

“Don’t worry about them,” Raven replied. “One of my friends took care of the rest of the taskmasters. They should have freed the other orphans by now. Where they go from there is up to them.”

“Good,” Siona said, nodding. Despite her mistrust for the others, she knew that they deserved their freedom just as much as she did.

“Now, we need to leave,” Raven insisted. “You can cry all you want later.” She turned and headed back toward the stairwell.

“Where are we going?” Siona asked, hurrying to catch up. Raven was a half a foot taller than Siona, so she tried to match Raven’s quick pace.

“Just follow me and don’t ask questions,” she retorted. It seemed her caring moment had passed and had been covered up by her original rough exterior. Siona honestly did not mind; she was used to that kind of treatment.

In minutes, they exited the manor and returned to the front walk. Raven stopped and pushed back her black cloak, revealing a small pouch strapped tightly to the side of her waist. She flipped open the cover and retrieved a small rectangular piece of stark white paper.

“Burn building,” she said. She began to draw a pattern on the paper with her finger, lines of light trailing behind. Siona watched in amazement. Finally, the symbol complete, the woman slapped the paper onto the door frame.

“I suggest you move away,” she commanded. Siona took a few hesitant steps toward the iron gate. Raven stepped backward, pushing Siona farther away from the building.

“Activate,” she said clearly, pointing at the piece of paper. To Siona’s surprise, the paper burst into flames, lighting the wooden doorframe. The fire started to spread quickly.

“There,” Raven said, turning and climbing through the hole in the gate. “It’s finished.”

Siona followed her, but could not resist looking over her shoulder. The entire doorframe was already ablaze, and the fire was climbing upward, as if it were a living creature.

Once they were safely away from the burning manor, Raven paused underneath a tree. The leaves blocked the light from the moon; she would have been invisible if not for the flames consuming the manor. Siona took the opportunity to study the woman’s attire. In addition to the black cloak, she wore lightweight, form-fitting clothing, the color matching that of the cloak. With the hood up, Siona figured the woman really could disappear in the darkness.

A soft thud to her right startled Siona. She whipped around and saw another figure, cloaked similarly, standing in the open.

Where did he come from? Siona wondered. Aside from the few trees, there was really nowhere to hide. Maybe he flew here, just like Raven did earlier.

“Is the job finished, Lynx?” Raven asked.

“Of course,” Lynx replied. He threw back his hood, revealing the face of a young man. Disheveled hair fell across his eyes as he studied Siona. “Who’s this, Raven?”

“Don’t you worry about her,” Raven answered, regarding Siona. “I think she might be useful. Do you have the travel stamp?”

Lynx barked a short laugh. “Like I would lose that,” he scoffed. “There are barely enough of them left as it is.” He put his hand to his side and produced a piece of paper, identical to the one Raven had stuck on the house, only with a different symbol drawn on it. He moved closer to the two women and carefully laid it on the ground.

“Close your eyes, Siona,” Raven instructed. She took a hold of Siona’s left arm and Lynx’s right arm. Lynx likewise took their free arms, completing the circle.

“Whatever you do, don’t struggle,” Raven continued. “This might seem uncomfortable, but it will only take a second.”

Siona nodded in assent. However, her suspicion and panic were growing again. She barely knew these people; how could she trust them? What were they doing huddled around a simple piece of paper?

“Activate,” Raven commanded, staring at the paper. The lines of the symbol glowed, and the whole design began to rotate. As it sped up, the symbol widened, enveloping the group’s feet. Siona looked down in horror, and tried to pull free of Raven’s grip.

“Don’t struggle,” Raven reiterated. The symbol was now expanding upward, shrouding them in a spinning cylinder of light. “Think of something pleasant. It will all be over soon.”

The light now completely covered the three of them. Siona took one last look at the manor, already buckling from the damage the fire was causing. As it crashed to the ground, the light of the symbol flared. A loud crack sounded in Siona’s ears. She glanced at the two black-clad figures, and suddenly felt as if she were being pulled apart.

She screamed, and the world went dark.