Dame Luel unlocked the gate and door leading to the other side of the house. She hurried Anelle through before locking the doors behind them.
The Dame turned left this time moving swiftly down the dimly lit hall. Anelle quickened her pass to keep up. A sense of unease churned in her stomach.
They walked down a small set of steps and continued on. The Dame paused for a moment at an alcove,grabbed a folded pile of black cloth and handed it to Anelle.
"Put this on." She instructed.
Anelle unfolded the cloak and draped it around her shoulders. The fabric engulfed her figure, dragging along the floor behind her.
The Dame continued swiftly on, Anelle had to run a few steps to bridge the gap between them.
Up ahead the corridor opened into a small atrium. The low hum of male voices and impatient footsteps echoed off the stone walls. Luel paused in the shadows.
"Anelle, tonight you will do as Mr. Chalieu bids and you may be able to earn some of the antidote. But remember well, you belong to Lord Castellac. Should you fail to return by morning, you will be dragged back and prosecuted the same as any other escaped slave. Understood?"
"Yes, Dame Luel." Anelle's blood ran cold at the mention of his name. The memory of last night played through her head. Her throat constricted and her mouth went dry. Her status as a slave hung heavy upon her shoulders; a shackle slowly constricting around her chest with each breath.
Satisfied, Dame Luel entered the atrium.
Three men stood waiting. Each wore simple working class clothes in dull browns with a large black cloak that concealed strange shapes against their hips. Likely short weapons good for close quarters combat. Weapons meant for protection as any city guard with a standard issue sword would have the upper hand in a fight.
Dame Luel walked over to Marcs Chalieu and gave a small curtsy. Anelle followed suit, dipping lower. He looked her over and turned back to Dame Luel. Anelle felt two sets of eyes roaming her body. Anelle pulled the cloak tighter around her chest. The two men looked at her with more than curiosity. Repulsion dropped like a stone into her stomach.
"My Lord, I have brought her as requested." Dame Luel gestured towards Anelle. "I expect her back by day break."
He shook his head. "I can't guarantee when we will be finished." He looked at her sideways. "If she under performs then it will be her own fault."
"What about his Lord's lost income?" Dame Luel asked.
"Buorlan will compensate him for his loss."
"I expect her to be returned in the same condition she is in now."
Marcs raised his eyebrows at that. "I would never lay a hand on her."
"Yes, I am aware of your preferences." Dame Luel said with a look of outright disdain. She looked over at the two men behind him. "It is your men that you need to keep in check."
Marcs looked over his shoulder. "Of course."
Dame Luel headed back into the house.
Marcs focused his gaze on Anelle. "What was your name again?"
"Anelle, my lord."
"Anelle, I need you to put anyone who sees us at ease. Make them feel as though we are meant to be there. "
"Yes, my lord." Anelle closed her eyes and focused on the phy symbol, each curve and line flowing to the next. She pulled a thick tendril of tue and watched it trace the symbol in her mind. She remembered the feeling of home; being held by her mother as a child; the music as she played the pianoforte all afternoon; winter evenings surrounded by music in that small house; deep inky eyes and his smile…
Anelle blinked away tears and stuffed down the longing that held tight to her chest. She kept her eyes down and her face half hidden.
"It is in effect, my lord." Anelle said.
"Good. Keep your hood up. Nothing's more suspicious than a woman at night."
Marcs led the way out into the city.
The night was rising. The shadows deepened as they twisted and turned through the packed streets of the lower quarter.
Anelle stayed close to Marcs with Rullo and Gilm taking up the rear. Gilm was half a step closer then she was comfortable with. She shook her head and focused on keeping the phy saturated with power. The streets blended together in a web as Anelle focused on her job. Despite their earlier leering, Rullo and Gilm seemed more focused on outside threats.
"We have a tail." Rullo whispered.
Marcs darted into an ally. They stood in silence with their backs pressed against the wall. Marcs leaned down, his mouth only a hair's breadth away from Anelle's skin. "Cover us in shadows." He whispered.
Anelle closed her eyes and pulled another thread tue, pouring it into the phy. She held her initial painting tight and darkened the shadows surrounding them. The shadows swallowed them whole, making them invisible as long as they stayed still.
Rullo kept his head pressed against the wall, with his eyes darting back and forth over the street. Moments that felt like hours ticked by as they stood in frozen silence. Anelle's heart was pounding at the exertion of holding two illusions at once. She took long deep breaths doing everything she could to keep her breathing quite.
"It's clear." Rullo whispered.
Anelle released the illusion of shadows and let out a sign of relief.
"Move quickly. We need to make it to the boat before curfew." Marcs said.
He continued down the alley and out onto the next street. They headed north through the city. The sun descended lower and lower towards the horizon. Each street had fewer and fewer people than the last; making their group look more and more suspicious.
Marcs headed towards the Coniec District where they would attract less attention. Houses built haphazardly on top and over each other. No money for food let alone upkeep. Sheer will was the only thing keeping some of the houses standing. People slept in alleys, clutching weapons in their sleeping hands to deter would-be thieves.
The four of them continued heading north over bridges to a smaller island on the bank of the Cassien river. Drug addicts and drunks lined the streets sometimes accompanied by prostitutes in corsets and swatches of fabric.
Anelle jumped as a man reached out towards her. Gilm, quick as a wipe, pulled out a blade and pressed the man up against the wall. The blade rested against the man's throat. The drunk stood frozen as his quickened breaths brought his throat against the blade's edge and a trickle of blood dripped down his chest.
"You can't afford her, believe me." Glim said through gritted teeth.
The man raised his hands and nodded.
Marcs grabbed Anelle's hood and pulled it further over her head. "What did I say about keeping hidden?" He grumbled.
Marcs pulled Anelle forward.
Gilm took a step back and sheathed his blade, not taking his cold stare off the man. He took up the rear as they continued on through the winding streets.
The largest of the three suns, Os, sat level with the horizon. The packed streets of the Coniec District were drenched in a gloomy darkness, small rays of light only making it through slithers of alleyways.
They entered a small alley with a low ceiling made of houses. A set of steps led down to the river's surface. A lone row boat gently bobbed to the water's rhythm.
"Get in." Marcs instructed Anelle.
Anelle climbed into the centre bench. She clung to the wood as the boat lurched to the side. Marcs sat at the helm. He took no notice as the boat threatened to capsize. Anelle's knuckles turned white as she clung on for dear life. Rullo threw the rope into the back and jumped in behind Anelle.
Gilm waited, halfway up the stairs, listening for any unwanted attention. After another moment he walked over to the boat. "Sorry, girly, you chose the centre seat so we are going to have to share."
The boat only had three bench seats and the widest would have to seat two of them. Anelle nodded and slid over to the far edge. Gilm sat down and Anelle could feel the hard pressure of steel against her leg. His muscular arm pressed into her shoulder.
"I know what the Dame said about touching and all but after I helped you out with that drunkard before how about we keep this between us?" Gilm asked with a toothy grin.
"Anelle, make us invisible. Start rowing you two." Marcs commanded.
Gilm and Rullo picked up the oars and gently rowed down the river, weaving under short bridges and between cramped houses. Anelle releases a breath as Gilm leaned away from her to row.
"I…I don't have the skill to make us invisible." Anelle responded.
Marcs flashed Anelle a sharp stare. She flinched.
"Well, think of something. The last thing we need is imperial soldiers on our tail." Marcs retorted back.
Anelle searched her mind for an answer. The memory of waking in a damp and foul smelling cell distracted her from an answer. She gazed down at the water racking her mind. The water curved around the oar as it cut through the surface.
Water.
"I could make us look like water. From a distance we will look like a part of the river." Anelle said, trying to sound confident in her theory.
Marcs considered the idea and grunted. "Do it once we make it out into the main river. It will be too obvious here in close quarters."
They turned down a slightly wider canal that opened into the main river. Marcs raised his hand. Rullo and Gilm stopped rowing. They paddled backwards to kill the boat's momentum.
The yellow sun, Os, dipped below the horizon, the small amount of light slowly flickered out into darkness. Anelle blinked a moment waiting for her eyes to adjust. The violet sun of the heavens, Har, was a tiny speck of purple. The distant red sun, Ni, was a small red spot in the sky, giving off no light.
"Anelle, now." Marcs commanded.
Anelle held the Phy in her mind's eye and focused on the dark flowing water around her, imitating the current like a bubble over them.
"It is done, Sir." She responded. To onlookers they would look like a mound of water sticking out of the river. Anelle prayed the darkness would hide them.
"Let's move." Marcs ordered.
Rullo and Gilm rowed out into the main river. The current pulled against them, Gilm grunted beside Anelle with the strain of each stroke. They headed towards an island in the centre of the rivers fork. Marcs searched the rivers edge for any onlookers. Anelle started to look around as well, paranoia crept in as she checked the same street endings around them.
The boat came to a stop against the small dock. Rullo jumped out and tied the boat to the small dock. Gilm hefted a large chain over his shoulder and jumped onto the dock. Anelle waited till the boat stopped rocking before tentatively stepping back on to dry land. It took her a moment to stand steady on her feet.
Marcs led the way up a set of crumbling steps. At the top was a wrought iron gate. He pushed it open. Anelle winced as the rusty hinges screeched. Everyone crouched. They looked over at both sides of the river for movement. Marcs turned towards the small bridge connecting the island to the north eastern side of the city.
Everything was still.
Moments crept by. Silent stillness surrounding them.
Marcs entered the graveyard. Headstones dotted the main entrance near the bridge. Larger plots and mausoleums lined the back of the graveyard, each with more elaborate sculptures and statues than the last.
Marcs headed towards the back of the island, past old headstones covered in moss. The end of the island had a large mausoleum with spires like a mini version of the Athon palace that rose in the distance behind it. The miniature was made entirely of white stone and missing the distinct soot stains and bulbous melted sections of the larger castle.
Marcs tested the old wooden door with his shoulder. Rusted shut. He shook his head and stood back. He pulled out a pocket watch and angled the face towards the moonlight. His lips widened into a relieved grin.
"Two minutes to spare. Gilm, when the bells toll break the door in." Marcs said.
Gilm moved forward, bracing his foot against the old door.
They waited in silence. A single bell tolled. Shortly after every public house, guard station and crown sanctioned property over the city started ringing their bells to signify curfew.
Gilm rammed his foot against the door, once then twice. The sound of splintering wood and broken metal hinges was masked by the cacophony of ringing bells.
They moved through the broken door into the mausoleum. Anelle stumbled around in the dark. Marcs propped the door back into the frame, sealing them into the pitch black.
Flames erupted from his hands dancing through the room. Anelle gasped as they danced. A deep ache shifted in her chest, calling to the flames. The room fell away and she reached out to the stand of fire. It tentatively reached towards her, unsure of her at first. She kept her hand outstretched and the flames grew in confidence, almost touching her fingers. Her heart beat against her chest like a drum, in time with the flames' sporadic movement.
"This way." Marcs whispered.
The sudden sound broke Anelle out of her trance and she stepped away from the flames. She pulled her hands to her chest, fear balancing her earlier wonder.
She quickly followed Marcs through a door at the back of the room, leading to a spiraling stairway. The stairs hugged the wall, leaving a dark hole ten feet across in the centre. The stairs passed many different rooms filled with stone coffins and expensive tributes to the dead. Many of the valuable statues were missing hands or weapons, some were missing entirely with broken feet being the only thing left.
"What was this place?" Anelle asked, breaking the monotone sound of their footsteps.
"It was the old resting place for the royal family. The Enfir family to be precise. But after the White Enfir ended the bloodline and brought this nation to its knees, it was abandoned." Marcs replied.
The stairs ended before a circular dark pool. The surface of the water was like a sheet of glass. Anelle walked round the side, looking into the water's depths. A light shimmered at the bottom for a split second.
"You saw that." Marcs said.
Anelle looked up. Marcs was staring at her across the water. The ribbon of flames danced above their heads circling the room, illuminating the glint in his eyes.
"Yes, Sir. Wh…what was it?" She asked.
A cruel smirk cut across his face. "It is your job to find out."
Anelle took an apprehensive step back, her eyes darting from the water to his face. Fear tugged at her gut and she shook her head at the thought.
"I can't swim." She replied with a quiver in her voice. Her heart was beating a savage rhythm against her chest. She looked towards the stairs but Gilm was blocking them with his arms folded across his chest.
Marcs let out a humourless laugh. "You don't need to be able to swim, only sink."
His comment received a chuckle from both Gilm and Rullo.
Anelle took another step backwards. Rullo grabbed her from behind, lifting her off her feet. She screamed, flailing her arms. Her elbow connected with something hard and Rullo grunted, cursing to the gods under his breath. He put her back on the ground but pinned her arms behind her against his body. Marcs walked towards her with a heavy chain in his hands.
"No, please, no." She cried in protest.
He ignored her and placed the chain between her and Rullo, securing it with a lock around her waist.
"All you have to do is sink to the bottom and we will pull you out." Marcs said over her continued cries.
"But why me? Why can't one of you do it?" She asked, desperately looking between the three men.
Marcs lifted his hand and the flames danced between his fingers. "Water and flames don't mix. And good men are hard to come by." He pointed his finger at her. "That leaves you." Marcs explained.
"Dame Luel said I must return and she meant alive!" Anelle spat as her fear spiraled into anger.
"And I said you would return if you did your job. Have you forgotten that you currently have poison slowly making its way towards your heart? Refusing to do this is the same as accepting your death."
Anelle's face fell. Marcs' grin widened as she understood her fate. She took an audible breath, her legs shaking as she accepted the situation she was in.
"Once you retrieve what's at the bottom, pull on the chain twice and we will pull you back up." Marcs instructed.
"Please let me go."
Rullo and Marcs shared a look.
She hardened her stare and kept her gaze on Marcs. "I am not going to run or fight. I will have the best chance of surviving if I am ready."
Marcs nodded and Rullo slowly relaxed his grip. She stepped away from him, keeping all three men in her vision.
With each breath she pushed her fear down into her feet. Despite her trying, her hands shook. Each breath barely kept her panic at bay.
"We must be done by sunrise." Marcs warned.
Anelle put her face in her hands and shook her head. She walked up to the water's edge and without a second thought jumped into the pool.