Chapter 7: The Assassin's Blade
The air was unnaturally still.
Not the peaceful kind of stillness that came after a long day's travel or under the gentle hush of stars, but the taut, tense silence of breath held before a killing blow.
Seralyn hadn't slept. Not really. After the incident with Kaela and the shadowy voice, her mind had refused to settle. She sat beside the smoldering fire, one hand loosely resting near the hilt of her blade, listening. Her senses were stretched tight, her eyes scanning every shifting shadow, every rustle of wind.
Kaela lay opposite her, her figure curled beneath her cloak. Her black hair fanned across her pack like spilled ink, the Veil Fragment tucked beneath one gloved hand. She looked almost peaceful.
Too peaceful for this cursed place.
The wind shifted.
A snapping twig. Soft. Precise.
Seralyn turned her head sharply, her body already coiling.
Then she saw him an assassin moving like liquid shadow between the rocks. Blades drawn, face covered in the shimmering veil of a Dominion bounty hood. A high elf, judging by his gait and the silver-gray leathers he wore armor etched with subtle enchantments that muted both sound and scent.
He lunged straight for Seralyn without a word.
Steel met steel.
Seralyn deflected the blow, rolling backward and drawing both sabers in one smooth motion. Sparks flew as their weapons clashed again, lighting the darkness in flickering arcs of silver and flame.
Kaela woke with a jolt, her hand rising instinctively. Violet magic crackled around her fingertips.
The assassin ignored her. His focus was entirely on Seralyn, his movements precise, lethal, practiced.
"You are Seralyn Virellia," he spat, his voice low and filled with venom. "Commander of the Ashen Reach. Traitor to your blood."
Seralyn grunted, parrying his strike. "I'm many things. That's not one of them."
"You crossed the Scar. You consort with a war criminal. Your head is worth a captain's title."
Kaela narrowed her eyes, her voice cold. "Dominion scum."
A ripple of shadowfire pulsed from her hand, but Seralyn shouted, "Don't kill him!"
The assassin spun, blade flashing, diving low. Seralyn met his charge, blocking with one saber and twisting to throw him off balance.
His speed was shocking.
He dropped, pivoted, and slashed upward. Seralyn barely turned in time, the blade grazing her shoulder, drawing blood.
Pain flared.
She hissed and struck back, but the assassin danced away.
Kaela moved to flank him, her hands glowing, but Seralyn barked again, "Stand down!"
Kaela froze, disbelief flashing across her face. "He's trying to kill you!"
"I need him alive!" Seralyn snapped.
The assassin didn't wait. He pressed his attack, landing blow after blow, each one designed to disarm or disable.
"You trained with General Velien," he said, sneering. "He wept when you defected. I was there. I served him."
The words hit Seralyn harder than the blades.
Her brother.
Gone.
Shamed.
She faltered.
The assassin saw the hesitation and moved in for the kill.
Kaela didn't wait.
With a scream, she hurled a spear of concentrated shadowfire directly into his chest. It pierced his armor with ease, sinking deep, then exploded in a flash of violet energy.
The assassin flew backward, his body hitting the ground with a dull thud. Smoke curled from his chest, his armor burned and cracked, and the sharp stink of scorched flesh filled the air.
He twitched once.
Then lay still.
Silence fell.
Seralyn stood frozen, breathing hard.
Her sabers trembled in her hands.
Kaela walked forward, calm, cold, deliberate. She stepped over the body, her magic still humming faintly.
She turned to Seralyn.
"Now we're even," she said flatly. "I saved your life."
Seralyn stared at her. "I told you not to "
Kaela's eyes flared. "And you hesitated. He would have slit your throat while you begged for answers."
Seralyn flinched.
"I didn't beg."
"You did something worse," Kaela said, her voice low. "You doubted yourself. In battle. And someone else had to clean it up."
Seralyn turned away, jaw clenched. She dropped to one knee beside the body, searching his pack. Inside she found a Dominion seal, a rolled parchment, and a single silver coin stamped with the insignia of House Virellia.
Her family's house.
The assassin hadn't lied.
He had trained under Velien.
"I knew him," she murmured. "Before the war."
Kaela's gaze sharpened. "You knew a lot of things. That didn't stop him from coming for your throat."
Seralyn said nothing. Her hands clenched around the coin.
Kaela turned away, stalking back to the fire.
Seralyn joined her minutes later, her face unreadable, the assassin's belongings tucked into her pack.
They sat in silence.
The fire crackled again.
Kaela stared at the flames. "There will be more."
Seralyn nodded. "I know."
"They think you're theirs. Property. And you walked away."
"I ran," Seralyn whispered. "After they started executing anyone who questioned the orders. After they told me to burn a refugee caravan just because they crossed the wrong border."
Kaela looked at her for a long time. "Maybe I don't hate you as much as I thought."
Seralyn gave a humorless chuckle. "Careful. That sounded almost like a compliment."
Kaela shrugged. "Don't get used to it."
A gust of wind blew ashes across the campsite. Above them, the stars shimmered cold and distant. One of them flared briefly, a comet streaking across the sky.
Seralyn watched it vanish into the night.
"I didn't hesitate," she said softly.
Kaela didn't respond.
But her eyes said otherwise.