Jake moved through the shadows. He exited the mansion as soon as he could. He knew that the assassin could still be here, but he didn't see any signs of one. He moved outside of the mansions and out into the woods.
He rushed towards Elena's mansion. He dropped down onto a tree branch as he watched her. She was on the balcony and watched as they went inside, and he could hear movements all around the compound of the Falmil house.
He saw Lily closing the windows, but he felt her gaze pass over him. She froze for a moment before continuing to close the windows. He moved closer, jumping over the walls of the compound. He stayed low against the top of the wall. He could see Elena moving around and then walking to her closet. He saw a flash of silver.
"Thimil," he whispered the rapier's name. If she had it, she was genuinely scared.
He moved into the shadows once more, appearing in her room. She was gone, but he knew this house better than even the residents. He moved to her closet and opened the secret door slowly, making sure he didn't make a sound.
But as he tried to go into the shadows, something happened that had never happened before. His shadow merge and teleportation… rebuffed him.
He stumbled backward at the headache that appeared. It was sharp and painful like a pickaxe stabbing into his head. "What the?" He managed, as he shook his head and looked at the passage. Then he realized. Ballis stone, a stone that could nullify magic. He only heard of its existence; he thought Ballis' stone was completely gone and destroyed in the 2nd Age.
His mind started to process and think of history; the kingdom of Glatith was born after the 2nd Age. After the Maltian Empire fell, was the Falmil Halas building an original building from that time? It must be. There were 4 buildings in the Falmil compound, each belonging to 4 major elders of the Falmil house.
The Halas house belonged to Robert Falmil, Elena's dad, while the Galas house belonged to Bormir Falmil, Robert's brother. Then you had the Ronis house, that Thalia Falmil lived in, and the Foris house, that Marice Falmil lived in. Roberts's second and younger brother.
He looked at the secret passage made of Ballis stone. He had no choice but to walk, so he did. But even with all the stealth, he still made sound the walls amplifying each step as the door behind him closed without a sound.
He could hear Elena's footsteps… but also someone else, it wasn't Lily's, no, these were too heavy. "I am probably gonna scare the shit out of her," he thought to himself, and barely hid back a snicker.
He went down the long stairs and then heard a slight click of metal, a familiar click, a sword popping open from its scabbard. He walked down and saw a turn ahead and froze. He didn't know who the other person was, but he was already scaring her.
"Elena? You okay?"
"Jake?" she cried out in surprise as she rushed past Leo.
Leo froze, wondering who Jake was and what had just happened as she ran around the corner and heard a clattering of metal falling down the stairs.
"My lady!" he called out as he rushed around the corner, only to see her rapier on the stairs and her also on the stairs as she hugged a man, no a lycanthrope.
The lycanthrope chuckled and squirmed under her. "Elena, good to see you too, you hurt?"
Elena chuckled and said, "No, I am not hurt, I am glad to see you."
"Me too," Jake croaked out.
"Uh, my lady?" Leo asked hesitantly, not sure what to do.
Both of them froze at the memory of Leo being there, and Elena squirmed away from Jake and quickly got up and brushed herself off. "Sorry, Leo, this is…"
Jake got up and said, "Fuck it, Elena, he's probably gonna recognize me."
Elena froze while Leo was shocked that such a person could speak to Lady Falmil. The lycanthrope got up, his face hidden by shadows. But as he got up, his face seemed very familiar.
"You're right, Jake, and also Leo, you're now entrusted with a major secret. A secret that could burn down the kingdom." Elena said coldly, a hint of a warning in her voice.
Leo looked at the two, his mind processing what she just said. Burn down the kingdom? A secret?
"Leo, this is Jake Lockvry, heir to the Lockvry crime family."
Leo's mind went blank as he finally recognized the man and the name. Jake Lockvry? The man from the wanted poster whose head was worth a thousand gold?
With Leo's wage, he would probably see the gold coin that he owned when he was 70.
Elena and Jake looked at each other as they watched Leo just stand there, dumbstruck.
"Um— is he okay?" Jake asked, looking over at Elena.
"Oh, he is fine, remember Lily's reaction?"
"Oh yeah… she was frozen for a good half hour or so," He said, as he scratched his stubble. He was trying to grow a beard, but maybe he's a late bloomer?
"Should I shave?" He asked, Leo still frozen.
"No, I like it," Elena said, slightly chuckling.
Leo shook his head, his grip tightening around the hilt of his blade. But he wasn't sure what to do. Elena Falmil seemed to be friends with Jake Lockvry?
"My lady, what is— why is he here? Why are you friendly to heir of the Lockvry family?" Leo's mind raced with dozens of questions, wondering what was going on.
Elena and Jake looked at each other, asking which one would speak first. "Me Jake, and I… have been friends for a while… He has helped me in the past." Elena spoke, Jake nodded.
"Also, Jake, why didn't you sneak down here and make such loud footsteps? Also, yeah, why are you here?" She asked.
Jake let out a sigh. He knew why she would ask him why he was here. "To answer your first question, my magic doesn't work here, not in this passageway. The Halas house is from the 2nd Age, right?" He said, as she nodded.
"That means it's from the Maltian Empire. They used Ballis stone; this passageway is made of it." He said as he touched the hard stone wall. Both Elena's and Leo's eyes went wide at the implication.
"To answer your second question… that complicated…"
Elena felt an uneasy feeling growing as Leo's eyes locked onto him, and he spoke. "You killed Henry?" Elena looked at Leo, then Jake, his golden eyes unreadable as the feeling grew.
"Jake, did you?" Her breath quickened as he looked at her.
"No, I didn't… I was sent… to scare him," Jake said, raising his hands as Leo drew his sword. Elena's feelings grew.
"I didn't kill Henry," Jake said slowly, watching both of them.
Elena knew he had killed in the past, but to think of the possibility of him killing her cousin, and him being here at the same time.
"Elena, you told me I shall avoid killing, I have," Jake looked into her amber eyes. They were pleading with her to believe him.
Elena saw the pleading in his eyes, and she remembered that conversation. "Leo, stand down. Let him explain."
"But, My Lady!" Leo said, but was quite down at her glare, as he lowered his sword but didn't put it away.
"My father, Adam, wanted him dead because he had dealings with the Kanmis family. I don't know exactly what, but he was letting enchanted weapons in." He explained, Elena's eyes went wide.
Elena knew enchanted weapons fascinated Henry. "So he had dealings with one of the 5 families, and your father has killed some members of the 7 before," Elena mumbled.
Every noble knew about the blood ball, a night where the Lockvry family earned its title of one of the 5 families. Adam Lockvry killed 4 heads of the 7 major houses himself that night.
"I disagree with killing Henry and decided to scare him, give him a warning, so I went there and found him dead," Jake said, watching both of them.
Elena saw his pleading eyes, and she sighed, "Jake, on your life and name. Do you promise that you're telling the truth?" She said, Leo's eyes went wide, she was making an oath pact?
"On my life, I promise on my life and name, I am telling the truth, where I had no thoughts of killing Henry Falmil, and only wanted to warn him," Jake said, as he bowed deeply to her.
Golden strings appeared between them; there were 6 strings already, but a 7th one appeared between them.
After the golden strings dissipated, all three of them let out a sigh. Elena and Jake seemed more exhausted as Leo sheathed his sword.
A pact was made, an oath of truth.