~ 3 ~
SAbrI
The torch sends ripples of light over the wet stone, chasing back the shadows. What was once the lavish estate of a wealthy noble or merchant has been peeled down to its cold and timeless bones. Seeing what must have once been magnificent fall into such squalor is just as disheartening as it is eerie.
A soft scuttling sound from up ahead causes the torchbearer to jump. The light from their torch jerks along the walls. I have to school my features into a mask.
“Careful, now,” I whisper.
“Yes, Your Highness.” The soldier holding the torch nods, their cheeks red.
I peer into the long chamber in front of us. The hallway has opened up into what might have been a ceremony hall. I can just make out the remnants of an altar on the far side.
The grounds are surprisingly vast—the many planes of the roof and various spires hadn’t seemed too imposing from the outside, but now it’s clear that the ruins go much deeper than I had anticipated.
Of course there are rodents in a place like this. Probably bugs too.
I hold back the shiver. My soldiers are watching me, and I can feel the captain’s tension from ten heads away. I can’t show anything other than confidence or risk lowering the company’s morale.
Inside, I pray we’re able to find the rats we’re searching for as soon as possible so we can leave.
We cross the ceremony hall and find a hallway behind the remains of an altar. We follow it, then enter another corridor—they’re all starting to look the same. It feels like hours have passed and yet we continue to find nothing but more darkness.
“Your Highness.” I jump slightly at the captain’s voice. He gives me an apologetic nod from right beside me. “The ruins appear to be empty. Perhaps we ought to head back to camp and reassess.”
I frown but pause to scan over the company. The soldiers are tense, but they don’t seem too tired out. We’ve already taken risks and covered a lot of ground—it would all be for nothing if we ran away now.
“It’s a big area to cover—our quarry could be anywhere,” I say. “We keep going.”
I push my shoulders back and continue forward. There’s a shuffle behind me as the company hurries to follow.
My eyes strain in the gloom of the dark hallways. The muffled footsteps of my soldiers against stone and the occasional drip of water push against my thoughts as the minutes slip by. I run a mental check of every bit of information we have available.
Everything adds up, or should. I had triple-checked the source of our tip back to a merchant with shady connections whom I had purposely left at large for such an opportunity.
So where are the thieves? Could they be feeding false information to their contacts?
I pull my lip with my teeth. Sneaky, underhanded tactics seem like something a leader of criminals would do. Perhaps I miscalculated.
The darkness beyond the torchlight is becoming stifling, almost mocking. The memories of that day creep at the edges of my mind.
I’m just starting to question my last embers of hope when the torchbearer gasps, “Y-Your Highness!”
My hand flies to the hilt of my sword.
Up ahead, the gloom splits into two different shades of black. There’s a slight outline of a figure within the shadows.
The person turns and runs.
“After them!” I don’t waste a second breaking into a sprint.
I hear the captain call, but his voice is lost in the sudden chaos of the charge. Leather groans and armor clinks as the entire unit explodes into motion, but it all disappears beneath the pounding of my heart. Adrenaline pulses through every inch of my body as I race forward.
The hallway veers right and I almost skid around the corner. I regain my balance and charge into a new chamber—only to have to slam to a stop.
The floor is missing. I only barely notice in time—a dark chasm stretches in front of me where the ground ought to be. As I teeter on the edge, pebbles scatter over the cliff and vanish into the pitch-black darkness below. My soldiers are a few seconds behind me. The chasm swallows their torchlight; I can’t see the bottom.
A laugh echoes through the space.
I look up and find our quarry is somehow on the other side of the chasm. The light barely touches them.
How did they cross the gap!?
I take a moment to assess. The flickering torchlight must be playing tricks, making the distance seem further than it actually is.
If they got across, then so can I.
“Your move, Princess,” the figure calls over the chasm. Their voice—darkly feminine and taunting—floats through the cavern, seeming to fill the pit that stands between me and my prey.
There’s something about the voice that mocks me. It feels like a direct call back to that horrible day when the guild ransacked the village. Hearing it ignites fire, but this time it’s contained in the rage coursing through my veins.
I tense, ready to take the leap, but a hand clasps my shoulder. There’s a wretched sense of déjà vu as the captain pulls me backward—once again stopping me from going where I need to go.
“Please, Your Highness,” he says, “it’s too risky. You’ll get hurt—”
I toss my shoulder, flinging his hand off of me. “Don’t stop me.”
The captain saved me that day, but even since then I’ve lived with regret. I will not live with regrets any longer—not when I finally have revenge in my grasp. I would do anything it takes to bring the Thieves’ Guild to justice. One pit will not prevent me from doing what needs to be done.
I swerve out of the captain’s reach, building up momentum with each step. I tense my legs, race to the edge, and leap over the blackness.