Ariadna turned to face the men once outside, and she folded her arms over; chin raised high. “I see Vinn has sent out his best hounds to search for me. Mhyka, Nhorano; a pleasure to see you all again.” she looked at the other two men in front of her. “Bass and Ivann – nice to see you both too, I suppose.”
The four men were in no mood for her sarcasm.
“Vinn wants you back at the institute, you’ve pissed him off beyond words. If you want to avoid a good part of his wrath, you’d best come with us with no complaints.” Mhyka said. He cracked his dark knuckles together, releasing the tightness there. His dishevelled hair and tired eyes were sign enough that it had been a long journey for them all, with hardly any time spent resting.
Ariadna shook her head and extended her hands out in front of her as soon as the men went to grab her. They must have expected her to respond like this. “You don’t understand, my business isn’t done here. How did you even find me, anyway?” she began.
Nhorano furrowed his dark brows at her. “Ari, I hate to b-b-break it to you but, Vinn doesn’t gi-g-give a damn about your list of names.”
“This isn’t about my list. Fuck that list, this is about something bigger. Mallice is dead, I’ve carried out the contract Vinn had assigned me already. On the way there, a young Priestess from the Convent of Atimae had followed me. Then I met two Mercenaries along the way, the whole thing just sounds like a mess but,”
Bass and Ivann took hold of the young woman by an arm each and dragged her towards the door of the inn. “No, just listen.” Ariadna screamed. “The priestess with me is being hunted by Kanra Mortier, a demon dictator. He wants to sacrifice her to his fucked-up gods. Let me go! Why aren’t you listening?”
“Are we really supposed to believe that?” a voice asked her from by the back door of the inn.
Ariadna cursed under her breath as she found Vinn standing before her. This was exactly what she needed right now. She continued to struggle in the grips of the two assassins holding her. “Vinn, I need you to listen.” she tried talking to him instead, hoping we would be less of an arse about it. That seemed highly unlikely.
The leader of the Anari looked bored as he stared at Ariadna. But deep down he was seething; all the time and effort he and his men had had to put in finding her. “You have a lot of explaining to do.” he replied.
Ariadna managed to rip free from the grasp of both assassins’ and she shook off any phantom touches which may have remained, from having been held onto so tightly.
“Then follow me and let me explain.” she replied and went back inside the inn.
Vinn let out a heavy sigh, looking up at the sky as he did. He beckoned the others to follow after him. Ariadna had not even noticed Oberon or Kai waiting within the inn but, Vinn hoped their presence would make her more compliant to his requests.
The young silver haired assassin walked back to her table with clenched teeth and when she sat down next to Troian, both mercenaries were on their feet and ready to face the intruding men as they approached.
Ariadna pulled Troian back down into his chair. “Ease yourself, they’re with me.” she instructed.
Vinn found a seat next to Preeya, whilst the rest of the Anari stood on guard, and he looked at the young girl. “So you must be the priestess Ariadna is trying to protect?” he asked. There was no kindness in his voice.
Preeya said nothing but when Artus slung an arm across her shoulder she scooted closer to him.
“You have a few precious minutes to explain, before I drag you out of this inn by your hair. So you’d best not waste them.” Vinn said to Ariadna.
“Well aren’t you charming?” Troian bit back in Ariadna’s stead.
Vinn waved a hand at the mercenary. “Who the fuck is this?”
“You’re wasting my time, just listen.” Ariadna snapped. “Yes, Preeya is the priestess I’m protecting. You know I would not have taken her in had she not shared the same past as me; now is not the time to tell me to forget about it, Vinn. Troian and Artus have informed us of a demon dictator, Kanra Mortier, whom they were supposed to be serving. They left their brothers-in-arms after being assigned to kidnap twelve priestess.” she began to explain.
Vinn’s face dropped a little. He was bored with all this talk about priestesses and demon dictators already. “And what does this have to do with the Anari?” he replied.
“What does this Kanra Mortier intend to do with the girls?” Oberon asked, bringing the conversation back to the original topic before Vinn had the chance to go off on a tangent.
Ariadna was grateful for his small interruption. “He wants to sacrifice them to one of his demon goddesses. The only problem is, Kanra had asked for twelve priestesses and when Preeya’s home was attacked, there were only eleven. We fear that one girl might have cracked and told him about Preeya. Either way, if he finds her then we must kill him before he can sacrifice her.” she continued.
Vinn ran a hand through his hair and helped himself to a much-needed drink. He gagged at the taste of the rose water and called out for some cider instead. He waited until a serving girl had given him his drink and scurried off, then continued on with the conversation. “Why should I give a shit about some priestess?” he asked Ariadna.
The silver-haired assassin frowned at him.
“Because there was once a time when you did care; when you’d taken a fifteen-year-old priestess into your institute and didn’t give a damn about where she’d come from. Please, do this for me, Vinn.”
Vinn ran a hand down his face.
And what am I expecting to gain from any of this?” he asked.
Ariadna let out a sigh as she dropped her gaze to her hands, which she held tightly in her lap. When she looked up at Vinn again, she finally replied, "Me.”
Vinn scratched the corner of his mouth with a thumb. She’d sparked some interest in him now. “And by that you mean?” he pressed her for more information.
“Careful, Ari.” Oberon warned her, only to be silenced by his superior.
“Neither of us believe in marriage, you know this. But if you help me – I won’t ever find myself in any other man’s bed but yours. I won’t leave the institute without you knowing first and I won’t run away like this ever again.”
Vinn said nothing for a moment. He downed the rest of his cider and pushed the empty mug away. “What news of Mallice?” he asked with a whisper; despite no one else in the inn being able to hear them over the noise. His change in topic was answer enough for Ariadna; he had accepted her terms.
“Dead.” she replied.
“And his family – wife and son?” Vinn added.
Ariadna did not look at Troian, for she knew he would not be pleased with her response. “Dead. Chlorine poisoning.” she whispered back.
Vinn was mightily pleased. “Fine.” he replied after an agonising moment of silence. He looked at Preeya again and leaned in close enough to whisper to her, “But just know how much trouble you’ve caused us, girl. After this, don’t expect to see Ariadna again. We’ll save your skin once, after that you’ll make your own way from there. Understand?”
Preeya did not look at Ariadna. She nodded slowly.
The leader of the Anari took one glance at Troian, at how close he sat next to Ariadna and the way he angled his body towards her. It was enough to make him jealous, and it prompted him to stand.
“Done.” he announced, and then excused himself to go for a piss.
Once he was gone, and the others had trailed off to guard the back door of the inn for their superior, Oberon and Kai looked at their silver haired companion from where they had remained standing.
But Ariadna said nothing; could not say anything. Instead she helped herself to some more rose water and drank it slowly, just to avoid having to say anything at all.
43 –
Troian
Unable to contain his anger but, not wanting to cause a scene, Troian waited until he had dragged Ariadna up to their room and the door was firmly shut.
“What kind of monster are you?” was the first thing he asked her. His question took Ariadna by surprise.
“Excuse me?” she asked, her jaw slack.
Troian paced the room, his fingers entangled in his dark hair as he walked. All the while, he said nothing to the assassin; not yet. He finally turned on her again and grabbed hold of her by the shoulders, shaking her. “You couldn’t have just settled on killing Mallice? You had one job – to kill one person, not one household. The wife and child, why did you kill them too?” after all these years and after everything he had done in his time as a mercenary, Troian had still stood by the one rule which would keep him somewhat human in his profession – no killing women and children. Their blood on the end of a blade was an entirely different kind of cruelty.
Ariadna pulled away. She was in genuine shock by his response. “As though you’re really surprised?” she asked. Those were not the words Troian had been expecting to hear, and she knew it. She let out a scoff, throwing her hands in the air as she did. “You know what, yes. I am a monster and I’m aware of that. It all comes with the role of being an assassin, or have you forgotten the part where I kill people for money; just like you?”
Troian moved towards her as though ready to strangle her but, his fingers curled into his fists as soon as he was a breath away from her. He let out a groan; unsure of what he was supposed to say next.
“You think you’re so pure, that your conscience is any cleaner than mine, well let me tell you something; we’re both killers. We’ve both killed innocent people before and if we don’t stop this bickering, another innocent girl is going to die too. We’ll be sending Preeya to her death.” Ariadna paused. She hated having to explain herself and her actions, to a mercenary of all people. “The boy had compromised my mission, I’d had no choice but to poison the air within the house and leave before I got caught. I don’t need a long-winded lecture about where my morality is because I don’t even fucking know. I’ve never had an ounce of morality, or any compassion within me but, something about Preeya has made me learn to love her like a sister. If I can at least save her from Kanra, I will. But I won’t be able to do it alone.”
Troian could not help but laugh at that. “What of the Anari? You have them on your side now, don’t you? Vinn had made it quite clear that he intended to help you.”
“Now is not the time for jealousy. I don’t love Vinn and you know that, but, I care about Preeya and our main concern now is her. She’s frightened to death down there and meanwhile we’re up here, arguing beyond our senses.”
From down below, back in the main hall of the inn, there came the faintest sounds of laughter as more customers began to wake up.
“Maybe it’s a good thing neither of us remembered what had happened between the two of us last night. It’d be best if we just forgot about each other after all of this is dealt with.” Ariadna sighed.
Troian took hold of her by her face, his grasp gentle, and he pressed a kiss against her lips. He felt Ariadna hold him for the briefest moments before it got too much for her and she pulled away. The young woman would never allow herself to love, even now.
“I don’t want to forget about you.” he replied. When he reached out to push a strand of Ariadna’s silver hair from her face, she moved away in time to avoid his touch. “I just need to understand why you’re so bitter. Why are you such an angry, sheltered person, who doesn’t allow herself to forgive and forget? Or even to fall in love?”
The door to their room gave way before Ariadna could reply and both Artus and Preeya came spilling into the room, their breathing shallow and their eyes wide.
“The city’s under attack.” Artus managed to choke out. He looked to both the assassin and his mercenary brother, panting still. “And you’re not going to like who the cause of all this commotion is.”
No one wasted any time. Ariadna took hold of Preeya by the arm and dragged her towards the bed. “Hide under here. Lock the door after us and do not answer it to anyone. Unless it’s a voice you’re certain you notice. Do you understand?” she instructed.
Preeya grabbed onto Ariadna’s hands and squeezed them tightly, tears already spilling down her cheeks. “I’m scared. Ari, I’m scared.” she sobbed.
Ariadna shushed her; urged her to be brave. “What did I just tell you?” she said in response.
Preeya wiped the tears away as best as she could. “Lock the door and hide under the bed. Don’t answer the door to anyone I don’t know.”
The assassin pressed a kiss against Preeya’s forehead and then readied herself for battle. She strapped her weapons onto her suit with great efficiency and in a matter of a few swift movements, she was armed to the teeth and ready.
Artus and Troian fell into step behind her as she charged out of the room; leaving only when they had heard the click of a lock and the padding of feet as Preeya hid herself away.
The Anari were already outside, having left the commotion of the inn before it could really get out of hand. They were ready to face the intruders head on, waiting for them to approach with weapons already drawn. The inn itself was now entirely abandoned, the serving wenches still screaming as they created some distance between themselves and the oncoming slaughter.
“Now’s not the time to make amends with our past. My blades have been clean for too long.” Ariadna said to both the mercenaries and together they all went out to stand side by side with the brave soldiers already waiting.
As the three of them ran out of the inn, dodging screaming citizens as they did, it was Artus who let a curse word slip from his lips first.
“We might be outnumbered.” his words were meant to be sarcastic, and it did not take a scholar to know that. Despite the sarcasm in his voice, there was a layer of genuine shock beneath it.
In the distance a swarm of riders, at least a thousand, came charging towards the city centre. The ground shook beneath the heavy press of the horses’ hooves and from where the Anari stood, the sound of the armies whopping and screaming rung out loud and clear.
Ariadna ran to meet the others, placing herself in between Vinn and Mhyka. With her twin blades out, she moulded herself into a defensive stance, her silver hair whipping in the slight wind which had picked up only now.
Don’t find Preeya, she thought the entire time as she waited to meet the oncoming army. Don’t find Preeya. This was perhaps the only time Ariadna was willing to forsake her pride and send a swift prayer up to any gods who would listen. For Preeya’s sake. Ariadna waited a moment longer before Vinn gave the order and the assassins dispersed; charging the oncoming army from the side lines and staining the ground with the blood of the first of Kanra’s men.
44 –
Ariadna
The city centre of Forta was in chaos. Steel met steel as the assassins of the Anari leapt from the shadowy side lines of the sudden battlefield, knocking men off their horses and sending their throats spraying blood as blades sliced flesh. One after the other, they worked through the army like that.
Townhouses and shops alike lined the streets; the perfect climbing frames for the assassins to scale and leap from. They had the advantage of being agile and combat from the air was the last thing the enemy would expect.
Ariadna ran; dropped to one knee and spun, her twin blades slicing through the bellies of two oncoming soldiers dressed in the black dragon uniform of Kanra Mortier’s army. She was on her feet and running again before the men had even had the time to fall to their own knees. Citizens who had not yet managed to make it out of the mess of soldiers could be heard screaming over the noise of weapons clashing, yelling at each other to run or to watch out.
Ariadna sent one sword against a dragon-soldier’s neck, the other she buried deep into his side. She pressed the sole of her boot against his gut and pulled her blade out of his flesh; not lingering enough to watch him properly turn into a corpse. Up ahead, Ariadna spied both the mercenaries locked in a battle of their own, back to back they fought together.
Brothe
r-in-Arms indeed, she thought to herself.
A hand caught hold of the assassin before she could process what was going on. Vinn appeared behind her, pulling her back in time to just miss an arrow as it soared past her chest.
Ariadna had no time to thank Vinn. She spun past him as another soldier came charging at her superior, spear tip ready to skewer him. She deflected his blow and thrust her sword into his head, clean through his eye socket.
“This wasn’t what I had in mind when it came to help you.” Vinn called out to her over the noise.
There was no time to be a sarcastic arse. It was a thought which Ariadna did not let pass her lips. Not as a deafening roar had her looking ahead. “You have to be fucking kidding me?” she hissed.
That brute of an assassin, Kadira, sat on a heavily armed black horse, both dressed in the same dragon-styled armour as the other men and their steeds. And just beside him, sat Kanra Mortier himself, watching the battle like some cruel overseer.
Vinn looked to the two men on their horses, just in time to hear Ariadna curse again.
“The bastard just won’t die.” she hissed and left Vinn’s side.
The leader of the Anari was after her in a heartbeat. “Ari, wait.”
Kadira slid off his horse and unsheathed a beastly long sword. Any other man would have had to hold it with both hands, but not him apparently. The feel of his black blade only gave him more confidence and already he could feel the pleasure of being able to kill Ariadna come over him. He let out another roar.
“Come on, bitch.” he called out to the silver-haired assassin, only angering her more. “Let’s see the whore fight.”
Ariadna had heard worse. She dove under his arm as Kadira lashed his sword out towards her and as she skidded past him, she ran her own sword against his thigh; where she had spied the smallest of openings in his armour. She had the eyes of an assassin after all. Such small details did not go unnoticed by her.
The Anari Page 20
