"I think they're beginning to wake up." Said an unfamiliar voice. Did the heat cause me to pass out? I looked around ready for a fight only to find myself in what looked like an infirmary.
"Hello." Said a feminine voice. My mind slowed and my panic receded.
"I'm Bella the lead healer here at the Adventurers Guild. These young individuals found you unconscious in an ally." I looked Bella over, she was a human who had a long sleeved shirt and a long skirt both in the color white on, Her tanned skin was pleasantly sun kissed,her hair was a light shade of pink and her grey eyes showed kindness that seemed to suck you in. Over all she was harmless however the young adventurers looked vastly different. Each one held their own sense of style ranging from cute to terrifying. It looked like a large unified but motley group.
" let us handle this. you guys can head out first." A tall human man said to what had to be his teammates. A large beast man grunted and left with 2 woman and 3 guys one being another beast man.
The 3 that were left were quite the mix. A tall human male, a Dwarf male, and a short beast woman.
The tall human male approached me first. He had long dark blue hair, green eyes and slightly tanned skin. He had a large sword on his back stunning grey and blue armor adorned his body; If I hadn't seen more intimidating creatures or persons I would definitely feel small compared to this man. The other 2 brought up his rear; The dwarf carried a double headed Axe on his back while the beast woman held a spear. Both were adorned in similar armor. My brows knitted together with questions.
" Heh. It's good to see you are both alright; That little girl there especially." I looked over to see the 12 year old girl I protected looking fearfully at the gilded adventurers.
"My name is Olivander. I'm the leader of Team Strikers. These are my companions Sifar and Agatha, We found you unconscious miss." He sounded friendly enough but his eyes told me he wanted something from me. I was to accustomed to abuse to fall for that false mask people put on. I sighed and responded.
" My name is Eva and You don't have to pretend with me. If you want something Just ask." My heart sank and I longed to see Riley's innocent and genuine smile again. I felt suddenly hollow, tired, and dehydrated. The little girl rushed over to me and hid behind me as if taking shelter from a sudden storm.
"Uh I see. Well we just want to know what happened with you and Lady Sinclair. She had snuck out one day and disappeared. it's been 14 days and no one could find her until today." He said it matter of factly. Not exactly accusing but not excusing me ether.
" I get it. I just rescued her from a group of 4 unruly men. I used a spell to create a wall of fire between us and them and waited until they gave up. However I didn't account for the fact we had no escape from the heat of the flames ourselves; and ultimately we passed out due to the heat and lack of oxygen. " it was better to just tell em straight and let them sort out the rest.
He nodded listening to my every word carefully. Then he casted his heavy gaze to the lady herself. His thought filled expression let me know he was considering what I said and soon he looked back over to me and nodded with approval.
"In that case this might be a bigger problem than we originally thought. Worry not Lady Sinclair we have already sent word to your father and he'll have someone pick you up shortly" He said turning to his companions. He excused himself then and I turned my attention back to whom I now knew as lady Sinclair.
"It's good to see you are alright. It looks like you'll be going home soon." Her large black eyes spoke volumes and I could tell she didn't want to go back. Bella excused her self then saying she had to look at some sort of paperwork.
" what's wrong?" I asked concerned.
She hugged onto me and said.
" Dad will force me to learn stuff and never let me go outside. I didn't mean to get caught but I don't want to go back to being trapped. I want to feel the sun and talk to people." I nodded understandingly. after leaving the colony I had met such amazing people; I wouldn't trade that day for all the years in the colony combined.
" what about your mother?" That question seemed to bring with it a heavy silence. I was about to dismiss the question when she responded.
"She died of an incurable illness when I was 9. Ever since dad has been afraid I will get sick too. Even though I tell him I am strong he won't listen."
She nuzzled into my chest and I was startled by her cuddling. Confused but amused I hugged her back just as tightly as she hugged me. She must have been really lonely at home.
Just then the man named Olivander came back and announced the arrival of Lady Sinclair's butler.
"Please come with me. I don't want to be alone."
Her grip tightened. And the slightly faded image of my mother and fathers faces flashed through my mind. That day was the last day I saw them. I warned them it was dangerous to go out of the colony,that the others would kill them. but they didn't listen no matter how much I begged.
I inhaled deeply and tore her away from my chest and said.
" I'll go but only if you promise me you won't run away again. We can try and convince your dad together that it will be alright to leave every once in a while." Her face brightened and her eyes became tearful. She squeezed my hands and showered me with thanks.
After that we gathered our things and headed out. Just before I mounted into the carriage Olivander came up to me and handed me his card.
"If you ever think you want to join the adventurers guild I'd really like to have you on our team. You faced down 4 men on your own, without weapons or a way out. Any woman with that level of courage and tenacity will surely do something spectacular. " he shot me a winning smile then helped me into the carriage. I couldn't help but be taken aback by his sudden care. Perhaps he wasn't so bad?
It didn't take long to reach The Sinclair estate even before we passed through the gate you could tell the quality and numbers of guards was unusually high. I found myself feeling more and more uncomfortable the closer to the building we came. It didn't have the feel of a home but of a prison.
Meanwhile in the slums of the city 3 men were being beaten down one at a time by a very temperamental vampire.
"I'll ask you then since your friend here can't speak." I tossed the dead and empty corps aside like an over used napkin. It struck the wall with a cracking sound then hit the floor causing the other 2 mean to shake with fear. I wanted to take my time with them now that I was recharged but the longer it took me to find their boss the further away my prey would get. I let my mind wander a bit. her scared expression was the first to come to mind followed by her lost and confused face. I laughed internally as I cut the ear off of one of the goons.
"Did you not hear me? Perhaps that was a bad ear. Let's try again." I circled him dragging my claws along his body threateningly; ripping his clothes but not cutting his skin. "Where is the leader of this small group? there were 4 of you originally." I pictured her once more this time her brave expression flashed into my mind I dwelled on that for a moment. She was so enticing when she had a serious expression. It made you want to tease her just to see her squirm.
" He's-" he was crying at this point he knew very well I would not hesitate to kill him and he was ready to spill his guts. but his friend on the other hand stopped him short.
"Don't tell him!" He said. With in seconds I sliced his rowdy companion's chest open reflexively and the man gripped his front in surprise. I laughed and walked over getting right into his face. How amusing.
" Why are you so surprised? Did you think I wouldn't kill you or perhaps you forgot the situation you are in. Tsk tsk" I chided him as the life left his eyes. My gaze wandered over to his friend who was now wetting himself.
"Are you ready to talk?" I asked drawing out the words in a sweet tone. The death of his companion was unintentional but damn effective. The man shook nodding his entire upper-body.
"Great! I love that enthusiasm." I said darkly. Finally we're getting some where. The final and most unsettling image that came to mind of my prey was the one of her sleeping. This set off a number of emotions with in me some of which I couldn't identify. I could feel my eye brow twitch. I had to kill her soon for my sanity's sake.