63rd of Zi'da, Arc 716
Valyeria flapped her wings, propelling herself up to the windowsill. She landed awkwardly, her hands and feet scraping for purchase on the small stone ledge. Valyeria froze as she heard the clanking of boots inside and her eyes caught the flicker of torchlight on the walls.She cast a glance around, seeing nowhere to hide. Out of options, she gripped the windowsill and dropped. Her hands shook at they tried to support her weight, the forearms cramping almost instantly. The footsteps stopped suddenly and the light washed out the window.
Hurry up, hurry up
She forced her fingers to dig in and hold on. They were spread wide, barely obvious against the rough-hewn ledge. She couldn’t drop down to the ground- there was still the occasional passerby, not to mention the fact that she had been very careful to avoid leaving footprints anywhere nearby; hardly an easy task when Avriel were outlawed in Rynmere. The slowly falling snow dusted her fingers and the cold sapped her energy.
She felt her fingers slip on the ledge, scraping them raw as she dropped a half inch. Valyeria unfurled her wings, fluttering them, just enough to keep her holding onto the windowsill.
The clunking footsteps began moving again and Valyeria breathed a sigh of relief. With shaking arms and cramped hands, she pulled herself onto the ledge and groaned. Her hands snaked their way into her armpits as Valyeria tried her best to warm them up. The lock on the window was simple; a one pin tumbler. She honestly didn’t know why they even bothered using this lock- it was a third story window and any burglar who could get here would have no problems opening it.
She sat silently as she warmed her hands, listening intently for the returning footfalls, but all was silent. The black, form fitting clothing she wore was slightly mottled, breaking up her shape, and was surprisingly warm. When she had control over her numb fingers again, Valyeria pulled out a simple U shaped pick and found the pin. It was a matter of trills before she found the fault line and popped the lock open. The window swung open soundlessly.
Valyeria dropped inside, closing the window behind her. Luckily there wasn’t much in the way of snow on the sill, so no one would notice snowy footprints in here or out there.
She crept soundlessly to a small alcove and waited. She was inside now, so part one was a success. The second part was going to be far harder- she had to find Evelyn’s room.
It had been several trials since she heard her attempt to poison the woman using Moseke’s Mist-laden candles wasn’t successful, so tonight was to fix her mistake. Luckily, no one suspected foul play. Evelyn Andaris was a whore, to put it bluntly. She entertained countless men and never got pregnant, so an overdose of a common birth control was hardly unexpected.
Valyeria tried her best to remember everything from the visit here- the woman had come from upstairs, though that was no guarantee that her bedroom was up here. She hadn’t been given a grand tour, so she was working in the dark, in more ways than one.
She snorted quietly to herself at her bad pun, then moved out of the alcove. The Brightfern she had purchased on her way here was coming in handy. She moved slowly, quietly, watching the wooden floor for any loose boards that might give her away. She still hadn’t seen the guard again, and Valyeria assumed there was only the one for the whole house. It would make sense, given that Evelyn likely wouldn’t want to be disturbed.
Room by room, the same pattern every time, like clockwork. Creep to the door, listen for movement and check the crack for light, then slowly push the door open and check the room. Rinse and repeat.
The house was way too big for one woman, she decided. She must have purchased the house from someone else, someone with a large family, or else had planned on having one at some point. That thought made her sad as she recalled Tristan telling her that her husband had died, and she had to shake herself out of it. This wasn’t the time or the place.
Valyeria paused by the stairwell, listening carefully for any sound of movement or rustle of papers. Nothing but the creaking of an old house greeted her ears.
She carefully began to tread down the stairs, putting most of her weight on the railing. She had rarely heard a railing creaking, but rickety stairs were all too common. Halfway between landings, she heard the noise she dreaded the most; metallic clinking. Her gaze flashed to the second floor landing, and saw the torchlight flickering on the walls. She turned her body quickly, only to see another light growing brighter on the third-floor landing.
Shit
Out of options and trapped in a bad spot, Valyeria did the only thing she could. She jumped.
Her wings snapped out to make a soft thump, and slowed her descent enough that her landing didn’t break her legs. Pain shot through her calves, however, and a quick check of her skin told her that the damage wasn’t serious, however much it hurt. There was no light or blood obvious, and her skin was smooth, uncracked.
The thump seemed to escape notice and Valyeria hoped she had moved quick enough. Scuttling along the ground, keeping her body low, she moved to the study where she and Evelyn had first met- that was somewhere she was sure she’d be safe. The door opened smoothly on well-oiled hinges, and Alex backed into the room. She peered out at the staircase as she shut the heavy oak door, the latch sounding louder than it had before.
Sighing in relief, Valyeria rested her head on the door, trying to drown out the pain shooting through her legs. They may not be obviously injured, but she would have a hard time walking for a few trials, that was for sure.
The loud rumble shattered her solitude.
Valyeria spun around, her heart racing. Behind her on a bed that was definitely a new addition, Evelyn Andaris lay resting.
She lay a hand over her chest, breathing deeply as she tried to calm her racing pulse. Her hand had automatically dropped to the dagger at her belt, and she slowly relaxed it as she surveyed the rest of the room. No sign of anyone or anything else out of place.
The large bed was sitting in the room much like an elephant would- the desk and chair that had been the centre of attention were now shoved off to the side like a toddler’s discarded toys. The bed sat hulking in the corner, too large and ornate for the room.
Valyeria touched her waist- good. The three needles she had brought were all still there. None had been broken or slipped from their case. One was for Evelyn, the other two were blood clotters- simulate a heart attack or stroke, in case anything went wrong. Two dead bodies from different causes would cause eyebrows to be raised, but less so than a man disappearing or having his throat slit.
Valyeria didn’t bother pausing to think about why the woman was here, or why there had suddenly been two guards instead of one. That wasn’t her concern, and it had no bearing on this mission. But she wasn’t stupid. She checked the indent left by the woman on the bed- she hadn’t moved in a long while, something someone actually asleep didn’t do. There was a slight tinge of urine in the room, or perhaps a strong alcohol. Valyeria always equated the two. That meant she either needed to be cleaned, or they had a bedpan for the woman. It was impossible to tell under all the heavy blankets, but she felt reasonably sure this wasn’t a trap. And if it was...well she had three needles, didn’t she?
Valyeria slunk to Evelyn’s bedside and peeled up the blankets, baring her right thigh. She carefully watched the woman’s face for any sign that she was waking up. Nothing.
The cool air raised goosebumps on the woman’s leg and Valyeria moved quickly. She located the large vein that ran down the inside of the thigh and followed it up, as close as she could to the woman’s crotch. She carefully pulled out one of the needles and lined it up. This was something she couldn’t mess up.
It slipped into the skin easily and Valyeria waited for the five-count to ensure all the poison had left the stinger. She withdrew it and looked at the mark- it was too large for her liking, but there was no evidence beyond that which would make someone think this was anything but an accident. Valyeria hadn’t been seen, and really, with a woman like this, odd marks in and around that area would be the norm.
She slipped the needle back into its holster and covered Evelyn back up. The drug would take a while to be activated- probably not for till mid-morning at least. By that time, Valyeria planned on being long gone.
She ensured there was no sign of her presence in the room, even checking the tile to make sure her feet hadn’t scuffed it. The window was her best bet- less chance of running into more guards. She began to move towards it quietly, noticing the torchlight bouncing in the crack under the door.
Her foot collided with a large book and sent it spinning across the floor, under one of the bookshelves. The thump it made as it hit the wall was loud- loud enough that she heard a grunt of confusion from the hallway.
Oh for f...
Valyeria darted out the window, closing it as quickly as she could. The pounding footsteps drew near and the guard threw open the door just as the it closed. His hard gaze swept the room quickly, hovering on Evelyn for a moment as he assured himself she wasn’t harmed, nor was she awake. There was no sign of whatever had made the noise, and he narrowed his eyes.
Valyeria was crouched in the dead garden, thankful for a large overhang that kept the snow off her. Her one eye was all that was visible as she watched the guard bustle about checking all the obvious hiding places. As he began to walk towards the window, she flattened herself against the wall beneath it and held her breath. She heard it open, saw his breath cloud, and prayed with all her might.
Not now, just leave. Please, just leave. There’s nothing to see here. Nothing at all.
It seemed someone was listening, as the guard hovered for a moment longer before shutting the window firmly. Valyeria waited until she heard him close the door, then paused for another sixty-count.
She sent a quick glance back into the room before leaping to the air and taking off. She beat her wings hard, sacrificing stealth for speed. There didn’t seem to be anyone about and she made it away safely, without any alarms being raised.
The flight back to Andaris was uneventful. Valyeria was absorbed in the thoughts of her mission, and she missed something she never would’ve normally.
Avriel are forbidden in Andaris.
She was high enough that no one noticed her until she landed on the streets. The screams came all at once and Valyeria looked around in confusion. It hit her like a ton of bricks and she gaped at her stupidity. Her gaze darted from person to person like a cornered animal and she took off running when they finally moved. Two men were right behind her, shouting out that damned word- Avriel.
She could try to fly away, but people would be on the lookout for her now. She didn’t have the time to climb out of bow range, nor the energy. The flight there and back had exhausted her wings.
But Valyeria was too tired. She had spent most of her energy in flying here and her calves still ached from the fall in the house. She drew a knife and spread the contents of one of the needles down its length as she ran, sending quick glances back over her shoulder to see the two men gaining on her. Valyeria ducked sharply into an alley, waiting for the two men to rush after her. One was younger and in good shape, but the other one was slightly fat and breathing hard. She waited until the younger one had darted forward, slowing as he realized he was in a dead end alley.
Valyeria lashed out with the knife, slicing through the fat man’s throat as he barrelled around the corner. The unsuspecting man never stood a chance. His hand flew up to his throat and he brought it up to the light, confused at the dark blood covering it. He staggered sideways and fell to the wall.
One to go
The other man had turned around by this point and Valyeria held the blade ready.
“Leave me alone,” she hissed, trying to lower her voice as much as possible.
The man said nothing to her, only shouted louder for help as he reached down and pulled a chunk of timber from the garbage pile filling the alley. Valyeria nodded, and darted forward. The man moved too fast for her, the timber blurring in the darkness of the alley.
She flew sideways, her head cracking against the wall as pain exploded in her ribs. She fell to the ground and rolled, barely dodging the next blow which missed her skull by inches.
Gasping, she pushed herself to a knee in time to see him wind up a two-handed backswing. Valyeria gritted her teeth and pushed off with all her strength, beating her wings once to get the extra speed and power she needed.
The blade sunk into his chest just as the beam collided with her other arm and Valyeria heard a crack. The blade was wrest from her grip as she smacked into the alley wall, and she lay panting on the ground. She heard the wet sucks of the other man trying to breathe, but couldn’t get herself to stand. Bits passed, and Valyeria heard the stomping of boots.
For once I want that sound to be good for me
Valyeria gingerly rose to her feet, looking around for her knife. Her right arm was cradled against her body and she couldn’t move the fingers. Flames licked their way up her arm from the elbow to shoulder and she gritted her teeth against the pain. She couldn’t afford to leave it. The stomping boots were getting closer and closer and she felt a weight drop in her stomach.
Leave, her body was telling her, Run. You can’t win this fight, you’ll die! The adrenaline rushed through her as Valyeria caught sight of the man. His chest was still rising and falling with the hilt of her weapon embedded in it. She took one hesitant step forward as the torches stopped in front of the alley.
Before they caught sight of her, Valyeria lifted off and landed atop the building. Her feet slippedShe moved quickly, doing her best to ignore the pain rushing through her whole body. It didn’t work.
Limping and favouring one side heavily, Valyeria stumbled across the rooftops, using her wings to lift her the extra few feet to make it to the next roof. An outdoor staircase led to the ground level and Valyeria shifted back to Alex before making her way down. The cloak was wrapped tight around her body, but no one in Low-town gave her a second glance. Avoiding the main streets, she made it back to the Inn she was staying at, taking the back staircase up. Her father was waiting for her, his face a troubled frown.
“I’d heard the guard’s talking... I assume that was you?”
In response, Alex opened the cloak to reveal her shirt, soaked with the fat man’s blood. Her one arm refused to work at all and stayed curled up near her body. She went to reply, but the world wavered before her eyes and her knees buckled. Warren rushed forwards, catching her in his arms.
“I’ve got you, Vlu. Relax now...”
OOC
Black Mottled Breeches-1GN
Black Mottled Shirt- 1GN 2SN
Black Mottled Boots- 8SN
Black Mottled Shirt- 1GN 2SN
Black Mottled Boots- 8SN
