FSE

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"Ah Kadjul," Svara muttered to himself, as he stood at the top of the hill. "There it is..."

Before him, stretching off into the distance, was the massive city of Winterwrath. Once the biggest city in Arlea, Winterwrath was now nothing more than a ruin. Massive spires, crumbled towers, failing walls, collapsed homes. The roads were overgrown with weeds, and skeletons still occupied the streets.

Few of the skeletons would be Ch'kiliil, for the Assassin's Guild had done what they could after the slaughter to bury the bodies. However, a storm unlike any in history had hit during the effort, killing many assassins and convincing all of Arlea that the city was cursed. Some bodies never got buried as a result. And the Falskin that had been killed were left to rot.

Yet, here they were. About to enter the gods-forsaken city. Great.

Svara turned around and jogged back down the hill to the road, where the entire group was waiting for him. He got to the bottom without falling, and walked over to K'eyush.

"Winterwrath is directly ahead."

K'eyush pursed his lips and exhaled through his nose. His face belied little of the roiling emotional sea that was held beneath. He was a like a bow, primed for a shot. All it took was one slip, and he was off.

Winterwrath. It was his old home. He'd been there to see the Falskin come. He'd watched as they'd slaughtered thousands. He'd been helpless as they cut down his family and dragged him off to hell. He'd witnessed the brutality of slavery.

All stemming from this location. Winterwrath. There was a saying that 'home is where your heart is'. K'eyush's heart would always be with Winterwrath.

But it was not his home.

"K'eyush?" Svara prompted. The lynx blinked once and looked around the group, most of whom were staring at him curiously.

"Right," the assassin said. "We're...we're going through. You two..."

He turned to look at the two Falskin who were accompanying them, his eyes portraying the lack of attachment towards them.

"If we make it to Man'ahjit...and the siblings aren't there...you're going to regret everything in your miserable lives that has led to this point. Am I clear?"

"Perfectly!" Merva said, eyes widening slightly. "You're perfectly clear!"

Asar hid a sound of disgust, as K'eyush gestured the group forwards. Bad enough to be travelling with two Falskin. Infinitely worse that these two Falskin nearly wet themselves every time an assassin so much as looked at them.

The group proceeded forwards, down the heavily overgrown road leading to the city. No Ch'kiliil had been this way in years. And if they had, they'd had a powerful reason to do so. The only reason this particular group was here now, was for the matter of time. The siblings wouldn't survive forever.

For all the group knew...they might already be dead.

Best not to think on that, K'eyush chided himself, keeping his mind focused on the here-and-now. If he gave into the past or the 'what-ifs', he might find himself unable to return. Winterwrath was dangerous to the survivors.

Rounding a bend, the city came into view. Massive, crumbling walls loomed over the group, abandoned watchtowers standing as silent sentries, marking this place like the graveyard it was. The silence was unnerving.

"Damn," Asar noted, desperate to break the deathly silence. "It's big."

No one responded, trudging as those about to be strung upon the gallows, towards the city. The silence was so pervasive it nearly echoed. Even the birds in the trees were silent, if they were there at all. This was a city of death.

They passed through the ruined gate, a weighty chill settling on their necks. The stillness of the city felt thick.

"So..." Wraith hedged quietly. "This city...everyone died?"

"Not everyone," K'eyush said, looking around at the ruined buildings. "Some were enslaved. But none survived intact except one."

"Kar'na?"

K'eyush nodded. A few skeletons lay on the streets, dirty and old, with the tatters of clothing still clinging to some. A snap down one of the abandoned alleyways caught everyone's attention, but nothing was there.

"Did you hear that?" Ari asked into the void.

"Yes..." K'eyush hedged. "But...no one's here..."

"It's the dead," Merva said quietly. "They're telling us to leave. This is a city we don't belong in...that_no one_ belongs in."

Asar laughed, but the Falskin's words struck a cord of fear running through his heart. This city _did_feel like it was watching them. Like a cold and massive eye, staring down at them. Ari interrupted his thoughts with a simple question.

"Has...has anyone been here? Since the...attack?"

"No," Svara answered, looking over at the young otter. "It's an unspoken rule that none go to Winterwrath."

At the mention of the city's name, a cold gust of wind brushed across the backs of everyone's necks, like the hand of one unseen.

"What about bandits?"

"You'd think they'd be the exception," Svara agreed with Wraith. "But even they stay away. The city is cursed."

A quiet musical note sounded in the distance and everyone froze, ears twitching and eyes roving. Another note sounded, same pitch and volume, from the same direction. Heavy and resonant, the note sounded hollow.

"There," K'eyush said, pointing to the tall tower in the center of the city. "The old bell tower. It runs on a river beneath the city, tolling at morning, noon, and night."

Another bell toll echoed in the silence, sending chills down the spines of everyone, mammal or no.

"No one rings it?" Ari asked, looking up. She could see the brass bell, suspended on a thick chain in the middle of the tower.

"No," K'eyush answered. "No one."

"Wind's picking up," Svara noted, sniffing the air. "Moisture's in the air...I think a storm's coming."

"We just got through a storm," Ari protested. "Why would another hit so soon?"

K'eyush shrugged. "Just keep an eye on the clouds. Unless its bad, we just continue thr-"

A low, rising moan cut off K'eyush, and his fur stood up on end. The sound rubbed at the base of his neck like an invisible set of fingers, caressing his neck.

"What was that?" Wraith asked, her fur on end as well. Looking around, K'eyush saw that everyone looked a tad bigger, their poofed-up fur enlarging their size.

"Nothing," K'eyush said reassuringly. "It was just the wind."

Though he said this, the one-handed lynx was having a hard time believing it. Winterwrath was cursed. There were no alternatives. This was a city of dead people, and destroyed families.

The moaning sound died away, leaving a pale and utter stillness in its wake. The silence was almost worst than the unearthly dead moan had been. Immediately, the silence was stifling.

"Let's just get the hell out of here," Svara urged. He didn't need to speak twice, as everyone immediately resumed moving for the far side of the city. Another low moaning howl echoed down the lonely streets. Where it came from exactly, no one could place. But it was there, nonetheless.

A small clattering sound down the one street caught Ari's attention, and she turned to survey the length of stone road. It was abandoned, same as the rest, with only a few lone skeletons keeping it company.

In one of the windows, something shifted, setting Ari's nerves on edge.

"Guys, there's something moving back there."

She crept towards the motion.

"Ari," K'eyush said, stopping. "That's not wise. Get back here!"

But Ari didn't listen and continued towards the source of the motion. Her curiousity outweighed her fear, and she'd find what had been spooking them so bad.

"Ari!" Svara said, catching up. "Wait!"

The otter ducked in through the door, into the building. A collection of old skeletons littered the ground, but aside from that, the building was empty. There were no doors or other windows either.

"There," Svara said, stepping in behind her. "Satisfied now?

"I know I saw something," Ari protests, looking over every item in the room to no avail. "There was something here. Something moved."

Svara shook his head. "This place is just spooky. You were jumping at shadows. Now, can we get back to the others?"

Ari took one last look around, before sighing and nodding.

"Yeah...I guess it was just my imagination."

Svara put a hand on her back as they left the old building. Not in a romantic way or anything, but merely as one friend to another. The wind blew again, raising the hair on the backs of their necks with the low moaning sound.

"I really don't like this place," Ari whispered, shivering.

"Think about how K'eyush must feel," Svara said softly. "This used to be his home. Before....before the slaughter."

Ari nodded. "Kar'na's too."

Svara agreed with a dip of his head, frowning as they rounded the corner onto the main street to find it deserted.

"Spooky," Svara commented sarcastically. "Alright guys, this isn't funny! Come on out!"

But there was only silence, accompanied with the soft song of the wind. It rustled their cloaks and pushed a few leaves down the deserted road, but failed to reveal their scents.

"I said come out! I don't want to be in this dammed city one more moment than I have to! Alright? Come on out!"

"Svara," Ari said quietly.

"Your joke isn't funny!"

"Svara!" Ari snapped. "Look!"

Svara looked over to her, then to where her finger was poiting. There, on the ground, was a speck of blood. And it was fresh.

"The hell?" Svara asks, investigating the small mark. He taps his finger against it and brings it to his nose, inhaling deeply. "It's K'eyush's."

"You sure?"

"He's the only lynx in our party, as far as I'm aware," Svara answered sarcastically. "So where the devil is he?"

But only the cold wind answered their question.

"Let us go, you slimy bastards," Asar growled, as Merva prodded him forwards with the tip of a sword. "Let us go, or we'll kill you."

"You're not really in the position to make threats, dog," Merva sneered. "In fact, you're in the worst possible position you could be in. Prisoners to your former prisoners."

"Svara will return," Wraith stated boldly. "He'll be able to get us out of this."

"The fox?" Havara snorted. "He's a nobody. In fact, he too was once trapped in the slave mine as you were. And unlike you, it was because he was a failure. Now, you're going to be our ticket back to Parai. We sell you, and maybe we'll even get our old jobs back."

"Or maybe Drysenn would just execute you," Asar countered candidly, looking over at the unconscious K'eyush, who was draped over Havara's shoulders.

"Execute us? What for? We'd be bringing the assassin team whose sole goal was to free some of his slaves. This will garner us favour."

"Meh," Asar shrugged, seeming candid. "If you say so."

Merva continued in silence for a while, before he rolled his eyes and stopped, turning to face Asar.

"And why wouldn't he?"

"It's not what I'd do," Asar shrugged again. "I mean, the two Falskin who blabbed to their captors exactly where to go. And the two Falskin who were oblivious to K'eyush releasing the messenger raven back to the guild. You two will be responsible for bringing the Assassin's Guid straight to your doorstep. I wouldn't be too optimistic."

"K'eyush did what?" Merva asked, eyes going wide. "When was this?"

"Early this morning, while you two were asleep," Asar said, smiling slightly at their discomfort. "So I was right. You didn't notice."

"I...no, we didn't."

"You know," Asar suggested. "You could just let us go. Cut these binds and run for your lives. Maybe you'll be able to hide somewhere in Parai, where none of the warlords would find you."

Merva hesitated, before shaking his head.

"No. We need leverage. And you'll provide that leverage. Now come on!"

"Merva," Havara said in a hushed voice. "We could move much faster if we just leave them behind! We could get to Kantor and lay low there for the rest of our lives."

"No Havara," Merva shook his head. "We can't let these animals win. Let's just get to Simil. We'll report in there."

Though Havara was clearly unhappy about it, he simply hefted K'eyush's dead weight and continued on, following Merva. Wraith drifted closer to Asar.

"I didn't know K'eyush sent a raven."

"He didn't," Asar snickered quietly. "That would just be dumb. The mission was unauthorized. The last thing K'eyush would want, would be to attract the guild's attention."

"Wait," Wraith frowned. "You mean...that was all a lie?"

"Yup," Asar said, beaming. "But keep quiet. We want to continue it. If they doubt, or are busy looking over their shoulder every step, it gives Ari and Svara time to find us."

"Right," Wraith said, putting her head down. "Keep it secret. Got it."

Asar looked over at her, before turning around and looking back down the side alley. He just hoped the stupid fox would be able to find them.

Or it was lights out.