Dean’s search around the cathedral had been completely fruitless. Of Cait, Joan and their hooded attacker, there was no sign. When he returned to Addi’s room, he found it empty. He wondered if they had moved to another building, but he simply didn’t have time to search. It was quickly becoming dark and searching any longer would be useless, not to mention dangerous.

  His mind wandered as he made his way back to the library. He had expected to encounter monsters of some sort while moving. He was an easy target after all, a lone man struggling in the snow. It didn’t make sense considering what he had heard from Marianne and Matin. While he was locked underground, the monastery had been overwhelmed by the creatures, and yet where were they now? If what he heard from Oscar and the others was true, then the tear was supposed to attract the monsters. Dean felt like he was missing an important piece of a puzzle.

  Matin, Marianne, Oscar and that hooded woman. He was sure that the answers lay with those people. If only he could get Matin alone and speak to him. He knew he could trust Matin to tell the truth at least. The young man was a very poor liar. Dean just hoped he was still alive somewhere.

  As it turned out, his hopes of seeing Matin alive again were soon to be granted. The library entrance hall was empty when he arrived, but as he climbed the stairs, he heard voices echoing from the floor above.

  “Wait a minute,” he whispered, doubting his own ears.

  Deciding in the moment not to let his presence known, he hid behind some bookshelves and listened closely. He couldn’t be sure, but the voice sounded like Marianne’s.

  As he got closer, her words became intelligible. It was Marianne, so did that mean Matin was there too?

  “…lies are filling his head with now, I wonder?”

  Dean peeked around the corner of the bookshelf and saw Marianne and Layota in the distance speaking to each other. Marianne had a furious look about her, but Dean didn’t care about that. He could see Matin sitting on a sofa, looking like he wanted to be anywhere else but there.

  So Marianne was still making life difficult for him, was she? For whatever reason, she was grilling Layota this time. Dean considered interrupting the conversation but decided against it. He still wanted to get Matin alone so he could interrogate him without Marianne being there to make a mess of things.

  Eventually, Layota walked off with a bow, and Marianne turned to whisper something in Matin’s ear.

  “Yes, mother,” Matin replied.

  There it was. That forced acceptance and absolute obedience. Dean felt his grip on the edge of the shelf tighten. He hated seeing Matin like this. He was more than capable of making his own decisions at this stage of his life.

  Promising himself that he would talk to Matin later, Dean went to hide on a higher floor. He’d have a much better chance of speaking with Matin in private once night fell. When it grew dark, Marianne took the first watch while the others went to sleep. Dean assumed they’d be taking turns and decided to wait patiently for Matin.

  He sat there. He sat there for hours with nothing to do but checkup on Marianne now and then. She sat unmoving, staring right at the door, though sometimes she would look back towards where the others were sleeping. It was frustrating, but at least he had books to read. It was just a shame that all the books on his current floor were academic in nature. Not that he had anything against them, but he was more in the mood for light reading.

  “What is she thinking? Half the damned night is over.” Dean said as he pinched himself. “Could she have decided to take the entire watch?”

  Assuming that she, Matin and Morgan were the ones watching, then she should have swapped with them hours ago. With how things were going, she’d be staying up all night.

  He gritted his teeth. No, she couldn’t possibly manage that. Not while he, a young, healthy man, was struggling to keep his eyes open. She’d have to go get some rest at some point. She had too… she had…”

  BANG

  Something hit Dean’s forehead hard. He looked around expecting an attacker but realised that his head had hit the table he was sitting in front of.

  “Who’s there?”

  “Damn,” Dean cursed.

  He’d lost consciousness for a moment and had managed to make enough sound to alert Marianne who, against all natural reason, was still wide awake.

  Dean got to his feet and quickly scurried behind some bookshelves as Marianne walked up the stairs. She held her lythment up, pointing it all over the place. Thankfully, the darkness was his ally, and evading her search was child’s play. Eventually Marianne sighed and returned to the lower floor, and to Dean’s delight she moved back towards the group, muttering something about a lack of sleep getting to her.

  He followed Marianne back to the sleeping group and watched hopefully as she walked right up to Matin, looked at him a moment, and passed right by him to wake Morgan. Dean had to summon all his willpower to prevent himself from cursing out loud. He also noticed Matin shifting in his sleep and muttering “No” repeatedly. His friend was having a nightmare, but he didn’t have time to worry about that now. He watched Marianne as she leaned over Morgan’s sleeping form.

  “Morgan, get up, you lout,” he heard Marianne whisper. Although ‘whisper’ was probably too generous a term if he could hear her.

  After a few shakes and a hard slap to the face, Morgan woke up. It took a moment for him to become fully conscious, and when he did, he smiled up at Marianne.

  “If you wanted some nightly company, you needn’t have slapped me,.Though I do like a bit of fighting spirit in my women,” he grinned.

  Dean winced at his father’s words. There were few men in the empire who would get away with saying something like that to Marianne Evelyn. At the same time, memories of his mother came to his mind, unbidden. He quickly dispelled them to keep himself from walking over to the man and kicking him in the head.

  “I’ve kept watch half the night. You take the other half and let Matin get his sleep.” Marianne ordered in a tone that brooked no argument.

  Morgan’s smile vanished from his face, and he opened his mouth, clearly wanting to protest. Marianne might have made a face or something, because Morgan decided against complaining and nodded.

  “Your wish is my command, my lady,” Morgan said as he got to his feet.

  He nodded his farewell to Marianne and began making his way to the staircase. Dean crept back to the third floor before Morgan could notice him, muttering under his breath as he did so. It looked as if he wouldn’t get his chance to speak to Matin after all. He considered giving up on speaking to Matin privately and greeting his father.

  However, just as Dean was getting ready to make his presence known, something amazing happened. Morgan, who had been keeping watch for no more than fifteen minutes, got up and returned to the group. He checked to make sure Marianne was asleep and then promptly woke Matin up for his shift.

  “Thank the Goddess for my father’s scummy behavior,” Dean said with a wide grin on his face.

  Honestly, that man never liked doing what he was told. For once it had worked in Dean’s favor, and now Matin sat alone on the lookout chair, staring straight ahead at the front entrance. Dean sauntered up to his friend and noticed big black bags under his eyes.

  “Hey, old friend. You look worse than I do, and that’s saying something.”

  Matin jumped in shock and turned to face Dean, his mouth agape.

  “Dean, you… you’re back?” Matin asked, stumbling over his words.

  “In the flesh.” Dean said, raising his arms in a grand, sweeping gesture. “Feel free to throw a welcome party in my honor.”

  Matin got to his feet and embraced him. For once, Dean lost all ability to speak, so spontaneous was the act.

  “Oh, thank the Goddess you’re safe! I was sure you’d gotten yourself killed looking for me and I… I…” Matin blubbered.

  “Ok, ok, I get it, you’re happy to see me. Hey! Watch the hair, I spent ages on that this morning.” Dean joked as rather awkwardly returned the embrace.

  Eventually, Matin calmed down and broke away from Dean. He looked at him with a confused expression.

  “You came from the third floor? How did you-” he asked, his question trailing off.

  “Excellent question, my friend!” Dean said, pointing his finger dramatically at Matin. “I did so because I wanted to speak to you privately without your mother hanging over your shoulder.”

  “Oh, right.” Matin said, his face falling into a complicated expression. Noticing the change in atmosphere, Dean also let his confident smile drop. There was little time to waste on frivolities, and even he wasn’t really in the mood for levity. He stepped closer to Matin.

  “Matin, I’ve been outside alone for hours now and didn’t see any monsters. Don’t you think that’s strange?”

  He decided not to mention his encounter with the cloaked woman and the ghouls that chased him after escaping from her. That had been an isolated incident, and he still hadn’t seen anywhere near the number of monsters that would be needed to take out everyone at the monastery. He wanted to focus on Matin and Marianne first.

  Matin seemed to shrink in on himself as he kept his silence.

  “Do you know what happened to Rose?” Dean asked.

  Matin’s face contorted, and he shut his eyes while shaking his head. Dean decided to wait patiently for a response. He had to wait a while but eventually, Matin spoke.

  “In the guest house we were attacked by… we were attacked by ghouls, I think. They had hideous gray, slimy skin and sharp, bloody teeth. I ran, and so did Rose.

  Matin was stumbling over his words and was clearly unsettled.

  “Was it a ghoul that got her or someone else?” Dean asked quietly as he leaned forward.

  Matin flinched.

  “I don’t know.” He replied, voice shaking. “I can’t remember anything after I fell asleep. Rose was fine then, I think. She might be still alive, right?”

  Were the creatures being kept inside for some reason? From what little Dean knew of them, that made little sense. Mindless creatures such as those tended to wander and usually stayed outdoors.

  “There has to be something! Were either Marianne or Mitch acting strangely? Did you see anyone else, a hooded woman, for example?”

  “I… I don’t.”

  Dean realised that he might have been too aggressive with his questions and decided to take a deep breath before continuing in a calmer manner.

  “I’m not accusing you of lying, but I need to know what’s really going on. Does your mother know anything more about this? About what happened to Rose and everyone else?”

  Matin took a moment to compose himself. When he had calmed down somewhat, he looked up at Dean.

  “I saw ghouls, I’m sure of it. But everything else — the initial attack while you were imprisoned below, the massacre, what happened in the guesthouse. I-I don’t know anything about them! Mother told me that the monsters got them and nothing else. I just don’t know and I can’t, I can’t stop thinking about it,” he cried.

  Dean placed a hand on Matin’s shoulder.

  “It’s alright. You’ve said enough and I believe you.”

  Matin nodded in thanks as he collapsed onto his seat. He was clearly having trouble remembering things clearly, and his experiences while outside the library or the round tower couldn’t be anymore different from Dean’s. What was he to make of all this? The answers lay with Marianne. They had to. The problem was, getting anything out of her was going to be a challenge, an insurmountable one as long as torture was off the table, and Dean had no desire to do such a thing. There had to be more to her erratic behavior than merely stressing out over Matin’s exams..

  “I know you think Mother has something to do with this,” Matin said softly, not looking Dean in the eye. “She’s always looked out for me, Dean. I’m all she’s ever cared about since Father died.”

  Dean nodded and smiled, though he kept his thoughts to himself. Initially, he was certain Marianne had had a part to play. Those who died were the ones who challenged Matin’s top spot for the tests. However, he had abandoned that line of reasoning after the utter disaster that had followed her takeover. It was much too big a scale. Forget Matin failing the exam. With the entire monastery and, by extension, the academy out of commission, his future as a whole had been cast into doubt. Just what in the name of the Goddess was going on? Dean thought about the hooded woman who called herself Tatiana, as well as Oscar’s activities. He could still try to get more out of them. Yes, that’s what he would do next, all while keeping an eye on Marianne and Matin, whom he still considered somewhat suspicious.

  As morning came, Dean remained at the library. When everyone awoke, they were happy to see him return. Layota, who was beside herself with worry over Joan, asked him if she had left with him. Dean told her what he could, keeping the more fantastical aspects hidden for the time being, and proposed heading out to look for her, but, to no surprise, Marianne stopped him. Surprisingly, everyone else was in agreement with her.

  “Every time someone goes out, we lose people.” Matin said as he tried to comfort an impatient Dean. “You were lucky to get back at all this time, so let’s just wait and see if they can make it back themselves.”

  In the end, Dean had no choice but to let it go. He hated to admit it, but Cait and Joan were likely beyond saving now, anyway. It tore him up inside to even think like that, but considering he had been separated from them in such a dangerous situation, there was little he could hope for.

  There was another, more immediate problem in the library. It took Dean a while to notice, but there was an awkward atmosphere present, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off.

  It didn’t take him long to notice a small, one-sided feud going on between Marianne and Layota. While Layota busied herself with the well-being of the orphans and everyone else, Marianne did nothing but glare in disapproval. She almost growled every time the old woman got within a meter of Matin.

  Dean struggled to understand the reasoning behind it all. Layota only concerned herself with the wellbeing of everyone present, so why was Marianne so prickly about her? At one point, when Layota was asking Matin if he needed an extra blanket, Marianne snapped at her.

  This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  “If he needs a blanket, he would have asked for one, so why don’t you mind your own business!”

  The admonishment didn’t seem to phase Layota in the slightest, who smiled.

  “Of course, my lady,”

  This passive reaction only made Marianne’s scowl deepen. As Dean watched, he knew that peace in this small space would not last forever. Leave it to humans to start going for each other’s throats even when surrounded by danger on all sides. He worried about everyone’s safety and couldn’t shake the feeling that a locked door and someone on watch wouldn’t be enough.

  The evening after his return, he made his move. Asking Matin to join him, he approached Marianne and asked to speak to her privately.

  “Can you not say it here?” she asked in a tired voice.

  Dean looked back towards the orphans who were busy drawing on pieces of scrap paper, chasing each other around, or staring blankly into space.

  “Come now, Marianne. Even you should have enough empathy within you to spare the children from hearing anything that might upset them?”

  He knew their chat was bound to get difficult, and he didn’t want to agitate the orphans who had already gone through so much. Marianne made a ‘hmph’ sound but allowed herself to be led away just far enough so as not to be overheard.

  “What is it you want, Dean, and why bring Matin along?”

  Dean recalled Mitch’s words of warning. How was he to broach his suspicions? He could try to be subtle about it and get Marianne to make a slip of the tongue, revealing some information that she was trying to keep hidden. However, judging by the impatient look on her face, Dean decided that a more direct approach would be best. He wasn’t good at subtlety, anyway.

  “I met up with Mitch while I was out. He told me a lot about what you’ve been doing.” He said.

  Best to make her assume he knew more than he actually did. All Mitch did was give him a vague warning about her. His aim was to make Marianne panic and divulge information she thought he already knew. Things seemed to be going exactly as he’d hoped as Marianne’s eyes widened.

  “You spoke with Mitch? Well, where is he?” Marianne asked, her voice slightly shrill.

  “That’s not important right now, Marianne,” Dean said calmly. “Was what he said true?”

  Marianne gritted her teeth. She looked as though she were considering strangling him. Dean had to force himself not to take a step back. He knew that, even considering her age, if she decided to attack him, he would be hard-pressed to defend himself while unarmed. He’d learned that the hard way when he had tried to poison her. Her reaction spoke volumes. She really was up to something.

  “Hmph, why don’t you tell me what Mitch said to you, hmm? You do realise that as Oscar’s spymaster, he cannot say ‘Good Day’ without lying twice.”

  It was Dean’s turn to look surprised. Mitch was Oscar’s spy master? Even though he had spent the last ten years as Addi’s personal guardsman. That made sense now that Dean thought about it. Of course, Oscar would want eyes on Addi at all times. Given that Addi was only the Priestess because Oscar placed her in the position, there was little she could do. It mustn’t have been very pleasant having a man stationed outside your room and spying on you for all those years. He made a mental note to punch Mitch and Oscar the next time he saw them.

  Now wasn’t the time to be thinking about such things, however. What could he say that would convince Marianne that he had dirt on her? He thought back to the beginning. The girl who died first, Livia. No, he didn’t have enough information on her. Next would have been Nicolas. Nicolas, yes. He recalled Maria spiraling into a rage and accusing Marianne of poisoning him. Considering that Mitch was a spymaster, adept with such methods, and that he had seen them speak occasionally before the disaster, then maybe there was something there.

  “He said he helped you poison Nick,” Dean said.

  A shot in the dark, but if he was right, then that should be enough to shock Marianne into confessing something.

  Marianne’s expression became exceedingly neutral as she drew herself up to her full height and crossed her arms. He looked at her expression closely, watching for any tells. Her eyebrows may have twitched slightly, but he could have easily just been seeing things.

  “That’s a rather grave accusation, Dean. If I were really-”

  “She didn’t mean to kill him!” Matin yelled suddenly.

  Dean jumped slightly at the sudden outburst, and Marianne hissed at her son to be quiet. To be truthful, he had only brought Matin because he knew Marianne tended to soften up when her son was present. He had almost completely forgotten that his friend had been standing there.

  “She didn’t know complications would arise because of his condition. She only wanted to keep him and Sophia from taking the test, isn’t that right mother? Isn’t it? You didn’t mean to kill them, to kill her, right?”

  Matin’s face looked distraught as tears flowed down his eyes, and his tone was almost accusatory. Marianne, for once, found it difficult to speak.

  “Matin dear, what are you talking about? How did you-”

  Dean wasn’t going to let her find her footing.

  “So there it is.” Dean said as he felt a small, sad smile appear on his lips. “You killed my friends because you were worried Matin wouldn’t pass that stupid test. How much else is your fault, Marianne? Is this whole disaster part of your grand scheme?”

  Dean knew it wasn’t. The presence of the Tear that Oscar was studying as well as that strange woman were part of it too. He knew that, but his anger towards Marianne made him irrationally want to pin the whole blame on her.

  “Don’t be ridiculous!” Marianne screamed. “How or even why would I kill most of the people here at the monastery? My own guardsmen too! You really think I killed them as well as the majority of the students here? Think before you speak, Dean!”

  Well, at least he had gotten her to open up. Even so, she was too far gone to be trusted anymore. He turned to Matin.

  “She killed Nick and Sophia. Maybe she killed others too. She’s your mother, so what do you think we should do with her?”

  Dean could see Marianne’s eyes narrow in anger. Honestly, he was surprised she hadn’t reached for her lythment yet. She was staring at Matin and mouthing something he couldn’t catch.

  Matin, on the other hand, was breathing heavily and looking at the ground. He gave no indication that he had heard Dean’s words at all.

  With a wordless cry, Marianne rushed towards her son and hugged him tightly.

  “It’s alright, dear. Take a breath. You’re safe and everything is fine. Shhh, mother is here. It’s alright, it’s alright.”

  Dean could only look on in bewilderment. Was she trying to appeal to his sentimentality or something? Her behavior seemed completely out of character given the situation.

  “Don’t listen to her!” Dean shouted. “Can’t you see she’s the source of all your problems? You need to be your own person, Matin!”

  He had to get through to his friend. Why couldn’t he see her for the monster she was?

  “Stop talking, Dean, you’re only making him feel worse with that careless tongue of yours!” Marianne cried as she glared at Dean over Matin’s shoulder. “You have no idea what’s at stake here!”

  “You’ve done nothing but control him his entire life. All he could ever do was almost kill himself studying. All to appease you. Isn’t it enough that he lives his own life? Why go so far?”

  Dean thought of Nicolas and Sophia. While others had died and he still wasn’t sure about Rosetta, he could now be fairly certain that she had intended to harm those two to secure Matin’s top spot. All this for a stupid exam result. Dean could barely think logically through all the anger.

  “You don’t understand, Dean. You never could! Not like I can. I am his mother, for goodness’ sake!”

  Dean bit his lip in sheer frustration. How shameless could one person be? He turned back to Matin.

  “Matin. Be honest with yourself for once. Do you truly need her anymore? We can arrest her together and make sure she faces punishment for taking our friends. You think that’s the right thing to do, don’t you?”

  He heard Marianne take a sharp breath but didn’t take his eyes off his friend. Slowly, Matin raised his head. Dean expected anger or sadness in his expression, but what he saw was a bitter smile.

  “It’s true. Neither of you really cares about what I want, do you?” He asked in a calm voice.

  The next thing Dean knew, Marianne was thrown to the floor and Matin was fleeing towards the ground floor. It had all happened in an instant, and he was left standing still, mouth agape.

  Ignoring the gasping Marianne, Dean rushed after his friend. He noticed that the main entrance was open when he arrived at the stairs. Could Matin always move that fast? When he got to the door and looked outside, he could find no trace of Matin. A trail in the snow, however, revealed his flight.

  “The hell was all that about?” Dean shouted in frustration, kicking the door.

  He considered rushing out the door that instant. His athletic abilities had always been better than Matin’s. However, a voice from the upper floors stopped him.

  “Dean, what in the Goddess’ name just happened?” Morgan asked.

  Dean clicked his tongue and took a breath. He needed to stop and think rationally for a change instead of charging blindly ahead.

  “Matin’s gone,” he said, his voice breathless.

  Dean went back upstairs with his father to find Marianne who was now back on her feet. She hadn’t even been knocked out by Matin’s push. Unfortunate that. Part of him wanted to suggest going out and looking for Matin but something stopped him. He soon realised it was what Matin had said to him.

  “Neither of us really cares what he wants, huh,” he whispered to himself.

  Another reason he didn’t need to ask to form a search party was that someone else was far ahead of him. Marianne was being held back by Morgan and Layota. She was screaming, begging them to let her go after her son.

  “It’s getting dark Marianne. You won’t have any luck finding him now if he doesn’t want to be found.” Morgan said, doing his best to convince her.

  Luckily for him, her leg seemed injured, and she wasn’t able to put up a fight for once.

  “Are you satisfied now, my lady?” Layota asked quietly. “Yearn for something too much, try to exert forceful control, and you will most certainly lose it.”

  It was odd how effective Layota’s words were at restraining Marianne. As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Marianne stopped struggling and lowered her head. Dean could see the bitter grimace on her face.

  “You don’t understand. None of you do.” Marianne argued, though her voice lacked any strength whatsoever.

  Dean, Morgan and Layota all exchanged troubled looks. A moment later, Morgan bent down low so that he was making eye contact with Marianne.

  “We don’t understand cause you haven’t told us anything, Marianne,” he said. “Why don’t you tell us? What’s been going on here and why did your son run from you, hmm?”

  And why did you kill innocent people just so he could pass a test?

  Dean kept his question to himself, deciding not to ask for the time being. Doing so now would probably antagonise her further, and they would get nothing that way.

  Unfortunately for them, Marianne had decided to go silent, and no amount of prodding would get her to talk.

  “It’s no wonder the boy ran off,” Layota said sadly. “He’s been trapped and unable to escape his situation for so long.”

  That earned her a glare from Marianne.

  That night, Dean volunteered to take first watch, and it turned out to be eventful, to say the least.

  Twice Marianne had tried to go out, and twice Dean had stopped her with the help of his father. It felt strange to him that he was the one preventing people from leaving. He wanted nothing more than to go out and look for Matin, Cait and Joan but he also knew that the orphans and Layota needed his help. Protect those that you are alright before worrying about those that are probably dead. Those words he’d heard long ago from someone in the capital guided him now. He just wished sitting still didn’t hurt so much.

  Halfway through his shift, he heard slow footsteps coming from the second floor. Expecting Marianne’s third attempt in as many hours, he sighed and turned, only to be greeted by Layota.

  “Here, thought this might help keep you warm,” she said, handing him a glass bottle.

  He looked down at it in surprise.

  “Whiskey?” he asked. “Where did you get this?”

  “Your father found my secret stash and bagged it along with the food when he raided my orphanage. He thought I wouldn’t notice,” she laughed.

  It was at that point that Dean noticed that it was only half full.

  “He’s been drinking?” he asked in surprise.

  “Well, if there ever was a time to be drinking, now would surely be it.”

  “Can’t argue with that,” Dean said as he uncorked the bottle and took a drink for himself, feeling the warmth spread within him.

  He took a deep breath, calming his nerves and loosening his muscles. He hadn’t realised how tense he’d been up to that point.

  “How’s Marianne?” Dean asked.

  “She’s finally sleeping. Honestly. That girl takes too much upon herself and always ends up fumbling. I’ve been trying to teach her better for decades now.”

  Dean wanted to debate the term ‘girl’ when referring to Marianne, but he supposed if anyone had the right to call her that, it was Layota.

  “But you should worry more about yourself, Dear,” Layota said a little sternly. “You’re pushing yourself too much, not unlike Marianne.”

  “You’re comparing me to her?” He scoffed. taking another mouthful of whiskey.

  After that, he put it down. Drinking enough to feel drunk would have been the pinnacle of foolishness.

  “Both of you are concerning yourselves with young Matin a bit too much. It almost looks like a game of tug of war between the both of you,” Layota said with a chuckle.

  “Don’t be crazy,” Dean laughed. “Monster threat aside, it’s freezing out there. Would he really risk his own life just to get away from us?”

  Layota didn’t respond and continued towards the stairs to the first floor.

  “Hey! Where are you going?” Dean asked.

  “To the lavatory.” Layota said with mock exasperation. “Care to walk me there?”

  Dean grimaced and looked away, hoping the reaction would properly convey his desire to stay right where he was.

  With a laugh, Layota walked away, and Dean’s silent vigil continued. His thoughts dwelling on Matin, Cait and Joan. He couldn’t help but let his eyes wander toward the front entrance. Of course, trying to look for them in the dark of night was beyond foolish. Even so, the desire to find them and save them made sitting still almost an impossibility. He was actually starting to annoy even himself with his illogical compulsions. He really should try to learn how to sit still.

  A few more minutes passed, and Dean began to wonder what was taking Layota so long. Well, she was old, so taking longer to get anything done was a matter of course. Thus, deciding that her extended trip was nothing out of the ordinary, he returned to stray thoughts and daydreaming.

  “Where in the Goddess is she?” Dean muttered to himself.

  Thirty minutes or more passed since Layota had descended the stairs. Worried that she might have tripped and fallen, Dean decided to go looking for her. He should have gone the moment he thought something was wrong. He admonished himself silently as he briskly made his way down the stairs. It was almost completely dark on the first floor, but he knew the layout fairly well, and it didn’t take him long to find his destination. Hesitant to enter the lady’s rooms, Dean paused.

  “Layota? Is everything alright?” he asked loudly.

  When there was no answer, he asked again and then once more, as loudly as he dared. Silence was the only answer.

  Taking a deep breath, Dean stepped inside. The room was mostly dark, aside from a single glowing lyth stone of pale green. It did little aside from illuminating the washbasin at the far end of the room. Everything else was cloaked in deep, dark shadows.

  As he walked, he heard his feet touch water with a short slapping sound. He wondered if a pipe had managed to burst somewhere because of the sudden cold.

  As he proceeded, the splashing sounds grew more and more pronounced. Then, a growing metallic smell caused him to freeze on the spot. Recognizing the smell and assuming the worst, he looked down. Now that his eyes were adjusting to the dark, he could see the tiled floor more clearly.

  “Dammit, no!” he said in a weak voice.

  The stone tile floor of the lavatory had been painted a dark red. He abruptly stepped backward but realised that no matter where he went, he would be stepping in the stuff. He felt his heart beating faster in his chest even as his muscles grew weak.

  “No, no, no, no,” he whimpered, looking around wildly. Of Layota, there was no sign. Where was she? Where was Layota?

  Then he noticed it. A trail of blood leading back out the way he came. Without thinking, he took the lyth stone from its basket and swiftly left the room, following the thin trail of blood.

  Outside, the trail led to the left of the grand staircase towards the utility room. Wasting no time, Dean rushed into the utility room, glowing lyth stone in one hand and lythment in the other.

  The first thing he noticed was the sound of something tearing, followed by a loud crunching sound that reminded him of stepping on twigs. There was some kind of heavy breathing, and was that a crying sound? It sounded hushed and incredibly low, like the sound of a large animal in pain. The sound was so dreadful that it made him freeze on the spot.

  Fearing what he might see, Dean raised the glowing lyth stone with a shaking hand towards the source of the noise.

  The first thing he processed was the color. Dark, brownish red. Something humanoid was crouched over. Its large, muscular arms, which were much too long for its body, were busy clawing away at a bloody mass on the floor in front of it. Dean soon realized that the creature had no skin to speak of. The coloring was that of its exposed muscle structure, which oozed blood all over. Its clawed hands were covered in blood, and the surrounding ground was a mess of flesh and viscera.

  Hands shaking, he raised his lythment towards the creature. He knew what that thing was feasting on. He was too late, and now there was but one thing left to do. As he raised the weapon, the creature’s head turned to face him. Its head resembled a slightly squashed pumpkin: an oval with a flat top. It’s mouth was wide, too wide, covering the entire front of its head with just enough room for two tiny black eyes above it. Its mouth was filled with multiple layers of sharp teeth, now dripping with blood, and it almost looked like it was smiling. And then, strangest of all, were the tears freely flowing from its eyes, mixing with the blood below.

  Then, to Dean’s utter shock, it spoke.

  “Friend of master. I see.”

  All thoughts of using his weapon vanished. How? How could it speak so… normally? A mouth like that shouldn’t be capable of human speech or any speech at all, for that matter. It only served to make the creature even more unsettling.

  Slowly, it moved, turning and standing up. Its movements were much too smooth, giving Dean the impression of a weightless spirit.

  “What are you?” Dean asked, voice strained and teeth clenched.

  The creature produced a rough grating sound that Dean could only assume was a laugh.

  “Carrying out master’s wishes. Make slife easier. Problems go away. You. You finding me is problem. Yes.”

  “Master? Who? Is your master Marianne?” Dean asked, gripping his weapon all the tighter. “Or is it that Tatiana woman?”

  The creature regarded him silently for a moment. It hadn’t moved much since standing, and Dean realised it’s weeping eyes were locked on the lythment in his hands. Was the creature weary of the weapon?

  “Fool, I said a friend of master, did I not? Not listening?”

  Then, a thought came to him. It seemed ridiculous, but he spoke it anyway.

  “Matin?”

  The creature took a quick step forward, prompting Dean to raise his rifle.

  “He wishes you live. You and that malicious woman he calls… mother. But, need not follow directly. You’ve been bad for him, die!”

  The creature leapt forward, mouth wide open, but Dean was faster. He shot his weapon. A large shard of ice pierced the creature in the thigh while the next shot shattered its foot, sending the creature careening into the wall as Dean leapt to the side.

  The creature wailed in agony as Dean quickly got to his feet and aimed his weapon at the creature’s face.

  “You kill me and you kill your friend,” it hissed.

  “Sounds like a lot of bullshit to me, fiend,” Dean countered, placing his finger on the trigger.

  This monster killed Layota, and it wasn’t a stretch to assume it had killed others too. If he stopped it here, he could save everyone.

  “Dean, please don’t kill me. I don’t wanna die.”

  A familiar voice coming from the creature’s mouth froze Dean’s finger as it rested on the trigger. It differed from the voice he had heard before and was much more familiar. It sounded wrong, coming from that ugly, bloody mouth.

  It couldn’t have been Matin. The creature had to be imitating his voice somehow. No, he couldn’t let himself be swayed, not now when he was so close to saving everyone. He once again put his finger on the trigger.

  “Stop, Dean!”

  He had to yank the weapon away as he pulled the trigger, sending a shard of ice into the wall just above the creature’s head.

  Marianne appeared between him and the creature, eyes wide with fear. Her arms spread out in a protective gesture.

  “Don’t kill him, don’t kill my Matin!” she pleaded.

  With that simple plea, Dean’s world was turned on its head.