Ash tried to lose himself in the sound of the rain. It no longer stung him as sharply, which meant his robes hadn't been too badly torn in the fight. He would have an unbearable itch for the next few days, his face would remain marred, and dark blotches would serve as fresh proof of the struggle.
Martin's face had been exposed for far longer. The skin had begun blistering, second-degree burns spreading across his features. He looked like an ugly, lifeless mess no different from a slave left to die, forgotten in the rain.
None of the other guards had come looking for them. Ash wondered how long it would take before someone did. Would they arrive while Martin's face was still recognizable? Or would they wait until the rain had done its work, scraping him clean? This was a city that did not tolerate reminders of mortality left to rot in the street.
Ash had killed a man. It had… felt good. But now? What came next? Would he be hunted? Persecuted? Would his family and friends suffer for what he had done? Would everything he fought to protect be taken from him simply for defending himself?
It was the system itself that was cruel, and the system did not care for Martin. It cared only for what he represented.
Ash remembered he represented something more tyrannical than the Sovereigns: the temple. They would protect their own, wouldn't they? Once he became a full member, he would no longer be bound to the Sovereigns of Mortrum.
He didn't have much hope, but even a little would help. First things first: he needed to get away from this scene. The sun had nearly set, and the two massive moons of Mortrum would have been visible if not for the rain.
Miru had fled deeper into the city as well. He needed to find her. Knowing the clever little girl, Ash suspected she might have gone to the temple to get help. He needed to hurry to the temple himself.
As he retraced his steps, he replayed the fight with Martin in his mind, especially the final moments. He remembered the rare, intoxicating power of controlling someone else's fate, the way so many had controlled his. Recalling what he had done made him feel sick.
He focused on the timing of the fight, the moments afterward, that he had spent sitting beside Martin. There had been enough time for help or investigators to arrive, yet no one had come. Ash's mind jumped to the worst possibilities. The world was cruel to his kind, and coincidences weren't happy affairs.
He quickened his pace. The familiar dark outline of the temple rose through the rain, a black monument cutting against the murky sky. He crossed the boundary walls and made for the main entrance. There were no guards here; that was how absolute the authority and fear were in the Empire regarding the sanctity of the temples.
The temple was closed. All apprentices had been sent home, and only initiates and above remained. It was forbidden for the uninitiated to remain after dark. Ash worried about the consequences Miru might face if she had tried to enter.
The front doors of the main building were shut tight. He pushed, banged, and searched for an intercom, any opening to make his case. There was no response, only the relentless patter of rain.
Miru would have encountered the same obstacle. There was only one other place she might have gone: the Knight drill grounds.
Ash quickly circled the main temple building toward the training compound. During his apprenticeship with the Knights, he had learned that many of them stayed behind after hours in the housing and equipment areas.
'Please be alright.'
Ash was running now; he could barely see in front of him. He circled around the massive central temple building to the rear temple grounds, and he saw the Knight's buildings and training grounds. Ash was so focused on spotting signs of movement that he tripped over something and fell to the ground.
He fell hard, acidic water splashing onto his face and trickling down his neck. Several wounds on his body flared with renewed itching pain.
Ash ignored it and immediately pushed himself up.
He circled the smaller compound once, scanning for Miru. On his second pass, he noticed a door slightly ajar. Ash held his breath as he slowly approached.
His shaking hands pushed the door open.
He stepped into the dark storage shed.
The air smelled of wet cloth and something metallic.
Blood.
The only light came from thunder flashes slicing through the storm outside.
During one of those blinding bursts, he saw someone lying on the ground.
Ash could barely breathe.
"Please be alright… please be alright… please be alright."
It was Miru.
The sweet, intelligent little girl everyone had adored since birth.
His little sister.
The girl he had been supposed to protect.
A large bruise marked her cheek, likely from one of the Knights.
The sheets she had wrapped around herself to shield from the rain had been cut at the arms. Her sleeves were folded upward, exposing her arms to the elbows.
Severe burn marks covered her skin—the kind caused by prolonged exposure to acidic rain.
Ash hesitantly lifted a finger to her nose.
He could not tell if she was breathing.
He put his ear to her chest to feel her heart. She was motionless, without a sign of life. Ash picked her up with a bit of effort; the fatigue from his fight and running all over the place was catching up to him.
Ash gathered her into his arms with some difficulty. The exhaustion from the fight and his frantic search weighed on him.
He didn't know what to do in this situation. Should he strip off some of her layers?
Then he remembered another lesson: he could check her pulse from her neck. He gingerly put his fingers on her neck, right below her chin, drawing an arc until he found some sign of life, and right as he reached her carotid, he noticed it—the tiniest hint of a pulse.
It felt as if Ash had been holding his breath for a very long time.
He kept one hand beneath Miru's nose, waiting until he could feel her breathing.
It was faint. The slightest warmth of air brushed his skin.
Ash sagged to the ground beside her.
Relief drained the adrenaline from his body.
He straightened again and inspected Miru carefully.
'Why was she unconscious in the first place?'
He had been so focused on finding her alive that he almost forgot the implication of finding her half-conscious on the floor.
A cloak covered her.
'Wait.'
That cloak belonged to a Knight.
Miru was not only wrapped in a Knight's cape but also had another placed beneath her head as a pillow.
Ash examined her face.
A large purple bruise marked her cheek, the only injury not caused by rain exposure.
He touched the bruise lightly.
Miru gave a soft groan.
He checked her skull and jaw for signs of severe injury but found nothing alarming.
'Ok, so she isn't totally out of sorts,' Ash sighed.
He gently pressed along her arms, legs, and torso, checking for hidden injuries.
He did not remove her protective layers or the clothes beneath. They acted as insulation, and he could not risk exposing her to cold air.
Why wasn't she waking up? Who did these capes belong to? Why was no one else here?
The questions circled endlessly in his mind.
Ash was too tired to think further.
His eyes felt heavy.
"I'll just lie down for a short while," he whispered.
'I wish Mama had been here. She would know what to do.' Ash felt it harder and harder to keep his eyes open.
'She must be worried by now.'
He could not risk returning tonight.
Yesterday, he had told a small lie. Now he had to make it real.
He needed to be initiated into the Flamebound Knights first thing in the morning and secure Miru's apprenticeship papers.
He decided to remain in the storage shed with Miru for the night.
Despite everything, he could not bring himself to pray to the Living Flame.
He had never seen his mother turn to the divine flame, but she often spoke of belief and hope.
'What did she believe in?'
'I should ask her…'
Sleep claimed Ash quietly, and he did not resist.
Another flash of lightning illuminated the room, revealing even its darkest corners.
The light touched several motionless Flamebound Knights lying inside.
"Well, that was interesting…" said a feminine voice from the rear of the dark storage shed.
"Zain! New orders. Looks like you're adding babysitting to your list of duties today."
The voice came again as a shadow stirred near the corpses.