Chains will shatter, and oaths be broken.

When the grim slayer shall be woken.

-prophecy of the duskbringer

Emily glared at her boss as she gently picked Gupala- no Henrietta up. She had followed orders, but this did not sit well with her, the girl had been a bystander in the noble’s games, a semi pawn at best. The previous plan did restrict her, but still provided a secure, cushy job away from the limelight and any real danger. In time and with good behavior Emily would even petition for family visits.

But now, now the poor girl's fate would be the opposite, Emily understood, at least a dispassionate coldly practical part of her did, why her boss had done what he did. But life would now be difficult at best, and hell at worst for this slender slip of a girl thal slumped unconcious within her arms.

Henrietta would be thrust headfirst into the games of nobles once more, perhaps she might escape excessive attention at first, but her latent talent would bring about their greed and manipulations.

In some ways the chains her boss bound Henrietta with would protect her, but otherwise it was an abuse most foul, a rape of the mind.

Emily left her bosses room not bothering to conceal the displeasure in her body language and trudged down the hallways, her footsteps heavy with a burden not all physical.

She would have rather killed the girl and be done with it, preventing years of misery with one swift stroke of her dagger.

Emily almost did it too, after she carried the girl back to her chamber and laid her down. Her duty screamed at her to follow the code, obey her superior. But it was not enough to stay her hand, pity guided her daggers out their sheaths, sorrow lifted her arms, and conviction brought them down upon the unconscious girl.

They did not land for her entire body froze in disbelief at what she saw.

A mako stood upon the girl, silently watching Emily with luminous golden orbs in the dim light.

Emily leaped back and hurriedly knelt on one knee, sheathing her daggers and lifting her open palms upward.

“Honored guide of the last light! What brings you here?”

Emily waited, and then started sweating as meaning flowed into her mind.

“I understand esteemed one, I shall abide by thy will. Peace be upon us.”

Emily watched the mako turn and hop off of its perch then disappearing into the floor instead of landing.

She waited a full minute longer in case it came back, and when it didn’t she rose once more and approached Henrietta, no Gupalagia, once more. This time her raised hand held no death within, only gently brushing Guppy’s hair from her face.

“So much sorrow and strife you shall face little sapling, I cannot take it from you. But I shall do what I can to prevent the winter snows from snapping you with their weight before you grow strong enough to bear them on your own. Sleep now, and grow, you will need the strength in the days to come.”

Emily removed the manacles and chains from the limbs of her charge and pulled the blanket over Guppy’s unconscious form. The girl would need water and cloth when she awoke, yet another task to perform.

She silently stood and watched Guppy’s sleeping figure from the doorway, it stirred something within her, something long forgotten, somethi-

Static filled her head, accompanied with a spike of pain that almost sent her to the floor.

Emily grabbed at the doorway and slowed her descent to her knees as her chest heaved to draw in great lungfuls of air. Sorrow and rage ripped through her frame as taught muscles spasmed and flailed and her vision clouded over in shadowy red.

A few moments passed and Emily’s form stilled and the grey within her head faded away. Slowly she rose, no sign of her earlier struggles, her garments would hide the reddened flesh on her limbs where they had struck the floor. They would hide the bruises that came.

Emily retrieved a little box from within her clothes, the smooth black metal warm from her body’s heat.

A click and it opened to allow her to retrieve a pill from within that she popped into her mouth, slipping her cloth mask aside in order to do so.

The pill was bitter, but it brought relief as her trembling stopped and breathing smoothed.

Her fingers came away wet from the liquid on her face, but she cleared the salty liquid and then quietly retreated out the chamber, her footsteps soft once more.

As she closed the door Emily heard a certain duo boisterously making their way down an adjacent passage, the dwarf boasting of his exploits in the rescue of the past night and the half-elf humoring him.

They would help her in her new found purpose, the two knew Gupalagia, and were sympathetic towards her, she would tell them of the girl’s fate, and therein enlist their support. For if she were to keep her vow then she would need help, and as much as the dwarf grated on her nerves the duo were skilled, and getting better.

With a bit of string pulling and some favors called in Emily would see about getting all three of them assigned to monitor and protect the girl wherever the king deigned to dump her.

Another idea sparked in her mind. The orc, wasn’t his name not Jade? He had been captured along with Gupalagia and demonstrated protectiveness over her, both in the fight and while being interrogated.

Emily would see about legally binding him as the girl’s personal slave, another layer of security never hurt anyone, and an obvious obstacle would help keep the true ones secret.

Yes that could work quite nicely indeed.

Emily let out an unseen smile behind her mask, how long had it been since she had played the relaxing role of a mere undercover bodyguard? It would practicably be a holiday. A break from...

She smoothed her clothes and fully straightened her spine, beginning to walk towards the approaching chatter with a calm, confident pace. One had to keep up with appearances in front of your juniors after all.

For the first time in what felt like forever Emily felt a hint of peace in her tasks, a smidgen of… wholeness.

………………………………………….

Guppy awoke back in her cell, the manacles and chains were gone. She wanted to fade back into sleep but the slickness between her legs and the dull ache disagreed with her.

Groaning in disgust at her traitorous body she threw the covers back and located a basin of water on a table, accompanied by a washcloth and some new black clothes that were folded neatly underneath.

She stripped and began cleaning herself, dyeing the water as she went.

Her flesh flared in a low sullen pain when she touched the puffy brand on her forehead, eliciting an intake of breath as she gingerly traced the glyphs that encircled her head underneath her hair.

The metal pan folded from the force of the throw as it crumpled against the wall and the wooden table sent splinters flying as it shattered from her blow, sending the black garments to the floor in disarray.

Guppy let her hands fall down to her sides once more, then gently crumpled to the cold stone floor.

Not again, not again, not to her. If only she had-.She would rather-. What she would giv-.

Gupalagia lay there for a while, ignoring the chill as trails of tears carved their way her visage and plopped onto her thighs.

The door sat looming to her side, shut and undoubtedly locked. She could get up and test that theory, or not.

Guppy rose, and with glacial slowness drew the black fabrics over her body but did not fasten them. She returned to the bed and curled up under the rough blanket.

What was the point anymore, why bother struggling, why fight this, her family was safe.

For all The Man in Black had been a psychopath and could have lied to her about their circumstances Guppy still trusted his words, trusted that the demon of a man looked down enough on others to not even bother lying to her.

Especially there in his office, the center of his sanctum and power. No his words rang true, he hadn’t bothered lying to her once.

Guppy turned over on the bed, facing the wall instead of the door. She just wanted to sleep, too much had happened recently and she just felt so very tired, nothing could summon or hold her enthusiasm. She continued ignoring the probes from Batty, talking to him was the last thing Guppy felt like doing right now.

She fingered the swollen ridges of puffy flesh on her forehead, and closed her eyes, eventually drifting off into a torpor of pseudo sleep.

…………………………………..

4993 A.D. Third day of the sixth week of Autumn. Fifth Bell of the Afternoon. Tinkertoe Mansion located in the Nobles district. Rolf’s basement room...

Rolf carefully disassembled his rig, converting its frame to unrecognizable pieces and carefully wrapping any exposed magitech circuits and runes in cloth before separating the pieces into three different bags.

Good, that should prevent its casual discovery. To be careful he placed them at the bottom and then piled in random tools and finally clothes and various paraphernalia he would need for life at the academy.

Rolf stood still at his doorway, gazing at the room he had grown up in for the last five years, waves of nostalgia washing over him as his eyes lit upon disassembled clocks and mechanical toys on his bookshelf sitting next to tomes of knowledge he had gathered and read over and over.

He stroked the smooth dark-wood of the door frame and took a deep breath of the slightly musty air.

His reverie was distracted by calls from his father, asking if he was ready for the carriage stood waiting. Breathing out he grasped one bag and carried it up the steps, handing it over to Eustace, an ageing butler who was more a parent to him than his own.

The man raised an eyebrow at the weight but made no comment, simply stoically carrying it outside as Rolf went back down for his second and third case.

All loaded up Rolf grasped his jacket and threw it over his lanky frame, treading the creaky floorboards one final time as he exited his hom- his former home.

Rolf’s father stood by the carriage, impatiently looking at a stopwatch as he waited, looking up as Rolf’s shoes clicked on the polished stone tiles.

“There you are, late as always boy, I’m going to be late to my meeting now, I hope you’re happy!” His father sharply spoke.

And Rolf was. He cared not for the games of intrigue his father played with his drinking buddies, especially when one almost got him knifed in an alleyway not too long ago. His father had always been distant, trying too hard to rise in rank and influence from the hole several generations of misfortune and foolish spending had sunk their family into.

While ostensibly viscounts their estates were in worse shape than most barons. Not that Rolf cared overmuch for wealth or power, so long as he had enough to fund his hobbies it was all fine with him.

“Where is mother father?” Rolf asked.

“Crying in her room, you know how much she opposed you going to the academy. In fact I’m not too happy with-”

“We agreed and its settled father.” Stated Rolf, swiftly cutting his father off before their conversation could devolve into another rehashing of the long argument. “I will seek political allies for our family’s growth in Darish and in return I receive my choice of education and a basic financial support from you so I can maintain my station as a viscount heir to the other student.”

His father grumbled a bit but said nothing further, allowing Rolf to board the worn looking carriage.

Rolf looked at his home as the carriage turned, feeling a twinge of guilt towards his mother as he saw an upstairs curtain twitch, however the feeling was swiftly overwhelmed by the excitement of where he was heading and his foot tapped a swift beat in a nervous tic until he forced it to be still.

Appearances would be important, and he was bad enough already that it would take some discipline to even appear civilized enough to mix with the other nobles at the school. But he would.

Rolf gazed out the window as they crossed the nobles district and finally arrived at the entry gates of the academy.

Massive walls and gates crafted by Earth mages of old towered over them, Eustace stopping only briefly to flourish his acceptance letter before the white liveried guards waved them through.

The gates gave way to expansive grounds, the marble laid road bordered by statues of famous mages and scholars, pioneers in their fields who’s carved features loomed imposingly over any entree.

Rolf smiled as he picked out and named each one, many of their beginner works he had extensively read, now he would be able to study with abandon no longer in secret or with fear of punishment.

As he was dropped off Rolf hugged old Eustace goodbye, eliciting a rare smile from the old man, and he was old noted Rolf. The man was fit and strong but time had withered his broad frame, painting his face with wrinkles and sun spots.

Rolf watched for a time as the carriage swept away, feeling the cool late morning breezes brush against his skin. He let out a breath he had been unconsciously holding, and turned to meet his new home, allowing the approaching servants to take his bags he walked one step at a time towards his future.

And grinned like a lunatic.