The carriage continued to race through the inverted Gilnean city streets as the world beyond the windows continued to bend and fold within itself. The non-euclidean landscape shifting every minute as buildings seamlessly tore apart and melded together, cobblestone streets an ever-changing labyrinth. No matter how many abrupt turns the carriage took, there seemed to always be part of the city above and below them.Â
Watching from the small window, she let the sound of hooves upon cobblestone fill the silence. Knowing the mustached manâs gaze never left as his fingers slowly drummed upon the top of his cane in the opposite seat. The longer it dragged on, the deeper the chill in her spine seemed to stretch, a void where her heart once seemed to beat.
The pain of what transpired in the Cathedral was still fresh, yet she broke the silence.
âI expected death to be more simple than this.â Katâs voice hoarse from the earlier screams, a syllable in the middle breaking as she swallowed down the last sob and wiped a finger beneath an eye.
âYou, of all people, Miss Hawke, should know that nothing is so simple.â The other passenger spoke plainly, his head lifting slightly as he did so. âYou are rather hard to kill after all, and you have so much to answer for.â
Katâs nose wrinkled at that, biting her tongue as she shook her head, attention turning from the window to the man. âAnd when the clock reaches the end of its backward count?â
He simply gave her a knowing look with the faintest hint of a smirk on the corner of his lips. She already knew the answer.
âGood.â She huffed, defeated. âIâm done with whatever twisted game this is. Weâll just sit here and ride the rest of the time out.â
âOh, thatâs not how this works, Miss Hawke. You should know better.â
Before Kat could retort, his cane slammed into the carriage floor, the vehicle turning sharply and turning over. Ejected again from the seat, she flew through the open door, defiantly grabbing hold of the iron handle. Swinging her weight upward, she found the brief moment of victory to be in vain, as her boots found cobblestone instead of the wooden floorboards. The carriage vanished from sight, folding away in waves of tiny tetrahedrons as the Gilnean marketplace appeared instead.
âFuck!â She cursed beneath her breath, looking skyward to find the adjacent part of the city still looming overhead instead of the moonlit sky.
Exasperated, she let out a breath, fingers pulling through the tousled raven hair. Eyes scanning the now stilled streets of Gilneas, contemplating what pain this place would soon bring her.
A subtle dripping echoed in her ears, and her stomach dropped. Freezing for a moment and swallowing hard before casting her gaze in the direction of the sound. A small puddle of blood was pooling within the indentation of the stones, and as much as she wanted to refuse, her eyes still peeled upward to the source.
Knees buckled, and her throat went dry as she stared up upon the bodies of her agents, operatives, and informants. Vynette, Sarida, Quinn, and all the others, even Riley. Each impaled upon the streetlamps, stretching from one end of the market to the other. One hand clenched upon her chest, the thundering of a heartbeat lacking in her ears as she examined the horror and questioned what this was to be.
âEven the ones you cared about, you neglected. Used only when needed, cast aside when not. Empty promises and high hopes are all you were ever good for.â A spiteful voice called from behind her.
Pivoting on one leg, Kat spun around, instinctively reaching for weapons but found none. Her eyes narrowed in search of the familiar voice, its source stepping out from behind a closed market stall.
Tristana, the youngest of her agents, whom she made promise after promise to and never delivered.
âSo self-absorbed, youâd say whatever you could just to keep people on your side.â The blonde spat out, motioning a hand to the corpses above. âYou told me lie after lie, and I wasnât the first nor the last. I gave you countless chances, and still, you fell short of your word.â
âThatâs not fair, you were brash and reaching for power without hesitation.â Kat stood her ground, eyeing the armor the young agent wore, the very set from the siege of Lordaeron.
âAnd yet you dangled the promises of teachings in front of my face like a carrot on a stick! Let me have a taste and then turned your back on me. Again.â
âI wanted to protect you!â
âNo! You were scared of me.â Tristana stuck a finger in Katâs direction. âYou were afraid I would surpass you, find someone else more willing and less guarded to show me. Afraid that I could have grown beyond you and take your power for myself.â
Kat recoiled as the girl struck an accurate nerve. âYou were being reckless, ran off once. How was I supposed to trââ
âDonât even talk about trust!â Tristana snapped back, cutting Kat off. âI had every reason not to trust you, every reason to walk away, every reason to betray you. Yet you want to stand there like our conversation at the docks never happened? Like I never followed you to Lordaeron, where you nearly got me killed. Where I threw myself in the open to draw the attention away from you?â
A sudden gust of wind ripped through the marketplace as the earth trembled faintly. The gale carrying the words ânot stableâ in a piercing whisper.
With a sudden loss of words, Kat just shook her head as the young agent scoffed.
âHow long until they figure it out? Probably too late, if I had to guess.â Tristana pointed again to the bodies above, specifically to Quinn. âSheâs going to trust your empty promises. She might even look up to you to learn from you. And then youâre going to let her down, neglect her, let her sit on the hook for months to a year with just scraps of pity attention. Then when she wises up to it, youâll make it out like she misunderstands.â
âThatâs not what I want. Not what I wantedâŚâ Kat whispered, eyes pleading through the pain.
âBut itâs what you do, and what you did. Eventually, they will figure it out, all of them will. That youâre nothing more than a manipulative, self-absorbed, bitch.â
Again the earth shook, violently this time, sending Kat to the ground and bouncing off the cobblestones. Quick to roll over and prop herself up on her knees, she found that Tristana was gone, as were the impaled bodies. Another roaring wind that carried words, âcrashing again,â tore through the open market. Banners and flags ripping from their poles and whipping away towards the horizon.
Beneath her, the street began to shift, curling upward as the marketplace started to invert. Desperately she grasped at the cobblestones and streetlamps, searching for a handhold to prevent the inevitable fall. The wrought iron post snapped off in her fingers and sent her tumbling towards a vacant market stall. Crashing into the boards just as it felt as if the air had been sucked from her lungs, and dropped once again within the speeding carriage.
âA lot to unpack with that one, Miss Hawke?â Amusement practically danced on the mustached manâs tone.
âFuck you, Charles.â Kat managed to get out between gasps for air.
âThe young girl isnât wrong, of course. I can almost relate, except you didnât slit her throat as you did mine once you were finished with her.â
âYou were working against me.â Kat snarled in response.
âNo. You just made yourself believe that to make the decision easier. You hold regret with her, but not for me.â He straightforwardly stated.
Hanging her head, Kat put elbows upon knees, fingers weaving at the nap of her neck. The Catherdral bell tolling one oâclock now. Defeated, tired, and helpless, she sat in silence as the carriage continued its course. Tears falling to the floorboards, each one welling beneath the eyes in searing pain. The familiarity of her heartbeat was suddenly missed.
She prayed for this purgatory to end.
[ Mentioned: @tristanasneak, @lovelydeadlysocialite, @quinn-vardenâ, @blue-eyedravenâ ]
( [Chapter I] [Chapter II] [Chapter III] )
( [pt.I] [pt.II] [pt.III] [pt.IV] [pt.V] )