Shadow Whispers

Chapter 9 ☀ Institute

Chapter 9 - Institute

Caedmon fought to keep the smirk off his face. Catching up to the two youngsters hadn't been very easy, but by the twin moons he had done it. And the look on the young woman's face was completely worth it.

As he dragged her off to the other side of the boat, she wasn't even fighting him off or saying a word. He wondered briefly as to why this was, but then figured that she was likely in shock.

Truth was, Khoeli was curious as to why he had followed them all this way. And he might have answers as to what happened with Felix. Reminding herself of the dagger hidden within her boot, she let him carry her off to wherever without a word, hoping he'd take her quietness for her shutting down.

Caed pulled out a key and fumbled with a lock at the entrance to the deep belly of the ship. Even outside, they were close enough to hear the groanings of the boat's rowers and their rhythmic chanting as they pulled the boat forward.

Khoeli frowned at his actions, hoping that she wouldn't have to resort to using her knife.

Finally getting the lock open with a grunt, he prodded her inside the tiny room. "There ye go, ladies first, don't they say?" He chuckled. "You ain't much of a lady though."

"Why were you following us?" she voiced softly once he had joined her and locked the door shut once more.

"I have no interest in the freak you allied yourself with. But you killed one of my citizens," he started. "A former Brother trainee, no less. The only reason I haven't had you arrested yes is because I can't understand why you would murder a friend."

She looked down at the ground at that accusation. "By the seven gods, I did no such thing, Caed. One of those... Ilsúrï beasts showed up. The ones Felix can't seem to see."

"It seems a bit too convenient for you to be bringing up mythological beasts right after you ran away from a murder scene." He pointed out.

Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "So now they're mythological? You acknowledged them earlier when we first met, but now you're accusing me of making up some beast I'd never even managed to hear of until two weeks ago. If you really were a Brother, you'd know the trainees were never taught anything about the Ilsúrï." She crossed her hands over her chest and beat her left palm twice on her shoulder, invoking the familiar salute. "And you know that every member, Brother or trainee, would die to our last breath defending the monastery."

"Ah, how clever. You know the salute. How... touching." His smile didn't reach his eyes. "But you never took the oath. Is that why you killed Milo, then? Had he not defended the monastery to your liking?"

"You are an insufferable douchebag," she snapped. "No wonder the Brothers kicked you out."

"They didn't kick me out," he corrected. "My time there had concluded, and I was sent to monitor Aevirun."

"Monitor Aevirun?" She was now confused. "Why... did they do that? What's in Aevirun?"

He shrugged. "They didn't tell me very much. It had to do with one of their visions, but you understand that those are vague, don't you?"

"W-what!" she spluttered. "Now you're spouting complete nonsense. Visions?"

Now it was his turn to be confused. "They didn't even teach you about the Elder's visions?"

"You must be making this all up," she concluded. "Visions are utter bonk."

"Did you never wonder why you were the only female trainee? Or why you were never allowed to take the oath alongside your fellow trainees, when you had fought just as hard, trained just as hard as them?"