Damnation

28

The Umpire had an announcement for everyone in the Fellowship, Mara knew it was a big deal, mostly because Evelyn was angry about it and Evelyn was almost never angry
"For those of you that don't know; I am Umpire Foxdale. The Coven sent me to relay a message; All Twilight Hunters in this Fellowship are to make their top priority finding Martin Carleton. I will assign seven people to head to a mission concerning him" The Umpire said; Mara realized that this woman was her grandmother, a grandmother that aged beautifully
"I wonder who she's going to choose" Kylie whispered to her, Mara didn't know whether she was being sarcastic or not but watching as the Umpire unravelled a piece of paper made her feel sick to her stomach
"Evelyn Margaret Zane, Namara Briar Remington, William James Hood, Jason Theodore Cassidy, Oliver Benjamin Blazedell, Kylie Charlotte Ridge and Kara Jane Xandrian" The Umpire announced, her stomach twisted in a knot. She knew the Coven was willing to do anything to get what they wanted including the sacrifice of their people
"We are so drastically screwed" Mara muttered
"If you are those people come to me in the office" The Umpire said before walking away
"Yep. We're screwed" Mara said as she followed the others
"And how exactly are we screwed?" Kylie asked
"The Coven will sacrifice the entire Twilight Hunter race to destroy Martin if they have to-no, if they want to. It's part of the reason I never wanted to join up with you guys" Mara said as she walked with them
"What's the other reason?" Ollie asked and Mara remembered that she wouldn't tell anyone, so that look from Evelyn said a lot
"I value my life...sometimes. Okay, what I'm saying is that if I was going to die or get murdered or tortured, I would want it to be for my reasons and not someone else's" Mara said with a smile
"That's dark as hell" Kylie said
"Yeah, well, that's what happens to Twilight Hunters captured by Carleton" Mara said as they stopped in front of the office door
"She's not wrong" Jason said as he knocked on the door
"Come in" she called. They opened the door and walked in, standing like soldiers
"Umpire Foxdale" Jason greeted as she rose from the desk
"Cassidy, Zane, Blazedell, Hood, Ridge, Xandrian...Remington" The Umpire's face remained cold; her fiery red hair in a long ponytail behind her back and steely blue eyes, something told Mara that the Umpire was truly once a beautiful woman and still is for the age of sixty
"I hope you had a kind greeting, Umpire" Evelyn said kindly, the Umpire stayed cold, staring at Evelyn as if she didn't even hear her
"I called you in for your mission. It is long term, I expect that it will be your only focus" The Umpire said
"If you don't mind me inquiring, Umpire but what exactly is this mission?" Kylie asked
"As the best hunters in the Fellowship, you have been assigned to track Martin Carleton and his goons in Paleo" The Umpire said, Mara thought back to when Evelyn's name was announced and realized just how desperate the Coven was
"Why is Evelyn Coming?" Mara asked
"She is the least likely to be suspected" The Umpire answered, Mara sighed, it was a sexist thing, she knew that much
"Is it because she's almost seven months pregnant?" Mara asked defiantly as she watched the Umpire sit in the chair
"The child would make it less obvious" The Umpire said
"I'm sorry, but she's not going" Mara said and the Umpire looked up, clearly annoyed with Mara's antics
"She's going and that's final" The Umpire said and Mara stepped forward before grabbing her blade and slamming it into the table in front of the Umpire
"Are they really this desperate? They're sending a pregnant woman on a death sentence. If she gets caught, she's done for, do you get that, Umpire" Mara asked
"Yes, I do, Remington but Evelyn knew what she was getting into when she joined forces with us" The Umpire said
"Bullshit. I'll bet she didn't know that you'd gamble with her life and her child's" Mara said frustratedly, the Umpire stood
"We are not gambling with out soldier's lives. There are sacrifices that we had to make, choices that affected many but we would never send a hunter on a fools errand" The Umpire had enough of Mara already
"If she goes and they both die, how are you going to explain it to her family? Better yet, how are you going to cover it up?" Mara asked
"We don't cover it up. We'll be honest" The Umpire said and Mara chuckled
"You know what. I'm gonna wish you good luck, if I ever find out that she died on this mission, I'm coming for you and you're gonna know what it feels like to be one of their victims" Mara said before she grabbed her blade and pulled it from the desk without a struggle and walked away