The Creed's Emergence

Chapter Eight: This World is Precious

Footsteps woke up Anika. She sat up only to see a platoon of people in brown robes in formation walking by. One of them had a skull adorned with silvery chains. She wondered who they were. Then, she remembered what Bramble had said.

"All they do is sit in a cave and eat rocks!"

Damned. They were Damned. Seeing them up close was strange, and they didn't seem to notice Anika. Even if they did, they paid no mind to her. She began to rub her eyes, then she yawned. She recalled hearing a weird voice in her head but couldn't remember what it said. All of the words were confusing to make out. However, she didn't want to linger on it any longer. She watched the Damned pass by. They had their heads up and backs straight. It reminded her of the military marching she had seen in propaganda parades. Soldiers marched flawlessly, showing off their disciplinary skills to onlookers, hoping to inspire them to join the bloody war unfolding in foreign territories.
Now here, people marched for a different reason, whether for war or to develop obedience. Before Anika could look any longer, she remembered what she had to do. She had to see Bramble. She became worried, wondering what he wanted from her, and indeed he wouldn't do anything suspicious to her. So many men back at home would ask girls to follow them, but the girls would go missing and wind up dead in some remote forest. No, Bramble wouldn't do such a thing. He was menacing, but deep down, he had some good in him. If he wanted to harm Anika, he would've done so long ago.
Anika shook her head and began to walk off towards where she thought she had seen the dormitories. She felt cold and oddly tired. Maybe all of the events that had happened wore her out, or she was getting a cold. At least she had a place to rest if she ever fell ill. It wasn't the best, but it was something. Better than nothing or a cold hard floor. Anika picked up the pace, speed-walking past other rooms and more people. She needed to find the Obscure dormitories. She could've been late, as she didn't know how long she had been asleep. It could've been minutes or even hours. Bramble could've been waiting for her in his dormitory or left again because he gave up waiting.
"No, it can't be. He wouldn't give up." Anika shook her head again.

Soon she reached a large oak door with a silver banner hanging from it. The banner had a golden scale embroidered into it. She knocked on the door, then waited. A voice came from the other side.
"Who is it? Are you authorized?" It said.
"This is Anika, the Decrepit, Bramble, authorized me," Anika replied.
The voice went silent. Then there was the sound of a lock jingling. Eventually, the left half of the door opened up. A horned brown-haired man wearing silver robes, a fedora, and a black blindfold stood there with keys in his hand.
"Well then, come in. The Decrepit is in his room at the moment but follow me; I'll lead you to his dorm." He closed the door as Anika walked in and began gazing at her surroundings.
The dormitory was beautiful. There were marble statues here and there, paintings, tapestries, even small fountains. A large skylight was above, and moonlight poured into the room from it. The man started to lead Anika towards a fireplace in one corner of the dormitory.
"So, what brings you here anyway, Anika?" The man asked.
"The Decrepit wanted to see me; I don't know what he wanted to talk about or do."
"I see. Well, I hope you don't mind the room when you go in. It's not the cleanest." The man then reached for the wall, pressing down on one of the stones. There was a rumbling sound, and the fireplace, along with the wall, began to turn. It revealed a dark passageway into a room with red lighting.
"I can't go any further, but go on."

Anika carefully wandered into the dark hallway. The secret door closed behind her, leaving her in the dark. She strolled along, hoping that nothing would jumpscare her. The stench of blood and dust began to fill her nostrils. She thought she had kicked something, and it sounded like a bone.
"Nope. I don't want to know what that was." She whispered to herself and began to run. The hallway was small anyway. She reached the other end, and it opened up into another dormitory. A large pool was in the middle, and a fountain poured crystalline water into it. The water was clear, and it was well kept. Bones littered the dark grey floor, and cobwebs were strung in every corner. Above there was another skylight. It was made of red stained glass, unlike the other, which explained the red lighting. Everything was dead silent. Seven doors were evenly spread apart from each other, forming a circle around Anika. From the crack beneath the doors, there was a soft glow from a candle. Two of the rooms had light, and the rest were dark. One door suddenly swung open.
"Girl, you're here. I thought you wouldn't come! Aha!" A familiar voice called out. Anika turned around, seeing Bramble emerge from his room. However, he was much different. Rather than wearing his regular uniform, he only wore a pair of canvas shorts. Even his skull was exposed. It wasn't a mask; it was his head. He had a towel slung over his shoulder as well. Anika felt her face become hot, and she was blushing too. At least the light hid it.
'Oh dear, this is awkward.' Anika thought to herself.
"I just uh, passed out. I guess I was just tired." She rubbed her arm, looking away.
Bramble didn't laugh. He looked towards the other room, then back at Anika.
"As much as I want to be loud, Thorn is sleeping like a baby, wouldn't want to wake him up." He sighed. He laid the towel on the floor near the pool and carefully stepped into the water. Anika couldn't help but stare at Bramble's body. He was much more muscular than she expected, and his body was also full of scars. No wonder why he was so strong; his body was just built for it.
"I thought The Rodent wouldn't have let you in if you had come earlier; I didn't tell him you were authorized, but in my defense, I wasn't here." Bramble went under the gentle stream of water flowing from the top of the fountain. The blood on his skull began to wash off, and the blood on his body as well.
"The Rodent?" Anika raised a brow, confused.
"The man that let you in just now. I call him a Rodent since he's just so damn skinny. Do I know his real name? No." Bramble leaned against the fountain, still letting the cold water rush over him.
"But that isn't what I wanted to talk about. By the way, you don't need to keep your hood up. No one will see us." He waved his hand at Anika. Anika hesitated, then lowered her hood. For once, she revealed her face. Even with the red light, her strange blue eyes kept their ominous color.
"By the Gods, you're lovely." Bramble couldn't believe his eyes. He came to the edge of the pool, resting his arms on it.
"Meirkien was right, then. He spoke of a girl with blue eyes and brown hair coming to the Church, brought by our Goddess herself, Justitiam."
"So you knew too?"
"Of course, girl. I'm no fool." Bramble gazed up at Anika, staring deep into her eyes. He fell silent for a moment, then looked up at the skylight above.
"While I was too focused on tearing into prey, I only overheard him mentioning how things were going to change. For better or for worse, but something was going to happen. Whether it be another blizzard of white hell like hours after Justitiam was killed or the coming of The Daughter to destroy this universe, it was something." He could recall that day. As brave as he was, it haunted him.