The Darkest of Truths

Chapter 2

The silence that fell in the room as soon as the words were spoken was so tense. It was like an axe hanging over my head and I had no way of stopping it.

It took a while, but Mother Tzul gathered herself and raised her cup.

"May the Sun Lord, Thaoas judge you mercifully, Karma," she said, the sorrow in her voice still prominent.

I hated the sentiment. The heavy meaning behind it but in a way, I also appreciated it.

It wasn't often that she called me 'Karma' or any other version of my name, the same way it wasn't often that I called her 'Nerina'. She usually called me 'Viper', her way of showing respect. It was either that or 'Girl' or 'Child', despite my distaste for the endearments. However, this time was different. This time she saw a young woman grown whom she had known and, in a way, raised since she was a young girl and cared for as her own.

A young woman who was now a walking corpse, just waiting for judgement in the Sunlands. That or whatever afterlife awaited me.

"Now," I began, setting the metal cup down on a small table before locking eyes with her again. "As much as I enjoy your company as a drinking companion, I could really use some work, if you'll have me."

Thank this Thaoas or whoever for my high tolerance to alcohol.

Mother Tzul chuckles, setting her own cup down before standing. "I'm sure we can find something," she said and I followed her out of the room.

"We have debts that need to be collected, you can get the names and addresses from Wren," she said as we re-entered the centre of the Den. "I trust you know your way," she added with a wicked smirk.

There she is.

I started to go towards Wren's room but stopped. I checked around me and saw that no one was nearby before quickly hugging Mother Tzul and whispering, "Thank you, Nerina."

I didn't give her a chance to respond.

I sometimes wondered what she would have said or done had I had given her the chance.

Not that it mattered anymore.

I quickly made my way to where Wren's room was found and just like Mother Tzul said, I knew the way, very well.

I knocked on her door once I got there and waited until I heard a sweet female voice say, 'come in.'

I entered and immediately saw Wren who had her back towards me. I took a moment to admire how her curly silver hair settled on her slender body which was barely covered by a sheer dusty pink dress. I closed the door behind me, and she turned.

Her green eyes lit up as smiled and said "Karma!" before pulling me into her embrace and planting a sweet kiss on my lips.

I met Wren when I started working with Mother Tzul and helping out at the Den. We started off as friends, which was exciting since I didn't have any female friends my age at the time. However, with time, a little bit of curiosity and the overwhelming sensations that came with our maturing years, we became something more.

I've not had many lovers in my life. When you've lived in a small village most of your life, you don't exactly have many options. But out of all of them, Wren was always my favourite. Maybe it was because this was her job and it was a job she was good at.

I smiled into the kiss and returned her embrace but forced myself to pull away. "What a delicious greeting?" I mused, enjoying the feeling of the thin fabric of her dress and the smoothness of her porcelain skin.

A true beauty.

"There's more where that came from, if you will stay and keep me company," she teased, lightly pressing our noses together.