The Darkness Within

50 - Silent Shadows

It was dark out, incredibly so thanks to the remote location of the base they were infiltrating, something that played in both Ciara's favor and the demons she hunted. Stalking through the dark woods with her was a small unit of supernaturals handpicked for this mission, each individual skilled in a necessary area for this hunt.

Ciara's footsteps were silent, thanks to muscle memory from her life in the forest before all this, and the assistance of her supernatural body and the magic that flowed from within her. With impressively soundless steps, the entire team reached the top of the hill they had been climbing, and a nose gently brushed itself against Ciara's shoulder. Ciara crouched down low in response, her power-sight allowing her to find a comfortable patch of dirt to sit, located behind a large fern in such a way that she would be hidden from the demons' sight at the base they were slowly approaching.

Tala panted hot breath on her neck, and with her power-sight Ciara could see Evelyn crouch behind her, doing an excellent job of being Ciara's personal guard. The rest of the group settled down for the time being, having done this twice before, and knowing that her team was settled and aware of their surroundings, Ciara spread her power-sight forward and away from her body, expanding the area that it covered even as she sent it towards the demons' compound. She merged with the darkness inside her, letting it sing its findings to her, to guide her magic further forward.

After a few minutes, the goddess's power-sight finally encompassed the compound. She narrowed her focus down to the demons on watch for the night, seeing if they had noticed her team's arrival. She waited for alarms to be sounded, like a deer tossing their head up in alarm when leaves crunch too close to them, like a human scout who first spotted an approaching army, but they never came. The demons were relaxed, they moved around their compound without worry or panic, almost lazily.

Ciara pulled herself out of the depths that was her merge with the darkness within her just enough to signal to her team that they would position themselves here for the time being. Two members then began setting up a basic camp down the hill enough to be completely out of sight of the compound, their actions making no sound. The remaining three soldiers that made up the team began setting up a perimeter, one of them depositing a small being beside the goddess and her two guards that they had been carrying on their back like a small child, before joining the others. Tala licked lightly at Ciara's shoulder and then headed into the forest, becoming one with the shadows found there.

The small creature sniffled, and Ciara's eyes snapped towards him, a deadly glint found on her face even if it couldn't be found within her scarred eyes. The being looked down, apologetic, and her expression softened. This was no place for a civilian, but none other could produce the rare magic necessary for the current mission, and he was brave enough to come in the first place.

As the group prepared for sleep or took first watch on a vigil that would last days, Ciara's focus returned to the demons' fortress again, taking note of every movement and routine found within.

⥐

Evelyn smelled more than heard the approach of a female werewolf and the two bowls of food she brought with her. The sun had just set on the second day they had watched over the mostly unresponsive body of their goddess, and Tala had just ended her daytime watch over Ciara's body, Evelyn having woken up enough to take over from the Champion for the night.

The female bared her neck in respect to both the Domina and Goddess before her, before handing over the bowls. The food was cold, as were their clothes and sleeping bags, but at least it wasn't overly wet like yesterday's dinner had been. With a silent nod of thanks to the female, Evelyn turned towards her goddess, a bowl of food presented.