Dullahan

7 - Middle Ground - 1

THE ROOM WAS DARK, but Eldred could make out the shapes of the furniture when he opened his eyes. He felt groggy, trying to blink away the remaining tiredness that seemed to cling to him. He wondered when he had fallen asleep, and then he wondered what had woken him up. A moment later, the latter was answered. Footsteps echoed through the hallway outside. They were familiar, the metallic echo one he had started to grow accustomed to over the last few days.

It took him a moment to recall the events from a few hours ago, the sight of Ness's lack of head burned into his mind's eye. He shuddered, fixing his gaze on the door and shuffling backwards on the bed. He didn't want to see the horseman anymore. He didn't want to be here anymore. He sat up, a moment of panic storming through his mind as he searched for some way to escape from his situation. The window seemingly had no way to open it, and even if he could have reached the outside through it, all that lay beyond was a long drop to the city below. The room was too small to find somewhere to hide- the only potential spot was beneath the bed, which Eldred was certain would be found out within a few seconds. Lastly, there was the door. Eldred doubted he could sneak past anyone in the corridor, the narrow space barely wider than the space between the desk and the bed within the room. He took a deep breath, attempting to calm his nerves, and resigned himself to enduring whatever awaited him beyond the door.

Light grew brighter through the gap beneath the door, an orange glow that intensified, flickering and swaying with every step the person outside took.

Then, the footsteps stopped. A shadow had appeared beneath the door, the figure pausing.

Eldred's heart beat hard in his chest, the nausea returning, creeping up in intensity as the seconds ticked by. Whether from the mounting anxiety that seemed to be building within his chest, or from squeamishness from recalling his earlier experience.

There was a soft knock at the door, the sound loud and jarring in the quiet room. A moment passed in silence, and then the door itself opened.

Light flooded the room, and Eldred had to squint against the sudden brightness. Dust lifted from the surfaces once more as cool air mixed with what was in the room. Ness stepped inside, her movements accentuated by the usual scrapes and metallic clinks of her armour. She had donned her helmet once more, the gruesome stump of her neck hidden beneath smooth, engraved plate. She seemed to hesitate when she noticed him- or at least, Eldred assumed she had noticed him. He realised now that her helmet never moved, and now that he was looking for it he could see the small straps and buckles that held it to her gorget.

They remained in a deadlock for a few moments, Eldred staring at the empty helmet, and Ness watching him back. Eventually, she seemed to come to reach some decision, and she stepped fully into the room. The silver base of the candle she held clinked against the wooden desk as she put it down, and the door once more scraped against the uneven flagstones as she shut it behind her.

Eldred watched her, back pressed against the cold wall, legs once more pulled up against his chest.

"Are you cold?"

The voice was familiar and alien- it was the same one that had spoken to him since the day he had left his home, the same one he had heard in his living room. It was also the same voice that had spoken in the throne room, echoing off the tall ceilings and walls. It was the same voice that had come from the headless woman.

He wondered, childishly, if she would leave if he ignored her.

Ness gave him a few moments, standing completely still. When he offered no answer, she seemed to sigh, and moved past him toward the fireplace anyway. She pulled off the rough leather gloves Eldred had never seen her remove, revealing thin and pale fingers and tough palms. She set her gloves aside, kneeling beside the hearth and busying herself with setting the fire.