A Court of Flame & Shadow - Eris x OC

The Council Chamber

Eris made his way back quickly, careful to wipe away any evidence of their presence – stray drops of blood, bits of material from Vel's white gown, his own bloody footprints leading into the halls. The iron door to the old sewer tunnels was once again rusted shut as if it had never been touched. As he reached the winding staircase his ears picked up on the telltale sounds of soldiers – the faint clanking of metal, the squeak of boiled leather, and the rhythmic sound of footsteps ... two pairs. He hadn't been found out, it was only the change of guards. But they were ahead of him, deeper into the dungeon, and if they turned the corner on the bottom level they would see the two males he'd killed and left in a pool of blood.

He barreled down the staircase, as swiftly as he could manage without alerting the whole dungeon to his presence. It was not fast enough. As he skipped the last few steps he saw the guards twist right into the secondary hallway, their faces paled as they beheld their squadmates.

"What in the hells?" one guard muttered, eyes widening as they beheld their fallen comrades. The other let out a string of curses under his breath.

By the time the two whirled towards him, swords drawn, Eris had closed most of the distance between them, his muscles tensed like coiled springs. His two daggers against two longswords and shields. The odds were stacked against him. He would only use fire as a last resort – magic left behind traces that he wouldn't be able to entirely erase.

There were enchanted bells at regular intervals in the dungeon. When rung they would sound the alarm in the entire Forest House, summoning all the sentries and eventually the High Lord himself. The nearest bell was behind him, beyond reach, but there was another at the end of the main corridor. One guard needed to stall him only long enough for the other to ring it. So Eris attacked first, unwilling to give them more time to consider their options. The guards were well-trained, they defended and covered each other's flanks thoroughly. Eris had to keep circling them, looking for an opening but also stopping them from retreating too close to either of the bells. Where one blocked, the other attacked, forcing him to step away. There were two of them and all the additional movement he had to make to get close with his daggers would tire him out more quickly.

It would have been so easy to feign a magical attack, just enough to distract them and gain the upper hand through physical combat. But he had to be cautious, Beron would sense that fire had been used and suspect his sons. And he'd made a promise to Vel. Eris sighed in resignation – no magic then.

It had all been swift footwork and evasive maneuvers so far, trying to exploit small gaps in their armor, so the guards didn't expect it when Eris, prowling around them like a panther, launched himself with all his strength shoulder-first into a shield. The surprised guard lost his footing, staggering a few steps back towards his partner. It was all Eris needed as he hooked his foot around the other male's legs and sent him sprawling to the ground. The second guard lunged forward, trying to keep Eris away from his fallen partner as he scrambled to get back up, but that was all the opening he'd needed. The lunge left the male exposed on one side, and Eris seized the moment, swiftly closing the distance between them. His dagger glinted briefly in the torchlight before burying itself to the hilt into the small space between the male's helmet and his chest plate. There was a wet gurgling sound and then the body crumpled to the floor. His partner followed closely after.

He'd gotten lucky – lucky that he had returned just in time and that they hadn't possessed any fire magic. Perhaps the Mother was finally watching over him.

He now had a few hours to kill until the final change of guards, just before dawn, so he started by smashing the vials of blood on the floor of the torture chamber. To make sure nothing was usable, he dragged the bodies of the four guards to the middle of the room. Their own blood flowed and mixed with Vel's. He arranged the scene to raise as many questions as possible and provide no answers. The axe in the hands of one guard, as if they would have cut the chains. A dagger from the walls of the torture chamber in the hands of another.