The Last Stand of Blackstone Keep

Prologue

Invictus Imperium Fortress

Fear was the emotion that pumped through Relina Thiston's body as she contemplated the actions she was about to take. Relina was not one to often question her choices until it was too late. Now, Relina found that she was questioning her whole life. At only 17 years old she became a truly skilled assassin. This was not a typical skill for a Breton to learn, a noble Breton at that. Young ladies from noble Breton families were taught the typical skills, like having good manners, entertaining guests, how to be a mother, and more importantly how to communicate and negotiate with other nobles. However, how else was she going to survive on her own after fleeing from slave traders?

However, her choice to learn skills in stealth and killing while being undetected were not the choices Relina was contemplating. No, she was contemplating what she thought was her most stupid choice yet...Joining an evil order of vampires and werewolves. Relina did not know why she sought out Invictus Imperium. An evil order of vampires and werewolves, who killed without a second thought, did not seem to line up with her morals and ethics, but for some reason, she found herself here. Perhaps it was her longing to be part of something. After all, she had not seen her family since she was fourteen. Perhaps it was to strengthen her skills as a killer in the shadows? Regardless of the reason, the reality soon became clear that everything the order told her was a lie. The so-called "Honored Siblings" truly had no real honor and had no claim to The Ruby Thorne whatsoever. The only thing they were, as far as Relina was concerned, were power-hungry, faulty usurpers, who used fear and control to keep people in line. Regardless of her reason for joining, all Relina knew was that she had to get out and she needed to get out that night.

It was always said in the order that if one were to ever leave, then they would be found and killed. It was this that perhaps terrified Relina the most. She knew Invictus Imperium had its group of very skilled, and very cutthroat assassins. If she was going to escape, she knew she was going to have to be smarter, quicker, and more stealth-like than ever before. She knew she needed to get a head start on running, and the only way for her to do that was if she slipped out into the shadows when she could guarantee few people would be watching what she was doing. She of course knew she would have to keep an eye out for the guards that roamed the halls at night, but Relina was quite confident in her abilities to walk through shadows. To her the easiest part of this mission was going to be getting to the front door, the hard part was going to be once she got outside the front door, and past the gates of the order.

As Relina looked out the window, carefully examining the night sky to make sure it was dark enough for her to make her exit, a hint of doubt spread within her. She thought about her friend Rydan, who had made his escape several months prior. She remembered hearing whispers within the order that the skilled assassins of the great House Mepheadis had found Rydan and killed him, however, there was no dead body presented at High Court. Relina surely thought that the murdered body of someone whom the order branded a traitor would have been shown to everyone in the order. If not to celebrate the order coming out on top, but to at least show those who were considering leaving the order what happens when one does leave the order and gets caught. Relina never believed Rydan was dead. Even now as she prepared to risk her life to leave the very place that gave her a home, she had a gut feeling that her only faithful friend was still alive.

Relina shook the thoughts of the past from her head. Now was not the time to think about the past. She had a mission to complete, and she was going to complete it...even if it killed her. She kept examining the pure black sky, looking for just the right moment to make her escape. She let out a deep sigh, almost as if she were telling herself "It's now or never." She did not have much to bring with her. All she needed was some food, a pack of water, her bow, and arrows, and of course her trusty daggers. Relina looked at the beautiful pieces of metal. The blades were as black as the night sky, with blood-red handles. Relina always loved to admire the work that Rydan had put into crafting these daggers for her. Relina quickly put her daggers back in their hilts and attached them to either side of her belt. She knew that if she were caught, she would need easy access to her weapons. She did not feel good about having to take the lives of people she had come to call friends, but if it was between her life and theirs, well she was going to choose her life every time. As she looked around glancing back at her room one last time, preparing to leave, she was stopped in her tracks by a faint whimpering sound.