Awake

Chapter One: Do It Yourself

[AUTHOR'S NOTE: This story is part of the "epic" I've been working on for 3 years. Originally, it was going to be a dramedy-a dramatic comedy. You will see so in these earlier chapters, but I have been slowly reworking later chunks into something more serious. However, I will still post these early sections without much edit. I can't really set a schedule of how often I will post, especially the later works, as I am still reworking those.

You will see this story focuses on a new "main character" than my previous stories here on Wattpad, but you will also see how it is still connected ;) ... Yes, Aphid and Kor are still present. And yes, I am still finishing the last chapters of "Escape from Grelod", I just wanted to go ahead and start posting some of this story to show I'm still alive...ish.]

Chapter One: Do It Yourself

Tressa dragged her feet through the sloshy snow of Dawnstar's inner street, having just arrived back by cart from a supply trip for The Sanctuary.

Her attire wasn't much use for this cold, even if it did cover every inch of her person.
From the top of her head, to the soles of her feet, every bit of her was hidden from identity.

Aside from the assumptions of her feminine form, nothing else but her short stature stood to tell her tale.
...If one wasn't very astutely observant...

Quite honestly, her attire itself was a little bit more than telling of her occupation.

An outfit screaming "I kill people in the dead of night" or maybe even "I kill people in broad daylight"...

Her body was shrouded in black cloth from neck to foot, but strategic areas were protected with vibrant red armored leather. The crimson armor wrapped around her chest and abdomen, encased her wrists and forearms, and covered her upper back, as well as pads upon her hips and thighs. Her shins and ankles were also shielded with this red leather. A red shawl-like hood enveloped her head and shoulders, leaving only her face obscured by a mysterious mask. Upon closer inspection, the mask revealed itself to be a stitched together concoction of two leather pieces, secured by dark fire goggles that seemed impenetrable, leaving one to wonder how she could see the world outside, for one certainly couldn't see in.

For someone so hidden, it all practically screamed, "KEEP AN EYE ON ME!"

Maybe, perhaps, she was just a person who loved red and black...
And shrouding every inch of body...

To the folks of Dawnstar, however, they knew her as a savior from their nightmares.
And so, they turned a blind eye to whatever her shroud screamed otherwise.

The few that did toss glances her way, only did so to the humor of her muffled expletives.

She loudly grumbled beneath her mask, at the piercing cold, annoyed with being tasked with the job that she had been.

Which wasn't anything but her fault, as she had volunteered herself for it.

She had wanted some fresh air and something to do, since Mother hadn't given her a task for a week now.
Nazir was being stingy lately with giving the initiates all the low priority contracts.

He had been promising he'd give her a high contract if they got one, but they haven't gotten one...

It wasn't concerning.

There were still slumps in their call to duty sometimes, as they were still rebuilding their reputation in the undermarket, but Tressa was going to pout about it regardless.