Sianna and the Soulweaver

Chapter 6 - The Scarlet Hand

"Come now." He states, holding his hand out to gesture for me to enter the room. I gulp loudly and my palms are sweatier than ever, my heart racing a million miles a minute.

May God be with me.

••••••••

In truth, I am fully expecting a torture chamber when I enter through the mysterious door.

Instead, much to my shock and relief, I am greeted by a dilapidated yet tidy office space. I can even see a window, small but still a glorious sight after nothing but days of dank darkness. Although I have had no way of telling time while being here, I can definitely say it has felt like forever. I yearn for fresh air outside of this place; I hope I'll live to experience it.

There is a woman seated behind a massive wooden desk, the entirety of which seems to be carved straight from an ancient tree trunk. She honestly just looks like an average human, especially compared to her comrade with literal wolf fur covering his body. Her head is shaved bald and she has serrated scars across her cheeks and neck, her eyes a soft purple that do not seem particularly menacing. She is wearing a faded green tunic, the color of which reminds me of the wallpaper we passed on the way in.

"Sit down, please, Ms. Byrne. We have much to discuss." The woman waves her hand at the chair in front of her, also carved from wood with a makeshift back. It is when she does this gesture that I finally notice the scarlet tint to her left limb, much darker than my own and going from the tips of her fingers to the end of her wrist before being covered completely by the sleeve of her tunic.

"The wall. You touched the wall? How did you do that?" I think back to when the wolf-man discovered the red stain on my own right hand, how his fury seemed to shift to something else entirely...almost like he was in awe of the action.

"My name is Vianah. We had originally planned to volunteer you as magic feeder; that was before you survived selastium. You wouldn't know this, of course, but typically that would be a fatal mistake." Her voice is like honey but her words are not sweet; there is so much brewing in what she says that my brain cannot comprehend. I am stuck between wanting to ask what the hell she's talking about or just making a bolt for the window and hoping I can squeeze my ass through.

Instead, I manage to squeak out the quietest, "Fatal?" She nods her head once at this, the man exiting the moment she does without saying a word. Vianah keeps her attention on me while her eyes continue slyly examining my hand, giving me a tight smile.

"Alistar will show you what I mean." As if on cue the wolf-man she calls Alistar returns carrying a black cloth sack, untying the top and waiting for Vianah's nod before he dumps the contents right on the ground. I gasp and jump back, a horrified gasp escaping my lips as I stare wide-eyed at the floor.

Ashes. Bone. A dead person. Burned.

I cough as some ash billows up, covering my mouth with my hands and turning away from the sight. Vianah speaks, her tone of voice sincere but indifferent. "This was sweet Pia. Her death was unintentional; such a terrible shame." She tsks and stands from her desk, much taller than I originally realized. Her tunic is so long that it nearly goes down to the floor, the edges frayed significantly. "She was only fourteen years of age. We wanted to guide her and harness her powers, not harm her; she woke up and panicked before we could explain. Sprinted for the door and ran right into the selastium. I wish she had been able to heed our advice before reacting so impulsively." Vianah waves her hand just slightly and in an instant, the remains of poor Pia have vanished; they are securely back in the bag and in Alistar's hand before I can blink. He takes the sack with him and leaves us alone once more, every second feeling more similar to a fantastical nightmare than my actual reality.