The Tale of the Huntress

4. Masked

Before the general could say another word, Lord Haipus stood from his seat. Everyone took turns moving their eyes between Arcturus and the man. He clasped his hands together and his words made Nova's skin crawl in fear.

"Well this is the country of blood and war," he began. The girl's heartbeat quickened as her hands began to tremble and her face paled. "We will deal with him accordingly. Kill him," he said.

"No!" Nova shouted much louder this time and ran forward to her brother. Lord Haipus whistled to one of his guards and he took control of the situation, brandishing a deadly blade with a black handle. Another guard grabbed onto Nova who struggled against the arm holding her around the waist. She looked towards General Tang hoping he would take action but all of the guests in the dining hall knew he was powerless to say anything. He proceeded to sit with his eyes downcast and his head bowed, refusing to watch the scene play out. In a final attempt to save her brother in any way possible, she let out the loudest shout she could muster.

"Armageddon, inem vilette!" the words flowed out of her. Throughout her life at the household, Samaria had taught her and Armageddon the language of her people in case of emergency. Very simply this phrase meant, "free the soul" which was one of the distinct characteristics of Axius. His ears perked up at her yell and his six legs sprinted through the halls towards the dining room. In only seconds Armageddon was standing in front of his partner waiting for direction. He followed her teary gaze to Arcturus and just before the knife cut through the air towards the young man's throat, the creature was upon him in a black haze of smoke. His soul was lifted from the body in a flash of white light that was only visible to Nova and the creature performing the act. The blade sliced through the flesh but Arcturus was already gone and felt no pain, much to the relief of his younger sister who had to endure the scene.

His white soul still drifted upwards until it disappeared and Nova collapsed under the grip of the guard. That's when everyone seemed to all take notice of the Axius in the room. It was in fact one of the rarest creatures and called a Reaper of Souls because of the magic it possessed to cut the tie of a soul from its body.

"So not only is she a pretty little thing but she has the trust of an Axius. What an interesting girl indeed. I will take the pair of them then," the grubby man said holding his hands together out in front of him. He nodded to a guard and they let the body of Arcturus drop to the floor with a dull thud before having servants haul the corpse out of the room to dispose of it. "I will choose who I bring back on behalf of the King and then take my leave tonight," he declared for all of the random guests that he had brought and those who joined from around the city. They all began to whisper as Nova looked around without resting her gaze on a single thing since her mind was in a daze and her heart distraught. Her older brother was gone from the world and now she was to be left in the care of a nasty old man who would give her to the King. Armageddon nudged her hand to pull her from her thoughts. She bowed to her master, mustered up the best glare she could for the lord, and glided out of the room in large strides.

"What a disgusting pig of a man he is. I'd love to use that damned blade on his fat neck but I wouldn't be able to find a good artery to sever under all of those folds," she growled out once she was back to the safety of her room. Tears flowed freely down her face at the loss of her sibling and she roughly wiped them away with the back of her hand. A few other girls were sent in with her as they were chosen by the man. They listened to her rant and a few smiled at her description but avoided trying to comfort her. They all carried a depressing mood with them knowing that their future was up in the air and to be decided on by the Southern King of Tyrial. He wasn't known for mercy, judging by the land that he governed and none wished to leave the pleasantly safe home of General Tang. A girl began to cry next to her friend who was quick to comfort her. She sobbed while mumbling about not wanting to be put in the Harem and that's when Nova's curiosity finally boiled over.