Beasts and Blades [ON HIATUS]

Chapter 1 - The Scorpion

Ten years later

            Maja waited in the mouth of the cave, with the company of nothing but the moon and the night. She hugged her arms and rubbed them up and down, cursing the cold and her lack of a cloak. She arrived at dusk, but the night had already overtaken the desert in a frigid embrace. She stared up at the infinite sky, painted with stars that winked down at her in thousands - billions, perhaps.

She had only been waiting for roughly an hour, but her patience was already waning.

She passed the time by taking stones and hurling them at the target she scratched on to the wall opposite of her, hoping the noise would finally draw out the creature she was waiting for, and to ease her own boredom as well. Perhaps she should have brought a book or her sketchpad, anything to spare her from the monotony of waiting.

Maja was sitting in the cave of a giant red scorpion. She had been watching its home for close to a month, making sure it didn't leave to find a new lair, as well as taking time to observe its hunting patterns and habits, arming herself with knowledge - a vital part of any arsenal.

And she wouldn't bother with any of this of she didn't need the scorpion for the Venom Rite. A stupid coming of age ritual among the troupe of assassins she found refuge with several years ago.

She hadn't wanted to do this ritual, not because of the danger or risk or utter irrationality of entering such a creature's territory and dueling it, it was because she was embarrassed. Some members of the troupe were not even as old as thirteen, and had already passed it, proudly donning the scorpion tattoo that made it known that they had. Meanwhile she was already nearing eighteen, and here she was.

The Venom Rite was meant to evaluate an assassin's skill, intellect and strength. And to put their skills to the test, they must tame a red scorpion, deadly creatures who were once thought to be the first assassins of the desert. Quiet killers as red as blood. It would be assassin versus assassin. And Maja couldn't think of anything more dangerous and thrilling.

But if she didn't bring it back with it saddled and her riding it she may as well abandon the troupe altogether to save her the humiliation of failing. Unless she was already dead.

And she was to do this with no outside help, no weapons - just herself and her wit, and if she were blessed, a god watching over her. But Maja had a distinct feeling that no god would be there to see to her aid tonight.

Growing tired of tossing stones, she fidgeted with the length of rope coiled around her forearm.

She went through her plan again for possibly the hundredth time that night, and then walked through the all the backup plans.

But to sum up every single on of them was don't die, pass this damn Rite and go the hell home. But she would only meet that reality if the scorpion was finished playing hide and seek.