Thorns

The Beginning of My End

Here is a tip from me to you.
Don't steal from the gods. If you happen to steal something from them I advise you not to get caught.

"Rose!! Let's go!!" A masculine voice frantically whispers. "Not yet Rome. Just shut up and give me a second!" I whisper scream in return. Bickering is common for us in high stress situations, this one being theft from a very powerful god.

I scramble to unscrew the box in front of me. It was a glass cube standing on an intricate gold pedestal. The gold was woven into swirls and flowers. It seemed a bit too pretty for a god of darkness. "Stupid Tenebris." I mutter. Tenebris was the god we were stealing from. He just so happened to be one of the most powerful too, ruling over darkness and all that. I hate stealing from high profile gods. Their security measures were ridiculous.

The bolts on the box weren't a problem. At least not for a professional like me. The enchantments around the object inside were a different story. It seems that underneath the cube are multiple protective spells that are woven around each other. Muttering random rants about security, I start to put my hands against the glass. Slowly, I start to draw in the magic. Being a Siphon was a plus in these situations. A slight blue purple glow was evident as the power started leaking into my hands. The stream of magic was barely moving towards me. It's taking forever! What was so important that this many spells had to be put around it? It just looked like a glass sphere to me, but I knew better than anyone that looks could be deceiving. Rome looks at me pleadingly. I know we are running out of time and letting my mind wander isn't helping. Closing my eyes, I focus on reeling all the magic in. I pull my arms away as it dwindles to nothing. Smiling to myself I move to lift the glass. My grin falters. Something's wrong.

"Rome," I call, "The enchantment returns when I stop siphoning it." He  frowns and replies after a moment of thought. "Then I'll grab it while you are siphoning." I shake my head. "It's not that simple. When the artifact is gone the barriers will reinforce as soon as I let go. Even without stealing the artifact there will be only a few minutes before the alarm is set off.." I pause to take in a shaky breath. "I don't think we can escape. I've never seen anything like this." Rome looks at me with his pretty green eyes. I take this moment to take him all in. He has always towered over me. Rome was massive and filled out with muscle. His tussled crimson hair reminded me of a fox's tail. I smile. He hates that comparison. Rome stares straight into my eyes as if he knows what I'm thinking of doing.

In one sweeping motion I lift the box up and throw him the glass ball. I then focus on giving him time. Perspiration begins to form above my brow as I suck up the protective spell. "Run Rome!!" I yell, knowing that he hadn't moved from where he caught the artifact. "I won't leave you Jasmine! The gods will track our past crimes to you! They. Will. Kill. You." Rome's desperation shows in his voice.I grunt from the exertion and smile. "Well I guess you'll have to save me fast. Now go!" There is no reply and I curse under my breath. He's so stubborn.

Soon I hear Rome's feet hit the marble floor as he runs. Relief floods over me. All I have to do now is hope that my strength will hold and give him enough time to escape. My arms start to shake and my vision clouds. This is too much for me. My head starts to pound. Whimpering in pain, I try to think of the positives of my situation. Rome will be out. The sphere has been obtained. This doesn't help me deal with the fact that I'm going to die. When I'm presented to the courts in Utopia, Tenebris is going to tell the gods to kill me. Maybe he will be merciful and let me serve as a slave for the rest of my life. That seems very unlikely. Tenebris will want his possession back and I'm the only one who knows where it's going. I know what that means for me. Torture and questioning. What fun.

Black spots begin to dance in front of my eyes. This is not good. At least I'll die before the court gets to me. Yeah, that's a plus. Rome would have escaped by now. I can stop. My arms give out and I fall back. It should have hurt, but I was numb. The only thing that bothered me was my inability to take in enough oxygen.

My thoughts wander to an old wound. Mother. I miss her so much. If only she could see me now, broken and alone, just like her. A figure is produced from the shadows. My vision is blurred and I can only make out a relative shape. My mother has come to take me away. Using my final breath, I speak a whisper. "Sorry mom. I didn't mean to end up this way." And with that I let the darkness overtake me.