The Last Beacon

XXIX

Sascha didn't recall going back to sleep.

However, when she awoke to the sound of voices, light was once again streaming through the prison.

She sat up, her back stiff from sleeping on the concrete floor. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes, stifling a yawn. Her thoughts drifted back to the night before, recalling her conversation with Decius. She almost thought it had been a dream, but she somehow knew deep down that it was real.

She looked around for a moment, brushing her hair out of her face with her fingertips as she searched for the source of the voices.

She looked across the hall to see the two officers that had arrested her yesterday; they were speaking with Sepitus, and they seemed to be impatient with the man's behaviour.

"Your son is on his way," one stated, his tone flat, before marching back out of sight.

"We'll be rid of you before noon," the other officer said, and Sascha could tell that this was the aggressive one of the two, "although, I don't even know why we bother to let you out, because I'd bet my hat you'll be back in here soon enough."

Sepitus spat on the ground through the bars, just missing the officer's shoe.

In a split second, the officer gripped Sepitus's shirt through the bars and yanked him forward, mashing his cheek against the metal bars.

"I swear if you show me any disrespect again, I'll make sure you won't get out of here again," the officer snarled, before he paused and continued, "although, I do like the idea of letting you out and seeing you swing."

Sascha's eyes widened in immediate shock. She knew that he meant that he wanted to see Sepitus hanged.

What a nasty man, she thought to herself, glaring holes into the back of the officer's head.

"Just get me my son," Sepitus growled, and Sascha could tell he knew the officer wasn't joking.

The officer scoffed and pushed him, watching him stumble and fall back to the concrete floor of his cell. The cruel man in the uniform then stormed off, away from the cells.

"Are you okay?" Sascha found herself asking, gently grasping the bars, watching Sepitus carefully.

Sepitus sat up with a groan. "I'm alright, darling. That rotten man has just got it in for me. I'll only be in this damn city for another few days and then I'll be gone for good."

"Going to cause mischief elsewhere?" Sascha asked jokingly.

"Precisely," he grinned.

They were both silent for a moment, before he spoke again.

"So," he continued, "I overheard them this morning. They're letting you out today. Probably when I go."

As if on cue, Sascha heard the door open at the front entrance. In a moment, a man she could not yet see spoke.

"I'm here for my father."

Sascha's eyes widened and her jaw almost dropped. His voice was incredibly familiar, but she hardly wanted to believe what she was hearing.

She leapt to her feet, clutching the bars. Her hair fell in front of her face, slightly concealing her features.

When he started to approach, she could not see his face. He wore a full black outfit, one that Sascha would associate with an assassin. She was immediately taken aback by this, but intrigued nonetheless. The outfit itself was form fitting and covered his whole body, and it looked like it was genuine armour of some sort, with different indentations in it to form intricate patterns. There was a symbol indented into the centre of the chest plate, one that Sascha almost recognised, but could not pinpoint where it was from. He also wore a hood with an extra piece of fabric that covered his nose and mouth, so she could not see his face.