Tug and Ward

CHAPTER 7

Asifer

While the clamour of the people filled the synagogue, the headmistress was lying in her bed. Three ladies were tending on her. One of them was wiping off the blood-splattered in her skin. She was about to wipe the blood in her mouth when the clairvoyant abruptly opened her eyes.

The lady flinched as her eyes widened. "M-my L-lady," she squeaked.

The headmistress rose up from her bed. "Get out," she ordered and the three ladies immediately curtsied before leaving her chamber.

She stood up from her bed and walked towards the wall. It was filled with ancient carvings but she recognized the slightly embossed part in it. She pushed it and it moved backwards leaving a tiny square-shaped hollow space in the wall. As soon as it did, a door beside her bed swung open.

She walked towards it and entered. She grabbed the torch from its sconce in the left wall before completely shutting the door behind her. Darkness devoured the whole place. The only light was the torch in her hand. The space was narrow as it was only as wide as the length of two arms combined. As she walked forward, the staircase going down became clearer in her sight.

The headmistress paved her way down the spiral stairs. It seemed infinite at first but when she spotted the boulders of rocks, she knew the steps were about to end. As she stepped in a flat surface, she heard squeaks causing her to sway the flame around. When she heard no more, she continued walking.

Amidst the blackness, a vague white light came into her view. It was shimmering alone in the darkness. As she walked closer, the light became clearer and clearer until it was no longer just a light but a figure of a person - a lady. Her eyes were shut close and her hands and feet were bound in iron shackles. Her hands were shackled upwards while her feet were shackled with a big round stone downwards preventing her to move even the slightest.

"Ah, Luna," the headmistress spoke.

Luna gasped as she opened her eyes. She saw the mistress across her. It was dark. She cannot make her image in the dark as she was black-skinned, but the flame from the torch let her see her white tunic along with its stunning garnet colour of blood. The mistress was standing in the elevated ground while she was below. There was filthy liquid in the distance between them and the rats were running all around the place. Some of them crossed her arms and she flinched.

"The moon had not even struck thy skin and yet thou art shimmering," she remarked. "What did thou see this time?" she asked and flinched of the pain from her cheeks and tongue which she had bitten to cause blood coughing while performing the orare.

Luna glared at her yet did not notice the mistress' pained expression due to the dark. "You need not bind me like this. I would not leave my chamber as it had always been every orare," she said.

The mistress chuckled. "O, won't thou?"

"Certainly, My Lady," Luna responded.

"Even if the prince ordered thou not to do so?"

"I did not agree with him."

"So, he did order it."

"Yes, but I know better not to follow and protect our kind."

The headmistress raised her brow and laughed. "Did thou think I'll believe those lies?"

"I am telling the truth. I refused to follow him!" Luna insisted.

"Of course, thou did," the headmistress said. "Albeit, thou would still have left thy chambers for thou cannot bear to worry that he might be sent far from thee again if thou did not save him from the orare. Am I wrong?"