Silent As The Moon

Prologue

The glow of flames lit up the side of her face, making her cunning blue eyes orange in the firelight.

"Do it," she ordered. The man she was talking to grimaced.

"Is that-"

"Are you here to question my orders?" she demanded. He blinked, his eyes wide with panic.

"No, ma'am." Her gaze sharpened, and her eyes were like knives digging into his skin.

"I did not come to this position so that I could receive questions, did I?" He shook his head. "Then don't argue." She knew what he wanted to know. Why couldn't she do the job? "Because you need to prove your loyalty," she answered, and he shrunk back. Was his silent question so obvious? "K-"

"Don't-" She glared sharply at the girl in chains, who had opened her mouth.

"Don't what?" The girl held the woman's gaze, tears glistening in her large, round eyes.

"Why do you need to kill everyone? What did we do?" The woman laughed, a cold sound. The girl narrowed her eyes, bravely, dangerously. "What did we do?" she repeated.

"You think I'm here to kill you all? No. Just you. You're the only one who could stand against me." 

"There's the military," the girl argued. "They have guns and tanks. How could I be the threat? How could I stop you?"

"Is that what you think? That the military is your almighty force that will protect you all? Let me rephrase that; is that what you've heard?" She leaned in to touch noses with the girl, who was breathing heavily. "Well, don't believe everything you're taught."

The woman locked eyes with the man, who slowly nodded. She slipped a hand in her pocket. When it came out, her fingers were grasped around a long blue dagger. She handed it to the man.

She turned and stalked away, not looking back as the girl screamed in pain.

"She's not a problem anymore," the woman declared. Cheers rose into the air, the trees around them seeming to bend in celebration.

"You killed her?" a deep voice demanded. The people parted to leave a short man standing alone. His features were twisted in rage, and his dark eyes blazed like flames. "She was just a little girl-"

"She was thirteen, old enough to make her own decisions. And she chose to defy me, to defy us, to defy our cause. Am I not right?"

"You're wrong! You're a murderer!" the man spat, lifting his chin.

"So I am. Is that new to any of you?" the woman asked calmly, looking through her supporters. They had no choice but to listen, to obey her, to bow to her. They feared her, and it gave her strength, cunning.

"Murdering grown adults, grown adults that tried to stop us and kill us, is different from murdering an innocent girl- at first, this was defense! I would never have come here if I'd known it was meaningless deaths!" The man walked up to her, not intimidated by the least by her power and height.

He was not a killer, and he had never been.

"Since when did anyone think that I was trying to defend ourselves?" the woman inquired. "Never. Only you- but do you?"

"Are you implying that I'm a liar?" the man retorted angrily. "You murdering, selfish, idiotic killer?"

"You can call me what you'd like," the woman responded. "Our cause has always been for the same thing."

The man opened his mouth to speak, and she grabbed his chin, digging her long nails into his glowing dark skin.

"Are you defying me? Are you a worm- a worm in this magnificent business that I've made, ready to wriggle your way out and spill everything to the wondrous leaders? Are you?"

"Yes, I am defying you. But no, I am not a worm. I am-"

"I don't care who you are," the woman cut in, and the man screamed in pain as her nails drew blood. "I just care that you aren't a traitor. But you are." His brown eyes dulled, rolling up into his lids, the man went limp, and the woman took back her hands. The people were too scared to ask how she had killed him with only her nails. 

This was good. Fear meant loyalty, after all. 

"Good riddance. Is there anyone else who would like to tell me that I'm wrong?" she asked loudly, a sneer in her words. No one said a thing, and the silence held for minutes, until the woman finally spoke her orders.

"You two." She pointed at two women, each in ragged clothes. Their eyes were full of fury; they supported her, and would to the death. "Hide his body somewhere. Make sure that no one finds it." They nodded, shuffling up and lifting the man's still corpse from the dirt. The woman turned to the rest.

"Make sure that this place is hidden. The girl may have done something to make the entrance visible. And some others, get food from the city." The people parted, leaving only her and another man behind. She stepped toward him.

"What about the king?" he asked. His pale hair was short and messy. "What if-"

"The king can do nothing. Nor the queen. All the royals are cowards, and you know it. They won't lift a hand against us- not with us, but not against us, either." The man nodded.

"You're right." The woman kissed his cheek lightly.

"Of course I'm right. I always am." He smirked.

"If you say so."

She sent out orders, satisfied with how terrified everyone was of her, and walked to the staircase.

The stairs weren't pretty- they were more ladders than stairs, really, but there wasn't much to do. Her supporters would be questioned by enemies if they were to suddenly buy the amount of supplies needed. She held her head high as she walked past guards. She had worked hard for years, so that she could get enough money to sustain everyone under her control. And then she had faked her death, so that she could plot unnoticed. And although some people thought she was evil, she knew what she was doing was right. Someone had to do it eventually, so why not her?

She narrowed her eyes, arriving at an oak door. She glanced around to make sure there was no one there, and slipped a key out of her pocket, sliding it into the keyslot. The golden doorknob was rusted with blood. She placed a hand on it and turned, pulling it open and stepping in.