Guardians: Dark Stars

Chapter 4: Two Broken Souls

On quiet days, when the forest hum carried through the warm breeze like a soft lullaby, she almost seemed ordinary. Caitlin was stitching one of their torn shirts. The room was humid and dark but the slight wind whistling in through the narrowly cracked window kept the heat tolerable. She mindlessly tugged at the needle and string because her attention was primarily focused on the still form laid on top of one of two beds.

Every now and again, a small whimper escaped red, trembling lips on a sweat covered, pale, complexion facing towards her. If she had been awake, and when she awoke, Caitlin knew the thief would never allow her sorrows out of whatever deep, shadowy pit she locked them in. That was the thing about sleep. Even a less seasoned orphan such as Caitlin herself understood the horrors that awaited past closed eyelids.

From the Coulter Mansion, the two woman had traveled westward to the furthest edge in Bloomwae. The thief guardedly told Caitlin that they were going to deliver the artifact to a merchant named Cain Moore. He was stationed in Incipiens City: the most popular trading center in all of Kosmos. Incipiens was on the frontier of Kosmosian conquest, the last city lining the western boarder before entering the Savage Lands. It was where the trading routes were born and where they ended.

The journey took them around two weeks. She, as in the thief, didn't want to risk being spotted by patrols of the King's Guard or the Militia so she navigated them through the treacherous Nox Forest. Just as Incipiens was the birthplace of trading, Nox was considered the core of all evil in Kosmos. Bandits, monsters, man-eating beasts, mythical ghouls, and wicked demons all emerged from the forest as if being raised from hell. Though they were attacked during their marathon, it was nothing she couldn't handle. The thief preferred the darkness of Nox over the corrupt soldiers patrolling the King's jet black roads.

They escaped the bony fingers of Nox just a few miles out from Incipiens' main gates. The city lay in a tremendous crater surrounded by high stone walls. Four watch towers were posted on the wall to further protection. The thief used her skills and charms to smuggle them inside without being noticed by the security guards who, most likely, had ordinances against them. It had been hard finding a place to lay low in due to the end-of-the-year buzz crowding the city. Caitlin was the one lucky enough to run into an old family friend: Odessa Cascella who helped run her father's inn.

Another silent cry awoke Caitlin from her day dreams. The thief was in the midst of tossing and turning, desperate to run from her nightmares. Somewhere in her heart, Caitlin felt sorry for the young woman before her. She had been traveling with the thief for months now which naturally meant she had been able to learn a few things about the secretive older woman. Strong, terrifying, adamant, stubborn and, at many times, reckless-the rumours spread about the thief were surprisingly accurate. Then, there were the details the rumours didn't notice: like how the thief was a near insomniac. Some would assume her paleness to be a tribute to some hidden disease but, no. The thief appeared sickly because she hated sleep. In fact, the thief avoided sleep for long periods of time. It was only when sheer will power failed her that the thief was able to rest far from peacefully.

Caitlin could see it in her eyes, she was deeply afraid of the nightmares that haunted her. Sure, she could try and play them off, try to ignore the worst of them, but they always caught her when her own chestnut-brown eyes failed her. That wasn't all. Caitlin could also spot the lack of trust. The thief barely trusted Caitlin at times, much less anyone else they happened to come across. The whole of the matter seemed like a very lonely soul. She doubted the thief had ever felt anything akin to happiness-not even her brief second with Avery Davis had stalled the skeletons that plagued her.

Elsewhere, perhaps in her wits, Caitlin warned herself she shouldn't care too much for the thief. Like she stipulated, the thief didn't even trust her. It would only be a matter of time before the thief abandoned her in the wind. Either way, Caitlin absolutely hated the thief and everything she represented. A lifetime could pass and Caitlin was sure she would still hate "The Smiling Ghosts" for what they did to her home village. Granted, the thief hadn't been present for that raid but it didn't change who the thief had chosen to become.