16 All Things Amiss

The rain was a deafening clamor against the glass windows.

Alyssane wiped the trickle of blood from her nose and stepped down from her bed. Her body was too heavy to move, and she nearly dragged it across the room before her steps slowed down in front of the mirror.

Her gaze flickered with confusion.

The shade of her eyes was now a deep mystical grey, so out of place, she felt like another person. For a long moment, Alyssane could not breathe.

'What is wrong with them?'

She was brought out of her thoughts when an abrupt faint scream echoed through the thunderous rain. The sound seemed to have come from the second floor.

With an uneasy heart, Alyssane stepped out of the room.

No one stopped her this time, and she carefully passed the stationed knights, descending to the lower floors. The air was thick with tension, so many knights seemed pale, their expressions set into hard lines, and their eyes either lowered, averted, or distant.

Thud!

Alyssane froze.

Thud!

Thud!

She glanced towards the ceiling wondering if someone was being punished, or perhaps tortured. She was not sure. 

'They seemed too disturbed for this.'

Luke found her there soon after, his face grim when their eyes met. But he said nothing and gestured for her to follow him.

Hesitantly, Alyssane complied.

Luke led her to a secluded study, far from the main areas of the tavern. The room was dark, with a distinct scent of old books and pages.

Alyssane watches Luke as he lights up a candle, "Has Lord Kazmun returned?"

His expression darkened and he refused to respond. 

She felt her nerves fall numb, 

As the lamps and candles were lit around the room, they illuminated a large makeshift study. A long table was in the center and stacks of neatly organized books and texts.

'...these must be the ones Kazmun wanted me to read,' Alyssane realized, her brows furrowing together, 'But why now?'

Her fate was on the line, so dark and uncertain. His vague words have left her with more questions than answers. How could she focus her mind on some books? Was there any choice?

"Do not leave your room so carelessly again," Luke finally spoke, his voice detached and cold, "Not for a few days, and not unless you're with a knight."

The words left Alyssane puzzled, "You speak as if I need to be protected from someone here."

"So?" he narrowed his eyes.

"But isn't everyone here a knight?"

Luke paused for a moment, but then he did not bother to explain anymore and walked outside the room.

"Just behave. I am right outside."

'Still so secretive about things that concern me,' Alyssane thought as she reluctantly picked the closest book and proceeded towards the desk.

'Still the same surveillance. What did you mean when you said you knew I was not the murderer, Kazmun?'

And if he was aware… how did he know? Moreover, why not just let her be free?

In the next few days, Alyssane spent all her hours in the study because there was nothing else to do. She found the texts depressing to read, they were primarily records regarding some of the most brutal times in history.

Deaths, famine, plagues.

Kazmun did not call her once in those five days. She barely heard him, and Luke would say nothing.

Meanwhile, Alyssane also tried to dwell deeper into her dreams, but they refused to appear. Her mind was empty while asleep, and lost when she woke up.

Despite the evasion of her dreams, some things seemed undeniably true.

One, she was blessed or cursed with a sight that could change her life forever.

Two, she could not control it but might be able to define her visions by thinking about someone or something before falling asleep.

Three, they somehow drained her spirit, leaving her extremely weary after waking up. Consciously trying to control the visions left her feeling worse.

On the sixth night, Alyssane was alone in the dining room when the faint scream returned. She forcibly stuffed the salad in her mouth. 

But the sound was becoming too much, causing her mind to reel back to Pearl Manor and her healing wounds throbbed with a newfound ache.

She dare not ask Luke about it.

He wouldn't answer.

And she was not sure she wanted to know.

She returned to her room as soon as she had finished the dinner. The noises still refused to cease, more prolonged this time, going on and on as the night grew darker.

She could not sleep in the end.

By the morning, the tormented cries had faded. But sometimes they would come back, pleading for hours and being denied all mercy.

Drowsy from the lack of sleep, Alyssane passed out soon after breakfast that morning. She felt as if she had a dream, but it was a fleeting vision, slipping out of her consciousness as easily as sand through fingers.

Her heavy eyes opened to hushed trembling whispers.

"Please… please… forgive me…"

With a bated breath, Alyssane slowly followed the sound. The whispers were relentless, spoken like a desperate prayer. She swallowed hard and looked under the bed.

There, hidden in the shadows, was a large man barely fitting the space, his eyes red and swollen, staring back at her with an intense, haunting gaze. His whispered pleas grew more desperate, sending shivers down her spine.

"Forgive… please... but I must kill..."