The birth of darkness - Sharessa

[chaos667]

Chapter 1 Dead roots

Ches 149

She had been following the adventurers until dusk. It was easy to chase them without being noticed: she knew those places since she was born and they wouldn't notice her in the shadows of the jungle; not to mention that dwarf's smell of booze was so intense she could feel it from a hundred yards. It was a win-win game: they slained the feral beasts and lizardfolk that always prevented her potential explorations in the ruins beyond the jungle. She was sure that, this time: she would have found the answer she sought for so long.
But Lady Doom seemed ot have set her eyes on her that stormy night. The cruel thunderstorm, typical of the rain season, struck at the wrong moment, when a lightning hit a tree, making it fall on the path before her. Running, she thought she could still make it: it was sufficient to cut through the dark jungle for a short while and cross the bridge, arriving at the ruins from south.
Rain hammered her body, an impenetrable cascade of bullets on her face that made her even hard to see, while she kept running in the thunderstorm that brewed on the cold horizon promising nothing but more howling wind. No mystery she didn't hear their screams, covered by the caterwauling wind. When finaly the nameless girl arrived, it was already too late. A massacre was the only sight she could behold under the torrential rain that made their immobility even more evident. Save for one. Despite the uncontrolled spasms and death rattles he still lived. Without thinking twice about it, the young girl immediately ripped off a part of her cloak and used it on the open wound it had on the chest to try to keep him in this world enough, while putting a hand behind his head and shaking him almost violently to keep him conscious, craving for what she wanted.
“Who are you? Look at me! I need to know!” she yelled to the dying man.
His expression suddenly become surprised, widening his eyes as he looked her features “V—V---” she stuttered while chocking in his own blood, just before his eyes set to stare the endless emptiness of the afterlife.
She screamed in anger, throwing his head back in the mud, like gargabe, looking around once more at the utter silenced battlefield before leaving.
She slowly turned around, pulling over the poor hood of her tattered dress, following the trail of corpses down to Crow's Nest.
That night she wouldn't have any answers for dead men tell no tales.

[chaos667]

Chapter 2 – Envy

Kythorn 152

The young captain came down from the brigantine with safe step and the proud stance of a victorious leader, just returned from a war, or perhaps after having survived a deadly ambush. She laughed while putting her arm around her first mate's shouder, hugging him closer proudly, celebrating deeds that will be forever marked in thier memories.
The young girl was spying them from behind one of the woodden posts of the pier, with her head covered by a tattered dark green hood.
She stares at that exotic woman with admiration and craving. Long dark hair, soft skin, not too dark but enough to be slightly ambered, a delicate visage stolen right from the vision of a men's dreams, but, most of all, she liked her body language, her manners: the one of a commander, of a woman that can keep men in line and make them do her bidding.
They entered in Crow's Nest only tavern, accompanied by the fuss of celebration and the scent of low-quality booze. She followed in the shadows, always jumping from a dark area to an other, unseen, unnoticed, peeking from the small window the inside of the tavern. The captain was sitting on an adventurer's laps, holding a huge pitcher in her hand while something that seemed beer was waving inside it as she laughed and pushed her body against the man's strong and firm chest.
Her lips started to get close to his, merging in a soft kiss, while she started to stand and gently inviting him to join her in the rear after while holding his hand. Sneaky eyes followed them in the room as the events unfolded before her craving gaze, following every movement and every breath. The captain then stood from the bed and wore her white short and headed outside, while searching for her pipe. The night was calm and serene, the sky was like a velvet black blanket with the ever glow of the moon, mother of the sky that watched at her from the infinite highness of the universe. She was just about to put some dried herbs inside her pipe, when her gaze was lured by a dark figure that stood in front of her, staring at her with predatory eyes.
The captain blinked surprised “What the hell....?” her breath started to become accelerated as she searched for her rapier looking to that ugly face under the dark green hood, when a sudden pain pierced her throat like liquid fire swallowed in one sip, along with a dagger perfectly thrown at her by the dark figure. There were no screams that night, no noises. Just the utter silence of death. No one ever had any news anymore from Captain Aileen from that night.
The young girl stared at the mirror looking at her new appearence with a smirk on her face satisfied for her new look, one that could give her the key to open the doors to heaven.

[chaos667]

Chapter 3 - An unexpected visit

Ches 157

The girl was sitting on her poor woodden chair, contemplating the fire while putting some dried tobacco inside her pipe. Fire started to burn the small peices of leaves like the spreading light of dawn as the woman inhaled to further increase the effect. The scent of the smoke reached ther throat, while she closed her eyes for a brief moment to enjoy the moment.

“Still smoking low-quality tobacco?” a sudden voice interrupted her concentration. She starts to cough severely as the scent of smoke went too deep in her lungs.
“It's you...” Sharessa replied with a sharp tone narrowing her eyes to the dark figure smirking in the shadows. “Do you want me to have a heart attack?!” she then yelled.
“Oh, you know I'd never hurt you” the dark woman started to come forward, slowly reaching the backrest of the armchair where Sharessa was sitting. Her hands clenched the woman's shoulder while the woman kept starting at the fire, hearing its cracking as the ashen wood quietly popped inside the fireplace, giving the environment a sort of tranquil sensation.
“A tailor... seriously?” the dark figure raised one of her brows and kindly massaged Sharessa's left shoulder. She didn't answer immediately. Yes, it was wierd to think to herself as a respectable person, after all she did. “....I'm trying to change. To be something better” she finally replied turning her head around.
“Yes, I noticed” the dark woman said while looming over Sharessa and walking around the armchair to look her in the eyes “... even your name is different. How do they call you now?”
The other woman winced “Thalia” replied quickly.
“Ah yes.. Thalia the seamtress. A quite nice name I have to admit” she took one of the dirty glasses on the table and poured some booze in it, drinking it in only one sip “ahhhh.. but it's only a mask. One of the many you wore in your life. We both know it's not who you really are.”
Sharessa stood up suddenly from the armchair and pointed her finger at herself yelling “I'm trying to change! To be something better!”
“By dating this... Jared? Does he even know? Did you tell him? The dark woman taunted while Sharessa lowered her gaze in shame.
“Ohhh..” she smirked under the hood concealing her face. “You didn't tell him” she then took Sharessa's place over the armchair sipping that quite indecent rot-gut she had in her glass. The woman's silence continued undaunted fror the answer was obvious.
“Now, tell me, do you really think he can accept you for what you are?” the dark woman passed Sharessa the half-full glass. She hesitated at first, but then harshly took it and drank it all in one sip, swallowing the humiliation of that verbal confrontation in booze, as she did many other times.
“He's different. I think.. he loves me” Sharissa said with a thread of voice.
A laughter bursted. “You really amuse me, darling” the dark woman replied with great scarcasm, then changing expression, shifting from amused to almost aggressive “You don't even know what love is. We both know you don't feel anything! It's like asking a viper not to bite; of course it will, for it's his nature. And you are a feelingless murderer, darling”
Sharessa lowered her gaze again. Only that dark woman could really see her, only her knew every detail, every dirty secret, every things he always tried to hide from everyone. Then she added a few words that were as heavy as stones “Remember, Sharessa... or Thalia. Only I will ever truly love you. I've always been your dark angel, getting you out of trouble and warding you form this cruel world” she then stopped “Tell him” she put her hand over Sharessa's shoulder. “If he can't handle the truth, I'll take care of him. As I always did.”
She shook her head a bit. She didn't want to believe her: she didn't want to think for a second that kind man couldn't love all her facets. But the thought her dark friend would always watch over her was surely comforting, despite she told her all the things she didn't want to hear in that moment.
She just nodded her staring her in the eyes. They didn't need words to understand each. Not after so much time.