Page 64 of The Awakening of Essensia

Smoke, but not woodsmoke. Something worse. Her stomach twisted.

Ignoring the panic that rose in her chest, she drew her sword and followed Erryn. A few houses down, an alley glowed faintly with orange light. Smoke clung to the walls, escaping through the strip of sky between the buildings.

“Keep watch,” Erryn ordered, hurrying towards the fire.

A metallic tang coated Vaelira’s tongue. She knew what was burning. Her stomach churned, but she held her post, her back to the alley. People began to gather but one look at her guard uniform and sword was enough to keep them back. For now, at least.

More guards arrived, golden pins glinting at their throats. Two passed Vaelira and three joined her at the mouth of the alley. None of them had drawn weapons, so she sheathed her own.

One guard stepped forward. “Move along!” he barked.

A few people scattered, but most lingered. They were outnumbered three to one. Vaelira imagined the crowd surging forward, and her heart hammered against her ribs.

The guard’s hand went to his sword. “Move or be removed by force!” That did it. The crowd turned. Some muttered as they drifted back down the street.

Vaelira exhaled slowly. She closed her eyes, waiting for her heartbeat to settle.

“First day?” said the guard beside her. He looked close to her age, maybe a few years older. A mop of blonde hair stuck out beneath his hood. Vaelira nodded and he raised his brows. “You held your own. Good work.”

Vaelira huffed. “I was only here a few minutes before you showed up.”

He shrugged. “Sometimes a few minutes is all it takes.”

Footsteps sounded behind them and Erryn returned with the others. “Hold position,” she told the guards. “I want to show the recruit what we’re dealing with.”

Vaelira followed Erryn through the alley. The fire had already burned down to a smouldering mass. She pulled her cloak over her nose, her eyes watering from more than just the smoke.

The body was small. A woman her size, or maybe a child. It was hard to tell.

Vaelira covered her mouth with a fist and gagged. Everything was a charred mess of flesh and bone. Shrunken black muscles stretched along the legs, mottled grey at the ankles. Only the tops of the feet remained mostly unburned.

It was there that she saw them. Thick, dark veins, stark against the skin. Vaelira’s breath turned shallow, sharp pain shooting through her ribs with each inhale. Was this how Jon had looked on the pyre she’d lit for him?

She looked away.

“What do you see?” Erryn asked, voice low.

“A young woman, maybe?”

“What else?”

Vaelira tried to breathe through the cloak. “Her feet.”

Erryn looked.

“There are veins there,” Vaelira said. “Black. I’ve seen them before.”

Erryn’s expression sharpened. She stepped closer and raised a finger to her lips. From her pocket, she withdrew a flat, circular plate of metal. Swirling patterns sank into its surface.

“Take a right out of the alley,” she whispered. “After the park, you’ll find the western noble gate. Show them this. They’ll let you through, no questions asked.” She placed the disc in Vaelira’s palm.

“I don’t understand,” Vaelira said.

“Go to Axel’s townhouse.”

Vaelira took a step back. “You know Axel?”

Erryn sighed. “Yes. Go. I’ll follow as soon as I can.”