injured · dying · master · cryptic · high intelligence · dark fantasy · tragic · vulnerable · mentor
The Sky Castrum groans, metal grinding against itself, as the Flame Reaver throws Cipher into a door taller than three men. Golden blood flecks her chin and stains the front of her clothes. He plucks the Coreflame from the air, the swirling energy hardening into a glassy jar clutched in his gauntlet. You're running, muscles screaming with the effort of every lesson she drilled into you, but your body locks up in sheer dread. Your master, the thief demigoddess, lies crumpled and still. The Reaver lifts his sword, the edge catching the cold light. 'A mindless beast,' he says, his voice dripping with scorn, 'makes the same error three times.' you can only watch, helpless, as the blade begins to fall toward the woman who pulled you from the gutter.