Within five heartbeats, Kealie had established several things. This shop was a hoard for Caster's, a supply store for ingredients and stones and leathers with a taphouse in the back. Everything was dark, normally lit with candles and cage fires.

A frozen chill ran down her spine as she looked over the black wooden frames and bones strewn about.

"Well, this is terrifying," Nixian voiced behind her, echoing her thoughts while running a hand over some long feathers. They were pinned to an odd statue of a foreign creature. "Who in their right mind would think this is a fitting decoration?"

"I don't know if wearing these will be a good disguise..." Kealie murmured, frowning. She grabbed the sleeve of a leather jacket and rubbed it through her fingers. "My mother hates Casters almost as much as she loathes the Nerydian's and it's not very inconspicuous."

"I don't see any other options," he sighed, looking around. "Do you want to speak with this Caster or not?"

Kealie felt sick to her stomach, eyeing the strange gowns and dark fabrics around them. In the very back corner, she saw a pale moon kissed gown that would fit snugly over her hips and down her midthigh.

If she were to take the jacket and a pair of tights, she'd manage to appear somewhat normal in a crowd.

Kealie grabbed the items one by one and tensed when she found Nixian watching her. He leaned against the counter, half-bored and looking away frequently at the terrifying masks the Caster's had lining the walls.

"Can you watch the door for a moment?" Kealie asked, looking down at the clothes and then back to him. "I'd rather not get caught unaware."

At first Nixian only chuckled and shook his head, but slowly he pushed off the counter and strode to the door.

Good.

Kealie was glad it didn't have to be a discussion.

She shucked off her old blouse and pants as quickly as possible, considering if her undergarments were worthy of salvaging. Luckily, her underwear were, despite the sand trapped in the waistband.

Giving them a few quick snaps and scooping a rock covered in seaweed from her bralette, Kealie layered the Caster's leathers onto her.

She didn't know how they managed to wear such tight clothing all the time, with little room to breathe.

The leather stuck to her arms like a second skin and the tights might as well have been.

"This is as good as it gets," she said, humming a strange note to the image in the mirror.

Kealie heard the footsteps gradually coming towards her.

Nixian gave her a critical once over, before locking onto the silver chain around her neck. "You should take that off, it's a give away."

"I can't..." she muttered.

Once again, his features twisted into confusion but he didn't question her.

Kealie stared at the reflection before her, eyes marking the dull blonde hair she'd cropped short to her jawline. Framing either side of her face were two long, thick braids woven through with thin green ribbon.

Once, as a young girl, she saw a Nerydian woman with a similar hairstyle. The woman's braids were only a couple inches longer than the rest of her hair though.

Kealie allowed them to grow past her chest, all the while keeping the short cut.

"We should get going," Kealie said, turning away from the mirror.

The thoughts running through her mind were becoming unruly and chaotic. She needed to know more, needed to understand.

Nixian nodded, keeping beside her as they aimed for the door.

The walls seemed to speak to them, echoing in quiet voices.

It wasn't until Kealie felt the oxygen leave her lungs in one swift shove that she understood the truth. Silhouettes were looming outside the shop, bickering with one another about the picked lock.

Two or three, she couldn't distinguish between the throbbing in her head and her own panting.

Nixian had flattened them, smashing their bodies behind the bar on the floor. Kealie felt the bile choking out her throat but he growled at her in warning.

"Stay quiet," Nixian hissed.

The door creaked open and ice flooded Kealie's frame. Her panting ceased, the bile shrinking away into some unknown place deep in her chest.

The footsteps echoed, scuffing over the silence in deep, confident sweeps.

"This place is wicked," one of the guardsmen said. His voice bounced off the empty wall beside them.

Another one laughed and Kealie knew there'd be no distinguishing how many men there were until it was too late.

The next man's accent was thick and deep. Uneasy to pick apart.

"You'll say a prayer to Charya then," he replied. "The Queen won't spare us when her girl's gone missing, toseir."

The word mimicked the Aphyre Pits, stealing more air from the room than there was to offer. Even the immortal flame ceased to crackle, often referred to as swallowing and ghostly, didn't create such a void in the air.

"You best get that word off your tongue, unless you want someone charged with doing it for you," the first man growled. "You're not in Solraidas anymore, remember that."

The warning made Kealie's stomach flip and she found her eyes sliding towards Nixian whose face was pensive and dark.

She'd never been taught the Fae tongues, but her mother made sure she knew their hideous intentions.

The sickness growing inside her had distracted her from noticing the small movements Nixian was making towards her until his lengthy, muscular frame was hovering over top of her own.

He tipped his head down and hid his mouth behind her ear. "When I say so," he whispered so quietly, his mouth barely moved. "You run."

Kealie swallowed uncomfortably, body tensing. Unable to think, she nodded.

She could do that.

She could run.

Eyeballing two different exits, she decided she would sooner chuck herself through the window than be caught and dragged back to the estate. Kealie knew nothing of the punishment waiting for her, knew she might not even survive it and came to a grave realization.

The second she came to Natansia, she could've signed her death warrant.

"You run and you don't stop. Do you understand?"

Nixian's breath tickled her skin slightly.

Kealie nodded again, bracing herself.

Time split in half when he launched himself into the air, throwing daggers in three different directions. He'd been able to mark the silhouettes, keeping track of their movements.

She felt more than saw the arm hooking beneath her waist as it hoisted her into the air and threw her.

Kealie focused on the door, on the window, through the glass. She had seconds.

"Run!" Nixian shouted.

So she did. With all of her might, Kealie threw her weight into her shoulder. She sent herself flying through the giant display window, somersaulting over the cobblestone pavement and launched herself upwards.

Sprinting as fast as her legs could carry her.

She gave everything she had.

Aiming straight for the Caster.

Word Count: 1,173                  Total Word Count: 8,882