Chương 49: Minx

The attack on Minx is a catalyst. I've never seen the higher ups of the Enclave come together so fast. Their usual rivalries aren't as noticeable, and they practically jump into action to figure stuff out. Of course, that could just be perception because I almost consider Minx a friend. Or the vessel portion. Or something. Aarron arranges us all into work groups. Mithris, Larshell, and Lareny are to work together to see if they can figure out just where the attack originated.

Dougrant, Deshan, and Sevrin are going to interrogate every single person in the keep. Perhaps not quite to torture levels, but people will be questioned. Myself included. Lennick and I are to see if we can bring Minx out of her comatose state so she can tell us what happened. Once we've vetted certain people, we'll need to set round-the-clock guards to make sure someone doesn't try to finish the job off. Logically, that's what any good assassin would do. And all of us here are good at our jobs.

In fact, I can't help but think how sloppy this all is considering the perpetrator has to be an assassin. I wonder if they really are still in the keep, a part of our own little family of death. I don't like those implications. I find myself not wanting it to be anyone I know. Even if I don't consider them on the same level of friendship as Xan and Minx, I do consider them colleagues. I'd hate to have to kill one of them. Minx is pale against the cream sheets of the infirmary bed.

I've rarely been in this room myself. Lennick only keeps people in here who can't necessarily be treated in their own rooms. People who need to be watched. Observed. Whether it's for their own good or for ours. Her breathing is shallow and despite dealing with air, there's nothing I can do there. For now, I need to be grateful she's breathing at all. There's a bruise running down her entire left side. No breaks to the damage. It's reds and purples, blending into deep blacks in the center.

It runs all the way up her side from her toes to her head. The sheer scope of it lights anger inside me. I clench my fists, wishing I had someone to punch. Or to poison. This is wrong, and it cuts off one of the only avenues I have to figure all the shit going on around me out. Some of my anger is directed at the fact that a source of information has been cut off from me. Another part worries that this perhaps happened because of me.

While I'm used to being the cause of death, that's usually because I'm being paid, commanded, or else defending myself. If the vessel gave me too much information, or if someone found out about the information it gave me, then it stands to reason that they'd target the source of that information. Especially since Minx is arguably the least robust of all of us. I watch as her chest rises and falls with each shallow breath. A sheen of sweat encases her brow, and I never once realized how tiny she is.

Most people are shorter than me, but most of them in the Enclave at least have the same physique as I do. Minx, on the other hand, is lithe, tiny, and flexible. It makes me feel protective. Like an older sibling. Who the hell could have known that she fed me information? It stands to reason that there are people around us who can utilize magic. I mean, it's not out of the realm of possibilities.

Aarron has certainly done enough sketchy, magic-like things that I suspect he definitely has his own agenda and his own access to powers. Ones that he hides for whatever reason. That places Aarron, despite his exhibited outrage, directly on my suspect list. Perhaps his outrage is actually directed at not finishing the job. Or even at the fact that people noticed so soon. There's a plethora of reasons he could be angry, and it's easy enough to mask the reason for anger if not the mood itself.

Other possibilities include Xan, because I've been telling them everything. Lennick too, and since Lennick knows so much, then Lareny is also on the list. Only the odds of it being any of those three are minuscule. They're the family I've chosen in this mountain home. Mithris, while I am glad to know him and starting to grow fonder of him than I'd like to admit, is still a partial enigma. I definitely do not trust him. Does his hidden agenda mean Minx got in the way?

Because I know he has one, it's on my list of things to figure out. What if this has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that Minx is a vessel and has been feeding me information about the state of affairs? Maybe it has nothing to do with her warning me. Could it have to do with jealousy? Has Minx been given some sort of accolade by Aarron? I dismiss that out of hand because I know for a fact Aarron is often irritated by Minx. Does he know what Minx is? Perhaps about her seer blood?

Did he know about her like he knew about me? And entice her into the order too? No, that can't be it. She annoys him far too much for that to be the case. Farin. She's never shared well in all the years I've known her, and recently Minx has become, well, closer with me. Edging into that almost more than an acquaintance category. I tolerate her presence a lot better than most people. Minx and Keliar aren't the worst people I could have had in my intake group. But then I look at the wounds on Minx again.

This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. The bruising. It had to take a massive force to inflict damage like that. And as vindictive as I think Farin can be, she doesn't have the brute-force strength herself to accomplish something like that. There are so many people in the Enclave that might have had a chance. There's four years' worth of intakes below us, not to mention those Initiates of the past two years behind our graduation.

Then there's all of the other Initiates, Journeymen, and Adepts that frequent this Enclave. Not to mention those who pass through on a visit or mission, assignment, or communication. We don't entertain vendors here, so that's not an option. I lean forward, putting my head in my hands. All this thinking is making my brain hurt.

"How are you holding up?" Xan's voice soothes me, and I want more than anything to just lean against them and let them take care of me like they did back in the forest. To just not have to think or deal for one day seems like bliss. The thought is so unlike me, it pulls me out of my slump. I look up at them. Their dark blond hair is loose today, falling in waves around their face to frame it. Something in the lighting brings out a tinge of green in their usually brown eyes, softening the color for a moment.

So familiar, and yet, right now with the seriousness they're displaying, so not their usual self. For just a second, it gives me pause. Then I wave it away. I've got to get rid of this paranoia. Especially when it comes to the people who've proven themselves to me time and time again. These people who surround me, protect me, and take care of me when I'm least able to do so myself. That earns them something of mine. Trust. Admiration. I sigh.

"I'm holding up. As well as can be expected." They crouch down, leaning on the edge of the bed as they do.

"No sign of waking up yet? Any hints as to who might have been behind this?" I shake my head.

"Nothing that I can find yet. No hints, no clues. I've been over the spot where she was attacked so many times, but the elements are confused and furious. It's never a good combination for them when that happens."

"Scuff marks? Hair? Hell…any blood? Minx isn't weak; surely, she fought back." I raise an eyebrow at them.

"If they got the jump on her enough to cause this damage, I doubt any fighting back would have been possible."

"Truth." Xan seems pained and reaches over awkwardly to drag a second chair so they can sit more comfortably at the bedside too. For several moments there is this companionable silence. It's not something I've experienced often. A part of me thinks it makes me weaker to experience life moments like this. But there's another part of me that revels in this human connection. That part is distant and rarely avails itself of me. But when it does, it mellows out and just feels right.

The gods know that's been a rare enough occurrence in my life. It reminds me of the life I had before too. Cements my need to make whoever killed my parents pay. To destroy them the way they destroyed what my life could have been.

"It's a pity you haven't had more chances to talk with…her." I know what Xan means. They're referring to the vessel conversations. And I get it, because they're right.

"That could even be why this happened," I say the latter softly, like I don't want to hear it myself. Xan glances at me and pats me gently on the forearm.

"It's only as likely as all the other possibilities. Don't let it get to you." I like that they don't try to completely downplay it. Knowing that it's only as likely as all the other reasons is oddly comforting.

"I know. It's nice to hear, though." We sit there for another few minutes while we watch Minx's chest rise and fall in a constant, shallow rhythm. Then Xan sighs and pushes themselves back up to standing.

"Sorry, I don't have much time today. We're actually running patrols on top of the guard groups Deshan has going out. And I have a combat class to teach because Dougrant is out of the Enclave right now." I can tell Xan would prefer to be here, but I know it's only for me. And they need to attend to their duties. We all do.

"It's okay. Thanks for coming. I appreciate it."

"What? No quips? No sarcastic comments? Are you sick?" I laugh at that.

"No. Not sick. Just actually grateful." Xan smiles and gives my shoulder a squeeze.

"I'm going to lock that away in my memory. You can never deny this." I watch them go as a smile plays on my lips. Friendship isn't too bad after all, I guess. Still, I have so much to investigate. Somehow, somewhere, there has to have been a slip up. Pushing out my senses, I try to get a feel from the elements to see if maybe they realized anything, saw anything. Earlier when I tried, they were in flux and completely useless for that task. That can only mean that they were disturbed by something.

If only they could properly show me what that is… I place my palm gently against the wall. Snippets flash across my vision. Shadows walking down the hall. There's this strange distance that forms over my vision when it shows me this. Almost like a filter juxtaposed over my actual sight. I can see the way whoever it is pauses in their movements upon seeing Minx. A flash of red, perhaps an emotion emanates from them.

It's not blood, but it's something the elements have gathered from the way this shadow carries itself. There's too much blur to get accurate reading on their build or their stature. I can't even tell what it is they're using as they close in on Minx's location. They seem larger than life, but that might be distortion through the recollection of combined earth and air. The rocks reverberate back on themselves, and the air interprets that sensation. It won't even decipher what slams into Minx properly.

It could be that she's flung against the wall, or else something is bashed into her that resembles a wall. Sheer strength I wouldn't attribute to a normal human. But that doesn't mean it doesn't exist. At least now I have one answer. It would seem that rock and stone do have a memory. It's difficult to navigate and interpret, but the information is there. I move away from the wall to sit again and put my head down against the cool sheets on her bed. Still no movement from her.

Sitting here, defenseless, unknowing—none of that sits well with me. I will find out whoever did this to her and I will make them pay. The air around me grows giddy, it laughs as I inhale it, lending me strength, encouraging me forward. I'm not sure who's more assassin right now, me or the power I borrow from.

"Any luck?" Lennick asks from where he's distilling concoctions. I shake my head.

"Nothing definitive. It's all just blurry supposition." Lennick shrugs.

"Sometimes that's the best thing to work from. Nothing to cloud your judgement. All you can work off are facts and proof you find. Then, all at once, it'll solidify into a clear picture of exactly what you need." I blink at him in astonishment. It's probably the closest understanding to how my magic works that I've come across since stumbling into my powers.

"Are you sure you're not a mage?"

"Nothing so grand." He turns to me, vials placed gently on the table as he does so.

"We know I have an affinity, and occasionally I'd like to think it's more. But it's nowhere near the magnitude of ability you possess. Sometimes, I might just have some wisdom for you. Whether it comes from my many more years on this continent than you, or from my understanding of the earth element, we'll just never know." Lennick is not on my suspect list. The air around him is peaceful and knowing, gentle and kind. That's the way it's always been.

It acknowledges the connection to power, in a minuscule way, just like he said. And there's no way he could have hurt Minx with that much power. At least from what I can tell. I'm not sure others will be so easy to read, given most people won't open themselves to me like Lennick has. Still, it's worth a try. Standing up, I stretch my arms overhead. Sitting like that for most of a couple of hours did nothing for my back. I'm too young to feel this sore.

"I'm going to check over the Enclave." When he goes to protest, I wave it away impatiently.

"Aarron in no way expects you to keep a handle on me. He only hopes you can. Leaving me sitting here isn't a good use of my abilities and we all know that. So I'm going to go and do what I do best."

"Watch everyone from a place of superiority and disdain?" Lennick grins and I can see the laughter in his sparkling eyes. He's lucky I like him.

"That and scan every single person in this damned Enclave with my senses and see if the elements come up with anything."

"Very well, then." Lennick inclines his head, winking at me as he does so.

"I won't stand in your way." I laugh as I leave the room.

"As if you could." We both know I'm right. And now I'm going to use these damn abilities to figure out just how deep this goes. It's time we know how many Blood Sect members are around us, and just how deeply they've penetrated Nightshade.