No Going Back Pt. 1
Vaelithra moved cautiously through the corridor.
The architecture had changed completely.
Gone were the irregular walls and damp earth of the hidden passage. Here, every block of stone had been cut deliberately. The corridor was narrow, functional, and sparsely illuminated by lamps mounted at measured intervals along the walls.
Her boots touched the floor as quietly as she could manage.
Vaelithra kept one hand near the vials beneath her cloak.
Then she heard voices.
She stopped.
They were somewhere ahead.
Low.
Indistinct.
At least two.
Vaelithra pressed herself closer to the wall.
Her heart pounded against her chest.
This was it.
Everything she had done until now could still have been explained away.
Sneaking through the estate gardens.
Using the hidden passage.
Entering the prison through a forgotten door.
If she turned around now, no one might ever know.
She could retrace her steps, return home, clean the kitchen, gather her severed hair from the floor, and pretend none of this had happened.
Kharun would die in the morning.
Vaelithra closed her eyes.
She inhaled slowly.
The prison air filled her lungs.
For a moment, she imagined she could draw courage from it. Pull strength from the darkness itself and hold it somewhere inside her.
Her heartbeat slowed.
Not much.
Enough.
She opened her eyes.
There was no going back.
Vaelithra continued.
The voices became clearer as she approached the corner.
Two guards.
Possibly three.
She couldn't tell.
Looking would answer the question.
Looking would also give them the opportunity to see her.
Vaelithra stopped before reaching the edge.
Her hand slipped beneath the cloak.
Her fingers found one of the vials.
She carefully pulled it free.
The glass felt impossibly fragile now.
Hours of preparation contained within something she could crush between two fingers.
The compound required exposure to air before the reaction accelerated.
She held her breath.
Then tossed the vial around the corner.
A tiny sound followed.
Glass striking stone.
Breaking.
The conversation stopped.
"What was..."
The voice never finished.
Another guard coughed.
"What in the..."
Silence.
Then came the sound of something heavy striking the floor.
Another impact followed.
Metal scraped against stone.
Vaelithra remained where she was.
A pale vapor began creeping around the corner.
She watched it.
The cloud was thinner than she had expected.
For one terrible instant, doubt seized her.
Had she miscalculated?
Had the compound reacted properly?
Then the vapor reached her.
Vaelithra smelled it.
Sharp.
Mineral.
Slightly bitter.
She had breathed it in.
Her body tensed.
She waited.
One heartbeat.
Two.
Three.
Nothing.
Vaelithra flexed her fingers.
They moved.
She lifted one foot slightly from the floor.
No weakness.
No stiffness.
Her counteragent worked.
Relief nearly escaped her as laughter.
Instead, Vaelithra allowed herself the smallest smile.
"Still got it."
A strained sound came from around the corner.
The smile disappeared.
Vaelithra listened.
Someone was trying to speak.
The attempt produced little more than a muffled noise.
Another followed.
The guards were conscious.
Exactly as intended.
Their muscles simply refused to obey them.
Vaelithra pulled her hood farther over her face.
Then she stepped around the corner.
Two guards lay on the floor.
One had fallen against the wall before sliding down it. The other lay partially on his side where his legs had collapsed beneath him.
Their eyes moved.
Nothing else did.
Vaelithra stopped.
She looked at them carefully.
Breathing.
Both of them.
Good.
The nearest guard's eyes locked onto her hooded form.
Fear appeared there.
Vaelithra felt an unexpected pang of guilt.
They had done nothing wrong.
They were guarding a prison.
Following orders.
Tonight, that happened to place them between her and Kharun.
"I'm sorry," Vaelithra whispered.
The guard could not answer.
She stepped around him.
Then stopped.
Vaelithra crouched briefly and adjusted his position enough to ensure his breathing remained unobstructed.
Temporary.
That was what mattered.
They would recover.
By then, she intended to be gone.
Vaelithra rose.
She continued down the corridor.
The vapor followed weakly behind her before gradually dispersing.
She passed through another door.
Vaelithra closed it quietly.
Only then did she allow herself to breathe normally again.
One checkpoint.
She had made it through.
Her hand moved beneath the cloak.
She counted the remaining vials by touch.
Enough.
Ahead lay another checkpoint.
Beyond that...
The prison blocks.
Kharun.
Vaelithra tightened the cloak around herself.
One more.
Then she would reach him.