As they slipped further into the darkness, the City of Wolves loomed behind them, a fortress of oppression and cruelty. Every alleyway and corner reminded me of the chains I had worn my whole life. But now, with each step, the chains felt lighter—distant.
Kai moved with purpose, leading me through the twisted paths of the lower city. The streets were narrower here, grimy and full of forgotten souls—people who would turn a blind eye to anything for the right price. It was the perfect place to hide, but also dangerous. I kept close, the sounds of the guards still ringing in my ears.
We reached a dilapidated building, its doors barely hanging on their hinges. Kai slipped inside, motioning for me to follow. The interior was dimly lit, the stench of rot and mildew thick in the air. I glanced around, trying to spot any threats, but all I saw were shadows and broken furniture.
Kai locked the door behind us and approached a hidden hatch in the corner of the room. He pulled it open, revealing a tunnel beneath the floor.
"This leads out of the city," he explained. "It's not pretty, but it's the safest way."
I hesitated, staring down into the darkness. Every instinct told me to go with him, to run. But I couldn't; I couldn't leave the other slaves behind. Something told me I had to do the same thing that Kai had done for me. He gave me hope.
"I can't leave yet, Kai," I say
Kai scratches his head, turning back towards me. " How did I know that you were going to say that? I don't know what I was expecting, to be honest."
Kai sighed; his frustration barely concealed. He closed the hatch with a soft thud and turned to face me fully, his sharp eyes searching mine. "Luna, listen to me," he said, his voice low but firm. "You can't save everyone. Not yet. If we go back now, we'll both be caught. And trust me, whatever they do to us will be worse than death."
I shook my head, my pulse quickening. "I can't just walk away. Not when there are still people suffering, chained like animals like I was. If I leave, I'll be just as bad as Augustine."
His jaw clenched at the name, and for a moment, I thought he might snap at me. Instead, he rubbed the scar on his forearm, his voice softening. "Do you think I don't want to help them? That I haven't seen what they go through every day? But rushing back in now will only get us killed. You need to think bigger, Luna."
I bit my lip, my mind torn between the desire to act and the fear that he might be right. "Then what? What do we do?"
"If we are going to do this, we will need some help. I wasn't planning on calling her, but it looks like I have no choice."
"Who is "she"?" I ask
"You'll find out, but you might want to step back a bit. She can be a little possessive."
Before I could even ask what that was supposed to mean, Kai folds his hands into a ball and blows air into his hand, but no sound comes out.
"You sure you know what you're doing?" I ask, raising an eyebrow
He stays silent
I turn around to look at Kai to make another remark about his failed whistle blow, and in my peripheral, I see a red-haired beauty walk through the door. The only thing I could think about was how beautiful she was.
"Kai, what did you need me for....?" the woman stops mid-sentence. "ARE YOU CHEATING ON ME WITH THIS WOMAN? WHO IS SHE? I THOUGHT I WAS YOUR ONE AND ONLY!" She shouts.
Luna stares at the woman in shock, her mouth hanging open. She doesn't know what to say or how to react. Kai looks at the woman with an amused expression.
"I'm waiting for you to answer me, Kai. Who is this woman, and why is she all alone with you?"
She reaches for her knife on her hip, her expression turning cold and demeaning
"Rose, calm down and put that knife away. For one, this little lady has the potential to help us achieve our goal of overthrowing the patriarch of this city," Kai says with a worried expression.
Rose scoffs, "WHAT IS THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN? HOW CAN THIS LITTLE GIRL HELP US? I SWEAR YOU LOVE PICKING UP RANDOM WOMEN OFF THE STREET!!"
Luna is shocked by the woman's sudden outburst. She looks at Kai, hoping he can explain to her what's going on.
Kai sighs, "First of all, Rose, we are not together, and secondly, why do you care who I pick up on the side of the road," Kai chuckles.
"Because you are the only man for me so get rid of this girl right now!"
Luna looks at Kai, then at Rose; Luna is more surprised that Kai didn't deny that he randomly picks up girls on the side of the street.
"Listen, Rose, I've known you for a long time, but you can't go around killing every girl I show you for no reason," Kai tries to reason with Rose.
Rose looks at Kai with shock and hurt, "SO I'M JUST AN OBJECT TO YOU?!"
Kai sighs, ignores the comment, and turns towards me
"This here is Luna, and from now on, she will be working with us to take down the patriarch. She can tell us important information about the layout of the city."
Rose turns towards me, "Look here, you little runt. I've been training my entire life for this mission, and I'm not about to let some weakling like you ruin everything."
"If you think I'm just going to stand here and listen to you slander me, you have another thing coming.... bitch."
Rose is pissed she wasn't expecting someone like me to make such a fast rebuttal; she looks up at Kai to see if he is going to do something.
"Leave me out of this," Kai says while holding up both his hands.
"If you're so tough, let's have a little sparring match," Rose says, smirking.
I was confident in my comebacks, but fighting isn't something I'm good at, but I can't back down now in front of this hussy.
"Fine, come at me then," I say, smirking back at her.
Rose leaps at me with lightning speed, and before I can react, I am already on the ground. I must have gotten knocked unconscious because the next thing I knew, it was the next morning. I woke up at the sight of Kai leaning over a table with a widespread of maps and documents.
"Oh, you're finally awake," he says
Before I could even think about it, my mind and mouth moved on their own. "Please, Kai, I want to learn. Teach me how to fight!"
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-To be continued
ns 15.158.61.5da2
