Chapter 10: Nimbaris

SIENNA

The blade of my dagger gleamed under the pale moonlight as I moved through the forest shadows. My breath was a soft echo in the night, in sync with the rapid beats of my heart. Two months. Two damn months of brutal training, of blood and death. Bastian had molded me with patience and cruelty, refining what my father had created in me: a weapon.

I had always known how to kill. But with Bastian, I learned to perfect it, to turn it into an art. His charming smile and confident demeanor concealed the same darkness that burned within me. In that, we were the same. Lethal. We enjoyed the game of the hunt, though he would never admit it.

While I became the assassin of the Earth Court, Astrid flourished in her own world. My sister was a magnet. Everyone gravitated toward her at the castle. They loved her, adored her. It was impossible not to. If I was blade and blood, she was light and laughter. A social butterfly that found a home in every heart she touched. And even though I carried death in my hands, I would have given my life for her without hesitation.

A loud crash shook the potion room, and thick smoke began seeping through the door.

Suddenly, the door burst open, and Astrid came running out, coughing and laughing at the same time, her hands covered in soot.

—Calm down, grumpy —she said, addressing the Healer, who emerged behind her with an expression of utter exasperation—. We just messed up a little.

Bastian, leaning against the doorway, watched the scene with a mix of amusement and resignation.

Astrid shook her hands and blew the air forcefully.

—I wouldn't recommend smelling that —she added with a mischievous smile.

Crossing my arms, I looked at her in disbelief.

—Seriously, As? Are you trying to get yourself killed and, in the process, burn down the entire castle?

Astrid shrugged, ignoring my warning tone.

—Relax, Sisi, we're perfecting a poison. It'll give you a big advantage against those ugly monsters, right, my friend? —she turned to the Healer with a sweet smile.

He simply shook his head with the patience of someone who had endured Astrid's presence in his laboratory for far too long.

Bastian let out a low chuckle as he observed her with amusement.

—You're definitely more dangerous inside the castle than outside it —he said in that naturally charming tone of his.

Astrid just winked at him before turning to me, still smiling.

But training didn't wait. Just a few hours later, I was already in the forest, the weight of my dagger firm in my hand. The grass crunched beneath my boots as I stopped, the scent of damp earth filling my lungs. A guttural sound echoed among the trees.

I had found it.

The creature emerged from the darkness, its black, slimy body glistening under the dim light, covered in a glowing mucus. Dozens of sharp teeth gleamed in its mouth. Its amber eyes pierced me with a predatory gaze. I knew they existed, but I had never faced one alone. Astrid and the others had always been by my side, blades ready and strategies shared. But now, I was alone. Reckless for having gone ahead of Bastian, the captain, and the other soldiers. I had followed a lead and wandered too far. Now I was in this part of the forest, near the border of another Court, with no one to help me if things went wrong.

A growl sent a chill down my spine. It wasn't alone.

The second Nimbaris emerged from the shadows, bigger, wilder. My chances of surviving shrank with each heartbeat. There was no time to hesitate.

I pushed myself up a tree and climbed swiftly. From above, I had the advantage. I pulled out my bow and fired an arrow coated with the poison Astrid had prepared. The dart whistled through the air and sank into the slimy skin of the first Nimbaris. The creature roared, staggering, but it didn't fall.

The second one was already coming for me. I jumped from the branch at the last moment, landing on the ground with a quick roll. My blade flashed as I drove it into the base of the first Nimbaris's neck, right where the poison was already working. Its body collapsed with an agonized growl.

But I had no time to celebrate. A sharp pain shot through my leg. The second Nimbaris had caught me with its claws. I screamed but gritted my teeth, forcing myself to stay on my feet. My knives were an extension of my body. I struck with precision, blow after blow, dodging by instinct, my movements as sharp as my weapons.

It slashed at me, not to kill, but to grab me. I tried to evade, but its strength was overwhelming. It caught my arm and pulled me, its claws pressing but not tearing. The air filled with a strange scent. My scent.

Something inside me shuddered as its amber eyes darkened. It wasn't rage. It was something else.

Why? Why wasn't it killing me?

My mind spun, searching for answers as I struggled with all my might. And then, deep inside, I knew something in me had changed. Something the Nimbaris recognized.

Creatures born of balance itself, created to destroy anything that went out of control within the Four Courts. It was said they were nature's punishment when the lords' power became too great. Since then, they lurked, waiting for the right moment to restore balance.

When the creature turned to attack me again, my knife was already in the air.

The steel buried itself in its throat.

The Nimbaris staggered, its breath escaping in a ragged hiss. But when I stepped closer to finish it off, the creature lifted its gaze and whispered something in an unknown language.

The Nimbaris hissed in its guttural tongue:

—Vesh'an dorai'ka thun'kai...

The words vibrated in the air, brushing against my skin like an ancient echo. I didn't understand them, but they weren't of hate. They weren't of anger.

They were of reverence.

And then, it fell dead.

I stood there, panting, my knife halfway to my hand. Blood, sweat, and adrenaline covered my body. The Nimbaris had recognized me, and I was no one.