Chapter 653: Among Us (2)

A/n: Ramadan Kareem, everybody! Happy Holy Month to y'all out there, Muslims and Non Muslims. Fasting is gonna be tough this year since the heat will come back at some time mid April for the Mediterranean basin. Stay hydrated! Either way, I'll keep the work rolling and I may continue RSTUM soon. May G.o.d bless us with success and fortune and send down upon us the capacity of peace and love within our hearts. Amen! ?

Veezara the Argonian was killed and lying in a puddle of his own blood, seven killers stood around him but none seemed like the one that killed him for they all showed absolute innocence.

Astrid stood one between the seven and watched every action and reaction the others did in silence. Gabriella, Festus, Babette, Arnbjorn, n.a.z.ir, and Cicero.

Due to personal bias, Astrid checked Cicero thoroughly but there was not even a single hint of blood on him. The others were also innocent and had no reason to kill Veezara.

"This is getting to utter madness." Said Festus the Mage, "The Sanctuary is turning mad and now we have a killer in our midst."

"You can't say that." Babette found his words dangerous and wanted to shut him up.

"Think about it. The Sanctuary is acting like this must be due to a vengeful intent of a powerful being. Such beings can mislead and possess lesser beings like us. The killer may be among us but they are not one of us currently." Festus insisted.

"Shut up you, old fool." n.a.z.ir didn't like the words Festus spoke either.

"Everyone, shut up." Astrid shouted at them and sat down on one knee in front of Veezara, who was a dear friend to her.

"Who found him first?" Astrid asked.

"Me I did." Gabriella replied as she seemed disturbed by the death of Veezara.

"She could be the one who has killed him and screamed." Festus said.

"How can you say such a thing?" n.a.z.ir shouted at Festus.

"Cicero thinks you all should calm down and look for clues." Cicero meekly started talking.

"It could have been that Clown." Arnbjorn pointed fingers towards Cicero.

"What? Cicero didn't do anything Cicero was just tending to the Night Mother." Cicero said.

"Astrid, you believe this madman?" Arnbjorn asked as if eager to get rid of Cicero.

"Hey!" Babette called.

"Or maybe you could have done it and came to blame poor Cicero. Tell me, wolfman, you were supposed to be at the sanctuary's door, how come you are here even before Astrid?" Cicero flipped the accusation towards Arnbjorn.

"Hey!" Babette called again.

"I was back for some tools when I heard the scream." Arnbjorn defended, "And you're the one being suspicious. Isn't this at the doorstep"

"Hey, a.s.shats!" Babette shouted this last time, taking everyone's attention towards her.

Looking at the 300 years old child, some felt the urge to entertain the possibility that she is the killer and others begged for her to say something less sinister.

But Babette pointed towards the main hall of the sanctuary and spoke the words that let them lose it from fear.

"The Listener is missing."

As an immediate action, the group of seven all turned towards the place where Listener Serana was supposed to be lying and couldn't recover from the shock until Astrid herself spoke.

"She was there just now!"

With this remark, the situation and the suspicion started to s.h.i.+ft in directions no one here was able to predict.

"Listener! Dear Listener! Where are you?" In a burst of panic, Cicero ran towards where Serana was last seen and looked around for her like a madman.

"The Vampire Girl! Can it be her" Arnbjorn spoke but Astrid turned to him with a death glare telling him to shut up.

"Not the Vampire Girl the Listener. Show some G.o.dd.a.m.n respect, you mutt." Festus Krex shouted at Arnbjorn to keep him in check.

"Why you" Arnbjorn wasn't really in the mood to be lectured so he faced Festus head-on but this confrontation was cut short as Astrid walked past through the two with her focus directed on the Listener's whereabouts.

"Move Veezara out of here." Astrid said, "Band together and look for the Listener. I want all of you to be within sight of each other."

None of this made any sense. Astrid started to think that this scheme was played by Serana and Cicero. If they survived Commander Maro at Solitude and planned this together, this would be the only thing that makes sense.

But Astrid can no longer point fingers freely since she has lost the support of many members already with the existence of the Listener, the supposed leader of the Dark Brotherhood.

Long ago, Astrid managed to convince her Sanctuary members that there was no need for the Night Mother orders or the Five Tenets if there is no Listener to lead them and thus, she appointed herself a leader of an independent sanctuary, which happened to be the last remaining standing Dark Brotherhood sanctuary.

It meant that she is the leader of everything Dark Brotherhood-related. But this changed with Cicero's arrival who kept the Night Mother all of these years.

Then the Listener was chosen and this whole mess started thanks to who?

Cicero and Serana? Or Astrid?

Those who are at fault easily realize the fault they are in but something makes them defy admitting their mistake.

Pride.

Astrid didn't want to be seen as a small and insignificant a.s.sa.s.sin who backs off when s.h.i.+t goes down. This kind of life isn't kind to those who step back.

Even against the Dread Father and the Night Mother, s.h.i.+t has to be taken all the way through.

She had to kill them (Serana and Cicero) while they were busy aiming for her life. Hunting the Hunter is a thrilling concept to say the least.

"Let's get going."

***

For the coming hour or so, Astrid tried to move together as a group. Serana was still missing and Cicero was weeping to the point where she wanted to just get rid of him immediately.

They looked everywhere from the Laboratory to the Living Quarters, to the Main Hall to the Night Mother chamber to the Astrid's Quarters.

They didn't leave a spot unchecked but they found no clue on the whereabouts of Serana or the killer of Veezara.

"We can't keep going like this." Babette complained, "The Forge's fire is burning hot and the Alchemy lab is emitting poisonous fumes. Are you going to keep things like this for long?"

"Someone sabotaged our Sanctuary on purpose to keep us separated." Astrid said, "I have a plan. I just need time."

"We don't have time." Gabriella retorted, "If the poison fumes spread, forget about time. We will be in the grasps of Sithis."

"Urgh! Fine." Astrid couldn't handle this more than that and had to cut some slack, "Everyone will be within the line of sight of one another while we deal with this."

Astrid then a.s.signed the a.s.sa.s.sin as follows. Festus to keep an eye on the doors inside the Living Quarters and prevent them from acting wild with his magic, Gabriella would keep an eye on him from the Alchemy lab and deal with the poison fumes since it is her expertise, n.a.z.ir would guarding the hallway between the Living Quarters and the Night Mother Chambers, Babette would hold the pa.s.sway between the Lab and the Main Hall to keep an eye on Gabriella, Arnbjorn will go to the Smithy in the Main Hall and control its intensifying fires while watching Babette, and the last would be Cicero who was told to stay put in the Main Hall despite his protests and demands to prioritize looking for the Listener.

The whole thing with Cicero's placement was due to Astrid's distrust of him which will keep him under the sharp senses of her werewolf husband Arnbjorn, the vampire Babette, and the Redguard n.a.z.ir.

As for Astrid

"I will check the Night Mother's chamber myself then find a way with the Black Door somehow."

Astrid didn't seem confident but she still had some tricks in her sleeves to try out. Some of the secrets she knows as the Matron of Falkreath Sanctuary and all.

She went into the Night Mother's chambers and for some reason, Cicero was oddly quiet, he who would throw a tantrum if a single speck of dust came within close proximity of the Night Mother's Coffin.

When Astrid walked into that chamber and scanned it carefully with her dagger in hand, she couldn't find a single trace of suspicion so that she could use it against Cicero. His living quarters were also clean without a trace of any clue as well.

The last thing that Astrid needed to look into was the Night Mother's Coffin itself. Astrid believed in the Night Mother who used to control the brotherhood and all but beyond that, this woman was just a corpse, a medium for the Dread Father Sithis.

Putting Aside the noises of the thoughts she had, Astrid reached out to the Night Mother's Coffin and pulled its doors.

But the doors didn't open and the coffin remained sealed.

There was a secret keyhole in the pattern of the coffin but Astrid had no time to try and unlock it. Cicero will surely make the situation look bad for Astrid if the seals were undone.

Astrid retreated away from the Coffin and walked out of the chamber back to the Main Hall outside.

"Found nothing in there." She spoke to her husband, "I'll keep an eye on the entrance and try to figure out something about the Black Door."

"Alright, be careful." Arnbjorn replied.

As Astrid headed out to the entrance, Cicero kept watching her closely and then focused on Arnbjorn who was keeping an eye on Cicero as well.

Babette watched the two from her spot and felt the situation getting on her nerves before exchanging eye contact with n.a.z.ir who nodded to her meaning that he will be going back to check on Festus.

Just as he turned around, Babette saw Astrid coming back where she came from. She walked past Arnbjorn and headed towards Babette.

"Where are you going?" Babette asked Astrid.

"Worry about the others, dear." Astrid replied showing dejection towards the fact that she is being questioned, "I'm just looking for a spell that old Festus may or may not know."

As Astrid walked by Babette, the latter took a step ahead and asked one more question.

"Between you and me, are you really concerned for the Listener? We've been together for long long years and you're not having a hold of this. Going against the will of Sithis is foolis.h.!.+" Babette advised.

It seemed that Astrid and Babette went way back for Babette to wait for Astrid and tell her such words.

"Indeed." Surprisingly, Astrid agreed.

" Alright" Babette felt something fishy about the answer.

"But the Listener isn't my concern as much as you all are at the moment." Astrid continued, "If you all can be saved, I'll first make sure that you do survive. Time will tell."

Astrid's words made her seem pessimistic and cold but somehow still the Astrid who feels for her family, not someone who became cold and drunk on power.

"Glad that you're still with us." Babette said as Astrid walked off the Lab where Gabriella is and went down the living Quarters where Festus is.

It all became quiet for the next couple of minutes before it wasn't anymore. It became noisy, frightening, and chaotic all in a mere second when a scream was heard echoing deep from the Sanctuary.

The voice felt like Festus and came from the Living Quarters.

"What is that?" Cicero questioned but Arnbjorn glared at him.

"You stay put. Move and I'll split your skull." Arnbjorn aimed at Cicero with an axe before standing at a distance not too far from him.

As for Gabriella, n.a.z.ir, and Babette, they headed towards the Living Quarters and entered from two different entrances to check on what was happening.

"Festus! Where are you?" Shouted Gabriella, who was the closest to Festus.

"Old Man!" Shouted n.a.z.ir.

"Where is Astrid? She was just here." Shouted Babette.

As the three entered the room first, they could find neither Festus Krex, whose voice was just heard nor Astrid, who had just walked in.

As their voices became louder, a fourth joined them in the room.

"What's going on here? Where's Festus?"

Gabriella, n.a.z.ir, and Babette all turned around towards the voice that came from the Lab entrance.

"Astrid, you're here." Gabriella reacted.

"Festus has disappeared with a loud scream." n.a.z.ir reported right away.

"What?" Astrid frowned.

"Hold up right there." But Babette seemed to have something to say, "Astrid, how are you coming from here?"

"What?" Astrid became confused, "What do you mean?"

"You just walked past me while I was on my post. You said you were coming to see Festus." Babette said.

"What are you talking about?" Astrid retorted, "I was trying to figure something out with the Black Door until I heard a scream!"

Astrid walked into the room and descended down to the dining place where Babette and Gabriella were.

"What are you talking about, Babette?" Gabriella asked, "I didn't see her coming from your direction."

"Are you kidding me?" Babette said while displaying anger towards Gabriella.

"I am wise enough not to do so." Gabriella raised her hands meekly, "But if she would walk past you to the Living Quarters, she must have pa.s.sed behind me. There is no other way unless she came from n.a.z.ir's direction."

"I didn't go past any of you. I just stayed there until I heard screaming." Astrid defended herself.

"Then" Babette thought, "How just"

"I heard Festus talking with someone." Said n.a.z.ir, "I thought it was you, Gabriella."

"No." Gabriella denied, "And I had an eye on him. He talked to n.o.body."

"That's impossible!" n.a.z.ir seemed doubtful.

"ARE YOU ALL KIDDING ME?" Astrid angrily shouted, "You can't even look over your shoulders? You can't discern whether there is an enemy in our midst or not?"

Babette watched that and spoke.

"But you said that if all of us can be saved, you will make sure that we get to and you agreed with me when I told you it is foolish to go against the will of Sithis."

The three individuals around looked at her. Babette seemed to have had a conversation with that supposed Astrid and some words were said that do not align with what the usual Astrid would display.

Astrid would never openly oppose the Dread Father but she would never admit that it holds any significance to her.

"I didn't say any of that." Astrid said.

"Right." Babette nodded, "You wouldn't."

Just when things couldn't get any more dramatic, it simply did with a metallic noise and two strong thuds.

Both the doors of the Dining Hall, from the Lab and the Hallway between chambers, were forced shut, trapping Astrid, Babette, Gabriella, and n.a.z.ir inside.

"f.u.c.k!" Shouted n.a.z.ir.

Everyone ran to the doors panicking but the only way to open them was to force them open with magic.

"I know a spell. I am just not good at it." Gabriella said.

"HURRY!" Shouted Astrid, "Arnbjorn is out there with that clown freak."

Astrid wanted to hurry up to her husband, who was now stranded alone with Cicero, the one that Astrid suspects, but as Gabriella cast her magic

*ROAR*

a mighty roar of a Werewolf.

Something happened and Arnbjorn seemingly morphed into his beast form.

*Click*

Gabriella's unlocking spell worked in its second attempt and Astrid rushed out blade in hand leading the other three.

The four immediately paused, however, when they saw Arnbjorn as a werewolf looking at them without any ferocious hint in his eyes, they paused in relief.

"Husband, where is the clo"

As Astrid wanted to confirm that everything is still alright and took the first step towards her husband, her surroundings darkened in a blink.

It was too sudden.

It was too quick.

It was too frightening.

The Alchemy Lab exploded from the unlifted pressure in its tubes rus.h.i.+ng out a burst of chemical ga.s.ses that caused all the lanterns, torches, and blazers to dim in a greenish hue.

Astrid was pushed ahead, Babette hid under a table, and n.a.z.ir held Gabriella and jumped back into the Living Quarters.

During that burst of darkness, Astrid could see only thanks to the intense flames of the forge that survived the ga.s.ses release and the silhouette of her husband Arnbjorn was clear in his Werewolf form.

But as she saw that, something lifted her husband up in the air and tossed him into the fire of his own forge.

*Thud* *Thud* *Thud*

And the sound of heavy thuds vibrated through the Sanctuary.

A/n: 13 Early Access Chapters on P4treon and MORE! https://linktr.ee/donovel