AISLIN | I

CHAPTER SIXTY-EIGHT

Chapter Sixy-Seven Recap:  Divya introduced herself to the syndicate and members of the Kavan Gaurd. She revealed that Aislin was in fact a prisoner underneath the castle. Now all of them are on their way to save her

___

DEJA VU WASHED over me as we retraced our steps through the depths of the palace. It had felt like I walked those passages more in the last 24 hours than I had in all my years serving in the Kavan Guard.

I saw Arius slowly working his way through the ranks to get closer to our guide. I could scarcely distinguish his whispers as they echoed through the tension around us. I presume he was making sure Divya was okay. He had been on the receiving end of Kingsley's temper many times through our travels. He could offer Divya a source of comfort and understanding.

We had once again reached the blocked doorway. I felt myself take a deep breath as I crossed the threshold into the forgotten innards of the palace. All this time we had spent gathering resources and searching for clues and she was under our feet the entire time. The more I thought about it the more desperate I could feel myself getting. Desperate to reach her, to have her in my arms again.

Desperation turned to rage as my mind continued to whirl. The King must have been kept in the same place. The dungeon we found him in must have been a decoy. There was no evidence that anyone had spent any time there recently and the instruments of torture kept there were covered in years of dust and rust from lack of use.

How could I have missed the obvious signs?

I've been trained by the most elite to recognize the obvious signs of deception in situations like these. How could I have been so blind? So naive? She slipped through my fingers due to my weak mind.

I wonder if she blames me as I blame myself.

I let my mind weaken in my time here as Commander of this army. My skills weren't needed. Assassins work alone whereas armies work together. There was only so much I could do alone as Commander, the rest of my army had my back.

Was I letting them down as well?

We entered the dungeon through the hidden passageway Kingsley and I had previously found and I felt my heart beat faster. Aislin was so close to us this whole time and now we finally were going to set her free.

As we all walked deeper and deeper into the belly of the Kavan Castle, the lighting around us quickly creased and was replaced by the faint glow from the few lanterns we carried. The dust began to arise at the disruption of its calm state from all our movement. A sudden tension swept over Divya and it was evident in her shoulders and the quick shallowness in her breathing.

Arius was quick to come to her aid, "Are you alright?"

She quickly looked back at him and curtly said, "Yes I am fine." Arius seemed out of place at her very blunt response and seemed to retract into himself. Upon noticing his sudden change in attitude, Divya sighed. "I did not mean to harm you with my tone, sir. I apologize. Today was the first day I left the dungeon and been outside on my own in years, and now that we come back I'm eerily aware of the hold these very walls have had on me most of my life."

A beat of silence passed. "My name is Arius." He said. She tilted her head in question. "You called me sir. Such formalities aren't needed. My name is Arius." Even in the pitch dark, the blush on both their faces was evident.

"Well Arius, I appreciate the attentiveness towards my state of mind. I will be okay once we find Aislin and get out of here. I'm sure that's the same feeling for everyone else with us here."

He nodded, "Yes I agree. Maybe when this is all over we can help you find your family. I'm sure they'd love to see you again."

Divya slowed her pace till she came to a stop, Arius stopping with her. The rest of the group continued moving forward past them and Kingsley and I led.