Unearth The Shadows

47

Anya Dalyr's | 76th day of Sprout season

"The Father will soon be here." Water splashed outside the bathtub as Fanou brought his arm to the surface. He placed a hand full of foam on Anya's chin and kissed the corner of her mouth. "We should go."

Anya didn't argue. But she would rather remain there, dipped in warm water, her body pressing against Fanou's, skins slick and slipping when they touched. The urge to eat another soul had subsided for the moment. Anya was suspecting she had been a fool. Her desire for souls had become a real tyrant, asking for her to feed into more than three souls a night. She already knew her peace wasn't going to last and she was reluctant to abandon the bath.

Fanou pushed her gently. This time he kissed her, full lips on the mouth and she watched him, stark naked, glistening with foam and light reflecting everywhere on a dark muscular body.

"I'll bring the soulgraspers into my office. Be ready before the father arrives, please. You don't need more reasons for adversity. I have been working on this for years. Please, collaborate to the best of your ability."

He poured a bucket of water over himself to rid himself of the foam, dressed quickly and left the bathing room.

Anya nodded. Fanou had always known what he was capable of. He always strived for mastery in any type of knowledge he tackled. If he had reservations about this mission, Anya needed to it seriously.

She left the bath, poured water over herself, dressed, and abandoned the bathing rooms for Fanou's office.

As promised, the students were there, lined in two rows of five, all dressed in dark uniforms. A matte, dark attired with a tunic, a coat, boots, a tie-cravat, and a hood to half-cover their faces.

Fanou had collected these students from all parts of the country, from the southern region of Anuteh to the coastal Tholos and Mali. Anya ignored the specifics of it, but by the sight of their pale complexion, she could tell some of them even came from neighboring countries. They were aged between nine and twenty years old and each had the potential to handle at least forty souls alone. So, Anya was confident they had strength enough. As for their prowess in the field, she was still to discover.

Of course, the Father wasn't there yet. "You have a clear idea of when he's going to show up?"

Fanou glared at Anya but he didn't respond. He was still consulting his annotated books. That was a sign to stop, or else she would have to face Fanou's rage. Fanou was slow to anger, but his wrath was an ugly thing to witness in the rare moments it surfaced. Anya did the responsible thing and turned to the students instead, leaving Fanou to be tortured by his doubts. Spitefully, she wished those doubts drew blood if they could manage.

The difficulty of training soulgraspers was that there was no specialized teacher for such an ability in the academy. It was one of the most deplorable aspects the Monarchy had stolen from Galeda forever, along with their history for the past three hundred years.