15 | Fall (II)

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Kymalin emptied the last of the contents of the vial into her tongue

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Kymalin emptied the last of the contents of the vial into her tongue. The back of her nose still felt like a graspel got loose in it and had scratched her throat dry with its claws. Whatever murder gas the brownies set off on them, they would pay for that. She would make sure of that.

She winced at the sudden explosion of a sour taste at the back of her throat. This particular mix reminded her of acrid wine served during Jered Kilemna. Then again, it's not like she has a choice. It's one of the mixes packed into each and every member's food ration provided whenever they go out.

The stash Kymalin had at the back pocket of her belt could last her two weeks at the maximum. This meant that unless she figured out a plan and enacted it with success the next three days, she would have to go back empty-handed. Oh, how the Heiress disliked members she sent out returning empty-handed.

Kymalin either had to think of something better to offer than the throne she was after or she could risk staying out longer to accomplish her original plan. The latter option seems a little risky considering that there were little to no sources of nourishment now that trade has been limited. Either option, the chances of her dying were high.

Her gut twisted. There's no way she would die just like that. Where in Pidmena's bosom was Marin?

The moment that the last tree fell courtesy of April, the brownies and June disappeared. Kymalin thought that they were flattened by the tree's thick branches and suffocated by its luscious foliage. She heard the crack when the tree fell. It's almost like lightning striking dirt. No one could have survived that.

However, when they searched the area, they found no bodies. Their targets escaped. The three of them failed once again. Then, Marin went snooping the wrong way and suddenly, she, too, vanished before their very eyes. Kymalin considered going after the girl to find out if she was still alive or not but decided against it. If anything, Kymalin wasn't jumping into secret tunnels and invisible entryways.Her own life was more important.

Kymalin wished Marin would come back sooner, though. She had been listening to the air sprite whistling the same tune for over an hour that it drove her mad. It wasn't even a song she liked. It's a freaking children's rhyme! After a few more minutes of putting up, Kymalin pushed off from the trunk her arm had been leaning on. She whipped towards the air sprite's direction. "Do you mind?" she snapped.

April's head snapped up from preening her feathery wings and smiled at Kymalin. Pearly white teeth—something that Kymalin didn't have—flashed from the air sprite's mouth. Kymalin's stomach churned. The air sprite's body was something Kymalin wanted for her own, with a lithe stature and less...baggage at the front. The way the air sprite had been studying Kymalin told her that April knew what Kymalin had against her.

Gods of Calaris, how April liked to rub it into Kymalin's face.

"What am I doing wrong this time?" April blinked like a damned frup cub.

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