Chapter 1
With a huff Kiki sat down behind a crate in the warehouse she frequented. She’d found out years ago that there was a window that she could easily fit through when she got dared by some friends and now used the space to hide from her parents anytime they had a fight.
Tonight was no different. She’d once again failed a test and her dad had been yelling and her mom had given her this horrible disappointed look that made her feel like she was worthless. To Kiki it was just a test, and a math test at that. She’d always been horrible at math and it didn’t help that she couldn’t see the point. She had calculators and the internet that could give her the answer anyway, why did she need to learn percentages and formulas.
Her parents thought differently. Something about math being useful for almost anything in life? And school being important? She’d kind of stopped listening when the disappointed speech came out.
Kiki closed her eyes as she let her head lean back against the crate with a deep sigh. She hated feeling like a screwup but she also didn’t know how to be anything else.
A harsh clang echoed of the walls as she shifted slightly. She froze, unsure if she’d made the sound or something else had. She didn’t have to wonder for long as someone yelled in an unfamiliar language.
Peeking from behind the crate she saw dark figures moving with a quiet strength that made her hold her breath. They were chasing something, no, someone. A man with long hair was running but he didn’t get very far before a rope twisted around his ankles and took him down. With a smack he landed on the floor, a whimper escaping his mouth as he struggled to get away.
Kiki thought about slipping away, but something about the scene in front of her was so terrifyingly captivating that she kept watching. Part of her was scared she’d be seen but part of her also knew that moving now would increase that chance by a lot so her eyes stayed glued to the scene as she kept quiet.
Two of the hooded figures in dark robes stepped forward and each grabbed an arm, twisting the man until her was kneeling with his face towards the other two. One stepped forward. They had a bow slung over their shoulder and an air of authority around them as they looked down at the man.
They spoke, but Kiki didn’t recognize the language. The words were low and with an air of danger and the man, still kneeling as he was held still by the two hooded people, pleaded something. With one last word the person across drew their sword and stabbed the man through the heart.
An involuntary gasp left Kiki’s mouth as she watched the blade easily slice through muscle and bone before coming out the other side. It wasn’t a harsh gasp but with the emptiness of the warehouse it echoed slightly. Sharp eyes found her immediately as the person withdrew their sword and with sure steps came her way.
They just killed a man in front of her. Horror flashed across her face as she realized the person had heard her. Seen her. She was gonna die. For a moment time was frozen as she looked at the person advancing towards her. Only when the person slid their sword back into its sheath hanging at their side did her body seem to come out of the shock again.
She scrambled back, her body moving on its own but her movements sloppy with the terror taking hold of her. She knew the warehouse well, she knew there were three doors leading to the outside, all locked at night, and that the crates were stacked in the same way they always were, theoretically giving her an advantage as she jumped on top of one before jumping to the next one.
She climbed higher, the other person following with graceful steps as they ascended. She almost tripped when jumping to the next crate, the wood groaning as she managed to catch herself. She felt clumsy, the sweat on her hands making it hard to get a good grip as she hoisted herself higher and her feet scrambling for anything she could use to push herself higher. Sawdust flying up made breathing difficult but she didn’t let it stop her as she reached the highest crate.
She’d almost made it to the side where she could descend and slip through the window she’d come in through when a hand snatched the collar of her shirt, forcing her to a choking halt. She didn’t get the chance to recover before she was turned around. She fought blindly, scratching and kicking, pulling the person’s mask down in the process before they took a step forward, forcing her back to the edge of the crate. Her heart jumped when she tried to step back further but her foot only found air.
Terrified, she gripped the person’s arm, willing them not to let go as she looked at her assailant. It was a woman with sharp eyes, her face set to a neutral yet menacing expression. She opened her mouth to plead, but the looping image of this person’s sword cleaving through the chest of the man made her realize it wouldn’t do her any good so she closed it again, meeting the woman’s gaze stubbornly. The man had been pleading, but the shadowed figures had exuded strength. They weren’t here to bargain, they were here to do a job, and now she had become part of that job.
“You’ve got fire,” the woman commented, a slight accent to her voice though not clear enough for Kiki to know where exactly it was from. “Tell me, do you want to live,” the woman asked. Her voice was sharp, willing Kiki to make a choice or one would surely be made for her.
She swallowed, clutching the woman’s arm a bit tighter and willing her voice to be sure before she answered. “Yes,” was the only thing she dared say, knowing her voice would betray her if she said any more. Even then her voice felt small, and though it didn’t waver, she didn’t know if it was enough.
The woman was studying her, as if she was looking for something Kiki had no idea about. It felt like ages and then Kiki’s heart dropped as the woman took another small step forward, forcing her to lean over the edge of the crate, her feet only barely having any hold. Cold sweat broke out along her back and the air seemed thicker with every forced breath. If the woman decided to let go now she was dead. Her muscles cramped as she curled her fingers into the fabric of the woman’s sleeve. The drop was too high and the angle awkward enough that she wouldn’t land feet first. She clenched her jaw, looking at the woman with big eyes as her muscles strained to hold onto the woman’s arm like a lifeline.
“You’ve seen a lot just now,” the woman mused, as if she wasn’t holding Kiki up with one arm, deciding whether the girl should live or die. “Code says you share the fate of the man who will be found tomorrow, but I will give you a choice,” the woman says. Her voice is calm and cold, almost too much so as she pushes Kiki just a little further back.
“What choice,” she hissed between clenched teeth as she held the woman’s eyes. Her breathing was erratic and her heart racing but she willed herself to stay strong, even if she was trembling uncontrollably. “A choice, of whether to live, or to die,” the woman said.
For a second she wondered if the woman was just toying with her, but those eyes were looking at her so intensely, scanning her face as if she was looking for something. “What’s the catch,” she managed to ask.
A smirk tugged on the corner of the woman’s lips. “You come with me, you train, you survive, or you die. That death grip on my arm is not gonna save you, only I can.” Kiki’s breath caught in her throat at the options. Either she’d die or she’ll become something else. By the looks of the woman’s companions; a soldier trained to kill on command.
“I’ll come with,” she eventually said, the words scraping against her throat like broken glass. She wasn’t quite sure if she was agreeing to survive or die in a different way but from her point of view, sharp eyes boring into her, there really was no choice at all. The woman nodded, sharp and absolute, but didn’t pull her back up yet. “When I pull you up you will not resist. If you do, you will not be given a second chance at surviving the night,” the woman said matter of factly. She swallowed, holding the woman’s eyes before nodding.
In a swift movement she pulls me back on the crate and lets go of me. The woman studies her as she steadies herself, her entire body trembling, head light from the adrenaline. For a moment she’s scared that her body betraying her like this is enough reason for the woman to kill her, but instead the woman gestures for her to go ahead, sharp eyes trained on her every move.
Slowly Kiki took a step to where they’d come from, movements feeling almost robotic as she dragged herself down crate by crate until she landed on the ground, the woman following closely behind. Her muscles tensed as they got closer to the three other hooded figures. More eyes trained on her, sharp, assessing, and one pair from an older face, furious as they look at the woman behind me.
He says something, or more like demands something, in the language I don’t speak. He sounds angry but controlled, the venom in his tone clear but making no move other than that. The woman behind me responds with an air of cold authority, clearly not wanting to waste time on whatever objections the man had given.
He says something again and the woman replies in the same measured tone before turning to the other two figures. New words have barely left the woman’s mouth before the two move at Kiki. She didn’t get a chance to move before the hilt of a sword hit her temple and she crumbled to the ground.