Vespertine

Quinn Vespertine stood on the edge of the Tenaten Building in Aski, the seventh city. Lights glowed beneath.

She took a deep breath of the cool air. She liked the weather tonight. Fog-drenched, yet not too chilly. The mist felt familiar on her bare arms, but unfortunately, she was in no position to be enjoying it.

Okay, so maybe stood wasn’t the best word to describe her current situation. More like hovered. Or dangled. At any rate, she wasn’t on the edge of the building by choice.

She managed a half-smile at the sorcerer who was casually holding her in place by way of magic, hands outstretched. “This isn’t very comfortable,” she called out to him. He was maybe three yards away from her, a safe distance away on the spacious rooftop.

“I’m not sure I care,” he responded cheerfully, flicking his wrist so that she tilted sideways, all of her sleek brown hair cascading downwards. She groaned, feeling her stomach churn. She hated being tossed around. It gave her motion sickness like no other.

“Well, what are you going to do with me?” She asked, in the same light tone.

He tapped his chin with a finger—she dipped slightly. “A good question, now that you mention it. I think I’m going to throw you off this building. Maybe burn you while I’m at it. Go down in flames, you know? You can brag in the afterlife that you had a glorious death.”

She made a face, which was surprisingly easy behind the half-mask that concealed her identity. “No thanks. Got anything more creative?”

“Well,” he mused. “If you don’t want something spectacular, maybe I’ll just turn you into a fish.”

She smirked. “You can’t turn me into a fish. That’s not within your range of powers.”

He raised an eyebrow. “So you’ve done your research, have you?”

She shrugged as best she could with the air binding her arms. “I’ll admit, with the huge folder I amassed, I figured assassinating you would be easier.”

He laughed mirthfully. “Well, if I’m honest, it’s never gonna be easy for a mere mortal to kill me.”

She just grinned.

A second later, she tumbled on the roof, rubbing her sore arms. Araminth, the sorcerer who had bound her a second ago, was now staring forward in shock. Blood had begun to blossom through his impeccable suit. Then he fell forward.

Salvatore Vespertine strode forward, shiny black pistol hanging loose at his side. “Didn’t I tell you to wait for me?”

Quinn rolled her eyes. “Didn’t I tell you to go to the bathroom before the mission?”

He snorted and shook his head. “Maybe I should’ve let him throw you off the roof.”

She scrambled to her feet, brushing off dust and retrieving her staff and knife from where they lay next to Araminth. He had confiscated them as soon as he caught her. She double-checked his pulse, to ensure that he was dead.

“Cold as your heart,” she reported, as Salvatore crouched down beside her.

“Oh dear little sis, I know you love me,” he teased, grasping Araminth by the shirt collar. “Let’s get him in the truck.”

They descended down the stairs with Salvatore carrying Araminth as Quinn followed, making sure they left no blood spatters. When they reached Sal’s pickup, parked in the shadowed spot next to the building, she opened the trunk and Sal dumped Araminth in the back. Then Salvatore shut the trunk and got in the truck. She hopped into shotgun as Sal started the car. “So where to now?”

“Home,” he responded, without taking his eyes off the road.

She frowned. “Home? But Araminth was just the first. You get like, three of them every time you go on a mission.”

“Araminth was also the least dangerous,” he replied, seeming to choose his words carefully. “And you’re not ready for the other two.”

She bit her lip, restraining from protesting. Even so, a whine slipped out. “But you said-”

“I said you could come with me on one real mission. Technically, every target is a separate mission. So now you go home.”

He turned onto a familiar road, one that was close to their house. She pouted. “Fine,” she muttered. “I mean, I always do great on the practice runs, and I’m basically an adult, but I guess it’s fine if you want to treat me like an incompetent child.”

“Exactly,” he agreed amicably, pulling into their driveway. “Night, Quinn.”

She grudgingly climbed out of the car, and then softened a little as he smiled at her. “Night, Sal. Stay safe.”

“Always do,” he responded, backing out again.

She watched him disappear into the murky night before punching in the code on their door. She slipped inside quietly, as if any noise she made could disturb the silent air. Then she turned on the water and undressed, rubbing her arms as she stared blankly into the mirror.

So that was how it felt to face a sorcerer.

She had been subjected to various kinds of challenges, some more twisted than others. Compared to her typical training, being thrown around in the air was a breeze (no pun intended). But it was the only experience she’d ever had with real magic. She had to admit she was slightly unsettled by how easily he had caught her off guard, how simply he had captured her, despite how ready she thought she’d been. Just a swipe of his hand and she could’ve been annihilated.

She felt oddly light at the thought, a little surreal. She conceded internally that perhaps it was better that Sal took on the other two by himself.

After her shower, she stretched out in her bed, listening to the rare sounds on the street, hoping to catch the sound of the truck pulling in. But all she heard was two briefly passing cars, neither of them slowing.

Less and less people lived in Aski these days. She choked back a bitter laugh. Mortal town, that’s what Aski was. And nobody wanted that. Not even the mortals themselves. People moved out first chance they got. They wanted to get to the big cities, maybe meet a nice mage. Then their kids would at least have the possibility of magical ability, and then they could die happy knowing that their children weren’t mortal. God forbid.

She tossed and turned a couple more times, but her eyes refused to shut. She didn’t like sleeping in an empty house. It wasn’t that she didn’t feel safe, but more that she felt restless. After another couple minutes of lying wide awake, she swung her legs out of bed.

Quinn pulled on a pair of jeans and a white, fitted t-shirt before slipping into her leather jacket. It was getting a bit small, but it had sentimental value. Her mother had given it to her on her birthday last year. Quinn smiled fondly as she shoved on her boots.

A year ago, the memories would’ve made her bitter. Now, they made her strong. Flashes of her mother’s laugh and her father’s warm embraces reminded her why she was still here. Why she fought.

She stepped back outside and mounted her bike, pedaling away under the cover of darkness. It didn’t take her long to reach the town through the forest trail, rapidly slicing through familiar routes.

She hopped off her bike in front of a pretty coffee shop, one of the only stores on the street still open. She leaned it against the rack, but didn’t bother locking it up. It was late, and nobody would want such a scrappy piece of metal, anyways.

The little bell tinkled merrily as she walked in. Leo, the owner, was reading a book behind the counter. He looked up as she entered. “Hey, Quinn!” He greeted warmly.

“Three ham sandwiches with peanut butter,” she responded, grinning. Everyone was required to give the code, just in case an outsider was impersonating him or her. This month’s had been chosen by Salvatore, because a) he loved ham sandwiches, b) he loved peanut butter, and c) he gleefully concluded that the concoction was disgusting enough that no customer would ever accidentally order it.

He nodded and went back to his reading. She walked towards the door in the very back of the shop, and opened it. The atmosphere that greeted her as she descended the stairs was completely different than the empty, docile shop she left behind.

It was loud, as always, music throbbing throughout the room. People were gathered, laughing, talking, drinking, gambling, and playing games. Past the main room, there were people reclining in the cinema watching T.V. Quinn knew that behind that room, there was a safe bedroom full of bunk beds. She had crashed there often enough.

Riana spotted her first. “Quinn!” She called, waving her over. Quinn crossed the room and took a seat next to Riana, who was reclining on a leather couch. But not before smiling sweetly at her companion, Marissa.

Marissa was beautiful, in Quinn’s opinion. Smart, capable, brave, and noble. She was the epitome of a hero.

She also had an extremely hard time admitting that she actually liked Quinn. Or at least, Quinn hoped. There was a very real possibility that Marissa did in fact despise her, but she figured that until it was confirmed she would go on pretending like they were friends.

Marissa rolled her gorgeous green eyes. “Dammit. And here I was thinking you might’ve been killed on your first mission.”

“Almost was, actually,” Quinn admitted, taking a sip of Riana’s soda. “Sal saved me.”

Riana patted her shoulder consolingly. “Don’t worry. Most of us almost died on our firsts. A couple of us actually did.”

“Not me,” Marissa shrugged. “Not Salvatore, either.” She looked at Quinn critically. “Honestly, you two have nothing in common beyond your last name.”

Quinn laughed. “And you love us both.”

“I do love Sal, I’ll admit. Everyone does. You, however, are far from bestowed with my love,” she clarified.

“Ah, so it’s still possible.”

“Speaking of love, though, where is my boyfriend?” Riana asked, looking around.

Quinn shrugged. “Sal wouldn’t let me come with him on the other two missions. So I guess he’s probably decapitating someone, somewhere.”

Riana sighed. “Of course. I swear, Quinn, I tried to tell him you were ready. I said, ’Sal, my lovely, adorable, idiotic dear, I have trained Quinn personally. She could kick any old sorcerer’s ass. Let her live.’ And then he said that’s what he was trying to do, and that he loved you and needed to protect you, and that even though you’re about to be seventeen you’re still his little sister, and—“

“We get it,” Marissa interrupted. “You tried.”

Quinn laughed and leaned comfortably against Riana’s shoulder. She felt warm, all of a sudden. Safe. This was the place she loved, the people who had become her family after her parents died. And slowly, amidst Riana and Marissa bickering and gossiping, and the beautiful sounds of life in the underground town, she managed to fall asleep.