Chapter Forty-Two
The Unmarked: Book One
Table of Contents:
[Prologue] [Ch.1] [Ch.2] [Ch.3] [Ch.4] [Ch.5] [Ch.6] [Ch.7] [Ch.8] [Ch.9] [Ch.10] [Ch.11] [Ch.12] [Ch.13] [Ch.14] [Ch.15] [Ch.16] [Ch.17] [Ch.18] [Ch.19] [Ch.20] [Ch. 21] [Ch.22] [Ch.23] [Ch.24] [Ch.25] [Ch.26] [Ch.27] [Ch.28] [Ch.29] [Ch.30] [Ch.31] [Ch.32] [Ch.33] [Ch.34] [Ch.35] [Ch.36] [Ch.36] [Ch.37] [Ch.38] [Ch.39] [Ch.40] [Ch.41]
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Scarlet.
It rained.
The constant, gentle thrum was hypnotic. The smell of wet earth heavy in the air. Scarlet stood gripping the thick iron bars of her cage, wet clothes plastered to her body, goosebumps coating her skin. She shivered, and her stomach cramped from too many meals missed.
Scarlet didn’t know what to do. Dawn had been taken the night before and still wasn’t back. A series of worst-case scenarios played out in her mind. What had they wanted with Dawn? Had they tried to hurt her? Abuse her? Had Dawn tried to escape, and been killed for it?
What would happen to Scarlet if Dawn was dead?
Scarlet’s stomach dropped at the thought and she shut her eyes.
No. I can’t think like this.
But ignoring the thoughts was difficult. Ever since Dawn had been taken, no soldier had come to let them out of their cage for their daily duties. Amber said that something of significance must have happened for them to have been neglected for the day.
Scarlet just knew that “something” had to do with Dawn.
Everything of significance always had something to do with Dawn.
A hand placed itself on Scarlet’s shoulder and the gesture made her flinch in surprise. Her cheeks grew red at her reaction. It was Amber.
“Your sister will be okay” Amber said. Her dark brown eyes held an amicable warmth to them. The girl was tall and skinny and had tan skin that was darker than Dawn’s. There was no doubt the girl’s blood ran in the Southern Territories.
Scarlet gave an awkward smile. She tried to receive the words as an encouragement, though they probably came from a place of pity. Scarlet felt pitiful: drenched in the rain and staring out through the iron railings of her cage. Helpless. Lost. Afraid.
“How did you two find yourselves all the way out here?” Amber asked. Scarlet let out a breath and crossed her arms tightly over her chest. A sense of confliction weighed itself down her. Scarlet wanted nothing more than to tell someone the whole story of what had happened since she’d left Ardus. But she held her tongue. It was probably better if she kept most of what they were doing a secret. That’s what Dawn would have done. They were going to Tariah, weren’t they? And these were followers of Jeziah. If Scarlet told Amber and the others about the journey, then she would be painting herself and Dawn as the enemy. All trust would be lost.
“It’s a long story” she simply said.
“Does it look like we have anything better to do?” Amber said, and Scarlet noticed that Jade and Robin had eager expressions on their faces. She bit her lip. The urge to talk about what had happened was strong. She needed to talk about her journey to someone, for her own sanity.
Maybe she could tell the story. She just needed to be careful with certain…details.
“Alright” she said, letting the word out as a nervous breath. “I just…um… don’t know where to start.
Amber smiled. “Maybe start by sitting down?”
Scarlet gave an awkward chuckle. She sat on the ground cross-legged; Amber, Robin and Jade sitting around her like little children. Scarlet rubbed her hands on her thighs.
“Well, alright. Um, I was studying in Ardus. And Dawn was back home, in Aura. Lilly had gone on a mission for several months and hadn’t taken Dawn with her. She didn’t even tell Dawn where she was going. Dawn never knew anything about the Unmarked, or Lilly’s role in all of this. Anyways, Dawn was getting worried because Lilly had delayed her return. Then, on the night of the festival of the Marked, Dawn went back home, where she’d been living with Lilly. There was a package left on her doorstep. Apparently, Lilly had left a key for it. Dawn was able to open the package and inside there were documents. One of the documents was a letter to Dawn from Lilly. The letter was a call for Dawn to join the Unmarked. There was also a warning in the letter.
Dawn would be hunted down for being affiliated with someone tied to the Unmarked. And by default, I would be as well.
Well...the governor…” she continued slowly, taking a moment to phrase the story in such a way that wouldn’t incriminate Dawn as an enemy to the Unmarked, “…found out about what happened to Lilly, about who she was. So, he arrested Dawn, and threw her into prison. Dawn thought she was going to die. And then, out of the blue, Wolfe... Wolfe Bloodwood rescued her. He helped her escape from the prison, from Aura”.
At this point Amber, and the other two, were completely enraptured by the narrative, particularly at the mention of Wolfe, even though Scarlet knew her telling of the story wasn’t very good. Dawn would have told it better. But despite her stammering and awkward pauses, she continued.
“Dawn didn’t know that Wolfe had known Lilly. He hadn’t told her anything. He just helped her escape the prison. That’s it. They travelled all the way to Greywell. And then, when it was time to board the ship to Ardus, Wolfe disappeared on her. So, Dawn went without him. She found me in Ardus. She told me everything that had happened and…”
And that was the part where Scarlet didn’t know how to finish. How could she explain that they had travelled towards the place where Lilly;s maps were marked as unsafe, the place Jeziah himself had told them not to go... She didn’t want to paint Dawn as a traitor. She didn’t want to paint herself as a traitor. She took the moment to think. What could she say? She let herself think, and she hoped that her silence wasn’t too long, or too suspicious.
“Anyways” she said after a moment that felt too long. “We began to travel through the Torrem Mountains. We knew that there were Unmarked camps here…” she said carefully.
Yes, that much was still true.
“And then we came across a patrol.”
Amber’s brows instantly furrowed and Scarlet’s heart jumped to her throat. Her blood began to pound in her ears.
She knows I’m lying she thought to herself in a panic.
Amber spoke. “That isn’t good. The patrols are getting bolder. Drifting further away from the camps”.
Scarlet let out a long, quiet exhale. “Yes, well, we weren’t expecting to come across anyone. They arrested us right away and brought us here”.
“Why would they want Dawn?” Amber asked.
Scarlet swallowed a lump in her throat. “I...I don’t know” she said. It was the truth, and yet the answer felt dishonest, somehow. “I don’t know” she repeated, trying to calm herself. She was still hugging herself, though her nails were digging into her flesh and she hoped Amber hadn’t noticed.
“Have you ever met Jeziah?” she asked quickly, hoping the question would divert the conversation from her.
Amber’s expression lightened at the sound of the man’s name. “No” she said, though she didn’t seem disappointed by the prospect. “But I feel as though I’ve known him for a long, long time”.
Scarlet didn’t understand. “What do you mean?” She asked in a small voice, still waiting for her racing heart to still itself.
“Well,” Amber started, “we have a book. The book of his story. Of what he’s done, what he stands for, who he is. The Book of Books they call it”.
Scarlet tried to hide the surprise from her face. She knew that name. It was the book Jeziah had given it to Dawn. The one Dawn had been searching for.
Why would Dawn want a book about Jeziah? Scarlet wondered.
Amber continued.
“Jeziah also sends letters to the camps, explaining what he wills for us to do”. Amber paused. “There was a prophecy” she said, “from the old days. Even before Tariah. The prophecy proclaimed that one day Jeziah would return in the flesh and bring a new kingdom with him”.
“Jessiah wants to overthrow Tariah?” Scarlet said, not hiding the shock from her voice. Proclaiming such things labeled one as a Heretic and Blasphemer. Scarlet had grown up learning that it was forbidden to say anything against Tariah’s rule, even as a joke. People were brutally executed for speaking such heresies.
Amber smiled a gentle smile and shook her head slowly. “No, that’s the misunderstanding. The misunderstanding that even the rulers before Jeziah had. A misunderstanding that led the rulers of old to kill him”.
Scarlet furrowed her brows at that statement.
“Jeziah doesn’t want to overthrow Tariah’s Queendom” Amber continued, “If anything, the corruption of her system will eventually lead to its own destruction. No, Jeziah’s aim is to save people from the damage of that inevitable destruction. It’s to give light to those who are willing to accept it, so when the eternal darkness falls, we are not lost to it. He strives to foster a community of unity of those who serve under him. To be a follower of Jeziah has nothing to do with how “worthy” you are. You don’t earn his favor to be accepted. You just... are”.
Something within Scarlet resonated with the words Amber spoke. She felt pulled by them, like she had felt pulled by the presence of Jeziah himself. It was difficult to understand what Dawn found so foul about the man. It seemed nice to think of a world where no one had to fight to be at the top. But what is a fair system?
Scarlet tried to imagine what it would be like to live in a world where people didn’t have to earn their worth. A world where people were accepted simply because they accepted Jeziah’s rule. An acceptance, for an acceptance, it seemed. Scarlet imagined a world where people were deemed Chosen and Worthy simply… Because. Scarlet didn’t know how she felt about it. It certainly would be nice for some people, those who had to live in dire conditions because they were not Marked as worthy members. But Scarlet couldn’t help questioning if the system was fair.
All her life, Scarlet had had to work hard for everything. There was a sense of accomplishment in that. Scarlet had earned her place as a member of Erom. She had earned her apprenticeship with Rowan. To simply be given a life of luxury for having believed in a cause... it seemed kind of unfair. Silly. Why would Jeziah want lazy followers?
But then she glanced around. These people. They were starved. They were in hiding. Their lives were on the line every single day. This was no life of luxury. If anything... it was terrible. Would she even want to be a follower of Jeziah in these conditions? Dawn’s words resonated in her mind.
One good deed cannot redeem a man from a lifetime of evil.
Did Jeziah know that his people were locked up, mistreated, starved, raped? Did he care?
She voiced her questions out loud.
Amber let out a tired breath. “I’ve been asking myself that question quite a lot recently.... why would Jeziah allow his people to be treated this way? Why would he allow us to suffer so much? I don’t always know. Sometimes, Jeziah, His Essence, allows these things to happen so that we learn, we grow, we become stronger. In a sense, it is a test of our faithfulness, of our perseverance to the cause. I also remind myself that my hope is not in this world. Jeziah will establish his Kingdom one day, and it’ll be a kingdom of Light. No more darkness. No more pain. The suffering is temporary. To produce steadfastness”. Amber smiled. “Maybe Jeziah allowed this to happen so that I could meet you”.
Scarlet didn’t say anything. She was tempted to share her encounter with Jeziah, how he had healed her from her sleep. From Death. She wanted to share about how he’d opened up his home to them and fed them. Scarlet still had difficulty grasping how Jeziah could let his people be mistreated in this way. But she wanted to understand. She wanted to see.
The line between what is good and what is evil is drawn by the intentions of the heart… His words whispered at the back of her mind.
“How do we get to Jeziah’s Kingdom?” Scarlet asked.
“You ask good questions” Amber replied.
A small smile crept on Scarlet’s lips.
“This Kingdom” Amber began, her eyes filled with a sudden wonder, “it’s different from what you and I understand. This world is different from what we understand. You need to look at it this way: When you shine a light of an object, you have the object itself, that’s what we call the Physical Realm. Then you have the shadow it casts, which is called the Shadow Realm. That’s where the darkness resides. Then you have the actual light that shines. That is called Essence’s Realm. That’s where the Kingdom is. There will be a time when the Physical Realm will fade away. Usually that is when we die, but it will also be in a time when things simply get consumed by the darkness. The place of light, that is where the kingdom is”.
“And how does everything become consumed by darkness?” Scarlet asked quietly, “what does that mean?”
“You already see it happening” Amber replied. “The Rayless Woods are a physical manifestation of the Shadow Realm, and they’re spreading. Soon, they’ll consume everything in darkness. Though not those who are of the Light”
“And how is it that they are spreading?” Scarlet asked, curiosity and dread suddenly mingling in the pit of her stomach.
Amber’s face became grim. “Evil. The more evil prevails in the hearts of man, the more the Woods will spread”.
Scarlet felt cold. She’d been in that darkness. She’d known its evil.
“And how does someone become of the Light?” she asked in a small voice.
“Well, you live by Light. The kingdom is a place that will be, but it is also a place that already is. It’s a place of righteousness, and peace, and joy. And so, living by the Light means living in righteousness and peace and joy. This kingdom once was, before man allowed the corruption of the Shadow Realm to enter the world, and it will be, once those of the light are taken into Essence’s Realm, where there will be no more darkness to corrupt the hearts of man”.
“And so...” Scarlet asked shyly, “how do I become someone of the light?” She needed an answer. She couldn’t go back to being consumed again.
Amber smiled. “You turn away from the ways of darkness, and you pursue the kingdom of Light”
“That’s it?” Scarlet asked.
“Yes, that’s it”.
Scarlet didn’t know what to make of that. It all seemed so strange, and yet, it didn’t. It was Jeziah’s light, wasn’t it, that had brought her out of the slumbering darkness? The darkness that had come upon her when she’d gone into the Woods…The Shadow Realm.
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Their conversation transitioned into a contemplative silence. Though Scarlet didn’t feel awkward as she usually did in such quiet. She was grateful for the space to sit with her thoughts, and she suspected that Amber had given her that space. Scarlet allowed the rhythmic stream of rainfall to lull her into a meditative state. She felt almost at peace…
Someone spoke her name.
Scarlet’s eyelids flew open and she realized that she must have dozed off. Everyone in the cage sat straighter and regarded the man that stood on the other side of the cell door. He scanned the prisoners. He was an older man, probably old enough to be her father. He had salt and pepper hair and tired eyes. His gaze fell on her and Scarlet’s heart lurched up to her throat. Her entire body seized when he spoke her name her name again.
“Yes?” she squeaked.
“You’ve been summoned” he announced. Confusion came over Scarlet and all feelings of peace vanished from within her. Summoned? She looked back to the others, unable to read their expressions. Amber always looked stern, while the other two simply looked lost. Did people usually get summoned? She looked to the guard again, unsure as how to reply. He just stood there.
“Okay?” she said in a small voice.
At her words, the guard took his keys and opened the cell door. She cast one last uncertain glance at the others, who shrugged, then stepped out of the cage. Her heart thundered inside of her chest, and despite the chilling rain, her hands were clammy. The guard closed the door with a clank, followed by a click.
“Follow me” he commanded.
Scarlet had never felt so tense. She shivered from fright and chill. She followed the guard, not daring to say anything out loud, though her mind screaming at where this man could possibly be taking her. Part of her urged her to run, but her eyes quickly fell to the sword at the man’s side. She curled her hands into fists to steady herself. She wouldn’t make it five steps before being cut down. She followed the guard through a maze of brown tents. From time to time, she saw children walking about, wearing brown tunics, carrying either linens or buckets or other supplies. They were Unmarked, though they did not look as ragged as the other prisoners.
Scarlet was led down the path of tents until the man she had been following stopped. Her heart felt like it was going to explode. Her body was drenched in rain, and she shivered, though it wasn’t from the cold. She was terrified.
Amber’s words, one of the first things she had said to Scarlet and Dawn upon their arrivals, left an echo in her mind: they rape us. Scarlet thought she was going to be sick. She looked the man over: tall, strong of build, old... Scarlet looked away. He would easily overpower her.
Scarlet had to fight back tears. She should run. Getting killed would be better than this. Wouldn’t it? She would lose her dignity either way, but at least she would be undefiled.
But Scarlet couldn’t get herself to move. Her muscles felt both tense and too loose to move.
What am I going to do? Scarlet pleaded with herself.
The man opened the tent flap. “In” he commanded.
Scarlet obeyed. Why had she obeyed? She walked into the tent. It was warm, though she felt no comfort from being sheltered from the rain. If anything, the space and its heat felt stifling. It smelled of charcoal. But the smell was so strong. Its thickness crawled into the back of her throat and she felt herself gagging. The man gestured to a cot. “Sit” he said.
Scarlet obeyed again. She sat stiffly. Her back straight. Her legs folded one over the other, her hands clasped too tightly on her thighs. She wished she was back in that foul cage. She tried to steady her breathing. The man moved, and she flinched. He regarded her. “Stay here” he said and walked out of the tent.
Why did he leave? She hated not knowing. She hated waiting. What horrors had the man gone to fetch outside of the tent? Maybe she could run. Maybe this was her chance. But she couldn’t move. She glanced around the tent. It was small, but large enough to stand in. There was nothing but the cot, a chamber pot, and a small wooden table with a simple wooden chair. It was the table that grabbed her attention. Not because of its aesthetic, but because of what was on the table itself. First, she noticed the loaf of bread and the jug with what could have been water. Scarlet’s mouth was dry as sandpaper. And if she had any liquid left, she might have salivated. Her body screamed to go for the food and drink, but she stayed put. Her mind’s fears overpowering her fleshly desires. She would not touch these people’s things. So, she distracted herself from the food and drink with the sight of the jar of ink and the pen resting inside of it. This sight too, caused her body to yearn. She yearned for the pen between her fingers and the glide of ink on parchment. It had been so long since she’d made art. Her hands, which were still balled tightly into fists, itched to take the pen and draw. But she remained still. She thought about how long it had been since she’d made art. She almost laughed and cried at the memory. The last thing she had drawn were the emblems for the regions of Erom. Master Rowan always made her draw those when he had nothing else for her to do. It was his way of keeping her busy. She would always try to hide from the man, so he wouldn’t ask for more copies. Now she would have done anything to be back at the Athenaeum to draw those emblems over and over and over again.
Order, industry, knowledge, strength, dignity, honor, loyalty, justice, and integrity.
The sound of the tent flap fluttering open caused Scarlet to jump up in her seat. Her mind was torn from her musings and her body was on the alert: cheeks flushed, heart thundering. She cocked her head to the side when she saw someone familiar walk inside.
“Dawn?” she asked.
Her sister walked over to her and knelt by the cot. Scarlet didn’t recognize her. She had changed clothing. She wore a velvety cloak made of deep purple and silver embroidery along the seams. Why did Dawn have such a nice cloak?
Dawn took her hands in hers. Her skin was warm, and Scarlet got a good look at her sister. Her hair was braided back neatly and Scarlet could swear she smelled lavender on her sister’s skin.
“Did you take a bath?” she asked, feeling foolish at asking such a question. They were in a prison camp. They were prisoners. Prisoners didn’t take baths. But Dawn grinned and nodded.
“And you can too” she said.
Scarlet was dumbfounded.
Dawn let go of Scarlet’s hands and stood. “These people, they’ll take care of us” she announced.
“Take care of us” Scarlet repeated, the words feeling strange in her mouth.
“Yes” Dawn said. “I’ve gained their trust. Well, I’m about to. But once I do what they’ve asked me to do, they’ll keep us safe here”.
Scarlet couldn’t believe what she was hearing! Only moments ago, she had been locked up in a filthy cage. Now she was supposed to be kept safe by the people who starved, tortured, and killed innocent people? Scarlet throat felt tight, and her stomach churned.
“Safe?” was all that she could mutter.
“Yes. They and I, we want the same thing. I can give it to them. And you can help too! They need an artist. If you agree to draw for them, this tent, the food, the desk, the bed, it’ll all be yours. Well, ours. And as long as we prove ourselves to be useful, they’ll shelter us. No one knows about the location of this camp. The people who are hunting us can’t get to us here. We’ll finally be able to rest”.
Scarlet did not recognize who the person standing in front of her was. What in the world was Dawn thinking? These people were evil! Just a day ago, Dawn had hated them. Now she was working for them?
And what exactly can you offer them, Dawn?
Scarlet thought back to her conversation with her sister last night, before she had been taken. Yes, Dawn was very good at getting people to do what she wanted, but this was backwards. They were the ones getting her to do what they wanted. Was Dawn only playing along? She had to be.
Scarlet couldn’t get herself to speak. She couldn’t work for these people. She couldn’t. They were horrible. Vile. Evil.
“Will you draw for them? Be their artist?” Dawn asked, and for some reason, Scarlet found herself nodding. And she hated herself for it. But her mind couldn’t rationalize it. A grin spread across Dawn’s lips and she squeezed Scarlet’s hand.
“Great” she said, “you’re the best, Scar”.
But Scar felt like the worst human being alive. Her sister stood up. The cloak made her look fierce, elegant. She pulled the hood over her head.
“The man who brought you here, his name is Rain. He’s been appointed to watch over you. He’ll explain to you your tasks”.
“You’re leaving?” Scarlet asked.
“Yes, I leave for my task tomorrow morning. I need to meet with Corbin to make the proper arrangements”.
Corbin? Arrangements?
“How long will you be away?” She asked, feeling a rising terror at being left alone here… with that man.
“Not long” Dawn said. “A day, at most”.
She turned to leave. “Be good, Scar” she said. “And be happy. We’re finally free” she said and left the tent.
With that, Scarlet was left alone, feeling more like a prisoner now than she had in that cage.
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