Emiliana read the note as soon as the Sundren Comfort staff member handed it to her. The staffer was politely thanked, and the Legionnaire returned to the guests - Trevor Lecarde and Winter Brennan - with whom she had been conversing for the past hour.
Briefly, they had discussed Emiliana's recent encounter with Ruby Heartstone. The vampire had arrived at the door to Room Three, and she had caught Emiliana unarmored and unwarded - as one might expect a soldier to be when in the confines of her suite. Ruby had warned Emiliana not to contact her across-the-hallway neighbor, Dain Tornbrook, but the warning went unheeded. The magical gemstones upon a ring were touched, and Emiliana's quick, urgent message brought the paladin to the top floor of the inn within a matter of moments. Ruby was misted, and Emiliana quietly assured Dain that she doubted Ruby would return.
Emiliana was wrong.
Hours later after receiving the note, the Legionnaire stumbled to her mirror and inspected the handiwork the vampire had left upon her delicate skin. Ruby had not been kind as she deeply drank the young woman's blood; the vampire had not been kind as she ripped her fangs from Emiliana's skin. The telltale scars would forever mar her previously unblemished skin, and the vampire's predatory words still echoed in her ears: "This shall be a good way to leave the paladin a message. If I cannot get to him, I will get to those close to him."
The next afternoon, when she finally roused herself from bed, the tailor fashioned herself a stylish collar insert for her armor. The insert hid the puncture marks well-enough, although she expected it would not completely fool the people from whom she most wanted to keep what had happened.
Soft footfalls alert to her presence as she nonchalantly makes her way up the stairs to the second floor of the Sundren Comfort. A hood covers her face, and what shows of her face is covered in makeup. Her skin looks dark, and her hair has been lightened. She wears no armor, only dressed in a simple outfit of black pants and a black tunic. She is not worried about being discovered, being currently undetectable and disguised.
She reaches her destination, and pauses in front of room one. She leans over to gently press an ear against the door and spends a few moments to listen within. After detecting no movement, she crosses the hall and repeats the process with the door to room three. After growing satisfied that she has heard no movement from either room, she reaches to her belt and pulls out a dagger.
The blade shines in the lighted hallway for a moment, and she brings it up to her mouth to smile at her distorted reflection. Then, she gets to work. It takes a few minutes of precise movements, and she makes sure to keep her keen senses alerted to any new noises. When finished, she puts the dagger away and surveys her work. With another satisfied smile, she leaves the hallway and descends the stairs and exits the inn.
The next time Emiliana goes to enter her room, she would spot a neatly carved message on her door.
The Legionnaire returned to her suite long after most of Sundren had gone to sleep. Her hours were never constant; she patrolled during the daytime, and she patrolled during the nighttime. Criminals were observant, and staying unpredictable in her patrol routines worked to her advantage.
The corridor provided just enough light for her to insert her key into the lock of her door without problem. It wasn't until the door was opened and the light from her chamber illuminated the wooden surface that Emiliana saw the scratched phrase left for her.
You will regret being with him.
Her eyes narrowed upon the words, and her lips thoughtfully pursed. Who would have cause to leave such a warning? Who would be bold enough to vandalize a Legionnaire's home? Emiliana's mind conjured a healthy arrangement of possible suspects, and almost all were eliminated one by one. Ultimately, and for all her investigative training, Emiliana could not exactly pinpoint the culprit - but she had some educated guesses all the same.
Snowflakes gracefully landed upon her armor and clung to her blond tresses. Near her, the mindless, bloodthirsty vampires that usually patrolled in front of the gate to the elaborate manor ignored her invisible presence.
The Legionnaire pinned a neatly written note to the gate, and then she spoke aloud to no one in particular. "...two can play this game, Ruby..."
I do not belong to him, nor does he belong to me. Your efforts, much like the rest of your attempts, were in vain. You owe me a new door all the same; I will accept your ashes as payment.
She paused, surveying her handiwork, when the familiar crunch of boots sounded near the gate.
She had ordered a new door soon after Ruby's defacement, and the new wooden entryway would be delivered and installed upon the morrow. Before she sought her sleep, Emiliana traced her fingertips against the ominous scrawled warning, and a cold smile curved her lips. Agreeing with a vampiress was not an easy thing for her to accept, but even though the reasons were different, the Legionnaire did feel regret.
The elegant dagger glinted in the dim light of the hallway as Emiliana carefully etched her own words into the door that would be replaced while she was conducting her next patrol.
A simple note is left on the door of Emiliana Blackwell's room. It reads:
How does it feel to know you could not save him? How does it feel to not be able to do your duty as a Legionaire? His blood is on your hands now. And it will happen again, and again, and again.
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