Black smoke rose into the morning sky from the smoldering remains of castle Razban's west wing. Crackling coals slowly died out under the relentless assault of the makeshift fire brigade. Von was one of many servants roused in the dead of night to combat the blaze. Now, with their foe vanquished, many of the servants were retiring to their chambers. However, Von lingered, fixated on the blackened stone of the west wing. On what was now buried underneath. A dark shape passed overhead, and Von looked up to see a crow alight atop a battlement weathervane. Von signaled the crow telling it to leave, and it took flight and disappeared from view over the battlements.
"You alright?" A passing servant asked.
"Y-yeah of course, just tired." Von replied.
"Well, let's get some rest. The Quartermaster gave us an hour's mercy before shift start." The servant commented. Turning back towards the servant's quarters, Von's eyes locked onto a figure standing in the middle of the west wing courtyard. There stood a small girl, with black hair, no older than twelve winters. She was turned away, turned towards the west wing. Towards their secret that was hidden there.
***
Sleep evaded Von. Lying awake, his mind wandered back to the west wing, over and over. The rest of the day had been uneventful, hardwood floors polished, linens washed, and much gossip. Rumors abounded of foreign saboteurs, disgruntled nobles, and forgetful servants. No one knew for certain. An investigation had yet to begin, the ruins had been too hot during the day. But that was no longer the case. The new moon gave little light, and the autumn chill flowed over the castle grounds sapping the remaining embers of their strength. This was Von's only chance. His only opportunity to bury the truth. I have to check. Von sighed. Slowly and careful to not make a sound he reached down the rough front left bed post. Finding a small crack, he pulled with his nails. A thin piece of wood came off, and in the hollow behind it was a small dagger. His resolve steeled, he took the blade and eased himself out of his bed. The creaking sound was almost deafening in the silent room. Curses! Von thought.
"That you Von?" His roommate whispered into the darkness.
"Yes, Fitz. It's only the two of us in here, go back to sleep." Von whispered back.
"Can't, I've been trying all night. Are you going somewhere?" Fitz replied.
Von thoughts raced, creating an excuse.
"Keep trying, lots of work tomorrow, we'll probably be clearing the west wing. I'll be back." Von moved towards the door.
"It's after curfew!" Fitz hissed into the darkness. "I'm not covering for you if something happens, not again." Fitz whispered after him.
"Go to sleep Fitz, I'll be back soon. I'm just going to the privy." Von said as he slipped into the hallway. Dim candlelight flickered, barely touching the wall. No voices. No footsteps. Von crept along the wall towards the ruined west wing. He moved like ash—quiet, slow, unnoticed. Being in the southern point of the eight pointed star castle, Von had to cross the southwestern wing before he reached his goal. He would have to skirt guard patrols and the watchmen on the walls. But he had long memorised the patrol patterns, so avoiding them should prove simple. As he was about to enter the west wing courtyard, he heard voices and footsteps approaching. Torchlight was growing stronger from around the next turn. Von quickly surveyed his surroundings, a lone darkened doorway was his only refuge. Von tucked himself into the doorway just as two guards rounded the corner.
"And I said 'If you ever look at me like that again, I'll knock you!'" One of the guards recounted.
"No you didn', you don't 'ave the guts." A second guard replied.
"I do! Rufus wouldn' know what 'it 'em! He would..." The guards' voices trailed off as they continued on their patrol. Von finally inhaled, starved lungs greedily devouring air. Patrol patterns must have changed, that's not good. He thought. Moving into the courtyard, Von could only hope he wasn't too late. Surely no one has found it, no alarm has been raised. Heart pounding, he crossed the courtyard. Once at the edge of the rubble he crouched low and listened. He heard no shouts of alarm, he had made it unnoticed. Von started to pick his way through the warm blackened rubble. The ruins were a maze of ash and marred opulence. Von couldn't make heads or tails of where he was.
"Where is it? He muttered. Even his voice sounded tired. Sighing, Von let his head droop. Underneath the soot at his feet, Von could see a faint red color.
"Is that...?" Frantically, Von began to clear away the soot revealing burned carpet. Knowing that this carpet was only in one section of the west wing, Von knew where he was. And where he must go. Stalking across the rubble with newfound determination, Von headed towards his potential doom.
"Should be around here." Von muttered, beginning to clear the blackened stone. After what felt like hours, Von moved the fateful slab. He had hoped that the fire had consumed the evidence. His hope was in vain. Reaching out from beneath the rubble was a scorched hand. The body was still there. A gasp followed by a tumble sounded from behind Von. Whirling around, Von discovered the girl from the courtyard. Rolling to a stop, the girl immediately scrambled away from Von until she was up against a pile of rubble. Her frightened eyes darted around searching for an escape. Seeing no way out, she threw up her small, weak, trembling hands.
"I-I didn't see anything!" The girl stammered. Her breathing was rapid and shallow, Von could practically hear her heart beating. This is unfortunate. Von thought. Considering his options, he calmly appraised the girl. Should I just deal with her here? No, I don't need any more bodies. Maybe I can find a use for her.
"Hey—hey, calm down. I am not going to hurt you." Von tried to sound soft. Tried. Taking a step back, Von showed his open palms and crouched down. "Are you okay? That looked like a hard fall." Von asked quietly. She glanced down at her soot-stained clothes, giving a quick nod. "That's good, my name is Von. What's your name?" Von asked.
"Miriana…" The girl hesitantly said.
"Who's out there?" A voice suddenly shouted into the ruins.
"No one's there you old coot. Let's just go." A second voice replied.
"No no, I definitely 'eard something. I'll check quick, you can stay 'ere." The first voice responded. Von could hear the clanking of light guard armor beginning to climb over the stones and charred timber. Darting forward, Von quickly scooped up the girl. She let out a stifled gasp as Von clamped his hand over her mouth. "Oi! I heard that! Whoever you are, come out now before I stick you!" The guard quickened his ascent. His lamplight was beginning to spill over the top of the mound. The only exit was past the guards, and there was little cover to be found. Seeing a piece of timber, Von darted over and placed the girl behind it. Raising a finger to his lips he motioned for the girl to be silent before he crept back into the shadows. The guard stumbled over the top of the mound, and then slid his way down the other side. He was looking towards where Von had cleared away the rubble. Von remained cloaked in the shadows to the guard's left.
"What is that…?" The guard mumbled. He took a few tentative steps forward, until the lamplight revealed the grisly arm. Realization dawning, the guard turned back toward where his companion waited. "I found some-" The blade punched through the base of the guard's skull with ease. Von caught the dead man as he sagged to the ground like a puppet with no strings. Sightless eyes gazed forward, seeing nothing forever more. Wiping the blade on the guard's uniform, Von moved towards the second guard. Keeping low, Von made his way up the mound.
"What did you say? You found what?" The other guard called out.
Almost at the top of the mound, Von took hold of a fist sized chunk of stone. Quickly standing up, Von spotted the guard directly in front of him about ten paces away. The stone flew with speed and precision, striking the man in the face before he could raise his arms. Bone crunched and blood poured from the man's mangled nose and cheek. The guard reached up with one hand to his ruined face, the other still holding his poleaxe. Seeing Von approach, the guard feebly tried to swing his weapon, but his stance was unsteady and he misjudged the distance. Catching the haft, Von pulled and the guard stumbled forward. Von's blade found its second mark in the guard's left eye. Unable to catch the guard in time, he crumpled in a clattering heap to the stone floor. Von froze, listening for any alarms. All was quiet. Looking down, Von examined his victim. A middle-aged man, one bleary unseeing eye, and red thin veins were visible on the unruined portions of his face. Sighing and lamenting his poor luck, Von reached down and grabbed a handful of the dead guard's uniform. Dragging the body over the mound of rubble proved to be quite the challenge, but Von eventually managed. Hiding the bodies was another matter altogether. Ultimately, his only option was to bury them in rubble to buy some time before they were found. Once the task was done, he went back to where the girl was hiding. She was curled into a ball exactly where he left her, head covered with her arms. Von reached out and tapped her, wide eyes looked up at him.
"Are they gone?" The girl asked hesitantly.
"Yes, I… sent them away. Now, go wash up, then straight back to your chambers. You saw nothing tonight, you were never here and neither was I. You'll get in a lot of trouble if you tell anyone. Understood?" Von spoke tersely. The girl quickly nodded. Good enough. Von thought. "Good girl. Now go." The girl quietly scampered away into the dark. Curiously, as the girl ran she did not head toward the normal servant's quarters. Instead, she went towards the keep. A castle born then. Von turned his gaze towards the keep. I think I just found my way in. Maybe I can still salvage something from this mess.
***
Von quietly opened the door and slipped into the room.
"What took you so long? Where were you?" Fitz whispered.
"Keep it down. I… got delayed." What am I even saying? Von's thoughts raced, trying to create an excuse.
"Delayed? By what?" Fitz whispered back.
"Um, well, do you remember what you thought about the baker and the tall maid?" Von said hesitantly.
"No way." Fitz said, now sitting upright.
"Well, they may have been occupying the privy. You didn't hear that from me though." Von whispered, as he eased the door closed. Once again in the safe embrace of darkness, Von slowly made his way to his cot.
"I knew it, you know I've always been good at–"
"Goodnight Fitz." Von said, cutting him off.
"You never listen to me." Fitz grumbled. Von, already asleep, did not hear the complaint.