Epilogue

Victra glared across the room at the woman in the cage. She was too confident, too unbothered. She had mocked them, goading the others, goading her. It had to be a front, a facade she put on. It had to be.
The conversation in the room grew heated, emotions rising. Victra blocked out the words, Murmur’s remarks at her still ringing in her ears. She had to be bluffing, who was she to be talking about fate, her fate of all things. Her eyes drifted down to the gently glowing arcane ward on the ground. She almost wished it wasn’t there. Knowing that woman couldn’t lie was almost worse. Sometimes it was just easier to believe what someone said was a lie.
She looked up, watching Heath. His own emotions were high. He hid them well, but she knew him well enough to see that he was coiled tight enough to snap. She trusted him, he had his own reasons for secrecy. But she saw it eating away at him, first with the arrival of Rodrigo and now what this woman was doing to him. Victra didn’t fully believe he would explain everything after it was done, but she knew that she would make sure he was truthful to the others, to her. They all deserved it, especially after what happened.
Murmur taunted them, saying that the others would come for her. Victra ground her teeth as flashes from earlier in the night rose in her mind. The fight had been brief, but brutal. None of them had escaped that building unscathed, but Mars and Adrie had taken the brunt of it. And that bastard mage had escaped, vanishing into the night.
A shift in the room pulled Victra back to the present. Murmur was talking about Heath. Victra saw him freeze, muscles tensed. She was threatening them. A subtle motion from Rodrigo, and the knight at his side stepped forward.
Suddenly Murmur writhed in pain, speaking clearly despite the agony that wracked her body. Everyone started, but it was Heath who stepped forward, his hand raised toward the cage. There was a flash of white.
And Heath was gone.
In the cage, Murmur slumped forward as the runes of the chair dimmed. The others stared in disbelief. 
“What the fuck did you do to him?!” Victra shouted, her hand flying to her sword. The figure in the cage gave no response.
Victra turned to Rodrigo, fury coursing through her body. “Open the door!”
Everyone was shocked, unmoving as they stood rooted in place. Rodrigo looked at the knight and nodded, his face white. The tall Bordovian stepped forward and quickly unlocked the door to the iron cage. 
Victra pushed past him, throwing the door open. She wrenched Murmur’s head back. Unconscious. 
“Not that easily,” she growled. She focused and reached out for her wellspring. She tapped into the well of power, drawing just enough through her fingertips that Murmur’s eyes fluttered open. Victra rested the point of her sword against Murmur’s chest, feeling the rage burning inside her. 
“Where is he?” She was almost shouting. “What did you do!” She could feel the heavy beat of her heart.
Murmur coughed a laugh as her eyes focused. “I did what I came here to do,” she said, her voice rough from pain. “He’s beyond your reach now.”
Victra snarled, pressing her blade forward. “I won’t ask again. Where is he?”
Murmur looked up, her eyes clear despite the pain that had scourged her body. “I don’t know.”
Victra felt her blood run cold. She couldn’t lie. She didn’t know. Murmur smiled, and hung her head in stoic resignation. Victra released her head, straightening as her breathing came faster and faster. She quickly mastered herself as everyone seemed to hold their breath. 
Victra leaned forward, and whispered in Murmur’s ear. “Then may the Veiled Matron enjoy her eternal gift.” With a flash, she swung her sword.
There was a spray of crimson, and with the second stroke, Murmur’s head tumbled to the ground.