The moon was still high in the sky when Sol left the square. That woman wouldn’t leave her mind. She didn’t know her, but she knew enough of her that something about her wasn’t adding up in her mind. If she had been cast out and left to the mercy of the Hunt then surely she would have been in the tatters and rags that marked such women. Sol couldn’t discount the possibility that there simply wasn’t time for ceremony or formality. If she was simply unlucky, simply caught out when it was time to take shelter then any lycan could have gotten to her. However it was that fact that made her all the more confused. If it was an attack from a lycan as she suspected, where were the other injuries? Where were the signs of battle? Her linens were slightly dirty and that was it.

“Sanctuary!” A woman cried, hammering a door with the wrath of the divine. “Please sanctuary!”

When Sol came into her sight the woman froze, the color draining from her face in an instant. She remained spellbound for only a moment before she resumed banging on the door with renewed desperation. Her clothes were clean, she didn’t appear to be injured. Each step Sol took the woman grew more and more frantic, abandoning the door that she was at for the one next door. Her knuckles were starting to bleed, rivulets of blood falling as tears down her arms and onto the doors.

“Ma’am.” Sol’s voice was firm, but she did her best to appear nonthreatening. “Ma’am are you injured?”

“Mother’s mercy,” She said breathlessly, “Sanctuary please you heartless bastards!”

It was at this point when Sol grabbed her by the arm, yanking her away from the door. “Ma’am. Are hurt?” Her grasp on the woman was firm, but unyielding.

Silence dragged on as they stared at each other. Sol in statuesque stillness and the stranger on the verge of hysterics still, and Sol wasn’t about to break the silence. She had all night to stare this woman down and she knew that the stranger wanted no part of it.

“N-No, I just, it’s,” She stumbled over her words. “Curfew, I was too late for curfew.”

She heaved a sigh, eyeing her up and down. She could do the whole nine yards to ensure that this one was actually safe. However, even with them both in the alcove like this, they were still exposed. A lycan could be the least of their worries if Sol didn’t get this solved and move on.

“Hold out your hand.” She demanded, the woman seeing no alternative held out a shakey hand. Taking hold of her wrist she held the lantern up and exposed her flesh to the soul flame. “This will ensure that you are pure, Sister, and if you are I will escort you to a safe haven.”

She already drew back from the heat of the fire, but nodded emphatically, anything to be allowed to safety. Sol didn’t need the whole of it. In fact all she needed to do was dip her finger into the flickering firelight and let it catch on her glove. Flicking her gaze to the trembling woman for only a moment as she touched the flame to her bare skin. She flinched away and hissed though Sol held her firm. Watching her. One's initial reactions to what they think is a normal fire cannot be counted as evidence against, it won’t burn them as a natural flame would. It spread up her hand from where Sol had touched her, but the skin never so much as turned red. No blistered formed, the telltale signs of burns never appeared.

Pulling down her mask Sol gentle blew out the flame, watching it scatter into quickly fading smoke. “Stay with me, stay close, no one will open doors for you, but they will for me.” Sol said as she started back down the step and onto the street.

Babbling out a line of ‘thank yous’ and other such things that Sol really wasn’t listening to she kept walking. Someone who so desperately wanted to be in safety would either follow her or die where she stands. Now her steps were echoed by the frantic paces of someone who could barely keep up with Sol’s stride. It couldn’t be helped, do or die. As much as she wanted to watch her, to wait for her even, but the risk of doing that was too great. No she would simply have to keep up.

“What is your name Miss?” Sol asked over her shoulder.

“A-Averie.” She said breathlessly. “Ma’am please, please can you slow down?”

“No.” She said as she turned down another street sharply. “We’re almost there, keep up.”

“Where are you taking me?”

“The main Cathedral, the Matron will know what to do with you until cerfew is lifted.”

She looked up to see if there were anything on the roof tops, her mother had told her more than once of the folly of those who only looked down at the street and to the alleys but never up. She paused only for a moment when the shadows moved, narrowing her eyes as she held up her hand to caution Averie. “Find a shadow and stay there.” She whispered, uncertain of if the woman had even heard her. Truth be told did it really matter if she had? If Sol couldn’t fend off whatever it was that she’d found then they both were going to die and that was that. The sound of the roof tiles clicking and clacking against something kept her on edge, drawing her sword as she tracked the source of the sound. It was answered with a deep growl and the gnashing of fangs. It lept from the roof, howling as it missed her entirely and landed on the cobbles instead of a juicey huntress.

Stolen story; please report.

“Come and get me you bastard!” She cried out as she touched her finger to her soul flame once more, breathing it in and feeling the heat rush through her. Cracking the skin as it set her ablaze. She would not be caught off balance this time. Swinging her blade with practiced precision Sol parried its own swing, meeting it in kind with a fist to its gut. A choice she rapidly realized she regretted when the bones in her fingers made an uncomfortable snapping noise. It was all she could do to keep herself from crying out, the last thing she needed was another lycan to realize that something was going on.

It didn’t appreciate her attempts to drag out supper time. It snapped at her arms as retaliation Sol barely able to dive out of the way. It was all she could do to actually keep on her feet this time. She wasn’t going to rely on help falling from the heavens, she couldn’t rely on it. The beast snarled, snapping and growling its unrelenting hate towards her. Swiping its claws it cut through Sol’s leathers with the ease of butter. She cried out as she stumbled backwards, unconsciously putting her hand on her wound. A blessing that she’d thought to take the flame in before, despite it weeping like a widow in the first month of mourning Sol could still fight on. She smacked the flat of her blade against its head and quickly followed it up with a rising strike through its chest. It yelped, short and sharp. Even as she pulled away from it the lycan’s time was running short. It stumbled as it still tried desperately to take her with it.

What was strong and thoughtful strikes towards her just moments ago was sluggish and meandering. She only needed to out last it now, ignoring the lycan Sol looked to Averie and grabbed her by the wrist.

“We have to go, hurry!” She said as she took off running.

The cathedral was going to save her, Sol wasn’t about to let another fall victim to the night’s cruelty. Breathing haggardly Sol looked around wildly to try to find any hope of an advantage. By the Mother if it was just her then she could have just danced around it, could have just bided her time, but with the jittery yelling of Averie she was reminded of why exactly she was running away instead of standing her ground. The woman was slowing her down, Sol realized, and with a harsh jerk she pulled Averie close to her and lifted her onto her shoulders.

“We don’t have time for you to be slow!” She nearly spat, trying to keep her breath as she ran. “We’re almost there!”

No longer giving any thought to stealth of any kind Sol was giving off a great deal of noise, her gear most of all as it clattered against each other metal on metal. Only the mother knows what it would bring if others hear it, and they likely have by now. They were in the last stretch now, the large square before the cathedral with a wondrous fountain just in the center of it. She cast a glance to the statue of Mother Moon’s avatar before blasting past it at top speed. The lycan howled as it bounded behind them, slowing with time but it wasn’t slowing enough. Sol could almost feel its fetid breath on her neck.

Once past the fountain she dropped Averie, looking at her with determination in her eyes. “Go to the door, you’ll be safe there, they’ll let you in.” She promised, taking her blade up again to face the lycan without even checking to see if she’d gone at all. After all, if she wanted to live then that’s exactly what she was going to do. She had space here, more than enough for the dance between her and the beast that rejected the Mother’s light. Slashing at it it yelped in pain but all to keep its eyes on Sol. It was stumbling, its limbs trembling as she saw her chance. As it fell to all fours she drove her sword into the beast’s head.

Its body fell to the ground with a heavy thump and the world was filled with silence once again. Only punctuated with Sol’s heavy breathing, still struggling to catch her breath. Whiping her blade clean she placed it in its sheath and walked back to the cathedral. Averie stood by the door shaking like a leaf in the storm.

“Its fine.” Sol said breathlessly. “Its dead.” She held her hand on the door for a moment, closing her eyes in a quiet prayer. A beast it might have been, but it still deserved some moment of remembrance, even if none knew its former name. “Let's go before more come.” She said once the moment had passed.

For some as Averie, the door would have to be opened from the outside. The magics protecting the occupants from lycans and other such creatures that infest the city make it need to be so. However, for Sol no such issue. Her Hunter’s Mark warmed slightly under her gloves as she pulled on the door. Tonight was the first night she would be ever using it. She felt the push and pull of the magic flowing through her hand as it read her, read her aether, and permitted them entry. Now she still had to get the damnable thing open, and even without the magic preventing her from doing anything it was still heavy. Once she got it open enough for Averie to slip inside she quickly followed and pulled it closed behind her.

“Huntress Hayward.” A voice cracked through the hall like a whip. “What, pray tell is this?”

Two steps. They had made it two steps before Sol had managed to do something wrong. Sighing internally she looked at the deacon.

“This is Averie,” Sol said as she gestured vaguely Averie, presently white as a sheet. “I’ve already tested her with my soul flame. She’s clean and I believe that she was simply caught outside after curfew, Mother Seneca.”

She looked the young woman up and down, now that Sol was actually looking at her she realized that Averie couldn’t be a day over nineteen. Lucky that she’d been found at all. Mother Seneca heaved a deep sigh, looking at Sol as if she’d just taken a dump on her desk.

“You’ve tested her with your soul flame already?” She asked, all the emotion in her voice having drained away.

“Yes ma’am.”

“Do you feel strong enough to perform the test again?”

“Right here?” Sol blinked, she maybe could do it again, she could still feel the flickering embers that burned in her. If they did it right now…

“Yes right here would be best.”

Averie was doing a very good impression of a statue while the two talked, the only indication that she was even a living being was her eyes flicking back and forth between both of them. Sol turned to her, reaching for her lantern while silently asking permission. Averie nodded, her shoulders tense. Dipping her finger into the flame Sol let it catch on herself before placing the flame directly on Averie’s hand. Mother Seneca watched as the flame never took. It burned yes, but just as Sol had seen the first time it had never spread farther than Averie’s hand her skin not even turning red. She was clean. Even attaching the lantern back to her belt Sol felt drained, her hands shaking slightly as she pulled away. Mother Seneca hadn’t failed to notice that either.

“Thank you Huntress,” She said with a bow of her head, “Go rest now, I dare say if you went back out now you wouldn’t make it till morning.”

“I might even see the dawn if I went back out.” Sol said tiredly. “What’s going to happen-“

“I’ll take care of everything.” Mother Seneca interrupted, gingerly taking hold of Averie like a sour dishrag. “You go rest.”

Her bed sounded nice right about now, and with a tired nod she shambled off to find the Hunter’s Quarters. Maybe with some luck she would even find her own bed. The first night as a full Huntress may have been wasted according to her sisters, but Sol managed to save a life. It was more than could be said for most. Even her own mother.