“I see you, assassin; there is no point in remaining in the shadows,” Alaric called into the darkness at the edges of the circular throne room. He stood up from the throne, grabbing the huge broadsword that leaned against its side. The instant it sensed his touch, the blade began to flare with red flame, bathing the room in its glow.
The darkly-clad woman crouching in the rafters above did not move.
So Alaric lifted his blade and pointed it towards her. A short incantation caused a burst of fire to spring from its tip, speeding straight for the would-be assassin…
The instant it struck her, her body vanished in a puff of dark smoke, revealing her as the illusion she was.
Beneath his horned helm, Alaric scowled. He began to turn around—
A sudden weight dropped down onto his shoulders, and he grunted in alarm, staggering. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a blade flash just before it was shoved between the plates of his armor to bite into the flesh just beneath his collarbone. Before it could sink in too deeply, Alaric grabbed the leg of his attacker and yanked her from her perch, tossing her across the room. The true assassin managed to fall into a controlled roll and, as soon as she’d used up the momentum, sprung up again. She’d managed to hold onto both daggers and now came rushing up to him again, hurling one of the knives at him as she went. He managed to bring his sword up to deflect it and charged up to meet her, slashing at her chest as soon as he got within range. She managed to twist aside but, as she did so, Alaric stabbed her in the back, the blade cutting easily through to erupt out of her chest.
She slumped to the ground, dead.
But Alaric’s satisfaction was short lived, for the question of how she’d gotten in still remained. Somehow, she’d gotten past his guards, meaning that there was either a traitor among his ranks or that his men had become incompetent.
Either way, he knew that this would not be the last time his blade tasted blood tonight.
Thank you for reading! I wrote this story as part of the Storytelling Collective’s Flash Fiction February 2023 challenge, so a huge thanks to them for inspiring me to give it a shot.
