The room was stuffy. Small. Claustrophobic. Plain. It was the basement of the Alkrun temple. Sonhu was kneeling on a small rectangular cloth engraved with the symbol of Tyvoli. The sacred tree of Syrgerd faith. Beside Sonhu were the crusaeders. Standing tall in their prestigious armor. Sonhu's eyes scanned the dark room. Before him was a set of steps that led to a small stone altar. A rigid rectangle. It reminded him of the one from the temple before.
On the altar was a single candle that dimly illuminated the whole room, with cloth tapestries on the walls featuring simple designs. The one on the left depicted a man lying in a stone casket. It was not a depiction of a fancy casket nor a real ceremony. Sonhu believed it was a depiction of something the Syrgerd faith calls "The Finality." The tapestry on the right was harder to discern. There were a lot of faces, but they were so small and hard to distinguish from one another that they all blended together into a grey sort of mesh.
Sonhu waited there for what felt like hours. The two crusaeders hardly moved the entire time. The flame from the candle danced and swayed. Slowly creeping lower and lower as it ate away at the wax.
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Sonhu heard the sound of footsteps. Slow clacking, making their way down the stairs. Then the door opens, and the footsteps walk into the room. A pause. Sonhu's ears twitched. Then the two crusaeders make their way outside the room and shut the door behind them, but Sonhu can hear that they do not go far.
The footsteps walk beside Sonhu, passing him and revealing the man who owned them. He smelled of wine and perfume. He was a thin man. His skin was as pale as snow, with blonde, curly hair. His face looked young, but Sonhu assumed the man was older than he appeared, perhaps in his thirties. His robes were a delicate white. Well-maintained and beautiful. He wore sandals. They were worn down a bit but polished and clean. He walked over to the altar and ran his hand across it, muttering a prayer under his breath.
"Svel Tani, Moreum de Canus." He then turned back towards Sonhu. Clack… Clack… Clack… He stopped just a few feet before Sonhu and raised his right arm, holding up three fingers. His index, middle, and pinky. Holding his ring finger down with his thumb. Sonhu recognizes this as the Symbol of Saints. It was a symbol Syrgerd missionaries made sure to teach the Talmari. It was a gesture of peace, indicating that he had no intention to harm.
"I am Ilgen Thomas." The man tells Sonhu.
Ilgen. Sonhu thought to himself, That is some rank in the church, but how high is it? He tried to recall what he was taught by missionaries when he was young.
"I am told your name is Sonhu," The man continued, "I have also heard you were contracted by Syrgen Jarus."
"The priest?" Sonhu asked.
"Yes," Ilgen Thomas replied patiently, "So he did hire you?"
"He did," Sonhu replied. Providing no more information than necessary.
"What did he hire you for?"
"He needed a guide through the forest."
"Where was his destination?"
"Some temple in the forest."
"A temple?" Thomas asked, intrigued.
"Yes, a temple."
"What was in the temple?" He inquires further.
"I don't know."
"What do you mean you don't know?"
"I didn't go inside the temple," Sonhu said flatly. Thomas' head tilted slightly, and he stared Sonhu down.
"You didn't go to the temple?" He asked.
"No, I was just the guide. I brought them there, and that was it."
"And You didn't bring them back?"
"I did bring them back." Sonhu replied quickly, "I brought them to the edge of the forest near Alkrun, and then we parted ways." Sonhu said, looking Thomas in the eyes. Thomas took a deep breath and scratched his chin. He turned away from Sonhu and walked back to the altar.
"And that was the last you saw of them?" He asked
"Yes. That was about a month ago. I haven't heard from them since."
"And what have you done in that time? What did you do with the payment?"
"I lost it," Sonhu replied.
"Lost it?"
"Yeah, gambling."
"Hmmn." Thomas turned back, looking over Sonhu. Examining him. His eyes were violating, an uncomfortable stare that seemed to dissect every bit of him. "And you swear this to be the truth?"
Sonhu hesitated for a moment, "Yes… I swear it."
Thomas let out a soft snort, a mix of amusement and annoyance. "Really? Do you take me for a fool?"
"No, I-"
"Spare me your lies." He says, his face turning stern and persecuting. Statuesque, in a way. "You are clearly not telling the truth." He said, making his way to Sonhu. Sonhu stood up quickly. "Sit back down," Thomas commanded through gritted teeth. His voice was stern and like a snake's hiss.
"I have shown you generosity and undeserved respect, and this is what you do? You repay me with lies!" There was a fire behind the man's eyes and a presence behind him. Sonhu knelt back down. Quietly. The man stared at Sonhu with disdain and frustration.
"Now I will ask you again. What happened, and I swear by the Lord, if you dare lie to me again, I will have your tongue."
"I did guide them to the temple… we arrived, and there was this room we went to…" Sonhu said, thinking, "It was pretty much empty. There were some pillars, a statue, and an altar…" A chill ran down Sonhu's spine.
"They took me and then…" Sonhu was wary of telling the priest they had killed him or… they had tried? He was not entirely sure how to describe what had happened.
"They did what?" The man inquired. The room felt colder. Sonhu was unsure whether to pretend that the thing had attacked them or be honest about what the priest had done. How could he explain the lost time?
"I'm not sure why… but they tried to kill me… or they were successful in killing me…" He replied, trailing off, "When I came to. I couldn't see, and I stumbled across the corpse of the priest and something… I'm not sure what, and I ran… I ran…"
"And that is what really happened?"
"Yes."
"Then where have you been for the last month? Did you really take the money they offered and lose it all?
"No! I swear I came straight to Alkrun, and then… well, a month had passed."
Thomas scoffed once again, "I am done entertaining your lies." He said and then clapped his hands twice. In a moment, the door opens, and the two crusaeders rush into the room; a thick, pungent order enters as well. Sonhu jolts up and evades the initial lunge, but he stumbles, and the other one is able to grab him. Resisting the grasp, he tries to push the man off but is unable to
"If you have no intention of telling me what you did to them or where they are, I have no use for you," Thomas said. Something within Sonhu whispered, run. Run from here.
"Wait! No, I'm telling the truth."
Thomas stares at him with pure disgust, "I know cannibal Talmari, like you, have no respect for the dead, but to prevent those honest men from receiving a proper burial is truly barbaric." The man said, reaching out and grabbing Sonhu's chin. His words hold a venom in them that his voice had lacked before. Sonhu fought and writhed in the grasp of the two crusaeders, but to no avail.
Some panic was overtaking him. Was it because of the familiarity of this predicament? No, there was something else. Sonhu's ears twitched. Footsteps. He tried to turn his head to look out the door as the footsteps got closer and closer. The footsteps were soft and had a swaying rhythm.
He then felt the posture of the guards change as they, too, noticed the footsteps and looked back toward the door.
"Who's out there?" The priest called out, his brow furrowed.
There was no response. Just a quiet tension in the air. Then, a familiar voice. It sent chills down Sonhu's back as he heard it once again.
"There you are… my pretty little kitty."