The Night Watch

This guard's uniform itches. Its the damn wool used to knit it I bet. I can smell the lamb on it still. Filthy animals. The midnight blue cloak feels like its dragging down on my shoulders as well. Maybe I'm just nervous. I tell myself to calm down. I sniff at my uniform again, an odd consistent habit, and have to give an affirming nod to a guard who looks at me. He's not the first one giving me an odd look. With my long unkempt raven hair, untidy bear, I don't doubt I draw attention. Or perhaps there's more to it than that.

Suddenly, a familiar voice bellows out my name, "Kane, I feared you would not show, old friend!"

I turn and see Dresken walking down the tower wall towards me. His cloak is a bright red, his pin insignia is that of the crown denoting his position as Captain of the Guard. He's done well for himself apparently.

Two burly arms wrap me in a bear hug, an act that startles the other guards as they walk by and only adds to the suspicion of who this black haired stranger is.

Dresken pulls back and studies my face. A frown appears across his brow as his bushy brows pull together, "How long has it been since we stood shoulder to shoulder in combat together, brother?"

My voice echoes his familial tone, "I think two decades now, brother?"

"That long? By heavens you haven't aged a day!" He pulls on my black beard. His own beard once a blazing auburn is now ash gray. His hair once long and lustrous is now half gone, the remnants flowing down only the back and sides of his bald head. My own hair is still long and thick. My beard as well.

"I thank my forefathers then," I say.

"Good on them. Now come, let me show you the city."

—

My eyes take in the sights as we stand atop the tower wall. It is sprawling. A spiral layout that reaches to the ports. Buildings occupy every space that isn't a cobblestone street. And even up here I can smell everything. It all mixes together into an odor that to my nose, smells unnatural. As if so many people shoudln't be crammed so close to each other.

"Quite different from the piss mud towns we're from eh Kane?" Dresken asks.

"It is."

"Aye, don't let it fool you though. This city might appear civilize, but that's just a mask. Beneath it, these civilized people can be justas cruel as any animal. Don't make that be your first mistake on the Night's Watch."

Or crueler. "Sage advice."

With a sigh, Dresken leans his burly arms onto the tower's balustrade. "Lady Luck was on my side that you would be selling into our ports, and that I was there at the Drunken Crab to meet you. Lady luck indeed. You were the best tracker in the King's Army back in the day. And I need that skill now."

"What is it that you need of me?"

"To catch a killer. Some bastard's stabbing people to death in the back alleys and leaving them there to bleed. Dozens of cuts in one person. He's running circles around my men. If we don't stop these killings I could lose my post. And then its back to those mud piss towns for ole Dresken," he puts a heavy hand on my shoulder. "Can't I count on you my friend?"

He's lucky to keep the hand. But I nod. He smiles a big grin.

"I knew I could!" his eyes look behind me then, "Oh good, Safine."

Turning , I see a hooded figure standing within striking distance. I'm startled. How did I not hear her walking up behind us? I can hear the heavy footsteps of the guards all along the wall, but I did not hear her?

The woman is clothed in the same black uniform and midnight blue cloak as I. The hood pulled heavily over her head, hiding her eyes in shadow and showing only her thin lips and pointed chin. Her skin is so pale it reminds me of moonlight, something that sends a quiver through my gut.

"Safine, this is the man I was telling you about, my dear old friend Kane. Kane, this is Safine. She's another new recruit on the Night Watch. She'll take you to them now."

She hardly regards me, and I study her further. My nostrils flinching as I try to pick up any scent on her…but there is nothing. Besides the faint odors the city has left on her cloak, there is no sweat, no body odor or even perfume. She is scentless.

I cannot even hear the echo of a heartbeat.

Her hooded face towards to me then and I flinch. Her lips part slowly and I hear a faint, whispery voice. Like an echo being carried on the breeze.

"Let's not keep them waiting, Kane."

She moves like the wind too. Able to pass through the crowded streets with ease. For once in my life, I find it difficult to keep track with another. If I wasn't wearing a city guard uniform, I might've actually caught a stray fist considering how many shoulders I've banged into.

Torches and sconces light up the streets, keeping everything illuminated even in the darkness of this night. It is an odd sight, seeing so many people moving about. Going to and from between the stores, to taverns and even merchant stores. Stalls selling their wares even at this hour. The night used to be revered , calling for a sense of observance. I can't help but feel there is something sacriligeous about this.

I think I've lost Safine when I finally spot her ahead. The building she stands next to is at the end of one street, and there are no patrons going through those doors. Looking above it I see why.

A small statue of the Night Mother stands above it, a woman shrouded in a cloak with motherly hands beckoning mortal souls to eternal slumber. Looking back down at Safine, I can't help but spot the similarities between the two of them.

She leads me into the mortuary and into a chamber where I finally meet the Night Watch. They are five men in all, each wearing the same uniforms and cloaks as Safine and I. They all look like hardened warriors, one in particular has a scar across his face and a mean look that could sour milk. The fifth one, who is standing by a stone table, appears younger than the other four. His head a blaze of red and his face oddly warm.

He grins with surprisingly white teeth as we we approach, "So this is the new blood eh? About time, the nights almost halfway over." He looks to me, "Kane was it?"

I nod. His voice is merry.

"Name's Allister, I'm the leader of this squad of ghouls," he laughs as the other four men join in. "This here is Gregory, Dirk, Willow, and Ashton. Don't let their mean looks fool you, they're all friendly sorts."

The men seem to think this is funny, and I nod to each of them in turn then make my way to the table where Allister stands. I notice Safine continues to stay by the door. For once I do sense an apprehension from her, of not willing to move in closer.

Allister nods to the blanket over the table. There is a human shaped contoured beneath it.

"Captain told you about our little killer eh?"

"He did," I nod towards the blanket. "One of the victims?"

Giving a solemn nod, Allister throws back the blanket revealing a woman's body. it is riddled with stab wounds. The blood appears to have been cleaned, but her pale skin still has a faint red sheen to it. I can see the bruises on her wrists and ankles. Looking at her face I can see bruises there too. She was obviously gagged.

That sight does bring a certain feeling to my chest. A certain tightness.

"You alright?" Allister asks, and I can't help but feel his voice is pretensive.

My eyes stay on the woman, "I'm fine."

"She was found dumped in the back alleys of some tavern. She's the second one in just a matter of days. There's a chance we might stumble upon one this evening at this rate. Hopefully though, with your help, considering how much Captain Dresken talked you up, we'll stumble upon the killer instead. Whoever they are, they're one sick bastard."

There is a snicker from behind me. I turn and see Gregory smirking back at me. I make a note of that, then turn back to Allister.

"What was her name?"

He seems surprised by the question and simply shrugs. "Don't know. And it seems that nobody else here in this entire city seems to know either. Probably some prositute that came over on a ship."

I look back down at the woman. I see the terror still planted in her eyes, the wrinkles of faint expressions of pain still stain her expression. I lean in as I take in one long wiff, inhaling her blood deep into my nostrils. I hope that in doing so, I can also carry away any of that pain so that she does not carry it with her into the next life.

"What are you, a dog?" Allister says with a queer expression and then laughs. A whoosh as he sends the blanket over the body again and turns towards the door, "Let's show the recruit the sights."

—

Allister and his men do exactly that. All the while I continue to take notice of Safine's proximity to the rest of the squad, always on the perimeter and keeping her distance.

The nightly tour is centered mainly around the back alleys. I'm amazed at how intertwined they are. The torches aren't as prevalent back here as they are on the main streets.

Besides the alleys, there all sorts of pockets and crevices that one could hide and spring out from. Allister seems to know them all, and explains the potential for their use in great detail. He seems to have a curious knowledge about them. Or maybe he hopes his chattering distracts me from his men who seem to take their 'share' of different stall goods.

We end the night surprisingly early, at a tavern near the docks. It seems Allister and his men are quite welcomed here, though you couldn't tell from the disdained expressions of the servers here. Allister never has to reach for his coin purse to refill his drinks. Perhaps there is some understanding here, the same one the many stall owners had with his men. Perhaps a very one-sided understanding.

Allister cuts into his meat with his knife, the city's emblem of a crown carved into its hilt.

"This job isn't glamorous but its not without its perks. Stick with us, get along with us, and you'll get to see them. Think you can get along with us?" Allister sticks his knife's point into his meat and extends a piece out to me. "Because this city can be dangerous without people watching your back."

I simply stare at him. Taking in a silent whiff of his dagger.

Allister bites off the meat from his blade and pats my shoulder, "I'm just pulling your chain old dog."

—

I ask Safine is she can show me to my living quarters in the city's keep. This gets some jeers towards her from the rest of Allister's men, but she agrees.

Safine takes me through the back alleys towards the keep, as if she already knows what I'm going to say or ask.

"Its them. I can smell that woman's blood on their daggers, on their uniforms, on their skin."

Safine is quiet.

"And you know too, don't you?"

She stops and turns towards me then. "Yes."

"I don't know if you have an interest in stopping them, but I have a plan."

She smiles then, an eerily one, "Can't just kill them without making yourself the target."

She says this as if she's already considered it herself. "I said I have a plan. I noticed the woman was missing an ear. Sometimes killers like to keep trophies, I don't know why. But if we could find something, we could confront them. I can follow his scent to his house, but I'm not so good at discreet breaking and entering. Seems like that's something more along with your…gift. If I'm assuming correctly. So what do you say, care to assist?"

Safine's smile deepens.

I am not sure what to call myself. At one point, I suppose it was 'human'. But at a very young age, my body suddenly took on a change. Terrified, I ran to the chapel to seek aid. I was a street orhpan and the clergy there always took care of the children. Or so I thought. He took one look at my beastly visage, and damned me. He chained me to the back of the chapel, where he and the towns guard would beat and torture me. They burned me, stabbed me, beat me, then watch with fascinated horror as my wounds would eventually heal back. That didn't make it any less painful.

One day, the cleric came out alone to take out his wraith upon me. He was deep in the bottle, and hadn't realized how close he was getting to me. I don't hesitate. I sink my fangs into his throat and tear the life from him. Then I use his keys to free myself from his shackles.

It takes me a long time before I can learn to look like one of them again. Even longer for me to begin to trust them even a little.

I don't know the woman's name. I don't know if Allister and his men were someone she went to in trust. But I do know her pain.

The following night, Allister is noticabley more irritable. Curiously, I notice Allister casting shady eyes towards his men then. Does he suspect them? Can the killer not trust his fellow killers? The thought that perhaps Safine and I can trick him into killing his fellow conspirators out of paranoia brings a smile to my face. He notices it and shoots me glare.

"Something funny dog?"

I grin deeply, then nod towards an alley. "I heard some people talking about a dead body over there. I think we should take a look."

All five pairs of boots skid to a stop, and I can feel the tension in the air. Allister flinches, "Someone said what?"

I simply move towards the alley. I feel Safine move next to me. There is hesitation, but eventually I hear their footsteps following behind us. Only the clear moonlight illuminates the alley as I lead them to a dead end.

I hear all five swords leave their sheaths.

"Explain yourselves," Allister growls.

Reaching into my belt's pocket, I pull out a clothed wrapped object, and gently unfold it to reveal an ear. The look on Allister's face shifts from terror…to sickening satisfaction.

"Ah so it was you." He shrugs then, "I offered you kinship, and you spit in my face. Foolish decision, old dog."

He rushes forward and I let him stick his blade in my gut. His satisfying sneer slowly fades as he watches my unchanging expression.

Gregory is the next to move, swinging his blade straight for Safine's neck. I watch with keen interest as the blade cuts straight through her skin. Her head rolls off and evaporates into smoke. Gregory watches in confusion as her clothes fall empty to the ground.

A swirling mist of vapor moves through the air towards him. In the moonlgihta womanly shape can be made out. Its gentle arms reach towards to caress Gregory's face like a lover's. The touch seems to cause him pain because he screams. And as if to kiss him, a ghastly face moves in, yet it seems to be sucking in his scream instead. Slowly, Gregory's voice grows quite, his face begins to pale. He falls to the ground. The terror never leaving his face.

So she's a Shade.

I hear Allister boots begin to move and I reach out, grasping his shoulders to hold him inplace. He looks back at me and I drink in the terror on his face.

"What in the hells are you?"

"Not a dog. I promise you that."

He shrieks as my claws pierce through the skin in my ahds and dig into his shoulder blades. I feel my jaw unhinge with a click, and then bones, cartiledge and flesh begin to tear and rejoin as my jaw extends out. I feel my fangs pushing my teeth from their sockets, I taste Allister's scream on my tongue, and then feel his blood gush the back of my throat as I bite down on his neck.

The others try to run. They won't get far.

—

When Dresken's guards return with the other trophies from the rest of the Night Watch's houses, Safine and I are clear of suspicion. Still, he's a prideful sort, and he doesn't like the idea that his Night Guard were behind these dark deeds. He says he'll tell the City Council that his men died confronting the killer, who Safine and I were finally able to kill. Not how I want it to go, but I suppose it works out.

I keep the woman's ear with me. Her body has already been cremated anyways. And I've grown a kinship to it somehow. Its rare I share one with a human. But I suppose shared pain can bridge gaps.

No one came to my aid. But perhaps I can be there for others. Even after death.

I'll continue the watch.