Hello,

Long time no see…here is the update that you've been looking forward to for more than a month…

Enjoy? Hehe….

The hallway to Cress' quarantine room was desolate, mostly because everyone was taking a detour if it meant avoiding Letumosis at all costs. Whatever the reason, Jacin was happy for the peacefulness.

That was until the screams started.

They were high-pitched and full of distress but the voice was slightly muffled. It was distinctly female and the only interruption was the heartbroken sobs. Jacin stood rooted to the spot as his brain paired the voice to a face. An all too familiar face.

'Winter!'

Jacin ran towards the door where the voice was coming from and raced down the stairs, skipping as many as he could. He was met with rows of empty prison cells.
'Help!'
The desperate plea echoed through the hallway. In a state of panic, Jacin raced towards the cell where the noise was coming from. Grabbing onto the frame of the doorway he swerved into the room.

He felt bile rising up his throat. Blood painted the white walls a glistening red. The prison bed was littered with guns and weapons. Gingerly, he entered and reached for one of the guns closest to him.
Empty.

'Help!'

The voice made him jump and drop the gun. He spun around and came face to face with his squadron of lunar guards.
Dead lunar guards.
There were all slumped against the wall with their heads drooped over their chests. Blood soaked their shirts and stained their hands crimson. Jacin's eyes shifted above their heads to see the blood-written writing.

How many people are you willing to kill, Queen?

And above that was…

Jacin cursed under his breath as he took a tentative step towards the small plush toy of Winter, nailed through the place where one's heart would be to the wall.
'Help!' it squeaked in her desperate voice.
With a guttural and frustrated scream, Jacin slammed his fist into the doll, effectively shutting it up. Blood dripped down his knuckles. His eyes widening in alarm, he looked back at the doll.

A mini fountain of blood poured out.
His face twisted in disgust.
It landed onto one of the dead guard's hands who clasped a remote of sorts.
Jacin realised what was happening all too late.

The lights flashed off accompanied by the sound of electrical wires that had been soaked in water. Or in this case, blood. He heard the tapping of shoes behind him and turned so swiftly he nearly tripped over an arm. He sought out the wall to steady himself on the slippery floor and found himself in one of the corners of the prison cell.
'Damn it,' he muttered.
But before he could move, he felt a searing pain in his chest.

It happened all so quickly. He felt something hard jab into his chest and the searing pain came screaming out of his body as though all his organs had declared war on his skin so they could see the outside world for themselves. He hunched only to be bashed in his legs with the thing. He heard the swoosh of the weapon as it swung towards his shoulders and he grabbed it with all his might. A metal pole found itself in the grip of Jacin Clay. The figure on the other end tried to pull it away but he was much stronger. Ignoring the stinging pain, he leapt forward and drove the metal pole towards the other end. It smashed against the wall.

The pole lost its grip on the other end. He brought it towards him with a triumphant smirk but his winning moment was short-lived. Another metal pole collided with his back sending him crashing to the floor. He yelled in pain and the metal pole fell out of his grip and landed beside him. He heard footsteps…footsteps belonging to two people instead of one …

'Ambush…' he grunted to himself as he struggled to push himself up but the floor was slippery with blood. He heard the other pole lifting off the ground and without thinking he wildly grabbed in the direction of the pole. He touched cloth and gripped harder. The victimised foot kicked wildly but he held on the way one holds the edge of a cliff so they don't fall off.

He tugged at the foot and sent his opponent toppling down. Quickly he let go and rolled over, jumping to his feet and brandishing his hidden hunting knife that was always with him. He concentrated and heard soft footsteps as his fallen enemy stood up and came at him with the metal rod. Tightening his grip on his knife, he swung…and hit. His knife cut through easily and he heard the soft whimper of the victim.

He pulled his knife back to his side and took a step back. His ankle collided with a limp leg and he fell backwards, hitting his head against the floor. The vibration of footsteps was loud against his ear but they became quieter and quieter.
Soon there were no steps at all.
Within a minute of the silence, the lights turned on again as though everything was normal.

Jacin surveyed the room. The lunar guards were littered across the floor (Jacin was still wondering how they'd ended up like that) and the room had a new makeover, with all the walls and floor painted a rich red. The room was a mess.
Much like Jacin.
He was bloody from head to toe with cuts and bruises everywhere he'd been hit. His hunting knife was still in his hand but there was no blood on the knife like he'd expected. Hadn't he hit his target?

Mustering up whatever strength he had left, Jacin stood up. Glancing around the prison cell one last time to make sure he knew which one it was though it was quite obvious with what had happened inside, he limped out and made his way back up into the hallway. He tried not to spill as much blood as he could but with most, if not all, of his wounds bleeding it was hard to. Really, he didn't care whether people saw the blood or not. He'd be happy if they did; maybe that would knock some sense into the palace to take their security seriously. There was only one person he didn't want to bump into; Winter.

He knew she would freak out and panic for weeks to come much like he did whenever something happened to her.
'Please…I'll deal with anything, just don't let me bump into Winter,' he muttered as he turned the corner and headed towards Cress' quarantine room knowing the others would probably be looking for him there. A guard or two passed him on his way and their eyes popped out of their sockets in disbelief as they watched a bloody lunar guard walk past. Jacin glared at them and, out of fear most likely, they turned their stares away and hurried off.

Finally, he could see the hallway in which Cress' room was located and there was no sign of either of the lunar royals, much to his relief. He quickened his pace as much as his injured legs would allow him to and turned the corner into the hallway of the room.

He should've heard the footsteps from metres away but he had been in very deep thoughts that he'd dismissed it as something else. He cursed himself for not paying attention to his surroundings and he cursed himself for getting into the mess that made him like this in the first place. Pulling on the calmest expression he could, he raised his head and looked straight into the eyes of the person he'd crashed into.

Winter.

And that brings me to the end of this long awaited update which brings me to my reasons for having not been able to update for so long. ^-^"

My weeks have been filled with busy work, assignments and exams (I still have a few left) and so I had absolutely no time to write the new chapter, let alone think about it. It was one of the chapters I was looking forward to writing too! Well anyway, hopefully (I always say this but I really mean it) I can update more regularly in the next few weeks and I really do hope you enjoyed the chapter.
And I do apologise for my late updates etc. it really is frustrating for me too, not being able to write all the time.

Also, please hold onto the hope of me finishing this story because I really do want to finish it so if my updates are late, don't worry because I have not given up on it. ^-^

That being said, have a wonderful weekend~

Arya