Content Warning: violence.

Only the gods chose who heard them. At least, that was the way it was supposed to be. Airships drifted lazily across the red-streaked sky as the sun fell behind the horizon, casting ripples of gold across the fresh puddles along the cobblestones. Evelyn raced right through one, sending water droplets splashing over her boots. With each desperate breath that tore from her lungs, pain cracked across her ribs. Her heart pounded in her chest, blood rushing through her ears. Despite all the noise, she could hear one thing above it all. It invaded her senses, drumming through her skull, stabbing into her eardrums, creeping into her very thoughts. The gods were laughing at her.  

Evelyn gritted her teeth, dragging herself around a corner and into an alleyway. Her attacker was catching up. Another sharp, stabbing pain shot up her side and she bit back a cry, biting down on the inside of her cheek. The taste of salt filled her mouth. Boots thundered against the cobblestones, slowly but surely approaching the alleyway where she hid.  

Evelyn pressed her back against the wall. Her heart raced in her ears and sweat dripped down the back of her neck. The edges of her vision blackened, unconsciousness fighting to take hold; she dug her nails into her arm, the sharp pain bringing her back to reality. Tears welled up in her eyes. This is it.  

The footsteps stopped just to the left of the alleyway, and for a moment, the gods went silent. And then, the woman peered around the side of the wall, her gaze lighting up the moment she spotted Evelyn. Her lips curved into a smile.  

“Found you.”  

Evelyn took off down the alleyway, the goddess’ gleeful whispers chasing after her. Her breathing was ragged, each breath sending another sharp stab of pain into her side. She stumbled around the corner, sweat dripping down her forehead and her heart pounding against her sternum. Evelyn looked ahead, squinting through the dark spots that swarmed her vision at the path ahead. The woman’s steps rang out down the alleyway; they were slow, assured – after all, who could escape a goddess? 

Evelyn shook her head, pushing those thoughts to the back of her mind. She blinked sweat and tears out of her eyes and limped further around the corner, bracing herself on the wall. For a moment, her vision cleared enough for her to see ahead.  

Her heart dropped, dread worming its way through her stomach. Ahead of her stood a wall, blocking off her escape. Trapping her in that alleyway with the huntress right behind her. The woman’s steps were drawing closer and closer, the whispers growing louder with each second until they drowned out Evelyn’s very thoughts. 

No! Evelyn shook her head, gritting her teeth against the pain and limping towards the end of the alleyway. I’m not finished yet.  

Evelyn approached the wall, staring up at the top; it stood higher than she, but not by much. She reached for the top, tightening her grip around the edge, and searched for a foothold. Her heart raced even faster as her boots scuffed uselessly across the stone; pools of sweat formed on her palms, loosening her grip on the top. Her vision blurred as tears formed in her eyes, terror squeezing tight around her heart – it pounded uselessly against her sternum, like a bird caught in a cage.  

Evelyn squeezed her eyes shut, her stomach twisting with dread as she fought to find a foothold. Just as the woman stepped around the corner, her quiet laughter filling the air, Evelyn’s boot struck a crack in the wall. Her eyes flew open, relief crashing over even as the whispers flooded in. She hurried up the wall, dragging herself up onto the top. Her side scraped against the rough stone and a sharp, burning pain lashed along her side. She gritted her teeth and wiped the tears out of her eyes. She looked over the other side, grimacing at the drop; it was going to hurt. But she had run out of choices long ago.  

The woman looked up at her from the other side, tilting her head; another smile crossed her lips, contorting her face into something that looked unnatural. Evelyn held the monster’s gaze, her stomach twisting with dread; whatever remained behind those eyes was far from human. The goddess’ whispers guided the woman’s every movement; it hissed for her to step forward, for her to–  

Evelyn heard the next order only as it was happening; the woman summoned a shimmering, golden rope from between her hands and looked up at her, the goddess’ twisted joy shining through her vacant eyes. Then she lashed out with the rope and Evelyn flinched back, lifting her arm over her face; but no pain came. Instead, she felt something tighten around her ankle. She looked down, horror crashing over her as she saw the shimmering gold rope wrapped tightly around her leg. She had only a split second to realize she was in danger before the woman began to pull.  

Evelyn grabbed the edge, the rough stone tearing into her palms as the woman fought to drag her down from the wall. With her other hand, she reached into her pocket and dug out her knife. 

She lashed out with the blade, her heart racing in her ears as she struck at the golden rope with all her might. For a moment, hope filled her heart as part of it shimmered out of view. The delicate threads of magic frayed and then snapped, dissolving under the knife’s serrated blade. 

Golden flecks swam across her vision, and for just a second she felt some of the pressure leave her leg. But as the goddess’ laughter filled her ears once again, she knew escape wouldn’t come so easily. The rope solidified back into place before her eyes, the displaced magic rushing back in to crush down around her leg. Evelyn bit back a cry and tightened her grip on the edge of the wall, dragging herself forward. Her injured ribs brushed against the stone again and Evelyn gritted her teeth; she couldn’t back down, she had to keep moving. She reached forward, the knife clasped tightly in her other hand. If she could just–  

Her hand slipped from the wall as she crawled another inch forward, her fingers reaching out only to find air as she was suddenly dragged backwards. Evelyn desperately grabbed onto the wall, pain tearing along her fingertips as her nails were worn down by the stone. One last tug, and she was suddenly falling through the air. The knife fell from her hand.  

All of the breath rushed from her lungs as her shoulder struck the ground with a crunch, searing pain rushing down her arm. For a moment, her vision went black and her thoughts dimmed, unconsciousness threatening to drag her under. Terror rushed through her and she forced her eyes open, clarity flooding back into her mind. Evelyn looked around, her gaze catching on the gleam of metal nearby: the knife, lying on the ground.  

She reached out desperately for her knife, her fingers brushing against the hilt. Just as she was about to grab the handle, the woman kicked the knife out of the way with the heel of her boot. The gesture was casual, lazy even; fury built up deep inside of Evelyn as she watched her last hope clang against the cobblestones, disappearing out of view. Helpless anger rose up inside of her as the woman loomed over her, watching with a smile as she struggled to get up.  

“I expected better of you, detective,” the woman said as Evelyn finally managed to pull herself up to her knees, her arm hanging uselessly at her side. “Really, for one who dares to take on the gods, you would think you would be better prepared. Oh well.”  

The woman grabbed her by the shoulder, pressing her back down towards the ground as she fought to stand up. Evelyn bit back a cry, blinking away the tears in her eyes. She grabbed the woman by the wrist, but her attacker broke her grip with ease. The woman stepped around her, her eyes gleaming a chilling green. Her boots clicked across the ground, her sword swinging at her side, that awful smile still on her face.  

“It was a pleasure to meet you, Miss Raine.” The woman drew her blade, pointing it at Evelyn’s throat. It caught the last traces of light as the sun dropped below the horizon, gleaming a vicious silver. “But I do believe it’s time we parted.”  

The goddess’ laughter rang out down the alleyway as the woman raised her blade and swung it down, right towards Evelyn’s neck. 

About the Author

I started writing around 8th grade, and just never stopped. I wrote and self-published my first book, Rosila, and ever since then I've just been trying to write another book. I wrote this piece because I was tired of not being able to write things, and I wanted to start another project. 

Cover design made using Canva design tools.