Chapter 9 Nylah Lovecraft

"Wait- Stop!" Nylah protested after Salem as she slipped into the darkness.

On impulse, Nylah began to run after her but tripped over her boots and fell to the dirt floor hard. The impact caused her glasses to fall off and land somewhere unknown.

"Ah," Nylah cried and pulled herself up. She instantly felt the weight of her glasses go from her face.

"My glasses!" Nylah touched her face and was indeed correct. They had fallen away somewhere.

Rapidly, Nylah began to drag her hands across the ground, hoping to feel them out. She did this for a moment but, without success, gave up.

It wasn't as though I'd see anything with them on, Nylah rationalized. It was dark again. She couldn't even see her hand in the darkness, with or without the aid of her glasses.

Feeling a bit foolish now for even trying, Nylah moved to grab her Starbright stone that was in her jacket pocket- then stopped.

Oh, right, Nylah remembered. She had tossed it to the side earlier in a panic. But, unfortunately, it was likely far behind her now and would have no chance of being found again without the assistance of illumination.

This meant she would have to continue in the darkness like earlier unless-

"No, that is strictly prohibited." Nylah verbally dismissed it as soon as she thought it up. She knew it was against D.O.W. rules. And she was not the type to break them.

Even though calling forth the element of fire would be convenient right now, Nylah thought to herself. But, no, Nylah held herself to be better than that. So she didn't break the rules.

Instead, I will simply have to carry on as before. It won't be terrible, Nylah reasoned. After all, she was doing so back, which had brought her this far.

Nylah moved to push off the floor shakily and onto her feet. She carried a hand to touch the wall for stability and guidance. Its touch instantly gave her the confidence to move on, and she smiled.

I can do this. Just stay ahead of that Gleamer, and all will be well.

Nylah took a step forward and followed with another when- CRUNCH. She could feel her glasses give way under the weight of her boot. The sound of glass shattering echoed through the tunnel.

"-" Nylah held her mouth ajar a moment as various emotions ran through her. She then forced her mouth shut and clamped it into a tight line. Finally, she let out a breath of frustration. This went beyond being mad.

"Hmmm," Nylah vented through her sealed lips. That was her only pair of glasses. They didn't even make her prescription lens in Terra. Only Freet.

How could things worsen, Nylah thought bitterly. And what the hell was even going on here?

Nylah thought this would be an easy task of finding Madame Madeline- she had expected to find her down here. But instead, a vampire? And a familiar, and a gnome too? ,

Nylah hadn't expected this- what were they even doing here?

"What is wrong with this country?" Nylah asked herself. First was the incident at work, then being told she was a terrible worker, threatened with demotion, and now to this chaos?

What logic is this? Nylah thought exacerbated.

"Ah," Nylah cringed as she felt her feet step and shatter more glass. But what was the point? It was useless. The glasses were likely smashed into thousands of pieces.

"If I see them again- I will arrest them," Nylah said to herself. But she said it rather matter of factly. Nylah was not mad at them directly for the glasses.

That is more my fault than theirs, she reasoned. No, this is not personal. As a worker of D.O.W., I have a responsibility to arrest them.

It was part of the oath she had taken to become a worker of D.O.W.

Any D.O.W. official or registered witch was responsible for upholding the King's law: Neither to the harbor, assist, or fail to inform the location of magic-folk who have trespassed on the territories. Instead, if one were to encounter one, they were to enforce the law and capture or inform Greenhouse about them.

Even though Nylah knew all too well what Greenhouse would do them, she had been sworn in. She had no say in the matter. The penalty for refusing to do so was marked a traitor to the King, and her P.O.W. was revoked.

If she refused, she would become a rogue witch and thus a free target for Greenhouse.

No, I can not refuse. I will follow the rules and arrest them, Nylah repeated to herself. Then a thought came to her.

Could they possibly know where Madame Madeline is? They were in her store, or at least underneath it. They might know something as to the effect of where the witch is hiding.

It seems highly likely, Nylah concluded.

When and if she did manage to catch up with them, she would make it her objective to ask. And then the arrests would be made.

Hopefully, they are not entirely gone from here, Nylah thought and felt somewhat optimistic. She liked the idea of completing her mission.

Suddenly, the tunnel began to shake from behind her with a loud explosion. The young witch instinctively crouched down to cover her head with her hands. For a moment, she had forgotten about the Gleamer.

No-get up, Nylah immediately thought and tried to stand. But her feet had turned dumb from fear.

"Get up!" Nylah shouted to her feet. Behind her, she could distinctly hear the sound of someone running. They were still far off, but the feet were getting closer. It wouldn't be long before they would meet. She needed to get up.

Nylah turned her attention back to her feet and found them to awaken.

Thank the goddess, she thought. The young witch quickly took the chance and got up. Then, she took off in a run through the darkness.

From behind her, Nylah could hear the loud, clunky footsteps close in. But she was still ahead, she thought. Just had to keep running.

Please, all gods, let my legs move faster, Nylah prayed internally as she ran on.

But Nylah could not see ahead of her. She would have seen how the tunnel made a sharp turn to the left if she did. But unfortunately, she didn't, and Nylah ran into it, face first, at full speed.

The impact threw Nylah back to land aggressively on her back. Her head ran in pain, and she fell into a dazed stupor. For a moment, she could only lay there, unable to move.

Behind her, Nylah heard the footsteps inch near. They were no longer running now. Instead, the Gleamer seemed to be walking, taking extra care in her footsteps as if to savor the moment.

With her eyes focused on the ceiling, Nylah could begin to see how everything enlightened with a red glow. With said light, Nylah could see the wall she had run into. There was a spot of blood on it. It was from where Nylah had cut her lip.

Directly behind her head, the footsteps stopped. The Gleamer loomed over her.

"Hey-you,"

Nylah felt a new wave of terror wash over her, forcing herself to sit up and turn to face her fate. What she saw caused her to gasp. The masked gleamer held a vial of glow worms in one hand and her blue jacket in the other.

"This yours?" The Gleamer lifted her mask.

Nylah could see the gleamer as an old, wrinkle-faced woman with splotchy-colored hair. She was holding out her blue jacket to Nylah. Nylah gingerly moved. Her hands trembled as she reached out.

The Gleamer then pulled the jacket back and held it high above her.

"I said, 'this yours'?" She repeated mockingly, and Nylah pressed her lips tightly.

"Y-yes, It is," Nylah answered and saw the Glamour tilt her head.

"Who are you?" She asked, still holding the jacket above her. Nylah lowered her hands and looked to the ground.

Try to stay calm, she told herself. Do not do anything to provoke her, she told herself. Nylah forced a deep breath to collect herself. She then looked directly up at the old Gleamer.

"I am Madame Nylah Lovecraft, an official of the Designated Office of Witchcraft, the Financial- I am a messenger," Nylah spoke, correcting herself.

Nylah waited patiently for the Gleamer to respond to her words. What would she do next? The woman didn't take long.

"Yeah? That right? Then, what's a D.O.W. doing down here?" She asked, still mocking. Nylah narrowed her eyes. Even though her vision was somewhat fuzzy without the glasses, she could still make out how the Gleamer was smiling. It was a provoking type of smile.

Nylah took another calming breath.

"I am on a mission-

"A mission? What kind of mission?" The Gleamer interrupted. Nylah, now getting annoyed, took another breath.

Do not act out of order. She reminded herself.

"I am here to serve a fine to Madame Madeline, the store's owner."

"REALLY? I don't believe you." The Gleamer mocked, and Nylah twitched. Why would she lie?

Nylah bit her lower lip and pulled out the envelope she had kept in her skirt pocket. It was damp from the rain still. She held it out for the Gleamer to take. The old woman stared back at it unmoving.

"This is the bill. You can check to see if it is official. The Designated Office of Witchcraft stamp and watermark is there." Nylah said and pointed to it.

The Gleamer snatched the envelope from her hands. She rashly tore it open and quietly read a moment. She then crumpled up the letter with a loud "hmph" and dropped it, and her coat fell before her.

Why crumple the paper? Nylah balked at her actions. She quickly moved to straighten the paper out but was yanked forward. The Gleamer pulled her away, staring her down now with icy grey eyes.

"Why are YOU down here?"

"I heard a noise and thought it was the madame. So I followed it and-" Nylah stopped a moment. She wondered to herself if she would say the rest. That she had seen them down here. Nylah had never had to turn in magic-folk before.

She knew what would happen to them if she did. This gleamer would…

I am under oath, she reminded herself, She had to, or she would be a traitor.

"I found magic-folk- three of them: a familiar, a gnome, and a vampire," Nylah confessed instantly, feeling guilty and having to force it away. This was what she was supposed to do. It was the law.

So, I shouldn't feel guilty. Nylah thought. But despite that, she felt it.

"Oh? Did you?" The Gleamer asked with a different tone now. It was no longer mocking but somewhat warm. The Gleamer released the witch and took a step back.

Nylah could feel the Gleamer study her a moment before looking ahead.

"So, you saw them down here?" She asked, and Nylah nodded. The Gleamer hummed a bit to herself.

"And, where are they now?" She asked, and Nylah brought her attention back to the paper. She began to smooth out the wrinkles as best possible deftly. She then folded it back to be placed again in her pocket.

She then pulled on her jacket and took to buttoning each sliver stud. As soon as she finished, she could feel her arms and shoulders grow heavy again. The coat was dripping wet and felt awful against her dried skin. It was also cold and made her cringe.

But at least I am in uniform again, Nylah thought in comfort. She was always expected to wear it. All registered witches were.

Nylah couldn't understand why the other witches seemed so against it. They used superficial excuses like how it looked 'ugly' and the like. Nylah found it just silly.

What did it matter how it looked, Nylah thought. It was the principal of it that did.

And personally, Nylah liked the design. The uniform had ample pockets, all perfect for witchcraft supplies. It also made life more straightforward, removing the burden of choosing a different outfit each day.

And what made it best, Nylah thought, was how confident she felt wearing it. People could recognize her as a witch and go to her for help. Witches were thought of highly in Freet as being wise, and Nylah was more than willing to aid someone who asked.

And right now, Nylah needed the confidence boost her uniform supplied.

Nylah looked back to the Gleamer, who had been waiting this entire time for an answer. Her eyes moved to focus on the other's grey ones. Her hands still trembled, but she forced herself to speak.

Nylah knew she needed to keep a focus on the task at hand. She moved to stand on her feet.

"They ran up that way- I was about to apprehend them but found myself unprepared for the task. I have failed." Nylah confessed, and for a moment, the Gleamer said nothing. She merely looked after her emotionlessly.

She then gave a cruel laugh.

"Sure you did." She mocked again with a smile. Nylah could see, despite her impaired vision, the disgust in the Gleamer's grey eyes. The witch involuntarily took a step back from her stare.

The Gleamer noticed. She dropped her smile and regarded the witch with cold eyes again.

"You witches are just useless-" The gleamer insulted and stepped around to avoid touching Nylah. Nylah turned her head to look her way. The gleamer was walking on.

"But that's not surprising to me. You all just stick together- I hope you ain't lying about seeing them, Lovecraft, was it? You didn't let them go on purpose, out of empathy or something, Fae for Fae, right?"

"If you did- haha- I will find out." The Gleamer then stopped to turn her head to stare the witch down.

"And I will get you." She spoke, and Nylah took another step back in fear. Nylah could feel her heart beating abnormally fast like a rabbit's. Her hands were violently shaking.

This is why everyone is so afraid of Greenhouse, Nylah thought and took another step back.

Nylah watched the Gleamer steal the red glow of her glow worms away the further she walked and panicked. Without her light, Nylah was beginning to be swallowed by darkness.

But wait, the Starbright, Nylah reminded herself. She moved to take the stone from her jacket pocket and squeezed it hard. The stone cracked under pressure and streamed out a pale purple light.

Up ahead, Nylah could still make out the red glow, but it was becoming fainter. The Gleamer, Nylah was a little surprised to find, was quick despite her age. Good thing, too.

A breath of relief escaped her lips. She was glad to have the Gleamer gone away without an incident. The gleamer was not interested in her after all.

Nylah moved to touch her lip. It was sour, but the bleeding was minimal.

Nylah momentarily relaxed and leaned back against the wall before another thought dawned on her. The Gleamer was not interested in her, but she was in the vampire.

But so was she now.

That girl may know something, Nylah reminded herself again. But to ask - what about the Gleamer?

I'd have to join her, wouldn't I? Nylah realized and felt a sinking feeling in her stomach at the idea. But, would it be worth it?

Nylah moved to feel the envelope in her pocket. It still needed to be delivered.

"...and I'll demote you…." Ms. Ferguson echoed in her head. Nylah held her breath then.

Was it worth it? Working with Greenhouse was dangerous. She'd be putting herself in danger at every moment. No one was safe when it came to Greenhouse.

Was it worth the risk, though? Five more years...was it worth the risk?

"Wait! Hold on-" Nylah called after the Gleamer. Then, up ahead, she saw the red light stop. She took that to mean the Gleamer had heard her.

By gods, what am I getting myself into? Nylah thought and took off in a run. She quickly reached the Gleamer, who peered back at her quizzically.

"What?" The Gleamer barked, impatient. Nylah looked at her without feeling afraid now. There was no time to be frightened. She could do that later.

"I'll come with you. The vampire- I need to ask her where the owner is." Nylah spoke clearly.

I will not live in this wretched country for five more years as a mindless custodian. Nylah steeled her resolve. She was going to deliver the warrant to the witch.

Nylah watched the Gleamer pause, somewhat surprised at what was said. She then cocked her head to a side and smiled.

"Well- this is new. A witch willing to betray her own." The Gleamer ended the statement with a dark laugh. She turned to walk away.

Nylah stared after her, unsure if it was alright to follow.

Should I? Nylah thought. This was Greenhouse. She wouldn't be safe, she knew. There was still a chance to turn back.

But to what?

Five more years of picking up trash and wiping windows and five more years of my skills going to waste in a foreign country that cared more for her skin color than her abilities?

Turn back to what if not that, Nylah thought.

Ahead, Nylah caught the Gleamer raising a hand to motion a 'come hither' as she strolled onward.

"Move it, Witch." The Gleamer called after her and looked over her shoulder.

"Ah, y-yes. Right away." Nylah quickly moved over to walk behind the Gleamer.