The Courtyard Massacre

The hallways of the Academy were nearly empty. The deeper Ronan and I ventured into the restricted wing, the quieter it became. As we grew closer to the door that would open up to reveal a whole lot of bullshit, I struggled with the concept of what we needed to do, who we had to work with, and how everything would end up.

I raised my hand to knock on the door, but Ronan suddenly stiffened beside me.

"There is blood."

My pulse spiked as I looked around. Eventually–a handful of seconds at best–I followed his gaze downward. A dark red pool was slowly creeping from beneath Veldrin's door, seeping into the cracks of the stone floor. It was fresh.

"Shit."

Instinct kicked in. I reached for the door handle, but Ronan moved first.