The trek through the lane Mayme resided on was long and uneventful. She kept her head down as she walked down the uneven dirt road. Along her way many pires had been erected and burned within the first few  hours of sunlight. The stench of charred flesh and hair still permeated the air and overtook the usual smell of damp mold and mildew. Whatever plague victim the men of the town caught during the night were tied to these pires and lit aflame come morning. Their smouldering remains still laid with the ashes of wood they were burned alongside. The ladies of the lane had yet come around to collect them and take them to the mass graves a short distance from Mayme’s house in the opposite direction than she was headed. For most it was a usual sight, but Mayme hardly left her home. The skeletons that gawked out at her with empty eye sockets and blackened, burned flesh clinging to their frames made her queasy. Luckily it was easy for her to watch her boots as she walked, only catching those hollow stares from the corner of her eyes.

Death loomed everywhere in this district of town. From the castle across the lake to the road covered in scorch marks. It stuck in the air, clinging to clothes and lingering in hair. It ate at the minds of the folk as they wondered if it loomed over them as well. No one, not even the children, were safe from that worry. A sullen look always shallowly laid behind the sunken eyes of every neighbour. Sullen Mayme never looked up to see.

It wasn’t the first time she walked this path, she had done so a few times with her father, but she lacked the confidence to do it alone. Her heart pounded in her ears, her delicate hands tightly gripped the strap of her purse. No one paid her much mind, yet she felt as if everyone’s eyes were on her. Scrutinising her every movement. She hurried along, with shallow breaths and a racing heart until the dirt roads turned to stone paths to, finally, well laid cobblestone as she passed through Letcham’s various districts and arrived at the the bottom of the stairs that would take her to Letcham’s cathedral— the largest building in town. The city's heart. It dwarfed the rest of town’s skyline with how towering it was. Brilliant white stones built its hulking walls. It hardly looked like a cathedral, there were no gradious stained glass windows, arcs, gargoyles, or any of the classic gothic architecture the surrounding buildings seemed to all have. It was a plain solid monolith. Practical, in its dull evenly placed windows and giant main entrance, but devoid of personality. It was raised simply to serve the people, its merits would paint it as beautiful in the town’s folks eyes. With a canvas so blank, Mayme could not help but think it insidious.

The church ruled this town now, so heroically stepping into a leading role after the fall of Sangmont. Even if they were called a church they seemed not to worship any sort of God. The organisation seemed just as, if not more, secretive than the nobles of old, but folks did not seem to mind that much. They did not kill the townsfolk for their blood or anything of the like, after all.  They were a healing organization set on the goal of extending human life and fighting ailments— a task made much more pressing now with the plague running rampant. Mayme hardly knew anything more than that about it, though. They persecuted her people, anything beyond that hardly mattered in her heart. Their lofty goals would never benefit her nor her family, so it was hardly worth getting invested in.

Mayme’s eyes studied the gargantuan building at the top of the steps for a long moment. Large crowds coming and going, chatting loudly about the goings on of their lives. Mayme was left frozen, by both the people and the sight of the imposing building before her. Yet with a hard swallow she found her resolve and began her long climb up the stairs. It was a strenuous walk, she could only get about half way before being interrupted. A hand firmly grabbed onto the young woman’s shoulder. A small 'eep' escaped her lips as she spun around to see who had touched her. Her muscles were tense and her breathing quickened immediately. A woman stood there in front of her. She slowly pulled her gloved hand back and placed it on her hip. A long white coat draped over an even longer white dress that stole away any shape she had to her body, the only hint of religiosity on her was the scarf that dangled off her shoulders. That scarf was the only fabric on her with any colour; red rectangles that mimicked the building they stood in front of. She was a doctor of the church.

The woman tilted her head as she examined Mayme, her dark blond hair dusted over her shoulders as she did so. Her red lips curved into a smile. "You seem anxious. Is something the matter?" Her voice was as sweet as sugar.

Mayme looked back down at her feet and shook her head. "No," she spoke barely above a whisper.

The church member hummed to herself, quite unconvinced.

“I simply came to pick up some incense. I… it's overwhelming how many people are here is all," Mayme tried to clarify, “The district I live in is far sleepier than here, I’m a bit overwhelmed.”

"I see. That explains the smell of soot and death. Come now, I’ll bring you where you need to be.”

"It's fine, I-I can–" Mayme stammered out but was silenced by the doctor grabbing her wrist.

The friendly glint in the church member’s eyes was gone, and her smile was replaced with one that did not quite reach her icy eyes. "Follow me," she said sternly, though politeness could still be detected in her tone, it was fake. Filled with poison.

Mayme took a deep breath and allowed herself to be pulled along when the woman turned and began marching towards the cathedral. The half blood’s free hand fidgeted with the bag strap. She thought about running, but how far would she get, truly? All the doctor had to do was yell ‘Leech’ or ‘Abomination’ and every city folk around her would descend upon her. She tailed behind the blonde haired woman, the click of her heels seemingly echoed in Mayme’s skull, drilling deep into her soul as visions of her own death flashed before her eyes as they entered the giant open maw of the stone building.