Riposte Chapter 3
And here's Chapter 3. I'm up to 7 at the moment and still working.
Riposte//Chapter 3//Sterling
CA 332, Ruins of Inverelle
“So do you think he’s there yet?” Haddy asked for the thousandth time. Li sighed. He sometimes forgot how annoying his friend could be without Chase with them. It had been, what, over a year since Chase had gone off on a solo mission and left the two of them to their own devices? He and Haddy were the talkative ones usually between the three of them because both were excellent at prattling on about absolutely nothing. Li tended to be at a loss when he was stuck with Haddy when Haddy was in a chatty mood.
“He is wearing that Erebian uniform. I’d assume much of the populace here either wants to jump him or stay out of his way. Let’s hope it’s the latter.”
“Hmm,” Haddy replied thoughtfully.
Inverelle was just as desolate as he’d heard. Li and his friends had purposefully avoided the ruin on the border because it was a lawless and dangerous place. They tended to skirmish with Erebian units and anyone else on the other side of a contract in the free part of the western continent. To be so close to Erebus’ territories was unnerving to say the least.
It was said that Inverelle used to be one of the largest and most prosperous cities during the Age of War. It was a center for industry and technology yet sometime before it ended and the Current Age began some sort of catastrophe occurred and all that was left were the shells of desolate buildings and ruins crumbling as far as the eye could see. Li definitely confirmed the ruins bit upon entering the city, but it was a little odd. The city was ages and ages old, yet some places looked like they had been recently destroyed. But it was notoriously hazardous, so the locals were probably to blame. It was approaching afternoon, which seemed to be a fairly safe time of day as a number of children were out and playing games in the trash and the ruins. They acted like dodging jagged pieces of metal and vaulting over half-collapsed walls were the most natural activities in the world.
“Say,” Haddy called out to one of the kids crossing their path. It was a girl, probably about eight or nine years old. She wore a tattered, patched up dress and a sweater about three times too big for her frail body, but her eyes were bright as she took in the strangers. True to what he’d said to the soldier, Li had better vision than the average person. Though the dark cloth cast an odd sheen over his sight, at times he didn’t realize it was there at all. He could still make out the stray hairs plastered to the girl’s round face from her running and the unraveling hem of her left sleeve.
“What do you want?” the girl asked. She edged closer in the direction her friends had gone, but seemed content enough to talk to Haddy, at least for a minute.
“Is there any sort of inn in this city?” He asked, hope apparent in his tone.
She giggled and pushed herself onto an unsteady piece of wall, preparing to follow her friends.
“You’re silly. We don’t got anything like that here.”
“I could have told you that,” Li added.
“A guy can dream,” Haddy sighed. “But that brings up the question of where we’re going to stay the night. I mean, I know that Chase is on this life-threatening, dangerous mission into enemy territory but I kinda can’t help but think we got the raw end of the deal.”
Li had to agree, at least partially. The looks they’d been getting from the locals who weren’t children were positively murderous. He would be surprised if they made it the whole day without getting mugged by a street tough hoping to find a spare note or two.
Since they had absolutely nothing else to do and nowhere in particular to go, they wandered for awhile longer. Haddy seemed determined to find some representation of civilization as at times he would climb fallen walls to try and scope out the land around them and determine if there was anything that resembled a real building. They were all ruins from what Li saw and after a time Haddy became disheartened.
“What the hell? There’s nothing here. Just ruins and bums. How in the world do they eat? Or drink?”
“It’s not as though we’ve seen inside their little homes. Perhaps they raise some animals or plants in places we can’t easily access. Besides all that, I’ve heard ruined cities can sometimes have food stores from ages ago that are still edible. I wonder how they preserved things.”
“Wonder all you like but do it in your head. I only asked because I think I’m about to keel over from hunger over here.”
Li agreed. Breakfast was hours and hours ago, before the sun had properly risen. He hadn’t had much of an appetite then, but he certainly did now. He wasn’t entirely sure what to do. Since the city only had the last vestiges of social order there weren’t any markets, restaurants, or any obvious way of getting food, water, and shelter.
“Well, we could always ask,” he finally said. No point in overthinking it.
“Pfft. I like that.”
Haddy sprinted off and took the next corner where he’d seen a young man turn moments before. Li rushed to keep up. He was unsure if he should even try his blind act here because might just make him more of a target. But then he didn’t want the risk having people following them around if they did see his eyes. He was always, always trying to work on control but he never seemed to really get anywhere. So he’d do the blind thing for at least a little bit.
“Oi, good sir!” Haddy called out, doing a flawless impression of Chase.
The young man had stopped on the other side of the fallen foundation of what was once a large, tall building. He was squatting in a circle of other young men who were also crouched down and playing some sort of game. The man at the end tossed dice in the circle and corresponding howls of delight and anguish issued from the small crowd with every roll. The young man Haddy had called out to didn’t even acknowledge his words as he tried again, but one of the men facing in their direction lifted his head a bit to see him walking over.
“I said oi. It always seems to work for Chase,” Haddy muttered. He put his hands on his hips and came to stop a few feet away from the group.
“Mind if we ask a few questions, guys?”
“Fuck off.”
“Not really in the mood. Come on, I just have a few questions. Very few. We’re new to the area and need help finding things.”
Li wasn’t sure speaking with them was such a good idea, especially when one of the young sporting a hat that cast a dark shadow over his eyes pulled out a knife from inside his jacket. He pointed it toward Haddy and bared his teeth threateningly.
“He said fuck off so you’d better fuck off. Want help? Go ask those Erebian fuckers for it then.”
Seemed they didn’t have a very developed vocabulary. Li stopped at Haddy’s side and inclined his head toward them.
“Probably not the best idea to mess with them. They seem like an unpleasant lot.”
“We’re right here, asshole.”
“I know. I’m not deaf.”
Haddy pursed his lips, irritated already at his lack of progress. “I just want to know how in the world you get food around here. We’re going to have to stay in this godforsaken place for a few days and I’d rather not starve to death.”
“I said fuck off.”
“I heard you then but I said I wasn’t in the mood.”
“Either cut them up or stop fucking talking.”
“I will once you give me information. Food. Where to find it. Or should I ask in fewer words?”
“That’s it. These fuckers are just gonna blab on. I’m out,” exclaimed one of the youths in frustration. He pushed off his knees but instead of leaving like a normal person might, he instead pulled a blade from his jacket. But little did he know that wasn’t a particularly intimidating sight for either of them.
“Oh, you wanna go a round?” Haddy asked.
“I’ve been in a bad mood all day. My girl left me for Rawson. Bitch’ll open her legs for anyone at this point. I’ll fuck you up if you don’t leave right now.”
“With a face like that? I’d dump your ass too. If I beat you up will you answer my question?”
The guy curled his lips in a smile. “Yeah, sure, if you can manage it. You don’t even got a blade. And that blind faggot doesn’t look like he’s got the strength to wipe his own ass much less help you out. Making you bleed is looking better and better.”
Li nodded. “Stress relief. Hopefully it’ll help curb that temper of yours.”
“I somehow don’t think there’s a cure for moron. But I’ll try to kick it out of him,” Haddy said optimistically before grabbing for his spinner. He tested the chain on his hand, winding it between his fingers and over his wrist before he held his arms aloft and let it fly with only what felt like a push of his power. He circled his arm, managing it easily with only one and the spinner came to life, blades whirring in the breeze.
Li knew he was just showing off, and it seemed to be working. The men were no longer paying the least bit of attention to their game and instead stared, open-mouthed, at Haddy. He managed a yawn in response to their sudden attention.
“Well, come at me.”
The young man’s murderous look had changed to an expression of utter shock with a healthy amount of fear. He made a big show of suddenly trying to appear bored as he returned his knife back inside his jacket and spit nonchalantly on the ground.
“Eh, it’s not worth it. We see you fucking soldier types in here all the time so that’s nothing new.” An obvious lie. “What do you wanna know?”
“That was easy. But it suits me,” Haddy exclaimed. He tossed his spinner off toward the gaggle of men, some who ducked upon seeing whirring death come their way, but Haddy had far better aim than they expected. It zipped past them harmlessly and lodged itself in an unremarkable pile of rubble. Haddy tugged at the weapon and it returned scraping along the ground and back to his side. He slowly unwrapped his hand and returned the spinner to his back.
“Food, water, and shelter? Are these things anywhere to be found in this city?” Li asked.
“You’re gonna have to find one of the Kindred. They take care of people without asking for notes or nothin’.”
“Oh? Are they from here?”
The youth shook his head. “Nah. They’re just fucking busybodies from other cities who want to ‘save’ us lowlifes. They set up little shelters and take in the orphans or any of us who get half killed in a turf war.”
“Where’s the closest one?” Haddy asked.
Another guy chimed in with that question. He was the shortest of the bunch by the look of it, and probably only fourteen or so judging by his looks.
“There’s one just a few streets away. A lady and aunts or something. They almost got raped and killed their firs’ night here, but the Falcon gang saved ‘em. They’ve been under their turf since then.”
“Pfft. It’s because Falcon wants to fuck the girl.”
“Wouldn’t you? Have you seen that ass?”
“But girls like that ain’t never gonna give it up for punks like us. Unless we make ‘em.”
“Is there any special way of identifying it?” Li asked, hoping to break up their vulgar conversation.
“You can’t miss it. All them ladies wear white. They’ll probably try and kidnap you since you’re blind. They can’t help themselves. Like I said, fucking busybodies.”
“Thanks for the help,” Haddy said before he broke into a sprint and rushed past the guys before they could change their mind and decide to get him before he could get his weapon back out. Li walked a bit more slowly. He could see their eyes on him, and one leaned over to whisper to his buddy but the man fixed a hand on his mouth and whispered something about blind guys and hearing.
They were well and truly scared of what Haddy could do at least. Hopefully they wouldn’t come looking for them later. He hurried along when he knew he was out of the group’s sight and caught up to Haddy. He was genuinely surprised to hear that there were people from other cities taking on such noble tasks in the lawless ruins of Inverelle. They were probably a religious tribe. Those were the only types that undertook such a deep level of charity.
The young men, as it turned out, were not leading them astray for after a few streets they saw light in the form of several torches lining the entryway of a partially intact building. Part of the front had been ripped away, but the upper floors all had sheets and curtains blocking them from view while the lower part was completely open for the world to see. A number of older ladies wearing white were chatting and playing with children right inside. One of then called out the moment she saw them turn the corner.
“Oh! Young men.”
Haddy waved and jogged over to meet the woman before she could make it out of her building.
“Hello! You’re the Kindred? Or so those guys said.”
“Yes. Well, that’s what the people around here call us. Our tribe calls itself “Kindrel” but it’s easy to see how they misheard it.”
She smiled. Li could make out her features as he got closer. She was an older woman, probably in her late fifties or early sixties and physically round, rosey-cheeked, and bright-eyed. The woman clasped her hands as he approached as well and he saw a look of concern cross her face before she rushed down the steps and took his arm.
“You poor dear. Blind and wandering around this place. It can be quite dangerous to the weak and defenseless, even during the day. Do come in.”
He felt insanely guilty all of a sudden. It was convenient to pretend he was disabled in towns, especially since people didn’t suspect him till the absolute last moment, but this women was genuinely kind and concerned about him. He wasn’t used to that, and he certainly didn’t like it.
“Thank you,” he managed.
“I’m so glad you found us! You don’t have the look of the young men we usually see around here.”
“That’s because we’re not from Inverelle,” Haddy explained.
“Oh? You’re visiting or are you…” she trailed off. The woman clearly couldn’t think of a kind way to ask if they were here to pass into Erebus.
“We’re waiting on a friend actually. He’s supposed to meet us here.”
The woman’s eyes widened and her smile was back in full force. “What an odd place to meet. Are you, perhaps, interested in joining our tribe? We accept anyone interested in helping these poor souls.”
“While that’s a wonderful offer, I’m afraid we’re only here to meet our friend. We’re already affiliated with a tribe,” Li said.
“I see. Well, you don’t need to join us in order to accept our hospitality. But please give us your names, if it’s not presumptuous of me to ask.”
“Not at all. I’m Sterling, but you may call me Li. My friend is Hadwin.”
“Haddy,” he corrected. He didn’t like being called by his given name.
“What wonderful names. I’m Alyce Gervaise. Alyce to my friends and I hope you two will be friends here.”
“Of course. It was a bit of a surprise, when we heard about this place. Whatever drove you to settle here?”
Alyce led Li over to a large table and chairs set farther back in their base. He shrugged off her hand and sat in one without assistance as he was certain he would be struck down by some magical force if he actually allowed the woman to assist him further. She took the chair opposite him and gestured for Haddy to join them. A small group of girls were drawing on the other end along with a young woman dressed in the same white dress all the Kindred wore.
“All in due time, young men. First I would like you to meet my great-niece. Valentina, say hello to these young men. They’re going to be staying with us for a short time.”
Valentina was the undoubtedly woman the young punks from earlier had referenced. He could see where they were coming from after only a glance. The young lady couldn’t have been much over 20 years of age, had honey-blonde hair, red lips, and blue eyes that seemed to radiate kindness and serenity. She was a little too comely, especially in contrast to her harsh surroundings, but that caused her to draw more attention, or so he imagined. Haddy drew in a sharp breath beside him. He’d always been a sucker for pretty faces. She turned toward the pair of them and smiled kindly.
“Welcome. I’m Valentina Gervaise. Where do you gentlemen hail from?”
“Farther north than this originally, but we’ve traveled around all our lives,” Li explained. He hated when people asked their home region. As though everyone required a particular place to come from. Her face fell slightly since his tone was curt, but she recovered quickly.
“I see. So are you two brothers?”
They couldn’t look any less like they were related, but Li figured she was just being polite.
“No. The lack of a family resemblance didn’t tip you off, huh?” Haddy asked, sending a grin and a wink her way. Valentina blushed slightly.
“I’m sorry. Just you said “we” so I assumed you’d been together for years.”
“Yeah, ever since we were children.”
Alyce interjected then, giving Li yet another concerned look as her eyes were trained on his blindfold.
“Have you been blind for long?”
“Uh…”
“He’s not blind, ma’am. He just wears that for personal reasons. It’s got to do with our tribe,” Haddy explained. Li flushed despite himself and bowed his head toward the woman.
“I’m sorry, I should have said something sooner. Most people assume it and it’s usually too much trouble to correct them. Most members of Coalitions unaffiliated with some tribal customs tend to find my explanation odd and off-putting.”
Alyce stiffened in surprise but she was quick to forgive their misunderstanding. She leaned forward and patted his hand gently. “Think nothing of it, dear. I’m very glad to hear you don’t have such a disability.”
Li honestly wasn’t sure how people didn’t get it sooner when they saw him approaching. He didn’t use anything to guide him and Haddy certainly wasn’t helping him navigate through any obstacles that lined the streets.
“So why do you wear it?” one of the little girls asked. One of the other girls’ pigtailed head came up as well. Li wavered in indecision. If Chase were here, he’d lie for sure, but he would be unduly skeptical about these woman regardless so that would be natural for him. Li felt he could trust them, not with every secret he had, but with at least part of the truth.
“My eyes tend to distract people when they can see them, so it’s just easier if I keep them covered.” He said that, but he knew ‘why?’ would inevitably follow.
“Why is that?” Valentina predictably asked. She stared toward his eyes as though she could get a clue just looking their direction.
“It’s part of my gift,” he finally admitted. That took even Haddy by surprise and Valentina clapped her hands together in glee.
“How exciting. I have a gift as well,” Valentina said proudly. “I can make things grow a little.” And because the young woman clearly needed to prove it, she rested the palm of her hand on the head of the girl to her right and closed her eyes. A gentle light spread from the point of contact and caused the child’s hair to glow. The light wavered and then crawled down about an inch. Valentina removed her hand slowly and the girl giggled in response and played with the end of her lengthened hair.
“Valentina. What did your mother tell you about showing off?” Alyce gently reminded her.
“But they’re gifted as well,” Valentina tried, widening her eyes reproachfully as she stared at her aunt.
Alyce sighed. “…I suppose I won’t tell her then. Just be careful. I wouldn’t want anything to happen to you.”
That was a curious thing to say. The gifted weren’t that rare, and with a small power like hers she was at little to no risk even if she did show it off to people.
“So what gifts do you two possess?” Valentina asked.
“I can cast and manipulate wind,” Haddy said immediately. As usual, Haddy decided to go all the way with things. He took his cues from Li and Chase, but the problem was when they let a bit of information go he tended to let absolutely everything be known because he had no sense of proportion.
“Haddy,” Li started.
Alyce moved back in her chair and hit the table hard with her hands as she got to her feet. Her face was taut, almost with fear.
“Covered eyes and wind. You’re Anima.”
Li frowned. And that was the reason why he wore the stupid blindfold. People would know in one look because, inexplicably, stories of the Anima were known all over the world, or at least everywhere they’d been. A long moment stretched between them, and one of the girls, clearly unaware of the tension that gripped the adults, went ahead and asked her question.
“What’s Enema?”
“Anima,” Valentina corrected. “They’re a tribe. I heard they died out…”
“A tribe known for offense, elemental magic. Oh dear, you need to be very careful in Inverelle.”
“Huh?” Haddy asked.
“If the hunters find out you’re the gifted you could end up dead.”
So, how am I doing? What's that, imaginary friends who like to read? It's really boring? Well I don't care. I'll write it anyway ; D
Riposte//Chapter 3//Sterling
CA 332, Ruins of Inverelle
“So do you think he’s there yet?” Haddy asked for the thousandth time. Li sighed. He sometimes forgot how annoying his friend could be without Chase with them. It had been, what, over a year since Chase had gone off on a solo mission and left the two of them to their own devices? He and Haddy were the talkative ones usually between the three of them because both were excellent at prattling on about absolutely nothing. Li tended to be at a loss when he was stuck with Haddy when Haddy was in a chatty mood.
“He is wearing that Erebian uniform. I’d assume much of the populace here either wants to jump him or stay out of his way. Let’s hope it’s the latter.”
“Hmm,” Haddy replied thoughtfully.
Inverelle was just as desolate as he’d heard. Li and his friends had purposefully avoided the ruin on the border because it was a lawless and dangerous place. They tended to skirmish with Erebian units and anyone else on the other side of a contract in the free part of the western continent. To be so close to Erebus’ territories was unnerving to say the least.
It was said that Inverelle used to be one of the largest and most prosperous cities during the Age of War. It was a center for industry and technology yet sometime before it ended and the Current Age began some sort of catastrophe occurred and all that was left were the shells of desolate buildings and ruins crumbling as far as the eye could see. Li definitely confirmed the ruins bit upon entering the city, but it was a little odd. The city was ages and ages old, yet some places looked like they had been recently destroyed. But it was notoriously hazardous, so the locals were probably to blame. It was approaching afternoon, which seemed to be a fairly safe time of day as a number of children were out and playing games in the trash and the ruins. They acted like dodging jagged pieces of metal and vaulting over half-collapsed walls were the most natural activities in the world.
“Say,” Haddy called out to one of the kids crossing their path. It was a girl, probably about eight or nine years old. She wore a tattered, patched up dress and a sweater about three times too big for her frail body, but her eyes were bright as she took in the strangers. True to what he’d said to the soldier, Li had better vision than the average person. Though the dark cloth cast an odd sheen over his sight, at times he didn’t realize it was there at all. He could still make out the stray hairs plastered to the girl’s round face from her running and the unraveling hem of her left sleeve.
“What do you want?” the girl asked. She edged closer in the direction her friends had gone, but seemed content enough to talk to Haddy, at least for a minute.
“Is there any sort of inn in this city?” He asked, hope apparent in his tone.
She giggled and pushed herself onto an unsteady piece of wall, preparing to follow her friends.
“You’re silly. We don’t got anything like that here.”
“I could have told you that,” Li added.
“A guy can dream,” Haddy sighed. “But that brings up the question of where we’re going to stay the night. I mean, I know that Chase is on this life-threatening, dangerous mission into enemy territory but I kinda can’t help but think we got the raw end of the deal.”
Li had to agree, at least partially. The looks they’d been getting from the locals who weren’t children were positively murderous. He would be surprised if they made it the whole day without getting mugged by a street tough hoping to find a spare note or two.
Since they had absolutely nothing else to do and nowhere in particular to go, they wandered for awhile longer. Haddy seemed determined to find some representation of civilization as at times he would climb fallen walls to try and scope out the land around them and determine if there was anything that resembled a real building. They were all ruins from what Li saw and after a time Haddy became disheartened.
“What the hell? There’s nothing here. Just ruins and bums. How in the world do they eat? Or drink?”
“It’s not as though we’ve seen inside their little homes. Perhaps they raise some animals or plants in places we can’t easily access. Besides all that, I’ve heard ruined cities can sometimes have food stores from ages ago that are still edible. I wonder how they preserved things.”
“Wonder all you like but do it in your head. I only asked because I think I’m about to keel over from hunger over here.”
Li agreed. Breakfast was hours and hours ago, before the sun had properly risen. He hadn’t had much of an appetite then, but he certainly did now. He wasn’t entirely sure what to do. Since the city only had the last vestiges of social order there weren’t any markets, restaurants, or any obvious way of getting food, water, and shelter.
“Well, we could always ask,” he finally said. No point in overthinking it.
“Pfft. I like that.”
Haddy sprinted off and took the next corner where he’d seen a young man turn moments before. Li rushed to keep up. He was unsure if he should even try his blind act here because might just make him more of a target. But then he didn’t want the risk having people following them around if they did see his eyes. He was always, always trying to work on control but he never seemed to really get anywhere. So he’d do the blind thing for at least a little bit.
“Oi, good sir!” Haddy called out, doing a flawless impression of Chase.
The young man had stopped on the other side of the fallen foundation of what was once a large, tall building. He was squatting in a circle of other young men who were also crouched down and playing some sort of game. The man at the end tossed dice in the circle and corresponding howls of delight and anguish issued from the small crowd with every roll. The young man Haddy had called out to didn’t even acknowledge his words as he tried again, but one of the men facing in their direction lifted his head a bit to see him walking over.
“I said oi. It always seems to work for Chase,” Haddy muttered. He put his hands on his hips and came to stop a few feet away from the group.
“Mind if we ask a few questions, guys?”
“Fuck off.”
“Not really in the mood. Come on, I just have a few questions. Very few. We’re new to the area and need help finding things.”
Li wasn’t sure speaking with them was such a good idea, especially when one of the young sporting a hat that cast a dark shadow over his eyes pulled out a knife from inside his jacket. He pointed it toward Haddy and bared his teeth threateningly.
“He said fuck off so you’d better fuck off. Want help? Go ask those Erebian fuckers for it then.”
Seemed they didn’t have a very developed vocabulary. Li stopped at Haddy’s side and inclined his head toward them.
“Probably not the best idea to mess with them. They seem like an unpleasant lot.”
“We’re right here, asshole.”
“I know. I’m not deaf.”
Haddy pursed his lips, irritated already at his lack of progress. “I just want to know how in the world you get food around here. We’re going to have to stay in this godforsaken place for a few days and I’d rather not starve to death.”
“I said fuck off.”
“I heard you then but I said I wasn’t in the mood.”
“Either cut them up or stop fucking talking.”
“I will once you give me information. Food. Where to find it. Or should I ask in fewer words?”
“That’s it. These fuckers are just gonna blab on. I’m out,” exclaimed one of the youths in frustration. He pushed off his knees but instead of leaving like a normal person might, he instead pulled a blade from his jacket. But little did he know that wasn’t a particularly intimidating sight for either of them.
“Oh, you wanna go a round?” Haddy asked.
“I’ve been in a bad mood all day. My girl left me for Rawson. Bitch’ll open her legs for anyone at this point. I’ll fuck you up if you don’t leave right now.”
“With a face like that? I’d dump your ass too. If I beat you up will you answer my question?”
The guy curled his lips in a smile. “Yeah, sure, if you can manage it. You don’t even got a blade. And that blind faggot doesn’t look like he’s got the strength to wipe his own ass much less help you out. Making you bleed is looking better and better.”
Li nodded. “Stress relief. Hopefully it’ll help curb that temper of yours.”
“I somehow don’t think there’s a cure for moron. But I’ll try to kick it out of him,” Haddy said optimistically before grabbing for his spinner. He tested the chain on his hand, winding it between his fingers and over his wrist before he held his arms aloft and let it fly with only what felt like a push of his power. He circled his arm, managing it easily with only one and the spinner came to life, blades whirring in the breeze.
Li knew he was just showing off, and it seemed to be working. The men were no longer paying the least bit of attention to their game and instead stared, open-mouthed, at Haddy. He managed a yawn in response to their sudden attention.
“Well, come at me.”
The young man’s murderous look had changed to an expression of utter shock with a healthy amount of fear. He made a big show of suddenly trying to appear bored as he returned his knife back inside his jacket and spit nonchalantly on the ground.
“Eh, it’s not worth it. We see you fucking soldier types in here all the time so that’s nothing new.” An obvious lie. “What do you wanna know?”
“That was easy. But it suits me,” Haddy exclaimed. He tossed his spinner off toward the gaggle of men, some who ducked upon seeing whirring death come their way, but Haddy had far better aim than they expected. It zipped past them harmlessly and lodged itself in an unremarkable pile of rubble. Haddy tugged at the weapon and it returned scraping along the ground and back to his side. He slowly unwrapped his hand and returned the spinner to his back.
“Food, water, and shelter? Are these things anywhere to be found in this city?” Li asked.
“You’re gonna have to find one of the Kindred. They take care of people without asking for notes or nothin’.”
“Oh? Are they from here?”
The youth shook his head. “Nah. They’re just fucking busybodies from other cities who want to ‘save’ us lowlifes. They set up little shelters and take in the orphans or any of us who get half killed in a turf war.”
“Where’s the closest one?” Haddy asked.
Another guy chimed in with that question. He was the shortest of the bunch by the look of it, and probably only fourteen or so judging by his looks.
“There’s one just a few streets away. A lady and aunts or something. They almost got raped and killed their firs’ night here, but the Falcon gang saved ‘em. They’ve been under their turf since then.”
“Pfft. It’s because Falcon wants to fuck the girl.”
“Wouldn’t you? Have you seen that ass?”
“But girls like that ain’t never gonna give it up for punks like us. Unless we make ‘em.”
“Is there any special way of identifying it?” Li asked, hoping to break up their vulgar conversation.
“You can’t miss it. All them ladies wear white. They’ll probably try and kidnap you since you’re blind. They can’t help themselves. Like I said, fucking busybodies.”
“Thanks for the help,” Haddy said before he broke into a sprint and rushed past the guys before they could change their mind and decide to get him before he could get his weapon back out. Li walked a bit more slowly. He could see their eyes on him, and one leaned over to whisper to his buddy but the man fixed a hand on his mouth and whispered something about blind guys and hearing.
They were well and truly scared of what Haddy could do at least. Hopefully they wouldn’t come looking for them later. He hurried along when he knew he was out of the group’s sight and caught up to Haddy. He was genuinely surprised to hear that there were people from other cities taking on such noble tasks in the lawless ruins of Inverelle. They were probably a religious tribe. Those were the only types that undertook such a deep level of charity.
The young men, as it turned out, were not leading them astray for after a few streets they saw light in the form of several torches lining the entryway of a partially intact building. Part of the front had been ripped away, but the upper floors all had sheets and curtains blocking them from view while the lower part was completely open for the world to see. A number of older ladies wearing white were chatting and playing with children right inside. One of then called out the moment she saw them turn the corner.
“Oh! Young men.”
Haddy waved and jogged over to meet the woman before she could make it out of her building.
“Hello! You’re the Kindred? Or so those guys said.”
“Yes. Well, that’s what the people around here call us. Our tribe calls itself “Kindrel” but it’s easy to see how they misheard it.”
She smiled. Li could make out her features as he got closer. She was an older woman, probably in her late fifties or early sixties and physically round, rosey-cheeked, and bright-eyed. The woman clasped her hands as he approached as well and he saw a look of concern cross her face before she rushed down the steps and took his arm.
“You poor dear. Blind and wandering around this place. It can be quite dangerous to the weak and defenseless, even during the day. Do come in.”
He felt insanely guilty all of a sudden. It was convenient to pretend he was disabled in towns, especially since people didn’t suspect him till the absolute last moment, but this women was genuinely kind and concerned about him. He wasn’t used to that, and he certainly didn’t like it.
“Thank you,” he managed.
“I’m so glad you found us! You don’t have the look of the young men we usually see around here.”
“That’s because we’re not from Inverelle,” Haddy explained.
“Oh? You’re visiting or are you…” she trailed off. The woman clearly couldn’t think of a kind way to ask if they were here to pass into Erebus.
“We’re waiting on a friend actually. He’s supposed to meet us here.”
The woman’s eyes widened and her smile was back in full force. “What an odd place to meet. Are you, perhaps, interested in joining our tribe? We accept anyone interested in helping these poor souls.”
“While that’s a wonderful offer, I’m afraid we’re only here to meet our friend. We’re already affiliated with a tribe,” Li said.
“I see. Well, you don’t need to join us in order to accept our hospitality. But please give us your names, if it’s not presumptuous of me to ask.”
“Not at all. I’m Sterling, but you may call me Li. My friend is Hadwin.”
“Haddy,” he corrected. He didn’t like being called by his given name.
“What wonderful names. I’m Alyce Gervaise. Alyce to my friends and I hope you two will be friends here.”
“Of course. It was a bit of a surprise, when we heard about this place. Whatever drove you to settle here?”
Alyce led Li over to a large table and chairs set farther back in their base. He shrugged off her hand and sat in one without assistance as he was certain he would be struck down by some magical force if he actually allowed the woman to assist him further. She took the chair opposite him and gestured for Haddy to join them. A small group of girls were drawing on the other end along with a young woman dressed in the same white dress all the Kindred wore.
“All in due time, young men. First I would like you to meet my great-niece. Valentina, say hello to these young men. They’re going to be staying with us for a short time.”
Valentina was the undoubtedly woman the young punks from earlier had referenced. He could see where they were coming from after only a glance. The young lady couldn’t have been much over 20 years of age, had honey-blonde hair, red lips, and blue eyes that seemed to radiate kindness and serenity. She was a little too comely, especially in contrast to her harsh surroundings, but that caused her to draw more attention, or so he imagined. Haddy drew in a sharp breath beside him. He’d always been a sucker for pretty faces. She turned toward the pair of them and smiled kindly.
“Welcome. I’m Valentina Gervaise. Where do you gentlemen hail from?”
“Farther north than this originally, but we’ve traveled around all our lives,” Li explained. He hated when people asked their home region. As though everyone required a particular place to come from. Her face fell slightly since his tone was curt, but she recovered quickly.
“I see. So are you two brothers?”
They couldn’t look any less like they were related, but Li figured she was just being polite.
“No. The lack of a family resemblance didn’t tip you off, huh?” Haddy asked, sending a grin and a wink her way. Valentina blushed slightly.
“I’m sorry. Just you said “we” so I assumed you’d been together for years.”
“Yeah, ever since we were children.”
Alyce interjected then, giving Li yet another concerned look as her eyes were trained on his blindfold.
“Have you been blind for long?”
“Uh…”
“He’s not blind, ma’am. He just wears that for personal reasons. It’s got to do with our tribe,” Haddy explained. Li flushed despite himself and bowed his head toward the woman.
“I’m sorry, I should have said something sooner. Most people assume it and it’s usually too much trouble to correct them. Most members of Coalitions unaffiliated with some tribal customs tend to find my explanation odd and off-putting.”
Alyce stiffened in surprise but she was quick to forgive their misunderstanding. She leaned forward and patted his hand gently. “Think nothing of it, dear. I’m very glad to hear you don’t have such a disability.”
Li honestly wasn’t sure how people didn’t get it sooner when they saw him approaching. He didn’t use anything to guide him and Haddy certainly wasn’t helping him navigate through any obstacles that lined the streets.
“So why do you wear it?” one of the little girls asked. One of the other girls’ pigtailed head came up as well. Li wavered in indecision. If Chase were here, he’d lie for sure, but he would be unduly skeptical about these woman regardless so that would be natural for him. Li felt he could trust them, not with every secret he had, but with at least part of the truth.
“My eyes tend to distract people when they can see them, so it’s just easier if I keep them covered.” He said that, but he knew ‘why?’ would inevitably follow.
“Why is that?” Valentina predictably asked. She stared toward his eyes as though she could get a clue just looking their direction.
“It’s part of my gift,” he finally admitted. That took even Haddy by surprise and Valentina clapped her hands together in glee.
“How exciting. I have a gift as well,” Valentina said proudly. “I can make things grow a little.” And because the young woman clearly needed to prove it, she rested the palm of her hand on the head of the girl to her right and closed her eyes. A gentle light spread from the point of contact and caused the child’s hair to glow. The light wavered and then crawled down about an inch. Valentina removed her hand slowly and the girl giggled in response and played with the end of her lengthened hair.
“Valentina. What did your mother tell you about showing off?” Alyce gently reminded her.
“But they’re gifted as well,” Valentina tried, widening her eyes reproachfully as she stared at her aunt.
Alyce sighed. “…I suppose I won’t tell her then. Just be careful. I wouldn’t want anything to happen to you.”
That was a curious thing to say. The gifted weren’t that rare, and with a small power like hers she was at little to no risk even if she did show it off to people.
“So what gifts do you two possess?” Valentina asked.
“I can cast and manipulate wind,” Haddy said immediately. As usual, Haddy decided to go all the way with things. He took his cues from Li and Chase, but the problem was when they let a bit of information go he tended to let absolutely everything be known because he had no sense of proportion.
“Haddy,” Li started.
Alyce moved back in her chair and hit the table hard with her hands as she got to her feet. Her face was taut, almost with fear.
“Covered eyes and wind. You’re Anima.”
Li frowned. And that was the reason why he wore the stupid blindfold. People would know in one look because, inexplicably, stories of the Anima were known all over the world, or at least everywhere they’d been. A long moment stretched between them, and one of the girls, clearly unaware of the tension that gripped the adults, went ahead and asked her question.
“What’s Enema?”
“Anima,” Valentina corrected. “They’re a tribe. I heard they died out…”
“A tribe known for offense, elemental magic. Oh dear, you need to be very careful in Inverelle.”
“Huh?” Haddy asked.
“If the hunters find out you’re the gifted you could end up dead.”
So, how am I doing? What's that, imaginary friends who like to read? It's really boring? Well I don't care. I'll write it anyway ; D