Eye of Guilt

[Lord Gregorio]

Alright. So this is a bit of the story connected to the world building I posted here (Also where I'll be asking for help)

Feel free to recommend name changes for my characters. They kind of just have place-holder names rn.

Prologue

Spoiler

The Speaker

Numbness is one of the strangest feelings. You never know how dangerous it is until you realize you don’t feel anything. That’s hard to experience naturally. In your world, that is. My world isn’t the same. Emotions aren’t stable of course, and it’s not as if you can go completely numb. Not without a lot of effort. There are those who may be more than numb on Earth. Killers, murderers. Some soldiers try to become numb so they don’t have to deal with the fact that they are ending life. Most of the time they understand they are protecting the citizens of their country. 

There are those in my world who have learned True Numbness. The inability to feel any reaction to anything. Emotionally. They still react, just not like normal humans. It's supernatural for my world. For Teldra.

 

Curtis

My finger traced a circle in the mud, then threw separate squiggles coming from the middle to the top of the circle. I stood and surveyed my self-made ritual circle of the Eyes. I looked up to the sky. Nothing happened of course. I hadn’t really expected it to do anything. I don’t know what I wanted from it. I was young. Maybe I just hoped the gods would answer me. Gift me with what I wanted. That was foolish, of course. The gods didn’t just give things to you because you wanted it badly. 

In anger I kicked the mud. It sprayed everywhere, including my face. I ended up with mud all over my clothes. That didn’t matter much to me. It would matter to my mother. I couldn’t do with her being angry, so I tried to wash it with the lake water. If you’ve ever tried to clean anything with lake water, you might understand my predicament. It didn’t end well. I walked home with a trail of brownish wetness. Muddy lakewater. That would be much better than simple mud. Mother would appreciate the mix.

I stumbled past Teren’s porch where he sat glaring at people who passed. That old guy was always angry. Staring needles into everyone’s back. Jerald said he was a coward. That’s why he was always angry and mocking everyone's backs instead of their faces. Mother said he was probably just lonely. I figured Jerald and Mother were right. Teren must be one of those people who is too afraid to talk to anyone because he doesn’t actually like people. He just wants to be alone, and so he glares at people’s backs like it will push them farther away. 

Poor old man. Just wants to be alone. I could understand that longing. It wasn’t always fun to have eyes watching you. There was always the gods, but at least they couldn’t be seen. They were just a never-ceasing presence spying on everyone. I had always had a strained relationship with the gods. It seemed like everyone did anyway. They all have their reasons to be angry. Everybody always has something they are completely willing to tell you about just to say how forsaken they are. I figured if the gods wanted to act they could. Just because they created humans didn’t mean they were immediately responsible for them. 

In my opinion, humans should let the gods be and focus on their lives, but what does a teenager know. Everyone knows we’re about as emotional as a toddler that’s told they can’t have a sweet. Come to think about it, isn’t everyone a bit like a teenager? They cry about being rejected their wishes as the gods watch them shed useless tears.

The path home from the lake wasn’t short, but I walked it often. People called me, but I ignored them. I didn’t know any of them anyway. Home was a large building. A bit broken down, but it was the warmth of family that made it home. I slipped through the open crack, making sure to check that no one was following me in. Mother didn’t like strangers in the home. I tried to tiptoe my way up the old wood stairs, but mother’s voice drifted from the kitchen. She was making something nasty that she’d call dinner later.

“Curtis? Is that you?” She called.

I sighed. “Yes. I’m back,” I said.

She must have had someone watching out the front window because she somehow knew how dirty I was. “You need to wash, Roo. You’re filthy. Go now, please. Dad will be home soon.”

I ran up the stairs to the bathroom. After taking a quick shower I went to my room and sat on my bed for a time, staring out the window at the cool birds that passed. There were so many birds, so many colors. Almost every bird that passed by was one that I hadn’t seen in a long time, if ever. 

After eating dinner I tried again to pull the front door shut, but that board was still sticking out of the floor. I reminded myself I needed to pull it out or find a saw. I went to sleep.

The narration ends and a whirring is heard in the background. 

“Every day went like this. I would go exploring through the city. Find some extra change or nab a bagel. After admiring the tall buildings and the fancy looking people wandering the streets I’d go play at the lake, draw the symbols in the mud around me. On the walk home I’d maybe spy on old man Teren for a while until it got boring or he yelled at me. I think he liked having a boy to get mad at. It gave him a real reason to be mad,” Curtis says, “I went home and pretended my mother was yelling at me, telling me I needed to take a shower. Then I’d clean up and eat a couple scraps from my fridge storage. Bed was the worst. That’s when I couldn’t pretend anymore, where my own imagination was torn from me and something terrible replaced it. Nightmares. Every night.”

A woman speaks, “So. When did the detective show up?”

“Maybe a year after…what happened.”

The whirring disappears and the narration voice begins again.

 

I had just finished drawing in the mud and begun my walk home. There was a man, standing across the street and watching me. He was leaning against a light post. He wore that wide brimmed fedora and didn’t have a trench coat. Must have been to warm out. He looked really cool to a kid of my age. He didn’t really scare me for some reason. I’d created this sort of persona of myself that hadn’t done anything wrong. So I thought I didn’t have anything to fear from the law.

I was sort of right. I went right home, though. Sort of stupid, but I was a kid. He obviously followed me, making sure I was who he wanted. It was quiet that day and I noticed there weren't as many birds. Only dull colored ones seemed to be hopping around on the streets. The gray, black and white ravens. 

There was a knock on my door after my mom had finished yelling at me. I peeked through the crack to see the detective. He asked if he could come in. I said if he could get through, the door was stuck. He kicked the door down.

“Is your family home?” The detective asked.

“My mother’s in the living room,” I’d said.

He simply nodded and told me to stay where I was while he walked into the living room. He came back and told me to grab anything I needed, he’d be taking care of me for a while. My world shattered at that moment. I’d known all along what had happened to my mother. There were no orphanages. They’d all been turned into something else. No lone children survived for very long. It was a miracle I’d survived for so long. Most orphans were taken to schools and given dorm rooms. I wasn’t old enough to go to those schools.

I grabbed some things of sentimental value and left. I didn’t even protest when they torched my house down. I knew my fantasy wouldn’t last for very long.

 

Whirring begins. “So,” the woman says, “What happened to you? You lived with the detective?”

“Not at first. I went to a jail for a bit. They didn’t really lock me up. They knew I wasn’t a danger anymore. I walked around and helped clean up. It wasn’t till the incident that the detective offered to be my guardian,” Curtis says.

“The incident?” 

“There was a prisoner. I was mopping and was too distracted thinking in my own mind. It had been nearly a year and the prisoner had been there for a good bit of it. He had become kind of like a friend. Until I got too close. He grabbed me and wrapped his arms around my neck. The sheriff came in and the prisoner began yelling. ‘I’ll kill the boy,’ he said, ‘give me your gun and the keys or I’ll kill the boy!’”

“And? Did the sheriff give him the keys?”

“Of course not. I calmly met the sheriff’s eyes. I didn’t feel scared at all. The arms began to choke me and I remembered when my mother used to hug me. It was very strange, I understand that. I pushed my memories away and tried to go back to being numb. I killed the prisoner, they moved me out the next day.”

“How did you kill him?”

“I don’t agree to disclose that. I’d rather not talk about it on record. You already know how I did it.”

“Right. Sorry. Then you left and went with the detective again?”

“Correct. I moved in with Detective Lloyd. He was nice enough. Wasn’t harsh like the sheriff had been to his prisoners. I guess he didn’t see me as anything else but a kid he’d taken pity on. He took me on a couple cases. Joked a couple times that he was keeping me around to protect him. I think he just didn’t want to leave me alone. He never saw me as dangerous. I liked Lloyd. He was tough and kind, everything I could want out of a father. I saw him shoot a couple people.”

“When did he start training you?”

“I was eighteen.”

Chapter One

Spoiler

“Curtis, pay attention!” Lloyd barked. I looked away from the window and stood straight. “What did I just say?”

“Er. The lesson’s over?” I said sheepishly.

“No. I was asking if you’ve connected any of the tips.” There was a whiteboard with pictures and newspaper pieces pinned to it. I’d been connecting strings to them, creating a spider-web mess. It didn’t make sense to me anymore.

“I have no idea.”

Lloyd rapped his ruler on one of the newspaper sections. “1104, a man and a woman were found dead in an empty warehouse. Both were unable to be identified due to the mutilation done to their bodies,” Lloyd said. He pointed to a photo from a newspaper, “In 1078 a family went missing. The father, Jessy Metek, and the mother, Heather Metek. The child was only a few days old and had been born in the home. The child was never found.”

“So you think the people from 1104 are the same as the people from 1078?” I said.

“I’m not the one trying to figure out the case.”

“So all these missing cases connect, how?”

“They aren’t just missing people's cases. This is a string of murders from nearly a hundred years ago, and we still don’t know just what’s going on,” Lloyd said, dropping his ruler to his side.

“How do you expect me to figure this all out?” I was trying. Maybe not as hard as I could, I just didn’t feel like two months was sufficient enough to know how to do all this detective crap.

“I don’t. I expect you to try.”

“Forgive me if I don’t like looking at photos of dead bodies.”

“I don’t. No one likes looking at dead bodies but crazy people. Keep trying. I’ve been looking at these forever, thought maybe an outside eye might help clear up some things.”

“You think it’s the kid,” I realized.

Lloyd shrugged, “Maybe.”

“I’m in this case, aren’t I? You’re not sure why yet, but you think kids are out there murdering their family.”

“It’s a possibility.”

I shook my head. “How would a kid kill a twenty year old man, his father nonetheless?”

“I don’t know. That’s what I’m trying to figure out. You might have done it after all. You did something to that prisoner,” Lloyd gestured to the board, “I’ve been looking at this stupid thing for years.”

“Why am I not on the board?”

Lloyd sat there a moment, then turned the board around. There was another side to this. My side. “You are,” he said softly.

There were family photos at the top, then pictures of my mothers body and the ruined house below. Some newspaper cuts, police reports, and neighbor testimonies. I even saw one from old man Teren. There were documents from my home. How had they gotten those? They’d burned the building down. Lloyd began running through the points of my part of the case. How my father had gone missing and how I’d been alone for a long time.

~  ~  ~  ~  ~

Lloyd pulled the gun from his holster and held it to me in his palms. I accepted it carefully. I hadn’t held many guns, but wasn’t really afraid of them, not yet. This particular gun was a Model T Tezekra. It was a revolver and held eight rounds. The bullets were large and powerful looking. “What are you trying to do with this? Kill a bear?” I asked.

Lloyd chuckled. “No, no. This isn’t quite powerful enough for that. It’s for…our current assignment.”

“Don’t they have exterminators for monsters?” I joked.

Lloyd’s smile disappeared and my heart skipped a beat. “Not for this. I volunteered us. You need to learn how to deal with everything you can. This is a great opportunity.”

I found my spit getting stuck in my throat. Lloyd’s face had paled slightly. This would be very dangerous. I had spent my time the last four months sitting in a building trying to learn how to understand the mind of killers and criminals. And trying to find out if kids were killing their parents. 

He handed me the holster. “This will be dangerous, I don’t want you to misunderstand. If you listen very carefully to what I tell you, we will make it out alright.”

“What is it, Lloyd? What are we trying to kill?” I asked.

Lloyd’s face became firm, he’d gotten past his episode of fear or whatever that had been. “We’re going to kill some tekars.”

I frowned, “What’s a tekar?”

Lloyd winced. “A tekar is a monstrous creature. Sort of like a large wolf. Hard to explain, you’ll see.”

“So what do we need to do? Kill them?”

“They’re in a cave. We’ll be going in to…get rid of them,” Lloyd hesitated, “We can go another time if you don’t want to do this.”

“I’ll be fine, but I’d think we’d want more than just pistols. A shotgun maybe? Or bombs?” I said.

“I’ll be carrying something a little bigger than a pistol, don’t you worry. You aren’t very trained though.”

“Don’t you think I should train a little before going to kill some monsters?”

“I’m not planning on you using the gun much.”

“Then what will I be doing?”

“Watching. Hopefully learning.”

“Learning what?”

Lloyd grinned, “How to use your power.”

“Power? What power?”

“It took me painstakingly long to figure out. Curtis. I need you to listen, and not be offended, alright?”

I nodded. Figures it would have something to do with my mother, and me.

“You were a kid. If it was you, you had no idea what you were doing. Anyway, ignore the possibility of your case. That prisoner you killed gave me the real evidence I needed. I’m going to teach you how to use your third eye.”

“So I killed that prisoner with my third eye?”

“That’s the problem. I’ve never experienced a kett that could outright kill someone. It just doesn’t work like that.”

“What do kett do? I thought they were a myth.”

“They are a very well covered secret. Most kett are part of the Church of the Third Eye. They are kept to complete secrecy. It’s complicated, but just know it is kept considerably a secret.”

“So, I have a third eye?”

“Not really. It’s more a term. When you connect with the essence of the third eye most are able to see with their eyes closed. It’s hard to explain without showing you.”

I cocked my head, “How are you going to show me?”

The lights flipped off.

I went to stand but Lloyd’s voice stopped me. “Stay seated,” the detective said, “I’ll instruct you in the dark. It’s easiest to connect to your third eye when distractions are decreased. I’m going to tell you the basics, let you try, then do it myself with the lights on. Ready?”

“Sure. Maybe you shouldn’t stand in front of me when I try. I don’t want to kill you.”

“It also doesn’t quite work like that. Children with the Third-Eye are more dangerous than older people. They are somehow able to connect with that power only when they aren’t trying. When they feel some deep emotion.”

“What emotion?” I said.

“It depends. There are approximately seven kett. It’s not an exact science, but it’s close enough. They’re also not like emotions you’d normally think of, most of them at least.” Glowing green-white symbols began appearing in the air, symbols like the ones I had drawn in the mud during my childhood. Lloyd spoke as they appeared. “Primeval, Destruction, Evil or Horror, Dark, Discovery, Deception, Energy.”

I frowned, “You forgot one.”

“What,” He didn’t say it as a question, he just sounded confused.

“The circle with three squiggly lines coming from the middle.”

The light flipped on and Lloyd was looking at me, obviously puzzled. “There is no symbol like that. Not yet at least.”

I shrugged. “I drew those symbols in the mud for months. You’re missing one.”

“You couldn’t have been. These symbols aren’t just in books.”

“Well I’ve known them for years.”

“You’re still missing one,” I mumbled.

Lloyd shook his head, “There’s no eighth. Just because you drew some random symbol in the mud doesn’t make me wrong.”

“Whatever. Let’s move on,” I said. It didn’t matter anyway. It was true I had been only a child. How would I have known about an eighth symbol? 

“Fine. I want a drawing of that symbol sometime. These symbols are the seven forces that drive the kett. Or the seven types of kett.”

“What creates kett?”

“It’s complicated, sort of. They are created by important events in one’s life that happen when they are old enough to understand what’s happened, but young enough for it to be an extremely emotional experience.”

“Was my experience my mother dying?”

Lloyd frowned, “Possibly. Maybe even probably,” his eyes widened, “That may be what’s happening. I’d need to look into it a bit more, but…it could be.”

“What do you mean? Could be what?”

“There are families mysteriously dying across Peshen. You were left alive, though you were only a child. You thought you did it. Maybe there is a supernatural reason for why you and those other children could have done such a thing.”

“How many other kids are there?” I asked. Maybe we could track them down and investigate their cases closer.

“Two,” Lloyd grumbled, “Only two.”

I sighed, “Then there aren't many cases to go off of. Wait. What about the cases from 1070 and 1120?”

“Those are something else, I don’t think they are connected. The two are the living children. There have been others that may have been in the same situation, but they didn’t make it.”

I nodded, then realized Lloyd couldn’t see me. Oh well. Lloyd sighed. “Let’s move on,” he said, “Focusing on yourself, your emotions and the little aches across your body can help you be more aware of your kett. Try it. Close your eyes and try it. Do your best to ignore all the sounds around you.”

I shut my eyes, trying to draw into myself. I didn’t feel anything. My stomach was complaining a little of hunger. I was getting a bit of a headache from a strange smell in the room. There was no wriggle inside my skin, showing some supernatural force inside me. I began to give up when it happened. There was a flash, I saw a flash of color with my eyes closed. I swear I could see the room around me for the smallest moment. Lloyd was standing a few feet away, listening earnestly. Everything was a shade of red, but I could see.

I gasped and stumbled back, falling backward in my chair. Lloyd’s hand grabbed my knee and he held me down. My eyes shot open and everything was black. Everything but the blue eye staring back at me.

I nearly screamed, but it disappeared and after a moment the lights came on. I was still wide eyed and confused as Lloyd returned with a grin. “Did you feel it?” He asked.

“Feel what? That was crap advice! I didn’t feel anything,” I said.

“But you saw something, didn’t you. You saw in pitch black.”

“Ya. I…I guess I did.”

“All that, look inside yourself was just some dumb crap that I came up with to help you focus on your new…developments.”

“What sort of developments?”

“If you’re able to see with your eyes closed, it’s a third eye. You’ve somehow already got your third eye.”

“And what does that mean?”

“Well it means I’ve got a heck of a job ahead of me. I’m not sure what to do with you. What color did you see in?”

“Reddish tinges.”

“So it’s Destruction, maybe Dark. That doesn’t make any sense,” Lloyd sat cross-legged and motioned for Curtis to join him, “Do it again. Focus like you did before. Open your third eye.”

I sat, closing my eyes and trying to focus on my forehead. It was different than before. I could feel a faint pressure, like the pressure on my closed eyes, but less purposeful. Like it was instinct or not quite a part of my own body. Maybe I wasn’t used to the muscles of the third eye yet. Like a newborn or one learning to play the piano, I didn’t have full control. In that moment, however, I was able to push enough will to my forehead that the eye snapped open and I could see again. The colors were more vivid. A few less red than before, but everything still tinged red like I looked through a stained glass. 

Lloyd was staring at me intently, searching my face. “Anything yet, Curtis?” He asked.

I nodded slowly.

Lloyd breathed in sharply. It was a strangely loud sound, almost enhanced like he was using a microphone. He leaned forward, still examining me like he was looking for warts. He reached up a hand and waved it in front of my face. My eye followed it and Lloyd gasped. “There it is!” He said.

“What!” I said.

“It was blending in somehow. It’s so small! I’ve never seen such a small third eye. It’s so odd, and the symbol… Close your eye Curtis, now.” Lloyd suddenly had a concerned look.

Curtis’s world went dark until he opened his eyes. “What’s wrong?”

“I don’t know but I don’t like the look of that eye. It’s nothing I’ve ever seen. Like the Destruction kett, but…”

“With squiggly lines?” I said. It made sense, sort of. A supernatural sort of sense. 

“Right. Well. I think I’m underprepared to train you to use your kett. So I think I’ll teach you how to fight.”

“So, we aren't going after the tekar?”

“Not yet. I thought you had some sort of Destruction kett you used on that poor prisoner, but I guess we’ll have to figure that all out later.”

“Later! Why don’t we do it now?”

“We can’t waste time, now come on,” Lloyd stood to leave.

19 months later

“Come on, Lloyd. You can’t expect me to do all that!” I rolled my eyes. Soon this man would be expecting me to solve all his cases for him. There was no way I could go in that building. It was a trap, it had to be.

“I wouldn’t send you in there to die, Curt. Now go, and trust me,” Lloyd said. We lay behind a small mound of dirt, watching a squat, broken down shop surrounded by tall buildings. The city was lit by four moons tonight. Zitora was full, shining brilliant light. Though the shadows were ominous inside the building. “Use your eye if it gets dark enough, just hurry.”

“When are you going to start trusting me, and telling me your plans,” I grumbled, but crept forward begrudgingly. We were dressed in dark tan clothing, matching the dusty wild streets of City Yepet. Ghostcity Yepet. As I got close to the building I closed my eyes and breathed out silent, but deep. My surroundings became red. Though only my third eye was open, I saw just as well as I would have with two eyes, maybe better. I slipped Lloyd’s old Terrek…my old Terrek into my palm and slipped inside, ducking through the crack in the unhinged door.

It was somehow dustier inside the old shop than it had been outside. Aisle shelves lay broken and scattered. The cashier desk had multiple of what seemed to be sledgehammer holes. Everything seemed surprisingly gray, considering I was looking in relative darkness with my third eye. A cloud of dust had risen when I entered. There was no way there was a killer in here. Suddenly my hand ripped upward through the air and snatched something reflexively. I felt a sharp pain as my hand grasped a knife blade. I dashed to cover, feeling what must have been another knife cut the air behind.

I cursed as I got cut on my cheek. Where were all these knives coming from? I felt a strange unease. Like something was wrong. It was too bloody dusty! Though my sight was still frantically searching the shop, I bent over and wiped my gloved finger on the floor. It came away with no dust on it. Though the floor was covered in the stuff. 

Evil kett, I realized. I reached inside my pocket and brought out a metal ball, a paint grenade. I pulled the pin and threw it against the ceiling as I ran away. Light red descended on the room. It covered a form, who I brought out my pistol and shot at, but they were too fast and they slammed into me. The force from their blow brought them out of their focus, and I saw a girl covered in red standing in front of me holding a pair of large knives. She brought them up to strike, but I ducked and shoved my shoulder into her stomach. She flew across the room, nearly missing the cashier’s counter. I could now see the store was no longer very dusty, and not nearly as trashed as before. 

It didn’t seem nearly so deserted now. I raised my gun to shoot, but Lloyd came crashing in. “No! Don’t shoot!” Lloyd yelled.

I reluctantly took my finger off the trigger. “What? She was trying to kill me!” I said.

“She was hoping to catch you alone, to kill you, yes. She doesn’t stand a chance against two kett, both with their third eyes. Right, Athela?” He turned to the fuming girl on the ground. She had tied her hair back in a ponytail, and was looking at me with rage.

“I wanted to be left alone!” Athela growled, “I was just fine before your stupid little deputy boy snuck in uninvited.”

“Hey, I’m not a…!” I began.

“Quiet, Curtis,” Lloyd crouched in front of the girl, breaking her line of sight to me, “Look. I didn’t expect to find you here. I expected a young hothead ready to kill us, but not a very dangerous one. You were a bit more dangerous than I’d expected,” he took a quick glance around the room, “Illusions, right?”

The girl nodded.

“You managed to startle my deputy. Though I’m happy he managed himself as well as he did for his first time encountering a kett. Surviving an attack from a well-trained Horror kett with skill is no small feat.”

I moved to the side to get a better view of the girl’s knives. She was sitting now, listening to Lloyd with occasional glances at me. She was scruffy and very dirty. Though I couldn’t blame her for that. It must be rough living out in these conditions. There wasn’t a river till the edge of the city, and that was a few miles away. All the plumbing and taps wouldn’t let out water. Whatever was happening in these cities was terrible. 

This crazy girl was living here, probably alone. Had she been the only person to survive whatever had happened? Had she survived because she was kett? I opened my mouth to ask a few questions, but Lloyd beat me to it. “Do you happen to know the boy we’re looking for? He’s a supposed killer?”

The girl frowned, glancing at Curtis again. “We’re all supposed killers here,” she said.

“All? You’re not the only one?” Curtis said.

She scoffed, “Of course not! What did you think? I miraculously survived and had a city that had formerly housed over a million people?”

“Well you’re the only one we’ve seen,” Curtis wanted to threaten her. Though he knew it was stupid.

“And how long have you been here, a day?” she looked at Lloyd.

“A week,” Lloyd said. His gaze was sharp and discerning. Curtis could feel him examining her. He was somehow able to understand more about people than what they said. Maybe he had studied body language as a learning detective.

Athela’s eyes widened, “That can’t be right. The Grosov’s would have met you by now.”

“The Grosov’s?” said Lloyd.

“A local gang. To this area at least. I’m not sure how far they get. They have plenty of area to cover just north of my little territory,” She frowned. Curtis was happy to notice that she nervously looked outside. Not that he wanted anyone to be coming in, but he was hoping his detective skills were getting better.

“So what does this gang…?” Lloyd was cut off as shouts came from outside.

Chapter Two

Spoiler

The glass shattered as I fell to the ground. I swore at Lloyd, inwardly of course. “Why didn’t you want to discuss with them?” I yelled over the sound of bullets and breaking glass.

“They wouldn’t have been in the mood to discuss, or bargain,” Athela said. She was much closer to me than she had been before. We’d both dove for the same cover.

“So they’re here to kill us?”

“Scare more likely,” She shot a look around the counter’s corner. More gunshot. She fell back.

“You alright?” I didn’t want her to die because of us. She ignored me and reached for my gun. I smacked her hand away. “Absolutely not, switch me.”

We traded places as the counter was set against the wall. I could shoot better from this position. A spike of fear shot through me. Unless she’s with the gang and planning to get us killed. Maybe they want our guns and ammunition. We hadn’t brought much. Lloyd came up with a pistol in both hands and shot at least ten bullets. Where had he gotten those? I’d only seen the revolver on his hip. There were yells and maybe even some pained screams as Lloyd ducked back behind a mostly standing metal shelf. 

“How about you all leave, and we can go our own ways peacefully?” Lloyd yelled.

“We wan’ your guns and ammunition!” came the reply. A gruff voice, laced with anger. I refilled my revolver. I’d only shot twice, likely hadn’t hit anything, but Lloyd seemed to be doing most of the work. I glanced to make sure the girl was still there. She sat with her eyes closed, brow furrowed in concentration.

I thought she was in pain, maybe shot, until her skin began to go transparent. I nearly cried out, but she was gone. Invisible somehow. Couldn’t blame her. She had a way to get out of here. I turned to glance outside, but a firm hand grabbed my shoulder. “Can you see me?” Athela whispered.

She better not stab me in the face. I paused, do I say yes? That way maybe she wouldn’t be tempted to kill me. Maybe she wasn’t working with the gang out there, but she didn’t exactly like me. “No,” I said hesitantly.

“Good. I’m going over to Lloyd. I need to do it to him as well.”

“Do what?” She didn’t answer, and she’d let go of my arm. I did my best to get Lloyd’s attention, but he just ignored me, so I glanced out the front. The men stood a ways off, talking. I stayed low and nearly crawled across the room to Lloyd. He jumped as I approached. “Who touched me?” Lloyd hissed, “Athela, is that you?”

“You never told me how you knew my name,” Athela said.

I frowned. Wait. How did Lloyd know that?

“Your family was part of the Church of the Third Eye. I have records of many of the kett who lived in this city. I took a guess. This was your family’s shop, right?”

“You’re going to be invisible, sir. We can practically walk out of here.”

“They’ll know there was a kett in here,” Lloyd said.

“They already could have guessed that. They know of me. Let’s go.”

“Where’s my deputy?”

“He’s right with us. Now let’s go. Follow my footsteps, use your eyes if you have to,” Athela’s soft footsteps went to the back of the store. I followed. Hoping Lloyd was behind me. He’d be better at this than I. The gang was still yelling, trying to get Lloyd to answer. They must be getting suspicious. Maybe they thought Lloyd was thinking it over. The back door was opened by an invisible hand and we were out in the night.

Athela became visible, and she began moving away, not running yet. I glanced back. Lloyd was visible, so I probably was as well. I slipped my gun back in its holster. We needed to move quickly and I may need to use my hands to get over obstacles. I wouldn’t be able to accurately fire while running with a pistol anyway.

Athela began turning, she seemed to be heading somewhere, not just running away anymore. As soon as I got close enough to quietly talk I asked, “Where are we going?”

She glanced at me, panting. She seemed way less out of breath than me, but she probably got more exercise running. I’d be training and learning for the past year or more, not trying to survive. “You wanted to learn about an orphan boy right?”

I nodded.

“Then you’ll want to talk to The One. She’s got information on all the kett in town. If he’s kett she’ll know who he is.”

I glanced at Lloyd, who seemed to not even be sweating. He nodded with determination. He’d taken this ‘track him down’ business a little too seriously.

After a little more turning and running Athleta came to a halt. She turned in a circle, looking upward to the tops of the skyscrapers. “Do you even know where this One is?” I said.

“That’s what I’m working on. I’ve been to her place before, but only once. It was a while ago. Things are a bit different from that one time. There’s less people for one.”

“How many people are in the city?” Lloyd said.

Athela shrugged. “Maybe thirty, maybe a thousand. I don’t travel often. When I do I’m not counting the population.”

“Right,” Lloyd said.

 

Edited March 3, 2023 by Lord Gregorio