Ryder had been in the area a few times already but he was surprised at how the slums suddenly became so large, crowded, and too dirty.
Even Zed wasn't able to mask his disgust at the sight of the abandoned subdivision. Tents filled every space, leaving little room for the rugged children to play. Young but skinny ladies were washing clothes beside a polluted river while men and older boys were scavenging the dumpsite on the other side. It was an awful sight and it gripped Ryder's heart. While they were living in luxury, dozens of families here were fighting to survive every day.
In one area, a group of elderly women were boiling water on broken pots. Though what could they cook? They were only sitting and keeping the fire alive without a single can of food or ingredients.
Kaihra led them to what seemed like an old warehouse past the marketplace. It was the most quiet place that they have encountered after the slums and the market. Though the room that the girl Kaihra led them had blinking bulbs, at least it was not dirty, dusty, or smelly. It was a decent room with two bedrooms, a mini-kitchen, and a cabinet. But what really caught Ryder’s attention was the expensive white table at the far end of the room. It was glowing as a pure pearl and Ryder was a hundred percent sure that it was a scientists’ table. What was it doing in a place like this? Zed grunted as the Kaihra wrapped it tight with clean bandages. Zed looked okay at the moment unlike earlier where his face had gone a little pale from all the blood that he lost. “What?” Z
“Sir, our signal to the market was lost.” The attendant came barging and panting in the main room. Grey didn’t turn around. Instead, he smiled. Grey could only clench his fist, not in surprise or anger, but in excitement. “I see. So it has started,” he mumbled. If only he could jump with joy right now, he would have danced for his attendant with a rose in his mouth and a glass of wine waiting for them on the wooden table. It only meant one thing—the place blew up. Everything was in the right timing. “I didn’t kill anyone,” Grey whispered to himself. “The girl was the one who accepted it with a willing heart.” The girl couldn’t be more than fourteen but Grey believed he was not to be blamed. He merely presented her a choice. She was the one who acted on her own. “Sir?” Grey just waved the anxious attendant away. “Nothing. Report it to upper management.” The attendant looked at him, wondering why Grey wasn’t fazed at all. Most didn’t know the behind the scenes of Hearth and the
Raeya and her other friends were rushing to the hospital. Earlier, they had received news that a bomb exploded at the place where Ryder and Zed were on their mission. Sir Vance immediately sent a rescue team but they didn't find them at the scene. It was only when the manager of Hanki Hospital, the place where warriors are treated, called them saying that Ryder and Zed were there. ''Let's go.'' Leison was the first to stand up but it was Raeya who beat them at the parking lot. The rest of Aegis didn't waste any time and hopped on their motors without waiting for the call to be finished. They zoomed from their house to the center of the town where Hanki hospital was located. To think that they were transported there, miles away from their original mission point, were they in grave danger that the hospital there couldn't take care of them? More importantly, did they encounter Hearth? Because if they did and they were responsible for the explosion, Raeya would seriously go all-out whe
''So, are you gonna keep your word, leader of Aegis?'' The wind wheezed past through them. There was nothing on the rooftop that could shield them from the cold breeze coming from the mountains that spread on their left. It only became colder with Zed's question. ''I intend to,'' was all he could say. ''You know that's not really enough and that you could say something more concrete.'' It was ironic how in the last war, the two were also at a rooftop with their weapons clashing under dark skies and not standing with each other like this with the peaceful afternoon sky. Silence filled them, making Ryder remember what happened before the explosion. ''Wait!'' Ryder shouted before Kaihra pressed the button. Kaihra looked at him with vengeful eyes. ''Kaihra, do you want a world without powers? Like the ones that controlled your father, the same ones that gave you this bomb and to who knows whatever information they filled you in?'' ''Ryder, what are you--'' ''Do you?'' Ryder aske
To think that the emergency meeting would only consist of them three. They weren't even able to rest from their mission when Sir Vance summoned them to the temporary headquarters. The two thought it was an official meeting but then, Sir Vance invited the two in his room, locked the doors, and offered them coffee. ''No?'' Sir Vance asked with an eyebrow raised when he saw that Ryder and Zed were not moving in their seats. ''I'm fine,'' Ryder said. ''I'll have mine,'' Zed answered to which Sir Vance gave him a mug with dark coffee in it. The aroma filled the whole room but not enough to arouse Ryder. At that moment, he didn't want to do anything but sleep on Sir Vance's bed. Sir Vance’s new room was cramped compared to his glorious office back at the old Triad that Hearth destroyed. His office was the largest and was covered in black tiles from the floor to the ceiling. It would seem like it was empty but in reality, every tile stored something, whether a table, a chair, or a TV set
It had been three days since Kaihra was brought to the library, the home of Absinthe where her father used to stay. It was peculiar for a house of warriors. Zed, the leader of Absinthe, gave her a room beside Macy, the kind girl who offered her hand and her friendship. Thanks to her, she felt belong in a group filled with big men. But what really scared her at first were the similar scars etched on the back of their right palm like they were some gang. Macy mentioned it about it being called the Scar of Shame. She explained that it was Absinthe’s punishment for their actions in the last war. It was a mark that they once did something wrong. “You don’t have one yourself,” Kaihra asked her. “Yes, because I only joined Absinthe after the war.” After the war. To think that someone who was two years younger than her had already the resolve to join a warring company even if they had a bad image in the past. Well, she couldn’t blame her, either. Even Kaihra had accepted Hearth’s money
Kaihra was doing chores as usual. She was already at Absinthe for a week and it felt great. It was like she was really part of the family when they just picked her up. Though she couldn’t go out on her own because of the danger of Hearth’s presence still inside Khenealm, that was fine by her since she was more than grateful to be living here rather than the dark marketplace. The Absinthe house always needed lots of cleaning. It was no wonder why it was the first thing Macy introduced to her. There was always a shelf that had disorganized books, a sachet of coffee somewhere, a misplaced card, or a scattered board piece. At first, Kaihra was surprised that such issues of cleanliness were present in a house of adults. Back at her old room, even though she lived in such an untidy place, she still managed to not make it obvious that she was living underground. But as the days went by, she saw that the Absinthe members weren’t doing it on purpose. It’s just that there were times when they
Kaihra screamed at the top of her lungs as the beast leaped forward towards her. The effort made her shut her eyes, afraid of what was going to happen to her. She knew the Shadows were the rabid animals that stomped on their land. They were the reason she couldn’t understand why people were willing to fight such beasts. “Stand up!” She wasn’t dreaming. She could still actually hear. “KAIHRA!” Macy shouting out her name made her open her eyes back to reality. There was a shell of an empty smoke grenade at her feet. She was covered with fog. Kaihra heard the sound of footsteps running towards her from her back. She was just about to turn around when Macy beat her into it. Macy grabbed her wrists and pulled her away from the scene. “Macy?” Macy held her hand tightly as they ran down. They got out of the property of Absinthe and entered a narrow alley which was a shortcut towards the center of the town. "How?" Kaihra was able to shout her question as they sped, knocking garbage
''Tomorrow?'' Chief Raius couldn't help but laugh. ''Who do you think you are? Some savior who could turn the world upside-down with a snap of a finger? How do you expect to bring down Hearth, an enemy that even the Triad is having a hard time with? Could you erase a three hundred year-old company tomorrow? Could you?''Believe it or not.'' Ryder was offended. Earlier, his face held high reverence for the chief. Now, Ryder's voice was plain and he was looking at the chief at eye level without bowing or nodding, unlike earlier. But with the chief's words, it was bound to come to this point. ''I have been in touch with Sir Vance. he said that the preparations are complete. All that's left is for your consent.''Ryder wasn't even addressing him as chief anymore. Jin discerned it then at the moment. The Roar didn't come to be pitied, nor to ask for pity or forgiveness. He didn't come to grovel and take the blame for what happened to Raeya. That was just the surface. That was what he want
''You can't kill me'', Raeya blurted amidst their wrestling.His strength was overwhelming her and her muscles were becoming sore and overpowered by him. She had to do something. She had to find a good spot that she could use to break free.''Oh? How sure are you? Don't tell me its because you believe that I still love you.''No, she didn't believe that. Seyin was the second to confess his love to her after Jin. She was the one in-charge of handling new applicants to Aegis when Seyin entered the hall where they would be taking the Shore test. She was assisting Fhae in conducting the tests that would determine if the applicants had the potential to harness the power of the Shore.Instead of asking about anything significant about the test at that time, Seyin stood and boldly asked her out, embarrassing both of them at that moment. After that, she kindly but firmly said her no. Seyin cried in front of her but in the end, she offered what she could–friendship. Until now, she didn’t know
''Tomorrow?'' Chief Raius couldn't help but laugh. ''Who do you think you are? Some savior who could turn the world upside-down with a snap of a finger? How do you expect to bring down Hearth, an enemy that even the Triad is having a hard time with? Could you erase a three hundred year-old company tomorrow? Could you?''Believe it or not.'' Ryder was offended. Earlier, his face held high reverence for the chief. Now, Ryder's voice was plain and he was looking at the chief at eye level without bowing or nodding, unlike earlier. But with the chief's words, it was bound to come to this point. ''I have been in touch with Sir Vance. he said that the preparations are complete. All that's left is for your consent.''Ryder wasn't even addressing him as chief anymore. Jin discerned it then at the moment. The Roar didn't come to be pitied, nor to ask for pity or forgiveness. He didn't come to grovel and take the blame for what happened to Raeya. That was just the surface. That was what he want
''You can't kill me'', Raeya blurted amidst their wrestling. His strength was overwhelming her and her muscles were becoming sore and overpowered by him. She had to do something. She had to find a good spot that she could use to break free. ''Oh? How sure are you? Don't tell me its because you believe that I still love you.'' No, she didn't believe that. Seyin was the second to confess his love to her after Jin. She was the one in-charge of handling new applicants to Aegis when Seyin entered the hall where they would be taking the Shore test. She was assisting Fhae in conducting the tests that would determine if the applicants had the potential to harness the power of the Shore. Instead of asking about anything significant about the test at that time, Seyin stood and boldly asked her out, embarrassing both of them at that moment. After that, she kindly but firmly said her no. Seyin cried in front of her but in the end, she offered what she could–friendship. Until now, she didn’t kn
Jin had a feeling his discussion with Fahazi about leaders going at the forefront jinxed the night.“Go!” He commanded as he pulled Fahazi to his feet and pushed him to get him running. As they ran, Jin looked behind. He could make out nothing because of the darkness but he felt shadows following them. He grabbed Fahazi’s hand and sped across the tunnels. They only had one flashlight. Fahazi must have lost his own light during the explosion.Jin felt something was about to fall on them. He felt dust and debris fall upon his face as they ran. “Fall back, Fahazi!” Both of them were able to stop just in time before the ceiling gave way. If they had advanced one second further, they would have already been buried in a pile of huge blocks of cement and dirt.It didn’t stop there. A slight tremor was felt from above.“This way,” Fahazi suggested as he pointed to one of the tunnels which didn’t seem to be shaking. Jin nodded and they entered the tunnel to their left.“Do you think we can st
Grey wasn't someone who was easily intimidated. Even with Ryder and Leison had him on gunpoint and swordpoint, he still wore the same smug expression.''You're pretty confident this time, Aegis.'' He wasn't fazed at all with the pressure around him. ''Have you finally moved on from your humiliation in our last war?''This position was familiar with the battle at Hearth. Ryder had also cornered Grey in their laboratory. Grey wasn't yet a fighter or a conjurer back then, just a normal scientist who only knew how to wield science and technology. That was why Ryder decided that he wouldn't kill him. He diverted his focus on the Shadows that Hearth released. However, Grey took advantage of Ryder's soft heart back then. He summoned Absinthe and the rest was history.''You're provoking the wrong people. You should be telling that to your bosses,'' Leison answered.''I wouldn't call that a word of provocation. It's just called a taunt.'' Grey was feeling extra powerful now. Was there some rea
If Raeya could recall properly, the men said they were going to answer her questions after they had tied her up but now she was the one tying all of six of them up. It was a good thing she found a rope in one of the toolboxes of the saleslady or else she would have to knock them unconscious every five minutes that they woke up.Raeya pressed the switch and a single dim bulb was brought back to life. Its light was yellowish but it would serve its purpose just for the room to do away with the darkness. She tried calling her friends but she was stumped after realizing that there was no signal. Raeya hoped that Aegis was doing well and that nothing bad happened. Raeya didn’t know why but she was feeling ominous like something big happened. Or was that her overthinking? After securing their hands, she dragged them into the corner and made their backs lean on the wall, away from any object that they could grab and free themselves. She was waiting for the leader, the one with a red turban,
''So? Where did you come from? How did you meet with Jaiyo?''Infiltrating the camp was hard enough but questions like these were harder. ''My family of guerillas received your notice. I simply answered your call. Fortunately, the man with a purple headband who led me here and your attendant recommended you to me,'' Lidon answered as they walked the mountain trail.''I see.''She was not to be underestimated, unlike her hired soldiers.Jin and the chief already knew the basic structure of their camp because they flew over them once. He was pretty confident that he could get inside without doing anything not until he saw the entrance.The ones going in and out had some sort of special tattoos on their skin which they were showing to the guards. Jin was at a loss not until he spotted a group. They didn't show any part of their skin but they were accompanied by some sort of leader with a purple headband.It was that leader who let them in. Jin waited for a few nights at most before spot
Lidon was still wary of the guerilla army.He had wrapped his dagger to make them think that he had lowered his guard. But since no one was still attacking them, then it is safe to assume that they are safe for now. They led them through the forest until they reached a hanging bridge. In this time, it was unusual to see a wooden bridge when they were living in the age of development. The bridge was just a collection of blocks of wood bound together by rubber ties and twigs. A river with sharp rocks twenty feet spread below.“Let’s go two at a time or else the bridge will break,” the woman with the golden tooth said. That goes without saying. It was as if the bridge was designed to not welcome visitors.As ancient and old-looking the bridge was, the new guerilla army seemed to have no problem with it. Wayl and the woman went ahead first. It was only the two of them but the bridge swayed so much.“That seems scary,” Maryan whispered beside him.“We can’t do anything about it, can’t we