Spirits of the Earth

"Why did we have to stop here again?"  Randal complained as he stared out of the hostel window. His guardian Taza was sitting across from him, a cup of tea in her hand. They had been in Arca for a few days now, and Randal still didn't know why. Turning to look at her her, Randal gave her the best puppy-dog eyes he could manage. "Why won't you tell me? Don't you trust me?"

Taza sighed and shook her head. "Randal, I've told you already." she said, a look of annoyance on her face. "This job I've been given is secret. Remember what happened the last time I told you a secret?"

Randal's ears flushed red. He look out the window so as to avoid his caretaker's gaze. "... I told everybody." he admitted. "But, this time I'll-"

"Ah ah ah, what have I told you about buts?" Taza asked, a mischievous smile running across her face. Randal's ears went red again, and he stared at his feet.

"That they're for sitting on." he finally said in a defeated voice.

"That's right!" Taza exclaimed happily. "We don't talk with our buts, because that would be rude. Civility is it's own reward." Softening her gaze a bit, Taza continued. "Why don't you go outside, get some fresh air? You've been cooped up in here all day."

Randal's eyes lit up. "Really! You'd let me go out by myself?" To say he was excited was an understatement- the Taza he knew only let him go outside without supervision if there was an errand that needed to be run. He never got to go exploring before!

Taza shrugged. "We're not in Zantaric, now are we? I figure you can handle Arca by yourself. Just be back before sunset, 'kay?"

Randal nodded hurriedly and ran out the door. Upon exiting the hostel's lobby he took a deep breath, taking in the sounds and smells of the city. The air was cleaner in Arca than it was in Zantaric- "I can't even smell that weird ozone! Or the soot!" As he began to walk down the street, Randal began to dig through his pockets. 'Three. I have three pills." he thought with a small grin. "I should sell one, that way I'll have money for some fancy city food!"

Daydreaming about what wealthy Arcan citizens ate, Randal neglected to watch were he was going and collided into somebody. Falling on his behind in shock, Randal quickly apologized.

"Ow! Oh, um, sorry about that!"

Kartuun had been awe-struck, traveling through Arca for the second time in his life, only possessing vague memories of his first time walking around parts of the city when he was about five or so. It was a much grander experience than home. Of course, now he was here on his own, having spent about a month traveling to this point; the goal, currently, was to find the more Mage's College of Arca, and see what they could tell him about locating his parents, if anything.

He didn't speak up much, having been warned by Sylmag, the tavern keeper from his home, not to ask random people about something they probably knew little. So, instead, he meekly walked along, occasionally asking for directions to reach the college, shrugging off any questions about what a relatively-young individual was doing alone in the city.

And indeed, he kept walking, until someone else had walked into him. Near-directly.

He looked down at the person who walked into him; it was another boy, around his age, alone. Ignoring the "shock" he felt in the parts of his body that collided with this fallen individual, he reached his arm out to quickly help the other kid up, the other hand simply resting on the blanket that hung on his shoulders so it wouldn't fall off.

"Uh, it's alright. Are you okay? Y'look confused or lost or something. I know that feeling." He gave a gentle grin, not wanting the boy to feel bad about bumping into him.

Looking up, Randal saw that the person he had walked into was a boy his age- or perhaps a little younger, judging from his height. Blue hair covered the boy's eyes, and he held what appeared to be a dirty tablecloth over his shoulder. Eyes lighting up, Randal took the boy's hand and pulled himself up. "I don't know anybody my age back home!" he thought excitedly. "Well, I guess Cassiopeia counts- but she's contagious." A goofy smile began to show on Randal's face. "Maybe I can make a friend here!"

Standing up, Randal gave the boy a smile. "Not lost!" he proclaimed happily. "Not yet, anyway! I'm from-"

"Don't say Zantaric, you'll freak him out."

"- from out of town, I don't really know where anything is yet. I don't suppose you know where a good place to eat would be?" He scratched the back of his head. "My name's Randal, by the way. What's yours?"

"Uh." Kartuun was taken a-back by this guy's quick change in demeanor. "My name is Kartuun." He shrugged after telling his name to the excited boy. "I just ate a little bit ago at a tavern back that way." He pointed in the direction he came from, turning his head a little to the side as well. "Do you... Want me to show you where it is?" He didn't want this boy to become lost, if he wasn't already. He was alone, too.

"Maybe he's searching for his parents, as well." The thought crossed his mind. Were parents who left their kids that common?

"And uh, not that it matters, but I'm from out of town as well. I'm from Jadenshine."

Randal bounced on his heels. "That's awesome! So we're in the same boat then!" He peered in the direction that Kartuun had pointed. "And yeah that'd be great! But, uh..."

Randal paused. "Well I mean, I need money... but I probably shouldn't tell him how I plan on getting it."

"But first, I need to go to the bad part of town!" Shifting on his feet uncomfortably, Randal gave Kartuun a sheepish grin. "Um... I don't suppose you know where that is?"

Kartuun's eyes widened a little. "The... Bad part of town? No, I don't know where that is. Why do you need to go there? Isn't it, you know, bad?" He felt rather concerned about this boy's priorities. Sylmag had warned him about staying away from the "wrong crowd", and here this boy was, looking to go somewhere dangerous.

"Of course, I do have Finniss to help out, if need be..." Kartuun mused to himself.

"Um, well..."

It was beginning to dawn on Randal that living in Zantaric had affected him a lot more than he realized. "How does he not know where the bad part of town is? Isn't that what everybody looks for when they go someplace new?" Scratching the back of his head, he gave Kartuun a confused look.

"I mean, "bad" is all in the eyes of the beholder, right? I think that it's, like, one of those opinion things." Deciding he'd be honest with the boy, Randal dug into his pocket and pulled out a small orange pill. "I just need to know where I can sell this. I... don't have any money for food."

"Oh. What is that thing? Medicine?" Kartuun eyed the minuscule item. "Well, if you want, I could help you find someone who'd buy that." He smiled. He was happy to finally find someone his age wandering around. Plus it'd be nice to help someone out.

"I could always pay for food, for you, if you can't find anyone who wants to buy the medicine. But let's at least try to sell it first, okay?" Kartuun looked ready to head out.

"Medicine?"

Randal looked down at the pill in his hand- a powerful hallucinogenic- and smiled. "He doesn't even realize what it is!" Looking up at the boy, Randal grinned. "Thanks! I really appreciate it!" Looking across the street, he squinted. "So, uh, lets look..."

Randal suddenly noticed an armored man walking down the street. "Is that a guard? he thought nervously. There was no real "authority" in Zantaric- Randal had never seen a guard before."Will he imprison me if he sees me with the drug? I don't want to get in trouble!" Pointing in the opposite direction of the armored man, Randal began to walk.

"Let's look this way first! I'm sure we'll be able to find somebody!"

"Okay, let's hope we find someone in need, soon!" Kartuun walked with the other somewhat-quickly down the street, looking around at the bustle of the city, quite different from the quiet pace of his home.

As they were walking, he saw a rather sickly elderly individual, and nudged Randal. "Hey... Would that man work?" But Randal shook his head and they kept walking; Kartuun only guessed that the medicine wouldn't cure that man of his particular ailments. He continued to look for more people who might be in need of help, however, as they made their way into a more unkempt part of the city. This place was more for down-trodden peasants and impoverished individuals who had lost work on the land of their lords, although there were at least a few decent businesses here and there.

"Is this what you meant by bad part of town? It... Looks kinda bad, Randal. Do we have to keep going?" Of course as they had made their way down here, Kartuun had noticed a marginal increase in unsavory individuals lurking along corners, along with a few more children running amok, but they neither appeared as pleasant nor as amicable as Randal, to Kartuun.

As they walked, Kartuun pointed out an elderly man to Randal, asking if he could use the medicine. Randal shook his head. "No. I could probably con him into thinking I had medicine, but I doubt he'd have much money." After a few more minutes of searching, the two boys reached a part of town that had considerably more shady people lurking about.

"Is this what you meant by bad part of town? It... Looks kinda bad, Randal. Do we have to keep going?"

Randal nodded, this was indeed what he'd been looking for. "Yeah, we should be able to find somebody here!" Holding the pill in his open palm, he'd lift his hand in front of his chest and kept walking. After a few minutes he heard a whispering noise coming from an alleyway. A haggard looking man was standing there, pointing at Randal with a quizzical expression. Randal beamed. "Found one! Stay here, okay? I'll only be a minute."

Walking up to the man in the ally, Randal smiled and outstretched his empty hand to shake his hand. "Hiya! What are you in the mood for today, friend?"

The man looked at him, seemingly puzzled by something. "You aren't one of the usual dealers." he finally said, ignoring Randal's outstretched hand. "Are you new here?"

Randal bounced on his heels. "Yep! I just got into town the other- AHH!" The man had suddenly pushed him up against the ally wall, and was now holding a wicked looking knife to Randal's throat.

"Well then, seeing as nobody else is relying on you for their fix..." the man said with a dangerous smile on his face. "... I'll feel no regrets about taking everything you have." Randal swallowed nervously. He'd been in one or two scraps before, but he had Taza with him then.

"How am I gonna get out of this?"

Kartuun had kept watch on Randal, concerned for his safety and well-being, but also partly his own. If he was near the other boy, his thought was, he would be safer himself. It didn't help that now, Randal was being backed into the corner by some unsavory older man. His legs shook and his heart was starting to race at the thought of actually being in danger.

He walked into the alley, wondering if this would work, as he pulled the blanket from his shoulders. "Hey! Let him go!", he called towards the man. The presumable vagabond looked in the direction of the call, bemused as he saw another child.

"What, are you gonna stop me with that tablecloth of yours, little boy?" He goaded the much younger individual on, wanting to upset him further as he toyed a little with the knife against Randal's throat.

"N... No!" He was both answering the question and begging him not to injure Randal with his response. "Finniss, get Randal!" He threw the blanket forward lengthwise. Due to its material composition and the fact it was Kartuun throwing it, it only seemed like it would go about a third of the distance between the thrower and Randal. Yet while it was in the air, it changed. A form rose out of it.

All at once, it seemed something was both rising out of and changing from the blanket. A slightly-dirty, dark helmet, two plate-encased arms and hands came out of one end while feet and legs formed from the other, also metallic-looking. The blanket "spread out", stretching into the torso of the figure as it continued to run from the point at which its feet landed after being thrown by Kartuun. There was the clatter of plate mail as it ran forward; the stunned assailant had no idea what to do as this eight-foot-tall... THING was charging towards him.

However, it slowed to a halt once it reached the attacker and Randal. In one fell swoop he knocked the guy over (albeit not causing any lasting damage) and grabbed the boy, running him back towards Kartuun and setting him down, before standing in front of the two boys to ensure this man would cause no more trouble.

Glancing to the side, Randal saw Kartuun approach them. "Get away you idiot!" he thought in a panic. "Playing hero will get us both killed!" Kartuun seemed to have other plans however, and he began to speak. His voice audibly shook, causing Randal to cringe. "Oh Kia, we're doomed."

Then the unexpected happened. The addict taunted the boy, and in response Kartuun threw his tablecloth at the man. Randal's eyes widened as the sheet of fabric began to take a different shape. In it's place stood an armored figure, at least seven feet tall. "Wh- what!" Randal stammered in disbelief.

The addict seemed just as shocked, but he shrugged it off and pulled his knife on the tablecloth knight. He wasn't quick enough however, and the armored figure swiftly knocked him out. Randal then felt himself being picked up by the being, and he was soon placed next to Kartuun. 

Back in the alley, Randa could see the addict getting back up. Grabbing Kartuun's sleeve, Randal began to run back the way they came. "I changed my mind, you can buy me food! Let's get out of here!"

"Hmmm? Even with Finniss protecting us?..." He looked back towards the creepy man."... Yeah. You're right. Finniss?" The armored figure looked down at its young charge, indicating it was listening even while its helmet obscured its face, if it had one. "Take us back up the road, okay? I'll tell you when to stop."

Finniss gave a slow nod once then picked up one boy in each arm, their backs against the joint between his arm and his shoulder, and jogged out of the alley, hurrying back up the street that Kartuun and Randal had come from, the plate that formed Finniss clanking a little with every footfall.

Randal felt himself being scooped up by the linen knight, and he and Kartuun were soon being carried down the street at a breakneck pace. Multiple times Randal thought they were going to collide with passersby, but the armored being was much more nimble than it looked- it managed to weave through the crowd without so much as bumping into somebody.

Looking behind him, Randal saw the addict rush out of the alleyway in pursuit. A look of utmost hatred was etched onto his face, and he screamed as he ran after them. "You little shits! I'll have your heads for this!"

Kartuun laughed as he and Randall ended up in the nicer part of town once-again. "Finniss, you can stop around here." The being slowed rather quickly on command, and set the two boys down.

Kartuun looked up to the giant (relatively-speaking) knight and smiled. "Thanks. You can go back to normal now." He took its hand, and it nodded, before the material went from the appearance of shining metal to simple cloth. Limbs receded into the torso and, in a period a little faster than its shape-shifting in the other direction, shifted back into a blanket, one edge of which Kartuun held in his hand, and the other which he caught as it fell back down. He slung it over his shoulders, and turned to Randal.

"Whaddya feel like eating? I thought I smelled food around here..."

Randal watched in awe as the giant folded back into a moldy sheet of fabric. "That's so cool!" he thought jealousy. "I wish I had one of those..."

Randal's eyes lit up at the mention of food. "Pierogi!" he exclaimed excitedly. "Lets get pierogis!" His ears flushed red. "And, um, sorry about earlier. I... Forgot that the bad part of town was bad." He grinned sheepishly. "My bad."

"Pirogues?" Kartuun raised his eyebrow at Randal while slinging the blanket back over his shoulders. "What are those? I've never heard of 'em." He looked about for a tavern or eatery as they slowly walked along the street. "See anything? Or uh... Smell anything?"

When Randal apologized, Kartuun smiled, reassuring him. "It's alright. At least we had Finniss to protect us."

"What? You've never heard of them?!?" Randal exclaimed with his eyebrows raised. "But they're so good! Are they just a Zantaric thing?"

Randal's ears flushed red. "Crud! Did I just say that out loud?" Hoping Kartuun didn't realize that he'd just given away where he was from, he continued. "They're like, little potato and cheese filled things! Like, ravioli but with potatoes! Do you know if anyplace around here has those?"

"Nnno. I've never heard of them. You wanna ask someone? I think we should find an adult who looks like they know where they're going. They might know where to get them." He shrugged at Randal.

When he thought about what Randal had said, he spoke up. "Did you say Zantaric? My parents talked about that place occasionally. My dad had said there were always reports of bad magic being used down there. Is that true?" He looked at the other boy more curious than suspicious or worried; the mention of Zantaric hadn't brought fear or concern into the boy's eyes.

"Um..." Randal began. "He doesn't seem too bothered by it... I think I'll just tell him." Nodding his head, he continued. "Yeah! Tons of bad magic! Zantaric is like, where the bad guys live." He puffed out his chest a bit, a hint of pride in his voice. "I have bad magic too, but I don't use it that much, y'know? Taza tells me that I should enjoy my childhood and not get caught up in the bad guy stuff yet."

Randal suddenly spotted a man in a chef's hat walking down the street. "Hey, I bet get that guy knows!" Running up to the man, he tugged on his jacket. "Hey mister, where do I get pierogis in this city?"

The man looked at him in disdain. "Eh? Where do you think we are, Zantaric? There are no pierogis here, eat tortellini like a normal person."

Randal's ears flushed red. "O-okay." The chef walked away, and Randal looked to Kartuun, hopes dashed. "Um... is there anything you wanted to eat?"

Kartuun stood and watched as Randal was shot down by a rather rude man. "Me? Ahh... I love eating freshly-glazed rolls. And chicken!" He beamed at the other.

He looked around, then grabbed Randal's arm and walked off with him. Randal had, albeit reasonably-so, cut off their conversation for a moment to ask the man about where to get pierogis, so Kartuun ended up trying to restart it as he looked-out for a sign indicating a tavern. Preferably one with rolls, chicken, or some combination being advertised.

"So you want to get into being a bad person?" Kartuun looked to his companion, once-again curious about the boy's intent. "Isn't that... Y'know, bad? Like won't you get in trouble?"

"I love chicken!" Randal said enthusiastically. "I once had this broiled chicken in peanut sauce, it was really good!" His mouth watered at the thought. "Oh man, this is going to taste so good!"

When Kartuun asked his question, Randal shrugged and tried to explain it the way Taza had. "Well, you know how when you play a game, you normally play against somebody? Like, when you play checkers, you might be red and the other guy is black?" He grinned. "Well, I'm gonna be the other guy! You can't play the game without me after all!"

"Oh." Kartuun nodded but said nothing else in reply to Randal's analogy. He wasn't really... Sure, how to react to someone saying they wanted to be the kind of person his own parents had warned him to look out for.

Finally, they came across a tavern. Kartuun breathed in. The scent of food was wafting even outside the building. "Mmm... Let's go in!" He held open the door and let Randal step in first, as the two of them made their way in, finding it to be only somewhat-crowded due to being some time past noon. Individuals looking for something to eat had found it, and it was still far too early for an evening meal.

The two walked over and sat down a table, getting the occasional funny look from some of the other patrons due to being two young individuals who were unattended.

The tavern smelled amazing. Upon sitting down, Randal took in his surroundings. There were a few large men at the bar guffawing about something, and an elderly couple sitting across from the two boys were giving them dirty looks. Randal thought it was perfect, and beamed at his friend from across the table.

"So, do you like marbles?" he asked Kartuun excitedly. "Because I really like marbles! I have these two-"

"Can I start you off with something to drink?" a nasally voice asked, cutting him off. Looking up, Ramdal saw the unhappiest looking waitress he'd seen in his life.

"Ah, just water thank you." Randal replied. Taza didn't let him drink juice, which she claimed was just sugar water. The waitress nodded and looked at Kartuun.

"And for you?'

Kartuun paused briefly, considering his options, but decided he could afford to spend just a little more. "Ah... Could I have milk, please?"

The waitress had an exasperated look on her face and acted as if the time it took him to decide was an entire year. "Will that be all?"

"No, we'd like to order food as well... If that's alright." He replied meekly, wondering if it was his or Randal's being there that was creating her very-visible, near-lethal levels of annoyance.

"Sure. I'll be back." She said, walking away to get the drinks while the boys sat. Once she left, Kartuun responded to Randal.

"Well I dunno if I like marbles. I never really played with 'em... What were ya saying about those two you have?"

"What!" gasped Randal. "You don't play marbles?" He shook his head in disbelief. "It's only, like, the most fun game ever!" Randal crossed his arms. "When we're finished eating, I'm teaching you how to play."

Randal cleared his throat. "Anyway, I have these two that are made of-"

"Here." the waitress interrupted again. She haphazardly placed the glass of water onto the table in front of him. She then did the same with Kartuun's drink, nearly causing it to spill. Looking at the two boys impatiently, the waitress's eye twitched. "Have you decided on your food yet?"

"Um..." Randal said hesitantly. "I'll have the chicken drumsticks please."

The waitress turned in the direction of the kitchen. "ONE BIRD!" she yelled to the cook. She turned to Kartuun, glowering unhappily. "And for you?"

Kartuun felt a little put-off by the waitress' strong, standoffish attitude, flinching when she nearly slammed his drink onto the table. Looking around to the few other patrons in the tavern while she was fetching the drinks, she seemed to bear a similar stance towards everyone in there.

"Could I get the same thing as him? A-and some rolls, please..." He instinctively braced himself for  her yelling.

"MAKE THAT TWO BIRDS! An' an order of BREAD!" She turned and walked away, saying "It'll be out shortly..." In a more-exasperated manner, as if she was not only walking away from these two, but from this job, a poor temperament to have when she would immediately be "returning" to the job whenever she next addressed a customer.

"Jeez... My parents never told me to speak badly about people but I really don't know why that woman works here if she's so angry about it..." Kartuun spoke quietly, not wanting to catch her ear, even as she was across the tavern and addressing another patron. He shook his head a little. "Anyway! I wouldn't mind learning how to play marbles. But, what were you saying about those two of yours? Are they made of gold, or magic or somethin'?"

Happy the waitress was finally gone, Randal grinned at the boy. "You can't make a marble out af magic, silly! They're made of-"

Randal froze, and peered behind Kartuun. A man in an apron had just entered the restaurant, and Randal could have sworn he'd seen him before. Right before the man entered the kitchen, his eyes met Randal's, causing the boy's hair to stand on end.

It was the addict from earlier that day.

"Wait, what? Does he work here or something?" Randal thought in a panic. "K-Kartuun? I think, maybe, we should..."

His voice trailed off as the waitress approached them with their food. She smiled sweetly at the two boys, something Randal found to be deeply unsettling. "Here you are! Two orders of chicken drumsticks!" The waitress beamed. "Enjoy!"

As the waitress walked away, Randal looked at his food, then at Kartuun. "Um... I don't think we should eat this..."

Kartuun had already felt concerned when he saw Randal meet eyes with a familiar-looking man. It looked like... Oh. His concern levels rose, and said concerns were confirmed when Randall proposed they leave.

Then the waitress came. Never before had Kartuun felt so utterly unnerved at someone acting nice. He looked down at the food which appeared mostly normal. But with the man from earlier working here, something felt extremely off.

"Yeah, I agree. Let's uh... Let's go." Kartuun pulled out enough money for the drinks, since he and Randal had at the least partaken of them, and stood up, hurrying with the other boy toward the door. Kartuun tried opening it, but found it wouldn't budge. "Nghh... I... It's locked!" He spoke quietly, not wanting to draw attention, but not knowing that attention had already been on them since the drumsticks went on the table.

"Well, well, well, trying to leave so soon?" The addict and cook spoke up, drawing the gaze of the two boys, who dreaded turning around but did so with the desire of not being snuck-up on.

"Without even eating first?" The waitress chimed in.

"Y-yeah... You're a criminal! You almost hurt my friend here!" Kartuun's legs wobbled a little as he spoke back toward the pair. Before, they were able to run. Now, short of breaking the door down and causing a lot more commotion, they were cornered.

The two boys stood up and hurried to the door. "Maybe he didn't recognize us." Randal thought hopefully. "Or maybe he can't do anything because he's at work!" Randal's hopes were dashed when when Kartuun tried to open the the door. "What do you mean it's locked?" he whispered. "What if somebody wanted to buy food?"

"Well, well, well, trying to leave so soon?"

"Without even eating first?"

Randal's head whipped around to find that both the addict and the waitress had cornered them. Kartuun was clearly just as frightened as he was, but the boy still talked back to the adults, voice shaking. "Y-yeah... You're a criminal! You almost hurt my friend here!"

"Wait a second." Randal thought. "I'm a criminal too! I don't need to put up with these jerks!" Reaching into his pocket, Randal took the pill he'd tried to sell the addict and swallowed it. Staring defiantly at the two adults, he frowned angrily. "We're not hungry anymore."

Suddenly he rushed at the addict, grabbing the man's hand before he could react. Both Randal's and the man's eyes glowed a rainbow of colors for a moment, then went back to normal.

Shaken, the man proceeded to punch Randal in the face. The boy shrieked in pain and collapsed. "What the hell was that supposed to be you little..." the man began, then slowed down. Stumbling, he too collapsed onto the floor. He began to mutter incoherently, and then giggled like a child.

Slowly trying to push himself back up, Randal looked at Kartuun and beamed. His nose was bloody, and one of his front teeth had been knocked out. "I... I told you I had bad magic..."

Before Randal could say anymore, the waitress would launch a magic missile at him. "You little shit! What did you do to him!

"Randal!" Kartuun cried out for his friend who had just been battered by the addict; he wasn't sure what to do, as the boy was now closer to the waitress, and the man, who was now acting very bizarre.

He heard Randal speak up, albeit weakly, to confess the way in which he had incapacitated the addict. Then the waitress spoke up, as well. Her sight was focused on Randal, the one who had 'assaulted' her boyfriend, and she appeared poised to put him down. Kartuun, in spite of wondering whether it would be enough, knew he had to do something.

He reached around to grab the corner of the blanket, yanking it from its position as his mantle, then balling it up and hurling it forward. "Finniss! Don't let her hurt Randal!"

The barmaid's attention shifted away from Randal as she saw a wadded-up blanket flying towards her, before it had even reached the height of its lengthy arc. "Wow, a baby toy?" She aimed at that, preparing to cast the rather basic offensive spell at the blanket. "Even if it is a magic blanket, I can vaporize it easily!"

Of course she didn't account for, in a matter of seconds, the shift of the object from an amorphous blanket, to an armored figure appearing to do a cannonball in the air, before arms and legs extended outward. The legs hit the ground with a metallic thud, charging forth, made easy by the tall figure's strides, and grabbing the woman, wrapping around her arms and bringing her onto the floor.

Kartuun got a rag from one of the nearby tables that the maid had been using and hurried to Randal with it, wiping some of the blood away, tearing up at the sight. "R-randal? Are you... Are you okay?" Of course the obvious answer was 'no', but for someone seriously injured like Randal, to ask a more serious question about his condition would be beyond someone inexperienced like Kartuun.

The waitress yelled in shock as the blanket turned into what appeared to be some kind of knight. "What the fuck is that! Who the the hell are you two?" Finniss proceeded to tackle the woman to the ground. Try as she might to get free, the waitress didn't have the strength to push the knight off of her. "Cocksuckers! I swear, when I get free I'll strangle the both of you!"

Still on the floor, Randal slowly pushed himself up into a sitting position. Kartuun had managed to find a rag, and was wiping the blood off of Randal's face with tears in eyes. Randal smiled weakly. "Hey... don't cry, okay?" he said, although he was clearly still in a lot of pain. Blood trickled out of his mouth when he spoke. "I've been hit worse, so I think I should be okay."

"I hope." he added silently to himself.

Looking up at his friend, Randal tried to give him a reassuring look. "Could... Could you take me back to the hostel I'm staying at? I... I think it was called Adventurer's Refuge or something." He wiped his bloody nose with his hand, whimpering in pain as he did so. "Taza... I think Taza has medicine. She'll know what to do."

"O... Ohhh..." Kartuun couldn't do much more than look on and groan, internally wincing at the blood flowing from Randal's mouth. He had never encountered someone this badly hurt before. He sniffled and nodded when Randal tried to assuage his negative feelings, wiping away tears with his sleeve.

He listened intently when Randal finally spoke up, nodding his head in understanding, wiping as much blood off the boy's face as he could. "Alright." He spoke quietly, handing the rag to Randal as he walked to the door and tried to open it, having forgotten it was locked. "We need to get out of here... Finniss, get the door, quick!"

At its young companion's call of its name, Finniss' head turned toward Kartuun, still holding the waitress. After Kartuun gave his order, and helped Randal out of the path between Finniss and the door while saying "C'mon, over here for a second...", Finniss stood up and faced the door. However, as it stood, it brought the woman up as well, carried under-arm with her own arms still held down.

"Rgghh... Let me GO!" She struggled futilely against the armored figure, who simply redoubled its grasp on her to ensure it wouldn't slip. Then, it took off, charging at the door, lowering the arm not carrying the woman to bash the door open.

BANG! Finniss collided with the door, nearly knocking it off in one go. However, it wasn't open yet... The waitress' heart sank as she heard the door to the place she derived her livelihood from get bashed. It sank even more when this armored... THING took a few steps back, charged again, and the door burst open, allowing light from outside into the tavern.

"Great job, Finniss! Put her down and get us out of here!" Kartuun sat next to Randal as the knight scooped them up just as it had earlier, again to save both of them, and made its way outside. Kartuun turned to Randal. "Can you tell 'im where to go? I don't know where that place is..."

Kartuun seemed shaken, but his blanket had everything under control. At the boy's command, the fabric knight stood up - waitress still restrained in it's arms- and battered down the door. "This is so cool!" Randal said excitedly as he was picked up. He again grinned through the pain. "I wish I had a Finniss..."

The fabric construct bolted out the out the door, leaving the waitress behind. "You shits!" Randal heard them shout after them. "I'll get you for this! Just you wait!"

Randal giggled- there was an odd humor about a full grown woman getting shown up by two kids and a blanket. When Kartuun asked for directions, Randal pointed in the direction they'd come from. "It's right where we met each other! I had just walked outside when I bumped into you."

"Oh? Great!" Kartuun tried to smile, knowing Randal was still hurt but at least tried to feel his way through the pain. After he gave directions, Finniss changed paths accordingly, dashing down the road and drawing a good amount of looks from concerned and surprised people who weren't used to that much excitement rushing by them in one fell swoop.

Kartuun's eyes fell back to Randal's wounds as Finniss neared the destination. "D-does it still hurt? A lot, I mean... I couldn't imagine being as hurt as you look..." The knight slowed down and stopped as they reached the place Randal and his friend, if Kartuun recalled correctly, were staying.

Randal gave Kartuun a grin as the blanket reached their destination, eyes watering as he did so. He was missing one of his two front teeth, a bloody hole in it's place. "It's only my entire face! I can still walk and stuff, I think." As Finniss slowed to a halt, Randal squirmed out of the knights grasp. "Come on!" he called to his friend as he darted inside the hostel...

Taza sighed as her informant left the room. It looked like they had come here for nothing- a criminal group known as the Soot Wolves dominated the city to point where there simply was no point in trying to break into Arca's drug trade. Rubbing her forehead, she was about to lie down for a nap when there was a knock on her door. Opening it hesitantly, she was greeted by Randal, along with a boy she was unfamiliar with. Randal's face and shirt were covered in blood, which sent the Thanati woman into a panic.

"What happened? Who did this to you?

Kartuun stood beside Randal, blanket hanging from his shoulders once-again. He looked to the older individual, a concerned look on his face.

"I-it was this crazy couple in a tavern we went to! Randal was tryin' to sell something to some weird addict who tried to attack Randal, so I had my blanket change and save Randal and get us away. We went to get something to eat and the tavern had this really rude waitress who started acting nice when the addict guy actually walked in. Randal said we should try to leave so we did, but the addict was gonna try to attack both of us before Randal stepped in and did... Something that made the guy act weird but also ended up having him get hurt too. The waitress tried to use magic but I used my blanket again to save us and bring us here."

He caught his breath, eyes watering a little as he mentally recounted the events while very quickly running through them, then shifted his gaze toward Randal. "Pl-please help him and make him okay..."

Taza stared wide eyed as the strange boy recounted what had happened. "Oh my god, I never should have let him go out by himself." she thought, mentally kicking herself. "What was I thinking? I'm an awful guardian." Nodding hurriedly, she motioned for the two boys to come in.

Randal looked at her with an embarrassed look on his face. "I didn't mean to! It was-"

Shushing him, Taza sat him on the bed. "We can discuss what privileges you'll be losing after we get you patched up." Looking at the other boy, she pointed to a bag in the corner of the room. "There's a small box of medicine in the front pocket, can you fetch it for me?" Turning back to Randal, she shook her head. "What were you even thinking..."

Kartuun nodded and obtained the requested item for Taza, walking it over to her, looking at Randal's injured form. Watching her tend to him made Kartuun wince internally, still frankly glad he wasn't hurt at all, let alone as badly as his friend.

At the same time, though, all he could do was reflect on what had happened once-again while Taza did her best on making Randal better. He said nothing. Not that anything he could say would help the situation. Then he had a brilliant thought, though.

"Are you gonna go back and do something with the people who hurt Randal?" he inquired, not normally one for revenge but also thinking that the more mature individual would be able to do SOMETHING about them, even if it wasn't exactly violent.

The boy brought Taza her medical supplies without question. Taking a long look at her protege, she had him lay on his back. "A broken nose, a missing tooth, and some bruising. He'll be fine." she assured herself as she poured some medicine on a cloth and began to dab at Randal's nose. The boy squirmed a bit, but he didn't complain. "The people who did this to him, though..."

As if he had read Taza's mind, the other boy asked if she would take care of the people who had hurt Randal. She looked at him slowly, a dark expression on her face. "Yes. You won't need to worry about them anymore. What was the name of the restaurant you went to?"

Excited, Randal spoke up. "Aw, sweet! Are you gonna murder them? Can I watch?"

Taza rubbed the bridge of her nose. "Randal, we don't use the "M" word. Do you remember why?"

Randal's ears went red. "... It leaves a bad taste in people's mouths." he said, embarrassed. "Sorry."

Taza sighed. "It's alright." She ruffled the boy's hair. "You're still learning." Turning back to the other child, she smiled. "I'm sorry, but I don't believe I've properly introduced myself yet. My name is Taza, I'm Randal's guardian. What's your name?"

Kartuun looked at the pair while appearing rather stunned, unsure of how to react to the casual manner with which they discussed the presumably fast-approaching deaths of other people. "U-uh. I'm Kartuun. Nice to meet you." His hand clutched one of the corners of the makeshift mantle on his shoulders.

Though he didn't desire wish to show concern, a worried look had formed on his face. "Are you... Actually gonna... Well... Kill those people?" The unseemly, unreasonable, though not entirely impossible thought ran through his mind that what he says might lead him to a place that the cook and waitress would likely visit soon, if Taza had anything to say about it.

Randal looked over to Kartuun, his face bright despite his injuries. "Yeah! Me and Taza are bad guys, remember?"

Taza sighed. Randal, while a sweet kid, was too overenthusiastic for his own good at times. Shaking her head, Taza attempted to do damage control. "We're not 'bad guys', Randal." she said, making air quotes around the boy's terminology. "We're just not 'good' in the traditional sense."

She gave Kartuun a sympathetic smile. "Look. These are people who are willing to attack kids like you for no good reason. We could call the guards on them, but there's always the possibility that they have an alibis, or that they have the money to pay them off. Even if we could get them in trouble for something like drug possession, at most they'd be in jail for two or three years- and when they're released, they'll go back to being a public menace." Taza placed her hand on the boy's shoulder, as if to comfort him. "Arca will be a safer place for kids like you and Randal if those two disappear."

Taza, of course, didn't really care about justice- this was about revenge, plain and simple. Kartuun didn't need to know that though, and Taza really didn't want to scare away anybody Randal considered a friend- not when her protégé had no other friends to play with back home. "Can I count on you not to tell anybody? It can be our little secret."

Kartuun continued to frown as Taza explained the situation to Kartuun, giving a soft "Okay." when she finished explaining. When she asked him not to tell anyone, he was silent for a second, being asked to make a decision he wasn't entirely sure about. He said "Yes" in the moment, firmly only in sound but not in intent. She seemed sincere, and her logic was fair.

But Kartuun's parents were always opposed to killing. Relying more on magic to stop and subdue rather than eliminate, they saw no reason to steal away what was irreplaceable, and conferred that to the young boy. Of course it didn't help that he was brought up to respect what others thought, causing a clashing within his mind he had no idea how to resolve.

While he felt it hard to get away from, he turned toward Randall. "Are you doing better now?" He walked to his hurt friend. "You already look a lot better." A cheery grin spread across his own face.

Randal watched as the his friend agreed to keep Taza's actions a secret. He nodded in approval. Kartuun seemed a bit shaken, but it would be all right- after all, it's not like they were making him kill the waitress.

When Kartuun changed the subject to Randal, the injured boy sat up and grinned. "I think I'm gonna be ok! My mouth still hurts though..."

Taza gave him a concerned look. "We'll need to get you a new tooth. You can't live your life looking like that." She shook her head. "What was this restaurant called?"

Randal thought for a moment. "Um... I think it was 'The Angry Bear'. It was a few blocks down the street."

Taza nodded. "I'll be back in an hour or so." She gave the two boys a sympathetic look. "We'll need to head out when I get back, the locals were... Less than enthusiastic about my businesses proposal. Why don't you give Kartuun our address, then you two could be penpals!"

Randal looked dissapointed, but he waved Taza off. After his guardian left, he gave his friend a smile. "We still have an hour. D'you wanna see my marbles now?"

Kartuun nodded solemnly at Taza's words, unsure of how else to handle what she was saying now. Randal and her...  They seemed so nice. But they were also bad people. But they weren't raised the same as Kartuun; they didn't have his values, or his parents' teachings. He wanted to respect their ideals, though being young he unconsciously found it hard to do so, feeling more loyalty to what his parents and the law conveyed was "right" moreso than what these two said.

By the same token, however, he wasn't just going to sell them out. As he looked to Randal, who spoke up, he wondered if he could really betray his new friend's trust.

"Sure!" He had actually wanted to see these marbles Randal possessed, and wondered if they were related to the drugs he had tried to sell earlier. Taking a seat on the bed that Randal was resting on, Kartuun awaited the other boy's 'fabled' toy that he had desired to bring out again and again.

Randal grinned and sat up. "Okay! You're gonna love these!" He pulled a small leather pouch out of his back pocket and poured it's contents onto the sheets in front of him. The marbles made small clacking noises as they bumped into each other. Randal quickly got to work separating them by type.

"Ok, so these ones are aggies," Randal said, pointing to a few stripey brown marbles. "They're made of rock. Then these are bumblebees..." The boy mentioned to a small pile of yellow marbles with black stripes. "Oh! Here they are!"

Randal picked up two marbles that, upon close inspection, seemed to glow a bit. The inside of the marbles seemed to swirl around of their own accord, like a crystal ball. "These two are enchanted!"


Randal beamed. "Pretty cool, huh?"

Kartuun watched as the marbles tumbled out of the bag, not touching the precious objects that Randal seemed to pride himself in immediately, unconsciously wishing to leave them "pristine".

He listened as Randal listed off the different kinds of marbles; it was the kind of novel information one is told, that they think is interesting, and they really want to hold onto, but they subsequently forget about fifty percent of it not five minutes later.

Though once he got to the last pair, the ones that glowed, Kartuun's interest was piqued. "Enchanted? Enchanted how?" He eyed up the enchanted ones, now quite curious. "D'ya know who enchanted 'em?" He was no expert on the specific workings of enchantment, but his parents had at least provided him an effective foundation for whenever his powers would be awakened, along with information that the son of not one but two artisans of the form would be expected to know.

Randal scratched the top of his head. "Um... I think it's just, like, an aesth..." He paused, trying to remember how to pronounce the word he wanted to use. "Ae-sthet-ic. An aesthetic enchantment." Suddenly realizing that Kartuun might not know what that meant, he quickly explained it. "Like, the enchantment doesn't do anything practical, it just changes how the marble looks." Randal gazed at them, smiling. "And I'm not really sure who did it. Lady Hildegarde gave them to me for my eleventh birthday, but she doesn't have that kind of magic."

Randal looked back up at his friend. "They sure are pretty though, huh?"

"Oh." Kartuun responded with a rather neutral expression on his face.

"... Huh." He was deflated somewhat by the response. Not that he was upset, especially not at Randal, but enchantments were generally this mystical thing. Yeah, they did have their mundane uses like lighting or securing a house, but to just make marbles glow? Though he really couldn't deny what Randal said. "Yeah, they actually are pretty nice. So what do you do with them? Do you just roll them in your hand or toss them around or?"

Just from that alone it might've been more than obvious to Randal that Kartuun wasn't well-versed in street games. It wasn't something he had ever gotten involved in, or even really taken notice of.

"No, I play marbles with them!" Randal said indignantly. "The magic ones are my shooters!" The young drug dealer looked at his friend quizzically. "Don't you play? It's, like, the most fun game ever!"

"... Shooters?" Kartuun raised an eye. "What are those?"

He listened to Randal's question. "Nnno, I've never played marbles. Howdya play? Is it hard to learn? And you're sure there's no enchanting involved in the actual game?" He sounded hopeful but at the same time looked at Randal understanding it might not be. It'd still be neat to learn a new game, either way.

"It's really easy!" Randal exclaimed, sliding off the bed. "You don't need to enchant anything, but it'd be cool if you did!" The boy began to rummage through Taza's bag, pulling out a sharp looking knife. "Normally you play this outside in the dirt." he explained, using the knife to draw a circle in the hardwood floor. "But since we're inside, we gotta do it this way." 

Standing up, Randal grabbed the marbles off the bed and placed them in the middle of the circle. "Okay, so you gotta take your shooter," The boy held up one of the large marbles. "And shoot it like this!" Randal knelt down, and flicked the marble out of his hand using his thumb. It rolled into the circle and collided with the others, and a few of the marbles rolled out of the circle. The young drug dealer pointed to them. "See? Those ones are mine now. And now you go, and whoever has the most marbles at the end wins!"

"Huh. Okay..." Kartuun replied. It was simple, but that didn't mean it was bad. He knelt on the floor next to Randal, grabbing the other glowing shooter.

"So you just flick it, right?" He toyed with the orb in his hand for a little bit, not wanting to break or hurt it, but at the same time enjoying its smooth surface and feel. It was almost like a gem his parents would use for a focus at times. Curiosity toward the small ball at the moment, he held it in preparation for flicking it before doing so.

The ball whirled its way into the circle, hitting others and creating a chain reaction that sent a few more of them out of the ring. Kartuun picked up the ones that had come out. "Wow. Was that good or bad?"

Randal nodded excitedly, scooping up the marbles that had rolled out of the ring. "Yeah! That's five points!" He handed them to Kartuun. "That's more then I got..."

Randal picked up his shooter carefully. This is where the game got really fun- with the marbles scattered inside the circle instead of being in a large clump, one had to aim properly to knock out multiple at once. Closing one eye, Randal put his head to the floor so he could see the marbles at eye level. Sticking his tongue out of the corner of his mouth, the young drug dealer made the shot...

...And missed his mark completely. "Aww, man!" Randal cried as his shooter rolled out of the ring without hitting a single marble. "I was so close too!"

Kartuun sent the shooter flying into the circle, managing to take one out. "Ooh, I got one." He grinned, scooping up the shooter and his next "point". His head turned toward Randal.

"So, uhm... Why are you two -- I mean, you and Taza, in Arca again? Just to sell those drugs?" It would make sense if Randal couldn't, or didn't want to, say. Playing marbles could only be so engaging, though. There was a mildly uncomfortable silence in the air, at least for Kartuun. Plus, he was curious to learn more about this other boy and his mentor.

Randal scratched the back of his head. "Um..." he began, his voice uncertain. "She actually didn't tell me why we came here." He grinned sheepishly. "Haha, last time we did something like this I ruined it by telling a few people..."

The boy crossed his arms proudly. "But I bet she's here to find a market for her tea bags! She's doesn't even need drugs to get you hooked on those!"


"Charlie? Charlie, snap out of it!" The waitress shook her boyfriend frantically. "Come on! This isn't funny!" The addict moaned, drooling out of the corner of his mouth. The waitress grimaced, standing up. "I-I'll get you another glass of-"

Something whizzed by her face, a panicked yelp escaping her lips. Looking around wildly, the waitress was shocked to see another woman in the previously empty diner. "Who- who are you!" she asked, beginning to panic. "What do you want?" 

Taza stepped forward, making a small *tch* with her tongue. She sheathed her crossbow. "Darn it, I always miss." she mused.

Pulling a gardening trowel out of her back pocket, she grinned nastily. "Right, I suppose there isn't a family resemblance, huh?"

"Oh? She sells tea? ... It's not like, poison or something, is it?" Kartuun asked, quickly adding on the second part. He surprised himself at the inquiry; it was slightly worrying to him that he was already catching on to the questionable wares of his friend and their guardian. "If you can't say, you don't have to."

Kartuun watched as Randal flicked the shooter into the circle once-again, then did it himself, the two quietly passing the time with not much common ground between them beyond being young, male, and lacking parents.

"Nah, not poison." Randal said cheerily, watching as Kartuun scored another few points. "It's just really addictive! Everything she grows is, I think it's magic." The boy scratched the back of his head. "What about you? Do you have older friends? What do they do?"


"F-family resemblance?" the woman squeaked. She raised her hands, fingers crackling with magic. "Wait... You're with those two boys? I'll kill you for what they did to- urk!"

Taza had lunged forward, slashing at the waitresses neck. The woman staggered backwards, then fell to the floor. She clutched at her throat, hands covered in blood. She looked up at Taza, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Pl-ea-se..." she managed to sputter, blood beginning to pool onto the floor. 

"Please what?" Taza said, kneeling down next to the woman. "Spare you?"

The woman said nothing in reply, her eyes having gone blank...

Kartuun frowned. "I... Don't have any older friends who travel with me. I mean, back home, the tavern owner took care of me. He's grumpy to a lot of people but never acted that way toward me, unless I got on his nerves."

After reminding himself of his old companion, he perked up some. "I mean, at least I've got Finniss. He doesn't talk but he understands what I say and can answer questions. Mostly simple ones. Uhm... What kind of magic does Taza use? Or... I guess, her magic plants. Do you know what kind they are or how they work?" He had little knowledge of flora, albeit a bit more when it came to magical flora, but at least his parents' occasional discussions about a couple magic herbs might come in handy now.

This could be something else Kartuun could relate to Randal and his guardian with!

Randal grinned. "Oh, her plants are only magic because she is!" he said cheerily. "Like, she's just planting normal seeds. I think her magic somehow messes with the soil?" He scratched his head. "I'm not sure. It's not a spell, I think..."

Randal suddenly blinked. "Wait... Finniss can talk?" the boy asked, eyes lighting up. "What does he sound like? Does he tell jokes?"


*tch*

Taza gazed at the waitress's body, eyes cold. "Well." she said as she stood up, directing her attention to the man on the floor. "So much for her."

The man sputtered something incomprehensible, limbs twitching. His eyes flicked from side to side, as if watching something that wasn't there. Standing above him, the dealer smirked. "Randal must have given him the fenshade root pills." she thought, chest swelling with pride. "It doesn't take much to overdose on that stuff. He'll be dead in a few hours." The woman's shoulders relaxed, a calm smile emerging on her face. "I could leave you to your fate," she said out loud. "But you know what? This will make me feel better."

In an instant, Taza violently slammed her foot down onto the man's neck. His throat gave way with a sickening crunch, and the man's spasms stopped. The dealer took a deep breath, pushing a strand of hair out of her eyes. "Next time, don't touch my kid."

Kartuun wrinkled his nose at Randal's incomplete description of Taza's ability to affect plants. "Hrm... I know there's a lot of different kinds of magic users out there, but I haven't heard of too many people directly using magic on plants to do what Taza does. And then you can take drugs and make people feel what they feel, I guess."

After thinking a bit longer, he remembered Randal's other inquiry. "Oh! Well, yeah, he can talk. But he doesn't actually talk much to answer questions, since a lot of them can be answered just by pointing or something. His favorite color is gray, he likes nighttime instead of daytime, and even though he doesn't get tired when 'active' he prefers being a blanket." Kartuun instinctively stroked one end of the worn fabric, losing himself in the calmness of the moment for a second.

"Er, I've never asked him to tell jokes, though. Never thought of that. I haven't heard him laugh either now that I think about it. But he sounds like a deep voice echoing inside of armor. I can't tell whether it's a man or a woman's voice, though... Not that it matters. I don't even know if enchanted objects can be one or the other." Kartuun finished his brief rant on the machinations of his partner with a sigh and a shrug.

"I mean he's nice to have but I guess it's better to have someone like Taza, huh? It seems like you two do this sort of thing a lot. Must be nice. Except the uh, i-injuries and stuff I mean... Those are really bad..." Kartuun stopped talking, not wanting to dig a deeper hole than the one he thought he just dug.

"This is actually my first real mission with her!" Randal said excitedly, seemingly unaware of his friend's embarressment. "Before I just helped at her flower shop, but now that I've been with her a year she trusts me to do other stuff too!"

The boy gave Kartuun a sly grin. "Well... why don't we ask him now?" He pumped his fists in the air, chanting. "Jokes! Jokes! Jokes! Jokes!"

"Oh, well, that's cool!" Kartuun broke a smile at Randal's cheerfulness regarding his partnership with Taza. He found it somewhat difficult to stay equally positive as Randal turned to insistence regarding Finniss telling jokes.

"I-I mean... I guess we could. Dunno what will happen." Kartuun wasn't annoyed at Randal's suggestion, but rather his excitement and almost presumptuous tone, that Kartuun would be on-board with asking his best friend to do something he wasn't even sure it could do. Either way, he tried to make it a positive experience, and tugged Finniss from around his neck before extending his arm out while holding one end of the blanket, about one-fifth of the cloth touching the floor and creating a small pile. "Finniss, wake up."

The part resting on the floor grew out into a pair of legs, and Kartuun let go as the rest of it filled out into the armored being, sitting on the floor. Instinctively, he turned to Kartuun.

"Hey. Can you uhm... Tell us a joke?" The being's response was to tilt its head. Even without eyes or a facial expression, Kartuun could see the confused look on its face. "Y'know, something to make us laugh?" This gave no result, either. Kartuun looked to Randal. "Any ideas?"

"Hmmm..." Randal scratched his chin thoughtfully. "Maybe he doesn't know what a joke is? Like, maybe if we start, he'll join in?"

The boy cleared his throat. "Ahem-hem... Finniss!" he called to the armored being. "What do you call a vampire with makeup on?" Randal didn't wait for a response. "A glampire! Geddit?"

The armored figure looked on at Randal. He didn't move his arms, but it seemed that if he had, he'd be scratching his head trying to understand the point of what Randal said.

"... I don't know if he knows why it's funny. He might not have ever heard of a vampire before. We certainly haven't seen one, at least not as far as I know."

Randal's eyes lit up. "I saw a vampire once, I think!" he said excitedly. "Back home in Zantaric, this one guy came into our flower shop and asked for..." The boy giggled madly. "Blood red roses!" he finished in a deep, accented voice. "He was a pale guy in a cloak, too! Crazy, right?"

Randal tilted his head. "Have you ever met any weirdos?"

"Wow... Are ya sure it was actually a vampire, though? Maybe it was some weird guy." Kartuun wasn't opposed to the idea of it actually being one; quite the contrary. But what Randal was describing sounded kinda fake.

"And, yeah. I've met a few. A while back I met a boy our age who said he was a wizard. He got me into some weird stuff. But at least I got a cool new power with Finniss out of it!"

"A wizard our age?" Randal said, tilting his head to the side. "Yeah, I think there's like, a school somewhere? Um..." The boy scratched his head in thought. "Uh, I think it's called Weirdwood or something..." The boy shrugged. "Anyway, I totally know this guy was a-"

The door opened with a soft click, and Randal abruptly stopped. "Taza! You're back!" he exclaimed to the Thanati woman standing in the doorway. His guardian had an oddly satisfied look in her eyes, and dark red stains was clearly visible on her pant leg. Randal stood up excitedly, then his face face fell as he realized what this meant. "So... so this means..."

Taza nodded, smiling gently. "Time to say goodbye."

Kartuun and Finniss looked on at Taza. The former's face showed far more surprise than the latter's.

"W-wait, what?" The boy asked. This was so sudden! He almost felt like he and Randal had spent a month together in just a few short hours. His eyes shifted over to Taza, and her clothes, but then quickly moved off as he connected the dots. His heart grew dim. Those two people they had met were crazy, but... The conflict welled up inside Kartuun again, mind wrestling with itself. If he wanted to, he could always turn Taza in. But then... What about Randal? He didn't do anything wrong. Those two people had their lives stolen. Was it worth messing up Randal's too, when both of them had made it out alive, albeit with Randal injured?

Kartuun stood up as well, and Finniss followed suit, standing behind his owner. He gingerly hugged Randal, afraid of breaking the injured boy, but at the same time enjoying the closeness and warmth of another person. Finniss was a great companion but lacked in the intimacy another living being could provide. At this point, Kartuun was even considering not letting go...

Randal froze in Kartuun's embrace, arms stiff at his side. "No no no, don't touch me!" he thought as his breathing began to grow sharp. "I- I don't want it!" After a few seconds, the boy uneasially slid out of his friend's grip. "Um... I'm not really a hug person... sorry..."

Randal looked at Kartuun, tears beginning to fill his eyes. Did goodbye really have to come so soon? He waved slowly, sniffling. "G-goodbye... I'm gonna miss you..."

Taza sighed, and pressed a small piece of paper into her protege's hand. "Why don't you give him this? You can't be Friends, but you could be penpals!"

Quote

Blue Orchid Flower Shop
14 Ogre Avenue, Zantaric

Randal's eyes lit up, and he quickly handed the small, blue business card to his friend. "Oh yeah! You can totally write me letters! You will, won't you?"

A mild feeling of hurt surged through Kartuun as Randal freaked out at his embrace and subsequently slipped out of it. He figured there might be a reason for it but that didn't stop the now somewhat-scorned boy from feeling a little upset. Though it was immediately replaced by sadness when he saw Randal's tears, a sign he did care about Kartuun, some reassurance that assuaged the boy's feelings as quickly as they had been damaged.

"I'm gonna miss you too! I really hope you..." He paused, swallowing. "Hope you get better. And don't get into any trouble you can't--Can't get out of."

Then Taza handed something to Randal which was passed off to Kartuun. A card with an address! "O-oh! I've... Never had a penpal before. I'll try to write when I can. I dunno if I'll be doing as much interesting stuff as you two, but...!" He tucked the card away in a pocket. At least he had others he could contact when out in the world, now.

"So... Where are you two going, now?" Kartuun asked, taking Finniss' hand, as the being shifted back into a blanket he helped work back over his shoulders.

"Home!" Randal said, a bittersweet smile on his face. He knelt over and began to scoop up his marbles, returning them to their pouch. "We have Friends there who need us." He slipped the pouch into his pocket, and began to grab his spare clothes from the bed and put them in Taza's bag. "We have a shop to run, too. You can visit sometime, if you'd like! We have all kinds of plants, not just the bad guy ones."

What about you, Kartuun?" Taza asked, packing up a small chemistry set that had been on the desk.. "Where are you headed?"

"Ooh. That sounds fun. I'll try to come over at some point." Kartuun wondered what the shop they ran looked like. Was it run-down and ramshackle, or was it a rather clean, modest-looking affair obscuring the more questionable wares being sold?

The brief aside was interrupted by Taza's inquiry about his next destination. "Hmm? Oh! I'm headed to uh, Wyrdwood Academy of Arcane Science to find my parents. Or, well, a friend of mine thinks the academy can help me find my parents. So..." Kartuun stood there awkwardly, not knowing how their departure was going to work. Both he and them were leaving this room. Would he leave first, or they? If he left, would it be a betrayal of their friendship, because he would seem so eager to leave?

"Wyrdwood, huh?" Taza said, lifting her bag over her shoulder. "I hear that place is very competitive. I'd be careful."

"Kartuun will be fine!" Randal exclaimed. "He has Finniss, he can beat people up if there's a competition!"

The woman laughed, shaking her head. "Not that kind of competition, goofball." Grinning, she walked to the door and held it open. "Come on, we'll miss the carriage."

Randal looked at his friend, his eyes watering. "Thanks for saving me from those guys..." he said quietly. "I owe you. If you need, like, anything, write me a letter, 'kay?" With a final smile and a wave, Randal would leave the room behind his guardian. "Bye! Write me even if you don't need anything too!" he called behind him. "Have fun at school!"


Randal's heart swelled as he looked out the carriage window, sighi g as the city slowly faded into the distance. "You really think he'll write?" he asked quietly. "I've never had a friend who wasn't in the gang before..."

Taza smiled, gently stroking the boy's hair. "I'm sure he will." she said comfortingly. "You two went through a lot, people don't forget things like that."

Randal nodded. "Mm." he mumbled. His eyes began to grow heavy, tired from the day he'd had. "I'm not gonna, that's for sure..." The young dealer drifted into sleep, head resting on his mentor's shoulder...