Chapter Twelve - A Heart Hidden in Shadows

        A World without Misery (Interitus 1: Book 0)

Chapter Twelve – A Heart Hidden in Shadows

 

“Vaida, have you ever gone boating out here before? It’s so beautiful.”

            Hatasuko rowed both oars at the same time with his powerful arms, propelling the sail-rana over the top of a small wave. Their boat fell a short distance and slammed onto the ocean’s surface with a small splash, but then they both resumed rowing toward the southwest. The ocean was so warm that steam lifted from its surface and sailed gently in the wind. Sweat and steam drenched both of their bodies. Vaida’s long black hair was plastered to her skin as her strong arms rowed through the weak waves.

Vaida said with a mystified voice, “I’ve traveled to the first three Isles of Aether before, but I forgot how nice it is! I really feel like we’re boating past the edge of the world.”

A cloud of faint gray steam concealed the stars, but it absorbed the starlight and broadcasted it across the ocean in the form of a white glow. As Hatasuko and Vaida rowed together through the waves and steam, they saw that tiny islets scattered the ocean. These small rock islands barely stood above the ocean; every island shimmered from the light of glowing fog. The rock islands were shaped like cones and domes since they were the peaks of underwater volcanoes. These volcanoes and their thermal vents gave the ocean its high temperature.

“When I was little, I wanted to spend my life boating around all these little volcanoes. I thought they were so cool! I thought I would be an explorer when I grew up, and my dad was sweet enough to encourage that silly dream,” Vaida said over the splash of their oars.

Hatasuko asked, “What’s so silly about it? You’d get to boat from one little volcano to another, write it down, and then move onto the next! It sounds so cool. Besides, there’s plenty of food in the seas! After we beat the Interfecti, let’s retire and live out that dream.”

“That does sound wonderful… but there isn’t any fruit out here,” she said with a pouty voice.

Hatasuko laughed, flexed his powerful arms, and then rowed extra hard so that the boat pulled toward a rocky islet on their left. Vaida was not sure why he chose to approach the little isle, so she pulled her oars out of the water. Once Hatasuko brought the boat close to the rock island, he pulled his oars inside the boat and picked up an albapomus. With three huge, delicious bites, Hatasuko transformed the white fruit into a juicy seed. He threw the seed so that it landed on the shimmering island, and then he quickly veered the sail-rana back out to sea.

            “By the time we’re ready, an albapomus forest will cover this little island!” Hatasuko said with a warm voice.

“I really hope so. That’s the only thing that could possibly make this place any more beautiful than it already is.”

Hatasuko saw a large wave slam into the rock island behind him with a burst of steam and water. He was surprised by the strength of the wave, so he began rowing with twice as much energy. Vaida rowed in sync with him, though she kept her eye on the starlit fog. As they rowed together toward the west, small waves tilted their ship in many different directions.

Before long, they noticed that a red glow overtook the whiteness of the steam cloud. It was strongest in the northwest, so they turned their heads to face the crimson glow. When they finally rowed far enough west that they could see the glow more clearly, they noticed that it came from a tiny volcanic island that barely poked over the edge of the ocean. Tiny streams of lava rolled down the rocky isle and into the water, pouring steam into the air. The thick fog absorbed the fiery glow and distributed it through the entire cloud.

             “How hot do you think that lava is?” Hatasuko asked.

“It’s really pretty, but we should probably row away from it. It’s so hot that it’s dangerous. It could kill you if you touch it,” Vaida answered, though there was an uneasiness in her quiet voice.

Hatasuko wondered if her mood change had something to do with the temperature of the lava. She said that it was hot enough to kill anyone who touched it, so he wondered if this reminded her of the flames which had almost taken her. Instead, he decided to distract her by switching the topic over to her favorite invention.

“Do you think the boat could handle the heat?” he asked.

“Nope! I don’t entirely understand all the details, but I’ve noticed that higher temperatures make everything bigger. Materials expand with heat! Though, um, not all at the same rate. The sail-ranae are made with a wood that’s basically waterproof, but a high temperature could change that. Heat will expand its pores, and then water will get inside and ruin the whole thing! And then we would be stuck in boiling water,” Vaida explained with a nervous laugh.

“Wow! I guess I never thought about it like that, but you’re right! Vaida, tell me honestly, do you actually know everything? It seems like you know everything.”

“No, not at all! I just like science a lot. I’ve been experimenting all my life, so I’ve seen a lot of interesting things. I even have a journal back at the inn! I just, well, I never had anyone to tell it to until you came along. Thanks for listening to my silly ravings,” Vaida said graciously.

“I was the same way! I guess I never realized it before, but I used to be really lonely. Maybe emptiness was just the natural state. I never had anyone to talk to,” he said.

“Me neither.”

“I guess you could say that-”

“Don’t say it.”

“…We’re in the same boat.”

Vaida let out a sigh as Hatasuko let out a boisterous laugh, but her feigned displeasure disappeared rather quickly. She began laughing in a quiet, shaky series of giggles before he finished his initial laugh. The laughter slowly faded as Hatasuko rowed the sail-rana straight through a breaking wave. At the top of the wave, the sudden transition from boating upward to boating downward startled Vaida and stifled her giggles. She resumed rowing so that the boat smoothly landed on the calm ocean with a minor splash. As they rowed on, Hatasuko realized that the red glow had disappeared. He looked around and saw that there were no rock islands in any direction; it had been several minutes since they last saw a volcano. Because of this, the cloud of steam seemed thinner than before.

Hatasuko asked, “Do the volcanoes end back there? I heard that the Isles of Aether are basically split into two archipelagos, but I never knew there were so many little islands.”

“As you get farther from Bones City, the volcanoes get larger and much stronger! This is true on every coastline, actually. The Agrideī mainland is cold and barren, but the islands are the warmest places in the world! When I was little, my father told me that all the Isles of Aether are just giant volcanos. But the farther islands are much more powerful. If any of them erupt someday, Bones City would have to evacuate,” Vaida answered.

“I love how she’s so confident when she’s talking about something she’s investigated. She’s so smart, and I think she knows it. I hope she knows it. She’s so timid and delicate when she’s talking about herself, but if I ask her about science, it’s like a whole different side to her!” Hatasuko thought to himself.

The two friends rowed on in silence for some time as they scanned the ocean for any sign of the next island. Though Vaida had very strong arms, she grew tired from the continuous rowing. She rested her arms for a moment and took her hands off the oars. She reached down at her side, found a ruberpomus which had been sitting on the backseat beside her, and then tapped Hatasuko’s shoulder from behind. He turned his head quickly enough to flick his wet hair out of his eyes, and he smiled as soon as he saw his favorite fruit. He opened his giant mouth as he continued to row, so Vaida giggled and inserted the fruit directly into his mouth. With smiling eyes, Hatasuko gripped the fruit between his teeth and then turned his head back to face the ocean.

But as soon as he looked forward, Hatasuko saw a large landmass on the western horizon. It was a low-lying rock island just like all the others, but it was large enough to qualify as an isle of Aether. The steam had condensed on the rock island to create a layer of shimmering wetness that glistened in the starlight. Small waves weakly crashed against the rocky edge of this large isle, but it still looked desolate.

             “That’s it. That’s the fourth isle of Aether,” Hatasuko mumbled, though his words were muffled by the ruberpomus in his mouth.

Despite the seriousness of this discovery, Vaida giggled because of the way his words were warped. Hatasuko pulled his teeth down on the fruit and essentially devoured it with a single bite, except for the hard seed at its center. The juicy nectar dripped down his chin and cheeks, but his hands still clenched the oars, so he could not wipe his mouth. Instead, he simply spit the large seed out into the ocean.

“So this is really it—the home of Caelicola. I’m going to meet the most powerful man in the universe,” Vaida raved with a sense of wonder.

Hatasuko and Vaida slowed their oar strokes as they approached the rocky edge of the isle. Weak waves continuously clapped against the rocks with a burst of steam and shimmering droplets, but Hatasuko jumped out of the sail-rana before it could crash. The warmth of the ocean soothed the surface of his legs, so he happily grabbed the boat and dragged it the rest of the way to shore. Once he stepped out of the water and dragged the sail-rana ashore, Vaida jumped out onto the hard ground.

“He probably doesn’t like getting visitors. So many people blame him for the Interfecti; I can’t imagine that his visitors are very friendly. Do you think he’ll be hostile?” Hatasuko asked.

Vaida noticed a dark spot up ahead on the large island. The dark spot was near the center of this island, though it did not appear to be the mouth of the volcano. She interpreted the darkness to mean that this area concealed a cave. If Kurt’s words were worth anything, then this underground passage would lead to Caelicola.

Vaida whispered, “I don’t know how he’ll receive us, and honestly… I’m scared. I’m always scared of meeting new people. But this is different! We need to prepare for the chance that he already knows we’re here. And, um, I don’t want to say this… especially not about someone I haven’t met, but… there’s a good chance that he kinda deserves what everyone else has said about him.”

“Even if it turns out that he does, we’ll just have to deal with it. I need his help. I’ll just hold my tongue if I have to,” Hatasuko said as he approached the opening to the cave.

Vaida laughed nervously and replied, “It won’t be hard for me. I like to think that I’m a nonjudgmental person. I know that most people have reasons for their mistakes! But it hasn’t come up very much… since I’m always so afraid of meeting new people.”

She had mentioned that twice now. Hatasuko glanced over and saw that Vaida trembled as they walked together. She held her little hands against her chest and shook lightly. Hatasuko tried to calm her nerves by setting his big hand on her shoulder, but then another voice interrupted him.

“You will have to leave judgment at the door if you truly wish to speak with me. I have no interest in the complicated web of human morality.”

Hatasuko looked over and saw that a tall man stood beneath the starlight at the cave’s opening. He wore a dark grimace on his glowing face. His eyes were bloodshot, and unkempt facial hair covered the bottom half of his face. His body looked unimpressive for a man who had the power to do anything, but he had no doubt that this was Caelicola. Hatasuko could feel his tremendous presence just by the way that the tempest fell silent.

            Hatasuko said, “I have ventured halfway across the world to find you. I have come-”

“Yes. I have already seen this. You traveled all the way from the Fons Vitae because you need more power. I heard you explain everything to Vaida. I can see and hear all things in the universe with my eye of omniscience,” he explained with an air of apathy beneath his long grimace.

“That is such an amazing power,” Vaida whispered, trying to fight her anxiety.

Hatasuko shook his head and said, “To me, it sounds unbearable. I can’t imagine being able to see and hear every tragedy happening everywhere, and at all times. Actually, I can imagine it. I bet it’s a lot like the tempest.”

“It is a lot to process… and it is heartbreaking to watch. This power is like a plague on my soul. I never wanted to hurt this much. I can create a distraction for myself, but it is impossible to look away. The all-seeing eye can never close,” Caelicola explained, and as he spoke, he pulled the fingers on his right hand together and closed his eyes.

A faint purple glow emanated from his right hand, and then a beautiful sword materialized within his grip. The shining silver metal shimmered from the light of the stars, but Caelicola seemed unimpressed with his own creation. 

             “My powers are supposed to be the key which will unlock this world from anguish, but it just isn’t possible. I can destroy matter or energy or anything physical, but I can’t destroy the emptiness in my own heart,” Caelicola muttered.

The powerful man closed his eyes, pulled his fingers together again, and focused intently on the sword in his hand. For a tiny fraction of a second, his sword shone with a faint purple glow once again, and then the whole thing disappeared into thin air.

“But why can’t you use your power to end the anguish? If you can destroy anything, then what’s stopping you from killing the Interfecti? I know they leave existence when they fall asleep, so does that make it hard to track them?” Hatasuko asked.

“No, tracking them is not a problem. It is true that I cannot see them when they sleep, but I can be anywhere and everywhere at the same time,” Caelicola answered.

Caelicola suddenly disappeared from the space right in front of their eyes. He reappeared at the edge of the ocean without making any light or sound. Hatasuko and Vaida spent a moment looking for him, and when they found him, he disappeared once again. He now stood in a slightly different place than before, but he stood close to Hatasuko and Vaida. Their eyes were wide since they had never seen anything like this before, but Caelicola maintained an apathetic stare.

Hatasuko asked, “Then why can’t you help us fight the Interfecti? It exists when it’s awake, so you should be able to see it. Why can’t you just teleport on top of its head and destroy it?”

The soundscape transformed in this moment. The waves continued their gentle crash upon the rocky shore, but it was muffled by a sudden drizzle. The rain was substantially cooler than the ocean and the steam cloud, so every drop felt like a small shard of falling ice.

As the rainwater rolled down his unkempt face, Caelicola glanced up and asked, “Do you know what that layer is? When the Interfectus attacks, there’s a transparent layer that eclipses the sky. Do you know what it is?”

“I don’t know for sure, but I do have my suspicions. I’ve noticed that it moves when the Interfectus moves; it trembles when they prepare an attack. I suspect that that layer is like their pool of energy. They have so much energy that they can’t even contain it within themselves,” Hatasuko answered.

Vaida and Caelicola both glanced through the light drizzle with a look of surprise. Hatasuko could see that Vaida had thought the same thing, though they had never spoken about it. She kept her eyes on Hatasuko even as Caelicola started to speak again.

“I am surprised that you managed to figure out that much without ever saying a word. But you are half right. The transparent layer is an external energy pool, but the fact is that their energy comes from the lives of those that are killed by their hands. The victims of the Interfecti become their fuel source. But even without bodies, without memories, and without everything that makes a person out of a soul, these lost spirits are suffering. Their screams are endless. All of those lost souls are trapped in that transparent layer, which means the Interfectus can summon a window between life and death. When this happens, my all-seeing eye must peer into this abyss, and it hurts me in a way that I cannot accept. It doesn’t corrupt me like those who have been touched by the darkness, but I shut down entirely. I am powerless. I cannot fight the Interfecti because I cannot see through the tempest, and so all I know is misery,” Caelicola explained.

            The cloud of steam had almost completely disappeared. The drizzle had pulled the warmth and moisture back down to the sea, and a strong breeze carried away what was left of the fog. Except for the faint clouds in the sky which outpoured this rain, the pulsing stars could now be seen clearly.

Caelicola glanced away and said, “The fact of the matter is that I am the most unforgivable man who has ever lived.”

“But how can that be? Didn’t you create this world? Didn’t you create all things with that power?” Hatasuko asked.

“No. I was born into this world just as any other, but this burden was forced upon me by the previous bearer of omnipotence. I never asked for this. I never imagined that I would be the one to send this world into darkness. I thought that if the powers of omnipotence were trapped in someone like me, that is, someone who abstains from all things, then it would be neutral. Nothing would improve, and nothing would get worse. But I was wrong. People are suffering, but I cannot help them. And any time I try to help them, I am paralyzed by the window into endless agony. I am rendered just as scared and powerless as anyone else.”

“I understand that. Fear is such a powerful emotion,” Vaida whispered in the background.

“Then step aside from all this and give me your power,” Hatasuko reasoned, puffing out his chest as he stared at the empty man before him.

“I cannot do that. Omniscience and omnipresence are the only things keeping me safe from the Interfecti. I can evade the monsters with these powers.”

Despite the simplicity of Caelicola’s answer, Vaida could sense that his words infuriated Hatasuko. His golden eyes narrowed as he came to channel a constricting sense of anger. With a series of emphatic gestures, Hatasuko began his retort.

“So you would leave the people of this world to suffer, because you’re too scared to use your power? You have got to be fucking kidding me. You let them suffer because you don’t understand that your life’s worth nothing compared to theirs. You’re just hoarding the power which could free this world from misery! You’re hoarding it to defend a man who is not worth protecting. You’re not worthy of omnipotence! You’re not worthy-”

But as Hatasuko swung his right arm around to emphasize his anger, his hand smacked Vaida with a heavy crash. She let out a frightened gasp and opened her eyes widely, and then she slammed against the rocky ground on her back. She closed her eyes as her arms and legs scraped upon the wet rock. When they opened again a few seconds later, her eyes were dazed and still wide with surprise. Hatasuko ran over to her, crouched down, picked her up in his arms, and examined her body for signs of damage. Though she was disoriented, Vaida could see the concern in his eyes as he investigated a scrape on her left arm.

“Vaida, are you okay? I’m so sorry; I should’ve been more careful. Can you move? Can you stand?” Hatasuko asked as the light rain fell upon them.

“Yes, yes, I am alright. I should have been paying more attention. It’s my fault.”

Hatasuko heard the patter of Caelicola walking up to him from behind. Just the footsteps of the man were enough to rekindle his fury, but he quickly dispelled his ill feelings when he glanced back down at Vaida. He trembled as he held her.

Caelicola said, “You and I are very different people, Hatasuko. Perhaps if this world had any justice, then you would be the one with these powers and not me. But the world is not fair, and these powers are mine. Still, I have seen you show unwavering courage in the face of a monster that I cannot approach. I have seen you fight to protect human life. And even just now, when you knocked Vaida to the ground, you immediately tried to fix it without blaming anyone else. You did not make excuses; you just wanted to help. You are a good man, Hatasuko, and I want to at least contribute to your cause. Even if it’s a token gesture. Even if it’s meaningless compared to what a real man could do with my power.”

With Vaida wrapped in his large arms, Hatasuko turned his head to look at the man blessed with omnipotence. The cool rain drizzled down upon them and plastered Hatasuko’s hair to his neck. The rain had the same effect on Vaida, except that it carried a trickle of her blood as it ran down the slope of the rocky island. Now that she felt a little less dazed, she smiled at Hatasuko and softened her gaze with her good left eye. Hatasuko understood her message, so he set her down on her feet. Caelicola stood off to the side and watched their interaction, though he watched with his power since he kept his eyes closed. 

            Caelicola pulled the fingers on his right hand together, took a deep breath, and then summoned a faint purple glow. For a fraction of a second, Hatasuko saw a large glowing rectangle in front of Caelicola’s body, but then the glowing light transformed into blackness. The rectangle became a near-perfect copy of the shield that Lazaro had fashioned from the Interfectus; it was different only in that it was taller and slightly wider. Caelicola went through the same process again and created a second shield with smaller dimensions.

“I am not asking you to like me, and I could never ask you to forgive me, but at least I can give you a new weapon on the battlefield. To tell you the truth, I resent your courage. You are powerless yet still risk yourselves to do something I will not, but I also respect you for that same reason. I need you to stay alive for that reason, and more importantly, so does everyone else. So be careful out there. This won’t be an easy journey. I know that I am a waste and a useless disgrace, but hopefully your journey here was at least worth your time.”

Caelicola began walking back toward the opening in the cave without another word. The distant waves and falling rain concealed the sound of his footsteps. As he walked, he activated his power again and created several items on the ground behind him. He made a longsword to replace the one which Hatasuko had lost in his last battle. He left two short swords for Vaida. Two sacks full of bullet-like rocks sat beside the shimmering swords. Another purple glow illuminated the ground right before Caelicola disappeared, leaving behind an albapomus.

“I guess I didn’t expect that God would be so human. It’s disappointing,” Hatasuko said.

“Everyone has their flaws. Everyone has their limits,” Vaida mumbled.

“Yeah, I know. It doesn’t matter. This changes nothing. I may not have any more power than when we got here, but at least we’ve got Interfectus shields now. We’ll see. But Vaida, are you sure you’re okay? I’m just… so sorry I hit you earlier. I was being stupid. I wasn’t paying attention. I never meant-”

“Relax, Hatasuko, it’s okay! I know why it bothers you… but it was just an accident.”

Hatasuko cringed when he heard Vaida say that she knew the reason for his concern. She was bruised and hurting because of him, just like Lazaro had hurt her many times in the past. Even though it was an accident instead of abuse, Hatasuko couldn’t stop himself from feeling vicarious pain when he looked at his dark-haired friend.

Her skin looked like a canvas of pain; it was a tapestry of misery. He glanced across her newest bruises, but he could still see the old marks which Lazaro had given her long ago. And more vividly than that, dark burn scars covered the right side of her body and revealed a pain so profound that Vaida had never once talked about it. And in the center of those scars was a blind eye which had been burned shut—an eye cursed to see only the past. A grimace subconsciously crossed Hatasuko’s face as he examined her dead eye, but she quickly noticed this. With a startled shudder, she slapped her right hand over face and turned away. She suddenly remembered that her right hand bore the same scars as her face, so she pulled her hand away and replaced it with her left.

“Damn it, Hatasuko, did you really forget? I thought we were past this,” Hatasuko thought, scolding himself.

He said, “Vaida, please don’t hide your face. I’m sorry I zoned out again. I keep making mistake after mistake. I feel like I haven’t done anything right since the time I drove off the Interfectus. I’m sorry. Can you forgive me?”

“There’s nothing to forgive. You didn’t do anything wrong. I’m sorry my scars are so distracting. I’m sorry I look like this,” Vaida answered in a quiet voice.

            Since Vaida’s eyes were closed and hidden beneath her dark hair, Hatasuko bent down to retrieve the albapomus. He then wrapped his big arms around her. When he first embraced her, he could feel her cold body shiver. He was still warm from the rigor of rowing out to this island, so she found warmth in his embrace. She slowly started to calm down, and after a minute, her shivering came to an end. As soon as she felt warm and calm, Hatasuko said, “Don’t apologize for being beautiful.”

            When Vaida opened her mouth to protest, Hatasuko stepped back and stuck the albapomus in her open mouth. It muffled her first word, so she stopped trying to speak, and then she took a bite of the fruit with an appreciative gaze. Hatasuko smiled and let go of the albapomus so she could eat it on her own. As she happily chewed away at the delicious fruit, Hatasuko leaned down to gather the new weapons. He saw a pair of clasps at the top of each shield, meaning that they could carry the shields without even using their hands. Once he hooked them both onto his back, Hatasuko grabbed the swords in his left hand and retrieved the rock bags with his right hand.

            “I’ll be happy when we get back to shore and forget about this place. Are you ready?” Hatasuko asked.

            When Hatasuko glanced over to her, he saw that Vaida knelt on the rocky ground, digging through the earth with the blade of a short sword. Once she cracked the surface and entered the dirt layer underneath, she inserted the pulpy seed which came from the heart of the albapomus. She smiled, sheathed her sword, and quickly stood back up.

            “Yes, let’s go! I was just planting a seed, you know, for later.”

            The optimistic tone in her voice suggested that Vaida had let go of her previous turmoil. Hatasuko met her gaze with a grin, and then together, they walked back to the large sail-rana as the light rain gently fell upon the island. Vaida disliked that he carried most of the weight, so she wordlessly took the rock bags from him and held one in each hand. As she approached the ship, she lifted the rock bags up and down, right and left, over and over. Since her gray shirt was plastered to her skin, Hatasuko could clearly see her impressive muscles as she lifted these weights. When they arrived, they tossed their new belongings in the back.

Once inside the ship, Hatasuko shifted his weight back and forth until the wheels began rolling down the gradual slope. It was not long before their boat fell into the ocean with a warm splash, and then they both began rowing. Their arms still ached from the original journey, but the ocean waves helped push them eastward. If they were patient, the current would likely carry them back to Bones City, but they gradually rowed so as not to waste more time.

            The ocean stayed calm for their journey back to Bones City. The drizzle continued despite the thin clouds in the sky, so every raindrop shimmered from the light of the stars. The ocean dimly glowed in all directions, but the several rock islands were more luminous than anything. As they rowed between the tiny volcanoes, Hatasuko and Vaida glanced around to investigate the islands. Though no words passed between them, Hatasuko knew that she reimagined childhood dreams of living on these islets. This continued even as they rowed past the first three Isles of Aether, since many rock islands still scattered the ocean. Before long, the sail-rana finally rolled ashore on the coast of Bones City.

            “I know this probably isn’t your favorite place in the world, but would you mind if we stay the night? I’m just too tired to travel anymore. And I’m tired of sitting in that seat; my back is killing me,” Hatasuko groaned as he dragged the boat through the wet sand.

            “It’s a city of tragic memories… yes. But I can deal with it. We’re actually not too far from the inn where Lazaro brought us last time. Do you want to go there?” Vaida asked.

            “I can meet you there in a little bit. I, uh, actually have something else to do in Bones City. I need to get it over with,” he admitted.

            “You’re not gonna go visit Lazaro’s forecasters, are you?” she teased with a playful grin.

            “No, no, nothing like that. It’s just that I’ve been speaking with a voice in the tempest, a guy named Kurt, and he never had the chance to tell his wife goodbye. She’s still waiting for him to come home. It won’t be fun, but I feel like it’s the right thing to do,” he explained.

            “I know it’s not my place, but um, is it alright if I come with? Maybe I can help. Maybe-”

            But Hatasuko interrupted and said, “I’m sorry, but… no. I don’t know how this is going to unfold, but it’ll only bring pain. It’s going to hurt her, and it’s going to hurt me. I don’t want you to be there, Vaida; you’ve been hurt enough as it is.”

            But as Hatasuko said this, he made the mistake of making eye contact with her sea-green eye. Vaida realized quickly that he was staring at her dead eye, and then her face quickly turned red. She stumbled backward and away from Hatasuko.

            “No, Vaida, I didn’t mean like that! I mean hurt on the inside. I meant-”

            “Please just go,” she said, hiding her face with her left arm.

            “Vaida, I’m sorry! I promise I didn’t mean-”

            “Just go! I need to be alone anyway. I’ll push the sail-rana. Just go.”

            “Vaida….”

            To Hatasuko’s surprise, Vaida pressed her little hands onto his body and started pushing. Because of her strength, he stumbled away from the boat and through the wet sand. Vaida kept her head down as she pushed him, but he could hear her rapid breaths.

            “It was really an accident. I said the wrong thing and made Vaida cry. I really am hopeless, aren’t I? I hate the way this feels.”

            As he stepped away from her, Hatasuko stammered, “Alright, I’ll go. It was really just an accident. I’m sorry.”

            With his fist trembling at his side and his heart heavy with pain, Hatasuko turned around and walked away from his crying friend; she was clearly adamant about wanting time alone. He heard the thud of Vaida falling to her knees in the wet sand as the light rain fell upon the starlit beach. Tears arose in his own eyes as he realized that he had caused this reaction in his best and only friend, but it was clear that she did not want a shoulder to cry on.

            As she watched her friend walk away, Vaida continued sobbing quietly for several minutes; she used the rain to camouflage her tears. It was irrelevant since no people stood in the nearby streets, but it still served as a source of consolation. Although the windows of the nearby homes were opaque from steam and water, Vaida felt like eyes glared into her as she walked through the street. Her strong arms flexed as she dragged the sail-rana from block to block, but she could not stop the tears from rolling down her cheeks. She told herself that she was overreacting on some level, but this did not stop her emotions from pouring out. She had tried to hold in the pain of losing her childhood friend and her abusive mentor while coping with her self-hatred, but now it all came out. With the catalyst of Hatasuko fixating on her scars, her sadness started a chain reaction.

The rainstorm intensified. The heavier downpour soaked through Vaida’s clothes so that she could feel every falling raindrop. Her tears were hidden at first by the rain, but darker clouds had overtaken the starlight; a cloak of darkness shrouded the street. The starlight was soon blocked entirely, and the only lights were those which came from candlelight inside buildings. The raindrops adopted a tiny flickering fiery glow, but it did not illuminate her path. Vaida had to maneuver on a street she could not see; she could only detect the other wagons and vehicles by listening to the way that the rain fell around her. It was not long before her quiet crying finally came to an end, but it did not mark an end to her sadness.

             After many more minutes of walking near-blindly through the rain, Vaida arrived at the corner of the street on which the inn stood. She fumbled through the darkness until she felt the wooden door, and then she knocked gently upon it with her fist. After several seconds of rushed footsteps from inside, the door opened and revealed the heavyset innkeeper. Instead of greeting her with a warm smile, he pulled Vaida inside and out of the rain. She shivered because of the cold, so the warmth of the inn was a welcomed change.

“Vaida, what were you doing out there? You’re going to catch a cold! Hold on, let me bring your cart in.”

Still trembling, Vaida stood off to the side as the innkeeper grabbed the bow of the sail-rana. He let out a deep exhale as he pulled it inside and rolled it into the clearing on the vacant bottom floor. Though the sail-rana dripped rainwater from its sides, it did not carry water; Vaida had created a drainage hole in the bottom for this reason.

Once the door was closed to the cold rain of the outside world, the innkeeper turned to Vaida with a worried stare. Without a word being spoken, she knew what he wanted to ask; she knew what he was too afraid to ask. She knew that he wanted to know why she was alone. She glanced away with her good eye so that he could not see the answer on her face, but this alone hinted at the information that she tried to hide. The innkeeper knew that his friends would inevitably die chasing the Interfecti, but it did not make the reality any easier to bear. Tears began to well up in Vaida’s eyes as she thought about her newfound loneliness.

“Vaida, you’re welcome to spend as many nights here as you want, alright? It’ll be free of charge! Just think of it as my way of saying thank you for trying to do the one thing the rest of us can’t. You’re the bravest, strongest girl I’ve ever known! You are the pride of Bones City. Just please don’t cry,” the innkeeper said with a kind voice as he searched the lobby for a towel.

“Thank you. I won’t stay long. I’ll try not to get in the way,” she shyly answered.

“Please forgive my intrusion,” said another voice from the top of the narrow staircase.

Vaida and the innkeeper looked up the stairs and saw a middle-aged woman standing by the staircase. Vaida saw a dark stain on the woman’s hands, but she could not identify the stain because of her poor eyesight.

“Are you the Bones City girl who’s been hunting Interfecti? I heard about you. I heard you and your friends actually defeated an Interfectus,” the woman raved.

“Yes… that is correct. We won our first battle a short time ago.”

“Then please let me congratulate you! The people who do what you do are more courageous than anyone. You are living legends! Please allow me to offer you a cup of tea. It isn’t much, but it’s all I’ve got. I lost my son to an Interfectus, so your mission means a lot to me,” she said.

Though Vaida had been surrounded by warm ocean water and cold rain all day long, she realized that she had had very little to drink. Her mouth felt strangely dry, so the prospect of tea excited her. Vaida glanced up at the nice woman and nodded with a smile. The middle-aged woman smiled back and then stepped into her room for a short while.

“That sure is sweet of her. Ellaine’s been coming here from time to time for as long as I can remember! She’s a wonderful woman. She’s an enigma, though,” said the innkeeper.

“What do you mean?” Vaida asked.

He answered, “I don’t know anything about what she does. I don’t know if she has a career, and this is the first time I’ve heard anything about a family. Frankly, I don’t know how she has the money to travel as much as she does! Although, I suppose it’s not my place to wonder.”

“Maybe she’s like me. Maybe she’s a phantom left behind in the wake of an Interfectus. We were meant to die but somehow escaped,” Vaida suggested.

“If you’re still alive, then that means you weren’t really meant to die.”

Vaida said, “Or maybe it means that I’ve been trapped in a nightmare while chasing a daydream.”

Ellaine suddenly arrived at the top of the staircase with a gray tray in her hands. Two teacups balanced on the tray as she carefully stepped down the stairs. A thin cloud of steam lifted off the warm tea as she approached the candlelit lobby. The innkeeper smiled when he saw her.

Ellaine said to the innkeeper, “I made an extra cup for you. Your hospitality is absolutely wonderful, so please accept this as a token of my appreciation.”

Vaida saw the innkeeper widen his smile, and she smiled now that she finally felt safe. She briefly thanked Ellaine and took the cup from her hand; she had to pinch the handle between her thumb and her index finger. She sipped the tea slowly at first since she expected it to be hot, but she was pleasantly surprised by its comfortable temperature. It was hot enough to warm her up as she slowly drank the entire cup. The innkeeper thanked Ellaine and drank his cup so swiftly that Vaida wondered if he even savored its delightful taste. When Vaida finished the cup and set it back down on the tray, she pulled her wet hair out of her face and noticed that the woman wore a content smile.

“I hope you two enjoyed that as much I do,” said Ellaine.

“It was wonderful. Thank you. Tea is a rare luxury.”

“There’s a really tough aftertaste, but I suppose that comes with the territory!” said the innkeeper as he cautiously set the teacup down.

“Are you alright?” Vaida asked him.

But as she asked this, Vaida felt a powerful sensation course through her limbs. It felt like a spike of extreme heat and brutal cold at the same time. Her legs began to shiver, but the shivering grew to quaking, and then she collapsed on the hard floor of the lobby on her arms and chest. She let out a quiet scream and tried to pull her legs back up, but nothing happened. Her legs remained in a trembling state of near-motionlessness. With a much louder crash, the heavy innkeeper fell upon the floor in the same way. His whole body fidgeted, and his eyes burned from the pain of the numbing sensation.

Ellaine chuckle and said, “Of course there was an aftertaste. A man of your size requires a much higher dose. I’m sorry that it had to come to this, and I promise that it isn’t personal.”

Ellaine dropped her tray on the ground; the two teacups fell and shattered. The middle-aged woman then dashed up the staircase.

A second voice called from outside the inn, “You cut me deep, Vaida.”

The door to the inn suddenly swung open. Vaida could hardly move her head, but her blue eye was at the perfect angle to see Harvey standing in the doorway. Rain crashed down upon the street behind him. He stepped inside with an ambiguous scowl on his face.

            Harvey said, “When a man becomes so obsessed that only one thing matters, he will do anything to make sure that it belongs to him.”

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