Chapter One – A Strange Tail
"Where the hell is he?" the large hulk snarled. "I'm gonna kill 'im!"
Someone shouted a warning but feet thundered up the stairs to the sleeping quarters regardless. A bed was turned over, blankets flying, but there was no-one there. Next the cupboard was thrust open, followed by the dusty chest in the corner. Huffing and puffing, the man discovered them to be empty. He ran his hands through his dark purple hair. Every trace of the boy was gone.
Gingerly, Blank put his head around the door. "Boss?" he asked, slightly unsure whether he would get an answer or a thump. "Is it true?"
"Yeah, he did it for real this time. He's left Tantalus!" Baku wasn't the type of man to get sentimental over his troupe, but Zidane had been, well...special.
The teenager stepped into eerie silence. They had slept in and shared this room for over seven years, and to see it empty, without his best friend swinging from the wooden beams and throwing something at him left Blank with a strange feeling. Memories of Tribal surfaced: lounging on the bed to whistle cheerful tunes. The endless questions he would ask about women that Blank could never answer. All the hours they'd spent learning lines and practising fighting sequences. Was it really all over?
I knew he'd been acting weird since the birthday party, but I never thought the idiot would actually leave!
He spotted something taped on the telescope near to the window, an old drawing with scrawny stickmen. The two figures held swords and were duelling. Gazing at it brought Blank nothing but a horrible squeeze in his chest. "Little bro," he whispered. The paper was immediately crushed into a ball. He threw it hard and watched it bounce harmlessly off the opposite wall.
"Now don't be like that, darlin." A slender hand covered in white lace picked up the picture and began to smooth it out again.
"Did you help him, Rubes?" He scowled.
"Whatcha yer gonna do if I did?"
Nothing, he would do nothing because Zidane was long gone. Even if they left now, where would they look? They could search for years and still never find him, the world was a big place.
The leader of Tantalus stood up and glared. "Interfering woman! He's out there – alone!"
Most would have flinched at the sharp tone, but Ruby was made of sterner stuff. She had nursed the majority of the thieves back to health at some point. She'd seen them drunk, even naked (not through choice) and offered a friendly ear. Baku could be terrible when roused but even she could see he was just upset. He'd lost one of his boys.
But they hadn't seen the look of desperation on Zidane's face when he begged her for help. 'Rubes, please.' she remembered him saying with those large, puppy dog eyes. 'It's driving me crazy! I have to know, and you're the only one I can trust with this!'
She'd tried to convince him to stay, but when the boy was fixated on something he couldn't let it go. So in the end, it was Ruby who had hidden his bulky back pack and played look out whilst he made an escape. She would never forget the way he turned, blew a kiss in her direction, before disappearing into the night...
Suddenly she was jolted back to reality as something was waved in front of her face. "Gaia to Ruby, Gaia to Ruby!"
The young woman swotted Blank's hand away. "Tribal's got food, the clothes on his back and a sharp brain. You've always said that's all a man needs to survive. Or is that just hogwash?" Baku grumbled but did not reply. "He has a right to find his 'ome!" she pressed.
This made the large man sigh and shake his head. "He won't find his home."
Both of the youngsters looked at each other with surprise. "Wha' do yer mean?" they asked in unison. Baku seemed so certain like he was holding something back.
"The only thin' Zidane can remember about his homeland is a blue light." He huffed.
The red head leaned against the wall. "You can't be serious?"
"He did mention summat about all that," Ruby said thoughtfully. "Little guy was hazy on the details, but he really wanted to try!"
Blank rolled his eyes. "What's he supposed to say? 'Hey, you seen a place with a bright blue light round here?' He'll be laughed out of town – that's if they don't think he's crazy first!" He looped a finger near to his temple to emphasize the point.
"That good for nothin' scamp." Baku turned to look out the window. "After everythin' I've done for 'im! You'd think I'd earned a bit of loyality after seven years." He sat down heavily on the bed, a growl rumbling deep within his throat. The leader of Tantalus glanced at Blank who looked like he'd been kicked in the nuts. "Do yer remember when he first arrived?"
The red head leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes. "Like I could forget that!" he said and Baku smirked. "Geez, he was such a pain."
Spring, 1787, seven years ago.
Baku awoke that bright sunny morning nursing the mother of all hangovers. The birds were singing their happy song and already the buzz of people getting on with their day drifted through the open window. He scratched his arse and tried to swallow to moisten his throat, but it was as if someone had poured a whole sack of gravel down there. Curse that Trent, he better be sufferin' as much as I am! He thought bitterly. The bed creaked as he wobbled to stand and slowly he staggered towards the bathroom.
After a quick wash and tidy up, Baku leafed through the Lindblum Times trying to distract himself. There wasn't much in the way of news today: Regent Cid and Lady Hilda were celebrating their first wedding anniversary, and a shooting star had been spotted by enthused astrologists in the skies last night. He stared at the crossword for a while but found it to be a waste of time. His brain struggled to think straight as the clues swam before his tired eyes. Placing both elbows on the table he moaned as he rested his head into them.
"Geez, don't tell me yer went drinkin' with Trent again, old man?" a disapproving voice piped in his ear. "Don't yer ever learn?"
Baku lifted his head. "Less of the old, yer cheeky little brat!" The red haired child in front of him tutted at his outburst. This was Blank, the youngest member of Tantalus to date and also the one with the biggest mouth. To say Blank had a chip on his shoulder was a major understatement, what with the back chatting he often gave. If it hadn't been for Marcus, Baku would have thrown the kid off the top of the clocktower by now. The kid did have issues though, not least to say the numerous scars he possessed all over his body. But he'd long given up trying to talk to the boy about them.
"Feelin' a little fragile, eh?" Blank whistled, whilst parking himself on a stool at the other end of the large round table. Playing cards were scattered over its scratched wooden surface, along with empty glasses and coloured flyers. "So, any interesting plans for today, Boss? Wanna teach me some thieving skills?"
The older man huffed. "As if! The only thin' you'll be doin' is earning yer keep. The laundry basket's had yer name on it for the past three days!" he said scanning the lofty room. "Shelves are due for dustin' and fix that hole in yer blinking trousers, how many times have I told yer?"
"Yeah, yeah. I'll do it soon."
Baku thumped his fist on the table. "You'll do it today, or I'll take away visitin' privileges for the Prima Vista!"
At such a threat the child froze. The Prima Vista was a large airship that Blank adored watching more than anything else. Airships were the transport of choice for the regency of Lindblum and there were hundreds that left the city dockyards every day. Whether it be to take passengers for leisure, establish trade routes or post soldiers to out of reach areas - they were vital. Such large, wonderous machines with their propellers powered by the thick mist that gave the continent its name. There were other ways to get around of course, but none as romantic as flying high in the skies.
"I'll do it now!" Blank hastily replied. He knocked over the stool in his sudden quest to find a sewing kit.
Now a loud toll sounded making the clocktower shake and come alive. The big bulky bell had rang in the towers for as long as Baku could remember, and that was as far back as 1760. On its shiny bronze shell was a band of engraved crescent moons, stars and circles to symbolise the sun. The folks in the Theatre District had named it as Old Ben, although no one could quite recall why. Tantalus headquarters where Baku and his thieves lived, had to share their 'home' with the clock's mechanism. This included a number of cogs embedded into the floor, large metallic shafts that stuck out from the walls and heavy rachets that joined and turned everything together in union. On the hour every hour, Old Ben chimed, nearly making the occupants deaf but over time the thieves had learnt to block out the disturbance.
But today, even Old Ben was far too much for Baku to take. He had to retreat out the door and headed straight towards Lindblum's Grand Harbour. If there was just one place he might find some comfort it had to be there! The walk helped to clear his head slightly but the busy city never stopped to pause for a breather. And why should it? Lindblum had at least three distinct districts: Theatre, Industrial and Business. At last count the number of people living here was close to sixty thousand, just one more amazing fact about this metropolis of the modern age governed by Regent Cid. The city had become a magnet for many different races: humans, hippos, rats and birds that wanted to carve out a life for themselves. Some owned small businesses, others preferred manual labour and the aristocracy as always, just enjoyed spending money.
Baku didn't really mind the population increasing. As far as he was concerned the more folks that came to live here, the more pockets there were to pick. Food didn't just magically appear on the table. But when considering if he actually liked such a diverse mix of citizens, he did have opinions on that. The rats he kept away from as he felt they couldn't be trusted, and birds were a nightmare to trade with as they were so picky. Hippos...Now hippos he liked. They could eat, drink and have fun with the best of them and they spoke their minds plainly. Fellow humans weren't like that. There were some pretty bad apples out there as with every species. Humans had agendas, desires and ambitions that could make or destroy them. There were others however, who tried to create a strong community spirit and see the good in everyone. You had admire people like that, and hope more of them were born into the world to replace the deadbeats.
As Baku stomped along holding his sore head, he came upon the harbour. A number of large sea ships had docked ready to pick up supplies. Baku admired them for a while and pondered about a life on the seas. He wondered if the Blue Narciss, Regent Cid's own personal boat could even be a patch on the Prima Vista, alas the leader of the Theatre Troupe was not allowed to take it for a spin! The daydreaming cheered him a little as a light breeze tickled the purple whiskers on his nose. He slouched over the rail and closed his eyes, hearing the seagulls circling above waiting for the fishing boats to return. Just let me stay like this for a while... He sighed.
"Hey stop, thief!"
Baku cringed. Damn it! Who's spotted me now? Swiftly in his head he tried to remember the thefts he'd authorised recently. Who would recognise him in the cold light of day? This was one of many risks in a career of thievery. Although to be fair, he would only steal from those who could afford it. He was steadily gathering a group of orphans with hungry mouths to feed through no fault of his own.
"Stop, thief!"
Now came the whistles and the police as well. Baku gritted his teeth and turned ready to face the music. "Come on now guys, I'm just an ol' man-" He saw a blond haired youth flash by being chased by the mob.
What the heck was that just now? He thought with confusion. A monkey tail? Baku strained to see more but the crowd had made their way towards the jetty. Without hesitation, he raced to follow.