Chapter 2
Start of the journey
I wake up to the voice of whimpers, making my inner woman instincts scream at me. In a second, I'm up and walking towards the end of alley. I see some trash cans and quit few crows around them, but the whining is coming from a young wolf, that is trying to eat from the cans. Every time it went even little too close for crows liking, they would chase him away. It has reddish brown fur and it has four silver bracelets on its right front paw
Finally fed up with crows, i go to wolf pup to back it up. As expected, crows fly away when i come closer. The wolf pup whimpers and tries to hide behind the corner. I smile at it, effectively calming it down a little. I kneel down as i speak softly to it.
"Easy there, i don't want to hurt you. I just want to back up your wounds. I also know you are a wolf, no worries, i like wolfs. I have seen others like you before." as i speak, pup comes out of it's hide. Curious after i mention other wolfs.
It comes little closer step by step, REALLY slowly. But i won't move until it is in my hands react, and leap my hand to scratch behind it's ear. Pup seems to like it and it comes closer, until it is sitting in front of me.
"Now, it wasn't that hard, was it?" i laugh as i start tend it's wounds. Pup whimpers every now and then, but stays surprisingly still. 'It probably has been human pet before, and is now for some reason on the street.' i think as i warp pups bruises. Luckily it isn't seriously injured, some of scratches being little deeper than others.
"There, all better." After i'm done with it, wolf looks them over. I didn't put any bandages, seeing that they weren't that bad. I only put some herpes to numb the pain and to reject any infections. After wolf is done with it's check over, it turns to me.
"Thank you miss!" wolf's tail is now waging and it's ears are straight. I laugh at the sight and rob behind it's ear.
"No problem, buddy. And no need to call me 'miss'. It doesn't suet me." i say with mischievous smile. Wolf gives me a sincerest smile a wolf can give before answering.
"Okay, my name is Toboe bye the way. Nice to meet you!" Toboe says. I'm about to talk, before i hear two voices coming this way. I quickly hide behind a wall, Toboe on my hills. I take quick look over the corner, and see a father and what looks like his daughter. She seems to be around fourteen or fifteen.
They have few paper bags of food with them. A potato drops from girls bag and Toboe goes for it before i can crap him. 'Oh great.' i thought bitterly, as girl comes to get potato. Toboe lets out a whimper, in scare. The girl seems to talk to Toboe, I'm not buying any attention, since girl seems nice, and I'm busy, trying to keep crows quiet with my glare so girl wouldn't see me.
One of them craaks at Toboe as he is about to eat sausage the girl is offering, but shuts up seeing my glare. When girl leaves i let out a sight. 'Really, I'm worried of being seen by a girl who is only few years older? I'm more tense than Tsume.' i thought as i walk over to Toboe, who is sitting on the ground.
"Well wasn't she nice? See you around Toboe, try not to get in trouble will ya?" i say as i go. Toboe stands up and calls after me.
"Hey, i didn't get your name!"
"If we see again, maybe i tell you!" i shout back, already running away. 'That is, if we ever see each others again. Now, how to get into labs?'
Seems like nobles are more aggressive than normally, they are looking for bandits and catching them along with some civilians.
'I always could get in that way, it would be easier to break into the labs from inside... Thought, how i get them think I'm a bandit? Last time i checked, there weren't THAT many kid who were bandits...' i think as i walk around, i have my cape's hood up, not to catch much attention. 'They will probably take my bag too, if they can get their hands on it... I could just slip in, while they don't realize that I'm there.. That will have to do.'
I see some soldiers and hostages, when one guard looks away i slip into truck, just behind his back. On the way i hide my bag under my cape, pretending them from taking it. As guards shove us to cells, i take keys without him realizing it.
I lay down next to wall, waiting for night. As i close my eyes, i seek for Cheza's aura.
'She's awfully quiet, is she waiting for something to happen? Hm? What's with that noble ship?' my thought is cut by a noise the noble ship is making. Normally only wolfs can hear it, but my hearing is just as good, and really isn't so nice. That noise is SO annoying. ' Seems like time flew by again..' i think as i see it's night, sometimes it takes longer to find someone's aura and i was exploring Cheza's aura with care this time.
'Time to get going.'
With that i rise up from the ground and take keys from my bag. I quietly open the door, step out, and lock the door after me. I leave keys hanging on the wall and start running to that direction i feel Cheza's aura. As i run and sneak around, i take a metal pipe out of my bag.
Pipe is about 30 cm long, and it's steady, but light. Now here's the trick in it, it's actually my staff, there is a mechanism that allows it to become longer. Pretty neat, huh? I made it myself over the years.
Anyway, i make my pipe turn in to staff and keep sneaking around. Suddenly i feel a noble's presence there were Cheza should be. Then, out of clue, Cheza's aura 'fades'. Well, not actually, it's more like she fainted or something. I can only sense auras, if this person is awake, or conscious on some level.
My eyes narrow. 'Cheza was fine before i felt noble's presence.' I go after noble's presence as i feel him move. I have i feeling he did something to Cheza, and as her Guard, i can't let that slide!
In fact, i do find Cheza with noble. The noble is wearing some kind of robe and mask with lots of feathers. 'If he wouldn't be a possible threat, i would laugh my heart out.' Thought, the sight that greets me makes my blood boil. Cheza is unconscious, in the arms of a noble and CLEARLY in trouble! 'Okay, that makes him a REAL threat.'
He shows no sight of acknowledging my presence. And keeps talking to-, to however he is talking to."My deepest thanks for awakening Cheza."
"Who are you?" i only then, see from corner of my eye two wolfs. They have a human illusions over them.
Other has a light chestnut brown hair and golden amber eyes. He wears yellow short sleeved hoodie over black long sleeved shirt. He has light blue baggy jeans and some sneakers. He seems to be a little chubby. He also has a collar that has a number "23" on it.
Other one, i realize, is the white wolf from yesterday. He's human illusion has dark brown hair and stunning blue eyes. Ha has a brown jacket that's sleeves are little over his elbows, under it he has a plain white shirt. On his feet he has jeans and black sneakers. 'Heh, he took my advice. Thought, a second earlier wouldn't have killed anyone..'
Our masked noble doesn't answer, but says something that prints me back to earth.
"I'll be taking the flower maiden." i feel my neck hairs stand up in my anger as i leap on him, swinging my staff at him.
He dodges my attack and suddenly, there is a white light and he take's Cheza by her neck. My eye's widen in horror as i scream her name, "Cheza!"
Cheza's eye's snap open and tears stream down as she lets out a horrible scream. I fall down to my knees and my hands clap over my ears, shutting my eyes in pain as i try to block out her scream. It's just so sad, full of sorrow, it's loud and it hurts my head. Noble says something but i can't hear him over the voice. When it finally end's, noble and cheza are gone and all possible lights turn back on.
I rise from my knees and jump down from bridge that i had been standing. I feel wolf's eye's on me and i look back. Their confused eye's meet my sad and angry, but determined ones.
After staring for a while, boy with blue eyes starts to walk and porky follows soon after. I look after them for while before i run after them. I just know, that white wolf is going after Cheza. Or at least going to leave the city soon, so i can just as well tag along. After about a half mile of walking, the 'leader' turns to me with an angry look, while growling.
"Stop following us!" he growls. I'm not amused by this and just keep a calm face.
"I wish to go with you guys, since you seem to be after Cheza. Or at least you are leaving this town." I see that he's about to argue, but i cut him of. "Please, I have to get to cheza. Also i promise not to get in your way or slow you down."
Artic wolf scowls and growls, but it is lees than before. He then asks me something.
"Why are you, a human, so desperate to get to her side?" I answer without a hesitation.
"Because she asked me to be her Guard. I already failed my job, since that noble took her. It is my responsibility to get her back."' as her Firefly'. Last part i don't voice out. I look him dead in the eyes. After holding my gaze little longer, he huffs, and continues walking. And i swear i saw LITTLE spark of respect, when we had our stare down. I stare after him, and porky, who had been quiet until now, talks to me.
"That is he's way of saying, 'do what you want, just don't get in my way'." i look up at him little surprised, before smiling with a nod. We walk after our 'leader'. As we walk light brown haired boy keeps talking to me.
"Also nice to meet you, my name is Hige, and that is Kiba. What's your name?" he talks, while we go down to sewers.
"Nice to meet you, and i don't actually have a name. My mother never gave me one, she said that i wouldn't need one anyway."
As we walk forward, Hige craps his nose, trying to pretend him from smelling the sewers. "Thought, i have been trying to come up with a name. But i just haven't come up with anything." i continue.
Hige looks me astonished, before asking me something out of clue. "You don't have a name? How old are you bye the way?" i answer without missing a heart beat.
"My birthday is today and i'm now thirteen, why?"
Hige just widens his eyes for a moment, before coming back to earth.
"How about we-" Kiba gives him a nasty look, "-i mean, i, would give you a name? That is if i come up with something."
I look him wide-eyed for a while before smiling at him.
"It's fine with me, but try to get to know me before thinking too much of it, eh?" he nods and we fall into a comfortable silence. For about, ten minutes.
"Where are we going?" Hige whines as we walk in the sewer. "This kind of place isn't really identical for my nose, you know.."
To witch Kiba answers...
"There should be food around here." Hige and i rise a brown. "huh?" Hige says.
"Call it intuition." and then we see bunch of rats around... Yeah, i don't need anything thank you...
As Kiba and Hige eat, i sit against wall and fall a sleep next to Hige. I had had some bread in my bag and i had given some to them and ate rest myself, i need all energy i can get tommorrow.
I feel Hige shift and i open my eyes, we are about to keep moving. I stand up and walk after Kiba. We let Hige lead, he says he can get us out of the town if we follow his nose. 'Why i have a bad feeling about this?'
We have walked a good distance, before Hige FINALLY, leads us to surface.
"Eh? Did i come out the wrong way?" i groan as i hear that. 'Great, more time in sewers, huh?'.
"ho? A lone ranger eh?"
"Hurry up and get of. Your nose isn't so trustworthy after all." Kiba comments, as he pushes Hige.
"Having stayed in such a smelly place for all day, i'm not really surprised." Hige tries to defend himself. After Kiba is out, i come after him. When i come out, i see, to my honest surprise, Toboe. He hasn't see me just yet, and is staring Kiba and Hige astonished.
"Y- you guys are... also-" Toboe seems to be in a shock. Kiba stares him a while before his eyes shift to girl, who is standing behind Toboe. I realize hat it's girl from yesterday. This snaps Toboe out of it and he turns his head. He calls out for the girl. He tries to talk to her, but she is terrified of him.
'Now, what do we have here?' i thought as i look between them. 'It looks like girl knows that Toboe is a wolf, sight, so troublesome.' Kiba and we sprint away, Toboe on our hills, as girl starts to shout to her father about a wolf. We go around a corner and go into a pipe.
I get worried when Toboe doesn't follow us immediately. I look at Hige and he seems to understand my worry and he goes back. He comes soon back, Toboe on his hills. I smile at him, and Hige winks an eye at me. I walk between Kiba and Hige as we travel down the sewers.
Toboe also has his human illusion on, he has red-brown hair that goes down to his shoulders, ends curling up and his eyes are light golden brown. He has a zipped red shirt, that's sleeves are rolled up to elbows. On his feet he has olive green cargo pants and dark green military boots. And he still has those bracelets. He looks to be around fifteen.
"I told you, i hate smelly places..." Hige whines as we jog trough tunnel. As we turn around a corner, Toboe stops and i and Hige ask at the same time..
"What's wrong kid/Toboe?"
"I'm not a Kid! I'm-" he cuts himself of when he realizes that i said his name. "Oh! It's you!"
Hige looks between us and asks, "you know etch others?" only to be ignored.
I smile at him and let my hood down, letting my long pony-tail drop against my back. 'Now that i think about it, i haven't dropped my hood since last night...' I run my hand quickly trough my messy bags and rise my hand for greeting.
"yo!"
"Where did you ran of to? I still don't know your name!"
"Eh, sorry. And i don't actually have a name... But this is Hige, and that one is Kiba! Hige said he would give me a name, at some point."
"I see.. But anyway, where are you going?"
"Isn't it obvious? We are going for exit, we are leaving this town." answers Hige.
"Leave the Town? But where are you going after it?"
"To parasite." Kiba tells without hesitation. 'Well i'm actually only trying to find Cheza, but she will probably want to go with them. . .So, that means, to the parasite!' my thoughts at that. I smile at thought of an adventure.
"To Parasite?" Toboe says unsure. He is quiet for a while before he stops and asks us something.
"Nee, do you guys know Tsume?" Hige thinks little before answering.
"Nope, never heard name." i can almost see Toboe's ears drop at that.
"That grey wolf with scar on his chest?" Kiba guesses. Toboe beams to that.
"Of course i know him, guy lives next to my tree!" he looks little confused about my answer, but happy no less.
"Yeah, that's him." i huff slightly. 'He ignored my answer.'
"What about him?" Kiba asks, and in my opinion, with little venom in his tone.
Toboe looks down. "i was wondering, if we could take him with us?" he gives hopeful look at us. I just sight and close my eyes, and start to look for his aura. And surprisingly, i found it pretty close by. I open my eyes and see Hige talking to Toboe and Kiba smelling something, that looks suspiciously like blood. I go to Kiba.
"I sense his aura not too far away." Kiba looks startled and raises a brown, but nods no less. He rises up from the ground and starts to follow, what i think it is, Tsume's scent. I, along with clueless Hige and Toboe, start to follow him.
"What do you mean, you 'sense his aura'?" Hige asks curious, he and Toboe had stopped talking in favour of listening us. I turn to them to explain.
"I can sense different auras, thought only human's and wolf's. And of course Cheza's. Human's auras are so alike, that i can only tell different between normal and noble one's. And if they have strong will, but those are really rare.
Wolf's aura are mostly different, so it's not so hard to tell you apart. Thought, i can only sense someone's aura if they are awake or at least conscious on some level. Like Cheza, even thought she was asleep for long time, her mind was still conscious." i explain as we follow Kiba trough the Freezing city.
"Also, it helps if i know the person i'm looking for. It's little like how wolfs can tell different between their pack members, but instead of smell, i seek for their aura's shape and color. The more familiar person, the clearer their aura is to me. I can't track someone's aura from too far, even sensing someone from little father away takes lot of energy. And even if i would find what direction their aura is, i can't find the exact location."
As i talk i don't realize that we are almost there, Kiba leads us into an abounded apartment. We enter the building and climb to upper levels. He stops briefly in front of a door, before going in. After he enters, he opens the door and steps aside making us room to enter.
Hige whines as we go into a room that Tsume is in. "What... Why did we come here anyway?"
Toboe sees Tsume and exclaims, "Tsume!"
"you!" Tsume seems surprised and little alarmed, but relaxes as he sees us. I see little bit of dry blood on his shoulder. 'Looks like someone put a good cache after him. That would explain why he is so tense at the moment.'
Hige looks like he is completely lost here, and looks between Tsume and Toboe. Kiba is only looking at Tsume.
"I smelled your blood." 'And i felt your aura!' of course i won't say it out loud, even i can tell that i'm not needed in this conversation.
"the scent led us all the way from city to here."
"And? What about it? Your going to nurse me or something?" Tsume asks with sarcasm. "Don't try to get into anything useless."
As Toboe tries to convince Tsume to come with us, i but my hood up and take out my staff. I feel soldiers close by, they are most likely after Tsume. Hige soon backs up my believe as he comments,
"Everything is fine with me, but a nauseating scent is coming this way."
"we are surrounded." Tsume states in-mater-of-fact tone.
"Why did you guys come to this town?" Kiba says, making me smile. I decide to answer for them. "You came after the scent of lunar flower."
"There is no reason for us to stay here anymore." Kiba continues. Everyone has these thoughtful expressions.
"I don't care of the scent of flower, this is my kind of town." Tsume defends. I just know this won't end too fast, so i walk over the window to keep watch.
"Your right, this is filthy town after all."' Aaand now you made Tsume angry... Great.'
"We haven't ended our match yet." "We don't have time for that!" 'Good point, but not good enough for them, Hige...'
I decide to block out their rising argument and just buy attention to soldiers, they seem to be getting ready to shoot...
"What happened to your worthless pride?" Tsume asks half serious, half trying to piss Kiba off.
"It hasn't gone anywhere and it hasn't changed." Kiba says in his normal voice...('how can he stay so damn calm?!')
"Do you know what leaving this town mean?" Tsume challenges, but Kiba isn't having any of that.
"Yeah" ok, now i am pretty sure he's just testing Tsume's nerves...
"You just end up dead." Tsume comments in dry tone. But what Kiba says next really surprises me.
"Dying or being killed isn't anything unusual, living aimlessly without a purpose is." and then soldiers but lights on and start to shoot us. I run behind Hige on the pipe. From the corner of my eye i see that, Toboe is about to fall but Tsume craps him before it. I crap on to Hige as he jumps, and he throws arm around me making sure not to drop me. When we make it from pipes, Kiba stops.
"What are you waiting for? Hurry up!" Hige shouts. I see where Kiba is looking and stare at some kind of enter. Soon Tsume comes from there and we continue, me holding on to Hige. As we make it to edge, i let go of Hige and jump on my own after Kiba. Hey, i don't want to slow Hige down! Besides, when i fell wind crapping my hood and throwing it back, letting my hair dance in the snow storm i feel free. After brief moment of bliss in the air, i land.
Toboe seems to have some trouble before Tsume literally kicks him going. Toboe lands on his butt. I giggle as i help him up and he scowls at me for laughing. We look to see that Tsume hesitates to jump, until Kiba asks is he scared.
After that we start running, Kiba leading, me next to Hige, Toboe little after us and Tsume as last.
'Finally, out of that filthy town. You just wait Cheza, i'll be there soon...'
"And wolfs start their search for Flower maiden with Firefly."
End of Chapter 2
Thank you for review! I actually have few chapters ready, but I have to edit them before I can but them out. But comments are welcome, and I try to improve my writing skills. Bye!