Resurrection of the Lord

Chapter 3:

For a few seconds Yamato just remained there, motionless on the dusty cobblestones. The boy called Taichi had rushed at him and his gloved fist had made contact with Yamato's face before he had even had a chance to react. He had taken him completely by surprise and Yamato had to admit that he had greatly underestimated the boy. He had been sure that he was nothing but a show-off who was just trying to look good in front of the other two and the redhead but that had been a mistake.

Taichi had taken a few steps back but he stayed on guard. He was still watching his fallen opponent carefully not missing any of his motions. Still lying on the ground Yamato carefully touched his lips with his hand but immediately pulled away again as the burning sensation reached his brain. He raised his head a little so he could see his fingertips. There was blood on them where he had touched his split lip. He quickly brushed the blood into the rough fabric of his cloak and shifted his attention back to Taichi.

Without losing another word he swiftly sprang to his feet again and charged the other boy. Despite expecting the attack Taichi couldn't react fast enough to avoid the incoming blow. Yamato hit him straight in the jaw as he crashed full force into him. He couldn't stop the momentum of his attack in time so both of them landed with a deep thump on the hard road. Taichi groaned painfully as he hit the stones unceremoniously but he didn't get much time to rub his now sore back and head since the young actor immediately continued his attack. Yamato was now over him and tried to hit his adversary in the head but Taichi managed to block most of the blows with his raised arms.

While both of them were going at each other with everything they had they didn't pay much attention to their spectators. The two teens who had been with Taichi had taken a few steps back to bring some more distance between them and the two fighting boys. The blond boy was standing protectively in front of the girl but he was unable to hide the insecurity and confusion both of them seemed to feel. It was obvious that neither of them was too happy with their friend's decision to hurry to the fallen girl's 'rescue'.

While the other two spectators were watching the fight with irritation and worry the red-haired girl was still sitting on the dirty pavement and also watched the fighting pair with slight confusion, clearly visible on her face. What had she gotten herself into now? On such a rather open road it surely wouldn't take long until somebody noticed the fight and called the royal guards. But that was something she would definitively not wait for. If they caught her with a bag full of stolen purses they surely wouldn't ask too many questions and arrest her.

As if on command a pair of guards came around the corner of the far end of the street. Their chain armors, helmets and halberds were glittering brightly in the warm light of the burning gas street lamps. They came to a halt immediately and looked down the street as they heard the sounds of the still raging struggle between the two hotheaded teens. They quickly realized the situation and lost no time. Gripping their weapons tightly in both hands they rushed towards the small group swiftly despite their, without doubt, heavy armors.

The red-haired thief was the first one to notice them and she knew that she had to act quickly if she didn't want to end up in the local prison's dungeon. That would be an unpleasant experience she was not eager to make. Her instinct told her to get to her feet and to run as fast and as far as she could but unfortunately she wasn't as coldhearted and ruthless as she wished herself to be sometimes. So, instead of just leaving him behind, which she would have normally done, she called out to Yamato:

"Hey, Blondie, I suggest we leave now if you don't want to rot in the royal prison!"

Yamato, who had just gotten the upper hand again and was now pinning his opponent to the ground, looked over his shoulder back at her with a questioning stare. Obviously he had been too engaged in his fight and hadn't noticed the quickly approaching guards yet. The girl rolled her eyes, clearly annoyed by his carelessness, and pointed towards the two tall and burly men who had now almost reached the struggling couple.

Again he turned his head, while still trying to hold Taichi down, and looked in the direction she was pointing. His eyes widened as he finally noticed the grim looking men who were already almost close enough to grab both of them. Reacting instantly, he rolled off the brunette boy gracefully and dashed towards the thief who had saved him from being captured. Without stopping for a second he grabbed her slender hand, dragged her to her feet and pulled her with him. He didn't look back even once as they raced down the dimly lit street and vanished around the next corner, at once merging with the shadows there.

The two younger teens who had just been watching the spectacle all the time let out a sigh of relief as guards arrived. Taichi still hadn't noticed them as he lay there in the dirt resting on his elbows and wondering why the blond coward had suddenly run off like that. However his question was answered when a strong hand grabbed his collar and pulled him to his feet. He whirled around to get a better look at the offender who had dared to insult him like that. But he quickly calmed down as he came face to face with the king's crest. He slowly looked up and gulped as he was now facing a not very amused soldier.

*

They had been running for quite some time without stopping even once while dodging other people and quickly disappearing behind every corner. Now they had ended up in a narrow, dark alleyway and Yamato allowed them to stop for the first time. The girl shock off his hand, which had been holding her own hand in a merciless grip until now, and let herself slump against the cold stone wall of a house. She just sat there, trying to catch her breath while her blond companion remained in the same position he had stopped. He strained his ears, trying to make out the metallic sound of the guards armors and weapons in the distance.

After a few more moments of listing to the quiet nightly alleyway he seemed to be convinced that nobody was following them and he also slumped down against the cool wall, right next to the girl. Being so close to the young girl and almost being able to feel the warmth of her body in the cold night made him feel slightly uncomfortable but right now he was too tired and too bruised to care. He could feel his cheeks heating up a little but since he was sure she wouldn't be able to see it in the darkness of the narrow alley he did nothing to hide it. Instead his attention drifted off, back to the boy and his two friends. Could the blond boy really have been Takeru? Had he found his brother at last? However, before he could give the idea more thought he was brought back to reality by the girl's soft voice.

"So, what are you going to do now? You can't go back to the theatre anymore unless you want to get caught. This Taichi-guy knows who you are and he will eventually lead the king's guards to the theatre."

He hadn't thought about it yet but he already knew that she was right. He cursed under his breath as he realized that he had not only missed his chance to speak to the boy but had also lost the only home he had had. He was already going through all possible solutions he could come up with right now but none of them seemed very tempting. However his musing was cut short by the girl again.

"If you want to you can stay at my hideout for a while until you find something else. It's not the royal palace but it's at least better than sleeping on the streets." He could only wonder what she was up to as he looked at her slightly smiling face. Nobody had ever done anything for him for free and he heavily doubted that she would be the first person to break that tradition. He was searching her ruby eyes for an answer but seeing that he would find none he decided to ask her straight out.

"Why would you do that for me? You don't even know who I am."

Now she looked a little more thoughtful but the smile never left her lips. "Well, I guess I owe you. After all you could have handed me over to the guards when you caught me picking your pocket and I'm quite sure I can trust you."

Still not satisfied with her answer he continued his question. "Why is that? I can't think of anything I did to deserve your trust. I'm just a stranger to you."

"You seem like a nice guy to me, no matter how hard you try to hide it under that unfriendly mask of yours. I'm sure you aren't only the grumpy young man I met earlier. But you are right, we are still strangers but that can also be helped." Without pausing to speak she offered him her hand. "I'm Sora. Nice to meet you!"

At first he just stared at her dumbfounded as if she had suddenly grown a second head. It took him a few seconds to get over the surprise before he finally grabbed her slender hand and shook it.

"Yamato."

Ignoring his grumpy tone she let go of his hand and glanced down the dim alley. "Fine. Now that we know each other I suggest we should get going. After all we don't know if the guards have already given up or if they are still looking for us." That said she got up, dusting off her clothes. It was the first time he really took the time to look at her.

She wore dark, loose fitting pants, a tight, sleeveless leather vest and over her shoulder hung a large bag, containing the stolen purses of he victims. It was difficult to make out any colors in the shadows of the narrow passage but she seemed to prefer warm, brown colors as far as he could tell. In his opinion her outfit really fitted her well and you could easily see that she was a beautiful young girl despite the rather functional clothes she wore.

However he had to end his observation by then since Sora had already started to walk towards the end of the alley and was almost around the corner. So he quickly got up and followed her. When he had finally reached her she turned around suddenly with a playful smile on her lips.

"Oh, before I forget to mention it. I think I should inform you that my hospitality is not for free. But I'm sure you won't mind paying for those little expenses since you have no other choice."

Yamato said nothing in return but kept following her anyway. He had seen it coming. Not even death was for free nowadays.

* *

Silently the dark-haired boy regarded the impressively towering buildings along the main street, which lead towards the heart of Primeria, the royal castle. When he had reached the city he had come through the poorer parts of the capital as well. Even if it had been avoidable, which it wasn't, he would still have gone there. Everything had been exactly as he had imagined it. The people there were living in rundown shanties together with rats and countless other kinds of vermin and the smell of rotten wood, garbage and decay was overwhelming.

Now he was only a few streets away and it was as if he had entered an entirely new world. The streets here were clean and secure thanks to the guards patrolling everywhere. You didn't have to be careful not to stumble over another drunk and homeless beggar every few meters like you did in the narrow alleys of the poor people's quarters. It was disgusting how the rich and powerful enjoyed themselves while only a stone-throw away children were starving.

But soon that would change anyway. Soon they would whip away the decadent aristocracy and the self-righteous merchants of the city. The kingdom would fall and the liar on the throne who called himself king would be at their mercy.

The boy couldn't help but grin and his eyes narrowed dangerously at that thought.

No, there would certainly be no forgiveness for what that traitor had done. That liar was going to get what he deserved. He was going to take care of that personally.

* * *