Avengelist : Part Three

    Deej set her things down on the desk. She looked at herself in the cracked, dusty mirror. She didn’t looked too bad, she decided. After her walk with Ryuu, she ended up renting a room at an inn opposite his for ten mir a night. Ryuu had been an animated speaker, as well as entertaining. Already, she considered him a good friend.
    She carefully removed her own pin and fastened the new one. Suddenly, she felt a strong current of power course through her body. She closed her eyes for a moment, evaluating the sensation.
    She opened her eyes and removed the pin. The energy died down quietly.
    Deej turned the pin around, examining it. Her eyes shone with comprehension.
    “Mezatite…”
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    Cheng Yi looked up at the bed while lying down on his bed. He was unable to fall asleep. He glanced around him, and saw that Kaie was in deep slumber.
    The room they shared is almost alike to the one they shared in Troika, only a little bit more lavish. There was a desk at one corner of the room, as well as writing utensils. In another corner is a reading chair with a lamp behind it. The floor is made of stone, cool to the touch. The room was colored to be as bright as possible, but not to the point of annoyance.
    Cheng Yi placed his hands behind his head as he continued to think. He only had a few hours’ sleep, but it was enough. He thought about Deej.
    There was something about her that struck a familiar chord in him. He was positive he had seen her before, but he wasn’t sure where. He only knew that she could be the clue to his past.
    “Jenna…”
    Cheng Yi sat up.
    “Kaie? Did you say something?” he whispered, wishing not to awake his friend.
    “Jenna…Don’t go…”

    Cheng Yi walked over to Kaie’s bed. He placed his hands over him, feeling his aura. He must have contracted a fever while we were out in the cold last night, Cheng Yi thought. Kaie’s muscles were tense, his eyes restless. He felt Kaie’s forehead. It was burning, yet, Kaie was beginning to drench in the sweat.
    Cheng Yi placed his hands over Kaie again. He closed his eyes and ancient words began to form in his mind’s eye. He recited them, his voice softer than whispers, mere murmurs in the breeze, as colorful strands of energy flowed down from his hands before being absorbed by Kaie.
    Kaie’s body relaxed, and his eyes stopped shifting. A soft sigh escaped his lips as he fell into peaceful sleep. Cheng Yi stood up and wetted a towel from the bathroom. He fell sick because of me, Cheng Yi thought, as he began to care for his friend.
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    The room was big and beautiful. Bright, breezy curtains adorned the windows, while the entire floor was carpeted, lush and soothing. The walls were colored in pastels,  sweet and pleasant. There was a big, round wooden table with a crystal vase and fresh flowers in it.
    Jenna came in the door, and looked around the room. Satisfied with what she saw, the moved closer towards the table. She took out an envelope and gently placed it leaning on the vase. She gazed at it for a few moments, unshed tears forming in her eye. She turned around.
    She gave the room one last, longing look.
    And left.

    Kaie awoke.
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    “Kaie? Who is Jenna?” Cheng Yi prodded gently.
    Kaie just turned the other side. The bittersweet pain…
    “I understand if you’d rather not talk about it,” Cheng Yi conceded.
    “Jenna was the love of my life,” Kaie said suddenly, sitting up. “She was one of the most sought after woman in where I came from. I knew her since school. She was beautiful, even since she was young. She had many suitors, but she turned them all down. As a result, I never plucked my courage to tell her how I feel for her.”
    “It was only after school did we… did I start courting her. Surprisingly, she allowed me to court her. After two years, we were engaged. Our parents bought us a house a the engagement present. I was in bliss. Everyone said we were the perfect couple.”
    “But the happiness was short-lived. Jenna…Jenna disappeared 6 months before our wedding.”
    “Shortly after that, Alphanen was destroyed. I lost my love, and my home, in less than one month.”
    “Maybe that’s why I’m traveling, hoping to ease my pain, to search for my love. All I really want is to see her again, even for a short while. Maybe I’ll get to say goodbye…”
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    Deej walked around the slums, unable to obtain any further information. She was heading back when someone bumped into her.
    “Sorry, miss… I was…Deej!”
    Deej took a good look at the man. It was Ryuu, and he was smiling.
    “What are you doing here?” Deej asked.
    “If you don’t mind me being frank, I was hoping to…uh, bump into you, but not so literally!”
    “What a coincidence,” Deej said. “I was on my way to look for you.”
    “Oh?” Ryuu raised an eyebrow. “What news bring thy forth?” he jested.
    “I’m leaving sector 5.”
    Ryuu was shocked. “What?! Why?”
    “I came here searching. I didn’t find what I was looking for. This place has no more meaning for me. It is best if I go,“ Deej said.
    “When are you leaving?” Ryuu asked quietly.
    “Most probably today, possibly tomorrow.”
    “What are you looking for?” Ryuu asked. “Maybe I have help you search for it?”
    Deej shook her head silently. Ryuu watched her carefully.
    “I am looking for my past.”

    They walked on in silence.
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    Above them, unnoticed, stood a figure. He was shrouded in shadows, darkness enveloped him utterly. His eyes fixed on his target, never once averting them, nor losing their gaze.
    He followed them endlessly, jumping from roof to roof, climbing when needed, jumped when necessary. No moves nor energy was wasted. He watched them as they walked and chattered. Watched them walk in silence. He would wait.
    For time.
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    Ryuu stopped walking.
    “What is it?” Deej asked.
    “I don’t know. Deej, I…” Ryuu shook his head. There are so many things I want to tell her, he thought. But I don’t even know what to say!
    “He who seeks is he who finds. Who is to say which is better, to do a right thing for the wrong reason or do a wrong thing for the right reason? We are what we think we are, or what we think we are not.”
    “Why is it everyone sees our face but ourselves? Is there not a different Deej in everyone she sees? Am I not who I am, but who I am in everyone’s eyes?”
    Deej studied Ryuu face. He is reflecting my questions back at me, she thought. How did he do that?
    “Life can be a frightening thing when we are seeking its meaning. We have so many, many questions, yet, so few answers. It is a time when we look back at what we have done and wonder at the significance of it. In a terrible moment of clarity, we realize we are nothing, so insignificant, so petty and negligible. What we have tried so hard to built is shattered, when we reach that one of point clarity. One point of fear. One point of tribulation. This is the point, that changes your life forever…”
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    He was alert, and he knew the time has come for him to act. He quickly assembled whatever accouterment needed. In 10 seconds, he had prepared his weapon.
    He knelt by the side of the roof, positioning himself so that he can see them but they cannot see him. His vision in the scope moved up and down, searching for the best strike.
    He found it.
    He fired.
    A single bullet escaped the weapon, silently, effortlessly.
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    Deej felt something prick her neck.
    “Ouch!” She instinctively placed her hand on the spot. Her vision faltered. A moan escaped her lips. She withdrew her hand and saw a spot of blood.
    “Deej? What is it?” Ryuu asked, instantly concerned.
    “Ryuu…” was the only thing she could whisper, before slumping into his arms.
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    Mission accomplished.
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    Ryuu burst in the lodge, carrying an unconscious Deej in his arms.
    “She has been shot and she needs medical help, now!” Ryuu snapped. The innkeeper, shocked though he was, picked up the phone and immediately dial the emergency number.
    “Hello? I have an emergency at Sector 5, Dragon Inn. A young woman has been shot…”
    Ryuu knelt by Deej’s side and held her hand.
    “I won’t let you die, Deej,” he whispered. “I promise.”
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Read on ... Part Four!

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