“So, let me get this straight. You stepped down from Lordship and gave the title to the last surviving Ohmni Knight of Omega City. And, this friend of yours…a Magic user…defeated Dark Viper and Elysia in two separate duels.”
“That’s right Sierra.”
“And you trust a Magic user, even though you swore never to make contact with one? Why am I getting the feeling that you’re making this all up?”
“Because it’s unbelievable, I know. Trust me though, I am telling you the truth and in times like this, I think making such a vow is stupid. So, I took it back.”
“Hmm, very well then. So, why’d you come here for?”
“Jaden here can answer that.”
Sierra turned her eyes to Jaden, needling her with a glare of suspicion. Though slightly intimidated, she gulped and answered her.
“Dark Viper destroyed my entire family. I was the only survivor.”
“So you desire revenge?”
“Yes but it’s more than that. That attack made me realize how dangerous Iblisan and his followers are and twenty years of tyranny is long enough. I aim to overthrow Iblisan, but I can’t do it alone.”
“What do you intend to do? Unite us all?” Sierra asked while crossing her arms, barely convinced with Jaden’s words.
“Yes. Gavin and the Mannihilators have agreed. I was hoping that you and your people would.”
“Look, I do not want to sound selfish but I’m afraid I can’t do it.”
“Why Sierra? My people and I agreed. Why can’t you?”
“Gavin, if you haven’t realized by now, the weather has been very hostile lately. Trade between us and the aliens have been cancelled because of this.”
“Aliens? You traded with aliens.” Jaden said with seeming shock. She knew the aliens well enough but she never heard of humans ever trading with aliens.
“Snow Mannihilators survive through trades with aliens. They supply the aliens with resources and artifacts while the aliens supply them with weapons and currency. Funny though; I thought aliens have state of art technology? I can’t believe a blizzard stopped them.”
“No beings can best nature; not even immortals Gavin. Thus, my people have been having a hard time surviving. We are living on limited supplies and as you can see, we have many mouths to feed. That’s still not our biggest problem though.”
“What could be worse Sierra?”
Sierra’s right brow rose, presumably unhappy with Gavin’s uncanny optimism. She turned to a desk behind her and picked up what appeared to be a piece of paper. She sighed while staring at it before turning back to the duo and passing it to Gavin.
“A bounty? On whom?”
“A few hours ago, our weapon caches have been raided and the only person at the scene of the crime was one of our captains. The thief stole a lot of swords and few of the alien weapons. Whoever this thief is, our Energy sensors sounded the alarm, meaning that he’s a Magic user. He managed to knock out the captain guarding the cache and destroy all robots sent to stop him. As long as this guy’s alive and active, he’s going to add on to our problems.”
“So, you are putting a bounty on his head, hoping for someone to venture out there and eliminate this guy?”
“Yes Gavin. Although, looking at our current situation, I doubt anyone would want to head out into the cold and confront whoever this is. How does this person survive out there is a wonder.”
“It could be a siren. My mother was a half-siren. She told me that all sirens can survive in extremely cold climates.” Jaden suggested.
“Doubtful. The captain said that the thief was a bulky, muscular man. All sirens are female so this thief cannot be a siren.”
Brushing the discussion aside, she added, “Anyway, our people are already occupied with our own problems so I’m afraid I can’t contribute to your rebellion, even if I support your intention.”
“Well, I guess nothing can be done about it. Still, would you mind if we borrow some supplies from you. Our ship, the Crimson Spinner, is lacking a lot of necessary supplies, even though the pilot claims otherwise.”
“Of course Gavin. Though our supplies are limited, we can still supply a small group such as yours. You and your group can also stay and rest if you wish.”
“Thank you.”
As Gavin and Jaden trudged out of the room, Sierra halted Jaden by holding on to her shoulder. “Are you sure that VX Synthetic can be trusted? He just appeared out of nowhere and claims that he comes to protect you? Is it not suspicious at all?”
Jaden shook her head and replied, “I admit, it is suspicious. But, he has helped me thus far and the last thing I need now is new enemies.” Sierra nodded silently for a while before she replied, “Very well then. A piece of machinery like that is rare and to have one so loyal to you is a gift. Still, just be careful with it.”
* * *
Amazed at the large selection of food, Reed took as much food as he can, showing no attention to the price. It would not matter to him since Gavin told him that he’s allow to take as much supply as he need. While Gavin was transporting supplies to the Crimson Spinner, Reed’s been ravenous and he wish to fill up his stomach before spending long hours or days moving from one planet to another. Filling up his tray, he sat on the nearest empty bench and began stuffing his mouth with food. Meat has never tasted so good to him and the scrumptiousness that welcomed his tongue made his sigh with relief.
“I never tasted food this good in weeks. Thank you Jaden for your rebellion. I should just kiss you now and call you my Queen.”
“Kiss me?”
The feminine voice sounded right next to Reed’s ear and he turned to see Jaden sitting close to him. Startled, he almost choked onto the food and coughed continuously. Worried, Jaden rubbed his back, helping him swallow or spit out the food.
“Don’t scare me like that! Don’t want some stupid irony starting here.”
“Did you say something about kissing me?”
“Nope. Never said anything like that.”
“Right…”
“So, what are you doing here Jaden? As you can see, I’m busy eating.” True to his words, he continued his meal while Jaden answered him.
“Reed, we’ve been traveling together for some time now. Out of all the company we made, you’re the first that I met and I was hoping that perhaps we should use this time to get to know each other a bit more. Break the ice you know.”
“Why? I thought we know enough about each other already? I’m a guy who can fly a plane and is on the run from Iblisan while you’re a beauty whose eyes are always glowing and can kick just about any ass.”
“Very funny. Thing is that, every time we learn something new about each other, we tend to get surprised. I know I was surprised to hear that you were a Magic user turned Ohmni Knight. And if I remember, you were shocked to hear that I survived and even defeated Dark Viper in a duel.”
“Hmm, good point.”
“So Reed, tell me a little bit more about your family.”
“Well, let’s see. My father was a farmer, a resident of Darkhaven Village. He married a noblewoman from the Valley of Spirits and settled down to form a family with her. They have two children, one of them being me of course. I was the elder and the younger was my sister. Our family was pretty tight.”
“Where are they now?”
“Probably discussing with yours about how compatible we are.”
“What? Reed I’m serious.”
“My parents were killed when Iblisan’s cultists invaded the village. Dark Viper was leading the assault.”
Jaden could not help but noticed how every time an assault was mentioned, Dark Viper tend to be involved. Whenever he’s being mentioned, it would usually involve him killing someone or destroying entire cities. She then felt that she would be doing the whole world a favor if she could somehow eliminate this little cancer.
“My sister and I survived. We escape before any of Dark Viper’s men found us. While escaping, we…got separated.”
“Where is she now?”
“I…don’t know. I wanted to search for her but at the same time, I don’t want to hold on to false hope.”
“Hey I know how you feel. I lost my triplet brothers to Dark Viper.”
“Triplet? You and your brothers were triplets.”
“Yup. We look pretty identical, though I can’t compare now since they’re gone.”
“Iblisan and his men have taken away a lot from both of us. I think it is destiny for us to come together.”
“You sound like you are committed to the rebellion. If I recall, you simply wished to wander when we first met.”
“Hey, I never actually thought that I will end up liking the constant danger we are living in. It’s an exciting change compared to simply wandering around while hiding from Iblisan’s cultists. Besides, I think I’d rather turn and face the tiger rather than continue running.”
“Speaking of which, what did you do that made Iblisan’s men seek you out actively?”
“Well, I never liked the idea of a Fallen Angel taking the Salvager throne. I caused trouble, Iblisan’s pissed, he sent lieutenants to deal with me and I escaped. It’s a cycle.”
“How’d you become an Ohmni Knight then?”
“You can say that I seek refuge within the Mannihilators and Anders Nightfall, who was a Lord back then, brought me in. I sacrificed my Magical Energies to become an Ohmni Knight but I think Gavin told you about what happened after that. Stupid friend of mine can’t get his emotions under control. So, your turn. Tell me about your family before the…um…unfortunate incident.”
“Both my parents were Salvagers. They were residents of the Valley of Spirits and were pretty young when Dark Viper’s betrayal happened. The betrayal claimed my father’s life, but not before my half-siren mother got pregnant. She gave birth to me and my brothers while taking refuge in Qurrentine so, I’m a Qurrentine unlike my parents but still Salvager by blood. We led a pretty normal life, until Dark Viper came to finish to rest of us of. After that, here I am.”
“Does your family know why your eyes glow permanently?”
“There were theories but ultimately, no one in my family knew why. Well, at least it allowed me to see through one solid object.”
“I see. And, what about the way you fight? I mean, the Reverse Grip fighting style. It is strikingly similar to Dark Viper and Elysia’s fighting styles. Who taught you?”
“A friend of my mother’s. She claimed that her father taught Dark Viper how to fight that way. I assume that he regretted it when the betrayal occurred.”
“Really? That’s news.”
“So, I guess that’s all you need to know about my family.”
Running out of topics to talk about, Reed and Jaden remained silent. Reed continued eating while Jaden simply stare about. The silence strangely felt awkward as she came to break the ice between her and Reed but surprisingly, there was nothing much to talk about. The silence was broken however when Reed began speaking.
“You know Jaden, you’re the first person I met who listens to everything I said and responded. You almost reminded me of my sister. She would always listen to me and will always give her opinion. When she’s no longer by my side, I’m more used to people ignoring me.”
“Sorry…did you say something?”
“Ha ha. Very funny. Seriously though, thanks for always hearing me out.”
“You’re welcome.” Jaden replied with a one-sided smile. She had no special feelings for Reed beyond being friendly, but she blushed when she heard his thanks. She was rarely thanked by anyone; neither did she befriend anyone close to her age except for her brothers. Reed could not help but notice her awkward smiles and teased her.
“Blushing are you? Can’t stand my good looks?”
“Don’t be stupid Reed. It’s just that…I was rarely thanked by anyone.”
“You’re welcome then missy.”
“Seriously Reed, am I really that beautiful to you? You can’t even see my eyes.”
“One thing I learn from stories I read: Beauty is always found in unexpected places.”
“You’re talking like as if you’ve seen my real eyes. I never saw my real eyes before.”
“I’m good in imagining things.”
“You know Reed, no matter what happens to us in the end, I think we will get along just fine.”
“Oh you can count on that. I will always be nice to blindfolded beauties like you.”
“Reed…stop. Please.”
