by Rama Nugraha
A pair of grey eyes followed him, staring at him curiously.
She had a wide shoulder, a feature typically owned by an Urgut miner. Her face was pleasant to see. In no way did her face implied that she was a killer. Her cheek was flushed, perhaps they were sunburned, and under her silvery eyebrows were a pair of round eyes. What a deceiving innocence.
She was wearing a black attire under a dark cloak with a wide hood, the inside part of which was orange. A pair of swords was stashed in her waist. An orange brooch in the shape of a laughing face mask pinned the seams of her cloak together, right on her chest.
“How do you know I was closing my eyes?”
She shrugged. “I can see it,” she answered easily. “You didn’t even realize I have been standing here,” she sniffed the air like a dog in the forest. “Are you injured? Bleeding?”
“No.”
“Ah, then it’s the Red Necks, right?” she took a step closer to Datan and whiffed the air around him. “I like the smell of blood. It makes me really excited.”
Datan decided that she was mental. Indeed, he smelt the scent of blood from his body but never did he thought that the woman could smell it as well. Her senses seemed to be sharper than normal people.
Out of nowhere, she gave him the Zu stone. “Here, take a look at it yourself,” she said. The chain fell from her grasp, making the smallest noise. “I think this is the real one.”
Datan maintained a serious demeanor as he snatched Zu from that woman roughly.
“You are not the Royan from yesterday, are you?” she questioned. Her eyes moved fast as she scanned Datan thoroughly from head to toe. “You are an Ingran,” she began to sound amazed. “Ah, I want to see your face.”
Datan did not give her an answer. He was busy examining the Zu stone. His eyes almost popped out of his socket as he was overwhelmed by the beauty of the stone. It was indeed beautifully captivating, hypnotizing. It looked ancient and its sole existence posed the unknown. Inside the metal shell, the blue gleamed beautifully like the eye of the ocean.
Inside, there were strands of red string like veins, blazing like a river of lava. Something in the shape of stone was in the middle of everything. It was obsidian, an endless black, the house of the indefinite. Dented spits in the surface of the crystal looked smooth and not coarse. The illustration he saw in the file could not even capture an ounce of its real beauty.
“Well well well,” the woman singsonged. She sounded glad like she had confirmed a suspicion about Datan. She giggled. “Good to know that you are interested in the fake jewel.”
Datan lifted his head. He tried to maintain an expressionless face. He realized if there was the best time to leave that place, it would be then. He had grasped the object of his thievery in his palm. Datan’s grasp tightened, feeling the weight of the jewel, noticing that the five-centimeter stone was not heavier than thirty grams. Should he be able to leave, his mission would be done.
“Just so you know. That jewel worths more than the entire gold in this country,” she told him. “It possesses a great role in our world.”
Datan chuckled bitterly, “You’re a funny one.”
“I mean it,” she exclaimed. “I know a whole lot about it. I think I know more than you do. I bet the Royans only know the surface information about that stone,” she scoffed. “Even if you people claim to know everything about the things you ought to steal.”
Datan felt his throat tightened. Those grey eyes, burning with confidence, made him more and more uncomfortable by the second. It was like she was hiding a huge secret. But then again, was what she said about Zu the truth? Was she really the one slaughtering the Red Necks?
Datan could not tell.
The woman wiped her palm to her cloak. “Do you want to be my friend?” she smiled as she offered him her palm, wanting him to shake it. “We can talk about Zu all night.”
Datan frowned. The question was like the one Sami had told him before. “I didn’t come here to play—“
“Nymeria. Nymeria Farlama,” she cut him. She looked flustered as her long fingers crumpled the fabric of her cloak when Datan did not take the hand she offered. “And you, let me guess. You come here for the stone, right? What is your name?”
Datan took another step backward, farther this time. “I have to go,” he said.
Nymeria looked taken aback. “You can’t—“
“I am not interested in your nonsense. Thanks for the Zu—“
Something happened, faster than an eye could ever blink. As those grey eyes blinked, a movement so fast it was barely visible, a black metal slashed towards his direction. It only missed him by a centimeter. Had he not been fast enough to move his head backward, he would have been decapitated.
Nymeria’s mouth was shut. Her smile and friendly demeanor were nowhere to be found in her face anymore.
Datan was baffled, his eyes bugged out. All of the hair in his body stood. Not only was it because of Nymeria’s attack, but it was also because of the change emerging from her. In a flash, her grey eyes turned into glowing silver. Datan had never seen an Urgut with such eyes.
What kind of trickery is this? he asked himself.
“Oi, watch out where you sway that thing,” he shouted, wiping his Adam's apple which was hit by the air pushed by the swaying of her sword, “I could have lost my head there.”
Nymeria giggled. “I could catch you. You are faster than your friend, the arrogant one,” she commented. “Or the rest of the Red Necks.”
“I don’t like fighting with a woman, Nay.”
“Meria! Call me Meria!” she screeched, her cheek blazing red. “Alright. If that’s what you want, then give me back the Zu,” she lifted her arms, biting the tip of her thumb which was filled with bite marks until it bled. She wiped her blood to her nostrils, inhaling its scent deeply. “You should just be my friend. How about that?”
Datan put Zu to his pocket, swallowing hard. He knew that he had no choice.
Nymeria sighed, she looked very upset. “I see that you object my offer,” she answered herself. She pointed her single-handed sword at Datan, looking at him straight in the eyes like a predator ready to pounce on its prey. “Come. Take out your sword, my friend.”
Royan Operation Code Number 2: Blinded by arrogance, you shall not.
Datan remembered that point clearly. But at that moment, it was very hard for him not to be conceited. Often times, when Datan was swallowed by the desire to achieve something, he paid no mind to any rules. Datan took out his dagger with his left hand, wielding it backward.
“There’s no need for that,” he said steadily. He positioned himself into an Arnian fighting stance. Datan thought that one single dagger was enough to beat a woman called Nymeria. “Come.”
Nymeria growled, then she swung her sword.
Datan strengthened his grip. His hands vibrated as he held the attack of Nymeria’s sword. A loud clang pierced through his ears, tearing the silence apart. Nymeria looked like she starved, angry. She moved fast and strongly.
Datan tried to hold the impact, calculating his opponent’s capability. The muscles in his left arm throbbed every time his sword met Nymeria’s. Even so, he knew better that Nymeria was holding back, just like he did.
Datan’s face tightened, half of his muscles and nerves tensed. At first, his strategy was to dodge her attack to get closer to the woman so he could deliver a clean punch to her face. Unfortunately, Nymeria was just as agile as he was. She could avoid every close-range attack delivered her way.
“Take out your sword!”
Nymeria leaned forward. She took a step forward and her movement became twice as sharp. The sword was swung diagonally, the tip slashed Datan’s right arm. He was startled. Quickly, Datan made a chance to kick Nymeria so hard that she fell backward. Her black sword fell from her hand, making a loud noise as it hit the floor.
“Why? Maybe I won’t need my sword after all,” he smirked.
Datan felt a sting spread from his wrist
to his elbow. Yet, no blood was shed. There was only a thin slashing mark which gradually faded in the night attire. The fact that this attire could protect him from a sword made him breathe a little easier. Datan finally understood that the attire was like a metal armor shielding his body.
Nymeria groaned as she got up from the floor into a sitting position. “Oh, you’re supposed to bleed,” she whined. The woman whipped strands of hair which impaired her vision. “I’m pretty sure I got you earlier.”
Datan got more and more impatient. He felt like Nymeria prolonging their duel. He clenched his jaw as he assessed the situation. He was not sure when Nymeria’s eyes turned back into the shade of grey. The unexplainable change haunts him with unknown possibilities. His instinct told him that he should end the duel soon.
Datan made his way towards Nymeria as she reached for her sword. He managed to kick the sword farther away from her. He pulled Nymeria from the floor and pinned her to the wall.
“Our meeting ends here,” he was about to slam her head.
Nymeria hit kneed him without warning. Datan squeaked. It felt like he had just been hit by a hard pole.
Nymeria roared as she pushed Datan. She took a tiny chair for children near the bookshelf and hit Datan with it. Pahatt stone was lightweight indeed, but it was still hard on his skull. Datan wobbled backward. Although both of his hands managed to hold the impact, a part of his head was hit anyway. Piercing pain rang in his hear, echoing within his skull.
Panting, Nymeria laughed manically. She threw the chair away which now had two of its feet broken, waiting for Datan to get back to his feet. She challenged him by lifting her balled fist. Datan sighed in irritation. As the fight went on, he realized that his opponent was hard to beat and that she was incredibly stubborn.
The fight continued. They tried to deliver punches and avoiding attacks. Thuds and groans pierced through the silence of the night. The rug had been kicked from under them. A one-meter antique vase, painted with pictures of the Red Mountains, the inheritance of the Kinkik Kingdom from the Age of the Three Realms, was now shattered into pieces on the floor. Another chair was broken as the fighters fell onto it.
Datan threw a gold-rigged blue vas angrily as his irritation heightens. Yet, Nymeria dodged it so easily. “Are you actually a woman?!” he shouted as he rubbed his chest who was throbbing holding the impact of Nymeria’s punch. “You might as well be a rhino!”
Nymeria’s face reddened in agitation. She growled as she threw the knife which was once stashed in her thigh. Datan avoided it and the blade stabbed the painting named ‘The Laughing Lover’ behind him. A smile was then formed in the corner of her thin lips. Her eyes screamed her ulterior motive which made Datan even more unsettled.
“I’m getting more and more curious, my friend,” she said calmly. She took her sword from under the bookshelf. The sound it made as it was being lifted from the floor sounded sweet.
“I am not your friend!” Datan objected sharply. He kept pulling the ridge of his hood to keep his face hidden.
“Can’t we be friends?”
Datan did not bother to answer. He was getting tired to treat Nymeria as a girl and was thinking to just shove the drape to her yapping mouth. Nymeria was playing around. But then, ragged breath was heard in the room, along with bones trembling in fear.
Thar Ubaga stood in the doorway. “Oh! What’s going on?!” his voice waver like he was on the verge of tears. He dragged his feet away from the door. His face was horrified but also mad. Even more so when he found his wizard on the floor. “Who are you?!” he roared, pulling his own hair.
Datan and Nymeria turned around to see the man. Datan winced in panic while Nymeria smiled widely, showing her annoyingly innocent face. With steps as light as air, he hopped towards Thar Ubaga.
“My name is Nymeria, Thar Ubaga. I am truly sorry of the chaos,” she stashed her sword, placing her hand in front of her chest and bowed deeply as a sign of respect. “I am here to protect you,” Nymeria turned around to look at Datan, “from the Royan who wanted to steal your beloved Zu stone. He even killed the Red Necks. The necklace is in his pocket now.”
Datan felt like an idiot. Rage flamed in his chest. Blood oozed to his head. How dare that woman to blame him for what she had done herself!
“Be careful, Thar Ubaga,” Datan said seriously. “This flirty Nay-nay loved to lie. If I were you, I would run right now. Indeed, I desire the Zu stone. But I did not kill anyone in this house, she did.”
Nymeria’s face turned stern like a bronze mask.
Clearly, Thar Ubaga was in shock, his short fingers trembled. His gaze shifted from Datan to Nymeria. He looked tense, pale. His lips turned blue. He was panicking, which made him looked silly.
“Tell me he was lying, Nymeria,” he stuttered. He was hoping that Nymeria was on his side. His hands wiped his nose which bled all of sudden. “That Royan is lying, right? Royans are the liars!”
Nymeria nodded as she smiled sweetly.
Loud noises came from the room. “My husband, my beloved Ubaga!” spoiled voice of the Thar’s wife was heard from under the bed. “What happened, pan? Is it safe, pan? For Unum! It’s suffocating here!”
“Tell me what happened!” a second female voice asked worriedly.
“Meredith and Joya, my dears, everything will be alright,” Thar Ubaga answered without looking away. “Don’t be afraid.”
Datan widened his eyes in horror—he could not breathe.
Nymeria impaled Thar Ubaga’s neck with a dagger until its tips came out of the other end of his neck. Black blood spurted out everywhere. The tubby man with a mustache soon fell limp onto the floor as his life left him cold. Meredith and Joya screeched so loud they might damage their vocal cords the moment their husband’s body hit the floor. They were consumed by pure fear and panic.
“Nooooo!”
“Are you gone, pan? Oh! He’s gone! Help! Help us! Joris!”
“Joris, where are you!”
“JORIS!!”
Datan could hear their cries of despair. For a moment, he closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. Datan wanted to help but he found himself paralyzed. A loud sound echoed in his heard. Don’t get yourself involved! This is not the same as helping Irirana!
Without saying anything, Nymeria stepped into the room. She bent down to drag the two beautiful woman from their hiding place. Without wasting another second, she killed both when they were begging for mercy. She came out of the room like nothing happened. With the look of pure pleasure, Nymeria licked the blood stain in her fingers. “Boring. Thar Ubaga, he’s a useless piece of trash, and truly is a moron,” she spat, looking down at Ubaga Jahral’s corpse, bathed in his own blood. Nymeria wiped the dagger which was now stained in black blood with an orange handkerchief from her pocket, then sheathed it back in her thigh.
She looked at Datan. “Right, my friend?” her eyes had turned silver once more, gleaming bizarrely, terrifying.
Datan shrugged, trying to seem aloof even though his entire body trembled. “Maybe it was because he just got out of bed?” Damn it!
◆◆◆
That was the first time Datan saw manslaughter right before his eyes. His heart raced as though he was impaled by the blade as well. His entire muscle tensed. He was washed over by an odd sense of fear. He pitied Ubaga. His life ended just like that. What was Thar Ubaga feeling right now? After death?
Datan sighed desperately. Both his mind and body felt exhausted. Never did Datan thought that his first mission would go as chaotic as this one. Who would have thought he would cross path with a crazy woman whose hobby was to snatch people’s life. Nymeria was so impulsive that she knew no boundary nor compassion. She was vicious.
To be honest, he was afraid to face this type of opponent.
“Why did you kill them, Nay?”
Nymeria smiled. “Meria, my friend. Meria,” she said, clearly holding back anger. “Why, you ask? Because I desire to.”
Nymeria rolled her citrus flo
wer-scented hair which she found to be a hindrance. She arranged it neatly with golden clips (again with laughing mask symbols) which was clipped on her hair since the very beginning.
“I adore fresh blood,” Nymeria continued. “My life is way more fun when someone bled to death in front of my eyes. It’s just as simple as that, my friend,” Nymeria stopped for a second. She blinked then she looked lost in her mind. “Mother… it was my mother who made me like this,” she smiled wider. “It’s all thanks to her.”
Datan’s jaw tightened even more. His head spun, and he got nauseous. “So, the news about the serial killer…?”
Nymeria nodded. “Why, of course! Who else would do that? It happens that I have a lot of time here, so…” she answered easily. “You know, before taking Zu and sailing home. Oh! Yesterday I killed an old man who invited me to drink Naqi together, just the two of us. Well, since the beginning, he was hopeless anyway. His disease didn’t get better.”
Nymeria kept talking like Datan showed any sign of interest. He could not fathom her kind of people, the kind that did not respect life.
Datan shook his head, disgusted. “I cannot give Zu to you.”
For a moment, Nymeria was silent. Her silver eyes glared, baring to him her soul who looked thirsty of something unknown. Once in a while, she bit the nail in her thumb which had enough bitemarks already.
“You just killed a Thar. The Thar. Do you realize what you’ve done?”
Nymeria shrugged without any care in the world. “Why do you care?” she asked back. “What is his life for you, friend?”
Datan did not feel like he needed to answer her.
Nymeria laughed to cheer herself up. “Are you a kind Royan, friend?”
“Stop calling me that! I am not a friend of yours!”
Nymeria scratched the edge of her lips, ignoring Datan’s protest. “I am sure you’ve never killed. Your eyes showed pure disgust and fear the moment I pierced my dagger through Ubaga’s neck,” she said, narrowing her eyes.
“A Royan who had never killed? You must be new.”
