by Jamie Wang
For the rest of the way, neither spoke.
SASHA
Sasha sprawled across a blanket on the dirt floor. She yawned, stretching out her arms and legs. “A king is the embodiment of his ideals. His loyalty is not to his subjects, but to the reason why he took the crown.” The pages of the book sagged, displaying its age. “In this regard, those resolved to being king must also be resolved to being a slave, a servant toward his own impossible goals.”
Or her own impossible goals.
“Ugh,” she groaned. Reading a book twice was a chore, no matter how great the first read was. The only reason she was so intent on the second read was because the book had been written by none other than The Dragon himself.
She rolled over so she faced the sky. The sparse clouds proved quite calming.
Where is everyone?
But if anyone knew that answer, it was her. She watched the clouds roll away. She let the book slip from her hands and closed her eyes.
“Sasha.” Prince’s voice echoed down the alley.
Sasha didn’t bother looking, she could hear his footsteps. Although it was a little harder to pinpoint Maverick’s she knew that he was close behind. “Prince. Mav.”
“How many times have you read that book?” Maverick asked.
Sasha pushed herself up into a sitting position. “Almost twice.”
Maverick walked up to her and leaned against a nearby wall. “Is it another encyclopedia?” Though the tone of his voice didn’t change much, Sasha knew he was teasing her.
She grabbed the book and held it up for Maverick to see. “Nope. This is The Dragon’s thoughts on King Arthur.”
Maverick raised his eyebrows.
“I know, what a find, right?”
Prince sat beside Sasha. “Did you find Bolt?”
“Yep, he’s asleep right now.”
Both Prince and Maverick fell silent, ignoring the question they both wanted to ask.
“We failed the drop,” Sasha answered. “Bolt was scarred, but he’s okay now.”
Maverick shook his head. “Fucking hawks.”
“Fucking Hawks,” Prince agreed.
“So, what have you guys been up to?”
“Gambling,” Maverick said coolly.
Sasha’s teeth crunched together. Prince looked away from her glaring eyes.
“Maverick, give us a minute,” Sasha said.
Maverick was gone before her sentence had finished. Prince snuck nervous glances at her. “Prince, is this true?” she asked.
Prince closed his eyes and swallowed. “Yes.” He looked at his twiddling toes.
“God damn it Prince!” Sasha jumped to her feet and began a practiced scold.
Even after hearing this exact speech hundreds of times before, Prince still shuddered. He continued his drawn-out stare with his feet.
“Prince, look at me.” Sasha grabbed Prince’s arm. “Nothing good can come from gambling. Why do you even need to gamble? We make enough money to feed ourselves. Tell me what you need so badly and I’ll get it for you, but for god’s sake, stop gambling!”
Prince was a statue. His distant eyes remained frozen.
“Prince, what are you using the money for?” Sasha waited for a response. She got none. It felt like she was talking to a wall. “You don’t need to tell me everything, but please tell me the important things. What are you hiding from me?”
“I’m not hiding anything.” His sheepish response couldn’t convince a baby.
“Gambling isn’t a game, it’s dangerous! You of all people should know that.”
“I know! But –” Prince shut up.
“Honestly Prince, what will it take for you to understand?”
Prince’s eyes fell to his feet.
When no answer came, Sasha said, “Would you like me to lose my other eye for you?” As soon as the words left her mouth, she wished to take them back.
Prince gasped. He looked up with a pained expression, tracing the scar on her face. His body tensed, and his dark blue eyes became distant. No doubt, he was reliving that time at Hawk’s Lair.
Seeing Prince this way brought back her own memories of that place. Back then, she suffocated on the smell of cigarettes and liquor.
Stop. With a shake of her head, she returned to reality.
“After all, it would be ugly if I didn’t get a matching one!” Sasha forced a smile onto her face, chuckling at her own joke. Changing her tone so abruptly sounded strange.
Prince stared straight through her.
“I was joking, relax! Why do you have to take me so seriously all the time?”
Prince’s eyes grew hazier by the second. His fists clenched tighter as his arms trembled. With a quick step forward, Sasha slammed her knuckles into his arm.
“Ow!” Prince jumped backwards.
Before Prince could defend himself, Sasha clipped him once more.
“Ow! Stop!”
Sasha ignored him and leaned into a third punch. This one hit him straight in the shoulder. It hurt her knuckles.
Prince fell backwards against the wall.
Sasha stepped toward him. Prince shut his eyes to prepare for the impending blow, but it never came. Instead, Sasha ruffled his hair.
“I’m the worrier and you’re the gambler, don’t confuse us.”
Prince cautiously opened one eye. He opened his mouth but could find no words. Sasha capitalized on his shock to change the subject. “Honestly, men are such idiots. Tell them a few nice words and they melt right in front of you.”
Prince gave her a small smile.
“Flower will be back soon, then we can talk about the drop,” she said.
LAO
The acrid charcoal smell of burnt flesh lingered in the air.
“Welcome to the Dragon’s Pit.” Lao took off his hat and placed it at the entrance. “At least that’s what my men call this place, a rather tasteless name if you ask me. I apologize for the smell, a man died here not too long ago.”
Lao looked across the room at his unfortunate guest. The man stood completely still, his feet shackled onto the floor and his hands tied behind him. Bruises in varying stages of yellow and blue covered the man’s body. His shredded shirt barely clung on.
“I only have three rules.” Lao walked up to the man, staring into his golden eyes.
Sweat dripped from the man’s hair. A single lightbulb illuminated the windowless concrete walls and blackened ceiling.
Lao didn’t mind that the man kept quiet. He wasn’t sure if the man physically could talk. It was entirely possible that his jaw had been broken or tongue cut off.
“The first rule is that I control violence. You want someone hurt? You come to me.”
He circled the man who began coughing. No doubt, breathing was hard for him, especially with the noose around his neck.
“The second rule is that I control entertainment. I am responsible for all the games that are played in this city and because of it, I take interference very seriously.”
Lao kicked the man in the back. The chains around his feet clacked but held steady. His body lunged forward until only the noose held his body up, choking the life out of him.
“The third rule is that my judgment is absolute.” Lao circled the man until he was face-to-face with him. “There will be no courts or trials, we humans do not deserve that much. You killed a Hawk. You violated my first two rules. Would you like to defend yourself?”
Lao grabbed the man by his hair and pulled him back upright, glaring into his eyes. “If you wish to defend yourself, now is the time.”
The man coughed for a while, regaining his breath. When he did, he began laughing. The laugh was deep and slow, filling the air with a depressing undertone. It persisted throughout his coughing fit.
Are you taking me seriously? Lao yanked the man’s head and threw him backwards so he was once again upright on his own.
The man swayed and eventually found his balance. “Dragon,” He said with a raspy voice. “Do you t
hink you can hurt me?” His eyes were so bloodshot they looked red.
“I do,” Lao responded.
The man shook his head against the rope.
“Is that your defense?” Lao asked.
“I have no defense. I wish you had killed me sooner.” His voice cracked. “Maybe then, she’d still be alive.”
“So, are you ready to confess?”
“You wouldn’t understand.” The man trembled and his voice followed suit. “I loved her, she was the reason I was able to go on for as long as I did, just to see her one last time.” His body convulsed, hit by another coughing fit.
It didn’t take him long to regain his breath, and when he did, his voice wilted. “She was so beautiful, more beautiful than I could’ve ever imagined. Dragon, I didn’t know that it was her. I didn’t…” His words were replaced by his sobs. Suddenly, he shrieked and lunged toward Lao only to be stopped by the noose. “I didn’t know!” he screamed, again and again.
Lao watched from a careful distance. “I thought I recognized you.” He placed a gentle hand on the man’s cheek. His thumb caressed the crescent shaped birthmark under the man’s eye. “There’s not very many people in the world with a birthmark like yours. There was probably only two, well… now just you.”
Thick tears dropped from the man’s eyes. “I killed her. But why was she a Hawk?”
Lao grinned, the grin of a cat with his claws on the mouse’s tail. “Because of me.”
“You’ll get what you deserve, Dragon. The Lions are coming back.”
“I don’t take well to empty threats.” Lao walked behind the man and kicked him forward. He fell until the noose yanked up, choking the sobs out of his body. “Tell me, did you ever ask her name? I remember you gave her a rather strange one. Tiaren, was it?”
The man tried to push words through his collapsed throat. His mouth moved and his tongue flailed but no sound came out.
Reaching into his jacket, Lao procured a large silver flask. Tiny engravings shimmered in the light as the smell of gasoline dissipated into the air. “Did you even exchange words? You know, before you killed her.”
Lao put the flask to his lips and threw his head back. His stomach lurched forward, rejecting its revolting contents. Some of it spluttered out of his mouth but he managed to choke it down. It was unbelievably bitter and sour, tasting worse than it smelled, and it smelled like poison.
“If the Lions are truly coming back, so be it. I killed them once, I can do it again.”
Lao poured the rest over the man’s head. The man shuddered and thrashed. The iron around his limbs rang like bells as his body twisted in what looked like a ritualistic dance. Despite the man’s claim to have accepted death, he now fought harder than ever.
“Everyone ends the same.” Lao said above the terrified gurgling of the man. “In the most pathetic way possible.”
Lao retrieved a cigarette from his jacket pocket. He lit it and took a massive drag, trying to smother his taste buds in its disgusting smoke.
“Repulsive,” Lao said. “But you have your punishment and I have mine.”
He flicked the cigarette onto the man. Blue flames swallowed the man whole. Like all deaths in here, it came in near silence. The crackling of the flames, the soft clang of iron, and the man’s breathless screams.
Lao stared into the flames. “You will either burn to death or choke to death. Too bad you can’t do both.”
He spat into the fire and walked away.
SASHA
Sasha had the clouds to keep her company. Maverick wasn’t one to talk much and Prince was still cooling down from her scolding. For the past few minutes, Sasha had been beating herself up over what happened. Her scar was still too touchy of a subject.
“I’m home!” Flower’s voice echoed around the corner.
Sasha nearly jumped up in relief. “How’d it go?”
“Don’t send me on some pointless errand just so you have time to read,” Flower said with a pout. She gave Prince and Maverick a nod as she entered.
“It didn’t go well?”
“What do you think? Once again, ungrateful and rude.”
Sasha frowned, taking note. “I find it hard to believe that not a single person would take the time to thank us. You know, since we saved their lives and all that.”
“You can go yourself if you don’t believe me. I’m done checking up on these people.”
“Its fine, I believe you.”
Flower scowled. “The nerve of some of these people, it’s like they expect us to die for them. They don’t get that we could just as easily throw away the pills and still get paid enough to eat. Honestly, that’s what we should do.”
Sasha giggled. “We can’t do that.”
“I don’t see why not?” Flower did not share her amusement. She took a seat across from Sasha.
“Because—”
“Because we’re the proud Mice of this city. And we earn our bread!” Prince exclaimed. He shot Sasha a sideways glance.
Sasha rolled her eyes. “I don’t sound like that.” But the fact Prince had made fun of her meant he was returning to his old self.
“Close enough.” Maverick nodded in agreement.
They all laughed at Sasha’s expense. She put on a fake frown. “Laugh all you want, but I know how I sound like.”
“Just like how you know you don’t snore?” Prince laughed through his words.
“I don’t!”
The only responses she got were muffled giggles.
Before anyone else could continue their attack, Sasha stood up. “Alright guys, let’s wake Bolt up and start our meeting.”
“Fine,” Prince said.
Though Sasha frowned, she was glad. “Bolt, wake up!”
Bolt’s tent rustled. He crawled out rubbing the gunk from his eyes. “Does anyone have food?”
Sasha shook her head. “You’ll have to wait until after the meeting.”
“What time is it?”
“The sun’s going to set in like two hours.” Maverick answered. “You’ve been out for quite a while.”
“It’s been that long huh?” Bolt stumbled forward and sat down next to Maverick. “Have we had our meeting yet?”
“We’re about to,” Sasha said. “But I wanted you to be awake for this one. You have to tell us about the Lion.”
Everyone quieted. All eyes were on Bolt. Lions were adult version of Hawks. While Hawks scarred, Lions maimed. They were the most feared predator of Mice up until the day they all disappeared.
Prince was the first to break the silence. “You saw a Lion?”
“Well, I’m not sure if it was a real one. It was just an adult that stole my pills.” Bolt’s eyes dropped. “I’ve never seen one before so I wouldn’t know.”
Maverick shook his head. “If he was an adult and he was going for the pills, then we can assume he’s a Lion.”
“So Lions are finally coming back,” Prince said. “I was wondering where they disappeared to.”
“So what are we going to do?” Flower scratched her head. She wore a look of concern. The stories they left behind were horrific.
“Nothing’s changed,” Prince announced. “We’ll keep doing what we’ve always been doing, deliver the medicine to its destination.”
“Stop.” Sasha held up a hand to silence everyone else. Four pairs of worried eyes turned to her. “We don’t know anything. One adult doesn’t mean that the Lions are coming back. This could’ve been random for all we know. Hell, we don’t even know why they disappeared in the first place.”
Prince shrugged. “I say good riddance. We don’t need to know why; we should just hope that it happens again.”
“We need to see the bigger picture,” Sasha protested.
“Forget the bigger picture. We just need to worry about how we’re getting our next meal. Plus, we may only have one drop left before we never have to worry about it again. Why bother now?”
Before Sasha could respond, Maverick spoke up. “I agr
ee with Prince.”
Flower let out an audible gasp. Not even Prince could hide his surprise.
Maverick leaned back against the wall and crossed his arms. “There’s a lot of weird stuff going on right now that we don’t get. We won’t get it by talking about it either, so let’s talk about the things we do get.”
“I never thought I would see the day…” Flower reflected everyone’s thoughts.
Bolt was the first to laugh. One by one, they all broke out into a chorus of laughter.
“Fine,” Sasha said. “Let’s talk about drops—” she took a deep breath “— but before we get into it, I have to tell you guys something. Do you remember the contract we signed when becoming Mice?”
“You mean the one we all definitely read?” Prince said with a lopsided grin.
“Well... there was something I didn’t tell you. We get fired after failing five drops in a row. Right now, we’re at four.”
Three jaws dropped. A mouse couldn’t sneak by in that silence.
PRINCE
Fire coursed through Prince’s chest. “You didn’t think we had a right to know?” He had trouble keeping his voice down. “Since, you know, everything we’ve ever worked toward is at stake.”
“We were doing so well it never mattered,” Sasha replied sheepishly. “Until now,” she tacked on muttering.
“So this next drop decides it all.” Even Maverick’s voice quivered. “We either end as the only Mice to complete their contract or nothing.”
Sasha nodded, more of a twitch of her head anything else.
“Why didn’t you tell us from the start?” Prince asked.
Sasha nibbled her lower lip. “I wanted us to finish drops for better reasons.”
“And that’s supposed to mean what exactly?”
“A lot of Mice slack off. Some even take the medicine and sell it to Hawks. I wanted to make sure we were doing drops for the right reasons. To save lives.”
“What are we? A fairytale band of orphaned angels? If we get fired, we don’t eat!”
For once, it was Sasha who couldn’t make eye contact.
“What are we going to do?” Bolt asked.
