Fio

by Andy Marr

it, it was everywhere, and after awhile you just felt it.

  Walking through the front door of a small warm brick building with a green tin roof covered in vines. They walked around a few quiet bends, went up an elevator. Echart stopped to use some toilets. And at last they turned a corner to walk along a long mildly lit hallway to the end to a counter that looked like it really just should have been a dead end. Echart stepped up to the lady and was seen to; the process began it was called localisation. They took a blood sample, a doctor came and did a quick check-up and they were both quizzed thoroughly Fio told the truth to everything but avoided anything that might seem unpleasant but he managed to embellish a little on being a slave like Echart had told him to. Fio didnt find it too hard. Eventually they told him to wait. “Well what happens now?” Echart said leaning off from the wall to readjust his posture a little more comfortably.

  “I am sure I must be a special case...”

  And so they sat for about half an hour until the lady beckoned Fio forward she gave a loud thump with the stamp on Fios Passport and slid it through.

  "Um, is that it?" Fio replied.

  "Yes." She said nonchalantly.

  Echart was beaming and put an arm around Fio “Right! Lets do this.” And off they went. Lougo the last name on his passport was all he could think of on the spot they both thought it suited him though.

  "Let me see your identity forms, pay account... Will also be needing an 8 month probationary period, in which you will be monitored. We are also informed that your friend Mr Voudaville, that’s me, will be helping you find sufficient living quarters and be helping you where and when he can. Ha, I got a mention how nice."

  Echart looked at the time. "Oh shit quick!" He looked about then headed straight off with Fio following behind. "Come on let’s get to the paymasters before it closes, hurry” They made their way as fast they could through the winding streets, Fio walking even faster than he usually did after a scurrying Echart. "No wait this way, um, this is it." He pointed looking back at Fio.

  "I think a celebration is in order I might try and see if I can pick up a couple of bottles of red from my friend on the way back.”

  “Sounds good.” Smiled Fyodor both still hurrying along.

  After their day out getting things done had ended laughter could be heard from outside the house at night. They were drinking, Echart had been doing something he liked to call boogying but Fio was fascinated with these things called video games for about 30seconds after deciding they were not fun as he spent most of his time just trying to learn how to play them. He was also more shocked than fascinated by the tv “how… just what, did you see that?! Oh. I am not sure I can take this..."

  The night progressed into drunkenness “Look at me I’m a train guard!” said Fio standing on the couch with a glass of wine in one hand and a pillow on his head. Echart saluted ecstatically only to throw his hand down exhaustively yet turn sternly to point at Fio and correct him “Potentially” he said red faced.

  They celebrated like this long into the morning until sleep overcame them Fio was now furled over a couch arm and Echart flopped on the floor amongst some pillows. The house began to rumble shaking everything Fio and Echart were both startled for about five seconds after it ended; Echart falling back to sleep but Fio lingering as if this meant something only to slink off the couch onto the floor into sleep.

  Within a few days Fio had found a place it wasn’t hard it was two stories up and on a hill with a view overlooking as much of the sanctuary as possible. He could see about one tenth of its actual size which was a fair amount. Echart bought him some binoculars as a house warming gift and they frequently met. Fio spent most of his time seeing everything he possibly could just anything. Given his interesting background he made a lot of friends easily even though he found himself at odds with most people here they were much more rigid nothing like Echart. Fio would spend entire days just walking, taking trams, he picked up a motor bike and went further and further as far as he could. He thought it might not of been a coincidence he got his task working with trains there were a lot of things he thought suited him one being he got to see the other seven sanctuaries that were scattered about mostly west of his which was called Maezone which he felt didn’t quite suit it at first.

  Fio had a trip planned to go out north east as it was the quickest direction out of the citadel into the grassy plains and beyond he wanted to see what the wilderness was like around here but also something was pulling at him just to get out maybe he felt home sick if that was possible he wasn’t sure and often found himself lost at this thought. The wide open expanse of the dessert was all he could see undulating sand dunes as calm as the breeze that caressed them. He had driven out in a dune buggy but hadn’t driven to far out before he just wanted to get out and walk off into the distance. Making his way back to the buggy he headed further north to the rocky outcrops called Gangaji hills leaving the buggy once more he walked across their earthen floor, they felt ancient and were blanketed by the surrounding desert with thick patches of half dead looking scrub. Moving along a rocky floor then down a sandy bank there it presented itself talking from just beneath the ground. “Thanks for coming.” It lightly boomed muffled by the sand.

  “What do you want with me?!" Fio said as he jumped back, he had forgotten the fear it induced.

  “Oh come come now I am not that scary... how are the devils keeping you? Fyodor are you not out here because you want answers? I can talk to you if you want, but how about I tell you another story once more but this one is a little more vivid it will also possibly answer your next question."

  "Why do you exist?" Fio said only to put two and two together.

  The sand ruptured a little relative to its body mass about the size of a water silo.

  "l am a guardian of sorts Fyodor, the gist of it is: Gods, a guardian of the gods.” Its eye moved from side to side for a bit then back at Fio. “One is good well you know has a heart and the other is forever trying to torment it. I have lost control of these gods.” Fio detected a sigh in his tone of voice. “One… is now trapped in a nasty, nasty place and the other where he is not supposed to be like the world has sort of turned upside down. You may have noticed from when we first met that these gods intercept reality by two shades they often sit on your shoulder right?”

  “Yes! I thought I was going mad.”

  “Well that was me sorry but trust me it was the least I could do; making you see things as they are, well a small glimpse. So, unfortunately one is weaker than they should be at the moment uh has been for about two and a half thousand years or so now which probably seems like a long time for you. Do you have any questions Fio? If not I will continue with my story.”

  Fyodor grimaced, “Continue, explain how you know all these things.”

  “So you have noticed the shades; the things on your shoulders this was the reason I gave you some of my saliva it helped you be much more aware. They are a large part of the power to influence humans. I have failed in keeping these two from behaving so much so that I think they both may have managed to of done the unthinkable.” Its great head turned a little as it said this “they have conspired to kill me and soon. And so I need allies or an ally at least someone I can impart my power to and I think I have chosen them. So that’s me out of the way do you have any more questions? I am of course knowledge infinite, greater than a god well supposed to be.” The behemoth chuckled at this but also sneezed venting a cannon puff size of sand from the ground.

  Fio just stood there with his fingers in his hair, retracting them. “Do you have a name?” he eventually said.

  “You can call me Aberdeen. Would you like to hear my story now?"

  “You mean that wasn’t your story?”

  “No.” Its mouth moved beneath the sand it may have been licking its front teeth, either way any movement from Aberdeen still caused many flinches from Fio.

  Fio sat and listened and when Aberdeen’s voice stopped he came about.

  An e
xplosion occurred sand blasted over Fio and there was the great monsters head. How could such a magnificent beast be asking for his help, its glare alight as it reared a little and boomed a great "rawr!" Fio fainted.

  He awoke to find Aberdeen gone and was lying at the tip of a deep crater there was also another one the same size just across from it. He checked the time and sat there for a while stunned. He ran his hands through the sand unable to think, at which point he solemnly walked back to the buggy and drove back home to a life of which he would live for the next eleven years.

  “All cargo checked and secured ready for departure.” The engine room loud speaker echoed across the sunny docking bay. Fio tore down a cargo latch. “Vox Sanctuary, express, now departing”. It had just come from Hyrule Sanctuary and was on its way through to Vox onto Ru-tyden. Most trains were put together with three sorts of carriages utility, trade, and transport. Fio looking at the estimated and booked cargo as he latched the train together towing in carts with his mech but also adjusting things as need be with small cranes and levers.

  Leaning out of the carriage with the wind in his hair the scenery was always spectacular. The people the food the culture, even just the train stations were a delight. This train was going through a forest by night and Fio sat