The Challenger

by Harlon Banks

  "To think I'd see another Yelkath so soon... It must be my birthday. Is Yakagura that desolate that the last remnants of your clan flees across the ocean?" He smirked tauntingly, his joking words ignored as the woman looked upon him with disregard for his commentary.

  "You have something they want, Wren. I'm here to, hopefully, take it without violence." Her words spoken with calm sincerity. Hand falling back into the shroud of her cloak as she stepped forward towards Wren with that glowing red gaze he'd seen all too happily before.

  "Do I now?" He smirked in anticipation. The eyes of his guest moving to examine the contents of the room around her, books and shelves and chests and containers everywhere littering the vicinity. All types of secrets possibly hidden away and so close for the taking at a glance. However none of this interested her; she did not come to rob this man of his vast treasures. Taking another step forward ever so calmly, she stopped a meter or so away from the table. Her stare so lax yet so sharp in gaze that Wren could feel it upon the back of his neck. Those very same eyes he recalled before from someone else; however the piercing stare of this one behind him, was far colder. Like a hollow beast was stalking him, their gazes locking, her posture ominously relaxed about the situation. Who was she? Such a beauty yet so deadly in conceptual feeling.

  "I wish to spare you of a grim demise; killing elders was never something I were fond of doing. However if need be I will end your story at a moment's notice if you resist." She said all the while looking disinterested in actually grabbing her blade to prove her conviction. Wren couldn't help but chuckle at her, at the situation in its entirety. This was an interesting turn of events, one he couldn't say he never expected. Ever since he'd laid eyes on that young woman from before and sensed her inner demons, he knew all to well they'd come back for her sooner than later. He knew all too well that getting involved with her would also drag him into her secrets. A light shrug, and a welcoming gesture of his arms coupled with a sincere yet shady smile, and he welcomed her to settle in.

  "Come then, Lady of the East. Let us see what your heart desires..."

  The woman merely looked at him with those cursed eyes...

  Just My Two Cents

  The Challenger Chapter Forty-five: Just My Two Cents

  Tap... Tap... Tap...

  Jonath's footsteps echoed in the long, sparsely furnished hallways of the apartment floor as he made his way to Jeremy's apartment; dressed in his usual all black get up with his messenger bag slung over the left shoulder. His eyes halfway closed as he rubbed them with the back of his right hand and his body moving off auto pilot from waking up so early from the long ride back to the city. That was one of the best naps he'd had ever since he woke up in that crystal forest. Such a shame he couldn't have more of those. The trip here was rather pleasantly uneventful: a simple bus ride from the facility to the city followed by another train ride to the Residential District and one small walk to the building. The pass Jeremy had bought him a lot easier to use than he imagined; simply flashing it to the gate guards allowed him free passage to head back when he wanted on the appointed days.

  Stopping in front of the door, Jonath stared at the dark-colored wood that made up it. His ghostly pale eyes looking at a loss as if he zoned out momentarily before quickly snapping out of it. Looking down as gloved hands fumbled about for the keys, muttering a curse word when he couldn't find it right off the bat. Fuck it, guess he's knocking. Raising his left hand up he'd gently strum a tune with the back of his hand across the wood. A pause after doing so for a few seconds as he awaited a response or the door opening; hopefully the old guy was home otherwise this would be a real headache. When no response came Jonath deadpanned off to the side and buried his hands in his palms annoyed. He wanted to lay down and rest for another hour or so in his own bed already, open up!

  He strummed another beat across the door, a little louder this time.

  No response.

  "You've got to be fucking kidding me?" Jonath exhaled resting his forehead against the cold wood of the door. This guy either wasn't home or he was all the way in the back and couldn't hear him. If only Jonath had remembered where his fucking key was. Probably back at the dorm room somewhere among the sheets of that bed of his, how inconvenient. He was about to abandon the idea of politely entertaining his knocking with a series of beats for a more direct police styled banging, when the door finally was heard unlocking and opening up. Jeremy's old appearance gracing Jonath's pale eyes as the former scoffed and turned away gesturing for him to enter. The geezer wearing a simple dark-colored bathrobe and slippers.

  "You have terrible taste in musical beats, boy." The old man ridiculed, causing the amnesic to nonchalantly shrug as he stepped in. The door clicking shut followed by the locking of it as he moved to settle on the couch. The curtains pulled back on the sliding door to the patio, washing the dark room in moonlight. Jonath never understood why Jeremy liked sitting in the dark so much. He didn't give the impression he was trying to save electricity or anything of the like. Exhaling still sleepy from waking up so early, he rested the back of his head against the spine of the couch. Jeremy in the kitchen rummaging about making the both of them something to drink.

  "Feels so good to be back... Even if I've only been gone a few days." Jonath said with a light tone.

  "So kid, how's the place so far?" The old man asked from the kitchen, two tall glasses spotless and clear on the counter before him. "Also you old enough to drink wine? You seem like it but I don't want to jump the gun hehehehe." He said popping the cap off a rather expensive looking bottle of red wine. Jonath closing his eyes, taking a moment to gather himself and his thoughts before responding.

  "It's alright, I guess. We got something of a job and ranking system to get some extra money and whatnot for ourselves." He paused opening one eye and tilting his head so that eye could see Jeremy. "Also I'm good on the wine. If you have some regular juice or something that'll be fine, thanks."

  "Cranberry juice it is then for you." Jeremy shrugged as the noise of the glasses being filled with liquid echoed through the air. "You said something about a job system? Back at it already are we eh?" Jeremy smirked filling one glass with red wine and the other with juice before walking towards Jonath. That noticeable limp to his step clear as always to the young man. He wondered if he should ever ask what happened to his leg sometime. The way he limped didn't look as if it came from old age but rather an injury he obtained some time ago. Whatever, Jonath was thinking about the wrong stuff now. Scooting over after taking the glass and giving Jeremy some space on the couch as the old man continued to talk.

  "Thought that contract with the pretty Yelkath girl traumatized you a bit?" Jeremy teased with a snort.

  Jonath side-eyed the old guy with a look of irritation. Jeremy chuckling lightly that his joke struck a nerve before taking a sip from his wine and setting it on the glass table. Taking a sip of his own juice before doing the same, he placed it down on the table and hunched forward staring at the red liquid in thought. Liariana flashed through his mind again when Jeremy mentioned her. He wondered why she did some of the things she did every time he thought about her. Brushing off thinking about her too much as she wasn't important now, Jonath cleared his throat to answer Jeremy. A small nod as he continued to stare at his cup with arms resting on legs and head lowered.

  "Yeah... It's something called an E-Chip installed in our phones that gives us access to something akin to a virtual job board. We have rankings and labels that give us capacity to take higher level jobs depending on our scores. The curator wants us to show we aren't just violent anomalies by being Nightborn and that we can actually be beneficial to society. This is her way of achieving that goal. I think she wants us to be better than the Mercenary Group despite all her talk." He trailed off with a deep inhale and exhale before leaning back on the couch again. Jeremy scratching his scraggly beard with dark fingers as he nodded intrigued by it all. This certainly was what he had hoped to happen when he sent Jonath, but the
fact it was sounding so well surpassed even his standards. He expected Jonath to tell him a riot had broken out or something in jest.

  "Is that right huh?" The man asked rhetorically while reaching to drink from his glass again. "Meet any interesting Nightborn yet? I hear that place takes them in from all over the continent." Jeremy's words sounded genuinely curious. The man giving the amnesic his full attention and awaited his story.

  Jonath actually chuckled in exasperation at the question. This old guy, if only he could have seen some of the things Jonath had seen. Eyes closed as he shook his head while laughing under his breath, it took Jonath a few seconds to collect himself. Where to begin, even. He didn't know what parts were worth mentioning and what parts weren't all that. He figured he'd start somewhere easy to follow, he guessed.

  "Interesting is an understatement. There's some people there that make me look like a failure of the highest caliber." He scratched the back of his head in slight annoyance now. Hands running through spiky platinum silver bangs and strands as he huffed with underwhelming eyes. "One guy had hellfire powers and had no problem just spewing those flames everywhere in large waves or even coating himself in them without any sort of fatigue. These twins there could summon an entire armory of swords or guns to use. This girl had powers that just screamed she'd probably be one of the most dangerous assassins ever if she put her mind to it. Then there's me..." He eye rolled leaning back on the couch again and staring at the ceiling lackluster.

  "The guy who can't do anything on the same level as that. At least not of his own will.." Jonath corrected himself when he remembered that strange transformation he had against Liariana back at the ruins. If only he could find out how he awakened that power; that would be the biggest help he would have in remembering himself. It would also alleviate the feeling that he was inferior to every other Nightborn he'd met to this day.

  "Pretty sure I'm stronger than you." Lee's words made Jonath grit his teeth in annoyance as they replayed in his head.

  Jeremy observed Jonath's sudden shift in tone and overall body language when he compared himself to the other Nightborn he'd met. A passing second or so of quiet before he decided to be a good guy and comfort the kid. Looking up at the ceiling fan while scratching his beard as he responded.

  "Well odds are none of the other Nightborn suffer from the inability to remember how to use their powers. I wouldn't be so hard on myself if I were you. Who knows you might actually be the strongest of the entire bunch once you get out and remember yourself a bit more." He shrugged lowering his hand back to the glass to take another satisfying sip. Jonath taking a gander over at him with eyes that showed both vague surprise and slight gratitude shortly after. Jeremy wasn't a bad guy.

  Jonath suddenly widened his eyes and perked up in his seat upon remembering something. Adjusting himself on the couch and turning a bit to better see Jeremy.

  "Oh right!" His sudden outburst made the old guy tilt his head lost. The two making eye contact as Jonath began to tell Jeremy about the summoning crest conversation he had with Kayda as well as the werewolf scroll he'd been gifted by Wren. This entire time he managed to make it look as if the symbols he saw on the scroll had no ties to what he saw in the forest upon his awakening. Jeremy still didn't need to know that... As he explained it all Jeremy seemed more and more interested in his talking about the Kayda girl over the real meat of the topic Jonath was trying to get across. Truth be told Jeremy only remembered about half what came out Jonath's mouth. A sly smirk creeping across withered features before he chuckled and nudged a suddenly confused Jonath in the arm.

  "Is this Kayda girl cute? You trying to get her to notice you or something kid? Hehehehe..." He snickered as if he already knew Jonath had a crush on her. "She sounds cute with how you described her. Go get yourself a girlfriend eh? Ahahahaha!"

  Jonath blinked once, and then his entire face flattened into the most profound deadpan ever. This guy really just ignore most of what he said to focus on him talking about Kayda. His description of her wasn't even that detailed. It was a bare bones one just so he could get a vague image of what he were describing.

  "Are you serious? Are we really doing this now?" He sighed deeply shaking his head and now finding his entire enthusiasm (or whatever it was he felt about the topic) dead. Closing his eyes and resting the back of his head over the spine of the couch in annoyance. Jeremy bursting out into a light laughter and finishing off his drink before setting the glass back down on the coffee table.

  "I joke I joke kid. Regardless the only thing I could tell you is to go talk to Wren again. He gave you the scroll and probably knew you lacked a summoning crest or whatever. No doubt he did it so you'd come back and talk to him. I wager he enjoys your company."

  When Jeremy said this Jonath opened his left eye and slightly peered over at him again. His visage void of any emotion yet his gaze hinted that he didn't want to hear that now. Looking back at the ceiling next without responding, the memories of his rather cryptic encounters earlier with that old man of the Group replayed in his head. Wren may have liked playing with Jonath's mind with his cryptic wordings and half-truths, but the feeling sure as hell wasn't returned. There was one particular reason though above all else that made Jonath not want to go visit the man again, even though it was inevitable sooner or later.

  Wren wasn't going to be straight up with Jonath unless he came clean with every secret he had. The question only remained though, did Wren already know about his secrets from the get go? Leaning forward with hands on his knees, Jonath took a deep breath and then yawned without answering. Deep down he'd already decided to come to terms with going to meet the old guy again. Not now though, he didn't want to think about it anymore.

  Jonath had wanted to also tell Jeremy about the job offer Min had given him, but after some thought decided against it. If he needed counseling advice on every big decision he made he'd never get anywhere on his own. He'd do what he thought was best for himself, he'd go. Besides, he didn't want to talk or think about one of the people he knew was going to be on the team with him.

  Standing up after downing the last of his juice, Jonath rolled his shoulders and loosened his muscles. Shooting a glance down at the old man and moving to step past him and head to his room. Jeremy not saying anything and just letting him by. The passing silence between them spoke a thousand words to the both of them. Their relationship an oddly compatible one despite having never known each other until recently. Jonath's door was heard opening and closing, Jeremy sitting alone in the living room as he finished off his own wine and moved to collect the glasses. A soft, tired exhale leaving his lips; he was still sleepy himself it seemed. Didn't help that brat stalled his resting with his terrible beat boxing against the door.

  Jonath sprawled out across his bed with a hefty breath. This felt so good, being in his own, fluffy bed compared to that metal abomination back at the barracks. The darkness of the room feeling luxurious to his mind, lulling him to sleep. Raising his right arm in front of his face to twitch his fingers before truly going to sleep, Jonath checked for any more numbness. There wasn't much, if any, left within his bones and muscles. Seemed the damage those strange flames Liariana had used on him finally healed away. Smiling a bit relieved, he let his arm fall back to the bed and closed his eyes relaxing completely. This was a good day so far; the talk with Jeremy was relaxing and he got to sleep a little longer.

  Before he knew it Jonath had already drifted off into sleep. Sometime later he was awoken by Jeremy knocking on his door rather obnoxiously and then just opening the door to walk in. The young man groaning as he turned in bed to face the door, groggy eyes glaring annoyed at the old guy.

  "You've been sleep long enough kid. Go out and handle your business we don't waste time in this here household." Jeremy huffed standing in the doorway dressed up in a black suit with a brief case tightly held in his left. Jonath perking up when he finally registered the old man's attire. Raising up to sit upright and pull his feet to the floor while s
cratching his head and coughing a moment.

  "Why are you all dressed up?" He asked with one eye open as his hands brushed away the silver bangs that draped over his forehead only for them to fall back into place rather annoyingly. He should get a haircut one of these days...

  "I'm going somewhere rather important to handle some business. That's all ya need to know kid." Jeremy replied with a dismissive tone before gesturing with his head to the door. "Now come on you still got all your clothes on chop chop I have to lock up the house."