by C. B. Stone
“We have to be super careful, Jaelynn,” I caution, coming off more forcefully than intended. “Don’t touch anything, you hear me?”
Jaelynn only rolls her eyes. “You talk to me like I don’t already know the routine.”
Her irritation is palpable, but we’ve never walked into a town in full daylight thus far, and it’s still hard for us not to touch anything. I’m warning her partially for her own good, but also to help remind myself too.
We continue walking in silence, and as we draw closer, we can see this town is much bigger than any we’ve come across on our journey up until now. I honestly had no idea larger cities existed this far inland, and part of me was concerned maybe we got turned around and headed straight back in the Ministry’s backyard. I relax somewhat though, when I realize the buildings and roads aren’t familiar.
“Wow,” Jaelynn remarks as we reach the first outcropping of homes. “These homes are nicer than I thought they’d be this far inland.”
“Me too,” I reply. “I was always told that the further inland we got away from the sea, the more deserted and desolate things became.”
Jaelynn nods, her forehead crinkling. “Yeah, that’s what I was always told too. I wonder how they survive on their own all the way out here?”
We walk on, passing large homes and buildings. But I notice the hustle and bustle that should be typical of a city this size is missing. There are no shops opened up, nobody hawking their wares, and none of the foot traffic you’d expect to see in such a large city. Birds cry out overhead, but that seems to be the only noise to be heard. The silence around us is eerie, and that’s when I suddenly know the answer to her question.
“They don’t.”
“What do you mean?” Jaelynn asks, glancing my way and cocking her head to one side.
“There’s no one in these houses Jaelynn. They’re gone. It’s empty. The whole city is empty.”
She scoffs. “You don’t know that. Maybe they’re just sleeping, it’s still early,” she argues, biting her lip as she examines one of the houses for herself.
The home is large, larger than most of the ones we’d seen before, but it’s run down. I can see in through the windows, and there is no sign of life, no light, nothing coming from inside of it. The stillness of the land around us makes it feel even more dead than any of the other places we’ve visited so far.
“Maybe we should stop here?” Jaelynn asks.
I don’t say anything and I don’t stop walking. The city is beckoning me. I know we should stop to rest, but I have to know- have to see- are the inhabitants of this entire city gone? Maybe only some of the people are?
“Noah, where are you going?” Jaelynn puffs, running to catch up to me after peeking in the window of the big empty house. “I thought we have to be careful.”
“We do,” I say. “And we will be. But I have to see something.”
Jaelynn doesn’t argue. Perhaps her own curiosity is getting the best of her, I don’t know. We continue walking in silence together, until we get to the city center.
Empty. Deserted.
But maybe not entirely. I cock my head and turn in a circle. Jaelynn does the same, as though she’s feeling the same thing I feel.
Unlike the homes and buildings on the outskirts of the town, there is something here in the center of the city. There is a current of life and a sense of breathing around us. I search the perimeter of the empty square and find a small piece of bread lying in the dirt in the doorway leading to a small shop that looks as empty as the square we are standing in. Lifting it to my nose, I sniff. Jaelynn makes a face indicating how grossed out she is, but I bite off a piece anyway.
My suspicions are confirmed. “It’s fresh,” I tell her. “Fresh bread doesn’t just fall from the sky.”
Jaelynn shrugs. “Well, you never know when it comes to us,” she mumbles.
I shoot her a look, raising a brow, and she smiles as though she didn’t say anything at all. She can be so irreverent and infuriating at times.
“There are people here. I can feel it. The question is- where are they now?”
I look out and around the square, seeing nothing but emptiness and utter stillness. This is the first time I’ve ever actively gone looking for other people. Usually it’s best not to draw attention to the two of us, but standing in a deserted city that I know isn’t deserted just feels odd. A large city so far away from the rest of civilization, a city I’d never heard of before... I shake my head, brow furrowing as I study the landscape around us.
“Maybe they don’t want to be found,” suggests Jaelynn. I turn to look her way. Guess it’s my turn to be confused now. I lift a brow, my expression skeptical. “Why do you say that?”
She shrugs again, scrunching up her face in a way that’s almost unbearably cute. I hide a smile. “Well, you and I don’t want to be found, perhaps there are others who don’t either. They may have their reasons. I’m sure we don’t have the monopoly on a desire not to be discovered.”
I glance around again. “What could their reasons be?”
Jaelynn only shrugs, and though my curiosity is raging, I know there’s a nugget of truth in her words. I know we can’t be the only people in the world trying to stay below the radar of the Ministry and their guards. I’m sure there are plenty of people who would rather the Ministry not know their whereabouts.
I’m all set to give in and take shelter in one of the supposedly empty houses within the city when a muffled sound draws our attention. It’s furtive, but unmistakably a sound.
“What was that?” I ask, turning in the direction of the noise, but seeing no one.
“It sounded like someone coughed or something,” Jaelynn says in a hushed voice, turning with me.
More coughing ensues. Then some muffled whispers.
“Hello?” I call out, walking toward the run-down shack the sound appears to be originating from. “Is anyone there?”
“Please leave us alone,” a small voice pipes up from the cellar below the building. The coughing only gets worse.
“We aren’t here to hurt you, we promise,” I say, kneeling down to the door. There’s a small hole I can barely see through. Looking closer, I can see a tiny eye peering back out at me.
“Who are you? We haven’t seen you here before,” the voice answers back.
“My name is Noah,” I offer, “and this is my friend, Jaelynn. We’re travelers and just happened upon your city, looking for some shelter to rest.”
The coughing progresses to a series of wet, raspy, hacking noises, making me cringe. It sounds painful, and not at all good.
“Are you sick?” I ask, when no reply is forthcoming.
“No, but my brother is,” the voice says. “He’s been coughing for days, and he’s not getting any better.”
“It sounds serious,” I say. “Is there anything we can get for you?”
The creaking of the door opening startles both me and Jaelynn, and when a tiny little head pops out, I understand why they are so afraid. I see nothing but children hiding in the cellar. Glancing further inside the interior, searching for their parents, all I see are faces of the extremely young. Much too young to be on their own.
“Have you seen our parents?” a voice from the back pipes up.
I squint, trying to see better in the dimness. “Your parents?” I ask. “No, I’m afraid we haven’t seen anybody of late. Where are they?”
“They went out to look for someone, but they’d didn’t say who.”
I feel Jaelynn step closer behind me. “All of your parents?” she asks.
Another kid pipes up from the cellar. “Not all of them, there are still some adults around. People who couldn’t go off with the others. Some who stayed behind and are meant to protect us. Is that what you two are? Protectors?”
I shake my head. “Not exactly, but we are happy to help any way we can.”
The child with the tiny voice speaks again. “Can you bring us food, Mister? The Protectors haven’t
been here yet today and we’re starving.”
Frowning inwardly, but keeping my expression neutral, I reach into my bag, and Jaelynn does as well. We bring out everything we have between the two of us and hand it to the children. After all, we can always make more.
“So what are these Protectors protecting you from?” Jaelynn asks casually, voicing the same question that’s been stirring in the back of my mind.
“War,” one of the older boys comments.
A girl nearby slaps him in the arm and tells him to be quiet. “We’re not supposed to talk about it around the younger ones though. It scares them.”
“War?” I ask, feeling more befuddled by the moment. I don’t recall seeing any war going on, the city was virtually empty.
“Uh huh. My mom said that our saviors are finally here, and that they needed to find them and protect them,” a little girl with a curly mop of red hair and a bright smile says. “My name is Jessamine, by the way. But you can just call me Jess.”
“Nice to meet you, Jess,” Jaelynn says with a smile. “I’m Jaelynn. Sounds like we have similar sounding names.”
Jess glances over at Jaelynn and smiles. “You’re very pretty,” she quips.
“Why thank you,” Jaelynn laughs, blushing a little.
“Is he your boyfriend?” Jess asks, her grin turning mischievous. I feel my own cheeks start to burn, and I keep my gaze down, avoiding Jaelynn’s. I have no idea how to answer such a question, so I let her do it.
“Uhhh no, he’s just a friend.”
Just a friend, I repeat in my head, unable to avoid a sting of disappointment. It’s better that way, I remind myself.
I try to focus on what the kids are saying, and as I look over at Jaelynn, she gives me a sideways glance indicating she’s thinking the same thing as me. These kids, they’re talking about the two of us. Their parents are out searching for us. I know I’ve said the revolution has already started, but I honestly didn’t realize word had already spread so quickly. Especially to a town like this, so far away from the Ministry and the Valley.
“Where did they go to look for these saviors?” I ask, keeping my tone light.
“We don’t know,” Jess answers, munching down on the last of the apple we’d given to her. “But the others would know.”
“The Protectors, you mean?” I ask, trying to keep it all straight.
The little girl nods. “But not just them. There’s a whole bunch of us here, hiding.”
I feel the hairs on the back of my neck rise suddenly, and I’m overcome with the sensation of being watched. Standing up slowly, I hear footsteps behind me, and they are much too heavy to be Jaelynn’s.
“Don’t move,” a gruff male voice says. “Neither of you.”
I do as I’m told, holding my hands over my head to show I lack a weapon. From the corner of my eye, I can see Jaelynn follow suit, and let out a tiny breath of relief.
“Who are you?” the voice barks.
I only have a split second to decide if I should lie about our identities or not, but it’s Jaelynn who takes the lead and answers.
“We’re just travelers from the valley, sir. We mean you no harm.”
“From the valley, eh? You came an awfully long way if that’s the case. What brings you all the way out here to our city? Most of your kind doesn’t even know about us.”
I can’t deny that. I certainly had no idea a town this large was out this way. “Until we stumbled across your city, we didn’t know you existed.”
Jaelynn nods her head in agreement. “It’s true. That’s why we came to investigate, I had no idea there was another location as large as the City.”
To most people, Silvah City that houses the Ministry and what passes for civilization in this barren and forsaken world is simply known as ‘the City’, just as Silogh Valley is known as ‘the Valley’. The idea that lands exist outside their enclave is completely new to us. The fact that it’s a city that rivals Silvah City in size is most definitely not common knowledge among the people.
“Why are you so far away from home then?” the voice asks.
I really want to turn around and at least face the man, look him in the eyes, but I’m afraid that because he’s holding a weapon, any sudden movements might be perceived as a threat. Which could escalate things very quickly, and likely very tragically.
“Like she said, we’re travelers. We have nowhere to go, nowhere to be. We just made it this far by mistake, that’s all,” I say, keeping my tone even.
“But how did you survive the traveling? The land is barren and there’s no water out there.” The man’s voice is suspicious, and I can hear his confusion.
I silently sigh. That’s a hard question to answer. To tell him we make our own food and water, well that will give away everything and lead us to even harder questions I don’t really want to answer. But seems as though we’re stuck. I look over at Jaelynn, who shrugs her shoulders. It’s her that finally turns around first.
“If you let us move about, we can show you.” Her voice is cautious as she faces the man.
“Jaelynn, no,” I say, still unsure as to whether I should face the man or not.
When I see Jaelynn isn’t being harmed, I decide to turn around too, very slowly. I find myself staring into the watery eyes of a frail old man with a scraggly beard covering most of his face. No weapon. His voice sounds much harsher and more dangerous than he looks.
“Noah, what other choice do we have? Besides, these are people who may be able to help us.”
“Help you?” The man scratches his beard. Seeing his sunken and sallow face somehow made his voice sound less harsh and dangerous.
“And in return, we can help you,” she says.
“I’m listening,” the man responds.
Jaelynn licks her lips and looks over to me for approval. I don’t see any way out of our current predicament, and if what the kids were saying is true, it’s possible these people might be able to help us.
Even though I’ve seen it happen time and time again, it’s still something I’ve never gotten used to- the way things just seem to fall into place at just the right time. The guiding force that led us here, to a place where people desperately need us. Maybe this was our mission after all. I nod my head, silently urging her to continue.
“The children spoke of people heading out to look for some saviors?”
The man glares down at the children with a sigh, but doesn’t answer. The look on his face is answer enough.
“I believe we may be those saviors you’re looking for,” Jaelynn says, meeting the man’s gaze squarely.
III
JAELYNN
The three of us walk back inside the small run-down shack, but the man insists on leaving the kids sheltered below in the cellar. He closes it back up, the coughing still going strong. I ask about it, but the man provides no answers. He also never provides his name.
“May I ask your name, sir?” I inquire as soon as the three of us sit down at a table.
“Abe,” the man says, lowering himself down with a groan, and shifting to get as comfortable as he can.
I wonder if this is his home, it appears that way. “And do you live here, Abe?” I push.
“I do,” is all he says.
He isn’t one for small talk, that’s for sure. I smile at him, knowing that often times my friendly demeanor can warm up most anybody. It’s always been something I’ve used to my advantage. Probably more times than I can count. Abe though, looks like he’s going to be more difficult than some, and is having none of it. Ultimately, I decide he doesn’t appear dangerous, and doesn’t seem to want a confrontation any more than Noah and I do. We just want information, which he seems to want as well.
“Abe... may I ask why your people are heading out to search for these saviors?”
The grizzled old man reaches for a pitcher of unknown liquid, along with some glasses sitting on the edge of the table. He offers a glass to me, but as it passes my way, the foul, acrid stench
stings my nose and makes my eyes water. I try to prevent the look of disgust creeping on my face, and mutely shake my head. Abe laughs, a dry, creaking sound and pours himself a glass of the brown fluid, tipping it in my direction.
“You first,” he says. “You mentioned being the saviors we’re looking for. Why would you think that could possibly be you?”
I look over at Noah who also turned down the foul smelling brew. Abe drinks up, draining his glass in no time at all.
“Well, we’ve been given some useful- gifts,” I offer carefully. “And those gifts seem to be in demand around these parts.”
Noah glances my way with a smile and a nod that says he’s impressed with my wording. I try not to scowl in irritation. I know Noah has been worried about me giving away too much information, but I’m not stupid. I know how to draw people into conversation, whilst choosing my own words carefully.
Though I may be young, I’m certainly not dumb, and I know that telling too much, too soon, to the wrong people can spell real trouble for us. Somehow though, I just have a feeling that this is exactly where we need to be. I think that these are people we are meant to help, and who are going to help us. There’s no reason for me to think any such thing, of course, it’s just a hunch. Which is why I’m choosing what to say carefully. Just in case. I resist an urge to stick my tongue out at Noah, and keep my gaze trained on the old man in front of me.
“What type of gifts?” Abe asks, raising an eyebrow in my direction.
“No,” I shake my head. “I gave you some information. Now it’s your turn.”
Noah’s mouth falls open, but he closes it quickly. I stifle a grin that pulls at the corners of my lips as I imagine him having to pick his jaw up off the floor.
The old man groans, but nods good-naturedly and complies. “Miserly little piece of information that was,” he grumbles. “But fine. We heard stories, nothing concrete, of two people challenging the Ministry. And our people went searching for them. Your turn. What gifts do you have that you think can help us?”
