by Jamie Gray
Kadence and Adrian quickly leapt to their feet. Kadence secured a wide stance as Adrian charged towards him. Suddenly, there were two, three, four different Adrians all charging at him. He groaned. More mind manipulation, courtesy of Kadence. Three had to be illusions, but he couldn't tell which one. Electricity began to spark from every one of the Adrian's fingertips, and before Daymian knew it, a dozen lightning bolts exploded towards him. With a panicked mind, he threw both his arms up, moving layers of shadows and darkness to block his way as he closed his hands to fists, solidifying the matter. However, his shield didn't hold long, as he was launched into the air and came slamming down against the concrete street. His back and shoulders ached of pain. They were scraped and bleeding. He could not get his body to sit up. It was hard enough to breathe with his heart racing and his chest threatening to crush his lungs as everything grew tight and stiff. He blinked his eyes open to see Kadence and Adrian standing over him like giants. He exhaled loudly, shutting his eyes again as he longed for a warm cushiony bed to rest on instead of lying there on that cold pavement. He winced as he felt two hands grab hold of his sensitive shoulders and pull him up to sit upright. He reopened his eyes to see Kadence standing before him, her arms crossed as she stared daggers down at him. Adrian was surely standing behind him to make sure he couldn't escape, but he didn't think he would be able to anyway with the sore state he was in. At least not yet. He met Kadences looming expression, keeping his face neutral as he waited for her to speak.
"What do you want from us?" she finally asked, her voice harsh and direct.
Daymian gave a silent exhale as he blinked slowly, knowing full well he would not be answering any of her questions.
She waited a moment, then looked up to Adrian, who still stood as a guard behind Daymian. He must have nodded to her because she restagered her stance and closed her eyes. Daymian knew precisely what she was planning to do, and he immediately put up his wall, shielding his thoughts from her clawing reach. A few seconds passed, and Kadences eyes were still closed, and his head began to hurt. It throbbed wildly. She was trying to slam her way through. No, he couldn't let her in, he had to hold firm. He was taught how to do this, he was taught how to resist such measures and attacks. He didn’t have the training like, say Mara, but he knew he had it in him to resist, even if he had never done it successfully before. Everything hurt, his entire body screamed at him, begging him to release it, and let the pain stop. He was sure his whole face had turned red by now as the pain started to burn, as though a sizzling red hot piece of iron had been held against his forehead. Sweat began dripping down his face as a few high pitched grunts escaped his mouth. Eventually, he couldn't hold it in anymore as he let out a blood curdling scream as his walls were torn down. He slumped down, resting his elbows on his knees, completely exhausted. Heavy breaths escaped his mouth as he felt strange tingles against the inside of his skull, where he was sure Kadence was rummaging around.
In a few short moments, Kadence reopened her eyes as the tingling had stopped.
"What did you find?" Adrian asked from behind him.
"Lexi," she quickly responded.
"What?"
"His sister… Mara. She's here, and she's going to kill Lexi," Kadence explained anxiously.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. Mara said that Lexi is their target."
"Target?"
"Yes. They're both some type of assassin. And not only that, but he is a Void. He’s from the Umbrium Capital."
"Their royalty?"
Daymian hung his head lower. He screwed up bad. Kadence tore through his mind, having free rein to look over any of his memories and thoughts.
"Yes," she replied with a loud exhale.
He could hear Adrian shifting his feet nervously along the concrete behind him. "Kadence, what if more people come for them. If their royalty, you can bet someone is going to notice them missing. We'll be screwed!" he warned.
She slowly shook her head at him. "No, we won't. Once we have Lexi back on our side, it won't matter who they send."
"So, what do we do now?"
"We protect her," she replied sternly, glancing at Daymian as if she wanted to add, 'from people like you.'
Daymian's eyes widened as he noticed Kadences shadow had spread over him. He smirked at the sound of Kadence and Adrian both yelping in surprise as he descended into the shadow, escaping their incompetent clutches. It was almost laughable… almost.
Chapter 12
Later that day, Lexi and Brooke went to watch Lanie's street performance, but Brooke had insisted that they bring Kadence and Adrian with them. Lexi wanted to tell her that it wasn’t a good idea, but she was far from prepared to explain why. She knew her sister would have questions if she started acting strange like that. She also hadn’t told anyone about her sore head, so she would have to stick it out for Brooke's sake, and try to act natural. Lexi stayed silent the entire drive over. She was driving, so it was easy to pretend like she was too focused on the road to join in on the conversation, but she would be lying if she said she wasn't the slightest bit interested in what they were talking about in the back two seats. She had heard Kadence and Adrian mumbling to each other, but couldn’t make out any of the words. Although, when Brooke turned around to ask them what they were talking about, they went on to explain that their neighbor had been murdered. Lexi kept her mouth shut. She couldn’t let on that she already knew. It was hard enough when her parents stopped her at the door that morning, warning her to be careful and to be back by three-o’clock. She figured they probably hadn't wanted to scare her or Brooke, but there were two police cars parked across the road, right in front of Kadence and Adrian's house. Surely they would have noticed sooner or later. Perhaps they were still processing it all, and would discuss it with them once they had their composure back in line.
Kadence and Adrian went on to explain how they told the police they hadn't seen anything. And that the murderer must have moved too fast for them to see. More lies, Lexi thought breathing deeply to keep her composer. Still, she kept quiet. She couldn’t argue with them out of risk of them finding out she was there, watching them. She didn’t want them to know. If they knew, then they would only try to convince her it was Daymian. They would manipulate her further, trying to get her back onto their side. She didn’t want to pick sides. She fought for her own freedom to choose and decide without influence. Her ideals of trust had blurred together, as she now looked at everyone warily. Everyone but Brooke. Brooke was the only one she knew she could trust not to betray her. Though Lexi feared her reaction to learning everything that she was. Would she react similarly to her. Would she cut herself off from her? Would she view her as some freak or a liar? She never wanted to find out. She couldn’t lose Brooke too. Her little sister was kind and gentle; the yin to her hang. And she never wanted to lose that.
Brooke was quick to ask her long list of questions, speaking at a wild pace as her entire body shook of fear and worry. It didn’t take her long to begin yelling her words. Brooke tried to ask Lexi what she thought, but she merely shrugged, trying her best to stay calm and not tape her sisters mouth shut from all her screaming. Her head was still pounding from the day before. She had never experienced a hangover before, but based on the vivid descriptions she'd heard over the years, this is how she would imagine it to feel. Everything felt terrible. The world around her was so much worse to look at, nevermind exist in. She had no interest in joining in on the conversation as she kept her focus glued to the road.
It only took them about five minutes, with Brookes' flustered directions, to reach the street corner where Lanie was performing. Beside her was a small hat store, with outside displays of a mix of modern and exotic hats. Although they hardly compared in delight when placed beside Lanie. A large crowd of people had gathered around her, watching as she danced to a song she was simultaneously playing on a violin. She held the bottom of the instrument against her chin while the bow, she held in her hand, glided up and down its
delicate strings. As she played, her feet danced as if they were their own entity.
Lexi parked the car on the curb across the street, and lowered her window to look out at the performance. Brooke practically leaped from the vehicle, and as soon as her passenger door slammed shut, she locked each of the car doors with the master controls, trapping Kadence and Adrian in there with her. Brooke’s focus was too drawn to Lanie's performance to notice any of Lexi's shenanigans as she walked up to her sister's open window. "You coming?"
"Yeah. We'll meet you there in a second," Lexi replied, forcing her smile.
Brooke grinned, whorling back around to sprint across the road and join the circle of audience members.
Lexi’s expression stiffened as she looked out the windshield with a darkened expression, her hands still gripping the steering wheel.
"Who is this girl?" Kadence quickly asked, leaning in between the two front seats from her spot behind the driver's seat.
Lexi shook her head as she scoffed. "Is that seriously the first question you think to ask me right now?" She almost got out of the car right then and there, but something told her to stay, and talk to them. She had given Daymian a chance, and after last night, she believed that her friends deserved the same treatment.
"Yes," Kadence replied. "She appears out of nowhere, clearly coming from Arespea, and is suddenly all over Brooke. And just when all of this is happening-”
“What is happening exactly? What happened to us?” Lexi barked, trying her best not to look back at them. She needed to hold firm, be strong.
Neither of them answered.
Lexi’s expression softened, as she looked up to the mirror at the top of her windshield. Tears pressed against her eyes, and her face turned pink as she laid her gaze on her friends. The people who had been with her through thick and thin, but in the end decided to keep her in the dark. “Why didn’t you tell me?” she asked softly.
There was a long pause. Adrian and Kadence didn’t look at each other, only at their shoes at the floor of the car. Lexi’s face only burned hotter with every passing moment. Moments that only proved to her that they still didn’t trust her. She hung her head, looking down at her hands as she sucked in her snot and pressed her lips together. A moment passed, but her head darted up as she heard Kadence begin speaking.
“Adrian and I came here as refugees,” she quietly began, speaking just below her breath as she kept her head angled at her feet. “Our parents didn’t drop us off at an orphanage, or die in some car accident. When the oncoming war in Arespea reached our cities and raided our homes, Adrian and I were forced to flee.” She slowly began raising her voice as her tone became harsh. “I have an older brother. An older brother who was my role model. He was everything I wanted to be and more… as you are to Brooke,” she paused, looking up as she met Lexi’s gaze in the mirror above the windshield. Both their faces had started to turn red as drops of tears wetted Kadences cheeks. “Now how do you think Brooke would feel if one day a platoon of armed soldiers appeared at your doorstep demanding you be taken to fight a war you never believed in… and then your parents pushed you out the door, just to make a profit.”
Lexi couldn’t tell if her heart was racing, or had stopped beating all together. She had forgotten to breathe, and her stomach was turning and twisting with every word her friend spoke. A part of her wanted to tell Kadence to stop, but it was like she had forgotten how to talk. All she could stand to do was listen.
“It was Dark Elements that took my brother from me,” Kadence continued with a wobbling voice. “It was Dark Elements that raided Adrians village, tearing it to shreds. Dark Elements are the ones who began the war, who dominate and destroy everything they touch.”
A burning tear slid down Lexi’s cheek as she finally understood. “And when I touched Daymian-”
“I worried he would destroy you too,” Kadence finished, giving a slight nod as tears continued to flow down her cheeks and drip down her neck.
Lexi let out a long exhale. Her limbs were tingling as her throat burned when she swallowed. She had no idea Kadence and Adrian had been through so much. She was so angry with them for not telling her the truth, and now a part of her wished she’d never been told. She felt numb. She could hardly think, hardly process what had been told to her. She had always thought Kadence and Adrian to be one way, to be the people she had met freshman year, but it had become evidently clear that was not the case. She felt her chest tighten as it became exponentially harder to breathe. “I need some air,” she suddenly breathed out, tears falling from her eyes as she looked down at the master controls, unlocking the doors as she swiftly stepped out of the car. As she waved the door closed behind her, she couldn’t bear to look back at Kadence and Adrian. She let out another breath, her hands shaking at her sides as she stuffed them into her skirt pockets and quickly walked across the street.
As Lexi joined the crowd, moving to stand next to Brooke at the front, she tried to get her mind off the upsetting conversation she’d just had.
Lanie had begun her next act. She spun around to have her back to the audience as she placed a stacked pile of, no less than ten books, upon her head. As she balanced the stack atop her head, she began to softly play the violin in her hand. A sad emotional song emitted from the delicate instrument, spreading into the audience. Her violin playing was beautiful, so entrancing that it enraptured Lexi as she elegantly moved her bow arm up and down. However, the relaxing violin song she played started to quiet and quickly came to a hush. The song then abruptly bursted up in energy and volume, in a sequence of spins and jumps to face the audience once again. She had a giant, delighted smile across her face, genuinely showing her love and joy for the art as she began to dance. She was miraculously able to continue balancing the books upon her head as she danced and played her violin with ease. Lexi’s jaw dropped to the concrete as the rest of the audience cheered. Lanie continued on with her incredibly fast-paced violin song as she continued to dance along to the melody. The young girl couldn't be any older than Brooke, and yet she was playing one of the most strenuous instruments and glided across the stage with ease. The books that balanced on her head never toppled or tipped as she moved, and Lanie presented it all with the biggest smile Lexi had ever seen. It all looked so natural and effortless when she did it. Suddenly, the music from her violin seized with a single abrupt finishing note, and she gracefully slid the books off of her head in a dance-like motion. Straightening back up, she held her bow and the head of her violin at her hip as she bowed, and the crowd erupted into a thunderous applause.
Lanie hadn't placed anything on the pavement for people to put their money into, so everyone threw their quarters into multiple piles as they filed out and continued down the sidewalks. Lexi watched as Brooke rushed up to Lanie, pulling her into a hug as she praised her for her outstanding performance.
Lanie was beaming with energy as sweat dripped down her body. "Thanks. I'm glad you enjoyed it."
"Where did you learn to do all that?" Brooke asked, staring at her gawkingly.
Lanie shrugged, smiling humbly. "I don't know. It all just seemed to come naturally to me."
Brooke's jaw dropped. "Seriously?"
"Yeah." She kneeled down to collect the scattered coins people had dropped for her.
"Um… you know, you should probably get a hat or something for people to put their quarters into."
“A what?”
“Do Austrailians not call them hats?” Brooke asked, whirling around as she gestured to the display of hats beside them. “These things.”
Lanie visibly gulped before breaking into hysterical laughter. “Oh. Yes, hats.” She bonked the side of her head. “Of course. I know what hats are. Of course. You put quarters into them. Right.”
Brooke chuckled with her, looking back to the hat stand as she scanned for the perfect one. There was a rack of about ten different hats. Most of them looked ridiculous, covered with feathers and sequins, but there was one that Brooke was drawn to
immediately. From the stand she pulled a small black Panama hat. It had nothing of decoration or bright colours. Nothing overly special, but Brooke appeared to like it. She glanced down at the price tag and pulled a few dollars out of her back jean pocket to give to the vendor. Once she had paid for the hat, Brooke twirled around and handed it to Lanie with a dramatic bow. "You're tiara, miss. And I guess, your wallet."
“I thought it was a hat?”
“It is. It is. I was-um…” Brooke stammered. “Just-here,” she laughed, handing the hat to Lanie normally. Both girls kneeled down and began scouring the sidewalk as they transferred the coins into the hat.
When they had finished, Lanie had taken the hat, and as they both stood up, she bowed back to Brooke with the hat up against her chest. "Why, thank you, madame," she replied in a funny voice. She then pressed the hat onto her head, pulling it down tight to try and stop the change from falling out. She smiled as she straightened and stood with her fists on her hips, in a superhero stance. It only took a few moments for silver coins to begin falling down over her face, clinking and rolling all along the sidewalk. They both burst out laughing, but Lanie never attempted to remove the hat, acting as though she had no idea, in a clear attempt to make Brooke laugh harder. Lexi found it adorable to watch, as it helped remind her of the simpler things of life. Happier moments to be thankful for.
Lexi couldn't quite put her finger on why, but the black Panama hat suited Lanie perfectly. The splash of black made her short, teal pigtails pop even more than before. It only further brightened everything about her.
"That hat looks good on you," Brooke complemented, clearly agreeing with a sweet smile across her face, her cheeks flushing bright pink.
