The moon was at its peak by the time Jett arrived at Argram's last apartment building. His hopes of finding a place were low, as he had expected. No-one in their right mind would give a rough-looking teenager carrying a large knife-like sword, falchion and a six-year-old child a key to an apartment. Especially in the middle of the night.

So it was that he arrived at the manager's door in low spirits. Jett rebalanced the sleeping child and knocked on the wooden door. After some minutes of silence, there came shuffling sounds from inside the apartment. The lock gave a sharp click and the door swung open.

A plump lady in her forties stood dressed in a pale pink dressing gown and her brown hair was curled messily about her head.

"Can I help you?" she asked pleasantly.

"Sorry to bother you at such an hour," Jett bowed slightly, hoping to increase his chances. "I would like to rent an apartment; even if it's just for one night."

The woman eyed him up and down carefully and burst out in laughter. "Oh my!" she caught her breath. "Sweetie, this isn't a hotel! If you're going to stay, then it has to be for an extended period of time!" She opened the door wider and gestured with her hand. "Come in!"

Jett quickly did as he was instructed, still shocked from her sudden outburst. The apartment was simple, yet seemed more homey than any place he had ever been. A two-person couch was placed in the centre of the room and a small wooden coffee table was situated in front of it.

"Take a seat," the woman shut the door behind him. "Can I get you anything? Tea? Cocoa?"

"No, I'm fine, thank you," Jett sat down on the faded blue couch and stared at a large painting hanging on the wall.

"Do you like it?" the woman asked, plopping herself down beside him. "My mother painted it when my sister and I were still young girls."

"Yes, it's beautiful."

"Now, down to business," the woman said abruptly and placed a number of pages on her lap. She dunked her quill into a small bottle of ink perched on the table. "I will require a few small details, if you don't mind."

"That's fine."

"Let's start with this one: name?"

"Jett Harlander."

"Date of birth?"

"September second."

"I assume you want two bedrooms," she said, scrawling down details hurriedly. "What's the child's name?" she turned to look at Jett.

"Ren…I don't know his surname or date of birth."

"Indeed? Well, no matter," she returned to the form. "I have a nephew called Ren. He'll be coming to visit soon."

Jett simply nodded, not sure how to respond.

"The price of the apartment is 50 silver coins a fortnight. Is that alright?"

"That's fine!" so cheap!

"Very well, just sign here and it's all yours," she passed him the form and quill.

Jett diligently signed his name and returned the form to her.

"Here you are," the woman handed him a small silver key with '112' engraved on it. "My name is Kaede and I am your landlady. Come see me if you need anything at all." Kaede rose to her feet. "Your apartment is on the fourth floor; you can't miss it."

Jett followed her to the door which she opened for him. "Thank you so much! You really saved us."

"It's quite alright, dearie. It's my job," she smiled. "Well, I'm off to bed. Good night, dear!"

"Good night," Jett bowed again and began heading towards the building's main entrance.

The main hallway lights had been switched off, but the small wall lamps provided enough light to guide his way. It wasn't long until he found his apartment. As he placed the small key into the lock, a neighbouring door opened.

A girl, about his age, with honey coloured hair yawned as she ducked her head out into the hallway. A new neighbour? She asked herself as she gazed upon a boy with black hair and a large sword strapped to his back. At first, she found him rather intimidating. But when he juggled something back into position in his arm, all of that melted away. Surely he could not be all bad if he was with a child. Taking a deep breath, she summed up all her courage and said, "Are you a new resident?"

The boy spun around in surprise. For a moment she thought she had made a grave mistake as his free hand came to rest on the hilt of a falchion at his hip that she had not noticed at first glance. When he realised there was no threat, he let his hand fall to his side.

"S-sorry!" she stuttered. "I didn't mean to scare you."

"No, I'm just a little tense. I apologise if I woke you."

"I was already awake," she extended a hand. "I'm Emika."

"Jett," he returned the gesture. Emika's eyes fell to the small boy nestled in his arm. Jett considered the risks before adding, "this is Ren." Suspicion washed over him as her eyes widened.

"I-is he your brother?" she asked uncertainly.

I could say that he is, but she probably wouldn't believe me; Ren's hair is grey whereas mine is black. Besides, this feels like a test. "No," he replied, not willing to say anything more. "Please excuse me, we've had a long day and I should like to get to sleep as soon as possible."

Emika seemed to snap out of her shock. "Please don't let me keep you."

Jett turned back towards his door, keeping his senses locked on her. He knew very well that appearances could be deceiving. Despite this, he almost jumped when she suddenly asked, "Have you had dinner?"

"Ah, yes," he lied and slipped into his apartment.

***

Jett awoke to a scream. It took him a moment to recognize his surroundings before he raced out of bed and into Ren's room at the other end of the hall.

The small boy was crouched on the middle of the bed with his face buried in his knees and the blanket draped over him. He flinched as he looked up to see a shadowy figure moving towards him.

"Relax! It's just me," Jett reassured him, noticing the child's fear. Jett sat on the edge of the bed and lifted Ren out of the blanket and onto his lap. Ren clutched Jett's T-shirt and sniffed as the tears fell down his face.

"It's okay," Jett wrapped his arms around Ren's shaking frame. "They're not here now, they can't hurt you. I promise." With one hand still holding the child, he began to straighten out the blanket before climbing in. "Here," he lay Ren down beside him. "I'll stay with you until you fall asleep."

 

Emika poured milk into the mixture she had created. She had thought about a number of things the previous night and one of them had been the fact that her new neighbours would have nothing to eat for breakfast. She remembered that her little brother loved pancakes and, so, decided to make them.

Besides, she told herself, he may not know how to cook.

She was right; it would soon become clear that Jett knew nothing about cooking, nor raising a child for that matter.

A knock at the door caught her attention. Leaving the bowl where it was, she walked over and unlatched the door.

"Good morning, Mika," Kaede smiled. "I've brought you today's paper."

Emika gratefully accepted the rolled-up newspaper. "Thank you, auntie."

"You're most welcome. Have you met your new neighbours yet?"

"Yes, I saw them last night when they passed by."

"He's a suspicious young man, but he seems nice enough. Nevertheless, it's probably best to be wary until we get to know him better."

"Auntie, if you're always suspicious, you'll never get to know them."

"True," Kaede nodded. "I'd better get going; the lady in room 63 has invited me over for breakfast."

Emika shut the door after Kaede had left. She unrolled the paper and almost fell over as she read the main headline: 'Loerran Massacre'.

 

2: Chapter 1

Ten years later…

Ren woke with a start. His T-shirt clung to his sweat drenched body and his hands were shaking. It had been a long time since the nightmare had last plagued his mind, but now it was back. He thought back to it, but the more he tried to remember, the more he forgot until it was just a small feeling of fear and despair in the back of his mind.

Ren rolled onto his side and gazed at the small alarm clock perched on his bedside table. Five in the morning. There were still a couple of hours left until he had to get up. He shut his eyes and allowed his tired body to fall back into the clutches of a dreamless sleep.

***

"Good morning," Jett mumbled without looking up as he heard Ren emerge into the living area later that morning.

"Morning," Ren replied as enthusiastically as he had been greeted. He trudged past Jett, who was seated at the kitchen bench, and into the kitchen. "No Mika today?"

"Nope; she had to start early. But she did make lunch for us," Jett nodded his head in the direction of two paper bags at the end of the bench.

Ren glanced at them, then turned and headed over to the fridge. He could feel Jett's gaze burning into his back as he reached down to grab the carton of milk.

"You had a nightmare," he said simply.

Ren froze, hand still poised on the carton. How does he always know?! "It's not a big deal," he replied as his body regained mobility. "Everyone gets nightmares now and then."

"You know what I mean," Jett swallowed a mouthful of cereal. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"…No." He contemplated telling Jett that he didn't actually remember anything about it, but he honestly believed that it wasn't the big deal Jett always made it out to be; even if it was always the same dream.

Jett frowned. "I have to work overtime tonight," he changed the subject. "You'll probably get home before me."

"What time?"

"Don't know; somewhere between five and five thirty."

"Okay," Ren poured himself a bowl of cereal and joined Jett at the bench. They continued to eat in silence, neither one sure how to continue the conversation.

 

"Class dismissed," the teacher announced as the clock struck three. All the students seemed to rise at once; each one eager to get out of school.

"Do you wanna grab a bite from the Patisserie on the way home?"

Ren looked up to see a blonde boy standing in front of his desk, his bag slung loosely over his shoulder. "Sure," he grabbed his own bag and stood.

Edward swiped his blonde fringe out of his face in annoyance. "I swear, that's the last time I let my brother cut my hair," he grumbled.

"It's not that bad," Ren commented, noting the slight diagonal slant as they headed out into the hallway.

"Easy for you to say; Mika cuts your hair!"

"You think I'm going to let Jett do it?!"

They maneuvered their way through the mass of students and out onto the main road. The Patisserie was only a few hundred metres further along, but it meant they would have to take the long way home; not that they minded if it meant they would get to spend a bit more time together.

The Patisserie was empty save for a small elderly lady sipping coffee in the corner and a young woman wearing an apron standing behind the counter.

"Hey guys," she chimed as she noticed them enter. "How was school?"

"Hey, Mika," Ren and Edward smiled.

"It wasn't too bad; same old, same old," Edward added.

"What can I get for you today?" Emika asked.

"The usual, for me," Ren replied.

Edward crouched down in front of the glass display case and examined each dessert carefully. It always took him forever to decide. "Hmmm…I'll have…a chocolate croissant, please," he decided.

"Coming right up!" Emika cheerily grabbed a pair of tongs and two paper bags and proceeded to serve their orders. "That'll be four silver coins, please," she said as she passed over the two pastries.

Edward and Ren each handed over two coins. Many years ago, when they first met, they had made a pact that no matter what the price, they would always split the bill half-half.

"Thanks," she put the coins in the till. "I'll be home in a few hours, Ren."

"See ya, Mika!" they waved as they left the small café style patisserie.

From the Patisserie the pair walked in silence, each too focused on their food to strike up a conversation. It wasn't long until they reached the crossroad where they were forced to part ways.

"I'll see you tomorrow," Edward said with his mouth full as he waved and walked down a side street.

"Yeah, see you!" Ren went his own way.

A feeling of uneasiness washed over him as he continued to walk down the empty street. Something was wrong. Where is everyone? He asked himself. Usually he would have seen other students walking home, or even just locals. But what struck Ren as unnatural was that he could hear nothing. Not even birds. Strange, normally there would be–

Ren stopped suddenly and spun around, scanning the empty street. He was sure he had felt a presence behind him. Concluding that there was nothing to see, he turned once again and continued walking, all the while keeping his senses sharp.

So it was that he was able to jump out of the way as a heavy club smashed against the ground where he had been standing only moments before. The wielder of the club was a tall, broad man in a dark green uniform. A white insignia was stitched onto the uniform's left sleeve. At the man's hip was a short sword.

Ren allowed his bag to slip from his shoulder; it would only slow him down. The man raised the club again and swung at him. It was a messy attack and Ren was easily able to step out of the way. He concluded that this man was not accustomed to such a heavy weapon.

Minutes passed and Ren was still jumping and dodging the man's increasingly sloppy attacks. As his patience wore thin the attacks got more powerful but continued to be predictable. If I don't do something soon he'll wear me down and then it's all over. Ren side-stepped as once again the man swung at him.

As the next attack came down, Ren leapt forwards and grasped the handle of the short sword. As he had anticipated, the man jumped back from the sudden movement, allowing Ren to draw the weapon.

The man looked concerned at the turn of events; he had obviously not expected the youth to have any skills. Ren silently thanked Jett for all those years of training he had been forced to go through. He was about to advance and launch his own attack when something heavy struck the side of his head and he collapsed onto the cold cobble stones; the sword clattering noisily beside him.

 

Akira happily placed another heavy volume back on the shelf of Nakaram Library. She had worked there for about two years and loved every minute of it; she got to be surrounded by books for hours on end and got paid to do it! She lifted the next book from the stack in her hands and searched the shelves for its place.

"Hey Akira, how's life?" a familiar voice made her jump and she dropped the books she had been carrying.

"Damn, Jin!" she said as she knelt down to pick them up. "How many times do I have to tell you not to sneak up on me?!" she looked up to see the culprit. Jin was tall with long black hair that was always tied back in a ponytail. Akira assumed he was in his early twenties, although she didn't know for sure.

"Sorry," he laughed.

"As punishment, you can help me put these books away," she handed him one of the two remaining books.

Jin sighed but accepted it, taking only a few seconds to find the book's place. Akira frowned at him as she struggled to locate the spot for the last book. "Here," Jin took it from her and slid it into its place on the top shelf.

Akira scowled at her shortness but didn't say anything on the matter. She was grateful for the help but she would never tell him.

"Aw, don't be like that," Jin teased.

"Like what?" Akira said, still scowling.

"Like that! You're face; you look like you're about to growl at me!"

"Ssh!" Akira hushed. "Lower your voice or you'll disturb people."

A weird expression crossed Jin's face but he quickly covered it with a smirk and said in an incredibly loud voice, "What? You mean like this?!"

"Yes, like that!" she looked towards the tables where a number of people were sitting and reading.

"Relax," Jin reassured her, "they won't even notice me!"

"Akira, dear, is that you?"

Akira turned to the end of the row to see a short old man with thinning hair holding a stack of newspapers in his hands.

"Hello, Mr. Fitz," she smiled pleasantly. "What can I do for you?"

"Who were you talking to?" he made a quizzical expression.

"Oh, I was talking to Jin," she turned but there was no sign of the tall figure. "…who is no longer here…" She returned her focus to Mr. Fitz. "Is there anything you needed?"

"Yes, I was wondering if you could take these back to the reference section. You're free to go once you're done."

"Not a problem!" she took the stack and, with one final scan for Jin, went about her work. She quickly located the newspaper drawers at the back of the reference section and gently placed each newspaper in its appropriate spot. As she reached the last one, she paused.

"Loerran Massacre," she read the headline aloud. Her interests peeked, Akira continued on to read the article. When she was done she was left with a strange feeling that she couldn't quite place. It was like a mixture of uneasiness, fear, sadness and anger all rolled into one. She checked the date on it. Ten years ago…

***

The sun was setting. The sky was streaked with beautiful shades of red and orange. From her spot on the top of the hill, Akira had a perfect view. She took a moment to admire the scene before heading down the road. She was supposed to be home before dark and her parents would be furious if she was late. Akira never really understood their protectiveness. After all, she was sixteen; old enough to take care of herself.

Small dark blurs on the horizon caught her attention. She paused mid-stride and squinted, trying to get a clear view. Were they…they were! The blurs were moving in unison. Were they people? But why would so many people head into Nakaram at such an hour? The markets were closed; what else could they want?

The sounds of marching feet could be faintly heard in the distance. Although she still wasn't sure what was going on, Akira had the undeniable urge to hide. Spotting a narrow alleyway a few hundred metres ahead, she bolted forwards and crouched down behind the trash cans that the alley housed.

There she sat in silence for what felt like hours before the first, ear piercing scream erupted, shattering her thoughts and sending her heart into a frenzy. What was going on? She took a deep breath and held it as there came the sounds of banging doors and the loud protests of the townspeople. Throughout the whole ordeal one thing was constant; the heavy rhythmic sound of marching feet, growing louder and louder with each passing second.

Akira summoned all her courage and stuck her head around the edge of the bin she had been hiding behind. The streets were filled with men of varying shapes and sizes breaking into houses and herding the people like cattle to the slaughter. Each one was dressed in the same dark green uniform and helmet. Short swords hung at their belts.

Akira suppressed a gasp and completely concealed herself from the street. Whatever was happening, there was nothing she could do for the moment but hide. When the way was clear she would try to understand what the men wanted and do whatever she could to help her friends and family. But until then, she would have to remain out of sight.

 

 

3: Chapter 2

Akira remained hidden until the last streaks of colour in the sky had faded before she dared move even an inch from her hiding spot. There were no longer the sounds of feet marching along the cobbled street and the screams had long since dissipated. It was dark now, with the street being illuminated by only the street lamps and the half-moon hanging low in the sky. Not really sure what to do, she began a slow trek down the hill to her house.

Whatever she had been expecting it had not been this. Her front door had been kicked in and a large crack ran up the centre, threatening to snap the structure in two. The wooden chairs that should have been tucked neatly under the small dining table lay askew across the floor, the table itself having moved a few metres until it was completely against the wall.

They must have fought back, Akira thought to herself as she carefully stepped over one of the chairs that lay in pieces in the doorway.

"Akira?!"

Akira's heart leapt up through her throat and into her mouth as her name was spoken with both relief and worry from the doorway. She spun on her heel with such force that she almost made a full 360 degree rotation. She sighed with relief when her eyes fell on the figure in the doorway.

"Jin! You nearly gave me a heart attack!" she took several deep breaths. "What happened? What's going on?"

Jin frowned and looked back up the street. "Some sort of army came and took all the townspeople. They've gathered them all in the town square." He turned back to Akira. "How did you manage to get away?"

"I heard them coming and hid in an alley. Where did you hide?"

The strange look she had seen earlier crossed Jin's face once again but this time, it was replaced by an expression of realisation. "Never mind that, now," he shook his head. "You have to get out of here."

"What?! No! I have to find a way to help everyone! I can't leave them here at the mercy of these men."

"There's nothing you can do for them here. Go get help from another town."

"What about you?"

"I'll stay here and see what I can do."

Akira moved to protest but the determined frown on Jin's face kept her silent. Without a word, she turned and headed across the room, through the hallway and into her bedroom, vaguely aware of Jin following her.

Her room had been trashed. The men had obviously been looking for her. Amongst her possessions littering the floor was a faded green backpack. Akira lifted it and shook it a few times to straighten it out. Then she began grabbing things she would need for a journey and shoved them in; a few clothes, a water bottle and all of her savings. She turned again and headed to the kitchen where she filled her bottle and grabbed a few cans of food and a large bread roll. Lacaster was the nearest town and, if she walked through the night, she would reach it by daybreak.

"Alright," she said, her bag slung on her back, as she smiled at Jin, who was still frowning. "Be careful and try not to get caught. I'll come back with help as soon as I can."

"Akira," Jin held out a small length of leather with a metal handle sticking out at one end. "Take this. Just in case."

Akira took the leather and unsheathed what turned out to be her father's hunting knife. Her eyebrows raised as she slid it back into its holder and glanced up at Jin.

"Trust me, you'll be better off with it."

"Okay," she reached down and slid it into one of her lace-up boots. "I should get going."

"Take care of yourself, Akira," Jin smiled sadly.

"You too," she hugged him briefly then hurried out into the street.

As she had expected, the main road leading out of town was guarded by three of the men she had seen in the street. They were all dressed in the same green uniform and were looking out into the distance. Whatever was going on, the obviously weren't wanting any interruptions.

How am I going to get past them? She asked herself as she ducked behind a building and poked her head around the corner. Glancing around, she noticed a small horse strapped to a wagon standing on alert by one of the empty market stalls. It had been forgotten in the rush and the men must have felt that something so small and scrawny wasn't worth the trouble of grabbing. It was a dull white colour with splashes of brown like someone had thrown a bucket of paint over its back. How much faster her journey would be if she were to do it on horseback!

Akira clicked her tongue quietly while quickly glancing at the guards hadn't heard her. When she turned back to the horse, it was staring directly at her. Now reducing the risk of spooking the beast, she slowly crept out from behind the building and crossed the street to it. The horse snorted happily at her presence and allowed her to stroke its nose. She began to undo the straps that connected it to the wagon as quietly as she could. There was no saddle but the bridle would be enough.

Being only a short horse, Akira had little trouble pulling herself up and onto its back. For someone who had only ridden a few times in her life – and always in saddle – this was a great achievement. The horse seemed to sense her need for silence and, at her urging to move, took very small, light steps in the direction towards the guards.

Akira knew that, without a miracle, there was no way she was going to be able to get out of town without detection. As long as she didn't get caught, what was the big deal, anyway? So, with a firm kick and a strong grip on the bridle, the horse lunged forwards at a speed she hadn't thought it capable of at first glance.

Almost instantly, the guards turned to the cause of the sudden clatter of hooves on stone and shouted out as the small horse and its rider sped towards them. They barely had time to get out of the way before the horse had reached them and continued on. They were quick to follow suit but it wasn't long before they gave up; no man on foot could keep up with a horse. Not for long, anyway.

 

 

Jett sprung up from his spot on the couch as the front door opened. His heart quickly fell, however, when a young woman with honey coloured hair walked in.

"Hey," she greeted while rummaging through her bag. "Sorry I'm late." After receiving no response, she looked up to see Jett standing uncomfortably in front of the couch staring at the clock on the wall. "Is everything okay?"

"Ren's not back yet," Jett said simply.

Emika put her bag down on the kitchen counter and began grabbing pots out of the cupboard in preparation for dinner. "Relax, I'm sure he's just at Ed's," she opened the fridge and scanned the shelves. "Do you guys have any mince left?"

"No, he would have called or something. He should have been back hours ago," Jett's gaze drifted to where Emika was still staring at the interior of the fridge.

Emika sighed and straightened herself, shutting the fridge door. "Look," she said. "You said it yourself; it's unlikely that any of them are going to come looking for him. You said they believed you when you told them Ren was born in Bellum."

"I didn't stick around to find out!" Jett retorted.

"Here, I'll call the Donnervans and see if Ren's there, okay?" she moved over to the phone and dialed the number she now knew by heart. "Hello, Marie, it's Emika. Just wanted to ask if Ren was over there. No problem. Really? Okay, thank you. Bye." she hung up the phone and stared at it, not bothering to turn and look at the man who was staring into her back.

"Well?" Jett asked when she remained silent.

"He's not there. Ed hasn't seen him since they parted ways on their way home. I saw him at the Patisserie, but that was before that."

Jett didn't wait a second longer. He rushed to the door, grabbed a coat from the hook and slipped out into the hallway of the apartment building.

"Where are you going? Emika asked as she hurried after him.

"I'm going to look for him!"

Jett, with Emika in tow, followed the route through the town that Ren normally took to and from school, scanning the increasing darkness in hopes of seeing Ren pop around a corner with a silly grin on his face and apologising for having lost track of time. What were the chances of that, though?

As he had expected, no such thing occurred. In fact, they didn't find a single trace of the teen, that is, until they reached the street where Ren and Edward usually parted ways.

Jett stopped dead in his tracks and stared down at the small drops of red barely visible in the feeble light provided by the lamps lining the street.

"What is it? What did you find?" Emika asked as she hurried to his side. Being a full head shorter than him, she had to take longer strides to keep up with him. She followed his line of sight and gasped as she too saw the unnatural mark on the cobblestones. "Is that…?"

"It’s blood," Jett said monotonously as he crouched down and rubbed a finger over the small patch of red. "It's dry; whatever happened here happened a while ago."

"But that could be anybody's blood," Emika tried to reason, knowing full well what Jett was thinking. She was concerned, too, but she had lived such a normal life that she didn't want anything to break her away from that sense of normalcy.

She tore her eyes away from the sight and looked around the rest of the street. A few of the stones in the road were cracked from some kind of heavy blow but what her eyes settled on was a single sheet of paper caught in the gutter on the opposite side of the street. Without a word, she walked over and lifted it to eye level, straining her eyes against the darkness to make out the words written on it. She gasped and hurried back over to Jett.

With a look of concern, he took the paper she offered him and squinted down at it. It was scribbled with school notes in Ren's handwriting. He would recognise it anywhere.

"They have him," he whispered.

"What?" Emika gaped.

"They have him," Jett repeated, louder but still with the same level of emotion. "What else could have happened? There's blood here, the cracks show that there was some kind of fight and this," he shook the paper for emphasis, "confirms it!"

"Then what do we do?"

"They could be anywhere by now…" Jett said dejectedly.

"What, so you're just going to give up? 'Oh well, it's too late now'?" Emika raged. "He's your best friend, isn't he? You can't sit around and do nothing!"

Her words seemed to do the trick as Jett quickly stood and bolted back the way they had come.

"Hey! Wait for me!" Emika hurried after him.

 

 

Ren opened his eyes to darkness. From the lack of light and the stuffiness of the air he could tell he was in some kind of room. After all, even moonlight would do something to light his surroundings. He tried to move, only to find he had been tied to a chair and there was a gag in his mouth. Nothing to do but wait, then.

He didn't have to wait long, though, for it was only a few minutes before a door opened, causing light to flood into the room. Ren shut his eyes at the sudden intensity.

"Well, well," an unfamiliar voice said. "You're awake, are you?"

Ren forced himself to open his eyes and look up at the source of the voice. A man with slick black hair and thick rimmed glasses was watching him from a few metres away. He was dressed in a long white lab coat and held a clipboard in his hands.

The man stepped forwards and pulled the gag out of Ren's mouth. "There," he said. "Now we can talk."

Ren said nothing, instead choosing to frown at the man.

"I have a few questions to ask you. If you want your stay with us to be pleasant, then you would do well to answer them truthfully." He paused for a moment to see if Ren would respond before continuing. "Let's start with something simple, hmm? You are living under the care of Jett Harlander, correct?"

Ren considered how unpleasant things could get if being tied and gagged in a pitch black room was considered pleasant. What would happen if he told the man that he was living with Jett? Would it put Jett in danger? That was the last thing he wanted, especially after all Jett had done for him.

"I assume your silence means you're not going to answer. There's nothing to be afraid of; it's not Jett we're interested in. It's you. So whether you answer now or later, it doesn't really matter. But things would be better for you if you just did as you were told."

Ren averted his gaze to the far wall. What did they want from him? It wasn't like there was anything overly special about him…except of course the dreams he had or the weird ability to heal much faster than was considered normal; the spot on his forehead where he had been struck was just a dull ache now, there was no pain from the wound he was sure he had received, judging from the dried blood caked on the side of his face.

"I had hoped it wouldn't come to this," the man sighed, pulling out a small glass bottle containing a bright blue liquid from one of his pockets. "My colleagues think that torturing the information out of you would be a good way to go about things."

Ren shuddered.

"I, however, am following orders. If you are, in fact, what the leader is after, then it would be our necks if you were to accidentally die."

The man pulled the cork out from the neck of the bottle and grasped Ren's face with a cold, boney hand. Ren struggled against the man's grip as he forced his mouth opened and poured the contents of the bottle down his throat. Ren coughed as he was released, trying desperately to spit out the liquid, but he had already swallowed it.

"Now, then," the man said with contempt. "That should loosen your tongue. So, I'll ask you again. Are you living under the care of Jett Harlander?"

Ren tried to stop himself but it was like his mouth wasn't connected to the rest of his body anymore. "Yes."

"Much better. What is your name?"

"Ren."

"Surname?"

"I don't have one. I've been using Jett's."

"Is that so? In what town were you born?"

"I don't know."

"Jett never told you?"

"No."

"What about your parents? Where were they born?"

"I don't know," Ren struggled to fight the truth serum he had been forced to drink. It was none of that guy's business where he was born! And why would Jett know anything about it, anyway?

"Hmm…that could pose as a problem. Maybe we'll have to bring Jett here after all."

"No! Whatever you want with me, you leave Jett out of it!" Ren shouted.

"Oh-ho! It seems I've found your weak point! However, it is of no consequence. You've already told me all you can." The man turned away and headed back out through the door he had entered from, leaving Ren in complete darkness once again.

He must have fallen asleep for, in what felt like only a matter of moments, the door opened once again, revealing the same man, but this time he was accompanied by a woman with light brown hair tied back in a bun. She was carrying some kind of small glass orb. 

"Hello again, child," the man greeted, deliberately not calling him by name.

"What do you want?" Ren asked groggily.

"You see, although there's no guarantee that you are what we're after, you're our best bet and it would be more convenient to simply take what we want now than to go to all the trouble of keeping you alive," he turned to his companion. "You may begin."

The woman nodded and stepped forward, holding the orb above her head. She began to chant in a language that Ren couldn't recognise. He didn't have long to dwell on it though, as almost as soon as she opened her mouth an intense pain shot out through his limbs. Ren arched his back against the chair, his arms and legs straining against the bonds that held them in place, as an agonising scream escaped him. It felt as though his whole body was rejecting itself; like the very life of him was being sucked out.

"…Boss…coming…results…hurry…"

Ren could vaguely make out a new voice over his screams. The voice was quickly followed by a loud crash and all of a sudden the pain vanished and he found sound no longer escaped from his, now raw, throat. Slowly, he gathered enough strength to open his eyes and gaze around at the scene.

The woman who had been holding the orb was now kneeling on the floor, quickly gathering broken shards of glass while the man from earlier was leaning over her, shouting at her for her clumsiness. A new figure stood in the doorway with a look of absolute trepidation and foreboding as he watched the scene in front of him unfold.

The man quickly turned his attention away from the woman and stalked towards him, expression unreadable. He reached out, placing both hands on Ren's shoulders, and looked directly into his eyes.

"Boy! Can you hear me?" he asked with a hint of desperation.

"…Yeah," Ren managed in reply.

"Ren?! Can you hear me?"

"Yes!" Ren repeated, more strongly this time.

The man frowned and turned back to his colleagues. "It's too late; we lost him. He can't have gotten far, we'll gather a team and start searching right away!"

"Lost me? What are you talking about? I'm right here!"

His words were lost on them, however, as they turned and hurried out of the room, leaving Ren once again surrounded in darkness.