Chapter 9:

  There was a lot of confusion in Shogai's mind, but one emotion reigned supreme.

  Anger.

  "You!" he hissed. "So you did steal from that man! I never should have helped you!"

  Kiara rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I did steal from him. I don't know why you assumed I didn't - he wasn't even drunk at the time."

  Shogai was fuming. He despised thieves almost as much as Aberrants, if not more. Aberrants at least couldn't think. Kiara here knew exactly what she was doing. And Shogai wanted her gone.

  "Fine. Give us our money back, and get away from us, or else I will report this to the guards. I don't see a badge on you."

  Kiara's face heated up, but she accepted the offer.

  "Actually," Jade chimed in, "I have alternate demands."

  Kiara and Shogai simultaneously turned.

  "You, Kiara, are without a doubt the worst thief I have ever seen. You took obvious bait and revealed your name and face under the slightest pressure. If not for your super speed, you'd have been caught long ago, right?"

  "...probably. So what? You guys don’t have badges either. I don’t care if you know my face."

  "Well, it really would be a shame if I described you to a guard, wouldn't it? You're not a citizen of Harabel, and I doubt you have family here. I'm sure you've stolen a lot of money over time as well. Shall we report this?"

  Kiara's face went from red to white.

  "Alright, alright. What do you want me to do?"

  "Easy. Shogai, release her."

  Hesitating, Shogai let Kiara go. She couldn't afford to run away with the leverage they had over her. Jade pulled out her map.

  "We’ve already wasted a lot of hours of the day. Get us to Gongadion by sundown. Shouldn't be a problem for a speedster. In exchange, we tell nobody about this encounter. We'll even let you keep the necklace."

  That last part caught Kiara's attention. She knelt to inspect the map, pointing at a spot between Harabel and Gongadion.

  "If we stop here for an hour, I can do this without much problem. Is that fine?"

  "I don't see why not."

  "In that case, deal. But how do you expect me to carry you both?"

  Jade thought about this and headed out of the alley. Shogai and Kiara followed her, Kiara pulling her hood back up. Jade was inspecting the stores, and she spotted an old lady selling apples.

  "Hello, ma'am, might I buy this trolley?" she asked, gesturing toward a few planks of wood loosely tied to a set of wheels. It had a vague handle on it.

  The woman wore a frown. "Are you sure, dear? I really don't need this - I was breaking it apart today. Take it on me."

  She smiled, and Jade thanked her, tossing her a coin as a tip. She rolled the plank of wood over to the trio.

  "It moves. That should be fine. Let's go."

  Leaving the city was tricky, since Kiara had to go unnoticed. It took them hours to work out a plan. In the end, she climbed on top of a house and jumped over the wall while the guards were absent. Jade and Shogai used the gate, thanking the guards for their stay. Harabel may have been a rough place, but it was a new experience for Shogai. He wasn’t sure if he appreciated that, but he felt he’d have to get used to it.

  Kiara met the two outside and was stretching.

  "Is this going to last the whole journey?" Shogai asked as he and Jade stood on the wobbly plank.

  "As long as you don't move around too much, it should stay in one piece. Are you two ready?"

  They nodded and reached out to hold onto... nothing. There wasn't any real support, but Kiara had already grabbed the handle and started moving. In panic, the two grabbed onto each other to stay balanced.

  They were moving in a blur. They couldn't even really see Kiara.

  Shogai could vaguely make out trees and rocks flying past on their way, along with a river, but he was mostly focused on not falling off. Jade was gripping him tightly, her eyes closed.

  The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

  This went on for about twenty minutes, and by the end, Shogai was winded. He was freezing cold thanks to the speed, and as he got off the cart, he stumbled from dizziness. Jade did the same.

  They were in a relatively grassy area, but the sun made it feel like a desert. The warmth was comforting to Shogai and Jade, but Kiara immediately fell to the floor, out of breath and drenched in sweat. Jade knelt beside her.

  "What happened? Are you alright?"

  "F-fine... water?"

  Jade gave Kiara a water flask, which she gratefully drank from.

  After a moment, Kiara was well enough to talk.

  "I have a confession. I'm not exactly a speedster..."

  Jade asked Kiara what she meant, and Kiara explained. "I can't move at high speeds. I just slow down time. So that twenty minutes of travel for you... that was way, way longer for me. I'm exhausted, but I should be ready to go in another hour."

  Jade nodded and patted her on the shoulder. "Thank you. Rest up now. I'm going to find our bearings."

  Jade wandered off, leaving Shogai alone with Kiara. The silence was awkward, but Kiara broke it effectively.

  "You don't like me."

  Shogai rolled his eyes. "You're a thief. A criminal. Of course, I want nothing to do with you. You're just convenient. I don't need to like someone like you."

  Kiara shrugged. "Yeah, I know what you mean, but what if I'm just a poor girl who needs to do this to survive? Why not give me the benefit of the doubt?"

  Shogai didn't respond. He didn't want to get educated on the morality of a crook.

  "I'm just saying, Shogai," she continued, "you seem awfully confident in your first impressions of people. Assuming the drunk was in the wrong because he gave you a bad first impression. Assuming I'm a filthy liar because I gave you a bad first impression. Tell me, do people as privileged as you always think they're right?"

  That got his attention.

  "Don't you dare. You know nothing of what I've lost. Or even why I'm travelling. I'd swap places with you in a heartbeat."

  "Oh, really? No family, no friends, no home, no money, and having to hide 24/7 because people would burn you at the stake for your means of living? I have nothing. Shogai, you have money, a goal, a girlfriend, and you aren't fighting for your life, are you?"

  "Yes, actually," Shogai said, his voice getting dangerously low. "And if you knew what I was up against, you'd hold your tongue."

  "You're one to talk. The overly righteous hero shutting down this villainous thief," Kiara said mockingly. "Who will he save next? Doesn't matter! Because Shogai never fails in his judgment!"

  A flash came across Shogai's vision. The children are being killed in front of him. His failure.

  He couldn't control himself. In blind rage, Shogai grabbed Kiara by the throat, lifting her off the ground. She didn't see it coming until it was too late. Shogai yelled her name, but the name that came out was:

  "Sekara."

  Kiara's eyes narrowed at the name, and she was rethinking her image of Shogai's perfect life. That only made Shogai angrier, but a voice appeared in his head.

  That's enough, Shogai. Please let her go.

  Shogai’s vision cleared. This wasn’t Sekara; it was the terrified face of Kiara. Someone struggling to breathe because of his attack. And she was judging him. Shogai roughly dropped her onto the floor and put his hands on his head as Jade rushed in to check on Kiara, asking to see her throat.

  “I’m fine…” Kiara’s neck was suddenly completely fine, even though it had been burning red a moment ago. “It’s fine.”

  But it wasn’t fine. They all knew that. Shogai didn’t look either of them in the eye. He did regret doing that, and he felt bad. But he wasn’t going to apologise. She provoked him. She mocked him. She had no right to-

  "Hey," Jade said, sitting beside him after a minute. Kiara was sitting alone at a distance. She met Shogai’s eyes but looked away quickly. Did she… fear him? Shogai expected Jade to express her disappointment in him and lecture him, but instead, he got an apology. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have invited her along without checking with you first. I wasn't thinking properly."

  "Don’t worry about it.” Shogai mumbled,“ I just want to get rid of her."

  "Then let's get this done. It's getting late. If we leave soon, we'll be in Gongadion by sundown, and then we can say goodbye to her."

  "Do you think I- well… you know…?" Shogai really couldn’t get his words out, but without needing to read his mind, Jade understood the question.

  “You shouldn’t have done that, Shogai, but I understand why you did. It was wrong, but I won’t force you to apologise. That’s your decision to make.”

  Shogai pondered this for the remaining wait. The thing was, he knew he should apologise. Kiara had provoked him, but his retaliation was unjustified. Why did he do that? Why was he so… so eager to strike her? The fact that it came as an instinct to him scared him. She had wronged him, but not nearly enough to warrant attacking. He was supposed to protect people who were in trouble, and it sounded like she had a hard life. He was not supposed to be the attacker. But every time he looked over at her, even thinking about apologising, his blood boiled. He didn’t have a reason to like her. The fact that he felt he needed one was problematic, but he’d deal with that another time. Right now, he just wanted to get away from her.

  Kiara was ready to go in another half hour, and the rest of the journey was quiet but less hostile. Her eyes were distant, occasionally glancing at Shogai but saying nothing.

  A short while later, Gongadion was in sight, and the sun was setting. Kiara stopped a couple of hundred meters from the city walls to catch her breath.

  "That wasn't as bad," she huffed. "The sun setting definitely helped. Have I carried out my side of the deal?"

  Jade nodded and took off her necklace.

  "Keep it," Kiara said, waving it away. "I don't need a reward for fixing my own mistake. Good luck with... whatever you're doing. Hope it works out."

  "Thank you, Kiara," Jade said. "We promise not to speak of this."

  Kiara gave a small nod and glanced at Shogai curiously. He had his back turned. He was not planning to apologise, but Kiara didn’t look bothered by that. She sighed and then vanished in a blur.

  Shogai finally turned around. Jade seemed a little down about his coldness towards Kiara, but she kept her promise. It was his decision. "Let's book a place to stay, he-"

  CRASH.