The fire had died, the smoke dissipated, the temperature came down, and only the cracked blackened earth proved the earlier rampage. The scars that the monkey left on his yard would take weeks if not months to heal. Nonetheless, it was far from the price he was willing to pay if it meant his plan would succeed.
“How long do I have to wait?” Necia asked, tapping her foot with her arms crossed, her frown deepening.
“Just a few minutes, he’s on his way,” Ewan said, adjusting the gauze around his wounds, tightening the knot with his bite.
“Why do we need him anyway? Just give me the babies, and I’ll be on my way,” she said, her nostrils flaring.
“Look at the damage, ma’am,” Ewan said. “Do you think just that many Sols are enough to pay for it?”
“That’s on you, you accepted the job knowing the risks,” she said.
“That was before your monkey hurt him,” Uncle Thain walked in from the main gate and said, pushing his black-framed glasses up, his sleeve bag rubbing against the edge of his navy suit. “Since bodily harm was done by an Astylind, it’s now an issue of criminal proceeding.”
“That’s bullshit! He kept her in the cage, she couldn’t have hurt him unless he asked for it himself,” Necia said.
“This is Ms. Necia, and this is Mr. Thain Cesar, my lawyer.” Regardless of her outburst, Ewan still introduced the two to each other.
“Ma’am, the job you paid him for didn’t just include keeping her in the cage, did it?” Uncle Thain said. “He not only helped your monkey through the tough labor, but also kept her alive in the process.”
“Fine.” She scowled. “Ten Sols, I won't pay more than that.”
“Do you think Sols can solve this problem, ma’am?” Uncle Thain asked. “His burn is from Fire-Anima. The treatment is already troublesome, but the pain is so much worse, you should know that. And regardless, he still helped your monkey survive, and even took good care of the newborns.”
“Twenty,” she said. “I won't complain about how he treated my Astylind, and you’ll forget about this matter.”
Uncle Thain chuckled. “You don’t seem to understand. Sols can't compensate his damage, you need to relinquish your claim on the newborns and give them to him, and then we’ll forget this ever occurred. There’ll be no need to get the L.E.A involved.”
“No fucking way!” She shrieked. “Call the black suits, brown suits, I don’t give a shit. I’ll see how you get away with stealing from me.”
“Ma’am, when it comes to Astylinds hurting the citizens of Obria, those black suits go haywire. They don’t listen to reason in that situation, and regardless of how the injury occurred, no matter who was at fault, they would always charge the owner of the Astylind,” Uncle Thain said. “Worst case scenario, you’ll be locked up, and your monkey will be put down. Do you wish to try your luck at that? Given the tension in our colony right now, do you think you’ll survive against the public outrage?”
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“If you get involved in a situation like that, do you think your shop will survive? Will anyone ever trust you with his Astylind?” Necia said.
“That’s why the waiver exists, ma’am, which you so earnestly refused to sign. It prevents you from asking for compensation, and it prevents him from registering any complaints, it’s a win-win for both sides, but you didn’t sign it…,” Uncle Thain said. “And I could even argue before an enforcer that the reason you didn’t sign the waiver is that you didn’t want to leave a record. Maybe the source of your Astylind is problematic.”
“Horseshit! Do you think your lies will work? You don’t have any proof to back your claims,” she said, squinting, clenching her fists.
She’s got a foul mouth…
Ewan kept the words in.
“I’m just speculating, there’s no claim here,” Uncle Thain said, smiling. “It can easily be solved once you confirm your source.”
“I don’t intend to open the shop after this, so you don’t need to mind its reputation,” Ewan added from the side. “Please continue.”
“That puts my worries to rest then,” Uncle Thain said and took out his phone that had an ostentatious idol’s sticker on its back, its edges peeling a little. “Now I don’t need to mind the backlash, let’s put the issue in the public court. I’ll contact the L.E.A, they’ll take over and you won't need to deal with us.”
“Wait!” Necia yelled. “Just wait, calling the enforcers would do neither of us any good. I might get a charge, but he won't get away scot-free either, what he did here was illegal. Let’s compromise, I’ll give up one of the babies.”
“Fine,” Ewan said. “I’ll take the scrawny one.”
Necia frowned. “No, you can have the healthier one,” she said.
“Alright, as you wish,” he said, easing his attitude to confuse her more.
“No, wait…” She interrupted him as he reached for the baby monkeys.
“Can you decide already?” Ewan grumbled. “Which one do you want?”
“It’s getting late, so let me decide for you guys.” Uncle Thain interfered, and the baby monkeys hovered from their makeshift cradle and floated to him.
“Ryvia…” Necia murmured, gulping with her widened eyes wavering, and backed off a step.
“Ewan, they were hers to begin with, so be a gentleman and take a loss here,” Uncle Thain said and gently dropped the bony baby monkey in Ewan’s intact palm. “Ms. Necia, I hope this will end here. I’m being nice as long as the damage remains under my tolerance limit. If you try to cross that limit, if you test my patience, I’ll stop behaving. Do you understand me?” At the end of his words, the other baby monkey fell onto Necia’s palms, and she bobbed her head and signed the papers before scuttling away.
“If you let me suppress her from the get-go, this would’ve gone much faster,” Uncle Thain said when Necia’s back faded away from the main gate, keeping the stack of papers in his bag.
“Then you would succeed, not me,” Ewan said, caressing the baby monkey, the younger brother of the twins, with a content and a tender smile. He hugged Ewan's finger with his bony limbs, his pink skin holding a tint of red, his long tail brushing against his wrist, and a tiny blob of orange fire flickering on the forehead—it warmed Ewan’s touch but didn’t burn him.
“Was this worth it?” Uncle Thain asked. “You know Authen wouldn’t leave you hanging, you should get some Astylinds soon. And if he did, I would’ve gotten you any that you wanted from outside. Was hurting yourself to this extent for a mere Astylind worth it?”
“It was,” Ewan said. “And not just for an Astylind, it was for the threat of criminal charges. With that hanging over their heads, they would at least back off for a while, I can spend my days in peace now.”
Uncle Thain sighed. “I’m not sure whether I should scold you or…”