NOVUS

—WHEN DID THE MEANING OF LIVING BECOME THE SAME AS SURVIVING?

It is a thought drilled into Novus’s brain, as he runs. His shoes scrape the worn pavement and the soft footsteps of the guards come rushing towards him. He waits for the familiar sounds of horror.

The clicks of the bullets. The clip-clop of footsteps. The screams.

But it doesn’t happen.

Kane catches up to him, his eyes lined with hardly any panic. Novus clenches his teeth and feels a scream rising in his throat. How can Kane be so composed? They are about to be captured and sent to prison. They are about to rot.

“Where are we going?” Kane asks, having the nerve to examine his fingernails.

“Shut up,” Novus hisses through heavy breaths. He finds another thing which is infuriating to him: how Kane is hardly even struggling.

The shouts are getting closer. He can decipher them now: “Stop!—“

He just has to keep on running. He dodges and shifts positions as people hurry to their own places, their own routines. Routines. How strange it must be to have a life which you could so easily predict.

A golden chariot is moving across. He should stop, he should wait for a minute, he should turn and see how close the guards are.

He doesn’t. And as he feels the hard smack of the iron against his skin, it rattles his bones and all goes black.

**

When Novus opens his eyes, he expects to see the bars of a prison cell, but instead he is in a street where rodents have taken a liking to, which isn’t much better.

Kane throws a crooked grin at him. “Took you long enough.”

Novus nods in return, and he blinks. Everything goes sharp, and then blurry again. He rubs his eyes, and finds the faces of Vanya and Animo.

Vanya smiles at him, but he can see the tension in her jaw and the defiance in her eyes. He icily stares at her, feeling a mix of anger and relief.

“What? We didn’t die!” She throws her hands in the air in exasperation, as if they had just won a game.

“We almost did! Because of you!” Novus snaps back, pointing a finger at her accusingly. “You had to go and try and save everyone. You had to disrupt a simple match. You had to make everyone run from the guards!”

“Simple? People were going to die!” Vanya retorts, clenching her fists and raising her chin proudly. “I did what no one else dared to do, I did what as right!”

Novus shakes his head, his voice rising. “You were selfish! You did this so they seemed indebted to you. What deal did you offer her, eh?”

Vanya looks stunned, her eyes widening and her mouth dropping open. “Selfish? I did this for people’s lives!”

Novus scoffs, crossing his arms over his chest. “You did this for fame. Admit it, Vanya, the thirst for glory never left you. ”

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

He remembers how Vanya used to tell him how she wanted to go down in history. How she wanted to rule the world. It is a secret, one kept between them two, but Novus doesn't see the point of keeping it a secret when she doesn't 'remember' him.

Animo steps in between them. “Hey, hey, calm down, both of you. We’re all on the same side here. We should be grateful that we escaped.”

( Novus is glad she doesn’t mention anything else. )

Novus looks around and realises that they are in a narrow alley, hidden from the main road. He sees a pile of metal scraps and wires that looks like a makeshift bomb.

“How did we escape, anyway?” he asks.

Kane points to the bomb. “Vanya rigged this thing up and threw it at the chariot. It exploded and caused a distraction. Then we grabbed you and ran.”

( He blinks, and the realisation takes hold of him. He almost lost Vanya again. )

Animo turns to Kane, her eyes now daggers. Kane lazily grins at her.

“Why'd you follow us?” She demands. “Go back to your theatre.”

“A lovely offer, but no thanks, darling. This seems more fun.”

It is a bit strange to see Animo glare at someone, or rather anyone, but for the choice of Kane, Novus understands and almost sympathises.

“Where are we going now?” he asks.

Vanya shrugs, but stiffly. She is still mad at him. Good. So is he.

( He tries to ignore his heart aching for her. )

“We need to find a safe place to lay low for a while. The guards will be looking for us.”

Animo nods. “I know a place. Follow me.”

She leads them out of the alley and into the crowded streets. Novus follows her reluctantly, wondering what she has in mind.

The chatter of the people fills his ears, and the sharp smells of spices make him cough.

They follow Animo through the maze of streets, dodging and darting among the throng of people. Novus feels his heart hammering and his lungs burning as he sees the guards patrolling the area.

He hopes they won’t catch a glimpse of them or sense their panic. He glances at Kane, who seems calm and unruffled as ever. He wonders how he can be so aloof in such a dire situation.

Suddenly, Kane halts. His eyes widen and his mouth drops open. He stares at a guard who is walking towards them. The guard is wearing a helmet that masks most of his face, but Novus can see his eyes and his nose. They look familiar. Too familiar.

“Wilham?” The guard says, stopping in front of him. He sounds surprised and confused. He lifts his helmet and reveals his face. He has the same blond hair and blue eyes as Kane. He looks like a younger version of him.

Wilham?

“Jase?” Kane says, barely above a whisper. He looks shocked and terrified. He doesn’t know what to say or do. He doesn’t know how to explain why he is here, with these people, running from the law.

Novus feels a chill run down his spine. Kane’s actual name is Wilham? How long had Kane kept that name buried in his past? How much did it hurt him to hear that again?

He also realises something else. Something that makes him see Kane in a different light. Kane is showing emotions. Emotions that he has never seen before on his face.

“What are you doing here?” Jase asks, his voice wavers and trembles. Animo steps forward, as if she is going to give him a hug but Novus raises his hand to block her.“Who are these people? What have you done?”

“It’s not what you think,” Kane says, his voice cracking. “I can explain everything. Just let us go.”

“Let you go?” Jase repeats, incredulous. “You’re a fugitive.”

Novus feels a throbbing pain in his head, a reminder of the chariot that hit him earlier. He tries to ignore it, but it gets worse with every step. He feels dizzy and nauseous. He clutches his head and stumbles.

"Are you okay?” Animo asks, noticing his distress.

“I’m fine,” Novus lies, forcing a smile. He doesn’t want to slow them down or draw attention to them.

But he’s not fine. He can barely see or hear anything. He can only feel the pain that consumes him. He can only feel the darkness that envelops him.

Jase reaches for his gun and—

Novus falls to the ground with a heavy thud.