Ringing.

Constant ringing.

He felt like his ears would explode, Zeph tried lifting his arms, but they didn’t respond. The sound getting louder and louder, Zeph felt his head was gonna explode. With all his might he rolled on his side, it only helping a little.

His aching body was tired, and he felt like he had the worst migraine, slowly pulsing through his brain. He got his body to sit up with nothing but pure grit.

It slowly got back to him, everything. He sat alone in a dark alley with nothing but corpses around him. The police officers who had tried to kill him had their bodies sprawled on the concrete. Zeph felt no pleasure from the sight; it didn’t matter that they had tried to kill him.

He could see from the bodies how long he had been asleep, around the 12-hour mark. No matter how many times he had seen a dead body didn’t make it feel any better. There was just something that happened to the face that was all wrong. Like it was missing something— like a soul. Almost like death wasn’t meant to happen.

Zeph slowly lifted his destroyed body from the ground, standing on his two feet. He shook his head from left to right, the terrible ringing still a backdrop in his brain. He was in bad condition. It was a miracle the person he would be staying with was a nurse, lest he had to wait for an appointment tomorrow— that would have spelled real trouble.

It was a wonder he hadn’t been found or the bodies. Sure it was secluded, but it was in the most densely populated city in the whole continent, much less the whole country. He wouldn’t look down on his luck though, he would no doubt have been framed for the murders. There would be no other explanation. Him all damaged and three dead police officers. His life would have been over, his mothers as well from the shame. Though he couldn’t just let the bodies lay and rot here. They no doubt had families, and he couldn’t live with them being found like this. He covered up all the bodies with their clothes and gave them a respectful rest until they were found. Well as much as possible in their current state. He took a couple of pieces of blood clothing from himself and placed them at the end of the front and back of the alley. He took a few deep breaths that had almost been as stressful as almost being killed. He hated blood, and he hated death even more. He had seen more of it than he had seen in ten years of working under his mother. He felt like breaking down, his spirit just as broken as his body. It hadn’t—- it hadn’t been his fault Zeph told himself.

He slowly walked out the way he came, he needed to get fixed up.

The sudden light was blinding; the darkness of the alleys was blown away by the lights from the various buildings that lit up the street. Zeph stood flabbergasted; the contrast the smaller alley had to the larger outside street was almost scary. There was a massive amount of people walking about, some with smiles, others more downtrodden. But with this many people, he suddenly felt very self-conscious. He glanced down at his figure and saw nothing but grime and minor blood stains. He got weird looks from the people walking by, and they made a circle to avoid him. Luckily that didn’t faze him; he had always been looked at a little weirdly. He was just happy that his coat covered his bare chest, so people wouldn’t at least think he was selling something. Something his mother said was very prevalent in this city. He shivered, thinking of someone coming up to him, thinking he was a…..

No the thing he was scared of was the police. Would they think he was a thief? Or a killer? Would they try and get him again? He felt his heartbeat quicken. He didn’t just need to get home to get fixed up, he couldn’t relax looking like this outside.

He quickly started moving toward his destination. It was a god sent that his mother had bought him a map of the city and made it very clear where he would be staying. The large red circle on the street named Absalon. He took the bloodied piece of map from his pocket and headed where he thought he should go.

“Here, young man,” An older man suddenly said to him, not in the least disturbed by his attire as the other citizens were.

Zeph stood still, looking at what the man was trying to give him. A piece of fruit, orange in color but with weird spikes sticking out of its oval form. It wasn’t something he had ever seen before, he expected to see more of that stuff. But as tempted as he was to try new things, he had neither cash nor time.

The old fellow’s eyes glistened the way the village leader would when he came to collect payment from his mother. That look always disgusted him. He quickly started walking again, “Filthy brat,” The man spat and began calling for other customers. He didn’t take it too hard; the man needed to survive like everyone else. He just hated what it made everyone become. Poverty and desperation were exhausting to the soul, and his mother had told him this place drew the most desperate crowd. He would never show those eyes, or allow his mother to do it again. Another reason to work harder.

His walking became a haze at a certain point, the pain in his arm subsiding. Almost like his body couldn’t supply him with anymore, leaving him only numb. With the pain gone, it allowed him to see the city for the first time truly.

Viel’s largely only had small compact buildings, making the large cathedral easily potable in the distance. That and the universities around the town were the only large buildings in the whole place. It created a homey feel even though it was so densely populated. But that meant getting lost was immensely easy, he had to ensure he was on the right street constantly. However, it seemed the immensely similar buildings contrasted with the people. Back home he had only seen one kind of person, the normal kind he would call them. But here, everyone was so different. Not only in appearance, but also in style—

“Give it back, you dirty whore” a woman screamed from across the street, her clothes completely torn, revealing her upper body.

Another woman, just as torn up, seemed to be running away from her in high heels. She wasn’t running very fast.

Zeph stared at the pair as they ran down the street. All the other people didn’t even seem to bat an eye and just continued walking. Like it was the most normal thing in the world. Maybe that was why he wasn’t getting a huge reaction from people. Things were just different here. Some were extremely tall, others extremely small. He had never seen a person with red or grey-tinted skin, but here they were walking amass. It seemed people of all cultures gathered here; it made sense as it was the place for wealth and knowledge. The thing that everyone wanted, even him. He was a slave to the dream as well, the thought of his mother being happy and carefree. He just needed enough, not all. Just enough.

The streets were extremely long, filled with buildings and stalls. But there were no crossroads, so he just continued walking. The entire town was just extremely long roads with small alleyways connecting them. He seemed to have finally gotten close to his destination, a tiny sign above one of the alleys saying Absalon. Zeph turned left into the alleyway; it immediately got much darker when he walked through, so he clutched his map tight. He couldn’t go losing it now.

The space was narrow, and all light was dimmed from the alley. Small cats ran through his legs as he entered. It was just a straight dead end, with nothing but a door at the end and two walls to each side. This was like how the entire city lived. Tightly packed together, he felt claustrophobic just thinking about living this close to people. That was something he never had to do at home. But he glanced down at the map, and it seemed correct. The red circle was at the end of a small alleyway from the large street. He wouldn’t even have to walk more than a couple of steps to reach the university from here, regardless of the feeling of anxiety it gave him. That was a huge positive nonetheless. Zeph stood before the small door, just reaching his eye area. That was quickly going to get annoying, he knew. He looked down at himself and sighed. It wasn’t the best first impression he could give, but he didn’t have any other choice. With his bruised arm he knocked.

“Coming,” He heard a small boy’s voice say. He didn’t seem to have a care in the world, not like his mother had told him to have when he opened strangers’ doors. He took that as a good thing and hoped there was nothing to fear in this place, even though he had already encountered something that would scare him for life. He quickly covered his right hand, ensuring the boy saw no blood. He didn’t want to scare him. His mother had already informed him that he would stay with a mother and son. He wouldn’t want to scar the son’s mind the first day he arrived.

The door swung open, and he was met with excited glee on the small boy’s face. “You’re so tall,” the boy said in wonder. He wasn’t that tall, just a little above average. Everything seemed big to a child.

“You’re the person that is gonna be staying with us, right?” He asked.

Zeph knew if his mother had said some stranger would come to live with them, he would not have been happy. He could only thank god this child was. Or else it could have been an extremely long tenure here.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

“I a-am,” Zeph barely got out. Luckily his badly hidden, exhausted voice was lost on the boy. “Finally, another man in the house,” The child exclaimed.

“What have I told you, Vinnie? You’re not a man yet,” He could hear a female voice say from inside the apartment.

“Yes, I am,” the boy shouted back into the apartment, his face scrunched up in anger. She was only making him cuter to look at. He hadn’t ever been very fond of children, but he did not doubt that he would enjoy spending time with Vinnie. The mother came into view, a woman of short stature and elegant hair with a few grey hairs flowing through them. The lines on her face showed her age, she had probably been his mother’s senior in school. He looked at the boy again and was a little surprised. She must have gotten the child very late. But before Zeph could even say hello, the woman’s expression hardened. They locked eyes, and her eyes followed down his body. She could see he was in terrible condition.

“Vinnie bed. NOW” the woman commanded.

“Wha- I haven’t even probably met our new guest yet,” the boy exclaimed. But one look from the woman’s eyes made the boy quit his efforts as he slowly sulked to his room.

As soon as they both heard the door close to his room, the woman pulled him inside the apartment with all her might. She left no time for an introduction. “What happened,” she said immediately, shuffling through her kitchen, trying to find something.

Zeph immediately felt safer, not having to hide his hurt anymore, and pulled off his coat. He could tell the woman was experienced, which put him at ease more than anything else. He hoped he would be able to do that one day.

“I don’t even know myself; it’s extremely complicated,” Zeph answered.

“Don’t care. Try,” the woman said and turned around. She saw his injuries, and her expression hardened. It went down to his arm and then to his chest and neck. He hadn’t seen his condition, but he knew it probably wasn’t the best, judging from her reaction. She cleared the table standing in the kitchen in one fell swoop and quickly snapped her fingers to indicate that he should lie down.

“MOM—” he heard Vinnie shout from upstairs. “Nothing honey just dropped something,” she shouted back.

Zeph couldn’t help but feel bad for causing all of this commotion, but he was thankful he was getting her help. He went down to lie on the cold wooden table and hoisted his legs.

“I— I got in a large fight,” Zeph said finally, the only way his brain could explain it. The woman released a long sigh, “I know there is more to that story, but it can wait till later.”

She pulled out the thing she seemed to have been looking for, a large bag. She placed it on the kitchen table, and it made a large sound as it hit the wood. Before Zeph realised it, she had gloves and was checking every spot that had a wound and how severe. Her concentration was clear; it was eerily similar to the look his mother would get when treating patients. His mother had told him that this woman was the head nurse at one of the largest hospitals in Viel. That was no small achievement, especially in Viel. It felt odd being on the receiving end of treatment; he had always looked from his mother’s point of view. Or sometimes his own, but he had been lucky enough not to see it from the other angle until today. He tried to keep as still as possible as the woman continued her work. The silence stretched as the woman continued to work. The silence felt like hours, and he couldn’t stop the thoughts that went inside his head. The more it stretched out, the more worried he got. But eventually, the woman stretched her arms and took off her gloves. “Ok, it looks worse than it is,” the woman said.

Zeph felt a giant gulf of air leaving his lungs, a huge sigh of relief.

“But you have a broken hand, and two ribs,” she said.

Fuck!!!

That would take a while to recover, and he needed to be fresh. He knew how hard the curriculum was for medical students at the universities. Missing more than a single day would leave him massively behind. His mother had already told him of the horror stories she went through studying for her degree, and he had to become a doctor, which took twice as long.

“Relax,” the woman said, obviously seeing his worry. “I’ll patch you up, and you should be able to move,” she said, “You just need to be extremely careful.”

“Of course,” Zeph said, and it seemed she didn’t believe him, but he couldn’t blame her. She searched her bag for stuff and pulled out a vial of green liquid. He could recognize the stuff from a mile away. Anesthesia.

“It’ll be over in a second,” the woman said before Zeph could even begin to retort. Everything turned black.

Large slit eyes stared at Zeph. It took him a moment to realize what was happening, but when he did. His body shot up with pure instinct. The cat on his chest made the biggest meow he had ever heard and jumped off the bed. He sat up and looked at the surprised cat that ran out the door. He couldn’t help but feel a little bad, he would have to give it a treat later he thought.

With his mind now fully awake, he stared at his fully bandaged form from head to toe. Zeph’s body felt much better, and he had to move his hand to feel discomfort. The woman was good; he doubted even his mother could patch up a patient this good.

He glanced around the room he was staying in; the walls were dark green. It was a little jarring to look at, and the bed filled more than half the room. Besides the bed, there was a small table at the end of the room. Just enough space for the door to open and close. Though he immediately spotted the phone on the table and knew the first thing he would be doing. He didn’t even know how long he had been asleep, but he knew he needed to talk to his mother more than anything else. But before he could even make his way toward the phone, the woman who had patched him up walked through the door with a plate full of food. She saw where he had been looking and couldn’t help but shake her head.

“You shouldn’t even be trying to move yet,” the woman said, Placing the tray of food on his bed. His stomach crumpled just looking at it.

Zeph looked back at the woman. “I can’t thank you enough, thank you, miss….” Zeph tried to thank her, but he remembered he didn’t even know her name. “Santina,” the woman said with a smile. “Mine is….”

“Zeph,” they both said in unison. Zeph stared at her, surprised.

“I have known your mother since she was just a wee little thing, even though I have never seen you before. I know just about everything there is to know, Zeph,” she said with a jolly smile.

He couldn’t help but be a little creeped out by how she said it, but it also comforted him. He knew he would be at home here, and that had been something he had worried about before he arrived. Though it seemed his mother had shared quite a few things about him, something he would have to talk with her about that. Hopefully, not certain things, he thought.

But that train of thought was quickly lost when he remembered his school, or lack off. He needed to be at school.

now!!

“How long?” Zeph asked. Santina sat on the edge of his bed, the small cat coming back through the door and jumping in her lap.

“You’ve slept for two days,” Santina said, “your body needed all the rest it could get.”

Two days?!

This couldn’t be real; he had now missed three school days. How long until they kicked him out? It had been a miracle he had even been accepted, largely because of his mother’s previous schooling. But three days?

“Relax,” Santina said, obviously seeing the clear panic on his face. Zeph didn’t relax just because she said that “I have talked to your tutor, though I couldn’t say the correct reason for your absence,” the woman said sternly.

Zeph froze in shame, even though he felt it wasn’t his fault. There was just something about the way Santina stared at him. “You talked to them?” He asked; he didn’t even know that was possible. But it made sense since she was heavenly involved in the medical field in Viel.

“I did, but I used the excuse that you got a sickness, and you were afraid you were gonna spread your sickness if you came,” she said. Zeph couldn’t believe it. Had he just been saved? Again!? He didn’t know how he would make it up to his woman; she had taken him in, saved him, and covered for him. He didn’t know how, but he would repay her.

She patted him on the shoulder and lifted herself off his bed with the cat.

“You start next week,” she said, taking the phone from the table and placing it by his side. Just as she was about to walk out the door, “oooh But don’t say I did you a favor,” her eyes stared into his. “A week lost at that school is gonna be hell,” she said. “Good luck,” Santina finished, closing the door behind her. The way she said it sent shivers up his spine. It was going to be tougher than he imagined.

He could think of the difficulties later, he now knew he had time. He picked up the white phone and dialed her number. This had been the longest time he hadn’t seen her, Zeph needed to hear her voice.

Ring….

Ring…..

Ring…..

“Hello?”

“Mom!” Zeph said, finally hearing her voice again.

“Zeph?!” His mother said, sounding frantic, “Why the hell are you just calling me now, and why did you get in a fight?!”

Fight? How would she know— wait of course she would. Probably the first thing Santina did after she had patched him up was call his mother. He wanted to get angry at her, but he didn’t have it in him. She had done way too much, and he would have told his mother either way. He couldn’t keep a secret from her.

“I—” Zeph released a long sigh. He didn’t know how to explain it or what had happened. Could he even tell everything? Would his mother send him back?

“I’m waiting, ZEPH!” His mother commanded over the phone. He knew he couldn’t keep it a secret, not from his mother; he just hoped he would still be allowed to attend school. And maybe some answers, though he highly doubted it.

“Fine. It all started when—” Zeph began. God save him.

Santina stood outside the door, carefully listening to Nora and her son’s conversation. She knew she shouldn’t be doing this, but she couldn’t help it. She needed to listen in. No matter how much of a friend Nora was, having a guest in her house and getting enemies would be unacceptable. Especially with Vinnie in the house, she was sure she could protect just about anyone with her connections. You make a lot of friends saving lives over the years.

But curiosity turned to horror as she continued to listen in. She covered her mouth in shock as the boy continued.

What a fool?!

Why did the boy stay and not just run away when he saw the police? He wouldn’t have gotten hurt; they weren’t after him. But how could he have known? If you were associated with someone in this city that the police had a grudge against—That would never be forgotten. Why hadn’t he just made it home first?

She couldn’t shame his courage though. She would have done the same at his age.

The boy continued talking, and of course, Nora would have no idea why the police would suddenly begin attacking Zeph and the man he had tried to protect or why some mysterious woman could summon something from thin air. The boy had got in contact with them. The Perils, She didn’t know which group it was. She hoped it hadn’t been THEM, but if it had, the boy would have been killed by now. They don’t leave any witnesses. It must have been one of the weaker groups; some didn’t have the manpower for the “no witness” rule. The boy continued talking, but she had heard enough. Santina headed downstairs and allowed the mother and son some privacy. Save enough people, and be owed enough favors you begin to learn things— Hear things. Secrets that she could be killed for knowing. She would have to warn the boy; luckily, he would be a medical student soon. Then he would have no time for anything else, but studies. She would have told him to return home if it had been for anything else. But education and hospitals the perils had no use. That was not their goal. Santina prepared some tea. It was moments like that she needed to remind herself why she chose to live in this city. No matter the looming danger, there was no future outside this place. Not for her son. But she hadn’t run into any perils in all her life, and it just happened the boy did on his first night. She didn’t like it. Santina drank her tea and, thanked the almighty it had been a lesser group of Perils. That nose was gonna cause the boy problems, she would have to watch out for him.

The things I do for you, Nora.