The smell of dust and debri hit her nostrils and the sound of subtle conversation from people around her surrounded her sense of hearing, it was quite confusing for her to register what was going on. She could see someone staring at her but brushed it off due to drowsiness and the lack of energy to try and stand up from her comfortable yet cold fulfilling sleep.
Hot sun rays hit Neunis' skin, forcing her heavy eyelid to open to discover she's fallen asleep behind a secluded area she doesn't remember entering. Finding a group of homeless people scattered all over the abandoned facility; eating and talking to each other. The woman rubbed her eyes to fix the blurry sensation, windows boarded up to avoid the light outside from hitting inside yet it did a terrible job to do so.
She sat up comfortably and rubbed circles on her head as she tried to remember what had happened the night before. Neunis muttered, "Oh right …” A fight, and pact-ending conversation with Amaranthine. She shouldn’t think about it since she said things that are meant to be left behind.
The situation she was in was registering inside her head and wondering how she got here. Her wound was no longer stapled but replaced with sutures. When she looked at her gash, her face contorted in disgust. The previous night was hazy and dark, and she didn't have enough time to scan her terrible cut or to react; now that she was aware, she couldn't bear to look at it. The aftermath of the fall was extreme, her headache becoming unbearable the second she stood up.
“Careful! Oh my, stay still and lay down; you don’t need to get up.” A woman slightly older than her protected Neunis from falling flat on the floor, holding her arm with delicacy and supporting her to sit down. She adjustedher pillow with a cup of water in hand. “Here, water.” Neunis was beyond baffled.
“I apologize if this is all we have, we’re running out of budget. The people here … we are all we have.” She continued, Neunis nodded slowly and drank the cup of fresh water she offered. “My name’s Claudia, and you are?”
“Neunis.” The woman smiled, “I know you are confused, Neunis. We saw you passed out on the street so we took you in and replaced a more suitable stitch on your wound.” Neunis’ eyes lit up, so that was her. “Staples aren’t very safe, they might get infected.”
“Yeah … that’s all I have so that the wound wouldn’t open.” Claudia nodded as a response to Neunis. “I admire your bravery to do that but, don’t do it again.” Claudia responded, “I’ll get going, call on me if you need anything.” She said and stood up, walking away.
Neunis watched as Claudia took her leave, sipping the last drop of water that was in the cup and putting aside. What comes next, she wondered? However, she is unsure. She assumed that this is where her life would begin, perhaps if she tried to accept the group she was in, which was made up entirely of homeless people who were responsible for taking care of themselves. If she claimed that she didn't miss the rush of being pursued by gods in a massive palace who only wanted to see her dead, she was lying.
But even though her contract with Amaranthine was over, she was still on the prowl, and every second she remained alive puts her health at risk. Neunis lied to Amaranthine, the curse the Arcanea laid on her wasn’t gone, erasing a curse wasn’t that easy no matter how powerful you are. It requires work, patience, and above all, sanity—the Arcanea's sanity is below average compared to humans. If you talk rank, there are a bunch of insane psychopaths living above civilization.
The curse was eternity; unless she commands Amaranthine to assist her in removing it, it will continue to drain her energy for the rest of her life. Neunis did think of just letting it suck the hell out of her like a leech since she wasn’t that optimistic to stay alive, hopeless. It was surprisingly quiet now that Amaranthine wasn’t trying to reach her using her head to communicate.
“Neunis?” Neunis looked behind her to find Claudia, a tray full of food in hand. “Where are you goin?”
“I’m sorry I can’t stay.” Neunis replied,
“Oh.” Claudia said, a sad tone hinting behind her throat. “Well, atleast take this, it’s cold outside.” She placed the tracy carefully next to a table, grabbed a thick coat and handed it to Neunis. She was hesitant to accept it first but gave in and took the coat. It was soft and smelled amazing, she couldn’t wait to try it on but doesn’t wanna seem desperate. “And please be careful, around this time outside … you should wear a ga-”
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“Thanks.” Neunis cut her words before taking off.
“Oh uh, don’t you wanna eat first?”
Although Neunis is hungry, she received enough from Claudia, including the coat, the bed, the stitches, and the fresh water. She couldn’t take more. “I am good.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“Alright, take care and be careful.” Claudia waved goodbye. Neunis smiled at her, something she hasn’t done in a long time.
After she had left Claudia's sight, she put the coat on right away. Finding it to be incredibly comfortable and well-made, she concluded that Claudia was a master at working with her hands and materials.
Neunis continued to walk along the path, the street was still quiet as if it was a ghost town, has no one ever lived here? She thought. The only person she could try to reach out at the moment was her childhood friend that she hasn’t seen in years.
The click of her worn-out shoes and the smokes Neunis' breath made as she breathed could both be heard. All that was left of the sun's scorching rays earlier in the day was a cloudy, chilly, and foggy road. Somehow, it has a calming effect. As she walked further away from the hidden building Claudia stayed at, Neunis became wary of the situation she was in. Her hands clasped the paper as she looked at the date the posters were published, aware but disoriented as the fog gradually revealed posters of criminals who were never found.
October 12, 2078.
“Was I gone for 4 years?” Neunis said.
Neunis hid behind a wall, listening to someone’s conversation as a man emerged from the thick fog that had engulfed the surface upon hearing a sound.
“What am I supposed to do here exactly?” A man in a gas mask said it was almost unintelligible due the gear the man was wearing. She attempted to eavesdrop but was unsuccessful because she didn't have enough time and needed to arrive before dusk.
A clang, “Hello?” The man shouted. Neunis cursed under her breath and tried to be still.
Unfortunately, she was hiding in a dead-end alleyway so there was no way for her to keep walking to hit the street behind the building, so before getting caught she revealed herself.
When Neunis turned around, she saw the man in the combat gear staring menacingly at her. Although she couldn't see it, she could feel it. The man pointed his gun directly at the woman, who jerked in shock and instinctively held her arms up.
“Woah” Neunis said in a dainty voice.
“This is a highly contaminated area, what are you doing without your protected gear?” What? She thought.
“How are you not dead?” He continued.
“What?” Neunis asked,
“Oh fuck, I know your kind. Come with me.” Setting aside the rifle he was holding, walking forward to Neunis to grab her arm so harshly.
“What are you doing?” Neunis resisted, pulling her arm away from the man.
He said, "Resist and I'll shoot your head."
"Who are you?" She fought, her impulse making her use the word in a rather hostile manner.
The man was about to say something until a voice could be heard from his radio chest. He replied, whispering the last part, "Yes, I'm on my way. You'd be interested in this one." Neunis was beyond confused, a lot has been happening even outside the insufferable palace she was previously imprisoned in.