Nagith Chronicles: Discovery
Chapter Two

“He has a soft spot for you.”

Charin winced, rubbing one of his multiple bruises as his large mentor bandaged him up.

“Really? Hard to believe, he beat me pretty damn good, think I broke a bone.”

“You broke three,” Malochite responded flatly, setting Charin’s leg. “You disobeyed him blatantly twice in the same week, if he didn’t favor you, you would be dead already.”

“Sometimes I wonder if that’d be less of a hassle,” Charin muttered to himself, wincing as the elder Lestuk tightened the bandages.

“There. Now you have no real choice but to stay out of trouble, with your leg broken.” He said flatly.

“When do I ever get into trouble, big guy?” Charin laughed harshly, leaning back in his chair with a sigh. “I don’t get into trouble, it replaces me, buys me a drink and then screws me, one way or the other if you get my drift.”

The blank expression on the giant’s face told him very clearly he did not replace it amusing. Charin sighed, settling into his chair and thinking about what had happened over his last couple days. Two beatings in a week was a new record for him, he was really trying ol’ Tensombrek’s patience as of late. So really it was a personal best.

“There.” Malochite said flatly, ignoring him.

He stood, towering above Charin and scanned him over with his deepset black eyes. They matched his hair, as with all Nagithians, but Malochite still managed to come across differently than most. Even his size aside, there was a rigidness to the man that was very unusual. His hair was kept cropped close to his scalp, his beard and mustache kept equally trim with such stringency it was almost suffocating just to look at. Charin certainly didn’t know of another person anything like him, even the guards were only ever half as disciplined. His attire was unspeakably plain for anyone at the citadel, devoid of a single bangle or decoration, a functional, simple black shirt and slacks, a black belt of skrat leather. As he loomed ever behind his master, there was a good reason the man was called Tensombrek’s shadow.

“Now be more careful.” He said flatly, then left without so much as another blink.

Charin eyed him as he ducked his head under the door and left, closing it behind him. The doors were wide enough that the behemoth could navigate through them, however despite being tall, relatively speaking, the doors were still low enough that Malochite still had to duck through them.

He sighed, slumping back into his chair and wincing a bit at the sting in his wounds. Well really, what had he expected? The big guy was right about one thing, at least, if he had been anyone else he would have likely been killed. With some difficulty he rose from the chair, wincing a bit. He legs weren’t broken and it didn’t hurt bad enough to stay in that damn chair all day. His left arm was in a sling, aching a bit as he wandered over to his window, looking out.

There was never anything really new to see, he was never sure why he always went to his window. He was about three stories up, which was pretty high up for this castle, given the high-ceilings… Still, looking out, even during the day when the gray clouds cast smoky light upon the land there wasn’t much to see. There was the dusty ground with the greasy shrubs sticking out of the rock, then the black wall that separated the castle grounds from the city just outside it. The buildings were sturdy but they always seemed….unbalanced, to him. Like they were going to fall apart, like the upper floors were going to slide off and crash into the one next to it. It was hard for him to say what about them made him think that, perhaps it was the sharp angles or the shadows cast by the dim light…

People went about the usual routine. There were a few fights, a few chases, and some women advertising themselves as children scurried about in their lizard forms, snatching up small vermin or bits of food from carts that weren’t well supervised enough. It was far more orderly than the outer city, hardly anyone ever got killed in the heart of the place. Mainly because they were usually fearful enough, being so near Tensombrek’s home, that they did not wish to draw his attention. Why was it he always felt the need to look outside? Nothing ever changed, he thought, as his dark eyes scanned then city, further out, toward the slums and then past-….

He blinked once or twice, looking at the gnarled, gray landscape past the city’s limits. Of course, he had been out of the city numerous times, enforcing Tensombrek’s orders when need be. There were other cities, other places, but for some reason, at the moment he found himself oddly interested by the horizon. It was like an itch down his spine, nagging in his head, as if encouraging him to go out into it, to follow the horizon the farthest he could and discover- something. Like he could go far enough and replace something completely new, something that would change everything, something that would make his entire world fresh-

An ear-splitting shriek broke his train of thought, his eyes darting down back to the city outside the wall. A man was scampering about in reptilian form, shrieking, long tongue lashing about as he ran aimlessly, crashing into walls and carts only to immediately, blindly rush into another. Charin frowned, wondering if he was being pursued by something or after someone. That didn’t seem to be the case, he had no goal, no target, rushing and crashing around like a blinded skarn, one of the fatty beasts they often would butcher for meals. He was without direction, without thought it seemed, he- …oh, yes of course, he must have given into the void. The void they all had within them, which was always eating away at them, the one that he seemed to so often be questioning as of late.

It wasn’t the first time he’d seen that, everyone saw it, at least a few times during their lives. Someone would get too…they would think too much about it, notice it too much. They wouldn’t properly distract themselves with pleasures or rage, nothing to keep them from noticing it. Once they began to think too much about it, it only grew, only began to eat away faster at them, becoming more noticeable by the day. Until it consumed their lives, their minds, and they exploded in mania like the one currently rampaging down below him. Generally the law said it was perfectly legal, in fact encouraged, to kill the mad ones. Oddly enough, he knew almost everyone would gladly kill if they thought they could get away with it, but they were always reluctant to slay the mad ones.

He felt an unpleasant twisting sensation in the pit of his chest, his brow furrowing as he watched the lizard shriek and flail, its insanity almost palpable. Something always…bothered him, about them, but more than bothered. It felt as if it was his problem, as if it was affecting him as well. Perhaps that was why people were always so reluctant to slay them, much less get close, perhaps they felt that way as well…

Finally he saw a few approach the insane creature, shifting themselves to subdue him. Charin frowned and pulled the curtains over the window with his good arm, turning away. For some reason he imagined, suddenly, who that person was. What did it matter now, when he would be dead in a minute? Still he found himself thinking, wondering, who he was, what his name was, where he lived, if he had children… Then he thought of Rachel, and imagined her in that state, like she had feared when he spoke to her. He imagined having to kill her.

An involuntary shudder ran down his spine with the speed of lightning, making him flinch. He didn’t like that thought, he didn’t like thinking about people becoming like that, or people that were like that or- no, no he wasn’t going to think about this anymore. He didn’t like this twisting in his chest, he didn’t like this at all. The dark eyes scanned his room, walking over to the cabinet he had on the side of the wall that contained his private…collection. Charin took a bottle out, turning one finger from the hand in the sling into a claw, then using his good hand to pop the top off the bottle using his claw. Technically he wasn’t supposed to be drinking but hell with it, he had had a strained past few days, he needed to get his mind off things.

The man sat back in his chair and was about to drink when he heard a screech from out his window, signaling the death of the maddened one.

He put his head back and chugged the liquor.

His next couple weeks of punishment were all about the same, after that. Nothing but hanging around his room, getting his bandages cleaned and knocking a few bottles back. He was getting antsy, locked up like that, but despite his apparent idiocy he did in fact know when not to push his luck. Tensombrek wouldn’t forgive another outbreak so soon. So he sat there, drinking and thinking, then drinking more to push back the pestering thoughts that had only continued to assault him since Rachel, since the mad one out his window. Rachel was like him, at least in one aspect…but she was afraid to think about it, because she was afraid she’d end up like the pitiful wretch that had gotten killed in the street. Did that mean that everyone had something like that, though? Some nag that they did not wish to do something that apparently everyone wanted, that they ignored because they did not want to go mad? Or maybe just because it made them feel uneasy, uncomfortable, just like he was right now, thinking about this, thinking about Rachel and the mad ones and the void…

Charin sighed, leaning back in his chair and staring up at the high ceiling. The torches and chandeliers burned a deep violent color, casting strange flickering shades onto the polished stone. It almost seemed…alive, when he looked too long. Like the light was moving, dancing around making shapes...or maybe it was just the drink. He closed his eyes a moment to block out the light, only to open them again, to continue to stare at the patterns of the purple glow on his bedroom ceiling. What was it like, he wondered? To go mad…if you were insane, were you sane enough to know you were insane? Did that man out there know he had lost his mind, did he know he was doomed and just had no control of himself anymore? Did he feel fear? Or did the rest of the world seem normal to him, in his mind? In his mind did things seem the same as they always were? He kind of hoped so, the first option made his stomach twist and chilled his blood.

Then again, by that logic, he could be insane for all he knew. If he was insane, maybe he wasn’t sane enough to know that he was doing anything besides his normal life. Maybe he was running around right now, foaming at the mouth and wrecking things and he just thought he was in his room, staring into the darkness. Everyone always said he had dangerous habits, that the way he thought and all the questions he asked would drive him to become a mad one. Maybe it would- maybe it already had, but…what if it hadn’t? What if the things he thought were not dangerous, what if his questions were just that, questions? Maybe it was just that people were so afraid of going mad they were afraid of thinking too much. If that was the case, he kind of wanted to think even more. He chuckled, smirking a bit and closing his eyes. He wasn’t quite sure where that thought came from, but then he had always been competitive about silly things.

The rest of his ‘sentence’ went without much incident and as soon as he was healed, he was allowed to return to his usual activities. It was good then that he healed so quickly, as he was apt to do, because by the time he was freed he was antsy to the point of insanity. He slipped out of his room onto the balcony, looking out over the gray-lit world. With a grin he stretched his arms, then backed up a bit before running and jumping off the railing. He watched the ground come at him and at the last minute shifted to his full reptilian form. Great black wings beat off the ground and sent his ebon body surging above the gates.

He was smaller than Malochite, very much so, but he was still at least three times larger than the average lizard a male Nagithian could become. The wings that had been at the base of his neck at birth had moved down under his shoulder blades and expanded, becoming large enough to support his weight. While the common lizard-formed Nagithians moved with a sprawling motion, their knees out to the sides of their hips, the few dragons- himself, Malochite and Tensombrek- had their knees under their bodies, as such walked with a more forward, steady posture. Their heads and snouts were different as well, with a larger cranium, a stronger and broader snout, and the horns that sprouted from their heads. It was the changes Charin’s body was beginning as a child that Malochite had spotted beginning, the reason he was taken to serve Tensombrek.

There were no other dragons beside them three, and even Charin was a…unique case. Tensombrek took the form of a dragon simply because he chose to, he could take any form- or so it was said. Usually the only ones anyone witnessed were his human-like Nagithian form (with the added feather tendrils) and the dragon form. Malochite was a dragon, but that was because Tensombrek specifically created him like that. Everyone knew that, after all. At the beginning of their world, Tensombrek had created all kinds of creatures, Nagithians included. Once he had done so he created a Nagithian to be his personal servant and guard, as such he created him as the only dragon besides himself, to be a fitting subordinate. …Well, that was until Charin showed up.

He flapped his wings harder, lifting himself up over the city and then diving down a bit. Catching the air he spread out his wings, settling into a glide with his long tail held out to balance him out. Those below looked up at him, watching as he flew over. A smug smirk came to the strange ‘lips’ of his snout, knowing they envied him in his powerful flight. He didn’t mind the power but truthfully, it came second to his ability to fly. That was one thing that always, always made him feel better, flying. Flying made everything seem…okay, like his problems had no hold on him, no control, that they could not grip or grasp him up in the air. It was almost…serene…

Then he caught the scent he was searching for, descending down toward the area he had been heading. Yes, it was her scent, clearly. It was difficult to remember exactly where she lived, since he had been there only once, days ago, but he’d never forget a scent of such an intriguing woman. He skimmed along the rooftops, over the street. Then abruptly he shifted back to his humanoid form in mid-air, dropping down into the street and landing casually on his feet. He smiled, brushing himself off and walking up to the complex where Rachel lived. After his confinement, he was more than eager to take her up on her last offer.

Quickly he found her door, knocking on it and then putting his arms behind his back. For some reason he was in quite a good mood, and he swayed back on forth on his feet a bit, as if to dance.

“Who is it and what do you want?” was the harsh, sudden response.

“It’s Charin, remember? I met you at the club a while ago, killed those two guys?”

There was a moment of silence before the door opened, Rachel scanning him a moment before relaxing visibly.

“Ah, it is you…I was wondering if you were ever going to come back.”

“Yeah, I was uh…tied up.”

“I’m sure.”

She moved to the side, allowing him to walk in and she closed the door behind him.

“You always keep this place so clean?” Charin wondered, tilting his head to the side.

“There isn’t much here to make it messy,” she responded with a shrug.

She eyed him a moment, then crossed her arms under her bosom, pushing up her chest just a bit. Charin rose a brow, eying her blatantly and smirking at her.

“Those are nice, any particular reason you’re showing them off?” he grinned.

“I found out who you are, Charin, you’re Tensombrek’s new Lestuk,” she said, smirking just a bit and her eyes half-lidded.

“Why yes, as a matter of fact I am,” he smirked, speaking more smoothly.

“Why did you keep such an interesting tidbit from me? I wouldn’t have been so rude last time, I’d have offered you my business far more quickly….”

“Well I had questions to ask, so I wasn’t really concerned with telling you stuff about myself at the time.” Charin approached her, flashing a charming smile. “So by ‘business’ do you mean…what, exactly?”

“Oh, you know very well what I mean.”

He greatly enjoyed himself for some time after that before laying in her bed with her, tired but oddly peaceful. The contentment that suppressed the void had befallen him, and he allowed himself to relish it, knowing it would soon pass, like it always did. Yet, something strange seemed to happen, this time. It was a new experience, though this situation wasn’t, he had bedded many women so if anything it made this new occurrence seem even more strange. As he laid there, his arms around her and his eyes closed, breathing in her scent, he felt…strange. The brush of her soft hair on his face, the faint tinge of smoke from her work at the club, the feel of her body in his arms…he didn’t want to let go. Instead of fondle or try to get another round out of her, he pulled her close and simply held her, a strange, warm sensation, unlike lust, it was as if he was happy just to hold her like this, and do nothing else at all….

“Charin?” she spoke up, her voice breaking him out of his daze. “What are you doing?”

The man blinked his eyes open, replaceing himself at a loss for words. Rachel was eying him, a little bit suspicious but mostly confused at his actions.

“…Uh, nothing, why?”

“Exactly, you’re doing nothing,” she said, frowning. “You’re just…laying here, didn’t you want more?”

“I- well, yeah I guess-“

“You guess?” her expression shifted to irritation, pulling back from him, sitting up. “What do you mean, you guess? Wasn’t I good? Am I not enough for you?”

He jerked upright too, alarmed at her accusation.

“No, no! That’s not it at all! You’re great, really great!” he said quickly, his skin getting a faint gray, ashen tint of fear. “And I’d like to do more, sure! I just- I- I just kinda wanted…”

“Wanted what?” Rachel scowled, bringing up the blanket to cover her bare chest, denying him.

“I just…wanted to hold you, for a bit, is all.” He finished somewhat lamely.

“…Why?”

Come to think of it, he had no clue. Why? Why would he want to hold her but not have sex with her? Oh damn it all, he had come here so he could get his mind off all these things but they just kept coming more than ever, it seemed.

“I guess you’re an odd one through and through,” Rachel muttered, eying him.

“I guess we’re done now, huh?” Charin sighed, rubbing his face.

“…Yes, I think so,” she said, standing up from the bed and picking up her clothes.

“So how much do you want?”

“Hm, well, that was a while,” she mused as she dressed.

“Why thank you.”

She twitched, then looked over her shoulder at his smirk. One dark brow arched and she laughed a bit, shaking her head.

“Don’t let it get to your head…though I suppose I will give you a discount, because I enjoyed it enough.”

After locating his coat he rooted about for his wallet, paying her the amount she requested. She held the polished stones in her hand, inspecting them to make sure it was correct. Content her payment was accurate she pocketed them, then went about brushing out her hair. Charin hesitated a moment, wondering if that was his dismissal. Usually he was told to leave after he had paid a woman, but she hadn’t addressed him just yet. She brushed her hair in the mirror in her bedroom, then turned to view him.

“You’re still here?

“Uhm…yeah, did you want me to leave?”

Rachel seemed to consider something just a moment, frowning, before finally shrugging.

“You can stick around if you want…I just thought you were done. I’m not giving you another round tonight, I have enough to get me by for a while.”

“That’s fine, as long as I get to be around you.”

“Hm, I get what they say about you being a charmer,” she smirked at him. “But it also just contributes to what a freak you are.”

“I get called that by the ladies, too.”

“Mm hm, I’m sure,” she said, scanning him.

“So anyway, I wanted to talk to you about some things. I know last time you weren’t exactly open to discussing them but now that we’re better acquainted-“

Her expression hardened, almost hostile.

“I told you I didn’t want to discuss stuff like that.”

“But you invited me back anyway.” He rose a brow. “So you’re either not all together upstairs or you’re curious. Or both, I guess.”

Rachel’s glare only intensified, crossing her arms aggressively across her chest and then went to speak, but once again he cut her off.

“But you’re a smart woman, I have no doubt of that, so-“

“I only ‘invited’ you because I knew you were wealthy-“

“And cute, you distinctly said cute.”

“I said you weren’t bad looking-“

“So you admit I’m cute.”

The woman just fixed him with a pointed glare, however the beginnings of a smirk upturned one corner of her mouth.

“Ah, ahhh, see? You admit it.” Charin grinned.

“Fine, you’re cute, but there’s a lot of cute guys out there,” she said, shaking her head.

“Yup, but I’m interesting.” His grin slid into a little smirk.

“I’ll admit that much…”she said, sitting next to him. “I am curious, about you, even despite your obvious insanity.”

“What could be more interesting than my insanity?” he joked.

“You grew up under Lord Tensombrek and Lord Malochite,” she said flatly, her eyes sparking with just a bit of interest. “Anyone would be interested how you survived something like that, he usually wouldn’t be bothered with anything or anyone.”

“Well I am a dragon.” Charin shrugged.

“That interests me as well.”

“It interests everyone.”

He squeaked in terror, scrambling to get out of the giant’s grip. His black claws skid on the polished tile, making him loose his grip and slide into a decorative vase, crashing into it and causing it to shatter into pieces. With a sharp yelp he popped his head out of the rubble, shaking it to remove the debris that had landed on his head. A low whimper came from the base of his throat, looking up as the giant simply walked up and picked him out of the mess by the scaled scruff at the back of his neck. Charin whimpered, large black eyes looking at the expressionless face of the behemoth. He never changed that face, it was always the same no matter what he did. It made it seem like he was always angry, even if he never yelled.

“Master said you are to come to training,” he said flatly, a low, oddly soft but booming voice.

“No!” Charin wriggled in his huge hand. “No!”

He didn’t like ‘Master’, he didn’t like the one that made his head hurt, the one with the twisting eyes. It made him sick, like eating bad meat, like he wanted to curl up and throw up.

Despite his wriggling struggles and cries, Malochite ignored him, calmly carrying him down the halls. After some fighting Charin slumped in defeat, dangling from the Lestuks’ hand and settling for eying the areas they passed through. The halls were so huge, he was still cowed by them, if they even made Malochite look small. It was all black stone, polished, carved, with carpets and tapestries of deep reds, purples and pale greens thrown about. The carvings on the walls, pillars and around the windows glowed dimly, pulsing, with the same three colors. There was the occasional faint blue, here and there, but that one was rarer. Those were the only colors he’d ever seen, besides the usual scale. Black, gray, white; black, gray, white; why was there so much of it? He used to ask his mother that, all the time, and she would usually snap at him to stop paying attention to such stupid things.

He pouted a bit, curling his tail higher up to his chest. His mother thought everything he asked was stupid, it made him mad. Why was everything stupid? He wasn’t stupid, they were stupid, he reassured himself silently. Yeah, they were all just stupidheads.

Oh. He lifted his head a bit, then whimpered, bringing it back down again. They had entered a room and he was there, sitting on a plush chair with his head propped up on his elbow. He was mad, but he was always mad, just madder than usual. The feathers on his back were moving more than usual, twisting around, their points sharp, moving around like serpents looking for something to strike at. Charin didn’t dare look at his face, at his eyes…

You’re late

He whimpered, trying to curl up more, as if he could hide.

“He ran again, Master, I am sorry for not being swifter.”

As you should be! His dark voice snapped with the same sting as a stab in the chest.

“I will not allow there to be a delay again, Master-“

I’m tired of this, enough, just put the whelp down already

Charin whimpered a bit as he was set on his feet, eyes darting about as he tried to discover an appropriate escape route. If he moved too quick one way or the other, Malochite would grab him. If he feinted, Tensombrek’s feather tendrils would grab him. He growled quietly in his frustration, trying to figure out how he could get out of this….

“Change forms, whelp.”

He relaxed just a bit. Tensombrek was using the ‘normal’ voice now, the one that sounded like the way they spoke, a voice he could hear with his ears and not bouncing in his head. So that meant he wasn’t as mad anymore, that was good, it meant he was less likely to get beaten… Still…

He gave a small huff of defiance, sitting down promptly on all fours with his snout in the air. There was no reason for him to change, why should he? They might hit him but he got hit all the time anyway-

The young boy let out a yelp of pain, shaking his head as his cheek stung. Tensombrek was glaring at him, impatient, the feather he had struck Charin with was sharp-edged, each fiber pointed out like a million fine blades, dripping dark blue with the blood from Charin’s cheek.

“Don’t test my patience you little brat,” he snarled. “When I tell you to do something, you do it.”

Charin whimpered, his long whip-like tongue reaching out to the side of his head to lick at the wound. That had hurt more than being hit, he thought, he didn’t like being cut, and it stung...

“Do as Master says,” Malochite’s deep voice rumbled.

Charin whined a bit, licking at his cut. He eyed Tensombrek, then craned his head up to look up at his guardian, who simply looked back down at him. The little dragon sighed a bit, then abruptly became a young boy, sitting on the ground hugging his knees to his chest, eying Tensombrek warily.

“There. Now then, whelp, do you know why you’re here?”

“…He brought me here,” Charin said, jerking a thumb over his shoulder at Malochite’s legs.

“Other than that,” the spirit snapped, though with a faint hint of amusement in his expression.

“I’m ‘strange’, that’s what you said.” Charin frowned, shifting a bit.

“Indeed you are. Your other form is not like the others, it’s…well, not completely a dragon yet, but definitely not a common lizard.”

“It’s like his?” Charin asked, turning his head up in an attempt to look up at Malochite.

“Exactly, and that’s not supposed to happen,” he responded flatly. “This is my world, Charin, it runs by my rules. If I say something can’t happen, it doesn’t happen, if I say it does, it does. I said no one could take a dragon form but myself and Malochite…and yet here you are.”

“Well it’s not my fault.” He pouted, hugging his knees again and casting his gaze to the floor. “I didn’t know it was your rule and I didn’t mean to do it.”

“It doesn’t matter. By being alive you’ve broken my law, defied me, by all rights I should kill you. You deserve to die, living is a crime.”

Charin cut off, frowning a bit as he went over the exchange in his head.

“You know I guess I never really thought about that part too much…” he said, rubbing his temple. “It’s weird isn’t it? How am I how I am if he made it so I couldn’t be like that?”

“Do you always get distracted so easily?” Rachel scoffed a bit. “You barely started explaining and already you’re asking all these unnecessary questions.”

“How is it unnecessary?” Charin asked, eying her. “He’s supposed to be in control, right?”

“Well of course.”

“He’s all powerful right?”

“Of course he is, everyone knows that,” she scoffed, obviously losing her patience.

“So if he says something can’t happen it doesn’t happen. Right?”

“Yes, already! Why do you ask such stupid-?”

“He said no one could be a dragon, but I am.” He cut her off. “He said that couldn’t happen but it did. So what does that mean?”

Rachel was obviously frustrated, her brow furrowed and arms crossed defensively over her chest. Despite it, Charin noted how her eyes looked off to the side, as if she was glaring down some invisible offender. She was thinking about it, at least, that was more than he ever got from anyone else…

He got to his feet, gathering up his clothes and getting redressed.

“If it bothers you a lot I won’t talk about it anymore…” he smiled weakly at her. “I’ve never found anyone who listens as much as you, though. I was hoping-…well, thanks.”

“You were hoping what, exactly?” she asked.

“Well, I’m not sure, really,” he said with a shrug, adjusting his shirt. “It was just neat to have someone listen for once- for more than a few seconds anyway.”

“I can’t be the only one that’s ever done that.” Rachel said as she re-donned her dress. “People have to be curious about you.”

“Yeah, for all of a few seconds.”Charin laughed a bit. “Well anyway, I suppose I’ve overstayed my welcome. Guess I’ll be off now.”

“Heading back to the castle then?”

“Yup, knowing my luck I’ll probably have an assignment the second I get through the doors. Since I’ve been in confinement the boss hasn’t been able to send me off on jobs, he probably has a whole stack of things waiting to dump on me.”

Rachel smirked a bit, tilting her head to the side in amusement.

“Never a dull moment then, I assume?”

“Oh no, it’s usually dull. When he hits me with sharp things I know I’m in trouble.”

He grinned, heading for the door. The man looked over his shoulder at her, scanning her for a minute.

“So…can we do this again?”

“Provided you don’t ramble as much, sure, you know where to replace me.”

That brought a smile to his face as he left. Things felt oddly…brighter out, it seemed. Maybe it was because he had been locked up so long, something just seemed…better, about the world today. Maybe it was because she had expressed interest? As he told her, usually people labeled off his ramblings as…well, ramblings.

Still, he knew he had to report back. He sighed, shoving his hands in his pockets as he walked down the street. He was in no hurry to get back, so there was no point in flying. Besides, it was kinda nice to walk now and then, he got to see things up close he usually didn’t get to. Like that vine that was curled around a small spined marl. He cast a glance at it, watching as the small ball of pins flailed against the tendril. The plant was squeezing it, paying no mind to its stalk being impaled as it choked the life out of the little beast. Its main body would be nearby, probably under one of the houses, it’d drag the marl down underground and shove it into its body cavity, where it’d dissolve in the acid…

Charin frowned. Maybe there was a reason he preferred flying, he kind of preferred not seeing that kind of thing. Not like he ‘saw’ it per say, but something about it…bugged him. That nag again, the nag in the back of his head- well no point in worrying about it. The plants never tried to eat Nagithians…well not adults…not that kind of plant. They were dangerous to young ones, but only if they were small, or weak, or sick. In that case they usually got killed before something else besides a plant could get them anyway.

A shriek met his ears. His head whipped around toward the source, scanning the alley for a threat. It didn’t seem like there was, but that cry sounded Nagithian. He continued his walk a few steps, then frowned, looking back toward the sound. Someone was probably hurt, it didn’t sound like anything that could hurt him so it wasn’t exactly interesting. Still…it was an excuse not to go back to work, right? Another screech called and he shrugged to himself, walking along casually down the alley.

He rounded a corner and found the source. It was indeed a young Nagithian, several of them in fact. One was in lizard form, flailing and shrieking, clawing at a vine that was wrapped around its midsection and throat. Huh, well that was something, wasn’t it? He’d just been thinking of that. The plant nearby must be a big one, to go for a kid. Charin watched curiously as the child thrashed, to no real avail, to free itself. There were three or four others there, watching, some in lizard form and some not. They were laughing, jeering, mocking the one who was snared and obviously taking great amusement in the spectacle.

“Come on, weakling! Get out! Get out!” a boy laughed.

The imperiled child gave another shriek, more desperate and pained than before. Charin could see through the hole in its side that one of his lungs had collapsed, and another organ seemed punctured. The punctured organ was no big deal, it was a decoy, but that lung was a problem. That wasn’t supposed to collapse. He frowned just a bit, watching as the wide-eyes of the victim whirred about, panicked.

“Hahhah! The plant’s going to eat him just like it ate Remy last week!” A girl crowed. “What a wimp!”

“Hey, who’s that guy?”

One of the spectators had noticed him, eying him warily.

“Whaddya want? We’re busy.”

“Uh…nothing, really-“

“Oh! He’s dead!”

His gaze followed the group’s just in time to see the trapped child fall limp, the organs stopped pulsing, the exposed brain stopped throbbing, and the eyes stared blankly. Charin twitched, staring into the eyes.

He’d seen a dead person’s eyes before, had seen them glaze and dull. Usually he had been the one that killed them, even before he’d killed people he had witnessed it happen. When he was young and played in the streets, he had seen things like this happen before. Come across other children dead or dying. He’d never …watched, like these kids did, no. Back then he had just ran, ran from the area so whatever killed them wouldn’t go after him as well. Now, these eyes…why did he notice them? Why did he stare back, as if they could see him? Something rattled in him, in the pit of his chest like when he had seen Rachel with those men…

The eye contact was broken when the body slid across the ground, the vine pulling the corpse away, under the foundation of a nearby shack and out of sight. Charin stared at the dark hole it had slipped into, oddly still, oddly tense. If he didn’t know better it felt like he had stopped breathing….like he’d died just like that child-

“So did you want something or what, huh?” one child asked, sneering up at him with their hands on their hips.

Charin looked down at them and for an instant felt….he wasn’t sure what he felt. It was like fear, even though he knew he wasn’t afraid of them. There was no way he could be afraid of them, they were small, weak, no threat to him at all. It was like he was afraid not because he thought they could harm him, but… It was like…it was like he- No, no he had it. It was because for a moment, he didn’t know why they didn’t react the same way he did. Like for a moment he had fully expected them to be quiet, to stare off, to be unnerved by their playmate’s death.

“…No, I didn’t,” he said.

He turned and walked back the way he had come.