Chapter 38

Like a tsunami of rock, the walls towered overhead. It stood at a height unimaginable to those who had not witnessed its splendor. If not for the countless lights and banners that decorated its surface, one would believe that they had simply come across the cliffs of some barren mountain.

“Wow…” Anya muttered. “Those walls are huge!” Her eyes traced the barrier to both sides and could not find its end. “Does it surround the entire city?”

The wall curved up from its foundations into a steep dome shape that abruptly curved outward again toward the top.

“As far as I know,” replied Emma.

The three awaited in one of the several lines that formed before the gate. Each line led to their own respective table with a uniformed official busily processing documents. Armed guards patrolled the area, half of them kept order and ensured all regulations were met before anyone was granted entry. The other half seemed to be surveying off into the distance, often shining their bright spotlights at the slightest of silhouettes, who usually turn out to just be incoming travelers.

“Next!” shouted one of the officers. After what felt like hours of waiting, it was finally their turn to head up. When the three arrived at the table, what faced them was not a warm and welcoming smile but the dead eyes of a man who had spent hours exhausting himself with paperwork.

“Identification please,” the man spouted, his eyes did not deviate from his forms.

Anya saw the dark circles under his eyes. The man seemed to be fairly young with his soft features and sparse facial hair, but he wore a tired expression that was unfit for someone of his age.

“Here you go.” Emma handed the man a laminated card which he then carefully inspected for signs of fraudulence. Once he was sure that neither Boris’s nor Emma’s identification cards had been tampered with, the man jotted the information down into a log.

“And you?” he then questioned, staring at the little girl. “Where’s your identification?”

“Umm…” Anya voice. “I-”

“No identification, no entry.”

“Wait a minute, it wasn’t like this before,” Emma contested. “Why now?”

“Stricter regulations have been implemented. If the child does not have an identification, then please step in that line over there.”

Anya glanced at the queue the man referred to and saw the singular line that contained hundreds of people. The girl’s face contorted into an unpleasant frown.

“That looks like it’s going to take hours…” the child muttered.

“Not my problem,” the man said dismissively. “Next!”

Tired and now instilled with a newfound rage, Emma slammed her hand onto the table, creating a loud bang that grabbed some of the guards’ attention. “Look here! This is ridiculous! Why can’t you just do something here?”

“Ma’am, that’s not my job.” The man then gestured to the countless guards patrolling the gate and wall. “And are you sure you want to cause trouble here?”

“Are you threatening-”

“Whoa, whoa, everybody calm down.” Boris pulled Emma back before the confrontation further intensified. “Let me take care of issue, okay? I am people person, trust me, no?” While turning toward the young man, Boris reached into his pocket, which startled the admission official.

“You-” the official screamed.

“No, no, calm down. This is friendly conversation. We are all friends here, no?”

Confused, the young man sat at the edge of his seat and glared at Boris nervously. A bead of sweat dripped from his forehead down the side of his face.

“It has been hard day for everybody, no? We no make much money, you no make much money.”

“W-What are you trying to do?” the young man stuttered. His eyes widened when they met the small bag of coins that was placed on the table. “Is that…?”

Seeing as how the admission official began to relax, Boris opened his arms and grinned.

“Small gift for long time no see friend! Ahhh, you should come drink with me after, no? Relax and have talk to sweet ladies everywhere. You are too young to sit in chair everyday.”

The young man furrowed his brow as he became more and more confused, his mouth opened slightly but he did not mutter a word.

“So, what you say? We cannot drink out here, too cold and dangerous.” Boris continued, “And we cannot leave woman without child.”

“Uh… huh…” The admission officer grabbed the bag of coins and discretely placed it into his coat before clearing his throat. “So, seeing as how these new regulations were just implemented, I’ll let this slide, just this once. Wouldn’t want to separate a mother from her child, would we?” He pulled a small specialized plastic card from under the table and began to fill it out. “Your name?”

“Mine…? Oh, Anya!” the little girl replied.

“Town affiliation?”

“None…”

“Alright,” the official held the card up and rotated it, showing off both sides. “This will serve as a temporary identification that will expire a week from now. I must remind you that if you are ever found without a valid identification, we may detain or deport you, understand?”

Boris snatched the card and handed to Anya.

“Ah, thank you, good friend. I will see you on inside later.”

“Right…” The young man jotted a few more notes into his log before he called for the next person in line.

As the three walked toward the gate, Anya stared at Boris with eyes gleaming full of admiration. At first, the man felt awkward and tried not to notice, but after their eyes met accidentally, he had no choice but to acknowledge it.

“What? I have weirdo face or something?” the man asked.

“That was so cool!” Anya shouted with both hands in the air to emphasize her amazement. “How did you do that?!”

“Do what…? Oh, get you in, little one?” The man smiled, then he patted the child’s head. “You will learn too. It is way of city.”

“Way of city…?” Before Anya could fully understand what Boris meant, her attention was drawn to a blinding glow. When her sight finally adjusted, the girl froze with her eyes wide open as the bewildering scene overtook her. “This… this is…”

“Yep, Anya.” The woman placed her hand on the girl’s shoulder as if to keep the child from falling. “Welcome to Luminous.”

It was just as whimsical as her mother’s journal had described. Street lamps lit up every inch of space, only the tucked away alleyways could be described as dim but never dark. The streets, instead of dirt or cracked concrete, were paved in a strange and somewhat soft, black rock. Traces of the faded yellow and white markings were scattered along the length of the road, dividing it into several parallel sections. The outer lane on both sides housed rows upon rows of vendors, selling goods of all variety. It ranged from food stands to pet shops to ammunition distributors; everything one could imagine, a stand sold. The two lanes at the center served as pathways that allowed for ease of traverse. To avoid bottlenecks, people on the left walked in one direction as opposed to the others on the right. The sidewalks had the same purpose but held access to the more luxurious establishments located within the reconditioned buildings.

Toward the center of the city were the towering structures of glass and metal that Anya saw from afar. Bedecked with countless neon lights and signs, their reflections painted a wild blend of colors over the tower’s glistering surface. But that was far away. Closer to them were smaller buildings of brick and concrete. Streaks of grey marked where the walls were patched and small plants grew from the cracks in the road.

“Well, good run, friends,” Boris suddenly said. “I hope we meet again soon.”

“What?! You’re leaving?” Anya tugged at the side of the man’s pants, her lips curved upward into a visible frown. Although their time together was not long, the child had grown fond of the man’s cheerfulness. The strange things that Boris would say often confused her, but it was always in good nature.

Boris kneeled down and gave Anya’s hair a good ruffle.

“I am busy man, have to go back to company to get pay.” He revealed the cloth that wrapped dog tags hidden in his chest pocket. “And I have to return this for the men.”

“Then… why can’t we go together?” Anya asked.

“Ah… little kitten. There is no need. I must do other jobs, that is how I make money. It is not like I’m dying, we will meet again if luck lady give chance, no?” As he comforted the somber child, his gaze went to Emma. “Good run, tovarishch. When you talk to boss, tell him to give me extra, okay? Oh, next time we meet, you pay me back for lost money at gate. Some food will do good. Not right now though, I must hurry to office.”

“Sure thing, Boris.” Emma sighed. “I’ll be sure to tell him to give you the biggest bonus they can.”

“Will we really meet again?” the girl said with sniffle.

“I don’t know, I am not magic man who see future… But nobody not like free food, no? City not as big as sky..”

“Then tell me where you live so we can visit!” Anya became quiet after she was met with a disturbed stare from Boris.

“You… you are creepy stalker child.”

…

Walking through the bustling market had cheered the child up. Before, Anya was at the verge of tears after Boris left, but now she smiled and enjoyed the sights of the city. As they walked on the sidewalk, they saw many who held random signs and advertisements shouting for attention.

“HEY! HUNGRY? COME AND GET SOME OF THE BEST NOODLES IN TOWN!”

“AUNT BETSY’S ROACH MILK! YOU HEARD IT RIGHT, FOLKS! TRY THE NEW EXOTIC MILK OF ROACHES! GOOD FOR THE SKIN AND GOOD FOR THE BODY!”

Bleh. Emma almost gagged when she heard the advertisement. “Why do they keep coming up with these repulsive products?”

“Repulsive?” The child pressed her finger against her chin and looked up at Emma.“I thought milk tasted good.” When the girl was still in Black-Rock, Anya had only heard of ‘milk’ from the rare visitors that came from the city. The visitors had described it as if it were the best thing in the world which enticed her curiosity. Of course, a small town like hers was not able to sustain lactating animals, and she did not want to burden her father with such selfish requests, so she never had the chance to try.

“And how do they milk a roach?” the girl continued to ask. She did not know what milk tasted like, but she understood how it was obtained. “Do they use tiny tweezers?”

“Well, they just grind up the roaches and mix it with goat or cow milk, I think. Personally, I wouldn’t try it… Wait, you never had milk before…?”

“I- ” It was then, Anya’s stomach rumbled. She quickly wrapped her arms around her abdomen and dipped her head in embarrassment.

“Y-You didn’t hear that!” the flustering child muttered.

“Anya, there’s nothing shameful about being hungry.” Emma quicked her pace and pulled the child along. “Come on, let's get something to eat.”

They speedily walked down the sidewalk, past shop after shop. The two came across various restaurants, whose alluring scent only made Anya’s already growling stomach roar louder. But at each stop, Emma would briefly look inside before moving on as if she was searching for something specific.

“Found it!” the woman proclaimed after a while of searching. The little girl hastily caught her breath, and her eyes glossed over the establishment that Emma tediously found. It was a somewhat small building squished between two others. The walls were layered in light brown brick and the large tinted windows gave vision into the classy interior. Anya’s eyes then met the blackboard sign that denoted the shop’s name.

“The Little Things in Life,” she instinctively mumbled. After a short moment of silence, Anya suddenly shouted, “Hey! Are you making fun of me?!”

“What? No! It’s a cafe. The only place I know that serves milk drinks. Didn’t you want to try it?”

“Oh…” The girl’s cheeks reddened. “Umm… let’s go in then.”

They pulled the wooden door before entering which caused the attached bell to ring. The stylishly-dressed hostess immediately walked over and greeted them.

“Welcome!” she said. “Just the two of you?”

“Yeah, just the two of us.” While Emma spoke to the hostess, Anya was busy soaking in the sight. It was much dimmer than most places she had seen within the city. Small lamps casted unmoving shadows onto the vintage walls and floor. The furniture was mostly made of wood, accompanied with the soft sofas, it radiated a cozy and relaxing aura that made the child feel right at home.

“Sorry, the booths are full. Is it fine if I seat you at the coffee bar?”

“That would be fine,” Emma responded. The hostess led the two further into the shop where a row of elevated seats were lined up in front of a table. Anya had some trouble getting on the bar stool, but she eventually prevailed.

The girl looked around and noticed that they were the only ones sitting at the bar. Two menus were placed in front of them by the well-dressed bartender. The leather-covered booklets included an overabundant number of choices, so much so that Anya was overwhelmed.

“Pick whatever you want, Anya. It’s my treat.”

The child nodded but struggled to make a selection. She had not even heard of some of the things described in the menu and all of them sounded appetizing, therefore Anya found it impossible to choose.

“Umm…” Anya shyly waved to the bartender until she caught his attention. “W-What would you recommend…?”

The bartender smiled gently and traced his finger across the menu.

“The milk tea is popular with people of all ages. Oh, and, I believe that you’ll also love the vanilla sundae.”

“T-Then I’ll get those… please.”

“Sure, and for you, ma’am?”

“I’ll just have the house coffee, regular sweetness.”

“Understood, they will be right out.”

As they waited, the child busied herself by admiring her surroundings. She closed her eyes and whiffed the bitter, yet oddly sweet scent of the cafe. The black and white pictures on the walls all depicted scenes that had no correlation with one another but it felt like that they were small fragments of a larger story when put together.

The door’s bell rang once more behind them, but Anya was too absorbed in the atmosphere to notice. Moments after, a dashing young man wearing a fitted black overcoat sat beside Emma.

“Coffee please,” he ordered. “Black please, no milk.”

“As you wish, sir.” The bartender gracefully began to prepare the drink. He first handed a tall glass of creamy tea filled with clear, clinking ice cubes to the child, a cup of steamy coffee with a flower foam to Emma, and finally a cup of bitter black coffee to the man.

After the initial sip, Anya’s lips gently curled into a joyous smile. Her legs swung back and forth, mimicking the rhythm of her gulps.

“Excuse me… Did you know that coffee used to be too precious to drink?” the man suddenly claimed out of nowhere. “It was only until they restored the botanical gardens, did this drink become available to the public.”

“Ah… that’s interesting, I suppose.” Emma responded, her gaze still fixed on the cup of hot liquid in front of her.

“So, you’re not from this city, are you?”

The question caught Emma’s attention and her focus shifted to the man.

“Oh, what makes you say that?”

“Just a hunch.” The man laughed softly. “So, was I right?”

“Maybe,” she said as she sipped her coffee.

“Then do you mind if I ask you a question about the outside world?” He held the cup in his hand and breathed in the slightly tart aroma.

“And what might that be?”

“Forgive me if I sound intrusive as I’ve never really left the city... But, tell me, those of you who ventured the dangerous and desolate lands, what fates one in the darkest of shadows?”

After another sip, Emma slowly placed the porcelain cup back on its plate, glaring at the reflection within.

“Perhaps, a gamble for the brightest of lights.”